Toadette's Story: Book 2

Chapter 91 - Split Paths

“So you found her?” Still on the Excess Express and showering, Sofia felt a slight relief at her cousin’s news. “What is that girl doing all the way up there, Minh-Minh?”

“Well she says you’re the one who wouldn’t let her go to this convention.”

“Yeah, because I’m working. Not like our grandmother could take her, and she only mentioned it to me the day before this little stunt. My bad for not being able to prep this in twenty-four hours.”

“A day?” Minh sighed. “Ay-ya-ya, and here she had me thinking you were a witch.”

Sofia groaned, reflecting on how her life had changed since becoming Jasmin’s legal guardian. While the child caused her parents problems like any ordinary kid, each year with Sofia seemed to make her more foolish in her decision-making.

“Look, I’ll send her down to Poshley Heights as soon as I can,” Minh assured. “I’ll be escorting her personally.”

Just then Sofia received a message.

“I hear you…” She squinted at the screen. “So how’s that star hunt going? Any luck in that rainbow of a city?”

“Ah, we just got our second star. Makes for three in total, counting the one Wario took. But our radar’s broken now, meaning we’re in a pickle for a bit.”

“Hey, two against one sounds like a win to me, Minh-Minh. I’m curious what you’ll wish for when you get all nine.”

“Did… Sofi, did I ever say there were nine?”

“Yeah, obviously.” Sofia smiled. “Relax, it’s not like anyone who isn’t named Wario is after them.”

“What would you wish for? Y’know, if you could.”

Stepping out of the shower, Sofia hummed a tune. She almost ended the call, but then she spoke up.

“Bringing back Mom and Dad would be my priority.” She began putting on her pyjamas. “But if that weren’t possible, I’d toy with the idea of making sure everyone has a partner in their life. Well, most people.”

“That’s terrifying,” Minh bluntly admitted.

“What? In what world is that terrifying?”

“Some prefer to be single, Sofi. And just because two people are in a relationship doesn’t make them automatically happy. The number of high school break-ups I’ve seen is higher than the number of boyfriends you’ve…”

Sofia waited, pouting.

“You know what I’m saying, right?” Minh asked, her tone softer.

“I firmly disagree with your opinion.” Now dressed, Sofia exited her train cabin. “Bring Jazz whenever you can, and I’ll put an end to this running away crap once and for all.”

“Don’t be too hard on her. Night, Sofi.” And the call ended.

Sofia walked past the dining area that was so familiar to her and made her way to the back of the train: the cargo hold. There stood Casey once more—the train’s conductor.

“Evening,” he said, sipping hot chocolate.

“Good news is that Jazz has been found,” she replied, leaning against the wall. “Though I might have to take another week off this month.”

“Something come up?”

“Side job. Confidential stuff, super top secret.”

“Heh. Next you’ll tell me you’re some kind of spy.”

Sofia smirked. “You never know.”

Casey extended his hand, offering her a sip of his steaming hot chocolate. Sofia almost said no, but upon noticing the spot where his lips had graced the rim of the cup, she changed her mind. She ensured her lips met that exact spot as she savoured the drink. By the time she returned the cup to him, it was nearly empty.

“Oopsie…”

“Please, like I’m gonna go broke from a free refill,” he chuckled, wiping the chocolate from her mouth. “You’re so cheerful that I’d assume you’re not still thinking about your cousin and that whatever-her-name-is.”

“Toadette.” Sofia’s smile softened. “It’s… It’s all but confirmed that they’re an item, and it seems Toadette is also with some playboy. But you know what? It’s whatevs. Those relationships are always bound to fail, and it couldn’t happen to a more deserving person.”

“I’d be happy for your cousin. But who told you they were together if Minh told you the exact opposite?”

Sofia tapped her pocket. “Let’s just say that someone I know had a good eye on them at that Star Festival in Mushroom City.”

***

“Wake up, little girl.” Toadette nudged Penelope’s shoulder.

“You too, Jazz,” Minh commanded, snapping her fingers. “Up and at ‘em.”

“Can’t we just stay here a little longer?” Penelope asked, yawning.

Toadette scoffed. “All the trouble you caused, and you think you deserve some fun?”

“We still got you your star…”

“I don’t care if you helped us get them all. I’m not rewarding you for disobeying me. Need I remind you both about the bathroom incident?”

