The first thing I noticed when I woke the next morning was how quiet it was.

No other kids yelling or crying, no Miss Hannigan blowing her high-pitched whistle. There was only the sound of a few singing birds out braving the snow, and the low hum of the folks downstairs at work.

I sighed deeply, relaxing back into my pillow. "This is the life", I thought to myself.

I remained under the covers, enjoying the peace and quiet for a few moments more until I remembered the bell next to me on the bedside table.

I reached my arm out and dangled it, making it ring. I waited a few moments, not really sure if I'd rung it loudly enough for anyone to hear, but then my bedroom door opened and one of the maids whose name was Annette came in. I'd met a lot of new people the day before and it was hard to remember everyone's names, but Annette was easy to remember because of her name being so similar to mine.

"Good morning Miss Annie", she greeted me brightly. "Did you sleep well?"

"Oh yes, very well thank you Annette. How about you?"

Annette looked at me as if she was surprised I'd ask. She smiled at me. "I slept very well too, Miss. Thank you for asking."

"You're welcome", I smiled back at her and she chuckled as she adjusted my pillows so I could sit up in bed. "Drake will be in shortly with your breakfast."

"OK...thank you." I smiled at her. It was all so exciting but kind of overwhelming to be being taken care of so well.

Drake came in through the door, carrying a large tray.

"Good morning Mr. Drake", I said excitedly, anticipating my breakfast already.

"Good morning Miss", he replied with a small smile, carefully setting the tray down on my lap.

It was a little heavy and I had some trouble balancing it.

"Just sit back against your pillow and relax your legs, then it will be easier to hold", Drake advised me.

"OK." I did as he'd suggested and it felt a little more comfortable but I was still nervous about tipping the tray.

Drake took the lid off and my eyes widened as I saw the bowl of oatmeal with fruit and cream and the pancakes with maple syrup.

"Wow! Is this all for me?" I asked Drake and Annette.

"All for you, Miss, and more if you want it."

"Oh gosh, I'm not even sure I'll be able to eat this much. This is a meal fit for a king!'

"Or a Princess", Annette pointed at me and smiled and I grinned back at her.

Drake smiled too. "Enjoy your breakfast, Miss. Ring the bell again when you're finished and Mrs. Pugh will come and fetch your tray."

"Thank you!" I called out to him as he and Annette left the room.

I picked up my spoon and started eating the best oatmeal I'd ever had. At the orphanage we called it mush, and it truly was because it was always cold and lumpy and gritty, but this was so lovely and warm and smooth and sweet.

I ate my breakfast happily, wolfing down my oats and my pancakes which were also delicious. I picked up a fork full of pancake slathered in syrup which I obviously hadn't stabbed very well because some of it fell off the fork and splattered syrup all over the beautiful white duvet.

I froze, staring at the spill, knowing how much trouble I was going to be in. I lay my fork back down on the plate and cowered back under my blankets, panicking. I wondered if there was any way I could clean it up so no one would notice, but I was kind of pinned under the tray and not really strong enough to lift it myself. I knew I was going to have to ring for Mrs. Pugh and she was going to see the mess I'd made and then I'd be done for!

I reached over to pick up the bell. My arm was shaking out of nervousness.

I rang it and waited and after a couple of minutes, Mrs. Pugh came into the room. "Good morning, young lady! I hope you've enjoyed your breakfast", she chirped spiritedly.

I sat still against the pillow, not daring to speak or to move, waiting for Mrs. Pugh to notice the now stained bedding and scold her.

"Annie? Is everything alright child?" She asked me, sounding concerned and I knew I was going to just have to tell her.

I could feel my bottom lip trembling as I tried to hold back my tears. "I…I'm sorry, I spilled some food on the blanket."

Mrs. Pugh's eyebrows rose up as she looked down at the blanket to find the mess. "Oh dearie me", she sighed and I felt so disappointed in myself.

"Well, no matter, Annie. Accidents happen."

I looked at her in disbelief. Had I heard right? No yelling? No threats?

"We'll take it to wash and I'll inform Annette that you'll be needing a new one", Mrs. Pugh smiled at me as if she was trying to comfort me, rather than scold me.

I blinked away my tears, feeling quite overcome. "Oh, thank you Mrs. Pugh. I really am sorry."

Mrs. Pugh lifted the tray off my lap and chortled. "Oh ho, don't you give it another thought dear. We'll take care of it. Now…have you seen what's in your closet? While you were out last night, Cecile brought in a whole new wardrobe for you."

"Really?" I asked her excitedly, jumping up from my bed and racing to the closet to look at all my new outfits. My jaw dropped as I opened the doors to reveal about a dozen brand new outfits. They were all so divine, the materials so delicate.

