Chalklette Anklebottom was a poor 2nd grade teacher in a small town. Fresh out of college, Chalklette was depressed. She had no money and had just broken up with her boyfriend. She couldn’t afford soap. She couldn’t afford much of anything. So she saved money by only bathing once a week and wearing dirty clothes to school almost every day. She wasn’t embarrassed anymore because she had gotten used to living the way she did.

         Chalklette was getting ready for an upcoming field trip to a nearby amusement park. Everything was ready to go. The trip was paid for, the bus was ready, and the chaperones were all set. On the day of the field trip, Chalklette woke up excited for once. However, when she arrived at school, she discovered that one of her chaperones had canceled on her. In a panic, Chalklette found the father of twin girls in the 5th grade to help her out. Chalklette remembered him from when his wife, the twins’ mother, died a few years earlier. It was around the same time Chalklette’s mother died. She remembered thinking how lucky these two girls were to have their father. Chalklette’s father was in Australia on business so she didn’t see him very much.

         The children rode in a nice charter bus on the way to the amusement park. Chalklette sat next to the twins’ father and they talked the entire length of the hour-long bus ride. Chalklette thanked him over and over again for helping out; they also talked about Gabriella and Annabella, the twins. He called them Gabby and Annie.

        “You never told me your name”, Chalklette remembered.

       “Well, it’s Francisco William Charmin,” he replied. The bus jerked to a stop at a stoplight. “But you can call me Will”, he added.

        “Uh, Charmin like the toilet paper?” Chalklette asked.

        “Yes, actually and I am the heir to the Charmin fortune,” he answered. “But I don’t like to brag or anything,” he smiled.

        “I love Charmin toilet paper, it’s so soft,” Chalklette blurted.

        Mr. Charmin laughed. The more they talked, the more Chalklette liked Mr. Charmin. When they arrived at the park, a clown greeted them.

        “It’s good to see you again,” the clown said to Chalklette.

        “I’ve never been here”, Chalklette responded. But it was too late. The clown had already moved on to greet other people. Each chaperone had a group of children so she announced that each group could split up and meet back at the Pizza Place for lunch at 12:30. After looking at the park map, Chalklette decided to take her group of four to the haunted house. Chalklette loved haunted houses and the kids were excited as well.

          “Come on Ms. A!” they shouted.  The kids called her Ms. A since her last name was so long.

        There wasn’t a long line so they walked right in. It was a familiar place to Chalklette but she couldn’t figure out why. It was fun getting scared and laughing but about halfway through, a voice called.

         “Chalklette…. Chalklette…. Chalklette..” the voice kept repeating. Chalklette thought she must have been going crazy.

        She felt something touching her head but before she could jump, the clown appeared in front of her.
The clown’s face was all she could see. It was as white as a snowball and as bright as a star. He had fire engine red cheeks and a round nose to match.

         Chalklette realized the clown was the same one that had greeted them earlier. He was holding a balloon on top of her head.
        “You’re getting married,” the clown whispered.

         “I’ve just broken up with Sam. I’m not getting married,” Chalklette replied.

         “It’s not Sam,” the clown grumbled in a devilish voice. Just as fast as the clown appeared, he disappeared. Chalklette caught up with her kids and they enjoyed the rest of the haunted house but when they got out, Chalklette was dressed differently.

         “Ms. A, what are you wearing?” one of the kids asked.

         Chalklette looked down at her outfit and to her surprise, she was no longer dressed in the rags from that morning. She was wearing the most stylish dress she had ever seen. It was the color of the sky and shimmered in the sunlight. Her hair was no longer dirty and hanging down in her face. It shined in an elegant updo. Once she found a mirror, she couldn’t stop staring at herself. One of the kids reminded her it was time for lunch so they all headed back to the Pizza Place.

        “Wow”, said Mr. Charmin when he saw Chalklette. He froze in his tracks, dropped his tray of pizza, and his chin was like the shoes on his feet, on the floor. Chalklette blushed from embarrassment, with no explanation of the change.

        “Mr. Charmin’s in love!” one of the kids shouted.

        The two adults smiled at each other like children in a room full of candy. They finished their lunch, took the kids on two more rides, and headed to the bus. Once again, Chalklette and Mr. Charmin sat together and talked the whole way back. They even started to talk about getting married and having a life together. Chalklette was happy and even though she didn’t know Gabby and Annie very well, she thought it would be nice to have them as her stepdaughters.

         Mr. Charmin fell asleep for the last fifteen minutes of the trip and Chalklette was busy daydreaming. She thought about her beautiful clothes and hair, but when she looked down she noticed that she was back in her rags and dirty hair. Oh, no, she thought as she looked at Mr. Charmin sleeping.

         “I’ve got to get off the bus before he wakes up,” she whispered to herself. When the bus pulled into the school parking lot she hustled the kids off the bus like a herd of cattle. Then she ran off herself.

         Back to my ordinary life, she thought after the last kid was sent home for the day. She was about to go home herself when the principal called her to the office over the PA system. When she got to the office, she was shocked to see Mr. Charmin there with Gabby and Annie.

         “I believe you forgot your dress, “ he said. He was holding the beautiful dress she wore at the park. “I found it on the bus,” he added.

        “That’s not my dress,” Chalklette said looking down.

        “Sure it is, put it back on and see,” he insisted. Chalklette headed for the nearest bathroom to change clothes. The dress was a perfect fit and she went back to the office to show Mr. Charmin.

        “Chalklette Anklebottom, I want you to marry me,” Mr. Charmin proposed.

        Chalklette stumbled backward a few steps before saying, “Yes, I’d love to marry you Will.” “But I don’t have a wedding dress,” she babbled.

         “Yes you do,” bellowed a familiar voice. It was the clown. He appeared before Chalklette, wiggled his nose and blinked to give her a gorgeous new wedding dress.

         “Off to the church!” declared Chalklette.

          The twins and the principal applauded loudly.  Finally, Chalklette had everything she could ever want, a dream job, a handsome and rich husband, and two wonderful stepdaughters. Chalklette treated the girls like they were her own and the girls loved having a female role model in their home. They all had a wonderful life together and never went back to the amusement park