Samantha "Sam" Montgomery is raised by her widowed father Hal, who runs a
diner in the
San Fernando Valley. He marries the vain and greedy Fiona, who has twin daughters, Brianna and Gabriella. When Sam is nine years old, Hal dies in the
1994 Northridge earthquake, apparently without leaving a will, leading Fiona to inherit everything. Eight years later, 17-year-old Sam is bullied by her stepfamily, while the community faces a
drought. She and her best friend, aspiring actor Carter Farrell, are tormented by the popular clique at school, led by head cheerleader and mean girl Shelby Cummings. Forced to work at the diner to save money to attend
Princeton University, Sam is looked after by longtime manager Rhonda and confides in her online
pen pal "Nomad", another student at her school who shares her dream to attend Princeton to become a writer. Unbeknownst to Sam, "Nomad" is Austin Ames, the popular but unhappy school quarterback and Shelby's trophy boyfriend, whose father, Andy, expects him to attend
USC. Sam agrees to meet "Nomad" at the school
Halloween dance, and Austin breaks up with Shelby, although she is in denial. Fiona refuses to give Sam the night off to attend the dance, but Rhonda and Carter intervene. Rhonda gives her a mask and her old wedding dress to wear as "Cinderella". Dressed as "Prince Charming", Austin reveals to Sam that he is "Nomad" but does not recognize her under her mask, and they share a romantic dance. A masked Carter
makes out with Shelby after defending her from the unwanted advances of Austin's friend, but has to hurry Sam back to the diner before Fiona returns at midnight. As they leave, Sam drops her cell phone, which Austin finds. The diner staff stalls Fiona and her daughters, allowing Sam to arrive just in time. The next day, Austin covers the school in flyers, hoping to identify the mysterious Cinderella, and Carter is cruelly rejected by Shelby. Austin's friends line up a crowd of girls claiming to be Cinderella, without success. He is accepted to Princeton but is unable to tell his father, and visits the diner, where Sam tries to reveal herself. Brianna and Gabriella discover Sam's emails with Austin, realizing she is 'Cinderella'. Once each fails to convince Austin that they are Cinderella, they present the emails to Shelby, claiming Sam schemed to steal Austin away from her. At the school pep rally, Shelby and the twins perform a humiliating skit exposing Sam as Cinderella. When Austin refuses to stand up for her, she leaves upset. Having intercepted Sam's Princeton acceptance letter, Fiona forges a rejection letter, further disheartening Sam. Just as Rhonda encourages her not to lose hope, the twins enter the diner, slamming the door behind them, causing the diner clock to fall off the wall, exposing a wallpapered-over mural of Hal's motto (never let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game). Inspired, Sam stands up to Fiona, quits her job, and moves out, leading Rhonda, the other employees, and the customers to leave as well. Sam moves in with Rhonda and, just before the homecoming game, confronts Austin for his cowardice and lies. Seeing her leaving before the last play of the game, Austin turns control of the team over to his friend and stands up to his father before running after Sam, with his father and Shelby calling after him. He apologizes, and they share their first kiss in the rain as the drought finally ends, much to the twins' and Shelby's dismay. Later, while packing the last of her things, Sam finds her father's will hidden in her childhood fairytale book, revealing that she inherited everything, including the house and diner. As the rightful owner, Sam sells her stepfamily's cars to pay for college. Fiona claims to have never seen the will before, despite having signed it as a witness, and is arrested for inheritance fraud. To avoid prison, Fiona makes a deal with the
D.A. to work off the debt she owes Sam for the diner and treatment as a cleaning lady. Sam now co-owns the diner with Rhonda, while Fiona's daughters, after retrieving Sam's acceptance letter from the trash, are also forced to work with her. Andy accepts Austin's decision to attend Princeton. Carter lands a commercial and rejects Shelby's advances so he can be with Astrid, the school's goth DJ and announcer. Austin returns Sam's cell phone, and they begin a relationship, driving off to Princeton together. ==Cast==