Penelope looked down. “We left her room key under the mat.”

Toadette rolled her eyes. It would be easier trying to argue with a brick wall. She looked at Toad in disbelief, as the only man in the room was already halfway into his winter coat.

“Our flights are early! Move your little asses! Double time!”

His command immediately lit a fire under the girls. Jasmin shot out of bed, heading straight to brush her teeth. No matter how feminine Captain Toad’s voice sounded, the sheer way in which he barked orders could frighten anybody.

He glanced at Toadette. “Should I handcuff the ringleader cousin?”

“No, no, no. If you did that to me when I was a kid, I’d have a full-blown panic attack.”

Toad chuckled. “They’re not that traumatic.” But then he gave Toadette another look, noting how dead serious her face was. “Wait. You have the same thing she does?”

“Why are you so scared to say the word? Yes, I have autism.”

“Whoa. Could’ve fooled me. You behave so…”

“Thank you. I’ve learnt.” She smiled. “Took years, but I can mostly mimic how others behave. Unfortunately some really can’t get the hang of—”

Toadette recoiled as something hard slammed into her nose. She saw a sandal slide across the cold tile floor. Its owner stood a distance away, baring her teeth at the adult.

“Minh, get your cousin before I break her!”

“She wasn’t even insulting you, Jazz, so what is your problem? Apologise.” And when Minh didn’t get an answer, she pinched her by her shoulder, repeating herself.

However, Jasmin simply grabbed her shoe and kept her silence.

“Great parenting on Sofia’s part, huh?” Toadette bit back a harsher comment, knowing it’d be a bridge too far for Minh. “If you two just stayed in Poshley Heights for the rest of your lives, you’d be doing everyone a favour. Do you do anything useful?”

“Toadette, enough,” Minh said.

“I’ve been nothing but nice to this girl all these years, and she’s just so disrespectful.”

Toadette remembered a time when Jasmin was a fairly normal child with autism. A bit withdrawn, but still with basic respect. Yet something changed a few years ago. The logical cause was the death of her parents, but still, why would that alone make Jasmin more aggressive? One minute she was sweetly introverted, and the next she was the type of quiet person that people feared—the one who could wreak havoc on a school if you set her off.

Then again, when Sofia’s raising her, should I be surprised?

“What’s an autism?” Penelope asked, tilting her head to the side.

“It’s the reason Miss Toadette here is a planning master but also insane,” Toad answered, waving to his flustered friend. “It just makes people different, kid, that’s all.”

Penelope and Jasmin exchanged awkward glances. Penelope seemed to be trying to bore into Jasmin’s soul, while Jasmin was red with embarrassment.

If she and Toadette shared the same trait, then why didn’t Jasmin display Toadette’s competence when it came to making plans? She was also clumsier compared to Toadette and her precise acrobatic abilities.

Maybe she’ll get those skills when she’s an adult, Penelope thought.

Jasmin expected Penelope to quit staring eventually. But Penelope couldn’t get her eyes off her, no matter what. Toad raised a brow as he watched the scene. Once he saw the hue in Penelope’s face shifting, her let out a quiet laugh.

“What?” she asked. “What’s so funny?”

“Nothing, kid.”

As he went outside, Penelope’s eyes returned to Jasmin. Four minutes of uninterrupted staring was driving Jasmin insane. Trying hard to avoid another outburst, she resorted to something disgusting.

She extended her legs, offering Penelope a view of the most revolting parts of her body: her dust-caked feet.

Sure, Penelope had complimented Jasmin’s toes before. But girls complimented each other all the time. Okay, it was weird in Jasmin’s case due to her ugliness, but Penelope was technically complimenting the work that Minh had done on her nails.

Regardless of the past, there was no way anybody with a brain would fall in love with feet. Dirty feet. The bottoms of the feet! Who, besides people with those creepy foot fetish things, actually liked that part of the body?

However, the more seconds that passed, the more Jasmin’s sanity waned.

Penelope inched closer, as if Jasmin’s feet were two filth-covered magnets. She quietly observed both extremities, unblinking.

What is wrong with this girl? Jasmin wondered. She wiggled her toes slowly. Then she upped the pace. Finally she froze them. All this achieved was making Penelope tremble, and it didn’t seem like she was trembling in fear.

Desperate, she sat cross-legged on the bed, blocking Penelope from seeing most of her hideous feet.

