"What are you talking about? I'm a legal adult!" Drizella countered, hurt.
"Right. You just haven't matured yet, Drizella. It's quite visible, too, so don't think the Prince won't notice." I was starting to play with the idea of being the prince's wife.
"And I am maturing, Cinderella," Anastasia said briskly, throwing her hair back over her shoulder.
"Ha! What about Talan, Anastasia? I thought you loved him? I thought you cared for him?" I mocked.
"Shut up! Shut UP!" Anastasia said, now screaming wildly. I grinned at her. I knew I was being mean, which was really unfair now that Anastasia had started acting polite.
"You're right. We all have a chance," I murmured, and left my step-sisters to change into my pajamas. When I was done, I climbed up my loft bed ladder, grinning. I smiled at the three souvenirs under my bed, and I sneered into my pillow. I lay in bed on my side, eyes open, dreaming. Day-dreaming until my dreams morphed into night dreams. I dreamed of the Prince, though I had no idea what he looked like besides gorgeously handsome. I dreamed of the Prince wearing only a towel on his waist, then suddenly we were on a boat, and he was handing me tickets to see a concert and then he was handing me a diamond engagement ring... while on a horse. "Will you marry me?" he said. He was faceless, but I knew that he was handsome and kind and gentle and everything I had hoped he would be. "Of course," I croaked. "Yes."
Weeks later, we were fast approaching graduating and my step-sisters still hadn't matured. Anastasia kept saying that she could feel tingling in her lady-part, and I just suggested that perhaps she had an infection of some kind. Anastasia would reply to that with a couple choice swear words. Oh, yes, well on their way to maturing...
Drizella didn't care one way or another, but told me that she would mature in order to marry Prince Charming. I told her it wasn't going to happen, and she told me to shove it up a certain area. Anastasia and Drizella were already phoning around, reserving dresses and looking at different dress materials. They couldn't actually buy a dress because they didn't know what their measurements would be-that didn't stop them from ordering dresses with a bust size 55. I asked if they would have a body size 8000 to match. They just tittered and said I would be jealous of their ample cleavage. I pointed out that I already had ample cleavage, I just chose not to flaunt it. I had spent the entire day getting my boobs stared at critically by my step-sisters.
"SURPRISE, BLONDIE!" Drizella shrieked, jumping up behind me. I screamed. I couldn't help it. She cackled and ran off. How would she mature this way? I shrugged and made her bed, then emptied Lucifer's litter box.
I was seated on the couch with Drizella and Lucifer, watching the television. Lucifer ran off after a while, and when he did Drizella turned towards me, as if afraid that the cat would have overheard us talking.
"Cinderella, do you know why the Prince was away, anyway?" she asked, rubbing her chin with her hand.
I turned my head towards her. "Nope. Why?"
"No, I was asking... it's curious, isn't it?" Drizella continued.
"I guess... But he's a grown man now," I said, bored.
"Yes, but see, he lived with his father. I think his mother died. And although it would make sense for the Prince to be away working out deals with other countries, it's just as likely that... well... there are rumors that he was sent away when he was young, to be rehabilitated."
"Nonsense! He's still young, you know. I heard he's only about six or seven years older than me," I said, then took in the age difference.
"Six or seven years is actually quite a lot, Cinderella. Now, five years is good, I think. I would marry a man five years older than me. And I'm one year older than you."
"Yeah, but I'm sure he likes his girls young. All men do," I said, snorting disdainfully.
"That's for sure. All men are pigs," Drizella agreed. We snorted scornfully, nodding at the same time in that synced agreement girls have.
"Cinderella, make me breakfast," step-mother ordered lazily. I rolled my eyes and grabbed some waffles out of the fridge and shoved them into the oven to reheat. "Here y'are, your majesty," I announced, laying the waffles before her.
She squished her lips up together. "Mm. I may soon become part of the blue-blood family, won't I?" she said crustily.
"I suppose so. You'll be the step-mother-in-law of the prince!" I said, and walked away before she could figure it out and yell at me.
Step-mother was becoming much more muscly. She worked out a lot more, and she told us that she also did a lot of heavy lifting in her job. I let that slide. Maybe she was a criminal, what did it matter? She was bringing in more money now, which was awesome since maybe now we could get proper dresses. I still had my part-time job, but I felt guilty about not having a real job. But I was still in school, after all.
Just recently, step-mother went for a dip in the local swimming pool. I had passed by her, and saw that she was wearing an old lady red dress swimsuit. It still didn't hide her obvious gain in muscle size, though.
I wash busy taking care of my pets. Wash Jack and Gus's cage-terrarium-glass-thing over and over. That's the drill. Then I dumped in new food and shredded bits for them to walk on. They looked at me. I picked up Gus. He was so chubby, the little monkey. Er, mouse.
