Cinderella

He was all of twelve. God knows which line of the aristocrat family he came from, he thought bitterly to himself.  His dad, mom, even his sister were tall, fair with beautiful  light brown hair. The kind of looks almost all his ancestors had, the ones that lined the winding staircase of his huge bungalow, in Delhi. Whenever his sister entered a room, all the heads, mostly male,but a great many female too, turned in her direction. So mostly no one noticed his entry. His favorite place on such occasions was the loo, where he would seek refuge, in order to be spared the many introductions and bemused looks cast his way. What was worse, being the only son he was mostly called Junior, which inevitably drew comparisons with his regal father from people, and in which he was found sadly lacking.

Short, with swarthy skin, his too aquiline nose dominating his face, he bore no resemblance to his immediate family. Almost as if he was an outsider. "Oh, are you sure he didn't get exchanged in the hospital," sniggered one of his aunts, when she came to see him on his birth. Which story she unfeelingly, repeated regularly every year at his birthday dinner. "Only you were born at home dear," she would add callously. His world, then consisted of books, (Cinderella was his favorite) and music, in which he found refuge from the cruel world.

The first play he ever saw was an adaptation of 'Romeo and Juliet' that his father had taken him to see in London. He didn't know whether he loved Juliet more or Romeo. The thrill that ran thru his body, when he saw the two enacting the "Wherefore art thou Romeo?" scene was unreal. The beautiful Juliet, wistfully looking out at the dashing Romeo stayed embedded in his heart long after he returned home. Theater became his passion, as year after year, he would audition for any and every role in the school plays. Mostly he died a thousand deaths, first having to push himself in the limelight, then as the villain of almost every play enacted. In notoriety, lies fame, he consoled himself. But with every play, he grew in stature, as most times he stole the thunder from under the hero's nose. Which brings us to William. The hero. The stud. The lead actor of most plays. His fans were legion. All the girls in school, sighed over him, and vied with each other to be his partner in the plays. Aware of his looks, he made the most of them, preening before them, behaving like the star he knew he was going to become later in life. That was until the school drama teacher happened to enter the loo and found Junior  rehearsing 'Romeo's' lines. He watched, and found himself unwilling to interrupt, bladder permitting. When he had to interrupt, a red faced Junior fled from the loo, as if his backside was on fire.

The first time he played 'Romeo', a sceptical school, an insulted, an angry at being rejected, William and an apprehensive family prepared to watch his debut on stage as the hero. The first time ever.  

As the story unfolded, a strange thing happened. It was as if a spell had been woven around the audience. His charisma, his transformation, and passion had them  glued to their seats.Together with Romeo, they laughed, they cried. They loved, they lost.They exulted and agonised. In the end, they rose as one to cheer wildly, the valient figure who stood bowing on stage. It was the first time ever that even Juliet had been upstaged by her Romeo. But also busy cheering for him she neither minded nor cared. As for Romeo.   Cinderella  had finally arrived at the ball. Unreal. In the midst of a dream he hadn't ever dared to hope.

A star had been born.