Dark Cinderella part 1

Once upon a time they say there was a girl. Her name was Layla, Her name of Arabic origin meaning dark beauty. Layla was born into a beautiful family; she had a mother and a father as well as a loving older sister.

Her life was almost perfect until she turned 9. One afternoon on her walk back from school Layla\\\'s sister Laramie was kidnapped, her body was found on the side of the highway three weeks later.

Layla\\\'s mother never recovered. she watched her mother perish in front of her young eyes, she withdrew herself socially and then mentally Layla watched her overdoes on unspecified pills countless times being brought back and forth from the hospital over and over again, until one night she got it right.

After her mothers death Layla and her dad became in debt her mother\\\'s hospital bills became intolerable, and Layla\\\'s dad started gambling, Layla lost everything her house, her possessions, and if that wasn\\\'t enough her father, he was imprisoned after being found committing fraud. Layla was sent off to live with her grandparents two strangers she had never been acquainted with.

She spent her pre-teens living in her grandparents broken down apartment that reeked like old socks and moth balls. She started school @ the local public school where she went unnoticed and ignored. Until she met deamyn, anotheroutsider just like her.

Two individuals from opposite sides of society, their only similarity was their pain. But as they learnt abouth other an ancient family feud emerged and deamyn\\\'s parents enrolled him in another school. It then began their forbidden love. There was no word from him in a month until. One afternoon a letter arrived in the mail.

The letter was frail and thin, engraved with silver letters it wrote:

Dearest Layla,
You are invited to Mr. & Mrs. Johnson\\\'s Halloween masquerade
It will be held this Friday at the Johnson\\\'s residence
From 9:00pm until sunrise
Best regards Mr. Johnson and family.

And At the bottom deamyn left a messagewritten in lead

Join me in this fantasy and we will finally be free as we dance the night away underneath the starlit skies and as the clock strikes 12 we will ascend into the heavenly skies.
.deamyn

She was estatic she hadn\\\'t heard from deamyn in a month but at the same time disappointed. She knew she didn\\\'t have a dress proper enough for such a grand event.

The night of the party her grandmother approached her with a large box.
I think your mother would have wanted you to have this\\\' her grandmother said as she gently handed her a dusty box with a blue envelope sitting on top.
Thank you Layla replied as she walked into the privacy of her dwelling.

Layla gradually opened the aged letter, the writing was tattered and smudged but the sight of her mother\\\'s handwriting pinched a nerve making her long for home.

To Layla my angel
I hope one day when the time is right you will wear this and I will stare down from heaven with pleasure and be proud to say you where my child.
Love Grace the mother that failed.