Then came Pino's cage. I gasped a little at how dirty it was. Pino was sleeping, so I tried very quietly to replace the food and clean the cage. I tried not to vomit at the amount of poo there was. Poor Pino. A few other birds flitted down onto my shoulder as I was finishing up. "Hey, guys," I whispered, "Pino's sleeping, so leave him alone." They quietly chirped in my ear and bent their heads down so I could give them a scratch. I complied.
I walked inside (after the birdies had flown off), passing Anastasia and Drizella. Drizella was finishing up some waffles while Anastasia sat starting at the stale cake in front of her. "I don't think that's safe to eat," I warned. We had put the slice in the back of the refrigerator so we wouldn't be tempted to eat it, but now that the cake was stale and one of us had to eat it, the cake slice had remained at the front of the fridge for at least a week.
Anastasia glanced up at me, then to Drizella. "Cinderella," she said cautiously, as if approaching a skittish animal, "We're having an age-up party tonight."
"What?" I said, appalled. No warning? "Anastasia, what time does it start at? How am I supposed to prepare for it? It's getting kind of late!"
Anastasia looked up into the ceiling as if I was causing her a life time of pain. "Relax, tightly-wound-erell!"
"I already went out to the store and bought food. Two cakes, food, and other little party supplies, like kazoos. I saw someone-Emily Elson, I think. I couldn't be sure... she was in a lab coat, reading a book. She looked rather sad. I don't know why someone would be out reading a book, standing up. Ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous," Anastaisia said thoughtfully.
"Get on with it," I growled.
"Right. So, you need to make dinner for everyone. I got the ingredients and stuff though."
"Oh, by the way, I used the the toilet Cinderella... There's a bit of a mess, so you can clean that up. Also, the party is beachwear, so wear some swimsuit or one of your generally slutty outfits," Anastasia added.
"Generally slutty outfits?" I scoffed. "Seriously man, I'm not a slut."
Anastasia rolled her eyes. "'Seriously man', I'm just a hobo," she mocked. "And if you're looking for Lucifer, the last time I saw him was when he was rolling around on the newspaper."
"Shoot, I just brushed him!" I said with annoyance. I opened the front door and Lucifer bounded in. "Lucifer," I cooed, "Were you locked outside? Poor darling." It was weird simpering to Lucifer. As Anastasia had said, the toilet needed cleaning. As I was bending over the toilet with the brush in hand, my hair elastic broke and tumbled into the toilet. "Crap," I said, then laughed at the significance. Oh well. I flushed the toilet just as the doorbell rang. Great.
As I ran into the shared bedroom to change into my 'party clothes', I caught sight of the people outside. Man oh man. There had to be at least ten just standing on our porch! But Talan wasn't among the crowd, strangely enough... Girbits was there, aged up. His skin seemed even paler than normal-it seemed to glow... Jared was there, still as punk looking as ever in his gray camo swim trunks. Calvin was there, too, with a fancy blue suit on, weirdly enough. It was unbuttoned enough to show off his chest. Either Anastasia and Drizella had told him it was fancy wear, or Calvin had decided that a birthday party was a birthday party, and he should dress up for the occasion no matter what. Robbie Platt, a freshie like his sister, was there, with his hair pulled back into a ponytail. Myah Shah, dressed in a heart-dotted one piece was there. And lastly, Neo Liang, who I had never known before, was there sporting a flowered trunks and a beaming smile. I grinned to myself and started washing the tub.
I did a double take. Was that step-mother's boss, Simon Hodges?
"Come on in, everybody!" Anastasia shouted cheerily, waving her arms around. Everyone merged into the kitchen.
"Hey, Simon, nice to see you here," step-mother said, shaking hands with him.
"You too. It's been a while since I've gotten away from work-been stressed out a little," Simon said, running fingers through his long hair.
"Everyone needs a rest, I guess," step-mother said, then let out a hiccup. Or was that a giggle? I eyed her suspiciously. She refused to make eye contact with me.
"Yeah. It's really nice that your daughters are aging up. I wish I had kids. I love family," Simon said, smiling. I thought I saw step-mother's glass cold eyes warm up as I turned away to hide my smile. I started making some peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, as Anastasia had requested.
I let the sandwiches sit on the counter for a minute or two, and while I waited I went off to see how the other guests were. I opened my shared bedroom door to find Jared dancing with Drizella. Oh wait, no, that was Drizella's look-a-like, Alora Platt. Was she copying Drizella? I mean, honestly-the hair, the face, now the guy?
"Ahem," I said, annoyed.
Jared turned around, guilt-free. "Hey, Cindy! Just dancin'. Seen Drizzy?"
I grinned at him. That was the Jared I knew. "I'm not too sure, but I think she was looking for you."
Jared's face lit up. "Really? Sweet!" He raced out of the room. Alora scowled at me.
As I walked back into the kitchen to check up on my sandwiches, I distinctly heard step-mother say, "I mean, Cinderella is my step-daughter, but sometimes I wonder... She's nothing like her father."
