Cinderella was breathless with excitement, lying in bed, thinking about the ball she’d just been to – the best night of her life. She felt the flowing fabric of her dress, spinning around her as she twirled. She thought of the music, the rhythm, the people, and most of all, the prince, with his strong arms and handsome face, guiding her through the steps of the dance as she tried not to step on his feet. And she remembered sprinting away from the ball when the clock struck midnight, leaving behind the prince – and a glass slipper. With a warm feeling in her heart, she went off to sleep, dreaming of love and of pumpkins.
But the next day gave her the shock of her life. Early in the morning, there was a sharp knock on their door. Cinderella dropped her broom and ran to get the door as fast as she could – only to be shoved out of the way by her stepmother, who was squinting through the peephole with an appreciative grin on her face. “A suitor has come calling, ladies!” she yelled. “And a handsome one at that.”
“Who is it?” gasped Cinderella. “Is it for me?”
“Of course not,” sniffed her stepmother, brushing her out of the room. “It’s for your sisters. Who do you think you are?”
Cinderella watched the stepsisters primp in the bathroom as their mother opened the front door. And then she saw him – the prince from the ball, holding her glass slipper! It was a miracle. She couldn’t believe it. She pressed her ear to the wall, waiting to hear what would happen next.
The prince wearily announced, “It is I, the Prince, come with a glass slipper belonging to a lady from last night’s ball! Whoever this slipper belongs to is definitely the love of my life, for I danced with her for a while and she seemed pretty cool. I plan to marry her immediately.”
Cinderella gasped. He was talking about her! She couldn’t just stay in here and watch – but if she ran out, her stepmother would have her doing chores for the rest of eternity. What to do? What to do?
The ugly stepsisters rushed out of the bathroom and sat down in front of the price, sticking out their fat feet that looked as if they were infected with toe fungus. The prince cringed as he slid the slipper onto the first sister’s foot. Cinderella held her breath – but no, her foot was just a little too wide to fit in.
The prince sighed with relief and shook his head. “It looks like it’s not you. Let me try the other one.”
The second sister eagerly stuck out her foot. “I know it’ll fit me.” As she listened, Cinderella prepared herself to rush out into the room, for she knew the slipper would fit her and no one else.
The prince held his breath – well, his nose – as he slid the glass slipper onto the second ugly stepsister’s foot. Cinderella couldn’t wait any longer. She threw open the door just as the slipper went all the way on the stepsister’s foot, and proclaimed to the prince, “IT IS I, CINDERELLA, YOUR ONE TRUE LOVE!”
The prince looked at the ugly stepsister, then back at Cinderella. Even though she was dressed in rags, it was obvious Cinderella was a million times prettier than her sister. “I CHOOSE YOU!” cried the prince. And they embraced, to the outrage of the rest of the house. But as they embraced, Cinderella heard a strange sort of squawking sound. She pulled away and saw that it was coming from the second ugly sister. “PRINCE!” cried the sister. “PRINCE!”
“What?” said the prince irritably. “I have found my love.”
“BUT THE SLIPPER FITS!”
Cinderella whipped her head around and, to her shock, saw that it was true. The sister had somehow squished her foot into the glass slipper. And it fit.
The prince looked from Cinderella, to the ugly stepsister, to Cinderella, to the ugly stepsister. Then he retracted his arm from Cinderella’s thin shoulders and said, “Well, I guess I’m marrying the ugly one.”
Everyone gasped. “How dare you call my daughter ugly!” cried Cinderella’s stepmother. She took a menacing step towards the prince. When he realized what was happening, Prince Charming started to hurriedly back away, but as he scuttled backwards, he tripped over Cinderella’s broom and fell flat on his back. The stepmother and the sisters got closer and closer. Cinderella looked on with horror.
The prince made it to his feet and tried to open the door behind him, but it was locked. “We’ve got you now,” cackled the stepmother. It didn’t look good for Prince Charming.
Then suddenly, Cinderella heard a tinkling noise from above. Everyone looked up. It was Cinderella’s fairy godmother, here to save the day! With a wave of her wand that no one else noticed, the glass slipper grew a few inches, as did Cinderella’s feet. And with that, the fairy disappeared.
“What the heck was that?” said Cinderella’s stepmother. “The tooth fairy?”
“Who knows,” said Prince Charming with a shake of his head, as he tried to subtly open the door behind him.
Then there was a bang. Lying on the floor was the second ugly sister, cradling her ankle and shouting, “I twisted it! I twisted it!”
“Dear, what is the matter?” her mother yelled. “What happened?”
“I just tripped! I guess the glass slipper doesn’t fit anymore or something – it suddenly felt way too big! I think I broke the heel! Wait! Look!”
The three women turned to see Cinderella and Prince Charming running out the door. And on Cinderella’s right foot was the glass slipper. It was, once again, a perfect fit.
Even though the ugly stepsister had to be treated for a broken ankle, and even though Cinderella’s feet were now so big she had to have her shoes custom-made, she was married to the prince the next day, and in the end, they all lived happily ever after.