Chapter 27 I Can Do It
"WAHOO!"
Celia chuckled as she watched the Mario Kart race occurring on the mini, closed track. Roy laughed right alongside her, wrapping his arm around her figure in a way that was sweet while also conveying the joy running through his mind. Celia leaned forward, focusing on the racers. At the start of the race, she had chosen to root for this human kid named Max, who unfortunately wasn't doing so hot (he was currently in seventh out of eight positions). Regardless, Celia still rooted for him. She wasn't going to abandon her hope in him just because things weren't looking so good.
"COME ON, MAX!" Celia called out at the top of her voice. "YOU CAN DO IT!"
Max blinked and looked over at her, grinning and speeding up when he saw the hopeful look in her eyes. Meanwhile, Roy just sat their chuckling like some sort of killer clown.
"Man. Makes me wonder if you would cheer for me if I was on the racetrack," he said. "I could probably mop the floor with these guys." His chuckling grew louder. "Plus, the fact that Larry's not here to grind my tail into dust pretty much guarantees that I would win in the end."
Celia snickered. "Wow, how humble art thou," she joked. She stood up. "I'm going to get some more food." Roy nodded and stood up with her, and they made their way over to the table while the sounds of revving engines and super engaged racers and spectators echoed in their ears. Once they got to the table, Celia grabbed a plate and piled some potato chips on her plate, for most of the things that the people contributed to the potluck were too… fancy for her liking. Kind of an interesting contrast to Roy, as not only didn't he find the food too extravagant (heh, a vocab word that Celia had been taught by Ms. Tish), but he also piled mountains of stuff on his plate. This made sense to her; after all, he did grow up in a castle, so therefore was more used to dishes like these.
Anyway, the two of them made their way back to their seats pretty quickly. As Celia nibbled on the edge of one of her chips, she kept her eyes on the podium near the winner's stage. Ms. Tish had told her that she would walk up onto the podium and read her paper once the race was over. A simple proposition, but a nerve-wracking one nonetheless. Celia didn't even really know how she felt about this entire thing. On some level, she didn't regret telling her teacher that she was willing to read her paper tonight. On another level though, she… did? Yeah, she was experiencing a whole bunch of complicated emotions tonight.
Roy noticed her staring at the podium, which caused him to smile. "Hey." He pulled his hand away from his feast in order to wrap his arm around his girlfriend's figure once again. "You're gonna do great."
Celia took a deep breath. "I… I hope so."
"Oh yeah? Well I know so." He smirked. "All you're doing is reading a paper. A paper that, based on what I read a few days ago, is really good." He grinned. "Not to mention inspiring."
Celia snickered. "T… that is high praise." She stared down at her chip plate. "You… you really think I'll do good?"
"Oh yeah." Roy patted her on the back. "You seemed really passionate about your new dream, which let me tell you was a really refreshing change of pace. I loved how you lit up when you told me you want to be a teacher. Something about it was just… awesome." His form became less rigid, more relaxed. "Plus… well, that paper was something you worked hard on, something that more than earned Ms. Tish's approval." His grin grew more… reassuring. "You'll do just fine."
Celia's heart melted. "That's… that's a lot of high praise." She wrapped her arms around Roy. "Man, did I hit the jackpot when it came to finding my first boyfriend."
Roy's body felt significantly warmer. "Thanks. That means a lot." He chortled. "Especially seeing how I've only had two girlfriends over the course of my entire life." He laughed out loud, the sound significantly humorous. "But based on what you're telling me, it seems both girlfriends were pretty lucky to have me."
Celia laughed right alongside him. "Yep, you're a God-send." She was only half joking when she said that; on some level, she was being completely genuine.
Right at that moment, the spectators cheered extra loud. Celia and Roy pulled away from each other and looked down at the track, seeing that the first kart had crossed the finish line. It wasn't Max, but thankfully Celia's go-karter of choice had managed to get third overall. Not bad; not bad at all.
"Great job Max!" Celia called out as he mounted the winner's stage.
"Yeah!" Roy called out. "You managed to kick five out of seven booties! That's worth bragging about!" Interestingly, Max actually laughed out loud when Roy finished saying that, which brought Celia's spirits up significantly. It was little moments like that that made life worth living.
Anyway, not too long after the winners received their trophies, Ms. Tish walked up to the podium. That was Celia's cue, so she gave Roy a quick peck on the cheek before making her way over. She gripped her paper tightly in her hands, not wanting to ever let it go.
"Thank you all for coming this evening!" Ms. Tish announced to the parents and students alike. "I'm sure we were all entertained by that Mario Kart race, and we especially are proud of our winners." She clapped, and everyone else did too. Celia smiled as she saw the winners grinning at the immense and happy applause. Man, if only she could ever experience that kind of approval and validation in her own life…
"And let me say," Ms. Tish continued, "that I am immensely proud of all our graduating seniors this year. I unfortunately don't know for certain if I'll be able to attend the graduation ceremony next week, so I will say this to those who are present. You all… are incredible. I know that you all will do great things with your lives!"
This got everyone to applaud again. Celia beamed and joined in on the applause, even though she wasn't acquainted with anybody who was in the graduating class. Still though, she felt happy for them. Really happy.
"And speaking of people who I am proud of," Ms. Tish said, causing Celia's face to grow warm. "I am pleased to say that my one and only student this year has really done a killer job in every category. The things she was able to do in less than three months is downright astonishing."
