Paul had a new definition of stink inside the old battered sneaker. Years of accumulated sweat and grime made the inside noxious. What was wrong with Judy? Did she not wash? The thin white sock surrounding him was his only shield from the filth of the shoe, he wondered how long it would hold out. Judy was heading to the gym, he was sure to begin sweating as a result. The sock would get just as wet as the boot sock got, probably more so. Judy’s stops were cushioned more in the soft sneakers, but this wasn’t an improvement for Paul as with each step he was squashed into the disgusting insole.
Judy thought she’d get a couple hours of cardio in, make the most of her good mood, she drove to her gym, found a free space and got out of the car. For Paul the worst thing that could have happened was the brief break as Judy was driving. Her first step out of the car squashed him right into the sole again, he even heard a small squelch. It dawned at him that he didn’t even know what Judy would do at the gym. He hoped for his sake it would be something with her arms. This wasn’t Paul’s day it seemed as Judy set herself up at a treadmill. Setting the machine for a good jogging pace, she set an alarm on her watch for 90 minutes and put in her earphones and set off.
This was the first time Paul had been jogged on and it was in no way preferable to walking. The steps were harder and came thick and fast. There was no let up for him, one second being crushed into the sole, the next being lifted up in the air. It was constant, no time for a pause. AT least when she walked, it was slower and she’s stop occasionally. Pau stopped counting the steps at the 250 mark, it was hard to concentrate on anything as he was repeatedly squashed into the dirty insole, then lifted into the air. It felt like days for Paul, with no end in sight, each step making him moister and exacerbating the stench coming from him. He felt a gentle ache starting to build within him, the joints where the toes joined his body became sore, as his body flexed and stretched within the constant rhythm of Judy’s running.
The ninety minutes came by quite quick for Judy, it was like running on air, she felt like she could run for longer, but she didn’t have the time. As Paul felt Judy slow down and thanked whatever deity he last begged for it to stop. As Judy stood gathering her things, Paul just stewed in her sneaker, he felt hot and sticky, but there was no way of cooling himself down, he was forced to remain still emanating heat and sweat. The thin white sock encasing him was now firmly stuck to him with the sweat acting as a mild adhesive. As Judy started walking again, Paul hardly noticed as it was a simple experience after all the running.
Once Judy got home, she knew she needed a shower, she caught a whiff of herself as she was driving and it wasn’t pleasant. She kicked off her sneakers and got blasted with the stink from her socks. Paul felt the sneaker being removed from him as light re-entered his world, but it only provided a backlight as his vision was still blocked off by the sock. Judy walked into her bathroom and started to undress, removing her top and sweatpants before finally peeling off her socks. The feeling of the sock being peeled off him was a relief, as the rush of cold air to him was refreshing. He was then slammed down onto the tiled floor making an audible slap. As Judy started the shower, she leant forward on her tiptoes, stretching Paul forward. At this odd angle, he could see the impression of his body on the floor, left by his grime. A nearby toilet paper tube gave him some scale as to how small he actually was, as the imprint was barely longer than it.
Finally, Judy entered the shower, planting Paul at the base. He could feel cool water rushing on the back of his body, enjoying the sensation of the water getting between his toes. He stayed stationary for a while as Judy washed herself. Soon after, Judy lifted Paul into the air so she was facing him. For the first time since becoming a foot, he could see Judy eye to eye, he was expecting some kind of comment or at least a cocky look, but instead he was just met with the face of someone who looked like they were washing an inanimate object, knowing their not looking at a living thing. She’s a better actor than I thought, Paul thought to himself, she must be acting like she doesn’t know so he wouldn’t blame her. Like that would stop him.
Judy moved her foot under the shower to clean it, gently kneading it, giving it a massage. For Paul, this actually felt quite nice, her fingers were miracle workers as the gentle ache that had built up during the day seemed to subside. He felt her fingers move between his toes as he felt stretched out. Since becoming a foot, this was the first time Paul had felt anything close to comfort. It didn’t last long as he was plunged back to the shower base, as Judy lifted the other foot to clean that. This was a complete flip side as now all of Judy’s weight was pressed down on him. Judy didn’t feel overly stable either, as he was constantly adjusted as Judy swayed, unbalanced. The entire force of Judy was now pressing down on Paul, as the arch in his body pressed down. He didn’t feel like Judy spent all that long cleaning him, but this felt like an eternity. Finally there was some let up as the weight eased and Judy returned to two legs.
