Chapter 3 - expanding limits

Bethany had never brought food into class since elementary school, but found that this new trend was quickly agreeing with her. Not wanting to spoil her appetite, Bethany started off small. A granola bar, fruit snacks, maybe a small bag of chips. Nothing extreme. But, like a persistent mosquito bite, the more she scratched the more she itched.

"Alright class, today we're examining types of GROWTH. There are two main types. Linear growth and exponential growth"

Staving off minor hunger pains was starting to evolve into something bigger. And Bethany was evolving into something bigger as well. Nibbling covertly during class wasn't enough to satiate her increasing appetite. Instead, she would tear chunks out of poptarts while the teacher's head was turned, or even stuff a whole candy bar into her mouth.

"Linear growth increases at a CONSISTENT rate over time. We represent this growth on the chart as a straight line slanting diagonally upwards as it travels. The rate by which the growth increase stay the SAME."

Today, unfortunately, Bethany had been in a rush to get to class and only managed to grab two pastries on her way out of the house. Her parents must have shrunk her jeans in the wash, because it had taken a full ten minutes to tug them over her ass. She used to be able to slip her pants on in seconds, even with her bubble butt. Her parents had all that money but still wouldn't budge for a washer that didn't fuck with her outfits. What a joke. Still, she figured she couldn't possibly be all that hungry right before her lunch break. Her current haul would be plenty.

Of course, Bethany still might have been able to stock up with time to spare if not for her larger breakfasts, which were beginning to border on extravagant. She hated dragging herself out of bed any earlier than she had to, but by the time her bacon slice consumption had reached double digits, it was well worth it. She mopped up any leftover grease with thick chunks of french toast and, if she had the kitchen to herself, would chase each piece with a gulp of syrup straight from the bottle. Nothing felt better than starting the day with a warm, full feeling in her tummy.

"EXPONENTIAL growth, however, MULTIPLES the rate by which it increases over time. So we represent it with a line that begins to curve sharply upwards as it travels forward. It increases gradually at first and then picks up more and more speed over time."

With her purse concealed on her lap, Bethany fished into its insides in search of much needed sustenance. The lesson had just started and her stomach had already broken down her big, heavy breakfast and was in want of more. She tore clumsily at the poptarts' packaging, managing to break off half of the first strudel and slip it between her lips.

Her face had always been a little soft, but her jawline was making its retreat into her new face-chub. And with a mouth filled with sugary snacks, her cheeks puffed up like a chipmunk's. She barely registered how ridiculous she must look, cheeks bulging and eyes wide with the euphoria of finally filling her belly, but she chewed and swallowed quickly anyway. Of course, it was more out of eagerness to consume her tasty treat and less out of self-consciousness.

Bit by bit she worked her way through her first pack of goodies, only pausing to shift with discomfort. Her legs already felt like wrapped sausages in her jeans, but now she felt the waistband cutting into her stomach as well. Bethany tried to slide her fingers between her round tummy and her jeans, hopefully tugging enough to grant some relief, but there was hardly an room. In fact, she had to press against the doughy orb of her stomach just to to see her jeans. But that wasn't the full extent of the damage.

"The BEST way to illustrate this is population size. Couples will raise multiple children, then those multiple children will raise even MORE children, and with each generation the population keeps increasing by more and more and more. "

During her hopefully subtle struggle with her too tight pants, her love handles had begun to ooze over the sides of her jeans, stretching her top (which she had already tugged back down several times that morning) back up over her bloated body. Even her ass, which she had tried so hard to stuff into her jeans, had began to free itself. Now that her blouse was sliding back up, the tops of her ass cheeks and the beginnings of a plumber's crack crept into full view.

Eventually, Bethany surrendered to her dough ball belly and refocused her efforts on prying the jeans' button free. She would have never dared to unbutton her pants in front of anyone, but she was so caught up in her mission that she didn't even notice her chubby cheeks turning tomato red with exertion. The softness of her arms jostled ever so slightly as she tore at the stubborn button, clawing at it desperately for relief. Then, all at once, her jeans released their hold with a POP, almost sending Bethany falling backwards in her seat.

"Unfortunately, with the population model, exponential growth is NOT sustainable. As every generation MULTIPLIES, the population size draws closer to an EXTINCTION EVENT."

Bethany was still out of breath from the whole ordeal as she stuffed the last poptarts into her mouth. She could have sworn her belly had looked bigger before, but now that her pants hung open and her tanned flesh was unrestricted, she no longer looked like a busted can of biscuit batter. Any fleeting worries of fatness were dismissed as mere illusion. What she didn't seem to notice, though, was that her stomach was now far from flat.

Where a trim tummy had once been was a bonafide beer gut. Her belly only rounded out several inches, just barely classifying her as chubby, but it still overlapped onto her panties and was making its way to her lap. Although still modest in size, her stomach was all soft and wrapped around her formerly modest waist, creating the beginnings of side rolls. She might have been able to zip her gut back up, but there was no doubt that her button was going to stay off. Indefinitely.

"This is when the illusion of sustainability is SHATTERED by the reality of a rapidly ballooning population. Nature attempts to correct itself and CULL the population size and make it manageable again."

Some of Bethany's new extra weight had also made its way to her already ample bust, her tit flesh now sloshing in her unaccommodating cups. Her breasts still managed to resist gravity's siren call, but their perkiness was now thoroughly padded. Bethany's tantalizingly right clothes only served to accentuate her gain. Despite this, she remained entirely oblivious. Which was difficult to believe as, at a petite 5 foot, every pound counted for double.

Bethany had never bothered to actually weigh herself, and counting calories was an entirely alien concept. As such, she never actually so much as owned a scale. If she had both the means and the desire to step on one, however, she would have found herself just shy of a plump 160 pounds. This was the furthest thing from her mind, though, as Bethany tugged her top back over her belly and settled into a slouch, preparing for her daily nap. That is, until her stomach let out a long, low whine.

"Exponential growth can be dangerous, in this way. Because without any kind of extinction event, the numbers just keep going up and up and UP. Faster and faster and faster and..."

Fuck. Bethany had been full enough to bust through her jeans, but that obviously still wasn't enough for her stomach. Pulling her ruby lips into a pout, Bethany hopelessly clutched her belly, digging into its softness with both hands. Could she make it until the end of class?

That was when she felt a tap on her shoulder. The girl behind her had been watching Bethany's struggle intently, fascinated by a perfect 10's descent to a serviceable 8. The drop would have been more dramatic, but guys didn't seem to mind curvy girls these days. But an 8 this gluttonous wouldn't be an 8 for long.

Bethany spun around to face her classmate, only to find a thick protein bar in the girl's outstretched hand. Bethany would have been embarrassed by the offer, but the girl smiled so warmly that Bethany couldn't help but accept the gesture of good will at face value. A protein bar wasn't really her speed, as they were usually reserved for fitness freaks, but food was food.

Maintaining what little pride she had left, Bethany snorted a sarcastic “thanks” and snatched the bar away, promptly sliding it down her gullet. It was shockingly delicious, all heavy and chocolatey and rich. She turned from her nameless ally in the war against hunger, ready to ignore her for the remainder of the class. Now, at least temporarily, contented, Bethany slipped into a dark, dreamless sleep, lulled to unconsciousness by the sound of her belly digesting.

"And, well, without any kind of limiting factor, who knows what heights of growth you can reach?"