*Forget us ever Pagsulat Stefan, Damon or Derek. It was my bad, I'm very bad with names, I mixed them up. From now on it's Paul, Ian and Tyler. Thank youuuu.*

Cast (in order of appearance in the chapter):
Rachel Leslie: Lily James
Aline Morrison: Dianna Agron
Maria Michele/Cinderella: AnnaSophia Robb
Fatemeh Tonkin: Phoebe Tonkin
Prince Darren/Coma Guy: Darren Criss
Irene Thorne/the Evil Queen: Eva Green
Nicolas Grace: Topher Grace
Rana Mitchell: Shay Mitchell
Atie Reed: Crystal Reed
Paul Salvatore: Paul Wesley
Richard Stark: Richard Madden
Ian Salvatore: Ian Somerhalder
Albie Collins: Lily Collins
Amber Brie: Allison Brie
James Ford: Josh Holloway
Celine Portman: Natalie Portman
holly Dobrev: Nina Dobrev
Colin Jones: Colin O'Donoghue

Chapter 2: Made of Glass

Rachel woke up to the sound of her bedroom door bursting open, and as she lifted her head to see whoever the hell it was that decided to disturb her sleep, she groaned. "Aline, what the hell? It's way too early."
"I know, but-"
"I could have had a guy in here, you know", Rachel sinabi as she sat up on the bed.
Aline snorted at this. "Yeah, okay."
"How did you get in?"
"I have a spare key, remember?" Aline groaned in impatience. "The mayor's office called."
"What did they want? For us to retrieve that stick from up the mayor's arse?"
"No", the serious look on Aline's face was what got Rachel to focus.
"What, then?"
"They're talking about shutting the police station down."
"What? How can they? Isn't it a necessity for every town to have at least some sort of a police force? Who called you? Was it the mayor herself?"
"No, it was her assistant, Holly."
Rachel groaned, standing up. "I shall go and have a word with the reyna herself, then."
"Are you sure that's a good idea?"
"No, but when have my ideas ever been good?"
Good point, Aline thought to herself.



Maria didn't enjoy waking up in the morning to make breakfast for her stepmother and her two stepsisters, but she knew it was one of the little inconveniences she would have to suffer through until she found a place of her own. When she'd told her stepmother about leaving, she had looked utterly thrilled, and had actually said: "Good. It's time you left. You're an adult already." That statement would not have been so unfair if it hadn't been for the fact that both the woman's actual children were older than Maria, and still living at home.
After finishing with the breakfast she sneaked out of the house. It was still too early to head to the diner, so she made her way towards the hospital, which she visited almost every day. She liked to go there and do some volunteer work, read to the coma patients and such.
She had taken a special interest in a young man, a John Doe, who had been in a coma for as long as anyone could remember. She would sit sa pamamagitan ng his side and read the newspaper to him. She thought he looked like a guy who might be interested in the cultural section instead of the sport section, so that's what she read. Some of the doctors and nurses were confused of her interest in the unknown man, but she merely shrugged and sinabi she wanted to help. Which was the truth. But what she didn't mention was that ever since she'd first seen him, she'd been drawn to the man, as she'd met him before. But that couldn't be. Maria had barely met any men in her life. Her stepmother had made sure of that.
"Still reading, huh?" she was interrupted when one of the nurses, Fatemeh, walked into the room and smiled. "I'd think you'd have some sort of a special relationship with him to care about him so much."



"You don't have to know someone to do something nice for them", Maria smiled back. "How are you?"
The two had become some sort of mga kaibigan during Maria's volunteering.
"I'm good, just trying to stay awake for a few madami hours", Fatemeh yawned.
"Did you get a night shift again? I wonder why you guys even need those, it's not like there are that many patients, or accidents, for that matter."
"We're trying to prove to the mayor that we can handle it, that we can keep a hospital running", Fatemeh explained. "A few months nakaraan she suggested that maybe we should shut this place down and ilipat all the patients to the nearest hospital, direct any future patients there as well."
"That's stupid. The nearest hospital is too far away. I wonder what she's up to."
"Well, knowing her, it probably isn't anything good", Fatemeh said. She eyed the clock on the pader in amusement. "Shouldn't you get going?"
"Shit", Maria groaned as she got up, handing the newspaper to Fatemeh. "I'm always late!"

