Chapter 2 - 2 - eyes bigger than stomach

2.
‘I just didn’t think there would be... so much,’ Jake messaged Kayla, a cold sweat beginning to bead on the back of his neck. Jake looked down at the huge, heavy box with his hands on his hips. This was far bigger than the personal sized pizzas he had been led to believe were coming. The box had to be four feet wide and tall. It required a dolly to get the thing up to his room. Within seconds of closing the door Jake ripped the cardboard open. When he saw the thick slabs of dough, cheese, and meat that would inevitably slide down his throat, he really started to get nervous.

The last week before his first shipment came, Jake had been loving life. He paid off rent early, as well as his school and car bills. With two hundred left over from the thousand Chomp Subs NA had digitally transferred to him, Jake had decided to treat himself. He rushed to the mall, outfitting himself in a fitted shirt and pants that drained the little spending money he had left.


“Gotta look good on cam,” Jake told himself as he admired his figure in the mirror. Lean and trim, he smiled as he felt the new clothing perfectly contour to his angled frame.
“And the hell with earning followers, if I need any cash this new service seems great!”

Now staring at his order, Jake winced at the prior thought. His former glee felt weighed down under the bulk of a dozen super sized pizzas. Jake was never a big eater, and the idea of shoving an entire one of these in him three days a week, on camera no less, sounded anything but appetizing. Jake wasn’t worried about his health or anything, he was young and had a fast metabolism, but he wasn’t thrilled about having to digest so much cheese. Jake was lost in thought when he heard his phone buzz. It was Kayla.

‘Yeaaaa, the pictures can be kiiinda deceiving :’(. They taste great tho, and I’m sure they’ll shrink in the oven. Besides, no going back now :P’

“Shit.” Jake felt the blood drain from his face. He had forgotten that last bit of the contract during his spending spree. If any of the food went unfinished, it meant Jake would need to repay the money that had been transferred to him in full. If even one bite was unaccounted for on stream, Chomp Subs would send him a bill. That little clause had seemed trivial when Jake had signed up, did he really think he’d be unable to finish a couple personal pizzas? Now though, with the weight of his decision staring back at him, he felt doubt creep in.

He looked down at his flat stomach, patting it and sighing.

“Guess you’re gonna need to make some room this month. We got twelve of these, and the money’s all gone.” Jake started to move one pizza at a time into his freezer, needing to toss frozen fruits and veggies to make room. He caught a look of himself in the kitchen mirror as he did so. The bottom of his new shirt had untucked, and Jake gripped it.

“You better still fit when this is all over.”