Chasing Cinderella Chapter One-"I'm just trying to find my way around here!"

Kayden O'Connell parked his car in the school lot and he, his sister Kiran and brother Cale made their way to the main locker area.

Unlike most schools, East Valley High School was just buildings and had all the hallways and lockers outside with breezeways and awnings that protected the students from the weather when it was bad.

The O'Connell's had only been in Los Angeles for a few weeks, they had moved from Iowa for Mrs. O'Connell's job as an emergency room surgeon. All three of the kids were in the middle of their junior year of high school. Kayden and Cale are seventeen. Kiran is sixteen.

"Look at 'em." Kayden said looking around at the girls huddled in groups as they greeted each other.

"And each more tasty than the next!" He rubbed his hands together.

"And each more brilliant," Kiran said sarcastically.

"I know!" Kayden replied.

Kiran shook her head affectionately.

He walked up to a group of girls and starting talking to them.

"What's goin' on?" he asked them. "Hey," they replied.

"How does he do that?" Cale asked.

"I know, right? He just should be just as lost as we are. This place is completely insane," Kiran responded.

"Well, I'm good. The gym is right over there," Kayden said as he rejoined them. He pointed across the courtyard to the gym building.

"Kayden, you do realize that most cultures don't consider weight training a class, don't you?" Kiran asked him.

"That's not funny, K," Kayden replied.

"Yeah, it is," Cale smirked.

"Funny, and true," Kiran said as she glanced at Cale.

"Look, weight training is a class," Kayden assured them. Kiran and Cale looked at each other. "I get a grade for it," he pointed out. They shook their heads, smiling.

"Whatever, later," Kayden pushed open the doors to the gym and disappeared inside.

Kiran saw Connor Winters walking towards her. He smiled as he walked into the gym after Kayden.

Kiran smiled as she started walking again. She wasn't watching where she was going and accidentally bumped into a girl who was walking in front of her at the same time.

"Ow! Ugh! Damn!" the girl groaned. Her Starbucks coffee had spilled all over her arm.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to!" Kiran leaned over, helping her pick up her books.

"Who cares what you meant. Do you always create a disaster wherever you go?"

"What is your problem? It was an accident. I'm just trying to find my way around here."

"You and everyone else in this place," the girl grumbled, glaring at Kiran as she hurried away.

Kiran rolled her eyes and walked in the opposite direction.


After school, Kiran made her way to the girls' locker room in the gym for cheer leading practice. She caught snippets of conversations before she even opened the door where she was bombarded by the smell of strong perfumes and burned hair from straighteners and curling irons.

"Haley, you were so not with Mark last night, were you?" She heard Cristina Cleary ask her little sidekick, both of whom were no doubt hogging the mirror and applying large amounts of lip gloss.

Haley rolled her eyes. "I was. And if his moves are as weak as they were last night, then we're in trouble on Friday."

"I hear you," Cristina replied. "If those boys are half as good as they think they are we'd all be a lot more relaxed."

"Kiran, you're late," Cristina turned to face her.

"Oh, yeah, sorry," Kiran apologized as she lifted the handle to her locker. "I'm still trying to get this campus figured out."

"Don't let it happen again." Cristina fished in her purse for a set of keys and handed them to Kiran.

"Pompoms are in locker 4. Bring them to them gym, please. Ladies!" She turned and the other girls followed her out into the gym.

Kiran hurried to get ready and then met them in the gym where they practiced their dance routines.

"Great, girl!" Cristina high-fived Haley.

"Kiran, nice, you're a little stiff on the return. See?" She demonstrated the move. "Just feel the move," Cristina told her.

Kiran followed along the best she could. She had never been good at moving her hips the way Cristina's Latin blood allowed her to. Cristina smiled at her encouragingly.

Kiran sighed. "Thanks, your moves are different from what we did back home," she said.

"Don't worry, you'll get it. Just keep practicing. Good practice, ladies!"

"Kiran, collect the gear and put it away," Cristina added over her shoulder as she headed back to the locker room.

Cristina, Haley and Kiran stopped to watch the basketball team begin their scrimmage. Cristina had her eye on her boyfriend Connor Winters.

"New boy has some skills," Haley commented.

"Please, they all do in the beginning of the season. We'll see where it ends up," Cristina said, confident that Connor would be able to get his game back against Kayden.


"Go in, go in!" Kayden yelled. He passed the ball to one of the guys, who made to pass it to someone else and almost lost it. Connor jumped in to take it to the other end of the court, but Kayden manage to steal it from him and did a neat lay-up.

"Nice, Mr. O'Connell! And that's how you play this game," the coach complimented, patting Kayden on the back.

Connor shoved him playfully. "You watch yourself out here, son. We only got real ballers here in this city."

