The Accountant's Daughter: A Cinderella Story
The Accountant's Daughter: A Cinderella Story
by: Redroseb
email: redroseb@hotmail.com
Once upon a time, there lived an accountant, his wife,
and their daughter Serena. They lived in a two-story home, with a one
car garage, and a backyard. The backyard had a garden of roses which
outlined the borders of it. The roses were of many colors, red, pink,
white, and peach, to name a few. Whenever the sun rose, its rays fell
upon the flowers, emitting a cheery glow that made you think you were
in heaven. The family was known for having this beautiful rose garden.
The neighbors frequently visited their home to admire it. The
accountant's wife and daughter welcomed them with open arms each day.
One day the sun rose as usual, but this time no glow could be
seen. The day seemed to become more and more gloomy. Suddenly, the
sun was engulfed by many, dark gray and black clouds. There wasn't a
stir anywhere in the house or the entire neighborhood. The only sound
heard was that of the wind howling and the rain falling like cats and
dogs. Everyone gathered in the home of the accountant, but none had
the courage to say anything. They had very sympathetic and sad faces.
From this one could conclude that something bad had happened.
What happened was worse than bad, if there is such a thing this would
be it. Serena's mother and father were victims of a hit and run.
Being that she was an only child, she had no one to take care of her.
Once again the silence was interrupted. Not by the wind, nor
the rain, but by constant loud bangs at the door. Someone got up to
open the large, white door with three red diamonds which appeared
vertically in the center of the door. The door opened to a woman with
two little girls, who were probably not much older than Serena.
The woman was clothed in a very posh outfit, consisting of a designer
dress, hat, and dark glasses. The woman had black hair, with silver
streaks shining when the light shone on it. She also had dark eyes
with a very mean stare. The girls were dressed similarly to the woman.
Upon further investigation, we find out that she is Helena, Serena's
aunt. Helena is the accountant's older sister, and the two girls, Ann
and Beryl, were his nieces. Serena remembered her mother's warnings
about Helena, but at this point she had no one else to care for her.
Also, Helena claimed that according to her younger brother's will,
Serena and the entire estate was under her care. Being very trusting
people, no one questioned her, but felt sorry for Serena, for all had a
bad feeling about this mysterious woman.
As Serena grew up, her cousins became more and more jealous of
her. Serena inherited her mother's beauty. Both had hair that reached
their ankles and was the color blonde. Not just any blonde, but the
kind of blonde that shimmers like gold in the sun. She had the bluest
eyes.
To mask her beauty, Ann and Beryl dressed her in rags. But,
not even rags could hide the beauty that lied within her. To further
put her down, Sernea's aunt and cousins made her work constantly at
home and at work at all hours of the day and night. Along with
cooking, doing the laundry, and cleaning the house, Serena had to do
the bookkeeping and work with clients at her father's company. She
also wanted to preserve her mother's prized rose garden, although
Helena wouldn't let anyone come over to admire it anymore. Serena
never had a real break or vacation or any sort of help.
One day while Helena was reading Forbes magazine, she saw an
article about an executive of a multi-million dollar corporation named
Darien. The article stated that the parents of this man were seeking
a wife for him. In order to find her, they were holding a costume ball
at their home in the Hamptons. Everyone eligible to marry were
invited. Helena was ecstatic when she realized that one of her
daughters could be Darien's wife. She began making preparations for
her daughters to attend this ball. She glanced at the clock which
read half past six, and began to wonder where Serena was, because she
needed Serena to help prepare her daughters.
Meanwhile, Serena just got off the train from a long day of
work. She realized that her aunt and cousins would give her tons of
work to do the moment she set foot in the house. So, she decided to
rest in a nearby park before going home. Serena looked for a bench to
sit at and noticed one available next to a man wearing a black shirt
under a olive colored sports jacket (AN: if that's not Darien, I don't
know who it could be). He looked very handsome, having dark hair and
dark eyes. He was sitting all alone with his head stuck in the stock
section of a newspaper. She approached him with caution, not wanting
to disturb him. She asked him if she could sit down. He didn't even
look up when he said, "sure," without any passion. Serena sat down
and began admiring her surroundings. She noticed the children playing
on the swings or in the sandbox, and the birds chirping in the tall,
green trees. Finished with reading the paper, the man looked up at the
woman sitting next to him, and was immediately taken by her beauty.
