"Look, Mommy!" said five-year-old Chloe. "I found a pretty flower!"

"That's great, Chloe," said the angelic, blonde woman sitting in a rocking chair.

"I'm going to make a wish," said Chloe. She focused on the flower. "I wish that I am a princess."

Chloe's mother smiled at her. "Chloe, you already are a princess to me," she said.

"But I don't have a pretty dress or a crown," said Chloe.

"Oh Chloe," said her mother. "Dresses and tiaras aren't what makes a princess. A true princess is very kind and brave. That's why they are so beloved."

"But how can a princess show that she is brave if she is always getting rescued?" asked Chloe.

"In Cinderella, the princess grew up with a terrible step family. But she didn't feel bitter and instead chose kindness. Being kind to those who have given you reason to hate them is one of the bravest things you can do," said Chloe's mother.

Chloe still didn't completely understand, but she nodded.

~👸🏼~👸🏼~👸🏼~👸🏼~👸🏼~👸🏼~👸🏼~👸🏼~👸🏼~👸🏼~

That was the last conversation Chloe had with her mother before she was taken ill. In a matter of two weeks, Chloe watched her mother get sicker and sicker until she eventually passed away.

Chloe's father wasn't very sympathetic towards his daughter. He had loved his wife very much, but after her death, he found it painful to look at Chloe's face, for the girl was the spitting image of her mother.

Chloe had bouncy golden curls, crystal blue eyes, and a heart-shaped face. In her early childhood, she was adorned with pink bows and pastel dresses so that she could feel like the princesses she admired. But after her mother's death, Chloe dressed up in all black and dark colours.

One day, when Chloe was ten years old, her father found another woman. Her name was Helen Green.

Helen was beautiful, with dark red hair and chocolate brown eyes. She was very wealthy and often bought presents for Mr Ella.

Shortly after Chloe's eleventh birthday, her father got engaged to Helen. Honestly, she was unsure about it.

But she knew that Helen made her father happy, so she put on a smile at her father's wedding and acted happy to have a new stepmother.

But in her heart, Chloe knew that Helen would never replace her mother. How could she, knowing how much her mother had loved her?