The Reluctant Cinderella

Dawn sat on the couch in the living room with Sky the next afternoon. The television was off and the curtain was opened wide enough to let the sun in, but still give them some privacy. Occasionally, a cloud would block the sun. Clouds were becoming more frequent; a sign that fall was on its way. Dawn ran a hand through her already messy hair.

“So, you’ve known about this as long as Rose?” she asked her older brother. He just nodded. “Why didn’t you tell me? It never crossed your mind to tell me about it?”

“Look, I’m sorry but I was young and when I got older I forgot about it.”

“You forgot!? How can you forget something like that?! Rose sure as hell didn’t.”

“What do you want me to say? I’ve already apologized to you.” He rubbed his eyes. “You know that I’ve been concentrating on my studies since I was a kid.”

Dawn let out a long sigh. “I know. I guess I’m not really angry with you. Just there has been so much stuff going on lately with Rose, Jason, and Connor. I’m not thinking straight.”

He sat up straighter at the mention of those two last names. His eyes narrowed. “Who’s Connor? And why are you still talking to Jason?”

She groaned. “Can we not talk about those two right now? I don’t even know why I brought them up.” The event from the day before was still vivid in her mind. “I just need help with Rose. Can you maybe talk to her for me?”

“Dawn, you know that you are the one who has to talk to her,” Sky replied as he ruffled her hair. He didn’t get the reaction he was hoping for. “I’m being serious. If you want to work it out then you need to face her. No one else can do it for you.”

“Is that you’re brotherly wisdom for the day?”

“Yep,” he said while standing. “She’s in her room. Best go talk to her now, just to get it over with.”

She slowly nodded and watched as he began to walk away. “Where are you going?”

“Out,” he said as he stopped and turned. “I’ve been stuck with Rose and I need some time with my friends. I’ll be back later.” He then continued on his way, with Dawn watching.

Minutes passed before she finally got enough courage to talk to her older sister. Dawn now stood in front of Rose’s plain white door. You can do it, Dawn, she thought, giving herself a last second pep talk, then she knocked a few times.

“Who is it?” Rose asked, sounding bored from inside her room.

“It’s Dawn. Can we talk?” There was no reply. Dawn stood in front of the door. Seconds went by, then minutes. She was getting ready to give up when she finally got a reply.

“Fine, you can come in.”

Dawn breathed deeply then slowly exhaled before grabbing the knob and opening the door. She walked into Rose’s for, now that she thought about it, the first time. “Close the door,” Rose demanded, and Dawn did. She stood still looking around. Rose’s room was, unsurprisingly, decorated with different roses. The walls were painted a soft pink and had pictures of various roses hanging around. The furniture set was a hardwood dark cherry that looked very expensive. The room was very clean and not one thing was out of place.

“What do you want?” Rose asked from her bed. She was laying down with her eyes closed.

“Rose,” Dawn started as she slowly walked over, “I think we need to talk about… well everything.”

“Why?”

“Because we have to. Something like this can’t stay under the rug forever. So whether you like it or not, we’re going to talk about it. Understand?” She crossed her arms as she stood at the foot of the bed.

“I’m listening,” Rose said. She didn’t open her eyes or move from her spot.

“Good.” Here Dawn paused, trying to think of a way to start. Finally she just decided to talk and hope everything came out right. “Rose, I know things between us haven’t been good at all. Our relationship was none existent.”

“Obviously,” Rose injected.

“And we both know the cause of it,” Dawn continued, ignoring the comment. “But it doesn’t have to be like that anymore. This is the time to talk things out and make a fresh start.”

Rose opened her eyes then sat up, looking right at her younger sister. “Oh, so you believe that if we just talk and apologize then we’ll be the best of friends?” Rose scoffed.

“I’m not delusional.” She gave her older sister a glare. “But, I believe that us talking will at least start a foundation for a good relationship. Want to give it a shot?”

Rose let out a long sigh. “Sure, why not?” Dawn’s eyes softened as a small smile appeared on her face. “But don’t get your hopes up.”

The smile vanished. “I understand. I’m just happy that you’re actually going to try.”

“Whatever,” Rose muttered while moving aside so Dawn could sit on the bed. After she sat, Rose started the conversation. “I’m guessing that the first thing you want to talk about is the whole affair thing, right?”

Dawn nodded. “Well, yeah. I mean I know about it after talking to mom and dad, but what I really want to know is how you found out.”

“It was late one night when mom and dad were talking with hushed voices in the living room. I had quietly went down the stairs and overheard them talking about you and the affair. They, of course, caught me and made me promise not to tell you. You were five at the time and I was seven. It was then when I started to hate you.”

Dawn’s eyes widened. “But you were seven. Seven! How can you have hate for me at that age?”

Rose rolled her eyes. “Think about it. I was daddy’s little girl until you arrived. Yeah, I was two when you were born but as I got older I noticed that dad gave you more attention. And when I learned about everything it pushed me over the edge.”

“But, you were just a kid! I would never-”

“Oh, yes you would. Trust me. If you were in my place you would have hated you too.”

Dawn shook her head wildly. “No! I wouldn’t have.” She stood and looked down at her sister. “I can’t believe how psycho you are. Seriously, you need some help. Do you even think about what you’re saying?” She was dumbfounded. “We’ll talk when you’re sane. If we continue now we’ll get nowhere.” With that, she left.

Rose stared at the closed door for a while before shaking her head and laying back down. “I told her not to get her hopes up. She was always so naïve.” She closed her eyes once again, trying to get back to sleep. But she didn’t fall asleep right away. Dawn’s words were still going through her head.