"Iowa," Kayden enunciated. "I-O-W-A. Why don't you look it up on the map while you're sitting on the bench?"

Connor shook is head. "I ain't gonna be the one pickin' splinters outta my ass."

They continued the game, in which Kayden stole the ball two more times from Connor.

"Connor! Over here!"

Kayden tapped the ball out of his hands and made a nice shot that swished into the net.

The coach clapped. "Nice, Kayden!" Kayden smiled appreciatively.


"Sir, sir, I have to take AP physics. I'll be ineligible for college scholarships if I don't carry a full load this semester," Cale persisted. He was trying to get his schedule altered in the academics office.

The man shook his head. "I feel for you Mr. O'Connell, but there's nothing I can do if the class if full."

"So, what am I supposed to do? Home school?"

"Look, I'm only in charge of student's schedules. If you want to talk about your options, I suggest you go talk to one of the counselors."

Cale shook his head. "No, no, no. Look, I've already completed one year of AP algebra and one year of AP calculus. There's got to be another class open besides Geometry One?"

"Sorry, that class just filled up too. How do you feel about art? Next!"

Cale sighed, feeling defeated. He turned and walked back to his class.


After showering and changing back into her other clothes, Kiran waited for the basketball team to finish up its practice so she could get a ride home. She was working on her Geometry homework on the bleachers.

Connor looked up at Kiran from the court and she smiled at him shyly.

"So, do you actually like basketball, or do you just like watching guys pat each other on the ass?" The girl Kiran had bumped into earlier that morning asked her as she sat down.

"Question, are you on meds?" Kiran asked sarcastically.

"Actually, no. My mom fired my last therapist after he hit on her. My new one believes in a holistic approach to my mental health," the girl explained, not missing the flare in Kiran's voice.

"So, you are crazy?"

"They think I am. It gives them a reason to justify my behavior. But no, I'm not, are you?"

"No," Kiran replied matter-a-factly.

"Then what are you doing in here?"

Kiran pointed out to the court with her pencil. "Brother," she said, pointing at Kayden.

The girl nodded approvingly. "Cute. I haven't seen him around."

Kiran nodded. "Yeah, we just moved here. He's hoping he'll get to play and if he doesn't his world will end." She rolled her eyes.

The girl smirked. "And I thought I was dramatic. Well, for his sake, I hope he's not too good." She looked out at the court.

Kiran glanced at her, feeling a little insulted by the comment. "Meaning…?"

"Meaning, that the basketball star, i.e. Connor," the girl pointed with her lollipop at Connor, who was sitting out on the bench. "Can't be the star if another star, that would be your brother, replaces him, and then the cheer leading queen Cristina can't be the queen if she's not dating the star…"

Kiran laughed. "Ok, I get it," she said, nodding her head.

The girl sighed. "Here at East, it's all about being somebody," she said dramatically.

"And who are you?" Kiran asked, realizing she still didn't know the girl's name.

The girl made a face. "Today I haven't really decided yet," she said. She smiled and stuck out her hand. "Ashley Davies."

"Kiran O'Connell," Kiran took her hand, smiling politely. "Nice to meet this version of you."

The girl nodded. "Right. Sorry about this morning. Step father number 3 came by which pissed off step father number 4, and they got into this whole parental argument over my…"

Ashley had leaned forward to dig around in her purse for something, and Kiran caught a glimpse of her tattoo on her lower back.

Kiran looked away when Ashley sat up after retrieving a Fruit2O water bottle from her purse, but Ashley had seen her looking.

"…Tattoo. You like?" She smiled.

"I… thought they were illegal for minors," Kiran said, unsure of what to think.

Ashley gave her a sympathetic look. "Everything cool is. Anyway, it was a long night, and I woke up a little cranky and you received the benefit of it."

"Lucky me," Kiran muttered.

Ashley smirked as she took a sip of her water. "So, have you seen much of LaLa Land?"

"Uh, yeah," Kiran said. "Universal City, Santa Monica Pier…"

"Stop, stop. You're killing me." Ashley picked up her things and motioned for Kiran to follow her.

"Oh, I have to wait for him. My ride." Kiran gestured out to the court where Kayden was still playing.

Ashley looked out at him. "Hey!" she yelled. He looked up at her. "I'll get her home!"

He raised his hand to say okay and continued with the game.

Ashley smiled at her. "C'mon," she said.

Kiran smiled and followed her out of the gym. Connor watched them leave from the bench, catching Kiran's eye as the door shut behind her.


Ashley showed her the good shopping places, the beach and popular restaurants and everything else important to the adolescent age group of Los Angeles. They ended up back at Ashley's mansion.

"You live here?" Kiran asked, stunned as Ashley drove through the front gates up to the driveway courtyard.