"Oh my goodness, they're beautiful", I said to Mrs. Pugh who walked up behind me and patted me on my shoulder. "Aren't they just? Beautiful dresses for a beautiful girl, hmm?" She winked at me.

Mrs. Pugh was such a kind person. Sort of how I imagined a Grandmother might be. I smiled at her widely in thanks for the compliment and wrapped my arms around her waist to hug her tightly. She laughed softly and put her own arm around me. "Oh, Annie, you're a love."

"I can't wait to thank Cecile for picking out all of these beautiful clothes for me."

"Indeed. She's made some very nice choices", Mrs. Pugh nodded in approval.

I chose a beautiful pale blue dress with a delicate lace collar and ruffled sleeves. I couldn't wait to show Miss Farrell and Mr. Warbucks, and Cecile of course.

I bounced down the stairs, talking excitedly to Mrs. Pugh who left me at Mr. Warbucks' study door to return to the kitchen and start preparing lunch.

Mr. Warbucks and Miss Farrell were sitting across from each other at his desk. Miss Farrell was writing things down in a notebook as Mr. Warbucks sat back in his chair with his hands together, saying something about his factories. I knocked on the open door to announce myself.

Mr. Warbucks looked up immediately and Miss Farrell turned in her chair to look at me.

"Oh, good morning Annie!" Mr. Warbucks called across the room, looking quite pleased to see me.

"Good morning dear, oh don't you look sweet in your new dress", Miss Farrell gave me a big smile.

"I chose a blue one, Miss Farrell. Your favorite color!" I told her excitedly.

"Blue eh?" I heard Mr. Warbucks ask. He was looking at Miss Farrell, his eyebrow raised in question.

Miss Farrell turned back to him, raising her own eyebrows. "Ah...yes, Sir. I just love the color. So many lovely things are blue. Blue sky, blue ocean, blue eyes…", she looked into his face and then pursed her lips together, her face flushing.

I looked at his face too and grinned slyly as I noticed something. "Mr. Warbucks has blue eyes."

They both turned to look at me quickly. Mr. Warbucks' cheeks turned red just as Miss Farrell's had.

"Very well observed, Annie", he chuckled, then cleared his throat. "Ah, so Miss Farrell tells me she has an exciting agenda for you today."

"A what?" I asked, not knowing what an agenda was.

"It means I have a lot of fun things planned for you today, dear", Miss Farrell explained with a smile. She came over to where I was standing and put her arm around my shoulder. "How does this all sound? A leisurely swim in Mr. Warbucks' pool, followed by your own private tennis lesson with a professional tennis player, then out for lunch at Sardis, then on to Battery park where you'll see Castle Garden and the aquarium. Then back home for dinner and a nice quiet evening in where you can sit by the fire with a hot cup of cocoa and listen to music or read or...anything your heart desires until bedtime."

Oh my word. Everything sounded incredible! I'd never heard of any of the places we were going out to but I was sure it was all going to be fantastic.

"Oh boy, that sounds swell! What time are we leaving to go out?" I looked from Mr. Warbucks to Miss Farrell and back again excitedly.

Mr. Warbucks tittered quietly. "Oh no Annie, I think you've misunderstood. I won't be joining you. It'll be just you and Miss Farrell going out today. Our evening out together last night, although very enjoyable, has already taken up far too much of my time which really must be spent doing business."

I looked at the floor, feeling disappointed. "Oh."

I heard his voice speak to me as I stared at my new patent leather shoes. "Please understand dear, it's not that I don't want to spend time with you, it's just that I'm so busy and have so much work to catch up on."

I raised my head to look at him. "What about lunch? I mean you have to eat sometime too, right?" I turned to Miss Farrell. "Couldn't we have lunch here with Mr. Warbucks instead of going out to eat?"

Mr. Warbucks let out a small, strained laugh. "Oh Annie, you don't want to eat a plain old sandwich here at my desk with me when you could be going to Sardis instead."

"It doesn't matter to me where I eat or even what I eat. I don't even know what Sardis is, and a plain old sandwich sounds better than anything I've eaten in a long time. I'd much rather eat here with you and Miss Farrell than to go out somewhere nice and know you were missing out, Mr. Warbucks."

Mr. Warbucks and Miss Farrell both looked at me as if they were in shock. Miss Farrell turned to look at Mr. Warbucks with a soft expression on her face and he nodded. "Very well. Grace, please ask Mrs. Pugh to prepare lunch for the three of us. And I suppose I can spare half an hour away from my desk to eat, so will you ask her to serve us in the dining room?"

