chapter 5 - 168

“There there .Easy does it.”

Daniel wrapped his arm around Josie and propped her up out of her bed. The girl winced as she put more weight on her right leg. It had been two weeks, and Daniel was more than generous with his time, stopping by everyday making sure her needs were met. The café closed earlier than most, so each evening he’d appear with a bag of cookies or a savory ham and cheese crepe, with another hand holding their signature 20 oz mocha frappuccino drenched in caramel and whipped cream. This was her favorite part of the day, most of it being spent in bed watching TV or snoozing until noon. She became grateful to Daniel for the time off, as any time she had to get up for food or go to the bathroom, she’d yelp in pain, doing her best to keep off her right side as she shuffled. A few days in, Daniel brought her a wheelchair, a gift worth its weight in gold to her, though with him checking in on her and the new mini-fridge, it wasn’t utilized much.

He placed Josie gently in her chair and pushed as she shifted to a more comfortable position. She unsuccessfully suppressed a sigh to which Daniel responded with a large chocolate cupcake, topped with sprinkles and large chips, knowing exactly how to ease her frustration. Josie grabbed it and, in an attempt to be civilized, daintily nibbled at the edges, dabbing icing on the tip of her nose and crumbs at the edge of her lips. Josie had argued long and hard, and despite his reservations, Josie was returning to work with the care and supervision of her boss. He has spent weeks working to improve and automate the drinks’ process, adding conveyor belts and computerized measuring to keep her movement minimal and recovery time efficiently effective.

This also helped poor Vicky, who had to pick up a majority of Josie’s tasks while Daniel managed the food. The weeks had not been kind to Vicky’s body, her mocha munching maxed and she swiveled between stations in her chair, the calories feeding into her thighs and belly. She must have crossed over 250 pounds during this period, her snacking fueling her energy to perform at her peak.

Josie and Daniel entered the shop, the bell chiming to announce their entrance. Vicky sat at the register, smiling as wide as her hips, flat and wide, showing through her tights. Josie paid no mind, but in days’ past she would have noticed a much fatter woman, her best friend and coworker growing into a different beast. Vicky did not mind at all, showing off her curves in stockings, a short black skirt, and her uniform blouse. With Daniel’s mind elsewhere, he had forgotten to order her a new uniform top, the buttons containing her growing form straining against her bloated belly and cantaloupe breasts. It was odd that no one had yet complained, her skin pushing through the dam was obscene…indecent. But for now Vicky was just happy to see her bigger friend.

“Ah, girl! I’ve missed you so much!” Josie threw up her arms, muscles gone and replaced with a layer of soft flesh, sagging as she saw Vicky’s had weeks ago. “Give me a hug!” Daniel pushed her over to Vicky, customers ignoring the bizarre scene of two fat women reaching their chubby arms to embrace while stationarily seated. Chairs met and the women hugged, exchanging food stains and lingering their touch as palms embraced growing friends.

“How are you feeling? I know we can’t convince you, but are you sure you’re ready to return to work?” Vicky pulled back and grabbed a ready drink for an idling customer.

“Pretty great, actually!” She took over the wheels as Daniel waved and slipped in the back. “Daniel has been so kind to me, I almost feel like I won’t need the full twelve weeks to recover.”

“Ha ha, don’t joke about that, you know how he feels about you overworking yourself. That was scary, Lucky he was there, right?”

“Yeah,” Josie had thought it rather odd, “but he’s been getting into swimming himself, he says.” She pressed a couple buttons for a new order, “Apparently I inspired him.” She smiled to herself.

“Do you miss it?” Vicky asked.

Josie stared up to the spinning ceiling fans, placing her hands on her new belly as she spoke, “Yeah, I do.” She sighed. “But Daniel told me to just take one day at a time, that I would be back out there in no time. He doesn’t want me to rush myself, seeing how serious these injuries can be.” She motioned to and lifted her leg. “I have to ‘maximize my recover’, so that I can return to peak condition in no time. He really has faith in me, he says he’s seen me swim and that I’m…” she blushed, “Beautiful.”

“Hey now.” Vicky joked and prodded her side, “You're *my* girl, okay?” They both chuckled.

“Excuse me, miss?” A woman in her 50s was at the counter, an overwhelmed expression on her face. “I’m so so sorry, I was eating one of your aMAzing sausage sandwiches,” she chimed, “when I accidentally knocked over my drinks.” The girls looked over to see chucks of biscuit, brown liquid, and cream splattered across the floor. “May I have a towel? I can clean it up.”


Vicky slowly sprang out of her chair, “No no, please, I got it.” She grabbed several rags from a cabinet and waddled to the spill. “It’s no worries, it was an accident.”

The girl took special care to avoid the spill itself, placing a bucket off to the side for her to dispose of the used rags. She braced herself, not used to walking so much during a work day, or bending her torso, lowering her upper body rather than lifting her legs to lounge. With a jolt, she dropped a rag, bending down further to reach it. Her uniform strained, the dam that had held so precariously finally burst, buttons flying into the puddles. What followed was her tights, ripping from her knees to her butt, exposing her pale cellulite flesh. She squeaked, usually a carefree person, she covered herself in a panic, getting herself off balance as she tumbled into the lake of coffee. Her white uniform drank the mess, slowly transformed to a light tan, her arms sticky and wet. Vicky was usually so carefree, Josie had never seen her so frazzled, on the verge of tears. She rolled over to her friend, Daniel jumping out the back to the rescued, and covered her in his jacket, both consoling her. Her crying didn’t last long, as she noticed all customers were focused on their own business, as if she was invisible. As if nothing strange had happened at all.

Vicky smiled. She felt a little silly, but was grateful; she was lucky to have such supporting coworkers. She immediately chowed into a muffin, crumbs mixing with the coffee stains. Unbeknownst to her, Josie did not break her gaze, fixating on her friend the whole time.

Vicky was right, Josie was her girl.