"Just me, mom and number four, who I think is soon-to-be ex number four."

They watched TV in Ashley's room on her bed as they played with her abundant stash of stuffed animals.

Ashley made a disgusted noise. "Tell me about my life…" she said, reacting to something they had just seen on the TV.

"Boston's way too dramatic. Real World Hawaii, now that would work," Kiran said.

"Ok, didn't one of them OD?" Ashley asked.

Kiran nodded. "Yeah, besides that." She giggled.

"So, did u leave a boy back home?" Ashley asked curiously.

"Um, no one special. You?"

"No. One should only hit and run. Boys are way too much trouble."

Kiran shrugged. "Connor's cute."

"Connor? What? You've so dropped some cool points," Ashley said in a fake valley-girl accent.

"Well, then what kind of boy do you like? The bad boy? The Skater? Oh! You like the tortured poets!"

"Uhh!" Ashley covered her face with a plush monkey.

"Come on, admit it!" Kiran tried to pull the monkey away.

Ashley sat up quickly. "No, they all suck. They all think 'hello' means touch me and testosterone me."

"No! It's the kiss! I so hate the kiss! They try to suffocate you with their tongue! Ew!" Kiran made a face.

"I know. I know. And all they do is sit around and talk about themselves for-ev-er," Ashley enunciated.

"I know! And you have to sit there smiling and nodding." Kiran leaned back against the Ashley's pillows, resting her head on her hand.

"Like you care," they said at the same time. Kiran smiled.

"I know. It's a good thing they're not the only choice." Ashley plumped back against her pillows. Her hand accidentally-on-purpose landed on top of Kiran's hand.

Ashley looked at Kiran to evaluate her reaction.

Kiran absorbed what Ashley had said. She looked at her hand, then at Ashley, and caught sight of a picture of Ashley and another girl she didn't know on Ashley's bedside table.

Ashley sensed the awkward moment and moved her hand, folding them neatly on her stomach, smiling to herself.

Kiran reached up and brushed her hair out of her eyes and cleared her throat. They sat quietly and watched more TV.


At the O'Connell's house, Mr. O'Connell was setting the table for dinner.

"So, you don't have any idea who she's with?" Mr. O'Connell asked Kayden when he had come home without Kiran.

"Some girl at school," Kayden replied, shrugging his shoulders.

"You kids gotta look out for each other, Kayden. Next time throw me a bone and get some info."

Kayden shrugged as he put the salad bowl in the middle of the table.

"Do you have any idea where your sister is?" David asked Cale as he walked into the kitchen.

"Dad, I don't even know where my classes are." He set his books on the table and his dad picked them up and handed them back to him.

"That's what you get for being the smart brother," Kayden said.

He rolled his eyes, smiling, and set the books on the island in the middle of the kitchen.

"I'm home!" Kiran called as she walked through the front door.

"Hey! How was school? You're late," David said to his daughter.

"Admit it," said Kayden. "She's your favorite."

Kiran hugged her father. Her father kissed the top of her head.

"Ok, she's my favorite. I heard you made a new friend."

Kiran nodded. "Mm hm," she replied.

"She's smokin' hot," Kayden said. "Was she checkin' me out?"

"Uh, no, why would she?"

"Because I was making their star point-guard look like my…"

"Kayden! Enough," Mr. O'Connell warned his oldest son.

"Sorry," he said.

Kiran shook her head affectionately.

"So, where's Mom?" Cale asked.

"Uh, emergency appendectomy, broken bone, L.A. traffic, pick one," David answered as he handed bowls and plates of food to his kids, implying they had to help set the table.

"Will you tell your friend I'm thinking about asking her to the dance after the game?" Kayden asked Kiran.

"Like she'd even go with you," Kiran retorted, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, don't you think you should talk to her first?" Cale asked.

"Why? She's hot. I'm hot. It'd be hot," Kayden answered.

"I know! I know. I'm late. Mrs. O'Connell said as she rushed through the front door. "3 gunshots, 2 stabbings, and one hand stuck in a toaster."

She reached for a plate off of the island, and Mr. O'Connell grabbed his wife's hand, pulling her back to him to kiss her hello.

"And the traffic in LA!" She said when he had let her go.

"And we have a match!" Mr. O. said.

"How was the counseling center?" She asked her husband.

"Good, bad, happy, depressing, but I loved it."

"Good! See? I told you this move would work out," she assured her family.

Cale rolled his eyes. "I'm glad it worked for someone."

They all joined hands and let their mother give the usual blessing before they ate.

"Thank you, lord, for allowing all of us to be together under your grace. Guide us through our challenges fears and dreams."

"Amen," they all said as they began to reach for the platters of food.