"Yes, Sir", she told him and even though she was turned away from me, I could hear the smile in her voice.

…

Mr. Warbucks' pool was lovely and warm. I'd never swum in a pool before, only in the river where I nearly froze!

Cecile had brought me my new bathers and I thanked her for those and for all the other outfits she'd chosen for me. I'd never owned bathers before either, so it was very exciting trying those on for the first time.

After I got out of the pool it was time for my tennis lesson. The instructor was introduced to me as Mr. Budge but he said I could call him Don. At first I thought I would never get the hang of tennis, but Don was patient and kind to me and after some time I began to get more confident with it. Don was a very good teacher, even though he was only eighteen, he was very skilled.

He also happened to have a very nice smile, I thought.

"You've done great, Annie!"

"Thank you Don", I grinned at him, although I was panting a little from running around so much.

"Keep practicing what I showed ya and you'll be swingin' like a pro in no time", he winked at me and I giggled, my heart feeling a little fluttery inside my chest.

"Annie", I heard my name called from the door of the tennis court. It was Mrs. Greer standing there. "Come along now dear, Mr. Warbucks is about to sit down to lunch."

"OK", I nodded in her direction before turning back to look at Don. "Bye Don, and thanks again."

He nodded his head with a broad smile. "Anytime, Annie."

I walked to Mrs. Greer and the two of us made our way back down the corridor, past the gymnasium and the pool and back out into the foyer. While we were walking, Mrs. Greer asked me, "How was your tennis lesson with Mr. Budge?"

"Oh it was terrific. He's a marvelous tennis player."

"Yes, so I hear."

"And he's so nice, and sort of handsome too", I couldn't help the little titter that came out of my mouth.

Mrs. Greer laughed lightly. "Oh my, Miss Annie, it sounds as if you might have a little crush."

My eyes went wide. "A crush? Oh, but he's way too old for me", I argued.

"Yes, that's true", Mrs. Greer said seriously. "But you can have a crush on someone even if you're well aware nothing will ever happen between the two of you. That's exactly what a crush is."

I felt my cheeks get hot and gave her a shy smile as we stopped at the dining room door.

"Have a nice lunch", she grinned at me in a sing-song voice before she walked away to the kitchen to have her own meal.

"Good afternoon Mr. Warbucks and Miss Farrell", I said as I saw them both sitting at the long dining table. Mr. Warbucks was sitting at the head of the table while Miss Farrell was seated directly to his left.

"Good afternoon Annie", Miss Farrell smiled, looking pleased to see me. I went to the table and sat down across from her where I could see a place setting already laid out for me.

"Well, now that you're here, we can eat. I daresay you're very hungry after the morning you've had, Annie", Mr. Warbucks noted, signaling to Drake to bring us our food.

"Starving", I replied honestly.

A few seconds later, Drake came back with the most delicious looking sandwiches I'd ever seen in my life. Apart from the ice cream sundae the night before it was probably the most delicious thing I'd ever tasted as well.

I must have been ravenous because I finished my sandwich a lot quicker than both Miss Farrell and Mr. Warbucks. I cringed a little realizing the speed at which I'd eaten probably wasn't so polite.

As I waited patiently for Mr. Warbucks and Miss Farrell to finish eating, I started to think about Don again, and what Mrs. Greer had told me about my having a crush. I didn't quite know what to think about that. I'd never had a crush on anyone before, but no one had ever made my heart skip a beat the way that Don had. It was a very odd feeling, and I wasn't sure if it was a crush or just the happiness of meeting someone new.

"Miss Farrell?" I spoke to the lady across from me timidly.

"Mhm?" She muttered, covering her mouth with her hand after having just taken a bite of her sandwich.

"Have you ever had a crush before?"

I turned my head sharply to look at Mr. Warbucks who had spluttered while taking a sip of water. Miss Farrell immediately dropped her sandwich and reached over to pat him firmly on the back.

"I'm fine, I'm fine, thank you", he said to Miss Farrell before clearing his throat.

She looked at him for a moment longer to be sure he really was fine, before she turned her attention back to me. "Um…why do you ask such a question, Annie?"

I pursed my lips, feeling a little embarrassed. "Well, Mrs. Greer says I sound like I might have a crush on Don Budge."

A flash of relief crossed Miss Farrell's face. She smiled gently at me. "And do you think that could be true?"

"Well, my stomach feels kind of like it's in knots and my heart was beating a lot faster earlier when he was giving me my tennis lesson. Plus, I feel like I've got tingles in my fingers and in my nose, even now that he's gone, I'm still thinking about him and feeling these things."

