The Search for Cinderella

Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10 (FINISHED EDITING)

I imagined my mum smiling as she fiddled with the dandelions trying to make a daisy chain. She was sitting in between dads legs leaning against his chest.

Sophia and I were playing with bubbles and we were both twirling around with bubble mixture and our bubble wands trying to make the biggest bubbles. We were having a picnic on our red chequered blanket on a field of dandelions.

I took a breath as I picked the first few notes, I opened my eyes and saw my parents in front of me sitting where the judges used to be, they smiled.

I closed my eyes again and I opened my mouth and sing softly, "And after the storm,'" I take a breath and picture my mum laughing, 'I run and run as the rains come but I look up,"

I take another breath, breathing in confidence, "I look up,"

I see dad pressing his lips to my mum's forehead and Sophia slapping her small hands over her eyes, "On my knees and out of love, I look up."

I open my eyes and see them sitting there again with Sophia, 'Night has always pushed up days,' In my mind I see the familiar wrinkles by dads green eyes, 'You must know life to see decay, but I won't rot,' I smile hearing my mums laugh in my ear, 'I won't rot.'

"Not this mind, and not this heart, I won't rot."

Sophia's playing with a ladybug she found in the grass; she wants it as a pet.

"And I took you by the hand, and we stood tall,"

Dad tries to take the ladybug but it opens it wings and flies away, "And remembered our own land,"

"What we live for,"

I open my eyes and they're gone. I see that I'm surrounded with mist and the bottles are floating around, some lit with candles but what catches my attention is the audience with their lights on their phones switched on waving them slowly around. I smile and sing for my parents, Sophia, my friends, the people in the audience, Xavier...

I sing with all I've got, straight from the heart,

"There will come a time you see,

With no more tears,

And love will not break your heart but

Dismiss your fears,

Get over your hill and see what you find there

With grace in your heart and

Flowers in you hair,"

I hold the note, my fingers knowing exactly what to play on guitar as my voice falls back, quiet but now confident, watching the audience, "Now I cling to what I knew,"

"I saw exactly what was true but oh no more,"

While I'm gazing across the sea of people in my mind my mums reading Sophia and I a bedtime story, Cinderella.

"It's why I hold, it's why I hold with all I have, that's why I hold,"

I tell my mum that I want to find my Prince Charming. Sophia agrees.

"And I won't die alone, and be left there,"

She laughs softly and tells me that Prince Charming will find me instead. I just have to wait.

"Well I guess I'll just go home, oh God knows where,"

She kisses us goodnight as dad comes in, my voice grows louder, "Because death is just so full, and man so small,"