Page 18 of Cinderella Screwed Me Over
My Age: 23
I met Charlie at a dance club. It wasn’t exactly a ball, but my dress was sparkly, my shoes covered in rhinestones—so practically glass slippers. I’d been to enough dance clubs to know that you didn’t meet guys at dance clubs—not good guys, anyway. Stephanie had just broken up with Jimmy Delfino, this jerk she’d dated for way too long. To celebrate, she’d wanted to go dancing.
Charlie, a cute guy with light brown skin and huge brown eyes, asked me to dance shortly after we’d arrived. We danced another song after that. Then another and another, until we’d spent more of the night together than apart. As the club was closing down, he told me he’d love to see me again.
Stephanie gave me that look. The one that said,We have rules about dance-club guys.
I sighed. “You know, I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
Charlie leaned in and kissed my cheek. “Well, it was nice meeting you. I hope that someday we’ll cross paths again.” He gave me a sad smile, hung his head, and then slowly turned away from me.
“Wait,” I said. “I’d rather not leave it up to fate. Sometimes fate needs a little help.”
A huge grin spread across his face. He whipped out his cell and programmed my number into it. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow? You’re not going to play it cool for a few days? Isn’t that what guys like you do?”
Charlie reached out and squeezed my hand. “I’m the kind of guy who doesn’t wait around when I run into a girl like you. I’m not stupid.”
I had to hand it to him, he had the sweet-talk thing down. I’d heard plenty of lines before, but there was something about the way he delivered that one that made me think he might just be different.
The next day, I told myself over and over that if he didn’t call, it wouldn’t be a big deal. But when an unfamiliar number lit up my display, I shrieked and jumped around for a few seconds before answering it.
“Hello,” I said in my best, I’m-casual-sexy-cool voice.
“Darby?”
His voice sent my blood rushing through my body. It was him! He called! “Yeah?”
He exhaled. “Oh, thank goodness. My boys bet me you didn’t give me your real number. I’m glad they’re wrong.”
I smiled. “You had a certain something that made me break my rule about giving my number out to guys at a club.” But then reality hit. My last serious relationship had been Allen, and that made me gun-shy to dig in. “Hey, Charlie, you’re not married are you?”
“Hell no! And why would I hit on you if I was married?”
I shrugged even though he couldn’t see me. “I just like to check.” I cringed, thinking I’d blown it—that he’d hang up and never talk to me again.
But then he said, “So how do you feel about my coming and picking you up tomorrow night? I don’t want to have to wait longer than that.”
I was officially swept off my feet.
For the first month, Charlie and I had nothing but fun. We hit dance clubs and went to party after party together. One of his friends was always having a get-together, and they were usually big, extravagant things—money was obviously not an object. It was a blur of fun, loud, good times.
By then my apprenticeship at Metamorphosis was almost up, and I was working like crazy to make sure I got a coveted designer position. I spent a few weeks mixing and matching color swatches for an upcoming pitch while downing muffins and energy drinks.
Since Charlie was what Steph and I referred to as a “trust-fund baby,” he didn’t have a job. I think he occasionally went to the one college class he was taking, and though he didn’t have much purpose in life besides having a good time, he was very good at it.
One night when I was putting the finishing touches on my pitch, he took my laptop away and held it out of reach. “If you don’t get busy living, you’re going to look back at your life and find it empty.”
When I reached for it, he kissed me, keeping my computer out of reach. “Come on, baby,” he said. “Let’s go out. You deserve a break.” He kissed my neck, then moved his lips to my jawline. “Wherever you want to go. Whatever you want to do.”
So we went out and hit the party scene, the way we had before my life had gotten so busy. And I liked that he made me take time for myself so I didn’t get too burned out.
Then I got my full-time job at Metamorphosis, life slowed down a bit, and Charlie and I started spending a little quiet time together. We didn’t do that well with quiet time. Remember how inCinderellaPrince Charming has, like, three or four lines? My relationship with Charlie would’ve been better had we stuck to four lines.
A few big fights later, I knew we weren’t going to work. But because I had so much fun when we went out, I hesitated to end it.
I was sitting in his apartment with him and his friends when things took a turn for the worse. They were watching sports, like they did every minute they could.