Judy finished up her shower and went and got dried. Being towelled off was a new one for Paul as Judy’s fingers did their job again and made him feel quite soft. For the first time in hours, Paul felt dry with the stench that had emitted from him subsided. Once Judy was dry, she got dressed and put on the slippers her boyfriend had bought her the other week. The slippers for Paul were the best shoe he had been placed in. Being new, there was no smell clinging to them yet, they were soft and he wasn’t crammed in. It was only a sort while before Judy sat down on her couch to watch the TV, curling into a ball. From the relative light of being in the slipper, Paul was now back to darkness, as Judy hugged her knees into herself. Paul was now still, smell-less and relatively comfortable, for the first time all day, he could just sit tight.
Judy had other ideas and decided it would be a good time to paint her toenails. Grabbing a bottle off the coffee table, she slipped her feet out of her slippers and rested them against the table. Paul was moved from his dark area to being pressed against the table edge, his body bent slightly around it, he was pinned just under where his vision was lying, allowing him to look around. Taking advantage, he looked for the mirror he had spied that morning. He saw Judy opening a bottle of nail polish she then grabbed a hold of Paul, gently squeezing him between her fingers. She started to paint the nails on Paul’s body, which for him was a strange sensation. The nails weren’t as sensitive as the rest of his body, but he could still feel the cold paint being applied to him. The smell was quite overpowering, it was almost clinical. It almost made him miss the natural smell that would emanate from him as Judy walked.
Judy finished up painting her toenails, then separated them with cotton wool. Keeping her feet propped up on the coffee table so they could dry, she continued watching TV. The forced separation of his toes made him feel stretched, but not in any way he was used to. Though now he could see the TV. For the first time since this calamity occurred, he could forget about the situation and just switch off, though he was jarred back to reality, every time Judy twitched her foot slightly, reminding him once again that he was not in control. He could feel the polish drying on his nails slowly, a strange part of him wondered what colour it was, but he snapped out of it. Who cares what colour it was? When he gets back to normal, he was never going to look at feet the same way again.
Judy sat for hours, watching TV, looking at her phone before she decided it was a good time to go to bed. She felt her toenails to verify that they were dry, then put her slippers back on, wandering into her room to go to bed. Paul’s rest was over as the slipper returned into his view, no longer able to pretend nothing was up, the reality of being a body part was now back with him. It wasn’t a long journey to the bed and as she got inside the sheets, Paul enjoyed the comfort as he could now take it easy, knowing he wouldn’t be stepped on for a good few hours. He could actually sense Judy drifting away, which made him tired too. He’s had a long day and it was finally over, as he fell into a state of sleep.
Paul was back in an office sitting at a desk. Looking down, he found he could move again, he had arms! Legs! A face! He recognised the office as the one from the dream the other night. He was back. That is if he ever stopped dreaming. What had happened to him was surely too bizarre to be real, right? But it all felt so real, the sensation of being nothing but a foot was still there, like an imprint on his memory. Paul suddenly recalled the man from his dreams. The spirit of the justice league, or whatever he called himself. Not wanting to meet him again, Paul headed for the door, but when he went through it, found only an exact copy of the room he’d just left. Paul tried many times to leave the office, but only found himself in the same office again and again.
There was no escape. Resigned, Paul slumped into the chair in front of the desk and awaited his host, who didn’t take long to make a reappearance. He walked confidently to the other chair and stared into Paul’s eyes.
“Had an enlightening day?” He asked
“Why?” was all Paul could get out. He had so many questions, but that was the only one to formulate in his mouth
“I should think the answer was obvious. I’m the spirit of True Justice, and I was dealing some out to you” Pal’s eyes narrowed
“Judy put you up to this, didn’t she?” he demanded
“I have never had any contact with anyone you know outside of yourself. I picked Judy as she is the one most affected by your actions”
“Bullshit! I don’t know how you did it, witchcraft, Nano-machines, whatever, but she thought it’d be funny to turn me into her foot and have some fruit in a white suit drug me and change me! Admit it”
“Did you learn anything at all from your experience, Mr Mathieson, or did you just bask in your own rage all day?”
“You can’t fool me. Do you think I’m stupid?”
“No Mr Mathieson, I think you’ve completely missed the point. I didn’t think it would need this, but I think you need to spend more time in your new perspective”
“No! You can’t do this to me again!”
“We will speak tomorrow night Mr Mathieson, I do hope you have seen reason by then”
“NOOO” Paul screamed as the office faded away. He once again found himself Judy’s foot, under the cover of her bedsheets. From the light he could see peaking in, it was morning. It barely felt like half an hour in that office now he would have to face another day of being walked on. Paul cursed the suited man and Judy. If it was the last thing he would ever do, he would get even with her.
Judy woke and rolled out of bed. She had a spring in her step from her good day yesterday and was looking forward to another one. Opening the curtains, she saw the weather matched her mood as brilliant sunshine and a cloudless sky met her. This was going to be a good day, she was sure of it. Down at the bottom of her body, her left foot was seething in anger, furious at the current situation he was stuck in.