Chapter 16 - the season to be feasting: part 2

42.
Her small button of a nose red and runny, her every breath causing a stream of vapour to escape between her soft lips, Faye was shivering as she walked down the busy main street of Wodechester, a small city about 20 minutes south of Caulbury by train. Though draped in a thick old coat borrowed from Mrs. Kendrick, that made her already well-padded figure look even thicker than it really was, the round-faced girl did not seem to be handling the winter chill at all well. Her arms wrapped tight around her it was clear from the drowsy, miserable look on her face that the fiery-haired girl would have much preferred to stay huddled up indoors, lounging under a warm blanket with a cup of eggnog and a plate of gingerbread cookies close at hand.

"Do we have to go on much longer?" she asked, her voice whiny and tired, her question directed at the chestnut-haired girl walking a couple of feet in front of her.

Turning head towards the fiery-haired chubster trailing along behind her Annie responded by rolling her eyes.

"Don't worry," she said; "we only have a couple of stores left to go. And anyways, you were the one who wanted to come along."

With only a few days left until Christmas Annie had decided to do some last minute shopping. Her parents never asked for much as far as gifts were concerned, but she still felt she ought to get them something. Faye, having not, apparently, known until a couple of days ago that Christmas presents were even a thing, had, when Annie'd first suggested the idea, seemed only too eager to come along. Now however, only a couple of hours later, any hint of enthusiasm on the chubby girl's part seemed to have faded.

"I know," she responded; "it's just..."

"Just?"

The girl stopped, her round cheeks growing somehow even redder as she glanced nervously in the direction her feet.

"Well," she said; "you know... I'm kind of..."

"Kind of what?" asked Annie, one eyebrow raised.

"Well, um... couldn't we just stop for a bite to eat?"

At that Annie couldn't help but smile.

"Didn't you have a snack just before we left?" she asked, her lips forming a slight smirk as she teased the chubby redhead. "I seem to remember you making your way through a whole plate of cookies."

"Yeah," said Faye; "but that was ages ago. We've been walking 'round here for hours. I'm tired."

"Oh alright then," said Annie, shaking her head as she gazed towards the gray sky far above; "I suppose you need to keep your energy up."

At that Faye's features lit up, making it seem like she'd regained a fair bit of energy already.

"That's right," she grinned, eagerly nodding her head.

And so the two of them had soon dodged into the nearest café they could find. A pleasant, sleepy little place, bright with a large front window, it was one of Annie's favourites, though she hadn't visited it in many months now.

Looking at the hefty fiery-haired girl Annie could almost feel Faye's mouth water as she studied the collection of delicious goodies suddenly laid out before her. Looking over the café's display of tasty treats even Annie couldn't help but be a little tempted. With so many of her favourite desserts just lying around she found herself suddenly longing to just dig her teeth into a crunchy cookie or a creamy slice of cake.

Absently she moved her hand along her now quite tiny tummy. She'd worked so hard, done so well. Surely she deserved to let herself have just a little reward. Surely one tiny treat couldn't hurt. Studying the many goodies laid out before her Annie found her gaze drawn to a large slice of cheesecake conveniently placed right under her nose. She wanted it so badly, wanted so badly to bite into it, to gobble her way through the creamy, squishy, and utterly delicious treat.

Shaking her head she tore her eyes away from it, looking instead towards Faye. The fiery haired girl had a by now familiar greedy look on her face. Her gaze locked to the exclusion of all else on the cornucopia of sweets laid out before her she didn't notice as Annie studied her figure, as she scrutinized her doughy midriff, her fleshy, round face, her thick arms, her wide hips, and her broadening behind. The sight of the hefty redhead, her flabby body bulging in all directions, made Annie shiver. Once a young woman of almost otherworldly beauty it'd taken only a few months of overeating to turn Faye into the dull and dumpy dough-girl now standing before her. Much as Annie wanted her snack Faye's flabby figure reminded her only too well of what consequences such indulgence it might bring.