The words sunk in as I placed the sandwiches onto a large plate. "Dinner's up!" I shouted, my voice cracking horridly.
Nothing like my father? Maybe she meant my choices in partner weren't as terrible. Never mind, I thought, remembering Talan.
I took a P&J sandwich and sat down on the couch, bumping into Calvin as I did so. "Sorry, bud," I apologized shakily.
"Huh? Oh, sorry Cindy. I should've been looking..." Calving said darkly, walking off before I could ask what was wrong.
I sighed and glanced back at the sandwiches to see if anyone had taken an interest in them. Apparently not, but Girbits and Medina Hoit were arguing nearby them. I walked over to wash my plate, and as I did I saw step-mother yelling at Drizella.
"Wake up you lazy slob!" she cried. "Get up! It's time to mature! Honestly, Drizella, I'm so disappointed with you..."
The last thing I heard happen as I washed my plate was Medina say, "You're such a dick-headed blood sucker." Was Girbits a vampire? Poor soul. Wait, did vampires have souls? I glanced at Girbits' angry face. His eyes were glowing ominously. Yep, a vampire if I ever saw one. Two vampires seen. How many more to go? What other magical creatures did this world hold?
I heard the buzz of a kazoo and turned to see Anastasia standing in front of a cake with lit candles on it, prepared to blow them out. Step-mother had the kazoo in hand, blasting it. I was next to Girbits, who I had convinced to eat a sandwich. Party guests dropped their plates to the floor as they ran to see the spectacle.
That's when he finally decided to make his entrance.
Talan.
Maybe it was a bad idea to stop being his friend, I thought with regret as I stared into his amazing six-pack. Damn, boy. Sheesh. I needed to marry someone with a six-pack. I watched the roaring, clapping, laughing crowd happily. We were all a family, really. Anastasia, Drizella, and step-mother weren't family. My friends and fellow classmates were my true family. They cared for me. They loved me.
"What do you wish for, Annie?!" a voice yelled out, and a chorus of "Yeah!"s followed.
Anastasia put a hand to her face, seemingly surprised by the question. Talan shifted his head towards Anastasia. She looked into his eyes, then leaned down and blew out the candle.
Girbits and I blew our party horns simultaneously, and as we did sparkles began to erupt from Anastasia. She looked a little scared, but by the time Drizella and step-mother were blowing their party horns Anastasia was grinning. Sparkling like mad, Anastasia aged up. The light was so bright that the formation could not be seen, but I could tell that Anastasia hadn't floated as I had.
Then I wondered-would Anastasia be naked? I started panicking. Not about seeing her naked. Anastasia had mooned me plenty of times. But about there being a party. I couldn't remember why I was naked when I had aged up. Oh, wait, I was already wearing rags, so perhaps I had simply torn through them? As I considered the possibilities, an officially aged up Anastasia stood in front of me, wearing a blue bikini bottom and... an ice-cream cone bikini top? I shrugged. Anastasia looked better now-her face, smarter. Tallness suited her.
"Congratulations, Anastasia!" I cheered, and everyone gave three cheers of hooray. "So," I asked her quietly as everyone came forward for a slice of cake, "Did you hear music and feeling tingly and stuff?"
Anastasia shrugged. "Well, I got shivers down my spine and I heard the kazoos and party horns if that's what you mean."
No, it wasn't. Strange.
"She's not the only one aging up," Drizella grouched.
Step-mother and I shared worried looks and pulled out our party horns. Drizella blew out her candles very quickly, before anyone could make a fuss. I glanced over to her younger sister. Anastasia was seated with her boyfriend, surrounded by dirty dishes, eating cake. Did she not even care about Drizella? I rolled my eyes with annoyance.
Drizella started the glowing cycle as well. Just as I started clapping, Drizella changed. It was a quick flash, and the entire aging up process took next to no time at all! Drizella was crouched on the floor behind the counter, and I realized she was naked. Thankfully, guests had already started leaving, so no one knew. Step-mother tossed me a tiny short purple gown-dress that Drizella pulled on thankfully.
"Happy aging up day, Anastasia! Happy aging up day, Drizella!" Calving shouted cheerfully, walking out.
All of the other guests spilled out quickly as well, shouting out quick good-byes, thank-yous, and celebratory cheers. As step-mother and Drizella finally sat down to eat, only one guest remained.
And, big surprise, it was Talan. And, big surprise, he was making out with Anastasia.
"What the hell are they doing?" Drizella cried with disgust as her sister and Talan swapped spit. They looked much more intimate than they had ever been before, most likely because as adults they both wanted the same thing.
I stood watching them, hoping they would get creeped out. I soon realized that my attempt to separate them was futile, though, as neither opened their eyes. Feeling creeped out myself, I started collecting dishes.
Of course, it was to my annoyance when Drizella walked out with about five layers of makeup caked on, cell phone in hand.
"Hello? I need new clothes. Now."
Awesome. Just what our bill needed.
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