The Fat Wife

[polarisdreamer]

BBW, STUFFING, Slice of Life. Claire, a successful young lawyer, has nearly doubled her bodyweight since she tied the knot. Can she come to terms with her current overfed figure and balance her duties as wife and breadwinner?

The Fat Wife

by Polarisdreamer & Berserker1133

Part 1-

        “Claire-bear?  Claire-bear wake up.  You gotta get ready for work.”  Paul softly whispered into the ear of his snoozing wife.

        “Mhhhhh…  Five more minutesss…”  Claire groaned, as she sleepily rolled her doughy body onto its side, putting her back to her husband.

        Smiling at Claire’s juvenile tactic, Paul wiggled into a spooning position against his chunky wife.  First he gave her generously sized butt a frisky little squeeze, then he wrapped his arm around his wife’s inflated midsection and softly massaged her protruding belly while he gently kissed her neck three times, “*Mwah!* *Mwah!* *Mwah!*”

        “Pauuul…  Hmhm!  Quit it…”  Claire groggily protested with a hint of enjoyment.  The way her husband kissed her neck in the morning always gave her goosebumps.  However, she didn’t like that she had such a massive belly for him to grab on to.  Feeling too tired to reciprocate her husband’s warm feelings right now, Claire accused, “It’s your fault I was up so late last night.  Just give me five more minutes.”

        “Alright, I’ll set your phone alarm for another five minutes, but I’m putting it on the bathroom counter, so you’ll have to get out of bed to shut it off.”  Paul explained, while his wife let out a big grunt in response.

        “Heyyy be nice to meee, I bring home the bacon, remember?”  Claire innocently pouted, as she groggily pulled a pillow over her adorable face.

        Smiling at his lovely wife, Paul wrestled the pillow away from her and started getting out of bed, while he said, “You bring home the bacon, I cook it.  I know how our system works.  I’ll go start breakfast for you beautiful.”

        “Ugg…”  Claire droned at her husband’s last word to her before leaving the room.  Beautiful.  Claire felt she was many things, a loyal friend, a hardworking young lawyer, an excellent wife, but today ‘beautiful’ wasn’t exactly one of them.

        Rolling around in bed trying to get comfortable, Claire felt heavy.  Lying on her back, the size of her thick butt made her back arch upward at an awkward angle.  Lying on her stomach, Claire’s big, bloated belly uncomfortably pressed against the soft mattress because of the overindulgent night she’d just had.  She had to settle for slumbering on her side, although her boobs had swollen in size so much that they strained the buttons of her pajama shirt from the position.  She probably needed new pajamas soon anyway, the ones she was currently wearing were tight against her hips, butt and thighs, as well as her arms, chest and belly.  Somehow every part of her body had become her problem area.

        Hearing the annoying beep of her alarm, Claire groggily tried to wake up and leave her warm bed.  She didn’t spring upward like she used to during her fitter days in college, sitting up was too much effort now, instead Claire rolled to the edge, slid her chunky legs onto the floor, and then used her arms to heave herself upward to her feet.  It seemed like getting out of bed got harder every day.

        Clumsily lumbering into the bathroom and shutting off her alarm, Claire reached into the shower and got the hot water going.  It normally took a moment or two for the water to really get as warm as Claire liked it.  Trying to avoid looking at herself in the mirror, Claire threw her hair into a big bun and then donned a shower cap.  She’d woken up late and she knew she didn’t have time to dry her long brown hair, so she wasn’t going to get it wet.  Unbuttoning her pajamas and freeing herself of their tight embrace, Claire eagerly entered her shower and let the warm water do its job waking her up.

        As the refreshingly warm water massaged her chunky body, Claire lathered up some soap onto her sponge.  She started washing herself as she usually did, top to bottom.  As embarrassing it was to admit, Claire knew she tended to sweat a lot more than she used too, especially her armpits and the area between her cleavage, so she made sure those areas were clean before tending to other areas.  Claire hated how soft her arms had gotten, especially her upper arms.  They jiggled while Claire struggled to reach around and wash her back.  It was an embarrassing reminder that she wasn’t anywhere near as flexible as she’d once been.  Washing her back now was such a struggle that Claire normally just made Paul do it when they showered together.

        Giving up, Claire lathered up her arms and then turned her attention to her belly.  She’d gotten so fat that she had multiple rolls of fat that she had to make sure she washed.  She also had to make sure that she washed her underbelly.  The process always made Claire envious of when she’d once had a flat tummy.  Showering had once been so much simpler.  Now she had to bend over to reach every inch of her inflated butt.  Her thick thighs rubbed together no matter what she did, and to make matters worse she was afraid to wash her feet because one time a few months ago she’d lost her balance during the struggle to wash them and fallen right on her butt in the shower.

        Rinsing herself off and getting out of the shower, Claire wrapped herself in a towel, but was a little shocked to realize how small it felt on her.  At first, she thought she’d grabbed a hair towel for her body, but after a quick glance, the more likely explanation slapped her in the face.  The towel wasn’t small, she was too big.  It was only a few months ago, three months to be exact, that she’d been celebrating a 30-pound weight loss.  She’d hired a personal trainer at her gym, she’d stuck to a new diet, and she’d finally got onto a normal sleep schedule.  However, then she was assigned to a huge case for her firm.  She stopped attending the gym regularly, her diet went out the window and she’d had many sleepless nights due the stress from the high-profile nature of the case.

        Claire didn’t want to admit it, but she’d clearly gained some or all of the weight back.  Needing to know the damage, Claire dug out the bathroom scale from under the sink.  Throwing off her towel, Claire bit the bullet and stepped on.  After a moment, a horrifying number met her eyes.

*275*

        Claire wanted to cry.  She was five pounds shy of her highest weight and the holiday season was just around the corner.  She’d be the size of a house by new years for sure…

        “If Paul wasn’t such a good cook…”  Claire fumed, as her frustration latched onto her husband’s nurturing nature.  She knew Paul enjoyed the fact that she was so overweight for some strange reason.  She’d married a chubby-chaser and this was the consequence.  He never forced any food down her throat, but he did constantly keep the house filled with all of her favorite foods.  It wasn’t her fault she couldn’t resist; it was his!

        Spurred by her slight anger, Claire hurried to get ready.  Today was going to be a big day, this was the last chance her firm was going to get to settle their big case before it went to trial.  She had a business outfit she wanted to wear but knew it wouldn’t fit her in her current tubby condition, so instead Claire settled for a professional blouse, stockings, and high-waisted skirt combo.  Getting the stockings on were a pain, her big belly made reaching her feet an arduous task.  To make matters worse, the waist of the skirt was more than a little tight, but Claire was satisfied.  She put on a black belt, did her hair and makeup, and finally put on her ‘power’ heels.  She always felt confident wearing this particular pair of black high heels, but the heavier she got the more they killed her feet.

        Walking down the steps of her beautiful suburban house, Claire tried to avoid looking at all the pictures of her and Paul hanging on the wall of when she’d still been skinny.  When she’d first met Paul, she’d been a 136-pound 20-year-old, and now she’d fattened up into a 275-pound 26-year-old.  She was literally over twice the size she’d used to be.

        As Claire’s mind scolded herself for letting herself go so badly, her nose smelled the alluring aroma of her favorite breakfast.  Her stomach growled something fierce at the realization, but Claire was in no mood to devour a large breakfast and add to her weight-woes.  Entering the kitchen, Claire noted that her nose had been correct.  Paul had made her pancakes drenched in chocolate syrup, a bowl with sliced strawberries and bananas, and a tall glass of orange juice.

        “Eat up while it’s warm.”  Paul urged Claire.  However, she appeared preoccupied with her own thoughts.

        “No, I’m running late.  I’ll just stop for coffee on my way to work.”  Claire crankily explained, while she fought to resist the urgings of her stomach.

        “Okay.”  Paul mumbled a little disappointed.  “Do you want me to pack you a lunch?”

        “No.”  Claire grunted a little snappy.  She didn’t want to eat one of Paul’s decadent lunches today.  As much as she loved chowing down on meatball subs and pasta, she needed to start cooling it with the carbs and calories.  “I’m getting a salad today with Janet and Kimmie.”

        “Alright.  Well…  Good luck on that big settlement negotiation today.  You’ll do great.”  Paul smiled, as he approached his wife and planted a big kiss on her lips.

        Unable to enjoy the kiss, Claire broke it off and muttered, “Don’t you listen?  I already told you.  I’m basically just going to be Mr. Marshall’s moral support.  I prepared the case, but he’s going to be arguing for our side.”

        “Oh right.  That stinks.”  Paul frowned.  He’d been so distracted by his beautiful wife’s figure that his memory had slipped for an instant.

        “It’s just the way it is.”  Claire sighed, while she grabbed her keys and started heading to the garage, “Mr. Marshall’s more experienced, but he’s a sweetheart, so I don’t mind.”

        Following Claire to her car, Paul changed the topic, “About tonight, we don’t have to do anything special.  I know you’re busy.  I could just make a nice dinner if you want.”

        “I’ll text you when I get done work.  I don’t know how late I’ll be today.”  Claire responded, as her stomach growled once again.

        “You sure you don’t want something to eat for the road?”  Paul offered one last time, as Claire entered her car and struggled to buckle her seatbelt.  Her butt was so fat that it covered the buckle.  She had to awkwardly lift herself up so she could finally lock her seatbelt into place.

        “*Pant* Yeah, I’m sure.  I ate more than enough last night at the party.  See you later.”  Claire grunted in a bit of a huff.

        She was starving, but she wasn’t going to let herself fall into her bad habits so easily.  Today she was going to treat her body right.  This was going to be the first day in a long time that she put herself back onto the path of weight loss.  She’d achieved so much in her young career, if she put her mind to it, she could certainly reclaim her formerly fit body.  As Claire started her drive to work, she thought about where she could stop for coffee that might have a healthy breakfast option.

[polarisdreamer]

Part 2-  

        It was going to be one of those days, Claire just knew it as she sat in traffic.  She glanced at the time and bit her lip in frustration.  She was almost certainly going to be late at this rate, and to make matters worse she was still over 20 minutes away from her desired coffee destination in good traffic conditions.

       “God damn*t.”  Claire grumbled to herself, as her belly rumbled yet again.  Talking to her unhappy belly, Claire explained, “I know, I know!  I shouldn’t have skipped breakfast!  I’m sorry!  Stop yelling at me!”

        Another loud growl from her belly and Claire impulsively turned into the exit lane and replied to her belly a stout, “Fine!”

        As she sped down the exit ramp, Claire locked eyes with a Dunkin’ donuts down the street across from a gas station.  She needed gas, so she rationalized that stopping at the fast-food establishment was an efficient choice because of how late she was running.

        Pulling into the Dunkin’ donuts, the sight of a huge line for the drive thru caused Claire to utter an audible, “F*ck!”

        However, Claire noticed that it wasn’t too crowded inside, so Claire parked as close as she could to the door and headed inside.  The smell of donuts caused a loud rumble in Claire’s belly.  She had been thinking about a semi-healthy breakfast sandwich, but she was in a rush and she knew a sweet donut would do the job to quiet her stubborn belly.

        When Claire got in line there were only three people in front of her.  One looked like a frat boy from a local college.  The other two were both young female nurses from the local hospital, one looked rather slender, but the other definitely was a few months pregnant.  Looking around, Claire realized with a familiar sense of dread that she was the only truly fat person in the restaurant.  That never happened at Dunkin’ donuts.  Claire wrestled with her insecurities as she waited in line; however, by the time it was her turn to order a crowd of six people had gotten in line behind her.  

        They looked like a batch of younger construction workers.  All of them appeared relatively strong and fit.  To make matters worse, the girl taking orders looked like a college girl and she had the body of a fitness instructor.  Feeling more insecure, Claire revised her donut idea.  She didn’t want to look like a fatty in front of the large crowd of fit men behind her and certainly not to the slender young woman in front of her.

        “Welcome to Dunkin, what’ll you have?”  The young woman asked.

        “One large pumpkin spiced latte.  With two pumps of sweetener.  And hold on.”  Thinking fast, Claire pulled out her phone and held it up to her ear, “Yeah, Janet.  How many boxes of donuts am I supposed to get?”

        Claire paused pretending that her secretary was answering her.

        “No, I’m not going to have any.  I’m on a diet.”  Claire embellished, as she made eye contact with the worker and shrugged.

        Thinking on her feet, Claire rationalized that it was better to order two dozen donuts for her ‘office’ than have the people looking at her in the restaurant thinking she was some fatty who couldn’t resist getting a donut with her coffee.  She could always toss the extra donuts or put them in her office’s kitchen area.  Price really wasn’t an object for Claire, she’d been making really good money these past two years.  She could afford such an act of vanity anytime she chose.

        “Two dozen please, and I don’t care what donuts you throw in there.”  Claire explained to the worker in a casual fashion.  She wanted to appear uninterested with the donuts.  Although, she hoped at least a one of the donuts that ended up inside her boxes was glazed.

       “No problem!”  The girl smiled, as she turned around and got to work.

       A few minutes later, Claire was happily sitting in the front seat of her car, sipping her coffee and polishing off a glazed donut, while gasoline slowly filled up her near-empty tank.  She was enjoying the taste of her treat when her phone started ringing.  Claire quickly put the last of her donut into her mouth and put her coffee in a cup holder.  Wiping off her hands with a napkin and swallowing what was left of her donut, Claire cleared her throat and answered the call.

        “Hello?  What’s up Janet?”  Claire asked in surprise.  Janet never arrived to work this early, if anything, she always showed up five minutes late no matter what.

        “It’s not Janet, it’s Kimmie.”  Claire’s intern nervously squeaked into the phone.

        “Kimmie?  What are you doing on Janet’s line?”  Claire inquired, while she unconsciously reached inside the opened box of donuts in the passenger seat next to her, grabbed another donut and took a big bite.  This one was cream filled.

        “Kate told me to call you.”  Kimmie explained, as Claire suddenly heard a voice in the background yapping at Kimmie.  Seeming to correct herself in response, Kimmie rephrased, “Miss Marshall asked me to call you and let you know that her father won’t be coming to work today.”

        “What?  But what about the Preston Pharmaceuticals case??”  Claire gasped, as she lost hold of her donut and dropped it on her chest.  She tried to grab it, but her clumsy effort only caused the cream-filled donut to plop onto her lap, leaving a mess of Boston cream and chocolate icing covering her bouse and high-waisted skirt.  In irritation, Claire burst, “Sh*t!”

       “What happened?”  Kimmie asked sounding fearful.

       “I just spilled…”  Claire hesitated, “coffee.  I just spilled hot coffee on myself.  Don’t worry about it.  What’s Ken thinking?  What could be more important than this case?”

       “His appendix burst.  He’s in the hospital.”  Kimmie replied, as Claire heard a rustling noise and then a shriller voice start to echo through the phone.

        “Dad wants you to take the lead and argue the Preston Pharmaceutical settlement so clear your schedule, and make sure you’re prepped for the meeting at 3PM sharp.”  Kate barked into the phone.  She clearly sounded stressed.

        Claire was willing to overlook the office diva’s bossy tone considering the circumstances.  So, she kept her words calm and professional, “I’ll be ready, don’t worry about it.  I know this case inside and out.  I’ll make your dad proud.”

        “Good, see you later.”  Kate replied, as she handed the phone back to the intern and strutted out of the room.

        “You get all that?”  Kimmie asked, clearly intimidated by the tense emotion from Kate.

       “Yeah, do me a favor.  I’m going to be a little late.  I think I need to change clothes.  When Janet gets in, tell her I need her to clear all of my appointments today.”  Claire began instructing, as she went into lawyer mode.

       “Okay, but what about your ‘special’ client?”  Kimmie checked to make sure.

       “’Special’ client?”  Claire repeated unsure of what Kimmie meant.

       “Remember I called you about it Saturday?  It’s written on Janet’s calendar for 11AM.”  Kimmie responded trying to be helpful.

        “Oh, that’s right.  How is your cousin?  Recovering well?”  Claire asked trying to be considerate.

        “He was released from the hospital last night, he’s doing great.”  Kimmie cheerfully responded.

        “Yeah, keep that appointment on the schedule, but clear everything else.”  Claire instructed, “Oh and one last thing, tell Janet that I need the whole file for the Preston case on my desk by 9AM.  It’s a huge file so you should probably help her with it.”

        “Roger that!  I won’t let you down!”  Kimmie promised.

       “Thanks Kimmie, you’re the best!”  Claire cheered her adorable intern on.

       Hanging up the phone, Claire grabbed some napkins and tried to clean herself up, but it was hopeless.  Her outfit was ruined.  She quickly thought about her options.  She could go home and change, but that would take too long.  She could call Paul and have him bring her some clothes, but Paul had a terrible fashion sense.  Her sister had moved to the area last year and wasn’t too far away… She could borrow something from her!  After all, Laura had gotten pretty fat over the last few years, she had to have something professional in Claire’s current size.  Right?

