chapter 5

“Well now you don't need to, do you?” she asked, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. “Come on, it's getting cold.”

Quinn sat down on the bed. Chloe pushed the first box, the first of four, into his hands.

He opened it to see a few pieces of fried chicken with a dipping sauce. Okay, maybe if all of the boxes weren't too full, it wouldn't be too bad. He hated to admit that it probably wasn't out of the ordinary for what he would have ordered a few weeks ago, either.

Awkwardly, Quinn started to eat the chicken whilst Chloe watched him, intently and silently. It went down easy, as fried chicken always did with him.

Chloe wordlessly handed him the second box with a smile. It was weird, really weird, but Quinn opened the box. Deep fried cheese bites. Something he definitely shouldn't have been eating.

Still, it was only one portion. Sure, he knew that was at least 500 calories, but still. He let out a quiet, perplexed “thank you” and put the first one in his mouth.

Even given the situation, they were still incredible.

The third box was the one that made him hesitate. It was heavy in his hands. He knew it was going to be a lot, even before he opened it.

Sure enough, the scent of bacon and cheese hit him as soon as he lifted lid. Casey's loaded curly fries.

“I don't think I'm going to be able to finish these,” Quinn said.

It was a lie, he knew he could, but he definitely wasn't going to be able to finish whatever came next. He just didn't want Chloe to be too disappointed.

“Oh, you will,” Chloe said, without hesitation. “You're going to finish everything I give you.”

He tone was calm but something about it felt like a threat.

“Honestly, can you just tell me what is going?” Quinn asked. “This is fucking weird.”

“Is it?” Chloe asked. “Keep eating and I'll explain.”

She rolled her eyes, like he didn't deserve an explanation and Quinn's vision of her shattered in an instant.

He picked up the plastic fork sat beside him and dug into the fries. He couldn't lie, they were good. They were always good.

“I brought you food because I want you to eat,” Chloe said. “I saw you working out the other day.”

Quinn almost choked. It was nice for her to call his pathetic attempt of a run “working out” but still, he was embarrassed that she'd seen that.

“You're too small, I'm going to help you fix that.”

Is that what this was? Some strange attempt at helping him achieve a better body? He knew that Josh had to eat an insane amount of calories to keep up his lifting regime. Still, he was sure he ate cleaner than this.

“I'm never going to be as buff as Josh,” he said quietly. “I don't think there's even any point trying, to be honest.”

Chloe frowned and looked at him like he'd just said something incredibly stupid. So much so that Quinn instantly felt like he had.

“I don't want you to gain muscle, Quinn,” she said. “That's not exactly my bag.”

Had she not seen her own boyfriend? Hadn't they been together forever?

“What? What are you, some kind of chubby chaser?” he asked.

“Something like that,” she said. “Now, eat.”

“I... don't think that's going to happen,” Quinn said quietly.

He was shocked. Did she just think she could get him to do anything that she wanted?

“Oh, it is,” Chloe said.

“You seem awfully confident of that,” Quinn replied.

“I am,” she said. “It wouldn't take much for me to ruin your life.”

Quinn put down the fork. He looked at her, unsure of what to say. She was kidding, right?

“What do you mean?” he asked hesitantly.

“You've turned the assignment in, haven't you?” she asked. “Today was the deadline.”

Quinn's heart sank.

“Well yeah,” he said. “What exactly are you planning?”

“Oh, I'm hoping that I don't have to do anything,” she said. “Although if I have to report one of my memory sticks missing... and I can show a back up of what was on there... you know this school considers plagiarism inexcusable, right?”

“You wouldn't do that...” Quinn said. It was more of a hope than something he actually believed.

“As I said, I'm hoping I wont have to,” Chloe said. “You have two options. One... you do what I say and let me take care of you. Two... you lose everything before you even finish your first year. The choice is up to you.”

Quinn looked down at the curly fries in his lap. It was just a little food, a little weight. He could put up with that for a few weeks or months, couldn't he? It's not like he'd gained that much any way and that was with him eating quite a considerable amount.

“Fine, I'll do it,” he said.

“Good,” Chloe said. “Hurry up and finish your food before it gets cold, then. I thought we'd start out light for the first day.”

Light?! Quinn picked up the fork and began shovelling curly fries and cheese into his mouth. He wasn't sure how anything about what he was eating could be considered light. Still, there was only going to be so much he could eat. Chloe had to understand that.

He muffled a burp on the back of his hand as he put the fork down, the box empty. It was a lot, but he'd eaten more. His belly felt bloated. He was sure it looked it, too.

Looking down, he could see how tightly his shirt was pulled across it.

The fourth box actually worried him a little. Casey's burgers were ridiculous. On his first trip there, he'd ordered one, on its own, and had struggled to finish it. Of course, over subsequent visits, he'd managed to finish one, with sides, but that wasn't the point.

Three patties, dripping with cheese and barbeque sauce, with onion rings and so many other toppings that he couldn't count.

“Look, I'm going to do this, because I don't really have a choice,” Quinn said. “But I think this is a little too much.”

“I've seen you eat this much before,” Chloe said. “I have no doubt you can finish if you really want to.”

Quinn took a shaky breath, quickly followed by his first bite. It was not exactly the most relaxing conversation. He felt a little sick actually, and it wasn't just from all of the greasy food.

He took another bite, and then another. It was hard to swallow but Chloe was watching him intently. He didn't know what to do but keep eating.

By the time he swallowed the last of the burger, Quinn felt like he was going to explode or be sick. The way Chloe was looking at him didn't make it any better.

The way her hair fell over her shoulders... her perfect dress, perfect makeup... it was like seeing a dove in a pool of oil. Everything about her innocent image had been shattered. A predatory smile on the face of an angel. Everything was just wrong.

“See, that wasn't so hard, was it?” Chloe asked. “It's not like it's something you wouldn't have eaten anyway.”

Shame twisted in his gut. He couldn't exactly say she was wrong.

He leaned back on the bed, breathing hard and Chloe stood up.

“So that's it?” he asked. “Is this what we're going to be doing? You show up with food, I eat it and then you leave me in pain?”

“Well, yeah,” Chloe said. “You're definitely too skinny for me to want to stay around right now. Maybe if you play your cards right and eat enough, you might get something out of me though.”

Quinn couldn't even look at her.

“Fine,” he said. “How often are we going to be doing this?”

“I don't know yet, I have a life you know,” she said.

Like this was something he'd suggested. Like he was imposing on her.

“Don't confuse that for eagerness,” he said. “I'm just guessing fattening me up will take a pretty long time if you only come round once a week, or whenever Johnny's not home.”

“You're very right,” she said. “That's why I expect you to keep it up between our sessions. I know you're not stupid, so you're not going to lie. Plus I expect photos and videos to prove that you're sticking to it.”

Quinn couldn't help but roll his eyes. How long did she expect this to go on for?

“Fine, I can do that,” he said.

“Good, I'll text you in the morning to let you know what I think you should have for breakfast. You should probably start strong.”

With that, Chloe left, leaving him with a bed covered in food containers and a sinking feeling in his stomach.