Except now Penelope was staring at her face. Jasmin shuddered. Somehow it was more uncomfortable having Penelope glare into her eyes than it was her feet. Penelope was crossing the line from annoying into disturbing, especially as the blush in her cheeks was becoming more intense. It was so intense that Penelope fanned herself.

Every passing second made Jasmin cringe harder.

“Is something wrong?” Minh’s voice broke the deep tension as she stepped back in.

“Jazz really sucks at no-blinking contests,” Penelope said.

“Huh?” Jasmin wished she could’ve thrown another sandal. “What no-blinking contest?”

“I mean, you seemed like you were playing along. At first.” Penelope finally shut her eyes. “Then you gave up and left me hanging for five minutes.”

Minh burst out laughing as Jasmin buried her face in the nearest pillow, groaning. She was so defeated that she didn’t even notice her bare soles were on full display again.

“After your little attack on Toadette, I’d say that’s karmic justice,” Minh said. “Good job, Penelope.”

“Thank you, ma’am.” The child’s body trembled like a wet dog. “Her feet… You did an amazing job on her nails.”

“I’d do them every time she visited if she wasn’t so touchy about having her feet messed with,” Minh sang, pressing her palms into Jasmin’s grimy soles.

Penelope gulped, feeling a shiver run down her spine.

***

Sofia and Casey continued to keep each other company as the night rolled along. Despite Sofia’s confidence that she could stay up forever, eventually she could feel the reaper of sleep approaching to carry her to her bed. The young conductor had to poke her twice to keep her from falling into the wall.

“You gotta drink more coffee,” he said, chuckling.

“Any more, and my kidneys are gonna shut down. Coffee and a whole packet of sugar.”

“Sugar?” Casey shook his head. “No, no, you gotta keep that thing black.”

“Eck! Absolutely not! Black coffee tastes like the bottom of a foot.”

“I recall your toes tasting pretty dang delicious last time, so how’s that a bad thing?”

“Your s’more added tons of sweetness to it,” she sang.

“And it was mostly on the top, not the bottom,” he sang back in a high falsetto.

Before Sofia could entertain the conversation, she heard someone approaching.

“Hello, people!” Alice gave Sofia a wave before turning her attention over to Casey. “Same old, same old?”

“I would walk on your back tonight, but I can’t lie: my feet are killing me,” he sighed.

“Exactly,” Sofia rushed to say. “You know I’m capable of stepping on your back too, right? If it’s really so helpful for you. Casey doesn’t have to…”

“I’d much prefer if he did it,” Alice said. Her hand was now on his arm. “He’s got these nice, firm muscles, after all.”

“They’re barely firm,” Casey scoffed.

“Be proud of what you got. This feels nice…” Alice grinned, continuing to squeeze his biceps. “And if your feet hurt, maybe I can give you a foot massage. Should be some oil in my bag I can use.”

Sofia’s eye twitched. For as much as she wanted to scream, what would yelling at Alice accomplish? It was in her best interest to go to sleep and remove herself from this third-wheel scenario. And yet her eyes were glued to the scene. She watched as Alice’s fingers playfully tickled Casey’s side, with both of them letting out laughter.

And then, in a flash, she saw them. It was for a split second that she saw Toad and Toadette in that exact scenario.

Growling, she yanked Alice by the hair and threw her to the ground. Nobody had time to react by the time Sofia delivered her first brutal punch into Alice’s face. The sound of their bones meeting reverberated through the car, yet Sofia pressed on relentlessly. She battered her co-worker’s mouth, pounded her chest, struck her neck and targeted whatever else was vulnerable.

“Stop!” Alice let out a loud scream as her eye received a blow. “Sofia!”

“What’s going on?” Other night members of the train staff rushed to the scene. It took three of them to finally pry Sofia off Alice, whose right eye was swelling while her lips bled.

Everything was so fast for Casey.

Sofia’s adrenaline showed no signs of slowing, for she struggled in the grasp of these men. It was like restraining a wild cat. It took Casey stepping in front of her for her to quit trying to free herself.

“Have you lost your mind?” he asked.

“I’m sorry,” Sofia stammered, throwing herself to the ground. Tears filled her eyes. “Everything’s just too much for me right now. I’m dealing with a sister who almost got herself killed, I’m working myself to the bone, I’ve got things with my cousin going on!” She looked at Alice. “I’m so sorry, Alice. I don’t know what came over me.”