The door to the mayor's office slammed forcefully against the pader when Rachel walked in, glaring at the woman in anger.
"Miss Leslie, how can I help you?" she asked politely, but she knew very well that this encounter would not end as pleasantly.
"What the hell is going through your head? You can't shut down the police station", Rachel snapped as she walked all the way to the mayor's desk.
"Well, let's face it, it's not like you have a lot of work to do, now, do you?" the woman smiled, but there was something evil behind that smile. "The town is merely paying you to sit on your arse and braid your hair, isn't it?"
"Funny, I feel like it's doing the same thing for you."
The smile faded from the mayor's face, and as she spoke, her voice had none of the nakaraan pleasantness in it: "Maybe the problem isn't the police force, but the sheriff itself. Perhaps we should look for a new one."
"You're very welcome to try", Rachel replied just as coldly, glaring at the woman. Irene had always known she would be one of the difficult ones, and at that moment she regretted not doing the same to her that she'd done to many of her other unwanted enemies.
"Are you threatening me, miss Leslie?"
"Not at all", Rachel shook her head. "But just for your information, I could grab your wrists in one hand right now and break them both with a single move. So you may be the mayor, but looks like I've got an advantage of a sort, myself."
Irene couldn't remember the last time she'd been this angry - in this world, anyway.
"That was a threat", Rachel said. "You can try to replace me if that's what will make you feel better, but if you do, then there's nothing stopping me from breaking that arrogant face of yours. So how about you reconsider this shit idea of yours?" She began walking towards the door when the mayor called after her:
"You're going to regret this."
"No, you are", Rachel promised, and with that she walked out.

Ever since Nic had discovered the truth, it had become harder and harder for him to keep quiet, to not simply burst out the truth because he could. But who would believe him anyway? He had to play this right.
He was at the diner, yet again, eating breakfast with Rana and Atie, who both worked with him at the local newspaper. They were both beautiful, dark-haired young women with brown eyes, but Rana's skin was madami tan and Atie's hair was longer.



"You've been pagganap pretty weird lately", Atie noted, taking a sip of her coffee. "Is there something you want to tell us?"
"Are you leaving the paper? Because you can't. Who else would photograph completely boring situations as awesomely as you?" Rana asked.
Nic smiled at this. "I'm not leaving, I've just.... come to a realization."
"About what?"



"About... who I am. About who all of us are", Nic said, turning towards his bowl of cereal so he wouldn't have to see the look of disbelief on the girls' faces.
"How very profound", Rana chuckled. "Go on, then, who are you? No, wait, who are we?"
"Yes, we'd like to hear this", Atie smirked.
Nic just sighed. They didn't understand. Of course they didn't. "Just finish your breakfast so we can go." He turned over towards the counter where Maria was, and wondered if he should tell even her. Would she understand? No, she probably wouldn't.

"Cinderella, come here!" the awful voice of her stepmother shrieked through the house, and Ella had no choice but to follow the voice over to where her stepmother was standing, sa pamamagitan ng the doorway of the mansion, ready to leave for the ball with her two daughters. "You are not to leave the house, do you understand?"
"Yes." It was better not to speak unless spoken to with this woman, unless you wanted to get slapped and thrown in the basement for the rest of the night.
"Good. You can clean my room, I think I saw a daga in there somewhere."
Of course you did, Ella thought. They live in the walls, you stupid hag.
"Alright."
With that they were gone, leaving Ella alone, as usual. When the news of the royal ball had been announced, it wasn't like Ella had expected to get an invitation, but it still hurt to watch everyone else having fun up at the kastilyo while she had to stay inside and do what she had to do every single araw of her miserable life: What she was told.

