chapter 5 (part 2)

for life." Liv continued to take forkfuls of the sweet tart. The caramelized apples swimming in apple jam slid smoothly down her throat. The ice cream she would spoon onto each slice gave way for a cooler taste to combat the tart's warmth. It softened the flaky crust, as it drizzled down onto the pie. Liv scraped the bottom of the plate, not wasting a drop of ice cream. The pitcher of milk left out could not go to waste, either. She would fill a cup and down it after every slice. The growing pile of pie in her stomach forced it to cry out with loud groans. But it seemed like the Emsworth chemical silenced the pain she would normally be feeling. Liv had removed the baggy hoodie she wore there, now only wearing a tight little white camisole. Rather than desperately trying to pull it down over her smooth, stretched belly, she put the hem above her protruding gut, displaying her bare skin. Celia's diagnosis seemed to be true. Her food baby dominated her frame, especially on top of the one she already had. Twins. After more gorging, the tin on the table only had crumbs remaining. Liv had devoured the whole pie, in around fifteen minutes. She licked her upper lip, as sticky residue stayed there.

"That was incredible," Liv told Celia. "Frederich is an amazing cook." Liv dropped her hand onto her now larger belly. A light pink color spread through. It was hard to the touch, but still gave a sound like a clap. She pushed into it with her fingers. The pressure both outside and inside her gut resulted in a large belch.

"Excuse me..."

"Oh my, her tummy is so massive and round!" Celia thought, somewhat interested in the act of gluttony she had witnessed. Was it the 'potion' that made for such a display, or was it her usual disposition? "Olivia seems to be enjoying it, so I wouldn't want to bring her down." She imagined continuing this sort of thing would not be good for her friend's waistline, but it seemed that was what she wanted. If she wanted it, Celia was adamant on seeing how far she could go.

"I really need to cover up tomorrow..." Liv trailed off. "Who knows what Rachael would say?"

"Forget them, Olivia! They are irrelevant," Celia stopped her. "In fact, I think that tomorrow, you should find some new friends. If they defend you when that posse comes, you know you can trust them!"

"I like that idea... maybe I'll find someone actually cool."

"I do not think that'll be hard. You are the vice president, right? Use that!" Celia encouraged her.

"I probably should. Anyway, it's getting late, I should probably head home." Liv stood, hunched over slightly at first. Her stomach felt as heavy as it was large. She slipped her baggy hoodie back on, but it now hung off the most horizontally-protruding point of her belly.

"Aww, we were having such a good time. Whenever you want to come back, just send me a text!" Liv walked over to give her a quick hug.

"Thanks for all your advice."







Satur day had come. What a week. Liv felt paralyzed in her bed after a deep food coma she had eaten herself into the day before. A baggy hoodie tried its best to conceal a belly filled with two people's worth of lunch and a meat lover's pizza that was 1/4 of her height that day.

"I've been gorging myself ever since I left Celia's house..." she thought. Liv was a quite aroused by how far she could stretch her stomach, but of course, it was less arousing when shown off in public. No matter. Another baggy hoodie today, it had to be. She could admire her bowling ball under wraps.

That Saturday, Liv had to work the merchandise stand at a home soccer game. It had to be on the hottest day of the school year, too. The white camisole just put in on display. Baggy hoodie over it. And a pair of ripped jean shorts. Liv grabbed a school sweatband and headed to the soccer field.


Arriving at the field, she was approached by a girl about her size. Very rare.

"Liv Kennedy, right?" the girl asked, somewhat out of breath. Sweat had wetted her lengthy, dirty blonde hair.

"Yeah, that's me."

"Cool! We're on the merch stand. Fun, fun," she said, sarcastically.

The two sat down inside the merchandise stand. The small area captured sweltering heat inside. The yells of the crowd were irrelevant, as the stand faced away from the game itself.

"This is so boring..." the girl whined. Marie, she learned her name was.

"It really is. And it's just so damn hot in here, but we can't leave," Liv added. Nonchalantly, she pulled a cookies and cream chocolate bar from her pocket. She grabbed a few snacks on the way home last night. Marie's face lit up, although it was already glistening with sweat.

