Chapter 1 - Stories 1 & 2

The morning alarm blared and his eyes shot open. The veil of sleep lifted as he awoke. His hands immediately went to his belly, which spilled over his thighs and took up most of the mattress. He let out a groan. In his dream state, he could do anything. Memories from when he was thin fueled what he dreamt about, so awakening to his reality - a reality where he was almost too fat to move without help - was a shock each morning.
He knew he had to sit up, or he'd fall asleep again. He pressed a button on the side of his custom bariatric bed. It released a metal handle which hung from the roof of the canopy bed. His chubby hand reached for it and he let out another groan, but this time from effort rather than awakening to disappointment.
Having grabbed the handle, he pulled with all his might, while beginning to rock his morbidly obese body from side to side to gain momentum. With another grunt, he pulled himself into a sitting posture on the side of the bed. Once he was in position, his fat hands covered his face in distress. He sighed with more emotional weight than what he experienced with his actual physical heaviness. His reality - one where he couldn't do anything on his own - tortured him.

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The dark burgandy loveseat was the only piece of furniture in the expansive parlor that was large enough to fit him. He had his cane in his hand and waddled his way over to it, very aware of the spreading silence of the guests as they watched such an obese man try to walk. He felt the heat of embarrassment flush his fat cheeks, but refused to look up and make eye contact with anyone. He hoped, once he was seated, that the negative attention would end and the guests would go back to their individual conversations.

He reached the loveseat and began to lower himself into it. There was no graceful way to do it, and once gravity took over, he landed hard on the cushions. People glanced back and forth at each other, and their expressions said everything about their disgust at seeing such an obese man. He tried to ignore it... his hands gently rested on the round bloated belly that took up all the space in front of him. Then he recalled being told that it disturbed people when he held his fat like that. He tried to move his hands to rest beside his rotund girth, but his belly was so big - where else could he put them?
He finally looked up at the guests and their eyes quickly diverted from him. It didn't help his confidence, and he began to regret even leaving his bedroom. His weight was a constant source of embarrassment and stress, but he was told that no one would mind, so he made the effort to join the party. His own eyes diverted from his body and he saw a young woman from across the room who smiled at him with genuine kindness. His anxiety shot through the roof. He looked away from her with haste, then out of the corner of his eye saw her approach him. The fear rose within him and his breath quickened. She seemed to glide gracefully towards him, and his mind was filled with what he considered a worst case scenario. Once she reached him, she sat beside him and smiled again. He couldn't even muster up the courage to make eye contact, and she picked up on his anxiety. She introduced herself and reached towards his fat hand which dangled by the side of his belly for fear that if it cradled his fat, people would be bothered. He met her in the handshake, still unable to look her in the face...