[polarisdreamer]

Part 3-

        “You are a total lifesaver Laura!”  Claire burst in jubilation, while she trudged into her sister’s fashionably decorated apartment the instant her sleepy sister opened the door.

        “Don’t mention it.”  Laura yawned, slightly taken aback by the way her sister’s wide hips bumped her own as the young lawyer passed her on the way in.

        “Sorry,” Claire apologized, as she mentally cursed how often her hips and butt caused her to bump into things lately.  It seemed like the women in their family were cursed to grow wide in the hips as they got fat.

        Rather than respond to Claire’s quick pardon, Laura let out another big yawn, her hands braced her big belly as she did.  Claire’s hefty middle sister didn’t seem quite awake enough to keep up with Claire’s energy at the moment.  The newly hired editor usually didn’t start her workday until 9AM.  It was clear that she’d been prematurely woken up by Claire’s spastic phone call ten minutes ago.

        Laura’s sleepiness was even evident from her appearance.  There was the obvious fact that the chunky introvert was still clothed in her extra-large robe, but Claire also noticed that her sister’s short hair looked slightly unkept.  Claire’s sister had gone through several interesting hairstyles over the years, at the moment it appeared that her sister was sporting a curved bob hairstyle, with subtle duel blonde highlights, but far from looking gorgeous, it looked like Laura was sporting a serious case of bedhead.

        However, Claire was less concerned with her sister’s hair than with the plump look of her sister’s body.  For a moment before Laura had opened the door, Claire’s insecurities had gotten the better of her.  She had feared that she’d actually grown fatter than her sister.  In an odd way, it was comforting that Laura was still so fat.  As chunky as Claire had gotten, she could still always claim to be the thinnest sister of the family.  Laura was two inches shorter than her and, to Claire’s eyes, she appeared to be just as embarrassingly overweight as she was.  

        Hiding her relieved smirk, Claire watched in silence while Laura slowly rubbed some sleepiness from her eyes and asked, “So, what happened?”

        “I spilled a donut all over myself.”  Claire pointed to her chest and then pointed to her skirt.  She then aggressively dropped the box of donuts she was holding in her other hand onto her sister’s coffee table and said, “you can have the rest of them, I don’t know what I was thinking buying so many.”

       Smiling sweetly, Laura opened up the box, she noticed that four donuts were missing, but rather than judge her sister, she planned to eat four herself.  Humming with excitement while she grabbed her first one, Laura cheered, “Yum, thanks!  Glazed are my favorite!”

        “Me too.”  Claire admitted, as she absentmindedly tapped her foot and added in an appreciative, yet impatient, tone, “So, where are the clothes I asked for?”

        Speaking with her mouth full, Laura mumbled, “I put a few outfits in the bathroom.  *gulp* You can borrow whichever one you like the most.  I don’t care.”

        “Thank you!  You’re the best!”  Claire hummed, while she waddled her way into her sister’s bathroom.

        Her older sister was recently employed as an editor for a leading publishing company in the region.  Claire had been ecstatic when her sister had given her the news.  She’d made Paul help her with the move from Arizona.  That had been a few months ago, back when Claire had been roughly 20-30 pounds thinner than she was now.

        Trying to avoid glancing at herself in the mirror, Claire did her best to get undressed as fast as she could.  She was in a rush, but she had to be careful, lean too far one way or the other and she’d lose her balance.  To be safe, Claire sat down on the toilet to take her heels off.  Leaning forward to reach them was made increasingly difficult by the size of her substantial belly pooch; however, after some effort Claire freed herself from her restrictive heels and let out a sigh of relief.  Her feet were aching, and she hadn’t even gotten to work yet.

        ‘Oh god, if I’m getting too fat to walk in heels you are going to pay Paullllll!!!’ Claire thought to herself, blaming her husband for her horrible eating habits.

        Ridding herself of her skirt and blouse, Claire kicked her dirty clothes to the backside of the bathroom door.  She accidently caught a glimpse of her blubbery body jiggling from the motion in the mirror.  In a huff, Claire looked through the clothes her sister had pulled out for her.   Her sister certainly had a different sense of professional style.  All of Claire’s work clothes were rather conservative and proper, with a more subdued color pallet.  The assortment of Laura’s clothes in front of her were mostly bright, colorful, and somewhat revealing.

        Overcoming her internal dread, Claire picked out a yellow-colored button-down shirt that seemed more appropriate than the rest of the selection in front of her.  It took Claire a moment to get her arms into the sleeves, the material wasn’t very stretchy, and it was a bit tighter than Claire had expected.  Annoyed by the tight fit of her chubby arms, Claire turned her focus toward buttoning the dang thing.  As she struggled to force the fabric to cover her large bust, Claire heard a knock on the bathroom door followed by her sister’s voice.

       “So, when are you going to take me shopping sis?”  Laura pestered.  It sounded like she was munching on another donut while she talked.

        Frustrated by the difficulty she was experiencing trying to button her sister’s shirt, Claire muttered, “What?”

        “You’re the rich one of the family, I need your dollarssss!”  Laura teased, as Claire looked at herself in the mirror and came to a grim realization, she was never going to be able to button this shirt over her belly.

        “I told you after Thanksgiving would be best for me.”  Claire sighed in annoyance, while she tossed off the shirt and moved on to the next one.

        Hearing a lot of commotion behind the bathroom door, Laura pestered, “Come on, don’t make me wait.  Spoil your big sister.”

        There was no response.

        “Hello?”  Laura questioned.

        “Give me a minute!”  Claire huffed sounding exasperated.

        Deciding not to stress out her younger sister further, Laura took another bite of her donut and put her ear to the door.  Laura heard a lot of commotion, more than a few grunts, and some profanity.  She waited in silence for about five minutes, as her sister struggled to fit into her clothes.  Clothes that fit Laura perfectly.  During the silence, it dawned upon Laura that her little sister had officially grown fatter than her.

        The realization was a curious one.  Laura didn’t know how to feel.  She was always the heavy sister growing up, always the odd one out.  Emma and Claire had always been the pretty ones.  Yet now, here she was, the thinnest of the three, although, nobody in their right mind would consider her thin.

        Before she could delve down this train of thought any longer, Laura’s attention was broken by an alarming yelp from her sister.

        “Don’t you have anything a size larger than this stuff?  Nothing fits!  I don’t want your old clothes!  Don’t you have any newer clothes?!”  Claire vented clearly at her wits end.

        “I’d have newer clothes if you’d take me shopping!”  Laura countered in a bit of a petty tone.

        “This is serious!  I have a big day Laura!”  Claire earnestly conveyed her distress.

        “Umm, hold on, I might have something.”  Laura conceded thinking fast.  

        Alone in the bathroom in only her underwear, Claire was surrounded by a pile of clothes that she’d tried and failed to cover herself with.  Her frantic efforts had left her momentarily out of breath.  How was it possible that nothing her sister had fit her?  Had her sister managed to shrink her business clothes in the wash or something??  The last thing Claire wanted to admit to herself was that she’d grown fatter than her older sister.

        A moment later, Laura returned and tried to open the bathroom door.  She was surprised that Claire had locked it.  Knocking again, Laura loudly spoke through the keyhole, “I’ve been meaning to return this dress because it was a size larger than what the label said.  Try it on.  It’s too big for me, but if it fits you, you can keep it.”

        Laura’s words sent a shock of fear down Claire’s spine.  It wasn’t possible that she was fatter than her sister.  Trying not to blush, Claire opened the door and in a breath of desperation said, “Let me try it on.”

        “Can I come in?  I can help you.”  Laura offered, as her sister rapidly grabbed the hanger from her and slammed the door again.

        “No, I’m fine, I don’t need your…”  Claire began to say before she got a look of what she held in her hands.  The dress was a beautiful shade of burgundy, a perfect color for her workplace, it wasn’t too bright and eye catching.  From the look and feel of the fabric, the dress was stretchy and formfitting.  Claire couldn’t help but smile until she held it up and got a look at the dress’s deep V-neck.  In a huff Claire changed her tune and pouted, “Oh my god I can’t wear this to work!  I’m going to a law office not a night club!”

        “Then just wait until I wash the clothes you brought.”  Laura countered.  However, Claire knew she couldn’t wait that long.

        “I don’t have time to wait around, I need to get to work!”  Claire wined.  She really liked the dress her sister had handed her, but it was not something she would ever wear to work.

        “Beggars can’t be choosers.”  Laura replied, as Claire quickly came to realize that the dress in her hands was her only option.

        “Fine. Let’s see if it fits first anyway…”  Claire grumbled, while she began the process of squeezing into the dress.  The dress was tight fitting around her hips, belly and butt, but didn’t feel restricting.  It was definitely tighter in the chest area than Claire was expecting, but there was zipper on the right side of the dress, just under the armpit, that provided Claire the extra room she needed to get the dress fully on.  Moving around in the dress, Claire felt like she had a full range of motion.  The elbow length sleeves of the dress looked very tasteful and minimized the excess girth of her chubby upper arms.  The dress had a small front drape that helped hide her large tummy.  Striking a few poses, Claire modeled the dress for herself in the mirror.  For the first time in a long time, she really felt sexy.

        “How is it?”  Laura wondered from the other side of the bathroom door.

        “I feel so effing sexy in this!”  Claire hummed in approval, “It’s a little bit tight in places, but it fits!  It’s also a little shorter than I expected, but it’s appropriate enough for work.   I absolutely love this dress!”

        “Then let me see!”  Laura urged, as Claire excitedly unlocked the bathroom door, leaned against the doorframe and struck her best modeling pose.

        “Oh my gosh!  You look so sexy Claire!”  Laura gawked in approval.  Claire rarely dressed to show off her womanly curves, the formfitting dress was a great look for her!

        “It really makes my girls pop!  It doesn’t show off too much cleavage does it?”  Claire wondered in slight embarrassment, while she looked down and adjusted the dress.

        “No way!  You’re sporting a tasteful amount of cleavage!  Very dignified and very sexy!”  Laura cheered in support.

        “Ugh.  I’m trying to look professional, not sexy!”  Claire sighed, as she tried to accept her sister’s praise, “But thank you.  I guess it will have to do.  Can I borrow a pair of heels that match?”

        “Of course!  Give me a minute!  I’ll grab you some!” Laura smiled, while she hurried into her messy room.

        Rather than follow her sister, Claire listened to the subtle growl stemming from the depths of her puffy stomach and headed into her sister’s kitchen to see if she had anything healthy to eat.  Opening the fridge, Claire frowned at what she saw.  A half-eaten chocolate cake, some leftover cheese fries and pizza, it was like her sister was allergic to healthy foods!  No wonder she’d gotten so fat…

        A few short minutes later, a glance at the time spurred Claire to tentatively enter her sister’s room.  The place was an absolute pigsty.  Claire watched her sister, on all fours, halfway into the bottom of her closet clearly looking for a good pair of heels.  It was breathtaking how thick Laura’s butt had gotten.  Claire averted her eyes and loudly cleared her throat, alerting Laura to her presence.  Turning around Laura revealed a pair of heels in her hands.  She raised them up high and asked, “What do you think of these?”

        “No.”  Claire shook her head.

        Frowning, Laura leaned over and grabbed a shoebox from under her bed and stood up before presenting it to Claire.  Claire opened the box without hesitating.  Her eyes were rewarded for her audaciousness.

        “Perfect!”  Claire declared.  The heels were the perfect balance of bold and elegant.  Even the color was a perfect match for her new dress.  Bending over to put them on, Claire paused, as she felt the fabric around the back of her dress tighten against the girth of her thick butt.  Slowly leaning back to her previous position, Claire let out a breath of air and innocently begged, “Oof…  Umm, would you mind helping me put them on?”

        “Sure thing!”  Laura gleefully smiled, as she nudged her sister to sit down on her bed, and gently ordered her, “Hold still.”

        It only took Laura about a minute to get Claire’s feet into the heels, although, it was obvious that the heels were a very tight fit.  Claire’s beautiful feet had gotten fat along with the rest of her.  As her younger sister struggled to get to her feet and find her balance, Laura couldn’t help, but speak what was on her mind, “You’re gotten a little bigger recently, haven’t you?”

        “It’s my husband’s fault I’ve gotten bigger.”  Claire snapped.  Her face looked flushed and red from embarrassment.  Laura hadn’t been expecting such an aggressive response, but before she could backpedal, Claire’s voice erupted in excuses, “When we go out to eat, he always encourages me to eat whatever I want.  When we eat in, he always cooks me my favorite foods.  He waits on me hand and foot, I practically don’t have to lift a finger around the house, seriously he does the cleaning, the laundry, takes out the garbage, everything.”

        Trying to ease her sister’s nerves, Laura managed to get a quick word in edgewise, “Claire, Paul kisses the ground you walk upon.  You can’t blame him for taking such good care of you.  He’s not forcing you to eat, is he?”

        “Well, no.  I suppose not, but it’s still definitely his fault.  Here’s an example.”  Claire paused to take a large breath before continuing at a million words per minute, “This happened last night.  We were at a friend’s engagement party, there were snacks, drinks, and a barbecue.  I was wearing a sweater that was a little too tight because I've been eating a bit too much recently.  I had been drinking and snacking the whole party, and then the barbecue starts.  I get a hot dog and a cheeseburger, and Paul gets the same.  When I'm done, he says, ‘Want another dog?’ I was still hungry so I say ‘sure,’ but he comes back with two saying he will eat the other one.  To make a long story short, *pant* he ended up getting distracted talking to the guy’s drinking in the kitchen, so I ate his hot dog when I was at the table chatting with the girls.  About an hour goes by and of course I had too much to drink so I went inside to go to the bathroom and then relax for a minute on the couch.  So, I’m reclining on this comfy couch thinking about how full I was, and I drift off into a little nap.  The next thing I know *pant* Paul wakes me up, I was out for about an hour, the party is settling down, and says, ‘Want some cake?  I saved some for you.’  Then he showed me a plate filled with two big slices of cake.  *pant* I want to say, ‘Ughh… I’m so full…’ I mean my belly was obviously full, you could tell, it was a tight sweater, but instead I say, ‘Mmm!’ like a fatty!  *pant*  I see him eyeing my belly, so I took the plate and scarfed it all down like it was nothing.  ‘Thanks!’  I said to him after.  After he totally caused me to pig out!”

        Claire paused her frantic retelling for a quick moment to catch her breath.  In truth, she remembered with a certain sense of conflicted enjoyment, the way Paul had discreetly rubbed her belly while she’d gobbled up all of the cake.  Once she’d finished, she’d let out a rather loud burp and Paul rewarded her with a gentle kiss on the cheek before whispering, ‘is my princess satisfied now?’  She loved the way Paul pampered her with affection, but her insecurities overwhelmed her marital sensibilities.

        Resuming her vocal tirade, Claire continued in an irate tone, “I mean, he never forces me to eat, he just puts me on the spot.  I’ve gained over a hundred pounds since we got married.  My belly’s been getting noticeably bigger these last few months, my friends at the office even notice.  My biggest bras are getting tight again, and none of my jeans fit anymore. *pant* What do you think of all this?  Am I crazy?”

        “Slow down, maybe a little crazy.  If I’m being honest, it just sounds like you’ve got a loving husband and a serious lack of self-control.”  Laura inferred from what she was able to absorb from her sister’s word-vomit.  Eyeing her sister’s chunky figure from top to bottom, while her sister caught her breath, Laura thought her sister’s massive weight gain was a natural consequence of how secure, loved and happy Claire felt in her marriage.  However, Laura couldn’t help but wonder, “Out of curiosity, how much are you weighing in at now?”

        “Umm, *pant* I don’t know I haven’t weighed myself in a while.”  Claire lied in order to protect her fragile ego, “I know I’ve put on a little weight since the last time we saw each other.  But from trying on your clothes, I’m at least one full dress size bigger than you.  So, I guess I’m probably around 260…”

        “You’re not 260,” Laura teased with a poke to her sister’s thick and meaty belly, “I’m 260.”  

        “Oh…”  Claire blushed, while Laura watched the way Claire’s belly jiggled from her touch.

        “As a matter of fact, that dress is two sizes up from mine.”  Laura added much to Claire’s embarrassment.

        There was no avoiding the truth now.  Claire knew she wasn’t the skinniest sister anymore.  Trying to underplay her recent weight gain, Claire purposely underestimated her weight, “Well, then maybe I’m closer to 270.”

        “Or 280.”  Laura shrugged in a matter-of-fact sort of way.

        “Gosh, does it really look like I’ve gained that much?”  Claire nervously asked, as her sister took a step back and got a full look at her sister’s inflated profile.

        “I mean, you know someone is getting really fat when they can’t put their arms straight down their sides anymore.”  Laura bluntly noted, while she observed her sister’s pudgy arms, wide hips, and round belly.  Focusing on her sister’s belly, Laura added, “Do you have trouble painting your toenails cause of your big gut?”

        “Yes…”  Claire shamefully admitted wishing her sister wasn’t so oblivious to her insecurities sometimes.

