Chapter 11: Reality Check

Chloe didn’t know what to think. She had gone feral last night, imitating a pig and stuffing herself silly while pleasuring herself to the thought of getting humiliated and fat shamed. She had so many conflicting ideas swirling around in her pretty head that she almost missed the turn to the doctor’s office. She almost thought to miss it completely and skip the appointment, but she knew her mother would be furious. Besides, it’s just an hour out of her day, tops. Then she can go back home to think about her friends and Zach and this new urge to pig out all the time.

Chloe walked into the doctor’s office with five minutes to spare. She walked up to the receptionist and checked in. The receptionist, who was a middle-aged woman who passively knew of the Simpsons, smiled gently and nodded for her to take a seat. She scrolled through her phone, while subconsciously tracing the angry line where her leggings were digging into her soft skin. Her hefty bloat from last night still weighed down inside Chloe’s stomach, and it was enough to protrude slightly outwards long after she had consumed her cannoli before coming. She hadn’t eaten anything today in order to get proper readings from the doctor, so her tummy was grumbling for the nourishment it craved. Not too long after she sat down, Dr. Jones, the same doctor she’d had since she was a kid, emerged from the hall of offices and exam rooms to greet Chloe, like a long lost friend.

“Chloe! It’s so good to see you! How’s college treating you? Let’s get you in a room, hmm?” Dr. Jones was in her early fifties, a couple of years older than her parents, and she had brown hair that was starting to go grey. She was a tall woman, practically six feet tall, and still in great shape! She held the door open for Chloe and escorted her to the second office on the left. “You know the drill, Chloe. I’ll give you a few minutes to change into the gown and I’ll be right back to start your check-up!” Dr. Jones grinned while closing the door behind her. Chloe was generally uncomfortable at any doctor’s office or hospital but seeing Dr. Jones made her feel a little better. Doing as she was told, she started to get undressed.

First, Chloe peeled off her pink long-sleeve shirt that covered up her bloat fairly well. It was a pastel pink that really blended with her blonde hair to bring out her baby blue eyes.
Catching a glance at herself in the full-length mirror, she saw her upper belly still bulging from last night’s binge. Her leggings were making it difficult for her to breathe, so she rolled them down and let out a sigh of relief as her belly surged forwards to occupy some more room. She wiggled her hips as she carefully slid out of her leggings, which was becoming more of a struggle with each passing day. Chloe innocently chalked it up to last night’s events, which was a partial truth. Chloe bent over to pick up her pants and she noticed her new tummy roll over her panties. Standing back upright, she now stared at her reflection. Chloe still looked amazing, but now there was no denying the general softness that had encased Chloe’s body. Her thighs were thicker, and her ass was still the star of the show. Chloe unclipped her bra and her C-cup breasts barely fell, still maintaining their youthful perkiness. Her arms were only slightly bigger, as were her cheeks. Her tummy was still bloated, but she figured that she could explain it away.

Chloe threw her robe over her mostly bare body as Dr. Jones came in. She ran the standard drill of tests that measured her vitals. Chloe obliged, opening her mouth, offering her arm, and standing on the rickety old scale. Everything was routine, but she became a little startled when Dr. Jones handed her a cup with instructions to provide a urine sample. Chloe stared up at Dr. Jones, looking for an answer. “I’ll explain once we’re done Chloe, but please, if you don’t mind.” Chloe went to the tiny bathroom attached to the exam room and did as she was told. Now nervous, Chloe sat back down on the exam table, wondering what that was about.

A few minutes later, Dr. Jones came back with her clipboard. “Okay Chloe, good news first. Your vitals are healthy! Your blood pressure is a solid 120 over 80, your cholesterol is good, your heartrate is fine too.” Chloe exhaled a little easier. Dr. Jones’s face became a little more concerned as she opened her mouth next. “Now, the not so good news. Your weight. Currently, I have you at 148 pounds. While you are still technically at a healthy weight, it is quite a change since the last time I saw you this summer, when you weighed 124 pounds. Your BMI is at 24.6, which again, is still healthy, but you are dangerously close to being classified as overweight, which has a BMI of 25. And that is part of the reason why I made you provide a urine sample. A gain of almost 25 pounds in a few months can be a symptom of pregnancy. Now your test did come back negative, but I must ask, Chloe. Is everything okay? Is there something you want to talk about?”

Chloe was a deer in the headlights. Never, in a million years, would she hear someone say she was borderline overweight. She felt totally exposed, and she wanted nothing more than to run away. She wanted to get in her car and drive as far away as possible. She wanted to get away from Franklin and…stop at McDonald’s? What? Why? What was happening?! Chloe shooed those thoughts away for the moment to explain herself. “Well, not really. I mean, I do have this new boyfriend but that’s about it.” Dr. Jones waved her hand, sensing Chloe was very uncomfortable. “It’s okay, dear. You don’t have to go into detail. But I am going to recommend something for you.” She scribbled something quickly on a notepad and handed it to Chloe. “It’s a prescription for birth control. Just promise me you’ll think about it okay?” Chloe was dumbfounded, but all she could do was nod. Dr. Jones left so Chloe could change and they both walked out of the office. “I’ll schedule you for an appointment for this time next year, okay Chloe? Do take care of yourself, it was really good to see you. Tell the family I said hello!” Chloe gave a weak smile as she left. The sliding doors opened, and she sprinted to her car, slamming the door while she hyperventilated and fought back tears.