Celia's face grew warm. I don't know if I would say astonishing. Still though, hearing those words come from Ms. Tish did make her heart well with pride. Specifically, a kind of pride she had never felt before. Was this what it felt like to be proud of yourself? It was kind of nice.
"And nowhere is that better exemplified than her end of year project." Ms. Tish beamed. "I had her write her own personal mission statement, and it just… it blew me away. So much so that I offered to her the opportunity to read it aloud at this very event." Ms. Tish turned toward her, making eye contact with Celia. "So, without further ado, please welcome Celia Patch!"
With that, Ms. Tish dismounted the platform and allowed Celia to step up. The hybrid took in a deep breath when she did, and let it out when she heard whistling in the applauding audience. It was immediately obvious the whistling was from Roy, which only made her feel even better. She pushed a strand of her hair out of her face and smiled.
"Thank you, everyone." For a split second, overwhelming fear and anxiety came over her, making the possibility of her being able to effectively deliver this speech even less probable. However, she got a look at Ms. Tish's face. She looked excited, happy, and most importantly, proud. That look somehow renewed her inner strength. So, she cleared her throat.
"As Ms. Tish said, I am Celia Patch." She adjusted her papers on the podium. "And, as she also said, I wrote a personal mission statement earlier, so… I'm gonna read that for you." With that, she looked down at her paper, cleared her throat again, and started to read.
"Honestly, for as long as I can remember, the topic of dreams has always been a rough subject for me. Every other kid in school was like 'I want to be an astronaut!' or 'I'm gonna change the world when I grow up!' While cute, it was also important, as it conveyed that these people had plans for their lives. They that they could make an impact if they truly put their minds and spirits into it. It was very admirable. But unfortunately, I never felt the same way.
This was mostly because of what happened in my childhood. Being born to a human mother and koopa father…" This got some murmurs among the crowd, but Celia did her best to push the worries over that to the side. "I was always treated like some sort of outsider. Everybody I went to school with viewed me in a… less than stellar or positive way. And on top of bullying me physically, they went out of their way to try and break my spirit. And, unfortunately, they were successful." Celia sighed. "I believed every horrible word that my classmates said to me. I had it engrained in my mind that I would never amount to anything, that I could never actually achieve my dreams because nobody would want to hear what I had to say. After all, why would anyone in the Mushroom Kingdom actually care about the words that a half koopa had to say?"
She turned to the next page. "This mindset carried with me until the present day. And what made it so difficult for me personally was everyone telling me that I should follow a dream. From my parents to my friends, everyone wanted me to have a goal, and they said they would dedicate all of their hearts to helping me reach that goal. But… but I didn't really see the point. I thought with all of my might that trying to pursue a goal - any sort of goal - was a waste of time and effort. Sure, I wasn't necessarily content with the idea that my life would wither away to nothing, but I did view it to a better alternative to feeling the pain that came with failing. The pain that came with disappointing people. The pain that came with the feeling that the whole world was against me."
She paused when she said that, letting the weight of those words hang both in the air and in her heart, before continuing. "And honestly, I was willing to carry that mindset, as well as a lack of a dream, into my adult years. That all changed though when I met my teacher. Ms. Ivona Tish is an amazing woman. As someone who decided to pursue a teaching career and life in the Mushroom Kingdom of all places was… she is abasolutely amazing to me. It inspired me in a way that I had never been inspired before. And this inspiration only became more prevalent to me when I found out about her life story.
You see, Ms. Tish has gone through a lot of pain. She was an outsider in the place she called home. She wanted to achieve some goals that were, unfortunately, just out of reach. She suffered pain, loss, and heartbreak. And yet… she didn't let those problems define her. Every day, she chose to wake up with a smile and come to school to teach me. She wasn't one who let her past or her present get her down. Instead, she looked to the future and tried her best to see all the good that such a scary thing as the future could hold for her and other people. That inspired me greatly. That made me find a long-lost hope. That made me feel like maybe, just maybe, I could be like her. I wanted to be like her. I wanted to leave an impact on people like she did on her students. I wanted to direct people to a brighter path, a brighter future. No longer was I intent on just letting myself and my life wither away into dust. I now had a role model. I now had some idea of what I wanted to be."
She turned the page one last time. "And I know, with the support of everyone in my life, I'll be able to achieve that goal. I have loving parents. I have an amazing boyfriend. I have people who care about me, including Ms. Tish. And I just know that my dream to be a teacher isn't one that I will let gather dust. I will pursue it. Not only will I pursue it, but I will also succeed. My parents taught me that was possible. My boyfriend Roy taught me that is possible. Ms. Tish taught me that was possible." She smiled. "So, I will walk with my head held high. I won't let any nay-sayers say that I can't. From now on, I'm putting my best foot forward. I'm not looking at the past or the present. I'm looking toward the future. And in that future, I… will be… a teacher." Celia felt a warmth fill her. "Thank you."
With that, she dismounted the podium. The audience clapped for her, sounding like they hadn't been moved like that in a long time. Celia's smile grew brighter when she heard that. She only grew happier as she watched Roy in the audience, being the only one who decided to give her a standing ovation.
She walked over to Ms. Tish. "Did I do well?"
"You did amazing," Ms. Tish responded. She patted her on the back. "You pursue that dream, Celia. Don't ever believe that you can't do it."
Celia nodded. "Oh believe me. I won't."
AN: Don't go away! There's one chapter after this, so stay tuned! :)
