Chapter 1

The Manhattan Getaway

By: Lizzy

Trees flew by rapidly, my forehead pressed against the train window. The sun had barely broken free of the night, the ground lightly coated with dew. The train was racing on its way to Pennsylvania Station in New York City from Boston. I was excited yet held a measure of trepidation. I felt dishonest, but then again wasn’t I? I said I was visiting my older sister, reconnecting, making some quality time – attending a show, trying out some good restaurants, doing some bar hopping, and taking in some shopping.

That’s what I told my husband, Vince. He had said it was a great idea. It was wonderful that Marianne and I would be doing some things together like we had when were in college. Vince agreed I needed a break. I was much too stressed lately with work and keeping up with the kids.

“Take some time for yourself, Jenna. I’ll make sure the kids get to camp and everything. You have fun and I’ll see you sometime on Sunday,” Vince said, earnestly, kissing me on my forehead.

I was surprised believing he’d give me a hard time about going. But, he was encouraging this, not out of character for him, but he rarely seemed to have the time for me most of the time. Perhaps this was his way of getting me out of his hair for a little while. So, early this Tuesday morning, I boarded an Amtrak for Manhattan. The only thing is that I knew perfectly well, that Marianne, was out of town on a business trip and I was actually only apartment sitting.

I was also not intending on spending my days alone. I was there for a purpose. I was meeting Sloane. Sloane and I started chatting five months ago. He was married also and we shared many of the same interests – movies, books, playing card and board games, and food. We both enjoyed sharing recipes which led into discussions about food and then getting fat.

I told Sloane I had been steadily getting chubby over the past seven years of my twelve year marriage to Vince. I explained that Vince loved to go out to eat. I used to argue to stay home and make dinner myself. I had little will power when we ate at restaurants and ate like it was my last meal, my belly swelling up like an overripe melon. But, Vince would insist. He never seemed to gain anything and that was the one thing he enjoyed doing together. I must say, I also enjoyed it. He worked so many long hours that the only time I saw time I saw him these days was over the dinner table. And, that was only once a week now. He usually didn’t get home until after midnight most nights between working late and wining and dining clients.

Sloane, in turn, confessed his obsession with fat. His wife was very thin and he wished she would get fatter. He had fantasies of fattening up a woman until she could barely move. I admitted that I had similar fantasies where would be force fed until I was busting out of my clothes. This talk moved from idle chit chat to erotic talk to reality – well sort of. We had arranged to meet and spend some time actually sharing a few meals and talking about our fantasies.

Sloane and I had already set guidelines for our meeting – we would meet in a public place, and if we continued to see each other during my time in NYC, there would be no intercourse or touching without permission. There also would be frequent overeating, and total honesty – all fantasies need to be shared, nothing held back. We didn’t want to be unfaithful to our spouses; we just wanted to have some form of escape from the pressures of everyday while indulging in our deepest daydreams.

The train pulled in midmorning and I made my way downtown to Greenwich Village where Marianne lived. I unpacked, showered, and changed for my lunch date with Sloane. The weather was cool for the end of September – temperatures in the fifties. I dressed in layers – lacy white camisole under a light blue chambray shirt and a simple khaki skirt that I zipped and buttoned securely in the front just under my belly button. All of this was under a medium weight denim jacket. I adjusted myself in front of the mirror one last time, grabbed my handbag, and went out to see Sloane.