Once again she put a hand to her rapidly shrinking waist. She'd come so far, too far to give in now. She had to stay strong, had to resist.

Still, it'd be a shame to let such a tasty treat go uneaten. As she gave the greedy girl beside her another look Annie found a devious little grin spreading across her own lips.

"So, what'll it be?" asked the woman behind the counter.

"I'll have that," said Annie, pointing towards the delectable slice of cheesecake; "and a cup of green tea please."

Faye having ordered herself a cup of hot chocolate and a particularly large slice of cake the two girls grabbed a couple of seats by the window. Whilst the fiery-haired chubster swiftly dug into her plateful of cake, greedily gobbling her way through it, Annie took only some small bites out of hers. Chewing slowly, taking as much pleasure as she possibly could from each tiny spoonful she carefully slipped between her lips, she had by the time Faye's slice had been utterly devoured not made her way through even a fourth of her own.

Once Faye had inevitably emptied her plate Annie, leaning back in her chair, put her fork down on hers.

"Done already?" asked Faye, a quizzical look on her face.

"Yeah," nodded Annie; "I don't have that much of an appetite today."

As for a moment or two the girls sat in silence Faye's gaze seemed slowly to drift towards Annie's mostly uneaten slice of cheesecake. The chestnut-haired girl couldn't help but smile as she watched her fiery-haired friend eye up the tempting, mostly untouched treat resting just across the table.

"You can have it if you like," shrugged Annie; "it's good, so it'd be a shame to let it go to waste."

"Are you sure?" asked Faye, all but licking her lips.

"Yeah," nodded Annie; "I'm pretty full. And anyway," she grinned; "I've got to watch my figure."

"Right," said Faye, a slightly guilty look on her face as she looked down at her own doughy physique.

"Go ahead," said Annie, pushing her plate towards the chubby, shamefaced girl.

For a moment Faye seemed to hesitate. Then, letting out a soft sigh, she picked up her spoon and dug in.

Watching as the chubby girl shovelled more and more calories in between her greedy lips Annie couldn't help but to, for a short moment, allow a devilish grin to spread across her face.

43.
Tucked away in a narrow alley off Wodechester's Main Street lay a strange little store. A messy, disorganized place, swamped with a diverse assortment of knick-knacks and oddities. It seemed to specialize in the sale of things that, though amusing, were mostly useless and strange. Annie, having found the store several years ago whilst exploring the many shops around the city centre, had promptly fallen in love with it. Having now made her way there once again she happily scoured its shelves for whatever cheap and interesting presents she could find.

Faye for her part paid little attention to the many odd items strewn about her. Having found an empty old chair in a secluded corner of the store she breathed a sigh as she planted her broad bottom upon it. The slices of cake she'd so eagerly consumed only a quarter of an hour ago having done little to lift her spirit the girl was happy for a chance to rest.

As however she leaned herself back in her soft, comfortable seat Faye soon found that something had caught her eye. A gleaming little trinket buried in a box of odds and ends. Though at first she'd barely seen the thing she now found herself somehow drawn to it. It'd seemed, as she reached to dig it out, almost to call to her.

Having picked the little thing out of its box she got to her feet and walked over to the counter.

"Excuse me," she said to the shopkeeper, a sleepy old man with wild hair and an unkempt beard; "how much for this?"

Faye having placed the little trinket down before him the old man studied it.

"Oh yes," he said; "that old thing. I'd all but forgotten I even had it. It's been lying around in this store for so many years now." He smiled, a thoughtful expression on his face. "Shouldn't be too expensive I don't think. I'll give it to you for twenty."

Handing the man a pair of crumpled notes Faye smiled at him as she picked up her newly bought trinket.

"Actually," she said, looking from the dull gleaming thing up towards the friendly, unkempt old geezer behind the counter; "it's a Christmas present. Would you mind wrapping it for me?"