Chapter 7 - ch7 return of the prodigal son

I did have one more stuffing weekend that term, on the Easter weekend. I did get really full, but I didn't go completely crazy. And it was good, no pain, no discomfort, just happy, comfortable, stuffed tummy, and after a couple of days I was about back to where I'd started, to where I'd been for over a month. I made a mental note that even in excess, a bit of moderation could help.

Knowing I could moderate actually made it a little harder to be disciplined, in particular as exams approached and then hit I didn't make time for my Saturday swims or as much walking, and I may have snacked a bit much while studying, but I assured myself that it was nothing all that excessive, given that I didn't mind gaining some.

The first week of May, Gord finally came home. I was in the middle of exams, so I kept a low profile and mostly let him catch up with his Mom. Well, and absorb the changes in him. Last I'd seen him we were thirteen, and he hadn't really grown that much yet, he'd been pudgy and a bit asthmatic, somewhat active but not very athletic.

Now we were pretty much the same height, and grown up. And Gord wasn't asthmatic anymore, and he wasn't fat, not even chubby. Maybe a little stocky, a bit of thickness in the waist, but that was well matched with muscular arms, bulky shoulders, and strong legs. Well, not all of that was clear at first, but one morning I was brushing my teeth when he wandered into the bathroom wearing only boxer shorts, and I got a good look at the muscle in his thighs and arms, and those shoulders. Somehow I just couldn't get over his shoulders, so wide and full, it was hard to imagine that those were Gord's shoulders.

He did a double take on seeing me there, then apologized "Sorry big guy, I forgot I'm sharing the bathroom now." He patted me on my belly, then left. Leaving me confused, I might add. Why did he call me big guy, why did he touch my belly? Was he trying to say I was too fat?

These thoughts preyed on my mind as I studied for my last couple exams. I didn't exactly avoid him, but I might have been a little more rigorous about my studying schedule than I would have been otherwise. Also, he started his Summer job, for a landscaping company that had the contract for taking care of planters and flower beds on city property. Right at the start of May they started preparing the soil, even though they wouldn't plant anything for a few weeks.

Finally my exams were over, and Mrs. Bunton all but chased the two of us out of the house to go celebrate. We went out to a bar and talked, then went to a club and danced a little before agreeing we didn't really feel like it, talked about going to a strip club but couldn't really get enthusiastic about the idea, and finally ended up at a twenty-four-hour greasy spoon for burgers and fries. We talked some more, but by 1am we were both tired and ready to pack it in.

As I slid, somewhat laboriously, out of the booth, Gord reached out and touched my belly again, commenting that it didn't look like I had a lot of room left in the booth. I was kind of frozen, not knowing what to say. Then Gord added that his Mom had told him that I was fine with how I'd been gaining, and that he didn't have a problem with it, he was commenting.

That was even more confusing in some ways. I always assumed most people looked at my fat negatively, I was feeling positive about it and hoped to find someone else who did too. What to do about someone who just accepted it, and didn't care much? Could it be that he was really that indifferent?

* * * * * * * *

The first week of my cashiering job left me oddly exhausted, the fast pace and constant flow of people was a very different sort of mental strain that was classes. By the second week I was settling in well enough, however, and very happy that because the government was shut down on Victoria Day, I'd get the May 24th long weekend off.

I was a little surprised that Gord got the weekend off too. I'd thought maybe they'd have been planting on the weekend, but apparently on a government contract they worked government days. Further, he had a suggestion for the weekend: he had an elderly aunt and uncle who owned a cottage on Lake of the Woods , a few hours away. Gord had gone there the last couple of springs to open it up for them, since there was a fair bit of physical work to be done. He proposed we could both go and do it, taking along some fortifying cases of beer, and have a good long weekend.

There was still a bit of awkwardness between us, but for the most part I was learning that this was still Gord, and that I still liked him, for all that we were both different now. So I said yes, hoping that the weekend would really let us bond.