Finding Cinderella

ღ Finding Cinderella (6)

Julianne whirled around to face us, her hair flying around her. "Oh, speaking of others... how's your partner? Is he a hottie?"

Lacey flashed me a quick look as if to give me a secret message. Then she turned back to Julianne, saying, "Hmm, on a scale of ten, I think he's eleven."

The redhead laughed. "You think he's much hotter than Clark?"

Blushing, Lacey answered, "Of course not. Clark's fifteen for me."

I looked at them with a disapproving frown.

"What's the name of your dance partner, anyway?" I asked.

"Can't tell. As I said, the King and Queen's identities are a secret to everybody, until the dance starts." Lacey turned to me with a knowing smile. "I wish you'd change your mind and attend the ball, Ky. You'll miss something major."

I shrugged. "I don't care. I'll find out soon anyway."

The noise from the outside interrupted us, and we figured Lacey's colleagues were returning to the studio. Lacey bid us goodbye, then we started to leave. As Julianne and I walked out the door, my heart skipped a beat as I caught a glimpse of Erik.

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"Oh, regarding the Valentine Ball," Mom said as she took the last of the casserole. "Kylie, didn't Tristan ask you to go with him the other day?"

The spoon of meatloaf stopped halfway to my mouth. Oh no, if Tristan had told her everything from two days ago...

Lacey stared at me, mouth hanging open. "Really, sis?"

"What? No, he absolutely did not," I stammered, quickly shaking my head. "Why would he even ask me out? Face it, Mom, Tristan would never do that."

Lies. Well, okay, maybe just half lies since he hadn't asked me so much as forced me into the ball, but still...

Mom shrugged, munched, and said, "I thought I heard something about it. It made sense, you two being so close and all."

I tried not to gag. When would she see that weren't that close after all? She had always thought of us as being five-year-old best friends playing in a sandbox or something, but there was no way Tristan and I could even stay in the same room without ending up at each other's throats.

"Anyway, your Aunt Jacqueline called," Mom announced. "It's about your college."

Aunt Jacque was the oldest in their sibling group and the only one residing outside the country. She was cool and filthy rich, being single (for some reason) and reportedly earning six figures a year from developing computer programs. Hearing about her made me feel excited.

"What did she say?" I asked.

Then Mom said with a smile, "She's been thinking of helping you to get into the medical program in Imperial. Financial-wise."

"Wow," Lacey breathed.

I felt my soul dancing on cloud nine. Imperial College. My dream school since I was a little girl. It was far away and difficult to get into, as people said, that was why I'd been saving up money from the odd jobs I picked up every summer, and I'd been studying extra hard this year. The labor was no joke. There were times that I got too anxious because I felt like I was failing despite doing my best, but I would never give up on this one. I craved to be a doctor. Ever since my Dad passed away due to heart failure, I had wanted to save human lives, like a modern-day Wonder Woman in a white coat.

"No way, that's awesome! I should give her a call," I said, unable to contain my joy.

"Yes, you should," replied Mom. "She's been extremely kind to you two and has been supporting your needs despite her living in London, so you should communicate with her as often as possible to make her feel appreciated."