He was mesmerized by her golden hair and blue eyes. At that moment, he
realized that she was his match, his destiny. He noticed that she
carried a folder with the name of an accounting firm his corporation
were going to merge with. Figuring she worked there, he tried to
strike a conversation about the company. He found out that she did
indeed work there, but was upset about the merger. When he asked why,
she said that she didn't want to talk about it. So, she changed the
subject(AN: she didn't want to talk about it because the merger meant
that her father's company name would be changed, and she didn't want
that, would you).
They talked for hours about anything and everything. They
didn't even notice that the park was becoming empty as people were
leaving, and that the sun had already set. During these conversations,
Serena also falling for him, just as he did for her. Then, a man
approached them and called out, "Darien! Darien!" And both realized
what time it was. Serena knew she had to hurry home and think of an
excuse. She began to leave, but when he grabbed her wrist and asked
her to come to a party being held at his home, she said that she would
try.
When she got home, her aunt and cousins were waiting with
impatient and angry looks on their faces. Somehow, they had seen her
with Darien, and told her that she could go if she helped Ann and Beryl
get ready for the ball, and do her daily household chores. Serena did
as she was told. She ironed her cousins' clothes, and helped them with
their hair and makeup. Finally, everyone but Serena was ready. When
she began to get herself ready, she heard the car start and the doors
close. Serena ran out of house, only to see that her aunt and cousins
left without her. So upset that she would not be able to see her love,
she ran into the rose garden and began to cry her eyes out.
All of a sudden, a voice said, "Crying won't get you to the
party." Serena was caught off guard, and began looking for where the
voice came from. She looked everywhere, but couldn't find anyone. T
hen, the voice said, "I'm over here, behind this peach rose." Serena
couldn't believe her eyes when she saws that the voice was coming from
an enchanted blue rose. She had never in her life seen such a color
rose, nor had she ever seen one which could speak. The rose told her
that it would grant her one wish. Serena asked to go to the costume
party as a princess. So, the blue rose began to glow and directed
other roses to surround Serena. They encircled her, and when the
transformation was over, Serena looked more gorgeous than ever.
She wore a long off-white gown with gold work on it. The rose also
gave her a bracelet made of diamonds, rubies, and pearls. It was quite
unique. The rose also provided her with a car and driver, but warned
Serena that she had to come home before three. If she didn't, the
gown would change back into her normal everyday clothes. Serena said
that she would be back by then.
At the party, Darien was being surrounded by many women,
including Ann and Beryl. Darien wasn't interested in any of them, he
was looking for the girl from the park bench. When he had gotten home
that night, he told his parents all about her, and was upset at himself
for not asking her what her name was. So he just kept looking for her
golden hair and spellbinding blue eyes. The clock had already struck
midnight, and there was still no sign of her. Then, all of a sudden
everyone stopped their conversations, the women surrounding Darien all
stopped and looked at what was going on. Serena entered the room and
made everyone's head turn. Darien approached her and asked her for a
dance. They danced for hours. Darien held her in his arms and didn't
want to let go. The young couple looked very cute together, everyone,
including Darien's parents, knew that he had found his one true love.
The couple's happiness was interrupted by the sound of the
clock striking three. Serena realized she had to leave immediately.
She began to run to the door as Darien followed her. She dropped her
bracelet, but didn't have time to retrieve it because Darien was right
behind her, and her gown was already changing back into rags. Darien
tried to call her to come back, but it was too late, she was gone.
Distressed by what had happened, he began making his way back to the
house, only to find the sparkling bracelet. Then, he realized that she
probably didn't live too far from the park, because she didn't seem to
have any sort of transportation. So, he decided to go house to house,
until he found her.
Darien had gone from house to house, searching for the owner of
the bracelet. It would not fit anyone's wrist. The womens' wrists
were either too big or too small. But, he kept on looking for her.
He reached Serena's house, and began trying the bracelet on Ann and
Alexis. It didn't fit them. He asked if there was anyone else in the
house. Helena and her daughters said, "No." Just then, Serena walked
into the house from work. Darien saw her and realized it was his love.
He walked to her and placed the bracelet on her wrist, and of course,
it fit. Her aunt and cousins were all shocked. Darien and Serena
looked at each other and kissed. They later married and lived happily
ever after.