chapter 10 - silence

"Daisy!" Ash ran in after her partner. "That was perfect, right?" The room was empty except for a sphere in pink and black on tile. Daisy dented into the lockers behind her, no longer crying, but numb. She dangled a metal canteen above her belly, watching with glazed eyes as it landed on her with no bounce, only rippling waves.

"You had me! I thought today was just gonna be a normal workout, but someone had other plans." Ash playfully poked her foot into Daisy, then grabbed her duffle bag from the locker above, "I almost thought you were genuinely upset." Daisy continued her cycle, unresponsive.

"Dais'?" Ash looked down and took an arm concerned: she was just marinating in her fantasy, right? "Come on, Dais', let's get out of here."

While Daisy didn't remember much of the car ride home, the trek to the car was another matter. Her expression remained unfocused, her cheeks burning hot with each glance of some 120 pound woman or other muscular 170 pound specimen. It extended longer than the entirety of the gym trip, each stare slowed to an embarrassing crawl. Daisy yearned to forget, snickers coming from nearly every patron, all who recognized the Pig Woman. The woman who despite being humiliated, whimpered through the door in quiet oinks and grunts.

Daisy rolled out of the car, quickly waddling through the front door like an overburdened duck. This time she made her home on the couch, nestling next to an unclaimed box of chocolate chip cookies.

"Dais'?" Ash's tone changed completely from the stage of the scale, "Daisy...are you mad at me?" Her brows scrunched, and she took an arm around her, but Daisy flinched, "I thought you wanted this?"

"Why the hell would I want to be—" she took in as many breaths as she could between words, not used to speaking as much as she had today, "—why would I want—" another, "—people to know about P-Piggy!?" She could no longer dam her feelings and a deluge of tears broke forth, her face cradled in cream puff hands. Ash sat still, trying to understand her lover between bursts.

"I'm such a fucking fatty, don't you get it?!" This was the most deviant or vocal Daisy had been in nearly two years, where was all this coming from? "You're just gonna leave me f-for some s-skinny l-lady, s-someone who can be a real workout b-buddy!"

"Dais', I'm not gonna leave you for another woman, but if you wanna lose weight, I'm happy to help you lose weight!" Ash was not angry, yet still taken aback. She had done this all for her, Ash thought she had followed everything so perfectly… "Hell! I thought that's what we were doing until you started oinking!" Her voice raised, but kept a mediating tone.

"When have I ever told you I wanted to be humiliated in public?" Daisy pushed weakly into her tall twig of a partner to downplay her arousal of the whole debacle.

"You just don't get it. THIS IS PERMANENT." She pounded into her chest as she said it, her belly bouncing in time, "I'm gonna be this blob of a woman forever!

"I can't lose weight!"

The women sat in silence, Daisy surprised at herself for being so forthcoming. It was what she feared for so long, her beautiful girlfriend, her long dark hair, her confidence, her drive...she did not deserve her, yet if she left...

"What do you mean you 'can't lose weight'?" Ash broke the silence, her eyes darting between countless flashes of thought.

"We need to talk."