chapter 17

It was just a little over two months since Amy had left London and in that time she had transformed from a svelte 130 lbs to a decidedly chubby 160 lbs. She was still a long way from the big, waddling blimp of a girl from her past but still she had to admit to herself that no normal person gained 30 lbs in such a short space of time. It took a serious addiction to food and an uncontrollable desire to keep stuffing herself well beyond the point of fullness.

She was self-aware enough to understand that she was an emotional eater. She binged as much to numb painful emotions as she did because she craved food. Delicious, irresistible food. Naively she had thought that feeling happy with Cassie might slow the rate of her weight gain but still the pounds kept coming faster than ever.

It turned out that she wanted to eat her happiness just as much as her sadness and Cassie made it easy for her to eat and eat and eat. They spent most of their time holed up together in Cassie's apartment where she would either cook Amy lavish meals or order calorie laden takeout.

Sometimes lying in Cassie's bed with her stuffed belly bulging out before her the old nagging fears about how much she was eating and how much weight she had gained would come back to gnaw at her but Cassie also made it easy for her to forget those worries. After all, did it really matter how tight her clothes were only going to be torn off her to lie in a crumpled heap on Cassie's floor? Did it really matter that she had gained weight when Cassie's desire for her remained unabated?

She had learned to live numb for so long and now it felt like the body she had silenced for so many years was reasserting itself and refusing to have its wants ignored. It wasn't just the way her belly growled and grumbled at her, demanding ever more food to keep it sated. It was the way her hips swayed, her thighs gently brushed together and her breasts jostled lightly when she walked. She had not felt this aware of her body since the days when she was so big that her every movement caused some part of her to jiggle and bounce. She felt like every part of her swelling body was more sensitive than before; constantly crying out to be touched, filled and satisfied. She gave into her cravings with increasing frequency and, though she could not admit it yet, a part of her did not want to resist. Deep down she wondered if the constant struggle was really worth it.

Amy was preparing to meet Cassie at the pharmacy once she had finished work. She had finally accepted that she had buried her once slender body under so much blubber that it would take weeks, if not months to undo the damage. She decided that in the meantime she might as well feel comfortable so she had bought new clothes to replace all the jeans that she could barely get past her thickening thighs, the shirts that she was spilling out of and the dresses that clung with unforgiving tightness to the bulges of her body.

She had plumped up beyond just having a potbelly, absurdly round against her slender body. She was beginning to fill out all over, becoming rounder, softer and wider everywhere. She pulled on a pair of high waisted denim shorts that where already a little snug even though they were a recent purchase and a red and white striped t-shirt that scooped down to reveal a little cleavage but also emphasised her increased girth. She longed for London where the weather would be turning autumnal by now and she could bundle herself up in cosy knitwear and hide under big coats but here the weather remained stubbornly warm, demanding the show of flesh and leaving her nowhere to hide.

She studied her reflection for a moment and she found little to love in her puffy cheeks, doughy upper arms and the soft belly that strained against her shorts. Yet in the curve of her hips and the swell of her breasts she saw some of Chloe's soft, womanly lusciousness and couldn't feel entirely dissatisfied with what she saw.

She met Cassie outside the pharmacy so that they could walk back to her apartment together. When they were passing Ben's bakery she tapped her hand against the window and he looked up from the customer he was serving to wave and shoot her a big grin. They were about to turn onto the street Cassie's apartment was on when she heard footsteps pounding against the pavement and moments later a guy appeared behind Cassie and picked her up by the waist.

Cassie uttered a little yelp of surprise but there was only annoyance in her eyes, not fear.

"Let me go, Dylan! You're such a jerk!" Cassie cried, tugging ineffectually at her brother's arms.

Two more guys came jogging over and Dylan released Cassie. The brothers laughed as she stumbled a little before regaining her balance.

"Who's your girlfriend?"
"Aren't you going to introduce us, Cass?"
"Don't be rude now, Cassandra."

Finally free of her brother's grip and back on solid ground, Cassie made her reluctant introductions. "Amy, these are my brothers Mark, Dylan and Nick."

"Hi," Amy said weakly, suddenly feeling very vulnerable as three pairs of brown eyes appraised her. Much like Cassie, the boys were all tall and dark haired but the family resemblance ended there, she could see in them none of Cassie's gentle kindness.

"Well done, Cass," Dylan said, giving Cassie's hair a little brotherly ruffle that she didn't seem to appreciate at all. "This one is pretty."

"Yeah, not like that one you brought home for Thanksgiving in college," Mark agreed. "Julie? She was bigger than the turkey."

"Nah, that was Lara. Julie was bigger than the float in the parade," Nick said and they all laughed.

"And didn't they just blow up like balloons while they were with you, Cass?" Dylan said, puffing his cheeks out for emphasis.

"Shut up!" Cassie cried as her brothers laughed. Her voice was a little too shrill and, when she gave Dylan a punch on the arm, it was just a little too hard. Though she avoided eye contact, Amy could see the hurt in her eyes.

"Hey, we're going to the bar to shoot some pool. You want to come with?" Dylan said and Amy realised that he was addressing her.

"Uh..."

"You know what? I think we'll pass," Cassie said firmly.

"Suit yourself," Dylan said with a shrug. "It was nice meeting you, Amy."

Cassie still gripped Amy's hand tightly but she was walking so quickly that Amy found herself panting to keep up with her long strides.

"I'm sorry about my brothers," Cassie said quietly. "They're idiots but they're not bad guys."

"Cassie... wait! We need to talk about this."

"No. We really don't," she muttered.

Amy stopped abruptly, forcing Cassie to come to a halt too.

"You must have seen me in high school. It was pretty hard to miss me," Amy said with a bitter little laugh. "I need to know that you didn't break up with those girls because they gained weight."

"What? No. No way," Cassie looked almost relieved. "Look, I lied. My brothers are... well, kind of ***s. Especially when they're together. They don't know anything about my past relationships and I would rather keep it that way."

Seeing that Amy still looked doubtful she added: "I'm sorry I keep hiding you away. I hope you don't think I'm anything other than proud to be with you. I guess I'm just conscious that we don't have a lot of time together and I want to keep you all to myself but I'd like to take you out on a proper date."

Amy couldn't help but smile at Cassie's earnestness. How could she ever have doubted her.

"A proper date? Parking lot of Taco Bell it is then."

Cassie laughed. "There are some nice restaurants in this town, you know."