Chapter 2 - ii. astronomy club (before)

Amir ascended the broad, long steps with his girlfriend Dina. They stopped just short of the front door and Amir grabbed Dina’s hands. He took in her full body, committing to memory her every curve as it was in that moment. A woman most would consider thick before they considered her chubby, Dina was a 5’6” 170-pound Puerto Rican beauty with rich, expressive eyes and a hundred-watt smile.

“Before we go in,” Amir began, raising his eyebrows and locking his gaze with Dina. “I want to give you one more chance to walk away. Are you absolutely sure about this?”

“Yes!” Dina replied, rolling her eyes and smirking, annoyed but also endeared by Amir's support in her agency. “I'm starving! Let's do this.”

Amir took a deep breath but allowed himself to smile. “Okay.” He rang the doorbell.

Almost immediately, the sound of sliding locks were whispered by the front door before it swung open, revealing a thin, dark-haired woman. “Hi!” she sang with a sweet, heart-tickling smile.

Amir spoke up first. “Leah! This is my fiancee, Dina.”

“Hello!” Dina said through a nervous smile, extending her hand.

“Dina!” Leah said happily, taking Dina's hand and giving it a vigorous shake. “It's so nice to finally meet you!”

“Likewise!” Dina replied.

“Come in! Come in!” Leah announced as she stepped aside and opened the door for her guests. “Everyone's in the living room.”

The echo of Leah shutting the door gave Dina a sense of just how large the house was. It wasn't a mansion by any stretch, but after spending most of her life as an apartment-dweller, Dina had come to view nearly any home with more than two rooms as “opulent.”

The echo of their footsteps on the hardwood floors confirmed the expanse of the space as they passed through the foyer. The three emerged into a large living room and the first thing that struck Dina was the way some of the obese occupants in the room filled the furniture.

Bulbous domes of clothed fat flesh rounded the edges of seats near the coffee table, while the thinner people sat on stools behind them. Six people in all, including two couples, but four of them took up the space of nearly three people each.

“Everyone, this is Dina!” Leah announced to the room.

“Hi Dina!” everyone said in unison, smiling warmly.

“Hi!” a shy Dina returned meekly.

One of the seated fat women extended her hand, saying: “I’m Marie and I weigh 437 pounds.”

Not expecting a woman of her size to easily rise and walk over to shake, Dina quickly made her way to Marie, presenting her own hand in kind. “It’s a pleasure, Marie!” Dina hesitated before deciding to reciprocate Marie’s unusual weight mention: “And I weigh 170 pounds!” she declared with a smile.

Marie’s pillowy upper arm undulated a little from the handshake, a subtle rippling wobble radiating outwards. Dina took note of this and bit her lower lip.

“Alex,” said the fit, brown-haired and bearded man sitting behind Marie as he reached out.

Dina took his hand as well, his grip firm and hard. She smiled at him politely.

“Brenda,” said the obese, caramel-skinned young woman taking up two seats of a four-person couch. Her smile was sweet and cherubic, the fat cushioning her face inciting in Dina a desperate need to hug and cuddle her, but she held fast. “I weigh 528 pounds.”

“Hi, Brenda!” Dina greeted and turned her attention to the fit and handsome man sitting on a stool behind Brenda that somewhat resembled Michael B. Jordan.

“I’m Dorian,” he introduced himself.

“Dina,” she returned. Her eyes immediately went over to the at-least-400-pound caucasian fat man sitting next to Brenda, taking up the other two seats of the couch. He was also bearded, but with wavy brown hair. She held out her hand as his chubby mit rose to grasp it.

“Tucker,” he said, his strained plaid buttoned-down shirt contributing to his Fat Brawny Man aesthetic. “And I weigh 446 pounds.”

Shaking his hand was like gripping a stress ball. “Dina,” she breathed as a slender Japanese woman in a dress and heels emerged from the kitchen with a plate of chocolate chip cookies. She handed it to Tucker and he took it from her, grabbing a cookie before passing it to Brenda, who then took a cookie herself and handed the plate off to Marie.

“I’m Sara,” the woman said, holding out her hand of long, spindly fingers.

“Dina,” Dina replied as she gently took Sara’s hand, which reminded Dina of holding a bundle of uncooked noodles. There was a sort of firm frailness to her.

Finally, Dina turned to the enormous dark-haired woman filling up her own large chair. “Kayla, I’m Leah’s wife,” the fat woman said smiling. “And I weigh 562 pounds.”

“It’s a pleasure! Your home is beautiful!” Dina said, shaking Kayla’s chubby hand a little longer, watching her blubber jiggle.

“Thank you, it’s lovely finally meeting you!” Kayla replied.

“Dina, why don’t you have a seat?” Leah announced, placing one hand on Dina’s shoulder and using the other to motion to a wide and unoccupied chair near Kayla. Leah guided Dina to sit as the plate of chocolate chip cookies was placed on the table in the center. “Please, treat yourself to a cookie,” Leah encouraged.

Dina leaned forward and plucked the last cookie from the plate, realizing there had been just enough for her and the fat guests. It was closer to a dinner plate than a hockey puck in size, bearing a rocky landscape of chocolate chunks and macadamia nuts. When she brought it to her mouth and took a bite, the sweetness melted over her taste buds as she gave a slight whimper.

With her eyes closed in ecstasy, Dina didn't notice everyone smiling at her.

“Amir! Will you join us in the kitchen please?” Leah asked.

Amir pulled his gaze from Dina and smiled to Leah as he followed her.

--

The kitchen was adorned with a vibrant array of colorful delicacies: guacamole, salsa, queso, chicken strips and honey mustard, buffalo wings, ribs...it was enough for every house in the neighborhood to host their own superbowl party, and still have leftovers.

Leah, Amir, Alex, Dorian, and Sara entered and took in the beautiful display of the spread.

“Oh Leah, it’s beautiful,” Sara was the first to opine.

“You're going to have to get those doorways widened,” Dorian mused.

“This is going to look great on Dina,” Amir daydreamed as he surveyed the banquet.

“What do you think, Alex?” Leah asked while she analyzed her own carefully-cultivated high-calorie arrangement. “Alex?”

No answer. Until there was a crunch.

Everyone turned to see Alex taking a bite of a chip covered in queso. He hummed.

“Alex!” Leah barked.

“What are you doing?” Sara shouted.

“Relax, I skipped lunch today. They never finish it all,” Alex reasoned, rolling his eyes.

“Alex, what do you think this ceremony is for?” Leah asked angrily.

“Ceremony?” Alex inquired with his mouth full, his chewing beginning to slow. He swallowed. “I thought that was next month.”

The group groaned and dropped their shoulders. Leah closed her eyes in frustration and pursed her lips.

“No, Alex. It's tonight,” Leah reminded. Anyone that didn't know her would say she was being patient with him, but everyone in the kitchen knew she was mad as hell.

“So you mean...” Alex started, looking back to the queso dip, then again to Leah, his eyes darting among the group as they each averted their gaze. “Oh, man…” he lamented.

-- to be continued...