Of course Ella's life could have been worse. She could be homeless, or a cripple, or dead, even. But it still felt like the worst possible alternative.

Of course Ella's life could have been worse. She could be homeless, or a cripple, or dead, even. But it still felt like the worst possible alternative for her every time she got pushed down to the basement. Until one night, crawled up in a ball to keep herself warm in the dark basement, she'd heard a voice speak to her. It had sounded like a normal voice, maybe a woman's voice, she didn't really remember. It had urged her to feel the back of the wall, to find a secret exit that would lead her out of the basement. And it had worked. Soon enough she'd been outside, in the garden. She had never heard the voice again, but she realized that since she was tahanan alone now with no one to bother her, she could try to find it, whatever it was, again. Of course it was a silly idea, she knew as much. It could have been just her imagination. Or something much worse. Nevertheless, she walked the stairs down to the basement with a candle in hand to give her some sort of warmth and light, and then she spoke: "Hello?"
And the voice answered: "You came back."
Ella felt a shiver run down her spine, but she nodded anyway. "Yes. Where are you?"
"Did your family desert you?"
Ella didn't like the fact that the voice ignored her question, but she answered nevertheless. "They went to the castle, for the ball. I wasn't invited."
"Yes, you were. All the young, single women are invited. It looks like they wanted you to stay here. How do you feel about that?"
Ella didn't like the way this voice was speaking to her, so she ignored its question. "Show yourself."
"Not quite yet. Would you like to attend the ball?"
"Of course, but-"
"So you would. So be it. Go up, and outside to the garden. There you will find a pumpkin. Touch it, and you will understand the rest."
"Why are you doing this?"
There was a silence, a deafening silence, and when the voice finally answered, Ella felt madami scared than ever: "Because I'm your fairy godmother, of course."
When Ella didn't respond, the voice continued: "Be sure to watch the clock. You have to be back when the clock tolls twelve."
"Or what?"
"Well, let's just say you will not like the consequences later on. Go on."
Ella did as told, running up the stairs back to the main floor, slamming the basement door closed after her. She had no idea why she was doing as she did, but she found herself walking to the garden anyway, and there it was, the pumpkin. But instead of the usual orange, it was black. Ella touched it, eager to see what would happen, and in a blink of an eye the kalabasa had turned into a carriage, and her rags had turned into a beautiful gown, and her blonde hair was up in an elegant bun. And she found that she was wearing glass slippers.
Should I do this, Ella thought to herself. But then she realized that whatever might come out of this, it couldn't possibly be any worse than what she'd already been through. With that in mind she stepped into the carriage and let it take her up to the castle.

"Are you even listening to me?" Paul snapped at his friend, Richard. They were sitting on a park bench right susunod to the beach.
"You were talking about Ian snoring in his sleep", Richard muttered, turning back to his piece of paper. Richard was about the same age as Paul, and just as handsome with his blue eyes and curly brown hair. He was an architect, and he'd actually designed the local bank and some of the other buildings, too. Most of them hadn't gotten built, however, because the mayor always seemed to come up with an excuse to stop any possible evolvement in the town.



"No, that was fifteen minutos ago", Paul sighed. "What are you doing?"
"I was thinking it'd be nice if the kids had some sort of a playground here, so I was just drawing a sketch..."
"Maybe you should get a girlfriend, you seem to have too much free time in your hands."
"Yeah, sure, you'll let me know when you find the right one for me, yeah?" Richard was very skeptical about the blind dates Ian was always offering to him and Paul. He felt like when he'd find the right person, he'd just know. No dates necessary. "What were you talking about, then?"