Shaking, Chloe drove back home, ignoring the rumbles and cries from her stomach for the first time in months. She raced up the stairs and threw herself onto her bed. Chloe wanted to shut the world away. How could she be this close to being overweight? Sure, she was eating a little more, but she was still exercising enough, right? Either way, Chloe was depressed. She flipped through the TV, zoning off and ignoring everything around her. She went downstairs to grab some ice cream and that was it. She was eating some chocolate fudge brownie ice cream straight from the carton, which made Chloe feel more disgusted, which made her feel more turned on. She did her best to ignore her sexual urges, as she was ignoring the messages from her friends. Chloe was in pain, until she finally got a text from her boyfriend, Zach. It read: “Hey beautiful. Sorry I’ve been quiet, visiting the fam. I’ll call you tonight? XOXO” Chloe gave a weak smile and scoffed. “Beautiful. He must not see me almost overweight.” She said to herself. She gave a quick affirmation to a phone date tonight and it seemed to cheer her up.

Chloe was still in a funk when she went to Claire’s finals for volleyball out of town. None of her friends from the last game went, so she was stuck sitting with her parents, left to stew over her doctor’s appointment. She wanted to snack so badly, but refrained herself, waiting until dinner. Without snacks to occupy her mind, Chloe watched the game intently, and it wasn’t even close. Claire’s team was getting their butts kicked. Nothing was going their way, and the other team just looked stronger, faster, and better. Franklin volleyball never stood a chance, as they got crushed 3 games to none. The home team’s fans poured onto the court as they celebrated their win, while Chloe and her parents waited in the cold for Claire.

Claire came out of the locker room and was not pleased with the result. While Tom and Diane tried to cheer her up, Claire just walked past them to the car. The car ride was eerily quiet, with Claire stewing in the feelings of defeat and her parents doing their best to keep their eyes on the road. Chloe’s stomach was angrily rumbling, confused as to why it hasn’t been fed in so long. Claire’s phone kept buzzing but she wanted nothing to do with the outside world. “I’ll tell you what girls, when we get home, we’ll get some pizza and we can chill out and relax. Sound good?” Tom offered. Claire, being moody, shrugged and responded with a muttered “Sure.” Chloe wanted to jump at the opportunity and wolf down a whole large pizza, but felt she should restrain herself. “That sounds good to me too.” She mildly agreed. Their parents didn’t wait to order, instead getting two large pepperoni pizzas scheduled to deliver as soon as they arrived home.

They crept into the driveway as the delivery guy pulled away, leaving the warm boxes in the cold December evening. Claire jumped out of the car and grabbed the boxes and ran inside. She wanted the food, but didn’t want to spend any time with the family, so she grabbed the top box and went upstairs. Tom and Diane were growing worried, but Chloe reassured them that it was normal after a tough loss like that. “Don’t worry, I’ll talk to her in a few minutes.” Chloe stayed downstairs and shared the remaining pizza with her parents, Chloe having three steaming delicious slices, matching her dad’s total, while Diane only had two. After bidding her parents goodnight, Chloe went upstairs to check on Claire. Knocking on the door and not hearing anything, she carefully pushed the door open to see Claire in a very vulnerable state.

Claire had stripped down to her sports bra and underwear and was laying on her bed, shoving her fourth slice of pizza down her throat and washing it down with a bottle of rum. “Whoa whoa Claire, what are you doing?” Chloe asked with genuine concern.
“Come on hic Chloe, what’s the point? We lost. I’m not playing anymore hic! I starved myself to lose? Never ag-hic-ain. Mmmph thish pizza’s sooo good.” Claire was depressed from the loss, but it seemed like Claire was happy to not have to worry about being in volleyball shape anymore. Claire was always a bigger eater, so to trim down almost 15 pounds showed some real dedication to the team. Now that the season was over, Claire felt like she had a free ticket to eat whatever she wanted and let lose. Claire had already drank over half the bottle of rum, so as she was lifting the bottle again, Chloe lunged in and took it from her.

“Heyyy! What gives hic give it baaaack!” Claire whined like a spoiled child. “Look Claire, I’ve been where you are. Losing a game sucks! But there are better ways to go about it than to drink like crazy. Come on, let’s put on a movie or something, like old times?” Chloe kindly offered. Claire started tearing up, the booze taking her on an emotional roller coaster. She leaned over and hugged Chloe. “Thanks Chloe hic! You’re the best.” “Anytime, you know I’m always here for you. Now come on, I’ve heard this movie is good.” Claire reached for the bottle, but Chloe took a swig instead. “Who says you’re the only one who gets a drink? Haha we’re bonding tonight.”

The sisters drained the bottle and finished off the pizza halfway through their rom-com. They laughed and shared stories and cuddled with each other for the rest of the movie. Just before the movie ended, they fell asleep next to each other, like they used to when they were younger. It was a wholesome night for the Simpson sisters.

They both stayed sleeping when Zach called Chloe for their scheduled face-time date. But the next morning came, a grey Saturday morning, and the sisters woke to texts from another pair of sisters. They looked at their phones, then each other. “I just got a text from Katie.” Claire spoke up. “She says we have to see them tonight. And it’s super urgent.” Chloe grew confused as she read Kelly’s text aloud. “I just got a text from Kelly. She said: Hey Chloe! Sorry I just saw this. Haven’t had my phone in a couple of days. I’m so down to see you! How about tonight? The four of us can catch up like old times. I got home an hour ago, so wanna meet at 6? Chinese buffet?” The girls looked at each other. “I’m down if you are.” Claire reasoned. Chloe thought it over for a couple of minutes, then sent a text to Kelly agreeing to their hangout dinner.