chapter 2

Julia has no idea how Luc sees her as attractive. She is /fat/. Sure, she's heard of people gaining weight when they start relationships, but this was too much, especially when Luc was still so fit. Tomorrow, she will diet, and she'll tell Luc as much. When he finds her on the couch with tear stained cheeks, he collects her in his arms and peppers little kisses across her cheeks and chin. Luc inquires where her tears came from, and she almost sobs when she tells him how fat she's gotten.

He looks affronted at her comment and squeezes her breasts, murmuring how sexy she was. She had barely put on any weight, and if anyone had anything to say, they had better speak to him directly. Was it possible she was wrong? Maybe she had just picked up the wrong size; she had run out of contacts and forgot her glasses that morning. And dressing rooms were notorious for their bad lighting... She allows him to console her, and he orders in and puts on her favorite movie. Later on that night, she falls asleep in his arms with a tight, full belly and no worries.

. . .

A week before spring break, Luc coaxes Julia back to the mall. He accompanies her, slinging his arm around her shoulder and walking at her side; he does not moan or groan about being drug shopping with his girlfriend. They make a game out of it; she waits in the dressing room, and he picks out the clothes for her. Some of his choices are laughable - a plaid jumpsuit and a bright orange shirt that washes her out completely. But they all fit. Women's clothing lines always edit their sizes; no wonder they hadn't fit. She feels silly for crying over it, and they celebrate her renewed confidence with Cinnabon. Somehow, they have shrunk in size since she last had them; she eats hers and half of his. They leave the mall with several bags, and the bikini incident is the furthest thing from her mind, particularly when Luc kisses her at a red light and it tastes like icing and cinnamon.

On Easter, she takes him to meet her family. Her sister's immediate comment about her weight does not faze her; she only rolls her eyes and takes her overnight bag from Luc and leads him to the guest room. (Her parents insist.) She eats anything and everything she wants at dinner; her pants feel almost loose, so she must have lost some weight. It is okay to indulge. When she tucks into her third plate, her sister snaps a harsh comment, and Luc bristles visibly. The tone he takes is sharp and angry, a clear warning to her snot-nosed sister. His affection and concern for her emotional wellbeing and happiness warms her.

She really does love him, especially when he rubs the tightness out of her belly later that night, as she hiccups and bemoans her regret about eating too much. He reveals three cupcakes he snuck upstairs, and she giggles. She tries to sit up, but her bloated tummy is in the way; even the second try, with more momentum keeps her pinned to the bed. They laugh together at that, and she laps the icing from the cupcakes that he holds closer to her face.

. . .

"You would think I'd know how to use a dryer by now," Julia laughs, trying to button her jeans. They have shrunk, as the last ones did. Luc laughs, looking up from the biology texts he has strewn across his bed. Their bed, really; she spends more time here, than at her own dorm. Rolling her eyes, she tosses them into the dirty clothes and slips into a pair of yoga pants.

"I'll teach you over the summer," he promises, jotting down a few words in the margin. He pauses, looking at her speculatively. "Move in with me over the summer?"

She does, and gets a job at a nearby office building. The campus and the city is different during summer, almost magical in a way, as college students retreat back to their family homes or go on vacations. Luc works over the summer, in addition to taking an intensive language class, and with his scholarship stipend, they make a habit of trying a new restaurant every week. Sometimes twice a week. Her bras tighten again, and she replaces them; they were getting old anyway. Even her yoga pants end up cutting into her belly. Of course she's gained a little weight; she has an office job that never requires her to move.

She always means to go to the gym or for a walk, but Luc tempts her with suggestive smirks and promises of food from her favorite take out restaurant. (No matter how much food there is, somehow it all disappears, but he is always so kind to her after she inevitably eats too much, rubbing her tummy gently and disappearing to find desert.) Plus, she gets winded quicker now, so it's not as enjoyable.

. . .