Miss Farrell raised her eyebrows at me and nodded her head slowly. "It sounds as if Mrs. Greer may be right, hunny."

"So you've felt this way before too?"

Grace paused and looked at me as if she'd been caught out. She chuckled like she was nervous. "I think most people have a crush on someone at least once in their life."

"And I think you are far too young for such things", Mr. Warbucks spoke and Miss Farrell looked over at him in confusion but then realized he was talking to me.

"Oh Sir, I don't think it's up to us to tell Annie what she's feeling is invalid."

"She's still a young child, Miss Farrell. It's not appropriate at her age."

"It's only her first crush, Sir, and I don't think it's appropriate for you to dismiss it."

"If the boy was her own age, perhaps, but Mr. Budge is a legal adult!"

"It's a crush, Oliver!" Miss Farrell snapped her mouth shut quickly, looking shocked at herself. Mr. Warbucks looked shocked as well. "I mean, Sir", Miss Farrell corrected herself.

I just sat there across the table from them in silence, not really sure what to do or say. They were arguing as if they were a couple and I was…their daughter.

In a way it felt nice to have people wanting to be protective over me. In another way I felt bad for causing them to fight.

Miss Farrell took a deep breath and turned to me. "Annie, why don't you go and get ready to go out? I'll meet you by the door in a few minutes."

"Yes, Miss Farrell", I answered softly, standing up carefully from my chair and moving swiftly out of the room.

…

Miss Farrell looked a little flustered when she met me at the door, however she still beamed at me and asked, "Are you ready for an adventure, Annie?"

I couldn't help but smile back at her and say excitedly, "You bet!"

We rode in the Duesenberg to Battery Park where we explored Castle Garden.

"Is this a real castle? Like in Cinderella?" I asked Miss Farrell, looking up at the huge stone structure as we walked up to it.

There was a look of surprise on Miss Farrell's face. "You know the story of Cinderella?"

"Well, I've never read it myself, but one of the girls at the orphanage, Duffy, her Mother read it to her when she was little. Before she died."

Miss Farrell looked at me forlornly. "Your poor dears must have some very tragic stories. I'm so sorry for all the heartache you must have been through."

I nodded, feeling sad. She was right, all the kids in the orphanage had gone through a lot. Some days we thought it just wasn't fair, but then we reminded ourselves that we had some things that others didn't have too.

"There's a lot of people in the world who have it worse than us. At least we have a bed, and we have each other…even though Pepper can be quite frustrating at times."

Miss Farrell laughed, but her eyes looked as if they had tears in them. "You are a very strong young lady, Annie. I admire your optimism."

"The sun'll come out tomorrow, Miss Farrell. Maybe it won't actually be tomorrow, but the sun will rise again. It always does."

Miss Farrell sniffed and nodded. She reached for my hand. "Well, you sure bring out the sun for me, Annie."

I smiled warmly at her, my heart glowing at her words, knowing that the sun had well and truly come out today.

Miss Farrell and I explored Castle Gardens. Miss Farrell told me all about the history of it and that it was the first place a lot of people arrived at when they emigrated to America from other parts of the world. She told me that her own parents had arrived here when they were quite young and only newlyweds.

The aquarium had been founded in 1896 and boy was it impressive! Looking around, I couldn't believe my eyes! All sorts of aquatic creatures swam around in gigantic tanks and pools. I'd never even heard of most of these animals before. Some were very small, others were big and quite scary. I jumped and grabbed on to Miss Farrell when a shark swam right past me in its glass enclosure. She gave me a reassuring hug and promised me I was safe, and I believed her completely.

Not only was I safe, I was blessed. The things I'd seen and done since I'd met Miss Farrell were things that I was very privileged to experience. I would carry these experiences with me all through my life. They would be my reason to dream for a long time to come. Even if I didn't get the happily ever after, this was my very own fairy tale.

We spent a couple of hours at the aquarium and The Battery before it was time to go home.

When we arrived, Miss Farrell asked me to go straight upstairs and change for dinner. As I climbed the stairs, I looked back and saw her walking to Mr. Warbucks' study. I wasn't even sure if they'd made up earlier in the day after their argument, but I hoped they had. I really didn't want to be the cause for them being mad at each other.

I got dressed into a new dress, a lilac colored one this time, and went back downstairs for dinner.

Miss Farrell met me in the dining room and informed me that Mr. Warbucks unfortunately wouldn't be joining us for dinner.

"Is he still mad about earlier? Are the two of you still fighting?" I asked despondently but Miss Farrell shook her head with a reassuring smile. "No sweetheart, Mr. Warbucks still has a lot of paperwork to do, that's all."