Before Liv could take a bite, Marie's eyes were locked on the treat. "Can I get a piece of that? I didn't have a lot of breakfast today," she asked.

"Sure, knock yourself out," Liv agreed, a little miffed about losing food. She handed her a row of squares. It was just then that Liv noticed Marie's physique. The blonde was leaned back in her chair. Her thighs were thick and plush. They led up into ample hips, hugged by a pair of tiny black shorts. Marie's round, pudgy gut would slightly push in and out with each breath. And it seemed she put it on display, too. She had a school tennis shirt that she tied into a crop top. It protruded from her small frame, almost as small as hers. She sunk her teeth into the chocolate squares one by one. Liv could only catch guilty glimpses at Marie. She was really, really attractive. The girl was soft everywhere. And she wasn't afraid to show it.

Liv was somewhat envious of Marie's body confidence. How she could just show off her doughiness and pudge so carelessly. Liv thought it impossible to be so fine with such a big, chubby tummy.

"Well, I'm not gonna be shown up by her! I can do that too!" Liv quickly checked who was around the booth. Everyone seemed to have their eyes glued to the game behind them. She then removed her grey hoodie, leaving it on the ground. Liv then continued to eat her half of the chocolate, hoping Marie would notice.

"Wow, you look stuffed..." Marie pointed out. Liv blushed.

"Ahahah... maybe," she replied coyly. Marie watched it with the same admiration Liv had for hers. Could this be another girl like her? Who bloated herself up for her own sake? These thoughts ran through both their minds.

"It's good you're so cool with it, too. I see so many girls starving themselves just to look perfect," Marie started. "Food is meant to be eaten," she smiled.

"Wow... you get me," Liv said. They both chuckled, relieved to find others of their kind. "But I do get tons of flak for it. You know Rachael Venice and her gang?"

Marie nodded. "Totally! They used to clown me every day for looking like this," she said, grabbing some of her pudgy belly. Liv looked not at her pudge, but at her determined face. How could she be so okay, even after the same torment she herself had gone through.

"How are you so confident, then?" Liv was ready to gain wisdom. She had been waiting for this. Some guidance. Celia had told her to find a friend who she could relate to. And she was crunching down on chocolate right in front of her.

"You know, Liv, I think I know what you're going through now. I went through the same phase," Marie crossed her legs. "You love gorging yourself, but you don't want anyone to see you afterwards. You feel ashamed."

"Right."

"Ok, hear me out. All you have to do is be like, 'Yeah, I look like this, what about it'. It's really all in your head. People couldn't care less about the size of your belly." Liv was in awe. What a queen.

"I admire your confidence so much, but when people try to call me fat, it... gets to me. I guess that's just how I am." Liv looked down to her side.

"I was just like you. Kind of insecure of how I look. But, the idea is you need to love how you look more than they don't like how you look. If you think you look good, there's nothing they can really do."

It felt like the noise and environment stopped in time. All that moved were her and Marie. Could it really be so simple? It was like listening to a manifestation of herself. They had been through the same troubles. But Marie figured out how to love herself. How she looked. What brought her happiness couldn't be affected by anyone else. The whole week she had spent time stressing about how to hide her tummy, how to evade the people that criticized her, how to avoid what brought her joy all together. All she had to do was love her image. It was as if a weight was lifted off of her shoulders.

"You're really smart," Liv said. She took a bite of her chocolate bar.

"Yeah, I know. Wanna grab lunch after this? I need a ride home, anyways."



The two got to know each other over a Kentucky Fried Chicken family meal meant to feed six. They sat in the restaurant, proudly showing off their massive lunch. Marie ate at a normal pace, but Liv was tearing through legs and wedges like Marie had never seen. Liv could practically feel her stomach expanding with every handful of greasy, fattening goodness, but she couldn't care less.

"You've got a real appetite," Marie jabbed.


"Oh shut up, you sound like somebody's dad," her conscience sounded in her mind.


"Thank God I do. How else would I be able to finish all this?"



Liv had put her hoodie away in the car.