The Princess Pages: A Girl Like Cinderella

Song Ten

A MODEL'S RESOLVE

Brad Fields and Lawrence Lawson gaped at their friend as if he'd just grown three heads in a short span of time.

"When you say 'help'," Lens began, finding his voice, "What do you mean, exactly?"

"I don't know!" The brown haired model flailed his arms in exasperation. 

"Maybe you're thinking of.. advice?" Brad volunteered, pulling out a rolled magazine from his back pants' pocket. 

Trent looked at Brad through narrowed eyes. "I swear to God, man, if you're going to suggest anything related to porn or strippers like last time.."

"No," Brad retorted, creasing out the mag in his hands. "I made a list of names.."

"Names?" Lawrence echoed, his curiosity piqued.

"Of all the chicks you've dated," Brad finished, producing a folded sheet of paper from between some pages of the inappropriate magazine.

"You.. WHAT?" Trent and Lawrence exclaimed, utterly astonished.

"Let me finish, alright?" The cocky grin was still there. 

The Fields-Foods Heir cleared his throat. "As of today, February 5, 2015, you, Trent Oliver Morgan, have had approximately THIRTY-FOUR girlfriends since you started dating five years ago."

"What the hell..." Trent was gawking at his friend in disbelief. He knew Brad was a player, but to keep track of his love life?

"Dude, where is this going?" Lawrence asked Brad, who in turn flashed a cheeky grin.

"I said let me finish!" He wagged the paper impatiently. "Okay, there's Mandy Winters, Willow Fox, Julianne Swift, Selena Moore, Mackenzie Bailey, Lila Simmons, Nina Tiger, Sasha Pierce, Aubrey Newman, Isabella Denver, Isabelle Denver--I can't believe you dated twins--Katelyn Emerson, Abigail Turner, Stephanie Cameron..."

Trent stopped listening, shifting his attention to his more sensible friend, Lawrence.

"What do YOU think I should do?"

"Charlotte Scott..Sierra Dove..Maria Lewis--now SHE was a total babe--Brittany Jenner.."

"First things first, are you referring to your temper or something else?" Lens ventured.

"Veronica Bridge--damn, she was foxy.. Brianna Williams.. Kendra Thompson.. Michelle Miller.. Elisa Taylor...remember, you kept purposely calling her Elise? That was gold!"

Trent exhaled deeply, dropping his shoulders in dismay. "Everything, if possible," he answered.

"...Sydney Vest.. London Davis.. Crystal Steele.. Riley Rush.. Erin Rose.. Madeline King..."

"This may sound as a surprise to you,man, but.. I can't come up with any ideas," Lens admitted, much to Trent's disappointment.

"Belle Jordan.. Samantha Isles.. Avery Hay.. And last but not the least, Ashley Cox."

Both handsome guys swiveled to face their determined friend. "What?" Brad asked, bewildered.

"What the hell was that for?" Trent demanded, completely aggravated.

"I'm shoving the cold-hard truth in your face," Brad replied, refolding the white paper.

Trent lifted an eyebrow at him. "What truth?"

"That you've never had a serious relationship in your--almost--eighteen years of existence."

"Neither have you," Trent shot back, crossing his arms over his chest. "Your point being?"

Brad tucked away the small white square in his back pocket. "Why not find a girl you're willing to take seriously?" he asked.

For a moment, the spacious office was filled with dead, incredulous silence.

Lawrence's gray eyes were as wide as saucers, his mouth ajar. This, coming from Bradford Fields, the guy who's slept with half of America's female population, among other places.

"That's rich," Trent taunted, breaking the ice, cupping his forehead as he shook his head. "You of all people, advising me to date someone exclusively? Have you gone crazy, Brad?"

Unfazed, the black-haired teen raised his chin,folding his arms in front of him as well. "Since day one, pal. Since day one," he confirmed rather proudly.

"Maybe..." Lawrence muttered, making the two boys look at him. "..Brad's right."

"Of course I'm right," Brad arrogantly stated, then his face crumpled with puzzlement. "Wait, how am I right?"

Lawrence gave Brad a brief,meaningful nod, before he focused his gray eyes on Trent.

"Think about it," Lens started, with hand gestures. "When did your life start rolling downhill? When did things get absolutely screwed? WHEN did you start to care less about everything?"

Brad and Lens are staring intently at their model friend, who was contemplating on his life choices, wearing a pensive frown on his face, arms folded.

When mom left crossed his mind, but he didn't say them aloud.

But Lens and Brad caught the look in his eye, and they both understood.

Trent rounded on Brad, his tone outraged. "You can't be serious! Both of you know why I've had a hard time taking anybody seriously!" he lashed out, uncrossing his arms.

"Because you have trust issues?" Lawrence offered, glancing at Brad.

"Because they only dated you for your looks, the money, the publicity?" Brad egged on, returning Lens's glances.

Honestly, Trent could sometimes hit his friends. In the face. With bricks.

But as his dull green eyes skimmed over the display of picture frames hanging on the wall and perched on the shelves, his mind reeled back to the days when he dived into his early tries at romantic relationships.

He had been the proper gentleman. Patient. Polite. Sweet. The works. Youthful romance was such a fragile thing, and to find out that his first girlfriend had been paid by his father to date his son.. that shit hit the fan, real fast.

Trent Morgan had never been in a stable relationship since then. There were flings, of course.

Well, practically all of them were flings. He'd learned to assess every girl he encountered, and in the end, he discovered they were all the same: Social climbers, gold diggers, fakes who were after only fame and fortune, and if not those, then they chased him for his face, his power. The connections he had. 

To be fair, a few of his exes never really liked him. Only pursued him because their image forced them to. And with that came an amicable end to their affair. Not that the paparazzi cared.

"Tell you what," Trent blurted out, startling his two friends. "If I ever find a girl who is kind, sincere and likes me for who I am?" He counted off his fingers, adding, "Then, and only then, will I court her."

Brad let out a low whistle, stretching his arms upwards. "That's quite a gal you're asking for, man."

Lawrence placed a comforting hand on Trent's shoulder. "How hard can it be to find a good, genuine girl?" he wondered out loud.