Alice let out a soft moan. “We…all have our bad days…”

“I just… I need to be alone!”

Without another word, Sofia fled into her cabin, locking the door behind her. Inside the small bathroom, she leaned against the sink, hyperventilating.

But then a small smile crept across her face. It widened the more she saw the blood on her knuckles. How amazing it felt to put that bitch in her place, always ruining Sofia’s nights with Casey. Seeing the fear in Alice’s eyes as she screamed for help made Sofia chuckle, and she wiped her crocodile tears.

All grabby with him… Offering to give him foot massages… If she wants to see another day, she needs to learn her place. I’m gonna be Casey’s…

Her smile faded. Slowly she hunched over the sink, now feeling a lump in her throat as tears resumed.

For as amazing as it felt to have hurt Alice like that, the logical side of her was tucking away the emotional side. The clearer it became that Casey was disturbed by her, the more she wanted to grab a knife and slash everybody on that train. How was she supposed to woo him now when she just wailed on somebody whom he’d known longer than her? A friend.

She removed her cap and slammed her head against the sink, letting out a loud sob. Her teeth clenched as she thought of that cursed best friend of Minh.

***

The taxi van, crammed with five guests, zipped down the road towards NHS Airport.

Toadette and Captain Toad were in the middle seats, doing their best to brief the girls on how to behave once in public. Yet Penelope wasn’t listening. Her eyes kept drifting to Jasmin, who sat beside her in the back, engrossed in her new comics.

She had given up trying to hide her feet after Penelope made that stupid confession about the staring contest, so she stretched her legs across the seats, sandals and all. Her tan toes peeked past the sandals, and Penelope’s heart kicked into overdrive.

Wow…

With her DSi in hand, Penelope carefully angled the device, trying to hide the camera LED in the glare of the daylight. And then it was like the planets had aligned; Jasmin’s comic dipped slightly, her eyes closed, and suddenly Penelope had an unobstructed view of her from head to toe.

Seizing the moment, she slammed her finger on the R Button.

SNAP!

The sound echoed in the van. Penelope choked, frantically trying to hide the DSi, but it was too late. Jasmin was already glaring at her.

“Please delete that,” she said, her voice calm but with a definite edge.

“I…” Penelope stammered, her mind scrambling for an excuse. She rushed to the DSi’s menu, pulling up a game. “So I was playing Pokémon White, and it has this camera feature. I just hit the button before I could switch it to the selfie mode.”

Minh, in the passenger seat, raised an eyebrow. She could smell the lie a mile away. But Jasmin, the gaming amateur, seemed to buy it, especially when Penelope showed her the game’s camera function. Of course, Penelope conveniently ignored the fact that the game only took live video and definitely didn’t require a loud snapping sound when it did.

She breathed a sigh of relief. Now she had the perfect picture to stare at during the long flight back to Toad Town.

At the airport, before they split up for their separate flights, Toadette hugged Minh. Then, without thinking twice, she kissed Minh on the mouth.

“Toadette!” Minh yelped, trying to pull away. But it was already done.

“My bad.” Toadette licked her lips. When she noticed Jasmin watching, she was quick to improvise. “Just prepping you for your first real boyfriend kiss.”

“Please, that little peck hardly counts as prep,” Minh retorted playfully. “See you later, alligators.”

“Be careful when you’re out there,” Toad advised, shaking her hand. “For all we know, one of the fat man’s goons will be waiting for you out in Poshley Heights.”

“I think you and Toadette are his bigger targets. I’ll be okay.”

Minh grabbed Jasmin’s arm, pulling her along. Jasmin glanced back at Penelope for a moment. Penelope waved, a lump forming in her throat. But then Jasmin turned away, disappearing into the crowd with her older cousin. The farther the two went, the faster Penelope’s heart pounded against her chest. She started to walk forward.

“Come on, Penelope,” Toadette said, tugging her back. “Toad Town is this way.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“You alright?” Toad asked.

Penelope nodded, wiping a tear from her left eye.

----------

Author’s Note:
This could be the shortest standalone chapter of this arc so far. I might upload two next week to compensate for that; I know it’s not the most consistent, but at least one chapter a Saturday, with some extras on Sunday, can make sure the story isn’t dragging. Penelope’s actions in this chapter are cute to me, and next week you’ll get to see some of Jasmin’s home life.