On their first day of classes, Luc prepares breakfast for them, because his first class is not until the early afternoon. Even though she does not mean to, Julia stuffs herself silly, chattering about her new classes, half nervous and half excited. Calculus is her biggest worry, but Luc reassures her that he will help her. Walking to class with an overfull stomach is uncomfortable, and she makes a mental note not to do it again.

In the lecture hall, she has to stuff herself into the seat, and the little table presses tightly against her belly, almost painful. She has never had a class in this building but assumes it must be older, with seats built for the narrower people of the 1950s. A tall boy a few seats down knocks his knees against the underside of the table, which looks painful.

On her way back to Luc's, she runs into her old roommate, Alx, whose eyes go wide when they recognize Julia. Her mouth drops open, unable to contain shock, and Julia laughs self consciously. They had almost never seen each other last year, since Julia had been with Luc most of the time, and their schedules were almost opposite of each other.

"Julia, are you okay?" she asks, concern taking over her features.

Tilting her head, Julia frowns a bit. "Yeah, of course. Why?"

"You just...you're different than I remember...Bigger."

"Oh, yeah. I guess I put on the freshman fifteen, but at least it all went to my boobs."

Julia laughs, but Alx does not, looking increasingly awkward. "Yeah. Look, I'm running late for class. I'll see you around."

All the way back home, Julia replays the conversation in her head. She knew she had put on some weight, but that was to be expected, really. College was stressful! She knows Alx's comments are unwarranted and unfounded. Julia undresses, fully intending to slip into her comfortable lounge wear, but catches sight of herself in the mirror. Far too reminiscent of the bikini incident several months ago, shock accompanies her realization. Julia has put on more than a little weight.

Her belly now rests atop her thighs, completely covering her panties, and shows a deep belly button. Stretch marks old and new crisscross her bloated flesh, most centered around her belly button. Somehow, her once slim waist has been lost to inches and inches of blubbery fat. Mouth dropping open in shock, Julia grabs at it, but there is too much for even two of her hands; it spills out of her grip. She pants slightly from the effort. Her thighs are thick, touching firmly almost down to the knee. She even has a double chin. Every bit of her seems to have been bloated and ballooned; she hardly recognizes the fit girl that she had been only a year ago.

The front door opens, and Luc calls out a greeting. Julia puts on her lounge clothes quickly, acutely aware of the fact that her walk is more of a waddle, as she goes to greet Luc. He holds a cake box and bottles of champagne, beaming at her. Before she can speak her concern, he crosses the distance between them and kisses her deeply, arms winding around her. She had no idea that was possible; she feels so fat.

"What's up?" she asks, trying to force enthusiasm into her voice.

"It's our one-year anniversary, babe."

She softens at the reminder. In the stress of back to school preparation, she had forgotten. Though they had not been exclusive for almost a month after their meeting, it really was their one-year. For the moment, her worries slip away, and she kisses him, fuzzy happiness melting away at the cool drip of horror the moments in the bathroom had produced.

Before she realizes it, the first bottle of champagne is gone, both of them pleasantly tipsy. They reminisce over their last year with the second bottle, and somehow, the entire sheet cake disappears into her. There is icing on her shirt, that strains against her breasts and belly, leaving the material woefully overworked, and smeared across her mouth and cheeks. Her thighs spread to accommodate the bloat of her fat belly, that Luc rubs with his characteristic tenderness. The cake is gone, but food somehow still travels into her mouth, washed down with something creamy that does not quite taste like milk. She chews and swallows, until her head nods to the side, the carbs and alcohol kicking in. Luc coaxes her to drink another glass of water, but it does not taste or feel like water. She drinks it down anyway.


Even if Julia had the energy to get up, she would not have been able to. She has never been so packed full of food, and the sheer amount of it would keep her pinned. Drunk of alcohol and sweets, she hasn't the presence of mind to calculate such things, and their bed is just so comfortable. Lying on her back, she can hardly see over her straining, stretch-marked belly. Somehow, a cupcake finds its way into her mouth, and she swallows only a few moments before falling into a deep sleep, one hand resting on her belly.

. . .

A/N: Shoutout to Jazzman for inspiring me to write this.