        “Me too.”  Laura admitted, as she jiggled her own substantial gut.

        Laura teasing herself put Claire more at ease, her sister wasn’t making fun of her, she wasn’t judging her.  Trying to deflect some guilt, Claire chuckled, “At least I’m not as bad as Emma.  She probably weighs more than each of us combined.”

        “Haha!”  Laura laughed, “I can't believe that I'm finally the thinnest sister of the family... at 260lbs.  Actually, my biggest ever.  WHAT A LARD ASS FAMILY!!"

        Unable to join her sister’s laughter, Claire objected, “Sh*t!!  Not for long, I'm gonna lose it all!  You’ll see.  I'm gonna be fit again.”

        Looking unconvinced, Laura gave her sister a hug and said, “Don't worry sis, you’re rich, you’re still two inches taller than me, you’re the smartest of the family, you have a loving husband who, obviously, loves you the way you are and, frankly, you are a natural fatty.  It looks soooo good on you.”

        “You…  You think so?”  Claire muttered in disbelief.  She knew her sister was a little crazy, but this just proved it.

        Pulling back from the hug and wrapping her hands around the areas of her sister’s body that she was describing, Laura responded, “This lower belly of yours is quite hot and your face is so cute.  You are like a big round baby panda bear.  I want to cuddle you forever!”

        Enjoying the praise, even though she didn’t agree with it, Claire smiled, “Well, at least for the first time in my life my boobs have blown up... they are huge, right?”

        “Oh, I noticed!”  Laura laughed, as she eyed her sister’s full breasts, “It's like Paul’s has been giving you some breast expansion pills or something.”

        “Wait, are they a thing?”  Claire gasped in surprise.

        “Hahaha no, dummy!”  Laura chuckled, “How could you be an Ivy Leaguer?  I'm kidding.”

        “I knew that.”  Claire proclaimed, while she adjusted her dress to better cover her big breasts, “My chest is the first place I lose weight whenever I diet.  So unfair.”

        “Then don’t diet.”  Laura retorted.

        “I have too,” Claire rolled her eyes, “I’m getting too fat.”

        “I'm the one that should lose weight if I want to find a partner before I get too fat to even care about it... which is not far away.”  Laura countered turning the focus onto her own overfed body.

        “Ohh come on, you’ll find someone.”  Claire disagreed.

        “I need to find me a chubby chaser like your husband.”  Laura teased.

        Smiling vindictively, Claire responded, “Be careful what you wish for, otherwise you might not be the skinny sister for long.”

        “Skinniest sister.  None of us are remotely skinny anymore.”  Laura exclaimed in a silly fashion.

        “Hahaha, true.”  Claire giggled.  Even if she wasn’t the thinnest anymore, at least she’d never be the fattest sister of the family.

        Looking at the time, Laura changed topic rather abruptly, “I don’t want to keep you longer than I need to.”

        “Oh that’s right!  I’m so late!  Thanks for everything!  I love you!  We’ll go shopping soon!  See you!”  Claire erupted, while she shuffled to the front of her sister’s apartment and fumbled with the door.

       “Drive safe!”  Laura managed to catch up to Claire and call out before Claire opened her door and hurried to her car.

        “*wheeze* I will!”  Claire yelled back already out of breath from the tiniest of exertions.

        As she watched her younger sister get into her car, Laura noticed the car’s balance tilt to the driver’s side once Claire plopped her butt into the driver’s seat.  Even though she’d grown into a big woman, Laura thought Claire looked like a plus-sized model in that dress.  As Laura went back inside her apartment to grab another donut, she wondered how many complements her not-so-little sister would get today thanks to her provocative outfit; however, upon opening the box of donuts and noticing that her sister had gobbled down an additional two sometime during her visit, Laura was struck with another epiphany, ‘Looks like I’m going to be the skinniest sister for the foreseeable future!’

[polarisdreamer]

Part 4-  

        ‘For f*cks sake…’  Claire thought to herself, as the elevator doors cruelly shut moments before she could enter.  In response, the overweight young lawyer furiously tapped the ‘up arrow’ button hoping the doors would open before the elevator left, but she was too late.  She would have hurried a little faster, but her heels were killing her poor feet.

        She couldn’t seriously believe her luck today.  She’d woken up late, learned she’d gained back nearly all the weight she’d lost this year, ruined her diet with donuts, ruined her outfit by being clumsy, been forced to park at the top of the parking garage, and to top it all off she learned that she’d officially grown fatter than her chunky sister.

        Tapping her foot with impatience, Claire spotted that the elevator was on the fifth floor of the building.  That was the floor her office was on.  For a moment Claire wished her office was on the second or third floor, then she wouldn’t have to put up with taking the slow elevator dozens of times every day, she could take the stairs and get some exercise during her workday.  Five floors were simply too much to walk, even waiting for the slow elevator was faster than it would take her to walk all the way up there.

        ‘When’s the last time I even took the stairs?’  Claire thought to herself, ‘It must have been at least two years ago, right?’

        She remembered when she’d started this job that walking all the way up five flights of stairs had left her huffing and puffing by the time she’d reached her office, but she’d been able to do it without slowing down or stopping.  Claire wondered if she could achieve such a feat in her current overfed condition.  When she’d started at the law firm, she was more than a little chubby, but nobody would have considered her fat, like they certainly would now.

        Looking at the box of donuts she held in her pudgy hands, Claire’s cheeks blushed with embarrassment.  To any onlooker she must have been a shameful sight.  Here she was hopelessly overweight, holding a box of donuts, that certainly wouldn’t do her figure any favors, waiting for a slow elevator because she was too fat and out of shape to dare attempt to haul her fat ass up the stairs.

        ‘That’s it!’  Claire stubbornly thought, ‘I’m taking the stairs!  Today’s the day I start some healthy habits!’

        With a motivated huff of excitement, Claire strutted over to the steps and began the arduous task of climbing her way up to the fifth floor.  For the first flight of stairs, Claire’s imagination pictured her tackling the steps multiple times every day, toning her calf muscles, shaping her butt, burning calories… but as she slowly reached the second floor, something felt different.  Claire was feeling warmer, and her legs were feeling heavier, much heavier.

        Breathing a little more vigorously, to compensate for her increasing efforts, Claire started her way up to the third floor.  Her sluggish motions upward reminded her of how out of shape she’d let herself become.  She could only imagine what her personal trainer would say if she could see her now.  Probably something blunt like:

        ‘Woah!  You’ve put on a lot of weight!  I almost didn’t recognize you!’

        Or something like:

        ‘I haven’t seen you in a while.  I don’t remember you being so flabby Claire.  What happened to you?’

        “Ehh…  Three years of marriage happened to me…”  Claire sighed out loud in a shameful tone, as she hunched over for a moment to catch her breath.  She couldn’t believe she needed a break already.  Trying not to blame her brief rest on her poor fitness, Claire checked her aching feet as if they were the reason why she stopped.

        ‘When I get to my office, I’m taking these d*mn heels off…’  Claire thought to herself, while she took in a few breaths of air and then resumed her exertions plotting forward up the steps.

        By the time Claire got to the third floor, she’d started quietly huffing and puffing.  Her legs were not used to carrying such a heavy load up more than one flight of stairs at a time.  Her lunges were not in shape for such a prolonged exertion.  The vast majority of Claire’s days these last few months had been spent sitting on her big butt either working or relaxing.

        At this point her knees felt like they might buckle if she attempted to climb one more step, but Claire was undeterred.  In her heart, she knew that the beautiful, determined, and athletic young woman she’d been during college was still alive underneath all the tubby fat her body had accumulated during her marriage.

        Grunting slightly with determination, Claire began the task of climbing the steps to the fourth floor.  She had to move slower this time.  Her energy levels were beginning to wane.  If she’d eaten a better breakfast maybe she’d have been able to muster more of an effort, but she’d succumbed to temptation and settled for a handful of donuts.  Pausing to look down at the box of donuts she carried in her increasingly clammy hands, Claire spared a thought to wonder why she’d even gone through the effort to bring them with her from her car.  She had no intention of eating any more of them.  Although she was starting to feel hungry again…  She should have just thrown the donuts out to avoid the temptation.

        Just as Claire was about to mentally chastise herself for her poor self-control, she heard the distinct sound of someone breathing heavily.  Making her way to the top of the flight of stairs she was currently on, Claire turned the corner and looked up the last flight of stairs before the fourth floor to notice that her plump intern was sitting atop the final step with a big folder of files next to her.  For a girl who normally looked cheerful and enthusiastic, Kimmie appeared sweaty and disheartened.  It looked to Claire like Kimmie had attempted to climb the stairs but given up with only one more floor to go.  

        It was really no surprise.  The recent college graduate was quite overweight.  Kimmie was a few years younger than Claire and probably weighed a little less than her, but she was also much shorter, five inches to be exact.  Thus, the weight each woman carried on their pear-shaped frames looked quite different.  When Kimmie sat down, her fat gut bulged out to her knees, almost like it was fighting for room on her overfed body.  Claire’s gut was less like a dome and more like two thick, heavy rolls of fat, especially her lower belly.  Claire had more padding on her hips and appeared wider than Kimmie, but Kimmie’s tremendous butt was certainly thicker in terms of fat and volume.  Although they appeared similar in bulk elsewhere on their bodies, Claire sported a larger chest, and Kimmie had a distinct layer of muscle underneath her thick thighs, pudgy calves, and colossal butt, that Claire lacked.

        “What are you doing Kimmie?”  Claire wondered, as she slowly made her way up to her plump intern and tried her best not to convey how fatigued she’d become.  While she approached Kimmie, Claire noticed how sweaty the recent college graduate’s forehead was.

        “*Pant* Getting those files you asked for.  This was my fourth trip…” Kimmie revealed, while she couldn’t help, but blush from embarrassment.

        Sitting down next to her to give her legs a rest, Claire wondered, “Why don’t you take the elevator if you’re tired?”

        “It’s out of order.”  Kimmie pouted, as she turned her attention to her boss and gushed, “Oh my god, I love your dress!”

        “Thanks.”  Claire smiled.  She’d caught a few men checking out her cleavage during her walk from the parking garage to her office building, but Kimmie was the first non-family member to complement her appearance today.  Regaining her focus, Claire took a second thought about what Kimmie had just said, “Wait Kimmie, the elevator is not out of order.”

        “Janet told me it was.”  Kimmie hummed earnestly, as she tugged at her tight skirt.

        Claire didn’t know what to say.  Sometimes Kimmie was too innocent and oblivious for her own good, but she truly was a charming girl.  When Kimmie had started as her intern, she tended to be very shy and nervous about making mistakes, but Claire had helped her gain confidence.  She’d even helped with Kimmie’s professional style.  When she’d started with the firm, Kimmie tended to wear a lot of snug sweatpants, tight t-shirts, and wear her blonde hair in a stubborn ponytail.  However, gradually with Claire’s influence, Kimmie came to adopt Claire’s more conservative and professional business attire, although Claire could never get Kimmie to wear her hair in anything other than a ponytail.  Kimmie was a sweet girl, but she certainly was not the sharpest.  Trying to inform Kimmie in a sensitive manner, Claire slowly rose to her feet and sighed, “I think Janet’s playing a prank on you sweetheart.  Come on, let’s go ride the elevator.”

        Appearing to realize she’d been fooled again, Kimmie bit her lip in embarrassment, and followed Claire to the elevator on the fourth floor without a word.  As the two young women waited for the elevator, Claire thanked her lucky stars for the excuse not to climb the last set of stairs and Kimmie finally noticed what her boss held in her pudgy hands.

        “Who are the donuts for?”  Kimmie wondered out loud, while a hungry rumble shook her large belly.

        “I brought them for you and Janet.”  Claire lied firmly deciding that the best way to ensure she didn’t eat anymore was to give them to her fat intern and her fat secretary.

        Unconsciously licking her lips, Kimmie begged, “Can I have one now?”

        “Of course, Kimmie.”  Claire smiled, as she opened the box.  Kimmie was quick to notice two donuts were missing from the otherwise full box of donuts, but rather than mention it, she grabbed a jelly filled donut for herself.

        “I’m soooo hungry.  Those steps killed me.”  Kimmie lauded, while she took a big bite and the slow elevator finally arrived and opened in front of them.

        Noticing Kimmie had gotten some jelly on her cheek, Claire tried not to focus on it and responded, “Yeah, they are certainly a challenge.”

        “So why were you taking the steps?”  Kimmie curiously asked knowing full well that it wasn’t her boss’s normal routine.  

        Closing the doors to the elevator and tapping the button for the fifth floor, Claire did her best to honestly answer Kimmie, “I missed the elevator and I decided that I should take the stairs more often.  If I make it a habit, it will help me lose some weight.”

        Nodding along while Claire was talking, Kimmie added in a defeated tone, “Losing weight is so hard…”

        “Hmm.”  Claire nearly laughed, before joking, “Tell me about it.”

        As the elevator took them to the fifth floor, it appeared that Kimmie didn’t realize Claire’s last statement had been rhetorical, because she gave a very sensitive and personal response that Claire wasn’t expecting.

        With a big sigh, Kimmie explained, “It’s like…  Nothing works…  I gave up drinking this summer, except for special occasions, and I didn’t lose a pound…  I’m still trying to give up coffee this fall, I’m having a hard time, but I haven’t had coffee in two weeks and I am so proud about that.  This winter I’m planning on giving up dessert, but I don’t know if I can.  I’ve really been thinking about what I put into my body more and what effect it has on me, but I have such a sweet tooth…  I’m still a junk food junky with my hot pockets, bean burritos, hot sauce, and grilled cheese but I’m slowly trying to change my ways…  At least I’ve still been able to work out four or five times a week… but it’s like the bigger I get, the harder it is for me to do the things that used to be easy for me.  Like walking, bending over, putting on clothes.  Running used to be so easy for me.  My body makes everything harder...”

        Unsure of how to treat Kimmie’s sensitive outburst, Claire motioned to the fat intern’s chunky cheeks, where a bit of jelly remained, and spoke in a motherly tone, “You’ve got a little something on your face, but yeah, losing weight is not easy.”

        Quickly rubbing her face with her sleeve, Kimmie muttered, “Did I get it?”

        “Sure did.”  Claire smiled, as the doors of the elevator opened, and the two hefty women started waddling their way to Claire’s office.

        Feeling self-conscious in front of her fabulous boss, Kimmie looked at the half-eaten donut she held in her hand and pouted, “I shouldn’t be eating donuts.”

         “You wanna put it back?”  Claire offered, as she opened the box.

        It appeared Kimmie froze for a moment before stuffing the last of her donut into her mouth and muttering with her mouth full, “No, actually can I have another?  They are sooo good.”

        “Sure,” Claire offered, as she held open the box for Kimmie to grab another one.

        “You only had two?  Ugh…  I wish I had your self-control.”  Kimmie lamented, while she took a bite of her second donut.

        “Yeah, I only ate enough to keep my belly from growling.”  Claire lied.  Kimmie really looked up to her and she didn’t want to shatter that admiration with the truth.

        As Kimmie continued chomping away at her donut, the large women arrived outside the glass door to Claire’s office.  They could both see that Janet was sitting in her usual spot by her desk up front.  As Claire pondered what to say to her spunky secretary, Kimmie inquisitively chimed in, “Are you nervous about leading the big settlement today?”

       “No.  I’m not nervous.  I’ve seen Ken run the show dozens of times.  Besides, I did all the work building our case.  I should have been the lead on this from the start.”  Claire replied a bit too bluntly.  She was one of the best prospects of the firm, but in Claire’s mind she was never given the freedom to really prove herself on her own.

        “Can I sit in and watch you?”  Kimmie pestered with her normal excited tone.

        “Of course, but just remember to be silent.  Make sure your phone is on vibrate.”  Claire explained, as she remembered what happened the last time she’d let Kimmie sit in on one of her meetings, “In fact, if you wanna watch just leave your phone in my office.”

        “No problem!  I’m so excited!”  Kimmie jumped in joy, although, jiggled in joy would be more accurate.

        “Yeah, me too.  Here, give me the files, you take the donuts.”  Claire ordered, as they traded what they were holding, and Claire opened the door to her office.  Without a second of hesitation, Claire authoritatively roared, “Janet!”

        Snapping to attention, Janet’s eyes focused on her boss and she threw her meaty hands upward and shouted, “Woah, woah woah!  Hold up, y’know I don’t think Claire has any appointments with any supermodels today!”

        “Very funny.”  Claire huffed, as she strode over to her secretary’s desk.  She had a bone to pick with her.

        Janet was an interesting character.  The longhaired brunette had been a hooter’s waitress about 270 pounds ago and was now the undisputed fattest woman in the office.  Weighing somewhere north of 400lbs, Janet’s 5’6 hourglass frame had exploded outward in every direction.  She had a huge belly, massive legs, and humongous breasts.  Janet’s carefree attitude about her eating habits and her massive body size reminded Claire of her older sister, Emma.  However, Janet reminded her of her sister in other ways too.  

