Chapter 4 - summetime

4.
Returning from winter break, Alexa and Ella were met with shock upon seeing their friend. They had left Charlotte as a thickened but still small girl and were now greeted with a sight almost unrecognizable to who they had seen just a month before.
"Alexa! Ella!" Charlotte called, waddling down the hall as her sizable potbelly jiggled with every step. "It's so good to see you!"
"Holy shit," Alexa murmured.
"Charlotte… you got fat!" Ella said bluntly.
Charlotte laughed. "Oh shut up you skinny bitch. You can barely tell."
Alexa was stunned. How had her friend put on so much weight so quickly. Last time she'd seen her, Charlotte had told her about how she'd been constantly eating while at her mother's house, but she still had seemed worried about it. She thought her friend would have been able to control her self, but clearly she'd completely lost any willpower over the holidays. Charlotte was bulging out of all her clothes, her new muffin top pooling over her waistband, the hoodie riding up and over her exposed belly, and her jeans pulled tight over chubby thighs. "What happened Charlotte? I thought you were gonna try to stay healthy?"
Charlotte just grinned. "You know what Alexa? The fit track star is the old Charlotte. This is the new me: Thick and happy."
Alexa tried to return the smile. "Well… as long as you're happy."

Charlotte stayed to her word throughout spring semester. Alexa watched as her friend completely gave up any reservations about weight or diets. Charlotte ended up gaining about another twenty pounds over the months, finishing at almost fifty pounds heavier than she'd been at high school graduation. Alexa could barely believe it.
As Charlotte grew bigger, Alexa and Ella grew closer. Charlotte had begun hanging out more and more with some people she'd met in Tubton and all they ever wanted to do was go out to eat. It wasn't that Alexa didn't like Charlotte's new friends, but just being around them had made her gain a few pounds from all the snacks they kept around. Ella noticed a similar pattern and so the two girls ended up spending more time together than with Charlotte. This made things a bit strange when Ella decided to stay with Charlotte for the summer. It turned out that she'd gotten a job on campus as a research assistant and since she lived all the way in California, she was going to get an apartment nearby. When Charlotte heard about that, she offered Ella her spare room. Free housing was not something Ella could just turn down, so when the girls finished their freshman year Alexa was the only one who was leaving Greenview.
Alexa was the first one done with exams this semester. As her friends helped her move out, Ella pulled her aside for a moment. "Do you think I'm gonna be okay?" She asked with a slight worry in her voice.
Alexa frowned. "What are you talking about?"
"I mean…" Ella sighed. "Do you think I'm gonna end up like tubby over there? What if I plump up in town just like she did?"
"I…" Alexa paused. "I don't know. Just don't eat too much?"
Ella rolled her eyes. "Very reassuring, Alexa. Well whatever. I've gotta go study for exams. Have a safe trip home and have a good summer, okay?"
The girls shared a quick hug before Ella was on her way and Alexa watched her friend's toned body walk down the hallway one last time before summer break.

It was the middle of summer when the Tubton town festival began. Ella's research advisor was a citizen of Tubton and had given her the week off. Apparently the festival was a big deal. The evening before the first day, Charlotte came up to Ella's room and asked if she wanted to come to the store with her and her mother to pick up snacks. Ella rolled her eyes and reached for another handful of chips. "The last thing you two need is more snacks," she said sarcastically.
Ella giggled. "What's wrong? Is skinny bitch jealous of how thick I am?" She ran her hands down her chubby figure, her muffin top jiggling as her hands passed the barrier between crop top and exposed flesh.
"Sure. If that makes you feel better, then you can tell yourself that," Ella said, turning back to her phone.
Charlotte just laughed and left her alone in the room. When Ella heard the car pull out, she also heard her stomach rumble. She sighed, got up, and headed to the kitchen.
Ella had found it hard to stay fit in a town so focused on eating, especially without any gyms around. To her credit, she'd done her best, but it was a hard battle against the constant hunger she felt. She could barely allow herself to eat anyway, since the only things that were ever in the house was fatty snacks and desserts. Going out to eat wasn't an easy option either. The portion sizes were enormous and Ella didn't want to waste all that food. Or at least, that's what she told herself to rationalize how she scarfed down meals just as fast as her chubby friend and her fat mother. As such, even she had to admit that the town was having an effect on her waistline.
In the kitchen, she munched on a roll of cookie dough in one hand ("At least it'll fill me up, unlike another bag of chips.") and placed her other hand over her stomach. Slowly, Ella rolled her shirt up and looked at the damage. The fabric had become tighter around a new little layer of pudge. She sighed and pinched her thighs, which had also grown to squeeze against her jean shorts. 'At least some of it is going there,' she thought to herself with another bite of cookie dough. Suddenly, she heard the garage door open. Charlotte swung open the kitchen door with a huge bag of snacks in her hand. She smiled as she saw her friend eating the raw dough and Ella felt her face go flush. Charlotte's mother walked in with an equally large bag. The set the bags down and headed back out to the car. Ella walked over and took a look. Cakes, ice creams, cookies… even more junk food to resist. She stared in disbelief as the two came back with another set of bags. This was more than she'd ever seen in the house at one time. As much as the Dansons ate, Ella doubted that even they could finish all this.
"Don't you think this is a little much?" Ella said in shock as they finished with a third pair of bags.
"Oh Ella," Charlotte said, "The best part of the town festival is the snacking! Our neighbors gave us a little preview over winter break and let me tell you, we're gonna need these!"
Ella was stunned for a moment. "Look… I know I've made a little fun here and there, but I'm gonna shoot straight with you. Charlotte, you've put on a lot of weight. And Mrs. Danson, I don't want to be rude, but I've seen the family photos around the house from before you moved here and there's a big difference. You've gotten fat. Really fat."
Mrs. Danson laughed and her belly cascaded in waves of jiggles. "Sure, we've both put on a few pounds, but we're happy! Is that so bad?"
"Don't you think it's weird?" Ella responded.
"I think it's weird how skinny you keep yourself! Don't you eat? You're a growing girl you need to feed yourself! Though," Mrs. Danson reached over and pinched Ella's belly with her chubby fingers. "I do think we've been able to keep you a little bit well fed," she said with a laugh.
Ella pushed her hand away. "What? Are you saying you've been trying to fatten me on purpose?!"
Charlotte gave a sheepish grin. "Not on purpose. Well… not directly. We've just made sure you have plenty to eat! So you'd fit in a little better around town."
Ella looked at the two women in horror. "You've been doing this on purpose. Oh my god… Oh my god…"
Ella backed away and turned, running up the stairs and locking herself behind her door. She had to get out of here. She started packing her clothes, throwing things into her suitcase without a thought. Someone knocked on her door.
"Ella," Charlotte's voice called, "Ella, c'mon, open up."
"No!"
"Ella it's not like we strapped you down and force fed you! We just let you… graze."
"What? Like I'm some kind of farm animal? What's wrong with you!"
Charlotte's voice sighed. "Look, it's late okay? Just stay one more night and you can leave in the morning."
Ella stared at the door in anger, but her anger quickly gave away to a yawn. "Fine. Just tonight. And then I'm out of here." She thought for a moment. "And no more snacks!"
Ella heard a laugh from the other side. "Alright. But if you ask for some, I'll be sure to remind you what you said." Charlotte responded.
Ella gave a sigh of relief and sunk onto her bed. Instinctively, she reached for her bag of chips to calm her nerves. She popped a handful in her mouth before she realized what she was doing. She rolled her eyes, wiped the grease off on her shirt, and threw the bag across the room. Her stomach growled in retaliation. "Fine. Just this one last bag."