"This girl I met. Remember? The one who owns the diner?"
"Oh, yeah, you mentioned her. Have you asked her out yet?"
"No. That's the thing. Ian already got me a petsa with her. But it's a blind date, so she doesn't know it's me who she's going out with."
"What's the problem? I'm sure she'll pag-ibig you."
"I don't want to mess it up."
"You won't. You're the most romantic guy that ever walked on this earth. And most girls probably like romance."
"You do know how my blind dates usually end, don't you?"
"Yep", Richard grimaced. "Ian ends up sleeping with them."
"I pag-ibig my brother."
"Thank you, brother, I pag-ibig you, too", Ian announced as he walked over to them, a cup of coffee in hand. "What are you doing here? It's freezing."



Paul ignored his question. "Will you promise not to screw anything up tonight?"
"Yes, yes. You'll get your little princess and I promise I'll stay out of it", Ian said. "Scout's honor."
Somehow that didn't reassure Paul nearly as much as it should have.

The first class was always the hardest. All the children were still half-asleep, and it would take them at least an oras to start paying attention. So Albie had come up with a good system. The children would be allowed to draw whatever they'd want during the first lesson while Albie herself caught up on her reading. Everyone sinabi she was an excellent teacher, and maybe it was true. She did pag-ibig her little first-graders, and she felt natural around them.
"Miss Collins, can we go build a snowman?" one of the students, a little girl named Sally spoke.
Albie smiled. "That would be nice, I've always been a tagahanga of building snowmen myself, but there's no snow outside anymore."
"Oh."
"Why don't you draw a snowman?"



The smile was back on Sally's face as she got to drawing. As Albie watched the children draw, one of the other teachers, Amber, walked into class and sat down susunod to Albie. They were mga kaibigan and often took advantage of the time they had to talk. Both of the girls were beautiful brunettes, though Amber's hair was a lot darker, and her eyes were blue instead of brown. "Have you seen Harry and Grace?" Harry and Grace were the two students in Amber's class of segundo graders that always skipped school. It was a mystery where they went, really. No one ever got a hold of their parents, and madami than once had the siblings arrived in school in dirty clothes and with unwashed hair.
"No. Are they skipping again?" Albie sighed. "We really need to start doing something about this. What could they possibly be doing?"
"I don't know, but I'm getting worried. And the fact that no one ever gets a hold of their parents...", Amber sighed. "I'll try to look into this. I'll go and check their house."
"If the address is even real", Albie noted. "Good luck." She watched as her friend walked out.

Aline was anxious. She couldn't find Rachel anywhere and it has been hours since she went to see mayor Thorne. She knew that things couldn't have gone well. The mayor was known to be relentless but so did Rachel. Aline was pretty sure that it was the beginning of a long and rough battle between the two women.
Still absorbed sa pamamagitan ng her concerns, she spotted James Ford walking down Main Street. "What the hell?" she thought and started running towards him.
"James! How the hell-"
"Calm down Blondie. Your hound dog let me out." He just kept on walking.
Aline didn't even bother to pick up the insult. She grabbed his arm and forced him to stop.
"Listen. You don't have to be a thief okay? You can find a job in town, make some money. I can help."



