Chapter 5 - winter weight

Piper and Amber's "chance" meeting at the mall was the start of interesting friendship. Amber found someone whom she could impress upon her "foodie philosophy" while Piper now had someone who could help her complete the deal. They both felt comfortable with each other, and Piper especially began to value Amber's opinion. Over the following weeks, Amber took it upon herself to introduce Piper to all the best cuisines in town. Nearly every night that Piper wasn't at the hospital she was with Amber tasting Italian, French, Mexican, and Chinese dishes at local restaurants. Of course, they didn't skimp on hearty American meals either; one night they ate double cheeseburgers topped with caramelized onions and bacon at an upscale gastropub.

"Piper, if I may speak candidly," Amber said, dabbing her lips with a napkin in order to remove the grease from her burger, "if there's one thing I've learned about you over these past two weeks it's this: you're an emotional eater."
"Really? How so?" Piper replied, trying to hide her embarrassment. She had begun having similar thoughts about herself, especially after the cheesecake episode, but felt too ashamed to accept them.

"Yes, just take a look at what happens when you're mad, sad, anxious, or stressed. The emotion builds up until it overwhelms you, then you suppress it by eating. It's operant conditioning at its finest.

Piper considered Amber's theory for a moment. "Okay Ms. Armchair Psychologist, you may have a point. But why are you telling me this? Are you going to fix me or something?"

"Goodness no, and by the way, I don't see it as a weakness, I see it as a strength!" Amber said to a now puzzled Piper. "Think about it. Your mood is very much correlated with your eating. So far, you've been using these binges as a way to rescue you after you've experienced painful feelings, but what if you focused more on prevention? I mean, what if you could keep your mood afloat by keeping your belly full? Eat for happiness!"

"I don't know about this..." Piper replied hesitantly. "How do I know this'll work?"

"Oh come now, just look at the fun we've had these past two weeks. You've been practically jubilant stuffing your gullet throughout our culinary tour."

"She does have a point," Piper thought to herself. She really enjoyed spending time with Amber and indulging in new cuisines; she definitely felt more in control of her mood too.

"You have so much passion, Piper, and you can make that work for you. But here's your problem," Amber leaned over the table and placed her own hand's over Piper's, "right now you 'eat to live' when you should 'live to eat'!"

"Y-You're right. I can't let myself get as run down as I had been and I really don't have many coping skills. I need to take a different approach." Piper looked down at the massive burger in front of her which she had only nibbled at so far. "Live to eat, huh? she said before taking a huge bite of her burger. For the first time, she noticed how the flavors of the meal came together to produce a savory taste; it was more than just a burger, it was an experience. "I think I can get used to this..." she said with a smirk.

A few weeks passed and Piper displayed a noticeable shift in her attitude and behavior toward food. She took Amber's advice to heart and devoted a lot more time to planning and cooking her meals. She began to enjoy looking up new recipes and felt satisfied whenever she made a good meal. Scott had picked up his work with Uber so she was mostly cooking for herself of late. One night, before work, she crafted one pound of home-made macaroni and cheese with bacon and peas.

"Let's see how this ended up..." she said, putting a forkful of the dish into her mouth. "Mmm...it's...it's delicious!"

Piper helped herself to spoonful after spoonful, her taste buds relishing in the gooeyness of the cheese, the meatiness of the bacon, and the light, crispiness of the peas; she felt almost blissful as she ate. As she polished off half of the dish, she realized that she had intended to save some for Scott.

"I can't stop now. It wouldn't be right to deny myself this happiness. Plus, I've got a deal to keep..." Piper thought to herself.

Piper continued eating until she finished off the entire pot of macaroni. Although her stomach ached because she was completely stuffed, she couldn't help but smile contently; Piper's belly jutted out quite prominently as a testament to her feat. She groaned as she hoisted herself out the dining room chair. Realizing she was running late for work, she quickly scrawled a note and put it by the pot of macaroni:

"Sorry honey! I meant to save you some of this but I just couldn't help myself. Looks like someone's becoming a bit of a piggy... -Piper"

The following day was Valentine's Day and Scott and Piper managed to get a reservation at "Intermezzo", an Italian restaurant. The restaurant itself was small, locally owned, and candlelit, a perfect spot for a romantic dinner date. Piper had found the spot a few weeks ago and Scott asked her how she learned of it.