        Janet, like Emma, was the type of worker with a ton of talent for the job, but a terrible work ethic, sort of the opposite of Kimmie actually.  Janet tended to arrive slightly late for work and get all her daily tasks done within two hours of her arrival before slacking off and gossiping around the office.  Claire frankly saw Janet as more of a fun friend, than her subordinate, but sometimes she had to lay down the law and remind Janet of her place in the office.

        “I’m not joking!”  Janet huffed, as she struggled to her feet and took a step away from her desk to check out her boss’s exquisite dress.  Laying on the sweetness, Janet lauded, “What side of the bed did you wake up on?  Look at you!  You look smoking hot boss!”

        “Thanks, but what’s your problem?”  Claire stood her ground despite appreciating the praise.

        “Excuse me?”  Janet muttered looking confused in her grossly tight button down and high-waisted dress pants.

        “Did you tell Kimmie the elevator was out of order?”  Claire spat, while she tapped her foot in annoyance.  Her sheepish intern hated confrontation and was literally waiting toward the back of the room for things to settle.

        “You fell for that Kimmie?”  Janet laughed, while she pointed over to her coworker, “Oh my gosh, it’s sooo not my fault she’s sooo gullible!  She makes it so easy!”

        Biting her lip in irritation, Claire countered in a stern tone, “I don’t have time to waste today babysitting both of you!  Apologize to Kimmie and grab the rest of the files from downstairs while she takes a rest.”

        “But Claire!”  Janet protested always against doing more work than she had too.

        “And don’t take the elevator.  Take the stairs.  See how you like it.”  Claire fired back, as her extremely obese secretary’s jaw dropped.  Claire knew how difficult the stairs had been for her to overcome, and she was over 100 pounds lighter than Janet.

        “You’re joking right?”  Janet spat in disbelief.

        “Kimmie, make sure she takes the stairs.”  Claire ordered her intern, “Let me know if she doesn’t.”

        “Yes ma’am!”  Kimmie smiled, as she waited for Claire to turn her back to her, enter her main office and slam the door, before playfully sticking her tongue out at Janet.

        “F*cking…sh*t…”  Janet muttered to herself, while she felt her heart beating faster already.  She was going to complain to her grandmother about this later for sure.  Maybe the old coot would take pity on her and cook up a feast for later.

        “Claire bought us donuts.”  Kimmie cheerfully taunted, as she offered Janet the box only to pull it out of her coworker’s reach while she tried to grab it.

        “Give me those!  I’m starving over here!”  Janet complained knowing she’d never be able to catch Kimmie.  The little brat was fat, but she was surprisingly fit for her size.  

        Relenting, Kimmie gave Janet the box of donuts nicely.  She was embarrassed Janet had tricked her again, but at least it wasn’t as bad as the fire drill incident.

        “You want some?”  Janet offered, as she placed the donuts on her desk and grabbed one in each hand.

        Looking down, at her round gut, Kimmie sighed, “No.  I had two already.  I shouldn’t have anymore.  I don’t wanna get fat.”

        Janet nearly laughed at Kimmie’s choice of words.  Plopping a whole donut into her mouth at one time, Janet placed her free hand on her hip, leaned her fat body against her desk and vindictively teased, “Come on Kimmie, admit it, you’re fat, just like me!”

        “No I’m not!”  Kimmie vehemently disagreed, “I’m just a bit tubby…  I’ll lose it!”

        Unable to hold her laughter in anymore, Janet burst, “Hahaha, no you won’t!  You’re not a college soccer player anymore.”

        “Shut up Janet.  What do you know?”  Kimmie pouted feeling insecure.

        “I know you’re just going to keep getting fatter!  So, why not make the best of it?” Janet proudly punctuated her point by plopping the entire donut she had in her left hand into her eagerly awaiting mouth and giving her large belly a big slap.  “*Burp!*”

        Looking insulted by Janet’s suggestion, Kimmie pouted, “I will never be as fat as you!”

        “Oh, you will.” Janet smugly countered, as she gazed at the way Kimmie’s girth strained her conservative work clothes, “You’re on track.  You just need to land yourself a good man that loves himself a fat woman just like my Phillip.”

        Taking a moment to fully process what Janet had just said, Kimmie replied, “...You think I could get a boyfriend if I get fatter?”

        “Oh, of course!  But, y’know, you need to work on it.  You’re nowhere near big enough yet.”  Janet embellished by rubbing her massive stomach, “Come on, grab another donut!"

        “No!  You are tricking me again!  I won't fall for it!  I’m already 252lbs and I won't get any fatter!”  Kimmie argued in a feisty manner, as she put her hand on her soft hips and appeared irritated by Janet’s antics.

        “Hahha, sh*t kid, you got me this time.  But don't worry.  You will get fatter.  Something tells me that you will be the fattest in our office someday...”  Janet mused out loud much to Kimmie’s horror.  Janet once again punctuated her point by wrapping her hands under her belly and shaking it gently for Kimmie to see.

         Kimmie watched the way Janet’s huge belly jiggled and then looked down at her own tummy.  Sure, she had a big tummy, but it wasn’t anywhere close to being as big as Janet’s. Although Janet and Claire were both older than her…  If she worked at an office job for as long as they did, would she get fat like them too?  The thought disturbed Kimmie.  Proudly summoning her pride, Kimmie loudly burst out a commanding, “No, I won’t!”

        “Yes, you will... because, you know what?”  Janet paused, while she decided to f*ck with Kimmie once again, “I'm gonna secret fatten you up like a prized pig.  I'm gonna slip heavy cream in your coffee every day until your ass gets too fat for your chair!”

        Kimmie regretfully knew deep down that her butt was already nearly too large for her chair in the office.  Taking her anger out on Janet, Kimmie took the only course of action that she could think of.

        “Claireee!” Kimmie called to her boss in a purposely whiny tone, “Janet’s not getting the files!”

        “Will you quit it you f*cking tattle tale!  I’m going, I’m going…  ”  Janet hissed, as she looked longingly at the box of donuts on her desk and then evilly teased, “Help yourself to some donuts while I’m gone Kimmie.  You know you want to.”

        “In your dreams.”  Kimmie refused in frustration.  She’d actually really wanted another donut, but now she couldn’t!  She couldn’t prove Janet right!  Summoning her courage again, Kimmie called out to her boss again, “Claire!”

        “Okay-okay!  Shut up!”  Janet yelped.  She recognized the fun was over for now.  The last thing Janet wanted was to piss off her boss again.  Claire was strict, but fair.  Plus, she certainly had more of a tolerance for Janet’s bullsh*t than any of her other bosses had ever had.  Although Janet was dreading having to haul herself up and down the steps.  It was probably better just to take the elevator.

        'What's Claire going to do if she catches me?  Fire me?  Fat chance.'  Janet thought to herself, while she waddled out of the office and toward the elevator.

[polarisdreamer]

Part 5-

        Intent on getting through her review of the settlement proposal before lunch, Claire tried to ignore the hunger in her stomach, and the sound of her cell phone vibrating on her desk.  Glancing at the caller, Claire let out an annoyed sigh and answered her cell phone with a grumpy, “Hello.”

        “Hey beautiful, I was just wondering if you wanted me to pick something up for you.  We could have lunch together in your office!”  Her husband cheerfully echoed into her ear.

        “Sorry, Paul, I already have plans with the girls in my office.”  Claire lied.  She was still cranky with Paul for always making her diet so difficult.

       A moment passed silently between husband and wife, but eventually Paul’s disappointed voice echoed over the phone, “I get it.  No problem.  How’s my Claire-bear doing today?”

        “Amazing.”  Claire tersely answered, as she reclined in her chair and let out a big breath she’d been holding in.  She wasn’t going to give Paul the 30-minute rundown of all her problems today.  Time was of the essence.  She needed to wrap up this conversation so she could get back to work.  Clearing her throat, and subconsciously massaging her big belly with her free hand, Claire quickly muttered, “I’m having a great day, but I have a lot of work to do.”

        “That’s great to hear!”  Paul answered sounding happy for her, “I can’t wait to see you later!  I just got back from the grocery store…”

        ‘Probably buying more junk to ruin my figure with…’  Claire thought to herself, as her temper reached a boiling point.  Cutting her husband off, Claire leaned forward in her chair and put her proverbial foot down, “Great, see you later, another client just walked in, I gotta go!”

        “I love…”  Paul tried to say before Claire hung up on him.

        Feeling warm from her spiking temper, Claire felt another pang of hunger that was just too much to ignore.  Looking down at her big belly and grasping it like a misbehaving child, Claire let out a disappointed sigh, “Would you give it a rest?  I’m trying to focus!”

*growl*

        ‘How can I be hungry again after all those donuts??’ Claire thought to herself with dread.

        Deciding to take action, but rather than expending the effort to heave herself out of her chair and head outside the door to her office, Claire reached for the red button on her desk and buzzed her intern, “Kimmie!  I need you to grab me something healthy to eat before this meeting.  Anything healthy will do.  I’m starving.”

        “Roger that!”  Kimmie cheerfully buzzed back.

        It was roughly ten minutes of uninterrupted peace before Kimmie returned with two oat bars and an orange juice.  It was hardly the filling and healthy snack Claire had hoped for, but she bit her tongue and thanked Kimmie anyway.  For the span of about 5 minutes, Claire’s full attention was on enjoying her snack.  Lunch couldn’t come soon enough today, she even thought about heading out to pick up some food after her rapidly approaching meeting, instead of waiting for noon.

        “Claire.”  Janet buzzed in, sounding bored, as usual, “Your 11 o’clock arrived early.”

        “I’m ready.”  Claire buzzed back.

        The faster she got this over with, the faster she could fill her belly with something healthy and proper to keep her full and focused until dinner.  Claire’s stomach growled at the thought of dinner, but rather than dwell on it, Claire hastily did her best to clean up the mess from her snack.  Even if this appointment was rather low stakes for her, she didn’t want to appear like a slob in front of anyone.  Much less, Kimmie’s cousin from Spain.

        A moment later, the door to her office opened and Claire’s dark eyes were met with a surprise.  Rather than seeing Kimmie’s male cousin… A ravishing bright eye’d woman, at least 50 pounds heavier than Claire, with silky long blonde hair, and three donuts in her plump hands, stood in the doorway.

        Where Claire’s frame was an obese pear-shape, this girl’s body shape was an obese hourglass.  Far from looking like her usual clientele, this woman was young, maybe a little older than herself, but not too much older.  Her clothing was also far from typical.  Normally Claire’s clients wore their Sunday best.  This larger-than-life looking woman wore a mini black leather jacket over a white tank top, large denim jeans, a stylish black belt, and some lovely looking black heels.  

        “You’re not Roberto.”  Claire mentioned, while her eyes studied the way the woman’s tiny jacket couldn’t contain the sheer size of her bountiful cleavage.

        “I’m Chloe, Roberto’s wife.”  The overweight woman with an angelic complexion replied in a rather noticeable British accent, “He’s knackered so he stayed home.”

        “Oh, of course.”  Claire nodded, as she motioned for Chloe to come take a seat at her desk, “I’m Claire.  And I understand you probably have some legal questions for me.”

        Nodding, Chloe strutted over to Claire’s desk.  Perhaps it was Claire’s imagination, but she thought this woman walked over to her like she was walking down a runway.  The blonde’s big doughy gut of a belly jiggled with every step, yet it didn’t seem to bother this lady one bit.  Claire wished she could have that type of confidence in her walk.  

        In fact, Claire was about to complement Chloe until the blubbery British lady placed all three donuts she was carrying upon Claire’s desk, right on top of some important papers Claire had been reviewing.  Biting her tongue, Claire fought off admonishing her possible new client.  It wasn’t her fault.  Claire knew she should have cleared off the settlement paperwork off her desk for this meeting.  Instead, Claire’s eyes briefly lingered on the donuts themselves.  They looked like the ones she’d brought in this morning.  It was honestly astounding that Janet and Kimmie had not polished off the whole box.

        Plopping down and letting out a sigh of relief, Chloe picked up one of the donuts Claire was eyeing, took a bite, and sighed, “I just want to know what’s going to happen.  My husband and I are not U.S. citizens.”

        “Yeah, Kimmie told me that.”  Claire recovered, while she snapped her brain off of the food in front of her and retreated back into her lawyer persona, “So, generally foreign nationals have most of the same basic constitutional rights as citizens, though there are some exceptions.”

        “Meaning?”  Chloe hummed, as she took another bite of her donut and looked at Claire like she was speaking a foreign language.

        “The rights of a non-citizen are essentially the same as those of a citizen.  Article III of the U.S. Constitution grants federal jurisdiction to cases where the parties are residents of different states or where one party is a U.S. citizen and the other party is a citizen of another country.  Over the years, the right of a non-citizen to file a lawsuit has been expanded to include lawsuits filed in state courts.”  Claire prattled off like the legal bookworm she truly was.

        “Was that all off the top of your head?”  Chloe mumbled, while she munched more on her donut in a skeptical fashion.  Chloe wanted straight answers, not a lesson in American law.

        “I mean, I know all this stuff pretty well, but I did review your situation before you got here.”  Claire acknowledged, as she sensed that Chloe wasn’t pleased with her previous response.

        “So, what’s going to happen?”  Chloe asked more insistently.

         “Well, the crash put your husband in the hospital for a day, so you’ll need restitution for those medical expenses.”  Claire paused, while she reviewed the brief in front of her, but it seemed like she’d left a page on her bookshelf, “It says here, you were unharmed?”

        “Yeah, I’ve got some extra padding to protect me.”   Chloe proudly joked, as she finished her donut, reached under the hem of her tank top and gave her mighty belly a sizable shake.

        Finding Chloe’s antics, amusing, and needing to grab the paper she’d left across the room, Claire summoned her strength and rose to her feet, rubbed her own big belly, and joked, “Haha, me too.”

        Finally seeing the full shape of the woman behind the other side of the desk, Chloe’s eyes widened.  She’d been so focused on her own worries that she’d failed to recognize what was truly a beautiful woman now standing in front of her.  Clearing her throat and speaking sincerely, Chloe spoke the truth, “You look lovely.”

        “Oh, thank you!  The dress is very beautiful.”  Claire shrugged not expecting the complement, while she started heading over to her bookcase.

        “No, I mean you look lovely,” Chloe clarified.  She of course thought the dress was great, it was one she’d designed last spring, but that wasn’t the point.  The point was that, “the dress is nice, but you really make it work.”

        “Ohh.  Umm.  Thank you.”  Claire blurted not feeling deserving of such praise, while she grabbed the paper she needed and stood gazing out her office window for a moment.  Dwelling on her insecurities, Claire added, “Although if I look beautiful it’s only because the dress really helps.”

        “Rubbish!  You could be a model!”  Chloe burst in a feisty manner.

        Unable to believe the chunky British woman was serious, Claire didn’t turn around from the window, instead she pretended to be reading the piece of paper she’d grabbed and meekly replied, “You’re too kind.  It’s really just the dress though.  I don’t normally look this good.”

        “Who’s the designer?”  Chloe hummed knowing the answer, while she sized Claire up.  Chloe was positive she had this girl beat in the bust and belly department by a large margin; however, it was possible that Claire had a slightly meatier backside than she did.  It was definitely wider.  Heck, it looked even wider than Kimmie’s fat American butt, which was saying something.

        “Umm,” Claire paused, as she tried to recall.  It was Rushmore, right?  No, Rushmore was a mountain.  The dress was a Rashford.  That’s when it clicked for Claire.  She looked at the name on the police incident report.  Turning around and looking at the woman sitting by her desk with new eyes, Claire wondered out loud, “Wait…  You’re not THE Chloe Rashford, are you?”

        “Guilty as charged!”  Chloe smiled, as she reached for her second donut.

        “Oh my god, you’re famous!”  Claire exclaimed.  She’d never worked with a famous client before!

        “I mean, a little famous.  At least in the world of plus size modeling and clothing design.”  Chloe not so modestly said, while she patted herself on the back and took a bite of her donut at the same time.

        “You’re too modest!  Plus size is basically the average size of women in America.”  Claire truthfully argued, as she returned to her seat and gave her feet a rest.

        “Yeah, I have noticed that.”  Chloe admitted, while she looked over the large office woman in front of her, “It’s kinda comforting.”

        “Ehh, I hate it.  It’s so hard to eat healthy.”  Claire complained.  She was still geeking out that she was getting to meet a real clothing designer.  No wonder the dress she was wearing was so awesome, it was designed by a girl bigger than she was!  Chloe knew the struggles of being an overweight woman because she was one!

        “Hey, don’t change the topic!  I was serious when I said you could be a model.  I could call my agent and get you a shoot right now.”  Chloe almost threatened.

        “You’re serious?”  Claire tilted her head in disbelief.

        “100%.”  Chloe nodded, as she polished off the last of her second donut and added, “Word of warning, my agent swings both ways so she’d probably ask you out on a date too.”