"He's been doing paperwork all day", I groaned in disbelief.

"His job is very demanding, dear."

"Boy. What's the point in having so much money if you have to spend your whole life working anyway?"

Miss Farrell didn't say anything in reply, she simply gave me a downhearted smile as Drake brought in our dinner.

We ate in silence what was again a most delicious and satisfying meal. I was almost finished my roasted potatoes when none other than Mr. Warbucks himself walked into the dining room, looking tired but happy to see me.

"Good evening Annie, how was your afternoon with Miss Farrell?"

"It was wonderful, Mr. Warbucks, it was really wonderful!" I bounced in my chair. I was so happy to see him. "Are you joining us for dinner now? I'm afraid I've almost finished."

"Oh no, I've already eaten, thank you. I just wanted to come and tell you that I've decided to stop work for today and I have a little surprise for you which I'll show you after you've finished your dinner…don't rush", he held up his hand as he could see I was about to scoff down my potatoes quickly in order to see what the surprise was.

"Come and meet me in the library when you're done."

"I will!" I grinned at him.

I saw him look over at Grace and give her a secretive smile before leaving. She ducked her head with a small smile of her own.

"Do you know what the surprise is?" I asked her eagerly.

"Finish your dinner, Annie and then we'll both know", she answered diplomatically.

I sighed and had to really force myself not to eat the rest of my dinner too fast!

The second I was done, I rose from the table and ran around to grab Miss Farrell's hand, pulling her along with me toward the library. She yelped as I yanked her to her feet, laughing as we ran together.

"Annie, slow down, the surprise is not going anywhere!"

I did slow my pace just slightly, but still jogged to the library full of anticipation. When we got there, I could see Mr. Warbucks sitting in a large armchair by the fire. He had a book in his hands. When I got closer and was able to read the title, I gasped. "Cinderella!"

He flashed a happy grin in my direction, then in Miss Farrell's. "Miss Farrell tells me you've not read it. I must confess, nor have I. This copy belongs to Miss Farrell and is a favorite of hers but she has very kindly allowed us to read it together, if you would like that."

"Would I ever!" I exclaimed excitably. I turned to Miss Farrell and gave her a quick but fierce hug. "Thank you Miss Farrell."

She put her arm around me and chuckled. "You're welcome, dear. I hope you get as much pleasure out of reading it as I have."

I squeezed her once more before running over to where Mr. Warbucks was sitting and climbing up onto his knee. He looked a little stunned that I had done that but with an encouraging look from Miss Farrell, he seemed to relax and gave me a smile as he opened the book.

"Alright…"Once there was a gentleman who married, for his second wife, the proudest and most haughty woman that was ever seen…"

Out of the corner of my eye I could see Miss Farrell sit down on the couch across from us. She leaned back and closed her eyes and we both listened intently to Mr. Warbucks' voice as he told the story of Cinderella.

"...And the moral of the story is, "Beauty in a woman is a rare treasure that will always be admired. Graciousness, however, is priceless and of even greater value. This is what Cinderella's godmother gave to her when she taught her to behave like a queen. Young women, in the winning of a heart, graciousness is more important than a beautiful hairdo. It is the true gift of the fairies. Without it nothing is possible; with it, one can do anything."

I sighed contentedly., leaning my head against Mr. Warbucks'. "Wow, that was such a beautiful story."

"And beautifully told", Miss Farrell added, glancing at Mr. Warbucks as if she were as charmed as Cinderella was with her Prince.

"Well, I wouldn't have had the story to tell if it had not been for you so…graciously supplying it." He told her, almost sounding shy.

"It's my great pleasure", she replied to him, and they stared across the room at each other as if they were telling each other a secret. I almost felt as if I were intruding on a private moment between them, but I also couldn't help but smile at being a part of it.

"Come now, I think it's time for you to go to bed, young lady", Mr. Warbucks patted me gently on my arm and helped me to my feet. I smiled sleepily as he took my hand to help me walk upstairs. Miss Farrell trailed behind the two of us too and came to help me change for bed. Both she and Mr. Warbucks tucked me in.

"Thank you both for such a nice day", I yawned before my eyes were too heavy to keep open.

"You're very welcome, Annie", I heard Grace reply. Then Mr. Warbucks softly added, "Sleep well, child."

I'm not sure if it was Miss Farrell or Mr. Warbucks who kissed me on my forehead as I was already half asleep, but just awake enough to feel it, and to feel the sense of peace and joy that came with it.

I fell asleep, not yet sure what tomorrow would bring, but knowing that today had ended just as perfectly as Cinderella's story.