Prince Charming at the Door

Chapter 1: Fairy-tale Prince

“Prince Charming isn’t just going to show up on your doorstep.”

Maya’s mother had said those words so many times that they had become part of the background noise of her life—like the ticking clock in the hallway or the hum of the refrigerator late at night.

Sometimes the sentence came while Maya was reading on the living-room sofa.

Sometimes it arrived when she declined an invitation to a crowded party.

And sometimes, as on this particular Saturday morning, it was delivered while Maya stood in the kitchen making coffee.

“You’re spending another weekend at home?” her mother asked.

“I’m meeting Nina later,” Maya replied, reaching for the sugar.

“That’s not what I mean. You need to get out and meet new people.”

“I do get out.”

“You go to work, visit the same three friends, and come back home.”