        Blushing and breaking eye contact, Claire’s hands traced her meaty form down her sides until they reached her chunky lower belly.  That’s when Claire insecurely hummed, “I don’t think I want people seeing me like this.”

        “Like what?”  Chloe asked, as she gazed at the size of Claire’s doughy gut.

        “I’ve really gotten fat.  Look at my graduation pictures on the wall, that’s what I used to look like.”  Claire pointed, while she was unable to bring herself to look.

        “Wow, you were so skinny.”  Chloe muttered unable to control herself, “Is that your husband?”

        “Yes, that’s Paul.”  Claire hummed once again unable to bring herself to look at the picture hanging on the wall.  However, the picture was ingrained into her memory.  With her insecurities taking over again, Claire added in a huff, “He’s not fat anymore.  Marriage made him get into the best shape of his life and it made me humongous.”

        Trying to make Claire feel better about her body, Chloe asked, “You wanna see what I looked like before I moved in with my husband?”

        “Sure.”  Claire hummed, as she did her best to compose herself.  She was hardly acting professional right now, but she couldn’t help it.

        “Look.”  Chloe urged, while she handed Claire her phone.

        Accepting the phone delicately, Claire almost did a double take.  The woman in the photo looked 200 pounds lighter than the fat model sitting in front of her.  Unable to utter anything else, Claire gasped, “Oh my god…”

        “I know, but you know what?  Who cares?  My husband loves the extra weight and so do I.”  Chloe resolutely proclaimed in an inspirational tone, “You’re lovely as is, and in my professional opinion, you look even better with the extra weight.”

        “My sister said that today too…”  Claire muttered, while her brain struggled to process what Chloe had just told her.

        “Maybe because it’s the truth!”  Chloe laughed, as she pointed to one of the many paintings handing around Claire’s office, “By the way, I’ve been getting into art collecting recently, who painted all this stuff you’ve got hanging up in here?”

        “Oh, my husband did all of them.”  Claire responded.  She was having trouble keeping up with Chloe’s energetic train of thought.

        “Are they for sale?”  Chloe wondered.

        “No, I can’t sell them anymore.  It was originally my way of helping my husband’s business, but my boss told me to knock it off.  If you wanna buy anything you have to come to my husband’s studio.”  Claire explained, as she pictured her husband’s ‘studio’ and had to add, “He wants me to call it that, but really it’s just our garage.  I don’t want to paint the wrong picture.”

        “Hahaha, I’ll take you up on that for sure!”  Chloe laughed not realizing that Claire’s pun was accidental.

        Clearing her throat, Claire tried to get the meeting back on task, “Would you mind if we got back to the matter at hand?  We only have half an hour left for your appointment.”

        “Oh of course.”  Chloe straightened up, crossed her legs, and reached over to grab the last donut, “Remind me what did we discussed already?  Sorry, my head’s all over the place right now.”

        “No need to apologize.  I was just talking about the expenses that the criminal case would need to reimburse you for.  There are your husband’s medical expenses, pain and suffering, any lost wages if his injures cause him to miss work, the damage to your rental car…  by the way, did you guys buy rental insurance.”  Claire sought to clarify, while her tummy growled at the sight of Chloe taking a bite of the last donut.

        “We did.  I thought it was a rip off, but my husband convinced me otherwise.”  Chloe sighed, while a wry smile escaped from her face.

        “Thank god for husbands.”  Claire sarcastically added.

        However, it didn’t seem like Chloe picked up on the sarcasm, “Seriously.  So, are we going to have to pay for anything out of pocket?”

        “Short answer, no.  The police have a really strong case and here in Ohio ** driving is a crime where restitution is mandatory so if you win the case, the defendant will cover all expenses you and your husband have incurred from the incident.”  Claire succinctly explained much to Chloe’s delight.

        “Ha!  I’m chuffed to bits!”  Chloe enthused, “But can I sue the bloody bastard for all he’s worth?”

         “Umm, unlikely.  Foreign nationals CAN sue a citizen of the United States, but we’d have to file a separate civil suit to get damages.  And the civil suit will take into account the money you get as restitution in the criminal trial.  So, you probably wouldn’t be getting all he’s worth, just enough to restore you financially to where you and your husband were before the accident.”  Claire explained in her usual intelligent tone.

        Swallowing the last of her donut, Chloe let out a belch and a profanity, “*Buuurrp!* D*mn.”

        “That being said, I would recommend filing a civil suit too.  At least until the offender is convicted or pleads out.  We could always drop the civil suit once you get your restitution.  If your restitution is not satisfactory to you, then we could follow through with the civil suit.”  Claire added as consolation.

        “Why?”  Chloe wondered.

        “I just want to cover all your bases.  I bet that the offender will take a plea bargain within the week, but just in case he doesn’t…  Luck favors the prepared.  And I don’t want you and your husband to pay a cent for what happened.”  Claire firmly punctuated by closing the case folder with enthusiasm.

        “Kimmie was right about you.”  Chloe smiled, “My mind is made up.  You’re hired.  How much will it cost me?”

        “Since you are family of an employee, we’ll only charge you once we bring your civil case to a satisfying conclusion.  And the fee won’t be too bad.”  Claire warmly answered.

        “Wow, what’s the catch?”  Chloe questioned.

        “You’re family.  There is no catch.  That’s the policy here at Marshall & Waller.”  Claire returned Chloe’s smile.

        Looking at the time, Chloe shrugged, “I thought this would take longer.”

        “Me too.”  Claire laughed.

        Without a second of hesitation, Chloe rose to her feet and asked, “Wanna get lunch with Kimmie and I?  She was going to take me somewhere close by.  I’d love to chat some more.”

        “Umm, sure.  I’d love to.”  Claire nodded.  How could she say no?  Laura would kill her if she passed up the opportunity to get lunch with an honest to god legend in the plus size clothing industry.

[polarisdreamer]

Part 6-  

        “I’m serious, we’ve been looking for a new model for weeks now, you’d be doing me a huge favor.”  Chloe persistently continued to pester Claire, while the three large ladies trudged down the busy city street.

        Doing her best to keep pace, but suffering from her aching feet, Claire replied a little short of breath, “Why don’t you just keep modeling your own designs?”

        “I’ve been slowly eating my way out of modeling for a while now, photoshop can only do so much.”  Chloe smiled almost looking proud, as she slowed her pace, lifted the hem of her tank top and showed Claire her fat globular belly.

        Trying not to stare or give the odd behavior from the British woman more attention than it deserved, Claire hummed rather quietly, “You could always diet.”

        “Nope!  Diet’s aren’t for me!  Not anymore.”  Chloe loudly replied, as she let go of her tank top, letting it fail to fully cover her belly, and halted her energetic forward momentum to let Kimmie catch up to them.  The poor girl had short legs and had fallen more than a few strides behind.  Looking at Claire fanning herself with her hands and realizing the obese young lawyer was just as fatigued as she was getting, Chloe added more softly, “I’m happy where I’m at and I am never going back.”

        “I could be your new model!”  Kimmie wheezed, while she finally caught up with her fast-walking friends.

        “I already told you, you’re too short Kimmie.  Besides, you’d have to get rid of that ponytail.”  Chloe teased, as she gave Kimmie’s signature hairstyle a flick.

        “Never mind then…”  Kimmie huffed, while she crossed her chubby arms just under her chunky bust and puffed her lip outward like a frustrated child.

        “How much farther until we get there Kimmie?  I’m knackered.”  Chloe asked, as her nose caught wind of the lovely smell of fried chicken.

        “Only a few more blocks.”  Kimmie promised.

        “My feet are killing me, how about we just stop here?”  Chloe offered pointing to the KFC across the street.

        “KFC?  I’m trying to be healthy!”  Kimmie objected.

        “Then get a salad, what do you think Claire?”  Chloe asked her fellow fatty.

        “I’m trying to be healthier too, but my feet are also killing me, so I guess…”  Claire begrudgingly softened on the idea of entering the fast-food establishment.

        “Yes!  It’s settled!  Fried chicken it is!”  Chloe cheered, as she led the way to the crosswalk.

        Inside, the three young women were forced to wait in a rather long line.  While they waited, the conversation they’d been having died down.  For Claire, her mind shifted toward what she would get to eat.  KFC did not offer a variety of healthy food options, but Claire thought about getting a hearty sandwich.  It might not be super healthy, but at least it would hold her over until dinner.

        “Can I get one of your fried chicken bowls?  Yeah, the big bucket.  And a side of chips.”  Chloe ordered when it was finally her turn.

        “She means French fries.”  Kimmie butted in and clarified for the young lady taking their order behind the counter.

        “But they are not French!”  Chloe countered in a feisty outburst.

        “We already had this discussion at McDonalds!”  Kimmie reminded Chloe rather impatiently.  Clearly, Kimmie was in a rush to order her own food.

        “Right.  Yeah, a fried chicken bowl and a side of… French fries.”  Chloe loathfully uttered to move things along.

        “To drink?” The fast-food worker asked.

        “Just give me a soda.”  Chloe waved without a care.

        “You mean pop.”  Kimmie tried to correct Chloe once again, but this time Chloe wasn’t having it.

        “Quit it Kimmie!  Don’t get between a fat woman and her next meal!”  Chloe jokingly threatened, as she stood up straighter and bumped Kimmie’s belly with her own to force the short and very plump young woman to take a step backward.

        “Finee!”  Kimmie huffed backing down.

        “Will you be having the same ma’am?”  The fast-food worker turned her head and asked Claire, obviously judging from Claire’s size that she was a fried chicken gal too.

        In the depths of Claire’s stomach, she knew she craved fried chicken more than anything right now, but the tone of the cashier just rubbed Claire the wrong way.  Just because she was fat didn’t mean that she was going to order fried chicken too!  Taking offense to the cashier’s insinuation, Claire changed her mind about what she wanted to order.  Taking in an irritated breath, Claire huffed rather snobbishly, “No, actually.  I’ll have a Caesar salad and a bottle of water.”

        Looking surprised, the young cashier nodded and turned to look at Kimmie.

        “I’ll have a chicken Caesar salad.”  Kimmie hummed impulsively following Claire’s lead and ordering something healthy for herself too.  She’d been seconds away from ordering fried chicken just like Chloe, but Claire’s resolve to eat healthy gave Kimmie the strength to resist her fatty impulses.

        “Are you kidding me?  You’re both getting bloody salads?!  Way to make me look like a total fatty!”  Chloe complained.  She’d felt a certain solidarity with her obese American friends up until now.  However, it suddenly seemed clear to Chloe that she was the only one of the three that truly accepted her size and was proud of the fat woman she’d become.  Claire and Kimmie were fat women living the delusion that they’d somehow gotten fat by accident, or something like that.  Were they so desperate to conceal the truth of how their once trim bodies had inflated with fat that they were willing to sacrifice a potentially enjoyable lunch in favor of bland salads from a fast-food restaurant?

        “I can’t get back in shape if I keep eating junk for lunch every day.”  Kimmie predictably responded, while Chloe held her tongue.  

        The hefty British beauty had a few things she wanted to say to her new friends but waiting among a crowd of strangers wasn’t the place to bring them up.  Chloe decided to bide her time.  She’d have her say before their meal was done.

        Eventually, the three girls got their food, found a table, and started chowing down.  Chloe made a concerted effort to make her consumption of fried chicken a spectacle for anyone nearby.  She was eating fast, and she was reveling in every bite she ravenously scarfed down.  Claire and Kimmie hadn’t even gotten half-way through their meager salads by the time Chloe polished off her bowl and declared her intentions to order another one.  Flaunting her gluttony, Chloe returned to the table with another large bucket of fried chicken and had the audacity to gleefully unbutton her jeans in front of Claire and Kimmie before sitting down.  The two Americans looked speechless, so Chloe decided to do them a favor and break the silence.

        “What?  You two never had to give your belly more room to digest?”  Chloe questioned, while bringing another savory piece of chicken to her luscious lips.

        “Maybe on thanksgiving…”  Claire admitted, although in truth she’d been forced to pull the same maneuver quite often lately.

        “Yeah, maybe on thanksgiving.”  Kimmie echoed Claire’s sentiment with just as little conviction in her voice.

        Unable to stand it any longer, Chloe blabbed with her mouth full, “Are you two serious?  Who are you trying to fool?  We’re all fat girls here, no reason to be shy about this stuff!”

        For a moment, Claire and Kimmie made eye contact.  They didn’t say a word, but both were of the same state of mind.  Chloe was bringing up an uncomfortable topic that both Claire and Kimmie preferred to avoid.  Biting the bullet and trying to appease Chloe, Claire took a conciliatory tone as she said, “Sorry.  I’m sure it’s something I have to do more often than on holidays, but it’s not exactly something I’m proud to talk about.”

        “Yeah, me too.”  Kimmie hummed in support, while she used her fork to play with her unsatisfying salad.

        “Come on, there is no shame in being honest.”  Chloe chastised both of them, pointing a fried chicken wing at them as she did.  Chloe knew that each hefty woman in front of her had once been quite slim.  She’d seen photos of Kimmie when she was a senior in high school, and she’d seen Claire’s graduation pictures.  What Chloe didn’t know was how each of them had fallen down the path to obesity.  Deciding to press the issue, Chloe bluntly revealed what was on her mind, “So how did you two get so fat?  I know it wasn’t by eating salads.”

        “I’m not fat!”  Kimmie immediately protested, as Chloe found the girl’s denial rather amusing.

        “Fine.  How’d you get so tubby Kimmie?”  Chloe rephrased to appease the plump ex-athlete sitting across from her.  Before Kimmie could respond, Chloe offered up some of her own personal theories, “Didn’t you used to be a college athlete?  What happened?  Was it an injury?  Boredom after you graduated?”

        Blushing something fierce, Kimmie replied, “Ugh!  It’s not like I swapped dumbbells for Big Macs!  I got heavy before I graduated!  I’m not exactly sure how or when it happened…  I kinda feel like I just woke up one day and I was bigger, you know?”

        “No.  That’s not how fat works.”  Chloe promptly responded.  She was seeking a real answer, not Kimmie’s usual excuses.

        “Well, I mean, I didn’t realize I was gaining weight until after I’d put on a few too many pounds...  It took me a long time to notice I was getting a little tubby because, at first, it all went to my backside…  I think I inherited my mom’s metabolism.”  Kimmie regretfully admitted, as she dropped her fork, and her hands braced the sides of her soft hips.  Her chunky butt was so thick with fat that when she sat on a chair, like the one she was on now, her fat jutted off the sides of the chair.

        “I have the same problem Kimmie.”  Claire mentioned, while putting a conciliatory hand on Kimmie’s shoulder for a moment to make her feel better.

        “Yeah,” Kimmie sent Claire a smile, as she turned her focus back to answering Chloe.  Taking a breath, Kimmie continued, “The first time I remember realizing I was bigger than I used to be, was when my roommate was trying to hook me up with this guy I had a crush on.  I overheard her telling him, ‘she’s kind of heavy, but really nice, though!’ and it made me realize that I’d gotten heavier...”  

        “Oh my god, that’s awful!”  Claire commented knowing that her own friends were not shy about mentioning her weight during conversation as if it was necessary for describing her.

        “But how’d you get tubby?”  Chloe demanded to know.  She didn’t want Kimmie dancing around a real answer.

        “I mean, I started drinking a lot of beer, and partying freshman year…  And Mimi loves junk food even more than I do so…”    Kimmie droned off, as both Claire and Chloe tilted their heads in confusion.

        “Who’s Mimi?  Your friend?”  Claire asked.

        “A bad influence?”  Chloe sought to clarify.

        “Mimi’s me when I’m **.  My team gave me that nickname freshman year and she kinda took on a life of her own.”  Kimmie admitted shamefully, “Mimi was friends with everyone.  She was a lot more popular around campus than I was...”

        Loving Kimmie’s innate weirdness, Chloe nearly laughed, “You’re such an adorable goofball.  Don’t ever change.”

        “Thank you?”  Kimmie scrunched her lip unsure of what exactly Chloe meant by that.

        “I kinda wanna meet this Mimi.  Don’t you Claire?”  Chloe giggled, while she delved into yet another piece of chicken.

        “Kimmie’s given up drinking, but otherwise I’d love to.”  Claire smiled unable to keep herself composed around her hilarious intern.  Kimmie wasn’t funny when she tried too be, but when she was just being herself she was hysterical!

        “I still drink on special occasions.  Mimi loves holidays.”  Kimmie added, as if she and this Mimi character weren’t the same person.

        Chloe and Claire couldn’t handle it, in unison they both erupted, “Hahahaha!”

        “You really are the best Kimmie!”  Claire laughed trying to compose herself.

        “No way!  You’re the best!  You’ve never even lost a trial!”  Kimmie nudged Claire despite her embarrassment.

        “Is that true Claire!  That’s insane!”  Chloe exclaimed, as she paused her praise to resume her massive consumption of fried chicken.

