chapter 7 - the aftermath

Chapter 7 - the aftermath

Zoe stumbled drunkenly into her room.
She really wanted to talk to someone to reflect upon her date.
She’d kissed Ethan. 5 times total. 3 of those had been real kisses, full of passion.
She’d kissed before but never like that.
Maybe that was because this time only one pair of lips had been drunk. She wasn’t sure that might have happend if Ethan hadn’t stopped her. She’d never been rejected before.
However, he’d asked her out for a second date and told her he really liked her.
He wanted to take it slow. She could respect that.
But now, in her drunken state, all she wanted was to touch him.

She tried to find her way to the couch in the dark, not wanting to put on the lights. She was already pretty loud and light would surely wake up Victoria.
She felt the border of the couch and let herself fall into the cushions.
Except that her butt didn’t touch the fat cushions, but a something -or rather someone- lying on the couch.
“What the hell?”, a sleep drunk Victoria exclaimed.
Zoe fell on the floor from surprise.
“Sorry sorry! It’s me! Zoe! Sorry to wake you up, Vi”, she stammered.
“Oh god, are you drunk? I thought I heard you were going on a date with Ethan?”, Victoria asked.
“Haha well, yesss. I just came back.”, Zoe was glad it was still dark so Victoria couldn’t see her red cheeks.
Victoria got up and put on the reading lamp next to the couch.
Zoe immediately noticed something was off with Victoria.
She was still wearing her dayclothes and her eyes looked red as if she’d been crying.
“Are you okay, Vi?”, Zoe asked concerned.
“Ugh, uhm... Don’t want to talk about it. I’ll be alright. Tell me about your date, maybe it’ll get me into a talking mood.”
Zoe was glad she asked, she really needed to talk to someone about her night and Victoria was the best choice.
After all, she had a boyfriend and Erinn and Anna hardly went on dates.
But before she could start her story, Victoria said:
“He took you to that Belgian cafe, didn’t he?”, she turned towards Zoe in the couch.
She was sitting with her legs crossed upside of Zoe.
“Yes, how, how come you know?”, Zoe asked puzzled.
Had Ethan told Matthew? He had mentioned Matthew had gone there on dates with Victoria, so she knew both of them were familiar with the place.
“Ha! very easy actually, the only clue I needed was this!”
She poked Zoe’s stuffed belly.
“Hey!” Zoe shouted.
She had ignored her swollen belly for the entire night, but that became very difficult when Victoria was poking it.

“Well that and the fact that you’ve obviously drunken more than one glass”, Victoria teased.
“Matthew took me there too, you know. I really loved the place, but I’ve forbidden him to take me there, I was starting to get addicted to their food and I had gainend almost 10 pounds!”, Victoria shuddered at the memory.
“I bet you still looked beautiful”, Zoe said.
“Duh! ofcourse I did. Matthew hadn’t even noticed. But I had. My boobs were a bit fuller, my figure looked more womanly. I didn’t even mind the soft touch to my stomach. Sometimes I think I looked hotter then, than now.”, Victoria confessed to Zoe.
“Then why did you lose the weight?”, Zoe had a hard time following Victoria’s logic.
“Because I knew I would not have stopped at 10 pounds extra. I don’t eat any sweets or fatty food, because I get addicted to it. So I slimmed down again and started dieting again.”
Zoe noticed Victoria rubbing her stomach lost in thought.
Then Victoria smiled at Zoe.
“But I’m glad you enjoyed yourself tonight. Normally I would make some comments about your appearance, but I can’t blame you. The place is heavenly.”
Zoe laughed. Yes, it really had been heavenly.
“But however, as you’re friend, I feel obligated to tell you that you look pregnant right now!”
She poked Zoe’s belly again.
Zoe cringed.
“So tell me about your date”.