"Oh, actually a new friend of mine told me about it, Amber's her name," Piper said.

"You don't say? I don't think you've mentioned her..." Scott replied, feigning surprise.

After they arrived at Intermezzo and were seated, Piper practically pounced at the first sight of their waiter. "We'll have a bottle of Santa Cristina Sangiovese, two house salads, and two bowls of zuppa Toscana for starters, please," she quickly dictated.

"Woah, where'd you learn all that?" Scott asked.

"Amber." Piper replied. "She gave me the inside scoop about this place. Also, I hope you're hungry because I'm planning to make this a five course meal. Amber says you can't do it any other way."

Scott nodded in approval and thought to himself, "Amber did a hell of a job..."

As the food arrived Piper plowed through it with gusto. In between scarfing down bites of garlic bread and salad she talked incessantly about the food. Scott noticed a distinct change in Piper's conversational tone, as she now spoke with great reverence about food and the restaurant. She ordered an appetizer of eggplant parmesan, which finished nearly by herself, and lasagna for dinner. Scott watched in amazement as Piper inhaled her meal and he swore that he occasionally heard soft moaning sounds as she ate. She completed her plan by ordering tiramisu for dessert.

Piper gobbled down the coffee-flavored dessert and sighed contently when she finished. Piper was so full that Scott could see the outline of her bulging belly even among her loose fitting blouse. Throughout dinner she finished half of the wine so she was also quite tipsy. He helped her stagger to the car and they arrived home a few minutes later.

Piper stumbled through the front door, turned to Scott and said in a sultry tone, "It's Valentine's Day, are you ready for your present?"

"Oh?" Scott replied, genuinely puzzled.

Piper led him to the bedroom and then made him wait outside. When she opened the door a few minutes later, Scott was floored. Piper stood there in the same pink dress she had worn as part of Halloween costume except it was now obviously too small. It clung tightly to her skin accentuating every inch of Piper's incredibly bloated belly. By most standards Piper was still thin, but there was no denying that she had put on a noticeable amount of weight. Even when she wasn't stuffed she displayed a small pooch, softer hips and rounder breasts, though her ass still had room to grow.

Piper raised and lowered her hands as if to showcase her gain and said drunkenly, "You like what you see? Its 133 pounds; I'm just over half way there. I told you, I've become quite the piggy." She grabbed her snout and ear accessories from the dresser, put them on, and squealed, "OINK, OINK!" They kissed passionately and Scott tasted the wine on Piper's breath that was no doubt responsible for most of her behavior, but there was more to it than that; it almost seemed liked she was basking in her accomplishment in a way that he never expected.

They paused in their kiss and Scott said, "I'll admit, you've put on some winter weight, but you're still a little piglet."

"Oh, you think so? Well, I'll prove you wrong right here, right now," Piper replied and went off to the kitchen. When she returned she held both hands behind her back and said, "This is my trough," revealing a huge plastic bowl. "This is my slop," she pulled out a 42 oz. bag of peanut M & Ms and added, "and I'm going to finish it all." She dumped the contents of the entire bag into the bowl and stared at it hungrily.

"Show me whatcha got," Scott challenged.

Piper stuck her face into the bowl, arose with at least 5 or 6 M & Ms in her mouth, chewing them greedily and lustily eyeing Scott. She this again and again, sometimes snorting like a pig. After a few mouthfuls, Scott saw various colors of the M & M candy shell and well as chocolate smeared across her lips and mouth. He was so enthralled that he barely noticed his throbbing erection. Piper ate without stopping and it wasn't until she ate about half of the bag that her pace began to flag. She finished about 75% of the bag when she stopped and simply couldn't eat anymore.

"I...can't..." Piper stammered weakly as rested on all-fours with her now rounded belly sagging toward the floor.

"That'll do pig." Scott said half-mockingly, half-comforting. Scott embraced her as tight as he could, given her bloated state, and kissed her. Piper felt his erection press against her skin-tight dress and she undressed him as they continued to make out. Scott peeled off her dress carefully; it seemed on the verge of tearing as he did. She laid naked on the bed, breathing heavily with her engorged belly rising up and down, inviting Scott to join her. He entered her warm vagina, thrusted slowly and forcefully, and they climaxed together.