        “Well, I’ve gotten lucky so far.  95% of the cases I’ve worked on have settled before trial.  So, I’m not usually in court all that often.”  Claire begrudgingly admitted, while she forked another piece of flimsy lettuce into her mouth.

        “You’re too modest!  You’re the best lawyer I know!  You’re a big deal!”  Kimmie happily added trying to boost her humble boss’s ego.

        Shrugging her shoulders, and using her napkin to wipe her mouth, Claire didn’t know how to take such a complement.  She was proud of her success at work, but she didn’t feel very proud of herself right now.  She couldn’t get her mind off of the numbers she’d read on the scale this morning.  Or the way Chloe was gobbling down that fried chicken so gleefully.  Claire didn’t just feel fat and hungry, she felt jealous that she couldn’t indulge like Chloe…  Replying in a depressed tone Claire sighed, “I’m certainly big.”

        “Will you stop shaming yourself?”  Chloe snapped at Claire, “So what if you’re fat!  Own that sh*t!  You’re big, you’re beautiful, and you’re great at what you do!”

        Unable to take Chloe’s continued complements about her overfed figure, Claire argued, “Yeah, but I’ve gained a lot of weight lately and now I’m the biggest I’ve ever been.  I can’t be happy with myself if I eat like cr*p and sit on my big butt all day.”

        “Is that how you got fat?  Getting lazy after your husband put a ring on it?”  Chloe wondered raising an eyebrow and trying to get the conversation back on track.

        Unable to contain her insecurities, Claire barked, “No!  The only reason I’ve gotten so fat is because of my husband!  He is a great cook and he’s always spoiling me with food that’s irresistibly delicious, but horrible for my waistline.  I didn’t get lazy!  I have a husband that’s hellbent on doing everything in his power to make sure I never have to lift a finger around the house.  I mean, on the one hand it’s great because he’s very attentive and thoughtful, but on the other hand he’s the reason I’m getting so fat and deep down I know he loves it.”

        “He loves that you’ve gotten fat?”  Chloe coughed momentarily ** on her piece of chicken.  She’d only ever met two people besides her husband that really had a thing for fattened female figures.

        “He’s a weirdo.  Look,” Claire brushed aside Chloe’s question, as she tried to change the subject, “How about you tell us how you got so fat?  I mean it’s only fair since we’ve all been sharing.”

        “Well, I didn’t get fat because of my husband.”  Chloe calmly explained, while she chose her next words very carefully.  She normally wouldn’t get into it, but judging by what Claire had just shared, she figured the truth might just be fruitful.  Taking another bite of her chicken and gulping it down, Chloe admitted, “I got fat FOR my husband.”

        “Huh?”  Kimmie burst like she’d just blown a circuit.

        “Your husband wanted you to gain weight?”  Claire leaned forward in surprise wanting Chloe to elaborate.

        “You bet, *Buurrp!*” Chloe belched, while she pounded her chest with her forearm and tried to excuse herself, “Pardon me, that was not very ladylike.”

        “You’re fine.  We’re all friends here.  Please go on.”  Claire uttered from behind a faltering smile.  She wanted to know what Chloe was talking about.

        Chloe threw a few more French fries into her mouth and asked, “Before I get into it, why don’t you guys have some fried chicken?  I know I look like a pig, but this is so much food.  Seriously.  I could use some help.”

        “Okay, I’ll have one.”  Kimmie chirped unable to resist the temptation.  She didn’t want anymore salad.  She could tell Chloe’s story was going to be interested and she didn’t want her hungry tummy distracting her.

        “Claire?”  Chloe smiled, as she could spot the conflicted expression on Claire’s face from a mile away.

        Biting her tongue, Claire fought off her weak-minded thoughts of stuffing her fat face with some of Chloe’s chicken.  Eating fried chicken wasn’t going to help her get control of her body again.  Chloe might believe that big was beautiful, but society certainly didn’t agree with her.  Big and beautiful were antonyms not synonyms.  Claire knew deep down she couldn’t be beautiful when she’d outgrown all of her truly beautiful clothes over two years ago!  Concealing her emotions and striking a polite tone, Claire aligned her insecurities with society and uttered a pitiful, “No thanks.”

        “I wish I had your self-control.  This fried chicken is sooo good!”  Kimmie muttered, as she practically inhaled a piece of Chloe’s chicken.

        “Well, the salad was filling.”  Claire lied, as she looked upon her pathetic salad with disgust.  There was zero chance her belly would be satisfied until dinner.  She needed to eat something else for lunch, but she couldn’t bring herself to look like a fatty and cave into sharing some of Chloe’s chicken.  Besides, a few pieces of fried chicken were not going to be enough anyway.  Claire felt hungrier after eating her salad than she had been before eating it.  The freaking lettuce had only whetted her appetite.

        “You think so?  I’m still starving.”  Kimmie hummed, while she tore into another piece of chicken much too Claire’s irritation.

        Kimmie certainly didn’t look like a girl who was starving.  Claire hated when people used that expression.  Kimmie was hungry, not starving.  Proclaiming to be starving was disrespectful to people who were actually starving…  Realizing that she was getting hangry, Claire turned her face back to the fat British woman across the table, “Anyway, please continue Chloe.”

        “Right, well…  I don’t know any other way to say it.  I fattened myself up on purpose.”  Chloe devilishly smiled, as she saw the looks of surprise and horror on Claire and Kimmie’s pudgy faces.

        “Are you crazy?”  Kimmie squeaked.

        “Not at all, you see it was my future husband’s biggest fantasy.”  Chloe hummed, as she recalled the moment that Roberto had come clean to her about his deepest desires.  The knowledge of his fetish had given her a unique power over him that she loved immensely.

        “For you to get fat?”  Claire managed to ask for clarification despite her dumbstruck expression.

        “Yes, it’s a fetish called feederism, look it up.  It’s not mainstream, but it’s a growing community, hmhm!”  Chloe chuckled at her little pun, turning bluntly honest, “He gets off on my gluttony and my lovely rolls of fat!”

        Claire and Kimmie were utterly speechless.

        Seeing that she had the proverbial stage to herself, Chloe continued painting the picture of her descent into the addicting feedee lifestyle, “So yeah, I was very open about trying out his fantasies, so he started making me weight gain shakes that I’d drink in the morning and at night.”

        Just as Chloe spoke those words, Claire recalled the smoothies and milkshakes her own husband made for her from the onset of their relationship years ago.

        “As I got more comfortable with letting him feed me,” Chloe continued uninterrupted, “I would drive him wild by making a pig of myself in public.  I let him tie me up and funnel feed me.  And in the bedroom… well, I’ll save you the juicy details, but he couldn’t keep his hands off me.  And the thing is, once I started noticeably getting a lot bigger, I got into it.  It was so much fun!  I was his queen, and he was like, my love slave!  But… I guess I did get a little carried away…”

        Ignoring the stunned looks on her new friends faces, Chloe continued her tale, “When Roberto was on a work trip, I had a friend of mine named Natalia fatten me to the max for three weeks while he was away.  I’m talking protein shakes, drinking lard, eating until it hurt, eating until I physically couldn’t move, it was a euphoria I’d never experienced before.  The kilos inevitably piled up real fast.  To put it in terms you two would understand, I gained 25 pounds in 3 weeks.  And to tell you the truth, I got off on it, and my friend got off on it too.  One time when I was too stuffed to move on the couch after a feeding, she masturbated in front of me and I couldn’t do anything about it.  It was so hot.”

        Claire’s brain had momentarily stalled, her mind was listening, but also recalling some curious behaviors of her husband years ago…  Kimmie, on the other hand, recalled the name Natalia, but couldn’t quite place where she’d heard it before.  What Chloe was saying was so strange and bazar, Kimmie didn’t know how to formulate her thoughts into words.

        Judging from the looks on both Claire and Kimmie’s faces, Chloe guessed that she’d revealed too much.  Trying to backtrack a bit, Chloe admitted, “Yeah, I guess I was more than a little carried away at that point.  It’s been hard to find a good balance with my husband’s fantasies, well now they’re our fantasies… It’s been hard to find a good balance, but I’m in a real good place right now.  The trick is finding the right balance.  I like gaining weight.  I love being fat.  And I love that my husband completes me, fantasies and all.”

        “Wait, wait, wait, wait…”  Kimmie managed to finally say, “When I studied abroad a few summer’s ago…”

        “Oh right, you stayed with Natalia’s family.  Yeah, that’s the same Natalia.”  Chloe correctly anticipated Kimmie’s question and answered it before she could finish asking it.

        “Eewww…”  Kimmie groaned a bit immaturely.

        “Kimmie grow up!”  Chloe shouted in jest.

        “I mean, Kimmie’s got a point.  You have to know that what you’re telling us is… well…  Kind of… out there.”  Claire managed to piece her words together with some difficulty.

        Tugging on Claire’s sleeve, Kimmie added, “She can’t be serious!  She sounds like Janet!”

        “Janet’s… well, she’s Janet,” Claire paused in disbelief that she was actually going to support Chloe on this, “but I’ve met her husband and he really loves her… figure.”

        “Despite how fat she is?”  Kimmie gushed in disbelief.

        “Definitely not despite of how fat she is.  You’ve heard of a chubby chaser right Kimmie?”  Claire asked, as she decided to just give Kimmie a description anyway, “You know, guys that prefer bigger girls.  My husband’s kinda… like that too.”

        “Hmm…”  Kimmie hummed clearly taken aback.

        Taking in the context clues, Chloe saw an opening and said, “See Claire, what I’m talking about is not that out there.  A chubby chaser likes bigger ladies, a feeder likes it when ladies get fatter.  Two peas in the same pod really.”

 

        “Not at all!  Liking bigger women is not the same as liking making women bigger!”  Claire objected strongly.

        “Do you hear what you are saying right now?”  Chloe replied coyly.

        “How can you love being fat?  It’s not all sunshine and rainbows like you’re saying.”  Claire continued with her strong protest, “To me, as a fat woman, the world feels clearly divided by a bright line: people who wear plus sizes, and people who don’t.  My experience isn’t just a matter of disliking feeling fat, I mean I do dislike feeling fat, I want to make that clear.  It sucks struggling to fit into a seat in a theater or on a plane, or getting winded walking up the steps, or outgrowing your favorite dress…  But that’s not even the worst of it.  For me, being fat isn’t just how I feel about myself, it’s about how the world reminds me, sometimes violently, of my own inferiority...  The worst part about being fat, from my perspective, is the way people treat you differently.  I mean, Chloe, have you ever had family or friends suggest that you should join weight watchers or some other kinda weight loss program?”

        “Yes.”  Chloe answered honestly, as she took in everything Claire was saying very sincerely.

        Claire was surprised by Chloe’s response, but she continued, “Have you even had friends tell you that, ‘you have such a pretty face’?  Implying that if you’d only lose weight you’d be more attractive?”

        “Yes.”  Chloe hummed again remembering a tense conversation with her mother a few months ago.

       Not wanting to let Chloe have her cake and eat it too, Claire persisted in her line of questioning like the lawyer she truly was, “Have you ever been judged by complete strangers in public for what you choose to eat?”

        “I was literally walking out of a petrol station a few weeks ago outside of London with a box of donuts and some country bumpkin, yelled from his car window, ‘Lay off them doughnuts, fatty!’”  Chloe shared sincerely.  She noted how Claire stopped to process what she’d just said.  Taking the opportunity to get a word in edgewise, Chloe added, “My husband tells me that his friends have asked him what it’s like to have sex with me because of my size.  Has your husband ever told you that?”

         “He has.”  Claire shared completely truthfully.  She could tell from Chloe’s sincerity that she understood the pain she felt as a fat woman, but why then did Chloe have the audacity to say that she loved being fat??  Claire couldn’t understand it.  Recoiling back into her insecurities, Claire shed a tear and muttered, “*sniff* How can you love being fat?  *sniff* I wish I could just keep the weight off.”

        Wiping her greasy hands with a napkin, Chloe reached across the table and braced Claire’s shaking hands.  Speaking smoothly, Chloe explained, “In my experience, keeping the weight off required hyper-vigilance.  It required that I tailor my entire life around keeping the weight off.  It required that I distrust my body, ignore my hunger and desires, punish myself with exercise and harsh self-talk to ‘just say no’ to basically any kind of food, or rest, that my mind and body craved.  When I was at my worst, it even required that I say no to social occasions that would wreck my diet.  Sure, I was able to keep the weight off, but it wasn’t much of a life, it certainly wasn’t natural.  Actually, for me it was an eating disorder.”

        “Oh, my gosh, I’m so sorry Chloe…”  Claire weakly response starting to understand why Chloe was the way she was.

        “Me too.”  Kimmie added trying to show her support for her cousin’s wife.

        “Don’t be sorry, be sorry for yourselves, because if you’re not careful it could happen to you too.  My motivation to keep my weight low was 100% driven by fear.  Although I didn’t realize it at the time, I was afraid of getting fat, scared of losing my thin privilege.  I guess growing up I subconsciously, and consciously, absorbed the message that being thin is better than being fat.  I mean, I saw that thinner people were treated better, and I experienced better treatment when I was thinner.  But by denying my body’s needs and desires, I sacrificed my mental health.  I mean, for a long time I felt powerless, insecure, unworthy…  I want to do my part to build a culture that is more inclusive and fairer to thin and fat people alike.  And I can’t do that if I hate my body.  So, I love my body, fat rolls and all.”  Chloe smiled, as the logic behind Chloe’s worldview begin to settle into Claire and Kimmie’s minds.

        As the three ladies shared a little more in solidarity, they finished up their food, and started to get up from the table.  By the end of the meal, Chloe and Kimmie had each grown rather bloated.  There guts were stuffed to the max with calorie dense fried chicken and plenty of soda.  Before the meal had finished, Kimmie had unbuttoned her skirt to give her gut more room to expand, just like Chloe had done with her jeans.

        Now that it was time to leave, Chloe didn’t bother buttoning her pants, instead Chloe took the hair tie Kimmie kept around her plump wrist, looped it around her pant’s button, threaded the elastic through the buttonhole, and then looped the elastic hair tie back over the button to secure her pants.  It was a fascinating little life hack that amazed Kimmie, and one which Claire resolved to save in her memory for future use.

        With Chloe’s help, Kimmie used the same method to get her skirt fastened together again, and soon the three ladies were walking out the doors of KFC, although Chloe and Kimmie were made to waddle by the shear amount of excess food they’d consumed.  However, by the time they exited the building and made it halfway down the street, a rumble in Claire’s tummy forced her to take drastic measures.

        “I just remembered, I need to make an important call.  Keep going without me please.”  Claire lied, as she impulsively decided to return to the KFC alone and get enough food to actually hold her over until dinner.

        “No prob!”  Kimmie waved.

        “It was a pleasure meeting you!  I’ll be in touch about viewing your husband’s studio!”  Chloe huffed, as she placed both of her hands on her lower back to brace the weight of her heavily descended gut.

        “Great!  I can’t wait!”  Claire waved, as she pulled out her phone and pretended to dial a number.

        Claire waited until Kimmie and Chloe were out of sight before returning to the fast-food establishment.  Chloe’s revelations still weighed heavily on her mind.  Waiting in line again, Claire instinctively thought to herself, ‘I was fine with just eating salads before Paul started cooking for me every night…’

        But then she kept thinking, ‘If he’d cooked me a healthy breakfast this morning my whole day might have gone differently...’

        She always blamed her husband for her gluttonous appetite, he never forced her to eat or fed her like Chloe described, but he did always make sure food was well within her reach…  Claire’s mind was going somewhere, connecting dots, but before she could make a breakthrough, it was her turn to order.  Unconsciously passing on her sandwich idea, Claire instead ordered the same sized fried chicken bucket that Kimmie and Chloe had been eating.

        Finding a table alone toward the back of the establishment, Claire quietly got to work emotionally chomping down her chicken into oblivion.  Just like Chloe and Kimmie, Claire tore into her chicken with an almost detached desire.  There was an emptiness in her stomach that she needed to fill, and food was the only answer.  Oddly enough the only time Claire’s insecurities about her body were forced out of her awareness were when she was stuffing her gut with the very food that had led to its precipitous expansion.

        Bite after bite, gulp after gulp, her eyes brightened, and she dug in.  Claire fell into a familiar trance.  She’d reached the point of satisfaction a few minutes into her binge, but she didn’t stop eating, if anything, she started eating faster.  It wasn’t until the bucket was completely licked clean that she could lean backward into her chair and take in some labored breaths of air.  As her hands braced her stuffed belly, embarrassment began to fill her mind as she slowly came to realize what she’d just done.

        She’d made a pig of herself, again…  Her belly felt like it might explode!  Her normally doughy stomach felt rock hard, her dress was stretching so much around her gut that the fabric was riding up around her thick thighs.  Feeling thirsty, Claire reached for her soda only to realize it was empty.  Gazing upward and realizing for the first time how much food she’d just consumed; Claire caught a glimpse of her reflection in the restaurant’s window.

