Chapter 1

Daisy was lost in thought. The pipette in her hand hovering over the plastic plate of mouse cells, motionless. She was thinking, once again, about growth. This was her third, or was it her fourth, consecutive all nighter in the lab. She’d lost count and with it a bit of her grip on reality. Some generous first year grad student had baked cookies for those of the team working the around-the-clock hours that Daisy’s postdoctoral thesis demanded. Sweet gesture, but dressed head to toe in protective clothing, it was unlikely she’d be eating anything for hours. Another long night lay before her.

After spending her undergraduate and graduate studies investigating the repression of human growth factors and their receptors as a Cancer Biologist, Daisy was now interested in exploring the other side of the coin. Are there types of growth that could benefit from being exploited? And what types of growth factors do these mechanisms require? Her mind flitted over to her research advisor. Dr. Torrence. Marty. Martin. Dr. Martin Torrence was the director of the Molecular Growth Institute, and her employer.

Not only was Marty an absolute genius, he was the first to discover that artificial FGF slows the regeneration of neurons in post surgical injury and set the lab off on this trajectory. The research question the lab is focused on today: could it be possible to grow human adipose rapidly and temporarily using plant growth factors? Preliminary evidence, on which the grant that pays her salary was written, suggests that it has the potential to do so…in mice cells. This week is the final push for data collection.

The team has isolated LBD4 as the most likely growth factor candidate to accelerate the size and quantity of mouse adipose tissue in vitro. Completing this data set will allow her collaborators in Maine to carry the research into mouse samples, in vivo, and then into human research/clinical settings should the research look promising. This was Daisy’s opportunity to “cut the cord” and move on. Everything rested on the next 24 hours.

Even before Daisy ever accepted the position at MGI, she knew she was going to fall in love with the man who headed it. He was tall, and slim. He had intelligent, assessing eyes, and instantly Daisy was sweating hoping she’d passed whatever test he’d just issued. She pleaded with her palms to remain dry as she felt his large warm hand press hers. As they got to know one another over the course of the interview they both understood this was a fated partnership. Daisy’s experience in stopping growth gave her a solid understanding of what might encourage growth. It was the experience his team needed. Daisy was star struck. Marty was a celebrity in her very niche field and he was asking for her help. He had made her feel like the most important piece of the research team each and every day since.

But she had long known that his interest in growth was personal. She respected the absolute adoration he had for his wife; even if she didn’t understand it. His wife had suffered an injury at the birth of their third child. She was already 300+ pounds and the regeneration time for her injury was so slow that she ended up gaining weight faster than she could tolerate and was immobilized. Interestingly, the couple had two more children and she was now well over 500 pounds.

Even more baffling however is the longer she’s known Marty, the more he seems to dote on her, as if to rub it in that he’s not interested. She’s stopped bringing treats for lab meetings to share because she knows Marty will just bring them home to his bed bound hippo. She hates herself for being so jealous of his happiness; but happy he clearly is. She knows the move to Maine will be good for both of their careers…if only she can get through the next 24 hours.

Daisy went home at dawn, bleary eyed but sated. Her team (that felt so good to say…her team) had reasonable evidence that LBD4 concentration was positively correlated with mouse adipose tissue generation in tissue samples. She was hopeful and excited that this would be borne out in other tissue types as well.

She never understood why Marty insisted their work be focused in fat cells, but it did help them get past more IRB barriers. She pulled off her clothes, stuffed one more of Amy’s cookies into her mouth, and crawled into bed. She knew she was going to have to be on point for her going away party tonight. She didn’t want to be bombarded by photos of herself sloppy and drunkenly hanging on every one of Martin’s words. Dr. Torrence. She was going to miss him. Her hand grazed her nipple, the other hand drifting over her belly to her clit. She needed to have a clear mind for tonight. This would be the last time…

She was the first of the team to arrive at the bar. Of course they chose Frida’s; just a little out of the way dive bar with fabulous tater tots and extra tall pours. The owner, Hector, was a sweetheart and agreed to something he never does: closing the bar early on a Sunday for Daisy’s going away party. She wanted to come in early and thank him, and help him finish setting up. Frieda was Hector’s mom. Daisy never got to meet her but her photos are all over the bar. She was a big lady. Hector said his mom wanted everyone to feel comfortable in a place named after her, so everything is “Frieda sized”.

Daisy brought in a couple of gallons of ice cream and some root beer for the kids and asked Hector where to set it down. In addition to being littered with photographs of this gregarious, larger-than-life Cuban lady, the bar is festooned with mirrors. Daisy caught a glimpse of herself but did not register. She noticed a woman in her early thirties with big boobs, a bigger belly, and a kind but tired smile. Looking around it seemed she was surrounded by fat women. Hector arrived from the back,

“Oh Daisy, let me take that. Sit down.”

“Hector no, let me help you. You’re losing money because of our celebration, you shouldn’t have to work!”

“First, eat, look…the Daisy Special.”

Daisy looked down to find her usual order: extra crispy tots with cheese, jalapenos, sour cream, and olives. She started to tear up. “Oh Hector. Thank you. I’m going to miss you so much.”

Daisy dove in to the basket of tater tots. Her mind was filled with the celebrations and defeats that had been shared over this meal in this spot. The past three years had been the most mentally and physically intense of her life. But also the most intellectually stimulating. Her colleagues, her team…were some of the brightest minds in the field and she would miss the opportunity for daily collaboration and camaraderie.

She barely noticed when Hector refilled her Blue Moon, and she pretended not to notice when she *suddenly* had a new basket of tots. He was such a generous man. Her schedule had been so non-circadian in the last few weeks she barely knew what was going on. Lost in thoughts of growth. Cell growth. Personal and career growth. New experiences and adventures. And letting go of Marty.

“He’s not interested, girl” she muttered out loud, surprising both Hector and herself.

Daisy was jarred out of her reverie by the door opening. Wide. Marty entered the bar holding the door for his wife. Daisy was not expecting to spend her last night with the team in the presence of the reason she was leaving. Kristy navigated her mobility scooter through the doorway, her gorgeous smile resting on Daisy’s eyes, and then on her hand.

“Oh! Are we starting eating already? Perfect. Hector?”

Daisy looked down at her hand and sheepishly popped the last cheesy tot in her mouth. Looking up she noticed Kristy was smiling ear to ear, her eyes locked on Daisy’s belly.