James didn't say a thing and somehow she hoped that he will take her up on her offer.
"Let me tell you something, alright. You can't help me. And even if you could I wouldn't want you to." James could clearly see the hurt in her eyes but he still kept on talking "So what don't you just go back to the station and be useless there." And with that he walked away.
He knew he'll soon regret what he just sinabi to her but he had done it anyway. She couldn't help him. Nobody could. Some people lived a cursed life, others didn't. There was no need to dwell on it, and right now he had something to do.
He headed towards the town line and then entered the woods. He knew these woods like the back of his hand, but somehow he sensed something had changed. He kept on walking until reaching a small cottage sa pamamagitan ng a river. Going through the back door like he always does, he entered the house. It was empty but he could hear a woman's voice heading towards the front door. James couldn't recognize who it was but somehow she seemed familiar.
"Harry? Grace? Is there anybody home?" The voice was getting louder and louder as the woman was getting closer and closer to the house. James knew he had to get out of there before she saw him.
Amber couldn't believe the state of her pupils' house. They lived in a tumbledown cottage in the woods, with a leaky roof and cracked windows. It seemed like the house was about to collapse at any moment but nobody seemed to be tahanan anyway. Confused, she headed back to her car, thinking of where they could be. She had searched for them all over town, she even went to this fake address the kids had ibingiay her and nothing. She couldn't find them anywhere. She then asked around and eventually Nic had told her about this place. How did he knew-
Her thoughts were interrupted as she heard a rustling in the bushes. Finally I've found them, she thought with relief.
"Harry. Grace. Where did you have bee-"
Instead of the children, she was a tall, blonde man stepping out of the house through the back door.
"Who are you? What did you do to the kids?"Amber asked a bit too abruptly.
"The name's James. James Ford." he sinabi while taking a step towards her. Amber however took a step back. "And I didn't do anything to those kids. If anything, I help them." he added defensively.
"You help them?" she didn't understand. "How?"
She didn't seem suspicious anymore so James decided to tell her the truth. She seems like someone he could trust.
"I bring them things. Mostly food."
"Oh. Do you know where they are then?"



"No. Yesterday I was caught sa pamamagitan ng the sheriff and I was released only this morning."
There was a brief silence at that, where none of them knew what to say next.
"I'm sorry, but who are you again?" he asked, hoping he didn't come off as rude.
"Oh sorry. I'm Amber Brie. Harry and Grace's teacher. They didn't come to school today and it's not really the first time that this has happened. As a father, I think you should-"
"Wait, I'm not their father alright." He sinabi with a chuckle.
"So why are you helping them?"
"Because I know too well how being abandoned feels like. I didn't want those kids to live like I did" James didn't know why he was being honest with her. Somehow he had the feeling she would know if he lied to her, like she could see right through him.
Amber didn't know what to say and she wouldn't have to as they heard, voices coming their way.
This time it was Harry & Grace, heading back home.
"Where have you two been?" James asked while going to them
"You didn't come back last night, so we thought, we would brought you something for a change" replied the little girl while handing him cookies.
"It's very nice of you, but from now on, you'll go to school everyday. Both of you." he sinabi while looking at Harry above Grace's shoulder.
As he turned to Amber, he saw how pleased she was and the way she smiled at him. He then noticed he was smiling in return.

"You wanted to see me?" Maria sinabi while knocking on the door frame and entering Celine's office.
"Yes." Celine sinabi while putting two flies on her desk



"If it's because I was late, I'm so sorry but I was at the hospital and-"
"No it's not about that. Actually I have a petsa tonight and I was wondering if you could help me decide what to wear... I know it's a bit unprofessional but-"
"No, no. I'll do it. What are mga kaibigan for ?" Maria reached for the two dresses and started examining them. "So a petsa huh. With who?"
"Paul Salvatore." Celine said, blushing a bit.
"Oh yeah. I can definitely see you two. How come he asked you?" Maria sinabi while putting the first dress in front of Celine, as if to see how it would look.
It was a blue bangka neck dress with long sleeves. It looked lovely but maybe a bit too simple for a date.
"He didn't. His brother, Ian, arranged this blind date. That's why I'm so nervous, I'm pretty sure he won't be interested..."
"Nonsense. You are gorgeous. But since it is a blind date, I suggest you go with this one. He is going to be amazed." Maria sinabi while handing the segundo dress to Celine.
It was a kulay-rosas off-shoulder dress with long sleeves as well. Even though both were really beautiful, this one looked madami formal.
"Are you sure I won't be overdressed?" Celine said, afraid to look ridiculous.
"It will be perfect. You are going to look like a princess." Maria sinabi excitedly "Now, let's talk about the shoes."

