Chapter 1

Something changed with my husband. There was stress from work and a failing gym routine, but maybe he was just tired. He drank more, but more than that he was eating more. Then one day while I was in the kitchen looking for a new recipe to try, he walked in and I saw it for the first time. His weight gain. His belly.

A round little ball pushing against his t-shirt. An almost perfect sphere of fat with a small indent at the apex where his belly button could be found. Heavy, doughy. I watched him cross the kitchen wondering how it never jiggled.

And yet, the bottom curve was peaking out. For all intents and purposes the shirt he wore covered the new weight and I'm sure from my husband's perspective, it covered it fully. From my angle though, from where I sat, I could see the exposed skin of his underbelly clear as day. My stomach tightened excitedly at the thought of running my hand across that skin. Poking the soft flesh winking at my from beneath his shirt. I wanted to squeeze him against me. I suppressed a gasp, surprised by the thought.

He was oblivious to me. Focused only on the task of filling that newly formed mound. I watched him casually open the fridge, pull out the milk carton, and raise it his lips to drink. Already his shirt was riding up. I smiled at the now exposed upwards curve of his belly, the dark treasure trail of hair climbing up under his shirt to his hidden bellybutton. Daring me to stand and follow it with a hand. As he drank the shirt's hem continued to migrate North. Soon his bellybutton and half his stomach was free, contained no more in fabric. My husband always wore his sweatpants low and now I could see then how this little ball of fat sat comfortably between his hips.

He finished his drink and absent mindedly pulled his shirt back down. Putting the milk away, he turned to see me watching him. He laughed with embarrassment then said, "Sorry, I'll use a glass next time."

I blinked confused, but recovered quickly enough as I realized he thought I was staring at him for drinking straight from the carton. I laughed and shook my head all the while thinking he could drink his milk any way he liked as long as he continued to put on a few more pounds.