chapter 1

t was Christmas again and Anna was back with her family in Denmark. She liked Christmas - well, most of it. She liked the festivities, the sweets and huge amounts of chocolate, the huge savoury dishes and also, seeing her family. She had moved abroad for her studies, so she was happy to be back and meet her parents and her sister during the holidays. Travel was expensive so she could only go this one time in the year.

What she didn't like was the attitude her family would show to her. Her family was ver health conscious and despite the enormous quantities of food, they only ate little and complained about every once of fat. Her parents put their children on a strict diet when younger, and her sister frequently went to the gym - working on her well-defined abs. Anna however loved her food and she was naturally curvy. But since she had gone abroad, she had also put on a little weight. From an average 65kg she had gone up to 76. A little more than those fresher's 15lbs. Most of it went to her now well defined pot belly and hips. Her boobs had remained a good c-cup, still peeking over her tummy. But the latter provided a great source of entertainment to her sister. "wow, you've been putting on weight, haven't you! My little porker sister! You Gotta get back in shape!" She said after Anna had just arrived, pinching Anna's small love handles. Her parents just gave her concerned looks, particularly whenever she put food on her plate or even just got close to something edible.

On the third day after she arrived, her father lectured her on the health aspects of being overweight. Anna tried not to listen, but later her fathers words kept popping into her mind "you've got to lose all that weight again, it's just unhealthy how big you've gotten."
- "Look, I'm not even overweight, I'm 74 Kilos at 1.75m. That's not as bad as you make it out to be!" She snapped, close to tears.
-"Wow!", her sister gasped for air, "that's almost 25 kilos more than me."
- "Well, you're also 3cm shorter than me and borderline anorexic." Anna retorted.
- "Anna!", her father raised his voice, "your sister has been living healthily, following a good diet with lots of exercise. You should take her as an example, even though she's younger than you. But unlike her, it seems you've been living on fast food and barely moved over the last year." He noticed that she was close to tears and lowered his voice again. "We are just concerned about you and your health. That's all, you know."
Anna just wanted to disappear. She had never quite learned just how fat-phobic her parents were. But then she had always been - relatively - skinny. Curvy, yes, but skinny. But now she was on the receiving end. She had to think about her neighbour, Ms Petersen, a big woman of at least 100kg. She was actually not bad looking, but Anna's family had always made fun of her "All the time she's single, I mean who would date a fat cow like that?" Her sister mocked a few years ago "She would probably swallow any lover of her's, if she'd get one in the first place, that is." Back then Anna giggled, too. Even younger, she and her sister would hide chocolates stuffed with dirt in her neighbour's, joking she would eat anything. Now Anna felt embarrassed and regretted her younger self's actions.

The next day her mother took her aside "Look, my dearest child, I know the last year has been tough for you, but you need to focus on your health again. Do some exercise and eat properly. I can't bear to watch you like this! It's not just about your health, but how are you going to find a boyfriend like this?"

She survived Christmas ok, never mind the scales she got from her sister. What a lovely present! Not. "They can show your body fat content, too!" Her sister half serious, half mockingly exclaimed. Great, just what Anna needed.

She couldn't wait until Christmas was over. All those lovely things that she was looking forward to, the festive mood, etc, all was ruined. But the days passed quickly, and soon she was on the plane back. Her family had said goodbye to her, but not without a gentle reminder to shed the pounds she had gained.