Zoe decribed her night to Victoria and spared no details.
She told her friend about their kisses, his hard on and the accident in the staircase.
Victoria’s eyes had widend many times during her story.
“Damn girl, he must really like you!”, Victoria told her after she was done.
“He must really liked the see through outfit, because he can’t be attracted to the pregnancy look your sporting. And reject you while having a hard on! He obviously wants something serious, why else would he want to take it slow?”
Zoe smiled at her. She had really wanted someone else’s perspective on her night.
“Although, relatively slow, I guess. After all you did kiss multiple times and he immediately asked you out for a second date.”
“Do you think we made a mistake kissing on the first date?”, Zoe asked.
Victoria laughed.
“Who am I to know? Most of the times I kiss before an official date and end up sleeping with them on the first date. And then I’m ignoring my one night stands.”
Both girls laughed.
“So what’s up with you Victoria?” Zoe regretted asking when Victoria’s smile faded.
“I’m sorry I didn’t want to pry or anything”, Zoe apologized.
“No, it’s alright. I had a fight with my parents. When I wanted to freshen up after my swim, my parents were waiting in the hall for me.”
That explained why Victoria hadn’t been with Matthew, Zoe thought.
“They’ve decided to cut me off. They’ll start giving me money again once I can show them sole good grades.”
Zoe felt bad for Victoria.
Sure she was a spoiled brad and had wasted last year at partying and dating.
But still, I’d would be hard supporting herself. She’d have to find a job.
It was then that it hit Zoe.
“Vi! I have the solution to your problems. Ethan told me they need more students at the all-you-can-eat at the mall. I was planning on working there as a waitress myself, to earn some extra money.”
Victoria looked puzzled.
“Don’t you get it? We could work there together! And I bet they’d let us take some food home, so we’ll have to spent less money on food!”, Zoe explained already excited.
Victoria silently considered Zoe’s proposal.
She knew she’d need a job now that her parents had cut her off. She didn’t look forward to waitressing, but with Zoe as her collage, it might be fun.
Plus there was an other advantage of working at the mall: Matthew worked there to, so she could see him during her break.
“So what do you think?”, Zoe asked her roommate.
“I suppose working there would give me some advantages. Ugh. Who am I kidding I need the money, wanna go there tomorrow morning?”
Zoe immediately shook her head. “No no, morning is a no go for me, I’ll probably have a hangover. But I guess late afternoon should be possible.”
Victoria laughed.
“Haha, right. We better go to sleep, I’m going to put on my pajamas. See you tomorrow”, Victoria left and blew Zoe a kiss before closing her bedroom door.

Zoe went to the bathroom to remove her make up and put on her pajamas aswell.
She normally slept in a small pink t-shirt and some grey shorts.
When she finally unzipped her pencil skirt, she sighed with relief. She felt as if she hadn’t taken any deep breath in like two hours or so.
She dropped her clothes on the floor and put on her pink shirt and shorts.
When she wanted to remove her make up she was forced to look at herself in the mirror.
What she saw came as quite a shock to her.
Sure, she’d felt the pressure building in het stomach all evening and rationally thinking she knew she’d eaten way too much.
Victoria had even called her pregnant, but she’d thought she had exaggerated, as Victoria mostly did, when teasing someone about their weight.
But when Zoe saw herself in the body length mirror, she knew Victoria had been right.
She DID look as if she was knocked up.
Normally her pink shirt would cover her stomach to just below her navel.
But now, with her stomach protruding out of her silhouette, the fabric failed to go over her navel.
She also noticed that her shorts weren’t as comfortable as usual. She either had to tuck her belly in them or put the waistband below her globular looking stomach, which only accentuated how pregnant she looked.
She knew she’d be flat again tomorrow, however seeing her bloated, reminded her of when she was fat.
She wondered if she’d be happy if her stomach stayed this way.
Sure, at 11 when she’d just lost her mother and used eating as a way of filling the hole she’d left, she hadn’t been happy.
But later feeling stuffed had been something that only happend when her father had spoiled her or when she’d visited her aunts.
She loved her family and had always felt welcome and happy whenever she was with them, no matter her size.
She knew her life had taken a turn for the better when she’d befriended Erinn and started sporting, which let to her weight loss.
But now looking at her stomach she couldn’t help but wonder what her life must be like if she never lost the weight.
The next thing she did, Zoe didn’t quite understand herself, maybe she did it because of the alcohol still in her blood.
She went to her room and searched for a single box, hidden in the back of her closed.
It was a box full of her ‘big girl’ clothes.
She wasn’t sure why she’d kept them or why she’d even brought them with her to college.
She’d thought maybe she could use them for motivation.
She pulled out a blue sweater and a pair of black jeans, size 12.
She put them on.
She knew her foodbaby couldn’t possibly fill out the pants, but never the less she felt a pinch of disappointment deep down.
She took one of her pillows from her bed and put it onderneath her sweater and into the pants.
She couldn’t believe what she was doing.
Did she feel nostalgic about her bigger figure?
No, no, that couldn’t be right.
She’d worked hard to lose the weight and to maintain her slim body.
She was drunk and stuffed and confused. She’d gone on a wonderful date and wouldn’t let demons from her past ruin the life she had.
After all, she was sure Ethan wouldn’t be interested in a girl who’d let herself go.
But somewhere in Zoe’s mind there was a tiny voice asking:
‘then why had he been turned on by her and her giant foodbaby?’