Week 13 Storytelling: Zelinda and Her Prince

It was getting close to prom season at Aspen Heights High School and everyone was so excited to see who their date would be for the dance! This year was extremely important because it was Zelinda’s last prom. Zelinda was the most popular girl in school. She had long blonde hair and skin that was tan all year long. Everyone in school loved her because not only was she really pretty but she also was kind to everyone she met. It was no secret that Chris, the captain of the football team, was going to ask her to prom so no one even tried! They all just waited to see what his elaborate “promposal” this year would be.

Days passed by and many girls had received flowers and chocolates by guys asking them to prom…. But still Chris hadn’t asked Zelinda. She waited and waited until one day she opened up her locker to find a hot pink note saying meet me under the bleachers on the football field after school for a surprise! Immediately Zelinda knew that it was Chris asking her to prom. She was so excited and thought of as many different things possible that Chris could do to ask her.

Finally the bell rang at 3:00 and Zelinda excitedly walked to the football field. She ducked under the bleachers to find Tim holding flowers… Tim was one of the biggest nerds in school. He had a face full of pimples, braces, and the thickest glasses she had ever seen.

(Football Bleachers. Source: Wikimedia Commons)

Tim slowly walked over to Zelinda and handed her the flowers. Looking down at his feet and in a shaky voice he said, “Zelinda would you go to prom with me?” He was so nervous his face started to turn red.

Zelinda knew she couldn’t turn him down. It was her last prom and she really wanted to go with Chris but she knew how much courage it had taken Tim to ask her to the dance so she couldn’t say no.  She accepted his flowers and reluctantly said, “I’d love to go with you Tim.” She immediately turned around and hastily walked to her car. Zelinda called her friends to tell them what happened. Now she was stuck going to prom with the weirdest guy in the school! There was no way she was going to have fun that night… Her friends were shocked she had even said yes.

A few days passed and it was the day of prom. Zelinda put on her dress and started getting ready for the special night. As she was putting on her makeup she thought to herself… I can’t believe I’m even putting on all this makeup… its not like I’m even going to be able to hang out with Chris and my friends. She finished getting ready and heard a knock on the front door. Her mom yelled out to her saying that Tim was there to pick her up.

Zelinda slowly walked down the stairs and saw this handsome boy waiting for her! She was in complete shock… Tim was wearing a black slimming suit and no longer had any acne and was wearing contacts instead of his thick glasses. Her cheeks turned pink and she even stuttered as she said hello to him! When she asked where his braces were he said that he was scheduled to get them off that week so they were removed yesterday! The two took pictures together and got in the limo he had rented for them. Zelinda ended up having the time of her life and never wanted the night to end!

When she laid in bed that night she thought to herself, wow I can’t believe I had been that shallow and judged Tim just based off of his looks… I feel so terrible for complaining to my friends about having to go with him! From now on I promise not to judge a book by their cover and to accept everyone as they are.

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Author's Note: I decided to do this week's storytelling based on the story called Zelinda and the Monster by Thomas Frederick Crane. In this story a father has the choice of either being killed by a monster or returning with his youngest daughter, Zelinda, to marry him. He chooses to bring his daughter back in return for his life. Zelinda reluctantly lives with the monster who treats her very well. Everyday he asks her if she will marry him and promise herself to him for the rest of her life. One day he tells her that her father is very ill and that the only way to save him is by marrying him. So she finally agrees and as she says this the monster turns into a handsome prince! He says that a witch had cast a spell on him which turned him into a monster and that the only way he could be saved was by a woman promising herself to him. I chose to make my story more modern so I had my characters in high school. I kept Zelinda as the main characters name but I decided to focus more on the moral of the original story and have it be about not judging people based on their looks!

Bibliography: "Zelinda and the Monster" by Thomas Frederick Crane. Website: UnTextbook.