        Her stomach looked so round…  The dress couldn’t hide the size of her bloated belly.  She looked so fat.  If she wasn’t careful, she’d be the size of Chloe by Christmas…  And yet, as she sat there barely able to move from how full she’d become, Claire’s mind returned to her husband for a moment.  A belly rub from him right now would be just what the doctor ordered.  She could never do the job quite as well as he could by herself.

        “*Burp!*”  Claire belched, as her hands braced her rumbling gut, “Oh f*ck…  Why do I always do this?  I feel like I’m going to pop… *Burrp!*”

[polarisdreamer]

Part 7-  

        As the day progressed, and Claire returned to her office after lunch, she made her final preparations for the big settlement negotiations, although she couldn’t give the work her full attention.  Just as the fried chicken she’d devoured weighed heavily in the depths of her fat stomach, Chloe’s words weighed heavily on Claire’s mind.

        Deep down, Claire knew something about her weight insecurities were unsustainable.  She couldn’t go through life being miserable because she’d doubled her weight since she’d tied the knot with her husband.  Something had to be done.  Maybe she really needed to start seeing her personal trainer again?  Or maybe what she really needed was a therapist?  Claire wasn’t sure.  The only thing she was sure about was that she was ready for her first solo settlement negotiation.

        Well…  Not completely solo.

        Kimmie had asked to sit in on the meeting, perhaps for moral support, or perhaps because she was genuinely curious to see the outcome on a case she’d seen Claire work on for the better part of three months.  Either way, Claire was happy she’d have a friendly face in the room.  The opposing council certainly would not be friendly, and Claire couldn’t count her boss’s daughter as a friend by any stretch of the imagination.

        Ken Marshall’s daughter, Kate, was sitting in on the negotiations if Claire, or the opposing council, had any questions about the signed declarations the blonde had collected from their clients over the last few weeks testifying to the harm they’d experienced.  Claire knew that Kate had a certain professional respect for her, but they certainly were not friends.

        For one thing, unlike Claire, Kate wasn’t a trial lawyer, she was a paralegal, so in terms of the pecking order in the firm, Claire was her superior.  Maybe that was Kate’s problem with her, she was jealous.  Then again, Kate was a little older than Claire was, she’d just turned 30 or 31 or something like that, so perhaps the slight age difference had something to do with their lukewarm opinions of each other.  Although Claire suspected that the real reason why Kate always gave her the cold shoulder was because of her appearance.

        Whereas Claire had the body of a fattened-up pear-shaped housewife, Kate had the body of a thick bikini model.  The boss’s daughter possessed a top-heavy hourglass figure, one of the most pronounced Claire had ever seen.  Kate had a narrow waist, but she certainly carried some meat on her frame.  Particularly, Kate’s breasts, in proportion to her bodyweight, were the largest in the office by far.  Claire probably weighed 100 pounds more than Kate, and they were approximately the same height, yet Kate’s breasts were only slightly smaller than her own.  Kate also possessed a bit of a plump heart-shaped ass and some thick legs, but there was obviously some muscle under Kate’s slight excess of feminine softness.

        It was hard to believe a woman as attractive as Kate was still single, but Claire thought that her being single was probably why the office diva was able to maintain her smoking hot body while most every other woman in the office piled on more pounds every year.  Kate still had the motivation of needing to look good for dates.  Claire could only wonder what her own body would look like if she never got complacent once she’d gotten married.  However, it wasn’t a thought Claire could linger on for long.

        As the 3 o’clock deadline approached, Claire gathered her materials and decided to head over to the conference room.  Kimmie joined her and Janet wished her good luck.  On the way to the conference room, Claire worriedly placed her hand upon her belly.  Her dress was holding firm, but she still felt bloated from her big lunch.  Her gut was forcing the stretchy fabric noticeably outward.  She hoped beyond hope that Kate wouldn’t give her grief about her appearance.

        Upon entering the conference room, Claire held the door for Kimmie, and then entered herself.  The opposing council hadn’t entered yet, so the room only had two people in it so far.  On the far side of the table sat the arbitrator that Claire had hired for this settlement.  An arbitrator wasn’t necessary, but in Claire experience, they always helped things move along.  Sitting next to Claire’s chair, was none other than Kate.

        The big breasted blonde was wearing her normal attire.  She looked like a pink office barbie.  And she was wearing an outfit straight out of that legally blonde movie.  Come to think of it, Kate kinda shared a certain resemblance with that actress.  What was her name again?  Rachel McAdams?  No, no, no, it was Reese Witherspoon.  That was it.  Although, the resemblance to Rachel McAdams was there too.  Claire couldn’t help feeling a little jealous.

        “You look nice.”  Kate uncharacteristically smiled much to Claire’s surprise.

        “Thanks?”  Claire hummed uncertain if the blonde was being serious, while she placed her documents on the table and sat down next to the office diva.

        Checking her coworker out from head to toe, Kate added, “I love your dress.”  

        “You don’t think it looks a little too tight?”  Claire responded on reflex, as her insecurities popped back into her head.  She also couldn’t get over the fact that Kate was being so nice.  The girl kinda had the reputation of being an unintentional b*tch around the office.

        “Not at all, I think it really complements your figure.  What’s the occasion?”  Kate wondered, while she internally decided that Claire’s subtle facial makeup was the right choice.  Sometimes too much makeup could distract from a good dress.  Luckily, it appeared that Claire had found a fashion sense.

        “No occasion.  Just felt like dressing up today.”  Claire lied not wanting to get into the embarrassing events of the morning with her donuts.

        Unable to sensor herself, Kate replied, “Oh, I was just wondering because normally you dress like you’re going to a funeral.”

        And just like that, Claire suddenly remembered why she didn’t like Kate.

        It wasn’t that Kate seemed to be trying to be a b*tch, it was more like she couldn’t contain her all her b*tchy energy, so she had to let it out from time to time.  Needless to say, feeling a little insulted, Claire steered the conversation back to business until the apposing council made their appearance fifteen minutes later.

        Five lawyers in total entered.  Although the lead lawyer was notable, not for his expensive suit and gold watch, but because he was young, in his late thirties.  Claire had done her research; this handsome brown-haired devil was named Harvey.  He was a Columbia University grad, ivy league just like herself, and had an impeccable record.  He was more than a worthy adversary to go up against, he was a bit intimidating.  Unlike Claire, this Harvey fellow appeared in great shape.  He was tall, broad, and built like an athlete.

        “He’s attractive.” Kate leaned over and whispered into Claire’s ear, breaking her trance.

        “Not relevant right now Kate.”  Claire quietly hissed trying to regain her nerve.

        Appearing less than amused with Claire dismissing her comment, Kate deviously questioned, “So, you agree?”

        “Not now.  I’m trying to focus.”  Claire growled, while Kate frowned.  Leaning back into her chair and crossing her legs, Kate didn’t utter another word.

        With any luck, Claire hoped Harvey might get distracted by Kate’s cleavage and lose focus during negotiations.

        As the defense council set up, Claire decided to check on her intern.  Speaking softly to the fat former athlete sitting next to her, opposite from Kate, Claire asked, “How are you doing Kimmie?”  

        “Ugh…”  Kimmie sighed, as she grasped her belly, “I’m so full of lunch…  You’re lucky you only had a salad.  I feel like I’m about to bust outta this skirt.”

        ‘I feel like if I breath in too deep I’ll bust outta this dress…’ Claire honestly thought to herself before replying, “I keep some tums in my desk.  Go get some.  We probably won’t get underway here for another five minutes.”

        “Sure thing!  Thanks!”  Kimmie smiled, as she grunted to her feet.

        “And while you’re at it, bring me back two tablets, would you?”  Claire added, while Kimmie nodded her head and hurried out of the room.  Waiting for things to get underway, Claire wondered how many more calories she’d burn if she didn’t make Kimmie constantly run around the office for her.

…

Two hours later…

…

        “24 million dollars.”  Harvey promptly revealed at the mediator’s request.

        Claire couldn’t believe what she’d just heard.  Things had been going so well for the last hour.  Was this some sort of joke?  If so, Claire wasn’t finding it funny at all and she wasn’t going to be shy about letting Harvey know it, “24 million dollars?  After everything we talked about??  Are you kidding me?  That’s it?  I thought you weren’t going to waste my time!”

        “24 million dollars is a lot of money.”  Harvey spoke to her in the tone of a parent chastising his child.

        “24 million dollars pisses me off!  Since the demurrer we’ve gotten nearly 500 clients to join the class action lawsuit.  Let’s be honest, you know as well as I do that there are more clients out there that you’ve harmed.”  Claire growled in a grumpy fashion.  She was hoping for a number more than twice that big.

        “What does that mean?”  Kimmie asked Claire momentarily forgetting that she wasn’t supposed to be talking.

        “24 million dollars may sound like a lot Kimmie, but if it is spread out among hundreds,” Claire responded to her intern, before turning her eyes to her opposition and raising her voice, “OR THOUSANDS of people, they won’t get very much personally into their own pockets.”

        “We’ve shared our sales numbers with you, and our research concerning the percentage of young women who’ve developed adverse effects attributable to the product in question.  You might be able to find another hundred clients but not much more.  Keep in mind that 24 million divided by 600 is over 40,000 dollars for each of your clients.  More than nearly all your clients would hope to make in a year.”  Harvey smoothly made his case behind a charming smile.

        Not buying into Harvey’s attempts to trick her, Claire countered harshly, “How much my clients make is irreverent to how much you owe them in damages.  $40,000 per client is not enough.”

        “How do you figure?”  Harvey questioned with his smug New York accent.

        Claire didn’t even have to pull out her calculator, she had these facts memorized, “Hypothyroid treatment typically costs between $200 and $1,200 per year for the synthetic thyroid hormone typically prescribed.  So, on average our clients will be paying $700 per year for their treatment.  Most of our clients are between the ages of 18 and 32.  The average female life expectancy in the United States is 78 years old, so we can expect that on average our clients will live with these expenses for roughly 50 or 60 more years.  So, the cost of treatment per year on average is $700, the average number of years our clients will have to pay these expenses is 55.  So, each client would need $38,500 to cover their medical expenses incurred.  So, their medical expenses in total would cost you roughly 23 million dollars.”

        “Our offer was 24 million dollars!  What’s the issue?”  Harvey pressed sounding like he was losing his patience.

        “Your offer would fully compensate my clients for their medical expenses, but what about lost wages or loss of earning potential?”  Claire replied without losing her cool.

        “I’ve read your brief, I understand that one professional cheerleader was fired from her job for putting on weight after developing her thyroid condition, and she has my sympathies, but she is an exception that does not reflect the class you are representing in this lawsuit.  Unless you can prove that your class of clients have suffered similar losses, then asking me about lost wages or loss of earning potential is going to be an uphill battle for you that I’d be happy to parse out in court.”  Harvey responded on a firm manner.

        Claire had to admit that Harvey had a point.  She could tell that he wasn’t going to budge on this.  Moving along, Claire sighed, “Very well, we are willing to concede this point.  However, pain and suffering…”

        “Come on, really?”  Harvey interrupted, “We pulled our product from the market the instant we got reports…”

        “Don’t change the subject.”  Claire interrupted him right back, “Let’s talk about the pain and suffering my clients have experienced.  Let’s talk about their emotional distress.”

          “Emotional distress?  Are you kidding me?  Why?”  Harvey shrugged looking disinterested with what Claire was hinting at.

        “Because a majority of my clients, who developed hypothyroidism because of your company’s diet drug, gained significant amounts of weight as a result of their conditions.”  Claire reiterated a little annoyed her opposing council was downplaying her clients suffering.

        “The drug was proven to be highly effective for facilitating weight loss and enhancing physical performance in our clinical trials.  We had no way of knowing…”  Harvey began to make excuses before Claire cut him off.

        “You had no way of knowing your product would be effective for women, the clinical trials for your companies diet supplement only used all male samples.”  Claire barked, as her own emotions began to rise.

        “That’s not an uncommon industry practice for non-prescription supplements.”  Harvey barked back, before adding, “And to be clear, the product was very effective for women.”

        “It was effective for older women, and overweight women.  That’s not all women.  Is it?”  Claire tactfully questioned.

        “My company didn’t anticipate that a significant number of women without weight issues would take our diet supplement.  That’s not our fault.  We didn’t create diet culture.  If anything, it’s society’s fault.”  Harvey shot back, raising his voice.

        “Cut the bullsh*t.  It was negligent for your company to market the drug so heavily toward young women and not expect them to buy it.”  Claire raised her voice to match Harvey’s.

        Letting out a big sigh, Harvey shook his head and decided to address the bigger question before them, “At the end of the day what have you got to prove emotional distress?”

        “I’ve got over 200 sworn statements from my clients.  Soon to be more!”  Claire proclaimed, as she gave Kate a nudge and continued, “You really don’t think it can be emotionally distressful for a woman to develop a thyroid condition and gain weight when she’s taking a drug to specifically help her lose weight or improve her physical conditioning?  Young female athletes were buying these like hot cakes!  And not just for vanity!”

        Harvey had read all the statements in the file.  Claire made a good point, but he couldn’t let her know that.  She was getting heated with him.  He’d been waiting to get under her skin since they first started negotiations.  It was clear to him that Claire’s empathy for her clients personally stemmed from her own issues with her weight.  Claire was quite an obese young lady, nothing like the athletically thick blonde sitting next to her.  Maybe he could exploit that insecurity he sensed just beneath her professional facade.  Clearing his throat and taking a condescending tone, Harvey countered, “Maybe if your clients ate fewer hot cakes, they wouldn’t have felt the need for our drug in the first place.  We’ve taken the drug off the market temporarily.  We paid our fine to the FDA.  In their report...”

        “You know as well as I do that the current head of the FDA is a former member of Preston Pharmaceuticals board of directors!”  Claire growled, “We are asking for 34.7 million for pain and suffering, 1.5 times the cost of the medical damages.  I’m not backing down on this.”

        “So, in total you’re asking for what?  55.8 million?”  Harvey figured, as he leaned back and laughed, “You’re dreaming if you think we are going to agree to that!”

        “Stop downplaying this!  Emotional distress, particularly from weight gain is a big deal!”  Claire urged not knowing she’d just talked herself into Harvey’s trap.

        Without hesitation, Harvey grinned and let it rip, “You would know something about that wouldn’t you?  It looks like you haven’t put the fork down in years.”

        “Agh!”  Claire snarled, as both she, Kate, and Kimmie looked awestruck by what the opposing lawyer had just said.  Claire had been in heated negotiations before, she’d even seen parties yelling at each other before working out a settlement, but her weight had never been pointed out like this before.  Especially by such a handsome guy.  Claire couldn’t help, but blush fiercely.  She was a vastly overweight woman being fat-shamed by a very attractive and successful man.  Suddenly she didn’t feel like a tough lawyer.  She felt inferior.

        Unable to utter a reply, Claire was thankful when the mediator stepped in to break the silence, “Maybe now is a good time to take a 10-minute recess?”

        “I would say so.”  Kate uttered under her breath, as she stood up and helped get Claire standing on her feet.

        “Fine by me.” Harvey hummed pleased that he’d hopefully broken the young lawyer’s confidence before she’d gotten the better of him.

…

In Claire’s office, moments later…

…

        “What a d*ck!  Is that like, allowed??  Like, can he really say that to you??”  Janet huffed and puffed after Kimmie had relayed to her what had just happened.

        “It’s a free country, he can say whatever he wants in there.”  Claire mumbled, while she gobbled down a piece of her emergency chocolate that she kept in the bottom drawer of her desk.

        “Maybe you should just take their offer.  It would cover our client’s medical expenses, right?”  Kimmie wondered not thinking that a guy like Harvey could be reasoned with.

        “It would, but our clients deserve to have more than just their medical expenses paid for.  You know how much it sucks to gain weight.”  Claire vented, as her stomach growled.  All this shame and stress she felt inside her was making her crave more comfort food.

        “Yeah…”  Kimmie sighed, as she looked down at her plump body and frowned.

        “Gaining weight’s fun.”  Janet piped up, as she rested her massive 400-pound blob of a body against Claire’s desk.

        Thinking back to her conversation with Chloe, Claire did her best to make the point, “If gaining weight is a choice, sure, maybe it… can be fun.  Who am I to judge?  But our clients didn’t make that choice.  They gained weight through no fault of their own.  It was forced upon them.”

        For once, it didn’t seem like Janet had anything snarky to say.  Taking in the silence, Claire let out a deep breath and tried to recompose herself.  She needed more chocolate.  Bending over and reaching into her bottom desk drawer, Claire picked out another chocolate bar and began unwrapping it.  Just as Claire managed to get the soothing chocolate taste to grace her lips, the door to her office barged opened and Kate barged in.

        “How can you eat at a time like this?”  Kate questioned looking annoyed with Claire’s poor coping mechanism.

        “I’m hungry.”  Claire mumbled with her mouthful.  She was in no mood to deal with Kate right now.

