Author's Note: Thanks to everyone who reviewed! Spread the word! On with the next chapter! I am definitely overdoing the exclamation marks!
Chapter Two: Good Guys Laugh, Bad Guys Sulk
The next day was a Saturday. Litwak's Arcade would be closed all day Sunday, so Saturday was seen as a time to celebrate having a break from work. Normally Felix and the Nicelanders would party in the penthouse, while Ralph would try to shut out the music and catch up on his sleep in the garbage. Today, however, Ralph was standing at the train station, waiting for Vanellope. Every five seconds he looked at his wrist, even though he wasn't wearing a watch.
After what seemed like thirty years, the train carrying his sort-of girlfriend rolled into the station. Vanellope looked completely different. Instead of her teal hoodie and brown skirt, she wore a poufy pink dress with white frills and ribbons. Her shiny black hair had been taken out of its ponytail and curled at the ends, giving it buoyancy and sweetness. As she climbed out of the carriage, Ralph noticed the ballet pumps on her feet, also pink. Vanellope dusted off her dress and smiled.
"What do you think?" she asked.
Ralph didn't realise his mouth was hanging open until he tried to move it. "It's . . . beautiful," he managed to say. It sounded pathetic coming from him. She was clearly more than beautiful.
"I hope it's not too much," she said. "I guess I just freaked out because I'm going to a whole new place – I wanted to make a good impression."
"Oh, you will," Ralph reassured her, taking her hand and leading her towards the towering penthouse. "You will."
. . .
Inside, the party was in full swing. The stereo in the corner was belting out some obscure electronic tune from the Eighties. "Strobe lights" (actually torches with coloured light bulbs) had been hung from the ceiling and now spun round on their strings. You could kid yourself that the lights were dancing in time to the music. The whole left wall had been taken up with tables of food, labelled with the rather broad categories of "Sweet," "Savoury" and "Drinks."
As Vanellope walked in and gazed around in wonder, Ralph ducked down and concentrated on not hitting his head on the ceiling. The Nicelanders turned to the door. The music slowed down and then stopped. Everyone was staring at Ralph.
"Hey, guys," Ralph said, waving. "I know what you're thinking, but don't worry. I'm not staying for long-"
Somewhere, Gene breathed a sigh of relief.
"-I just wanted to introduce you to Vanellope. And this-" he pointed to her "-this is Vanellope."
"Hi!" Now it was Vanellope's turn to wave.
At the sight of the cute little lady, everyone relaxed. A new song, "99 Red Balloons," began to play. Mary asked her if she wanted some cake, and Vanellope made a beeline for the "Sweet" party food. Ralph was left to stand around like a lemon while everyone else had fun.
It was almost a relief when Felix walked over. "I'm glad you brought her over. She's a sweet kid," he said.
"Mm-hmm."
"We should definitely double-date sometime – you and Vanellope, and me and Tammy . . ."
Ralph wasn't really listening. He was straining to hear Vanellope, Gene and Mary's conversation over the instrumental.
"So, Ralph comes over every day, does he?" Mary was asking.
"Yep. When the arcade closes, he's there."
"And what do you do?"
"Oh, we just talk. Well, I talk. Ralph just listens."
"Is that it?" asked Gene.
"Uh-huh."
"And you haven't done anything . . . else together?" Gene's question was laced with suspicion.
"Well, I gave him a tour of the castle once. And another time, we went strawberry-picking, and I picked the most strawberries."
"Ooh, that sounds quite romantic!" cooed Mary. "Is it all lovey-dovey and kissy-wissy with him?"
"We kissed once."
Mary and Gene gasped.
"You sound surprised," Vanellope noted.
Ralph did not like the way this conversation was heading. Felix was still talking, so Ralph just asked, "Would you excuse me for a moment?" and made his way over to the buffet. He grabbed Vanellope's right arm a little too quickly and said, "Well, now you've seen what my life is like. You should be going now."
"Huh?" Vanellope glanced between him and Mary.
"Oh, there's no need to rush off," Mary insisted. "We were having a nice conversation there, weren't we?"
Vanellope didn't reply. She just stared at Ralph.
"Yeah, but it's past her bedtime now," Ralph said, "so we should be going."
"She's twenty-four!" said Mary. Ralph tried to pull Vanellope away, but Mary grabbed Vanellope's other arm and held out a plate. "Would you like some more cake?" she asked with a hint of desperation.
"Her game is made of cake. She doesn't need any more. Now let go of her-"
Ralph pulled harder, making Vanellope whimper a little. But Mary did not let go. "Why can't she stay for a while?"
"She has to go home."
"She has to stay here so we can keep an eye on her!" snapped Gene.
"YOU DON'T NEED TO KEEP AN EYE ON HER!" Ralph bellowed.
With a final tug, he yanked Vanellope out of Mary's arm – and yanked her shoulder out of its socket.
Vanellope screamed. The music stopped. The room was filled with gasps and whispers.
"Did he just do that?"
"I had a bad feeling about them from the beginning."
"She's not safe with him!"
For a moment, Ralph was frozen on the spot. His eyes were fixed on Vanellope, who was rubbing her shoulder and blinking fiercely. Then he crashed through the wall, leaving a Ralph-shaped hole behind him. He stomped off quickly. His eyes were shut. He didn't know where he was going. He just knew he had to get away of there.
"Ralph!"
He stopped, turned and opened his eyes to see Vanellope running behind him with her dress flying out behind her. She skidded to a halt.
Ralph noticed that her shoulder seemed to be back in its place. "You healed up pretty quickly."
"Felix fixed it."
"I should've guessed."
Vanellope twirled a strand of hair around her finger. "You were right. I shouldn't have come."
"I'm sorry about your arm-"
"It's not that," she interrupted him. "It was . . . ugh. They kept asking questions and I tried to give them short answers, 'cause I wanted them to get the message. But they just asked more questions." She sighed and stared down at the ground. "Love is complicated."
"It sure is," Ralph agreed.
There was a pause.
"Sometimes I wish you were a Good Guy," Vanellope said, almost in a whisper.
"Me too," Ralph whispered back. "But it's pointless. You can't change who you are."
Vanellope's head jerked up suddenly. "Can't you?"
"Nope," Ralph said. Then he noticed the glint in her eye. Vanellope's eyes were chocolate-brown, but occasionally Ralph saw a spark of white. It always appeared when she had an idea – usually a bad idea. "Why do you ask that?"
"I'm just thinking about something."
It seemed that now it was her turn to be the non-talkative one.
A train pulled into the station – the last one of the night. Vanellope rushed past Ralph and hopped in. "I'll see you around, Stinkbrain," she called as the train pulled away. "Stinkbrain" was her nickname for him.
"Sure thing, Booger-Face," Ralph called back.
That was his nickname for her.
