chapter 2

True to her word, Natasha ordered a hefty supply of McDonalds. By most people’s standards, the meal would have seemed excessive. But both women were accustomed to indulging their glutinous desires with little restraint, and by their standards, the fattening spread was of a perfectly reasonable size.

“I wonder how many calories I’ve had today,” Laura mused aloud, tucking into her double-decker burger. Her oversized gut protruded forward onto her thighs, round and firm despite its size.

“Too many,” Natasha chuckled, reaching over and giving one of Laura’s thick fat rolls a playful squeeze. “Your diet is terrible.”

“Mhmm,” Laura agreed around another bite of greasy food, leaning into Natasha’s roving hand. “You’d know all about that, of course.”

Natasha nodded, still chewing. “Of course.” She put down her burger and switched to fries, onto which she sprinkled extra salt. “I never claimed to be the healthy one!”

“Good thing, too. What was your cholesterol again?”

“Good question,” Natasha snorted. “Like I said, it’s super high. Can’t remember the number, though.”

She had been diagnosed with high cholesterol the previous year, after her steadily thickening waistline had lead the inestimable Dr. Hertz to insist on a test. She had known it would be high, of course, but Hertz had declared it “dangerously elevated” and tried to put her on statins to prevent clogged arteries. Natasha never bothered filling the prescription.

“I’m sure this crap is putting it up,” she snorted, gesturing to her McDonald’s. As she chewed, though, the edges of her mouth quirked up in amusement.

“Oh, that reminds me,” Laura raised her index finger in a ‘hang-on-a-sec’ gesture and began scrolling through her phone. “I mean, it’s not surprising, but…” She handed the device to Natalie, open to a clip from a morning talk show…

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The chubby, statuesque face of Savennah Guthery appeared on the screen, framed by wavy, brunette locks.

“Actress Natalie Porterman is the latest celebrity to say she’s embraced a trend that has the nation’s doctors worried.

"Growing out of an Instagram subculture, ‘hedonistic living’ is the trend of indulgence, overeating, and sedentary living. Some have described it as a status symbol. But increasingly, critics say, the movement is normalizing unhealthy lifestyle choices.”

The camera cut to a photo of Porterman posing in a bikini, one hand grabbing her protruding beer gut. Her thin, but untoned legs looked weak and spindly compared to her fatty abdomen.

“Porterman posted this photo on Instagram Tuesday night with the caption, ‘This belly may be catching up with me. Heart’s not too healthy!’” said Guthery.

“We spoke with Porterman about her lifestyle choices, and why she says she’s comfortable with her bad habits.”

The footage cut to Guthery and Porterman lounging in a lush, green yard — presumably part of Porterman’s estate. The middle-aged starlet was wearing a Lycra t-shirt that hugged her midsection and left little doubt about the state of her waistline.

“Natalie, you’re part of a trend that has some experts worried,” said Guthery.

Porterman shrugged. “I’ve never been happier with my body, and I really don’t think it’s the business of doctors what I do with it.”

“There was a time when you were a proponent of healthy living. What changed?”

“I guess I stopped worrying about staying fit,” Porterman chuckled. She placed one hand on her gut, as if to demonstrate her point, but the movement looked unconscious. “I wasn’t trying to be unhealthy, at first, but as fat acceptance became more prominent and more a part of the culture, I felt like it kind of gave me license to stop exercising and stop watching what I ate.”

“But a lot of people would say… there’s a big difference between fat acceptance and saying it’s okay to be unhealthy,” interrupted Guthery.

“I guess I went with both!” Porterman laughed.

“You said on Instagram that your heart isn’t healthy. What did you mean by that?”

Porterman raised her eyebrows and patted her bosom, just over her heart. “I eat pretty badly. I’m sure people know that. But I had been noticing some chest pain after dinner, that sort of thing, just... you know.”

Porterman trailed off, but Guthery nodded and gestured for her to continue.

“So I got checked out, and well, this isn’t really surprising, but I have a couple arteries that are forty-five, fifty percent blocked,” Porterman said. “So mild heart disease.”

“You’re not the first actress to say they’ve had similar issues. Do you worry that Hollywood is encouraging a culture of unhealthy living?” Guthery asked.

“I mean, am I unhealthy? Yes. But I want people to know that it’s okay to be yourself. If you want to eat...”

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Natasha paused the video. “Okay, first off, wow. Natalie Porterman. Did not see that coming,” she made a ‘surprised’ gesture with her hands, palms facing each other, chubby fingers splayed. “But also, what do you mean it’s not surprising? She’s really not that big!”

“But I mean, did you see her gut?” Laura asked, gesturing towards the cell phone. “That woman has hella belly fat. And it looks really firm, too. I know her arms and legs are skinny, but all that hard fat around her waist, that’s got to be so bad for her heart.”

Natasha was about to shrug and agree. But after a moment’s thought, she paused, smirking playfully. She reached out and grabbed a handful of fat on Laura’s own, too-thick waist. “I guess you’re qualified to comment?”

“Oh yes,” Laura agreed, shifting closer to Natasha. She wrapped her arms around the younger woman and leaned in for a kiss. “Highly qualified...”