When Ella finally reached the kastilyo she couldn't believe her eyes. It looked like a dream. There was light and music everywhere. As soon as she stepped off her carriage, she knew this was going to be the best night of her life.
She headed for the entrance of the castle, a feeling of panic overtook her at the idea that her step-mother and her step-sisters could recognize her. This idea was soon forgotten when she reached the ball room. Everything was magnificent, the walls were decorated with gilt, the chandeliers sparkled brilliantly. Everyone looked dashing in their costumes and gowns that Ella couldn't help admiring.
Soon, silence fell over the ball room as the king rose to speak.
"Tonight, I am pleased to welcome you all for this ball, thrown in my son's honour. He has reached the age when a prince needs a princess sa pamamagitan ng his side while being prepared to take my place when the time comes. Tonight, he will dance with you all and choose which one will become his wife. Now let the merriment begin."
Ella didn't hear a word of the king's speech. She was still amazed sa pamamagitan ng the beauty of the setting to paying attention to it. However as soon as the orchestra started playing, she regained her senses. When she looked around her, couples were already paired up and waltzed. She didn't know what to do and suddenly she heard someone clear his throat behind her. She turned around and saw the most handsome man she had ever seen.
"Oh I'm so sorry. Am I in your way?" Ella asked while trying to pull her dress out of his way.
"No." He sinabi , amused sa pamamagitan ng her reaction. "I see you don't have a partner. Do you mind dancing with me?" he asked with a smile.
"Oh yes, I'd pag-ibig to." Ella took his hand and soon they were smiling at each other.
They danced a while without talking until he broke the silence.
"I've never seen you at such events." He said, intrigued.
"It's my first ball. This is the first time I dance with someone actually." She blushed a bit at this.
"Well, I must say, you waltz perfectly."
"Thank you. I've practiced sa pamamagitan ng myself you know. But it's not quite the same as dancing with someone. That's why I came here tonight. Dancing is the best thing in the world, don't you agree?"
"So you didn't come for having a chance of becoming the susunod Queen?" He seemed taken aback sa pamamagitan ng his partner's enthusiasm.
"Oh no, I don't know what the Prince looks like. I just want to enjoy myself for one night and I can't seem to find a better way to do that other than dancing. I feel so free."
The man looked at her as if he saw a mirage. Was she really telling the truth? As he looked into her eyes, he was sure of the veracity of her words and decided to dance with her for the rest of the ball.
Alas, when the clock stroked twelve, Ella felt like she was waking up from the most wonderful dream and she remembered the warning of the fairy godmother. Without even saying a word to her dance partner, she started running towards the door. She couldn't let anyone see her changing back to her true self. She run as fast as she could but her feet hurt because of her glass slippers. She stopped for a moment in order to remove them and while picked them up with her hands, she saw her mystery man running towards her.
She hurtled down the stairs and while heading for her carriage, she saw with horror that it was gone. Not bothering looking for it, she untied the nearest horse and straddled it. As she was leaving at full speed, she could only hear the man shouting something but couldn't hear what.
After Ella was gone, the man just stood there, on the tuktok of the stairs. A servant quickly joined him with a glass slipper in his hand.
"Your highness. The girl you were dancing with, she left this on her way down." He sinabi while handing him the object "If you don't mind me asking, Prince Darren. Who was she?"

"She never sinabi her name."

"I don't know." the Prince replied. "She never sinabi her name."

Rachel parked her car in the emergency lane and decided to continue the rest of the journey on foot. She had tried to call Aline many times, but it went straight to voice mail. Still, Rachel knew her well enough to know where to look for her.
When she reached the lake, she saw her friend sitting on the bench sa pamamagitan ng the water.
"Hey there. I've tried to call you for the past half hour."
"Sorry. I turned my phone off." Aline sinabi while turning her head to face her friend. Rachel immediately noticed something was wrong. "How did it go with the mayor?"
"As expected. She sinabi she'll try to replace me."
"No!" Aline said, scandalized.
"Well, I'd like to see her try" Rachel added with a smirk. "But let's forget about her. What's up with you?"
"What do you mean?"
"Oh come on, I know you. You always come to your secret place when you're feeling down."
"It's not really secret if you know about it." Aline sinabi with a small smile.
"Whatever. So what happened?" Rachel urged while taking a upuan on the bench.
Aline sighed. "James got out this morning..."
"And it's bad because...?"
"It's not. I just ran into him and he said..."
"What did he say?" Rachel frowned. Whatever James sinabi to her, it couldn't be good, she thought.
"Doesn't matter what he said. It's something I knew long ago. I'm useless. I try to help but I do nothing."



"That's not true-"
"No it is. I joined the police department because I wanted to make a difference, I wanted to help. And what did I achieve? Nothing. Only put drunks and thieves in cells for a day. What a success huh?"
"Stop. So what you didn't help anyone? Do you think James deserved your help? He didn't even want it. I don't understand why you care so much."
"Because! This town is all I have. If I can't even help people, why am I here for?" She was half-shouting now and Rachel could see tears in her eyes.
"You are helping people, you are helping me." Rachel sinabi while taking her hand. She hated great showings of feelings but her friend needed support. "Who else is going to help me kick the old witch's asno huh?"
At that Aline started laughing. "You're right. I guess you need me for that. But seriously she wants to replace you? That's insane."
"I know. What a bitch. But hey, I won't go down without a fight."
"I doubt anyone ever thought that of you. Still she should be the one re-elected, not you."
"Aline. That's a brilliant idea!"
"You can't be serious."
"No really. We have to find a way to take her down. Without power, she's madami vulnerable."
"Even though we try, who will be bravo enough to go against her? You?"
"Don't be ridiculous. But we'll find somebody." Rachel sinabi with a devilish gleam in her eye.

"Do you think it was wise to annoy her?" holly broke the silence in the mayor's office. "She may not be smart, but she's very... persistent."
"Persistent people can be taken down. I've already dealt with her once, I'll do it again if I have to."
holly didn't seem to recall any event like that, but she nodded anyway. It was better not to tanong her. "How?"
"Because I know her weaknesses. Even if she doesn't know them herself yet."



As always, holly left all her tanong unspoken. The mayor was as unpredictable as she was cunning, and holly couldn't afford to lose her job. She was also working part-time at the local school as a teacher, but she wanted more. She wanted to achieve more, to be more. She walked back to her mesa and sighed. She was truly beautiful with her tanned skin, dark hair and brown eyes. However, she had no time for men in her life. These days she felt she had no time for anything but helping the mayor. She knew Irene was up to something, but whatever it was, she did not trust holly enough to share the information with her as of yet. Maybe she would have to find out on her own.

As Ella finally reached the mansion, her feet were aching and she was utterly exhausted. As she looked down at her clothes, they had turned back into rags. She felt an ache in her heart, too, one that could not be achieved through physical pain. She had had fun for the first time in her entire life. And she'd met that handsome man, and he'd seemed to like her, too. The first person in her life who had ever seemed to truly like her for who she really was. And now he was gone, as was all the rest of it. And she would have to spend her entire life in this place, alone. And then she remembered the voice....
She ran back downstairs straight to the basement, and shouted: "Hello? Are you down here?" but no one replied.
"I want to know what you did! And I... I want to go back."
She waited for a long time. Just as Ella was about to give up and walk back upstairs, she heard the voice: "I can help you. If you do something for me in return."
Ella turned back around, and she felt another shiver run down her spine. Her brain was telling her to say no and run away. Nothing good could ever come out of this. But still, as she opened her mouth, the exact opposite came out:
"Yes."

"So what we're going to do is find a good candidate. Anyone would be better than that bitch, to be honest, but we have to pick someone who will win."
"Why not you, though?" Aline asked.
"I'd be just about the worst leader in the history of leaders. What about you?"
"No, I don't want to lead. I just want that woman gone", Aline said.
"Alright", Rachel nodded. "We'll find someone. But we need to do it fast."
"I'll ask around", Aline promised. They had been walking for a long time, until they'd reached the beach, and the ocean right susunod to it. "At what point did we even leave the lake?"
"Like two hours ago. We should probably get back to the office", just then she turned her gaze towards the docks where a few people kept their boats. And there was a man on deck of a medium-sized boat. "That guy doesn't have a license to keep that basura there. Who is he?"
"I don't know. I don't recognize him. Want me to go and ask him?" Aline asked.
"Please do. I'm done with idiots for the day. I'll meet you at the office", with that Rachel walked off, whereas Aline headed towards the docks.
The man noticed her as she got closer. He had a charming smirk on his face, which was a handsome one, indeed. He had dark, messy hair and dark scruff on his face, and his lean body was covered sa pamamagitan ng a black trench coat. "You're with the police, aren't you?"
"Yeah, and you're not supposed to park a bangka here without a permission."
"It's my boat."



"Yes, but it isn't your dock."
"It isn't yours, either", the man smirked. "Have you got a badge?"
Aline rolled her eyes, pointing at the badge she kept attached to her belt. "Enough proof for you?"
"You're way too young to be a sheriff."
"I'm a deputy."
"You're way too beautiful to be a deputy", the man announced.
"What's your name?" Aline laughed a little. Who the hell was this guy? And how was it possible she hadn't noticed him before?
"Colin", he extended his hand, which Aline shook briefly.
"I'm Aline."
"Pretty name. Like yourself. Would you like to hop in?"
"No. You need to take that bangka out of here."
"Where am I to put it, then?" Colin put a fake pout on his face, making Aline smile in amusement.
"I don't care. As long as it's not here."
"Alright, deal. On one condition." The man hopped out of the boat, approaching Aline.
"What?" Aline stared at him in suspicion.
"If you go on a petsa with me, of course. Isn't that obvious? Have you not been watching any romantic comedies?"
"Is that where you get your pick-up lines? From romantic comedies?"
Colin smirked. "What do you say?"
"I don't go out with strangers."
"It's a good thing I'm not a stranger, then. Meet me at that local diner, say.... friday, eight o'clock?"
"And if I don't?" Aline smiled as the man hopped back on his boat.
"Then it's your loss, love. But don't worry. You will."
Aline snorted, shaking her head in disbelief as she begun to walk off, but what Colin didn't see was that she had a wide smile on her face, her bad mood completely forgotten.

Maria arrived at the place where Nic and the rest of the gang worked on the newspaper. She often visited her friend during his workday, and she often brought coffee and donuts with her.
"I pag-ibig you", Nic stated as he grabbed a cup of coffee and took a bite of a donut. Maria placed them on the mesa so that the rest of them could grab one, too. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing. I just helped Celine get ready for her date", Maria smiled. "She looked so excited."
"Paul is a good guy. I'm rooting for them."
"Yeah, well, Celine deserves madami than a good guy. She deserves a great guy."



"What's wrong?" Nic asked. Maria seemed a bit madami quiet than usual.
"I don't know. I just felt weird. When I was helping her get ready, find all those proper clothes, see how excited she was, I felt like I was... missing out on something. But that's crazy. I've been on dates. I don't know why I'd feel like that."
Nic knew why. He knew everything there was to know about the real Maria, but he kept his mouth shut. He only nodded. "Are you going to go see that coma patient again? The one you read to?"
"Yeah, why?"
"I think you should read him this sometime", Nic walked over to his mesa and grabbed a book from the drawer, handing it to Maria.
"Cindrella?" she asked in disbelief as she read the cover. "Are you serious?"
Nic shrugged. "Just try it. For me."
"Alright", Maria sinabi in suspicion. "But you're going to have to explain this to me at some point."
"Let us hope I won't have to", Nic said. It was his hope that if Maria were to read their story to the coma patient, he would wake up, or at least do... something. It wasn't much, but it was his first step towards making everyone remember, and all he could hope was that it would work.