        “Claire only had a salad at lunch.”  Kimmie innocently informed Kate in an effort to defend her boss.

        Claire couldn’t take it anymore.  She’d lied so much today that now Kimmie was unknowingly lying for her.  Venting her insecurities, Claire emotionally admitted, “No Kimmie, I didn’t just have a salad at lunch today.  Remember the phone call I had to make?  I didn’t call anyone.  My greedy butt just couldn’t resist going back to KFC and ordering a bowl of that fried chicken all for myself, and you know what?  I ate the whole d*mn thing!  Harvey’s right about me, I can’t put down the fork!  I’m not a saint Kimmie, I don’t have good self-control.  I wouldn’t be this fat if I did!  I just sneak food when nobody’s looking because I’m ashamed of myself!  The only person I’m not ashamed to eat in front of is my husband and it’s his fault more than anyone else that I got this fat in the first place!”

        “Don’t feel bad Claire…”  Kimmie hummed in an embarrassed tone, “I sneak food too…”

        “At least you’ve got a good man who’ll stand by you no matter what.”  Janet added seeing the need to help Claire feel better.  She’d never seen Claire break down like this.

        “Claire,” Kate began, as everyone turned to the only woman in the room that wasn’t clinically obese with dread that she’d somehow make the situation worse.  Continuing, Kate struck a conciliatory tone, “How much you eat is your business, nobody else’s.  Certainly not Harvey’s.  Now I need you to stop stuffing your face for a second and come look at this.  This just came in from the P.I.”

        “What is it?”  Claire huffed, as she grabbed the small folder of documents Kate handed to her and looked them over.  She hadn’t seen these before.  Grunting in surprise, Claire exclaimed, “These can’t be right.  This page looks like an internal record of sales figures and… this one is about a clinical trial for the drug.  One with a female sample...  How did the P.I. get these?”

        “How should I know?  Will they help our case?”  Kate wondered, as she rested her hand on her hip.

        “I’d say so.  It looks like Harvey and his team have been bending the truth to help their case.”  Claire sighed trying to compose herself.  She needed to think clearly, her insecurities were clouding her judgment on this.  Remembering the confidence she’d seen from Chloe earlier, Claire decided to embrace her feelings.  She’d let herself go, but so what?  She was a great lawyer and being fat didn’t change that!  Regaining her focus, Claire got her emotions under control, “Okay, game plan.  Kate, go back to the meeting and stall for time.  Janet, get these documents copied into our system and print out copies.  Kimmie, go with Janet once she has the copies ready, bring them back to the meeting room.  Let’s show these pr*cks who’s boss!”

…

10 minutes later

…

        Claire and Kimmie returned to the meeting room with the copied documents in hand.  Claire could spy that Kate was entertaining Harvey, no doubt flirting with him, in the corner of the room, but as Claire sat down, everyone went back to their chairs.  Harvey could tell Claire’s demeanor had changed, he didn’t know if the chubby face he was looking at was one of resolve or one of surrender, either way, he was surprised when the obese young lawyer pulled out a candy bar and placed it upon the folder of documents she’d just placed on the table.

        Taking a page out of Chloe’s book, Claire decided to rub her gluttony in Harvey’s face, both to show him that his comment earlier didn’t bother her, and to make him as uncomfortable as possible.  Unwrapping the candy rather fast, Claire wasted no time in taking a bite and then speaking with her mouth full, “*Ahem* I think we can resume our negotiations.  After consideration, we are now asking for 111.6 million in damages.”

        “111.6 million?  You’re serious?”  Harvey spat, as his eyes went wide at the spectacle playing out in front of him.  Maybe something he said had knocked a screw loose, because it looked like Claire was losing it.

        “Correct.”  Claire hummed, while she inhaled more chocolate.

        “I thought a lawyer with your credentials would know better than to let her personal feelings dictate her actions.”  Harvey sighed in a disappointed tone.

        “This isn’t personal.”  Claire muttered, as she savored the chocolaty taste on her tongue.

        “Whatever,” Harvey dismissed Claire’s assertion and rose to his feet with some conviction before proclaiming, “I’ll see you in trial.  Let’s see what a male judge thinks of your bogus emotional distress claims.”

        Before he could turn to leave, Claire decided it was her turn to try and get under his skin, sounding as smug as possible, Claire spat, “Fine by me, I’ve never lost a case.”

        That comment seemed to rub Harvey the wrong way.  He paused his movement, seemed to think for a second, and then sat back down.  Leaning in closer to Claire, his voice contained his distaste for his opposing council, “I know, I’ve looked into your record.  I’m sorry to tell you this, but your firm has been protecting you.  Assigning you easy cases to build up your reputation.  I’ve seen it before.  Except usually the young and promising lawyer is in on it.  What does that say about you?  You can hide behind that Ive League diploma all you want, but deep down you’re just the fat wife of a failed artist!”

        Blinking away her astonishment, Claire was far from speechless this time.  It was one thing to insult her body, it was another thing entirely to insult her husband!  Leaning in to retaliate, Claire coldly vowed, “You can kiss my fat ass if you think I’m going to accept less than what my clients deserve!  Win or lose, don’t think for a second that I’m not prepared to take this to court!  In fact, if I’m being honest, part of me hopes you are dumb enough not to take this settlement, because then I get to expose you and the shitty company you represent to the public!”

        Sticking the last of her candy bar into her mouth, Claire opening the folder in front of her with the new documents, spun it around and pushed it in front of Harvey’s eyes.  Speaking with her mouthful yet again, but with a distasteful tone, Claire bellowed, “Negligence is one thing, but you and I both know it wasn’t negligence!  Your company willfully cut corners and I would love to prove it in court!  I think the court would like to hear about the all-female sample your company scrubbed from their records.”

        Seeing alarm in Harvey’s eyes, Claire pushed further by pointing to the second document in front of Harvey and taunting, “And before I forget, you might want to check your sales records again, according to our math, there are twice as many clients out there who have been adversely effected by your product than you originally predicted.  Double the clients, double the damages.  111.6 million is what we are asking for.”

        A silence overcame the opposing council.  All looked to Harvey for what to do next, but he seemed to be without a retort.  Sensing things stalling, the mediator piped up, “Perhaps we should take another intermission.”

        “Shove it Nathaniel!  Ten minutes isn’t going to change my mind on this.”  Claire chastised him, as she turned her fury back to the opposing council, “Deal or no deal Harvey.”

        “I need to make a call.”  Harvey spat, while he stood up and started heading out of the room.

        However, Claire wasn’t going to let him off that easy, taking a spoiled, snobby tone, Claire taunted, “Better hurry Harvey!  I’m hungry and you’re making this fat wife late for her dinner!  Every minute you’re not back here, our demands go up by a million dollars!”

        Biting his tongue, Harvey nodded and hurried out of the room.  The documents he’d just seen were supposed to have been purged.  Knowing time was of the essence, he pulled out his phone, found a quiet spot alone in the hallway, outside of an empty office and called his employer, “They know… No, I didn’t say anything… I have no idea...  Maybe their P.I…  Mr. Scineque, with all due respect, if we have a leak this isn’t my fault… No…  It’s their firm’s golden goose… No not Ken Marshall’s daughter, the fat one, Claire Irving…  I don’t know, maybe she still uses her maiden name for work, that’s pretty common nowadays… Can you take this seriously sir… No…  I wouldn’t want to face off against her in court.  Not with this case… So, what do you want me to do about it?  The settlement offer is 111.6 million and counting.  Every minute I waste talking to you is going to cost us more money…”  

…

        When Harvey re-entered the meeting room, the look on his face said it all.

        Beating him to the punch, Claire tapped her pen against the table and pointed out, “You were gone 5 minutes, but I’d be willing to round the settlement down to 115 million and call it even.”

        Sighing deeply, Harvey swallowed his pride and followed his orders, “We are prepared to accept your… generous offer.”

        Kimmie and Kate seemed relieved by this news, but Clare had suspected he’d cave to her demands.

        Sounding cool and professional, Claire tried not to rub in her victory too much, “Splendid.  Let’s get this paperwork processed so this fat wife can go home to her loving husband.”

[polarisdreamer]

Part 8-  

        “Oh Paulie-poo!  I’m home!”  Claire tipsily cooed, as she entered her home after a night spent gleefully drinking and celebrating with her friends from the office.

        Originally the plan had been for Claire, Janet and Kimmie to go out to dinner, but one drink had led to another, and before any of them knew it, a drunken Kimmie had invited Chloe to come join them.  With the fashion star in route, the girl’s ordered another round of drinks and appetizers, so Claire invited her sister Laura to come and join the party.  By the end of the night even Kate had joined in the merrymaking.

        Well and truly **, Claire couldn’t quite recall how much she’d consumed in her blissful binge eating session tonight, but she’d certainly eaten more than anyone else.  Except maybe Janet…  Anyway, she was looking forward to pealing her dress off before her inflated dome of a belly ripped it to shreds.

        “Hey Claire-bear!  Where’s the car?”  Paul inquired, as he hurried down the stairs to the front door to greet his wife, noting that the garage door hadn’t been opened and the car wasn’t in the driveway.

        “I had one too many *Urp!* margaritas sooo I caught an uberrrr home and left the car in the parking garage.”  Claire honestly replied without a hint of shame, while she slowly began lumbering over toward their large living room.  

        “Are you feeling okay?”  Paul murmured, following her.  He could tell she’d been drinking tonight.  She could hardly waddle straight.  He put an arm around his plump wife to help balance her as he led her bulk toward the couch.  Smiling at him deliriously, Claire carelessly tossed the high heels she held in her hands onto the carpet and started running her fingers through her husband’s beard in a playfully fashion.

        “Hmhm, I feel better than okayyy.”  Claire giggled, while she plopped her big butt onto the sofa and reclined fully backward.

        Admiring the formfitting look of his wife’s new dress, Paul blushed, “You look incredible.”

        “Who me?”  Claire teased, as she smiled and lifted one of her chunky legs upward to wiggle her toes in Paul’s face, before whining, “Would you be a sweetheart and give mee a foot massage?  I’ve been on my sore feet all dayyy.”

        “No problem, I’ll grab some lotion.”  Paul answered with relief.  Claire normally was of two moods when she was **, cranky or blissful.  He was happy it was the latter.  Quickly jogging upstairs, Paul smiled to himself.  He knew Claire always worked her ass off.  Helping her relax after a long day was one of his favorite things to do.  He couldn’t wait to give her a five-star foot massage.

        When Paul returned, Claire flashed him a warm smile, and moved her legs to the side for a moment so Paul could sit down.  Once he was on the couch, she rested her feet upon his lap and Paul lathered up his hands.  It was a familiar ritual that they rehearsed nearly every Friday.  So, Paul unsuspectingly asked his usual, “How did everything go today?”

        “My day??  Ha!  Let’s talk about my day!”  Claire burst in a rather animated fashion, “I wake up first thing this morning and my clothes were too tight, so I decided to weigh myself, now the last time I weighed myself I’d lost some weight, so imagine my surprise when I step on the scale and discover I’m officially a freaking balloon!”

        This got Paul’s attention in a hurry, he started massaging Claire’s foot, and locked his loving eyes upon his fat wife.  Stammered in excitement, Paul managed to utter, “Huh?!”

        Rolling her eyes at her husband’s phony alarm, Claire brought his attention to her midsection, where she used both her hands to jiggle her rather pronounced belly girth.  Sounding a bit bratty, Claire complained, “Look at my tummy!  *Urp!* It’s like jello!  It’s all soft and jiggly!  I weigh more than I ever have in my life sweetheart!  There was a time when I weighed close to 120 pounds in college, and now I’m upwards of 280 pounds!  280 pounds!!  And I was mad at you today, because it’s all your fault I got so fat!  I cannot stop eating!”

        “Claire-bear!  Listen…”  Paul began to beg for forgiveness, but Claire cut him off.

        “Calm down, I said I ‘was’ mad at youu.  I’m cool now.  We’re cool.  I know you love meee.  And you love all of my flawsss.  Especially my fat.  You’re the best husband I could have ever hoped for and I’m soooo thankful you’re all mineee.”  Claire hummed, as she watched the relief overcome her frazzled husband’s face.

         “Aww, Claire.  You’re the best wife in the whole wide world.”  Paul cheerfully said, while his attention returned to really giving his wife a good foot massage.

        Claire smiled at this.  She knew Paul meant it.  Relaxing, Claire’s tipsy mind darted to something else, “Oh, I found a buyer interested in your gallery today.  She and her husband want to stop by on Friday to browse.  We don’t have plans, right?”

        “No, no plans, that would be awesome.  Thanks darling.”  Paul answered in cheerful spirits.  Without his wife’s referrals his business wouldn’t be having an iota of success.

        “Anytime, anytime, you’re lucky I don’t start charging you commission.”  Claire teased.

        “My money is your money already honey.”  Paul reminded her, not letting his wife goad him.

        “What money do you have??”  Claire began to teasingly argue, before suddenly remembering something critical and shouting, “Oh! Oh!  I have news!  *Urp!* Kate stopped by when I was hanging out with all the girls tonight and pulled me aside.  She told me Mr. Marshall is giving me his commission for the Preston case since I did all the work!”

        “How much is that plus your normal commission?”  Paul wondered not really knowing how the whole commission process worked.

        Leaning her chubby face upward and making eye contact with her husband, Claire nearly coughed, “1.1 million dollars!”

        “No way…  For real?”  Paul stammered in disbelief, as he stopped massaging his wife’s feet and she switched which one was on his lap.

        “Haha!  I know, we are gonna be rolling in dough!”  Claire squealed with joy.

        “That’s awesome Claire-bear!”  Paul praised his wife, while began massaging her other foot.  As he did, he noticed that Claire’s hands hadn’t left her belly.  In fact, rather than jiggling her fat like she was earlier she seemed to be gently rubbing it.  Longing to sink his hands into his wife’s fleshy midsection, Paul swallowed to keep his mouth from watering and politely nodded toward Claire’s belly and added, “You know, I could do that too.”

        Noticing she’d been playing with her own fat, Claire blushed for a moment before pushing her embarrassment to the side and saying, “Well, this big belly is your fault, you can take over, my arms are getting tired anywayss.”

        Letting go of Claire’s foot and wiping his hands on a towel, Paul crawled upon his wife and straddled her atop her chunky lap.  As his hands began tenderly caressing her big gut, he sighed in bliss, “I love your belly.”

        “*Urp!* I know, you like it more than my breasts.”  Claire teased, as she wiggled her upper body and let her cleavage jiggle in front of her husband’s view.

        “Not true, I find your belly just as attractive as your breasts.”  Paul argued, while his hands were unable to let go of her lower roll of stomach fat.

         “It’s cause they’re each made of pure fat, isn’t it?  Hmhm, you just love how fat I’ve gotten, don’t you?”  Claire teased knowing where her husband’s quirky lusts lay.  Playing to his desires, Claire added in a seductive tone, “Look at my rolls of fat!  Marriage made me sooo curvy!!  I thought I would gain a little weight, I mean people always say you gain after marriage, but I had no idea I was going to get sooo chunky!!  And I just keep packing on the pounds!!  I swear I’ve eaten at least five pounds worth of food today alone!”

        “That’s not a problem.”  Paul gulped trying to read Claire’s mood.  She sometimes teased him like this when she was trying to get him going, but something sounded different in her voice right now.  Was it a certain sense of enjoyment?  Paul couldn’t be sure, so he decided to stay sincere, “I think you look ravishing.”

        “Hmm, I know you do.  Mhh, that feels good.”  Claire groaned from the way Paul was using his hands to massage her soft belly.  She could feel the love he had for her.  The way he was touching her was slowly coaxing her insecurities into submission.

        As the husband and wife cuddled on the sofa, Paul eventually maneuvered himself into the ‘big spoon’ position and began rubbing his wife’s belly from behind.  As his wife let out a few burps and moaned with pleasure, Paul whispered in her ear, “This is the best present I could ever ask for.”

        Just then, Claire felt alert, like the tipsiness within her had suddenly worn off.  Slowly but surely, Claire remembered what today was…  It was Paul’s birthday!  Mortified about forgetting his big day, and guilty she’d been mad at him most of the day for no good reason, Claire yelped in worry, “Oh my god!  I forgot your birthday!!  I’m sooo sorry!”

        “It’s okay.”  Paul tried to comfort her.

        Trying to wiggle out of her husband’s warm embrace, Claire bellowed, “No it isn’t, I’m a horrible wife!”

        “You’ve got a lot on your plate, I understand.”  Paul reasoned with her, as Claire broke free and wobbled off the sofa and to her feet.

        “I didn’t even get you any presents…”  Claire lamented, while she held her hand on her head and tried to think, “Well, besides…”

        “Besides what?”  Paul sat up, “You got me a present?”

        “Yeah, but… I can’t give it to you anymore.”  Claire muttered looking horribly embarrassed.

        Confused, Paul asked, “Why?”

        “Because… it’s embarrassing?”  Claire revealed, as her beautiful face reddened.

        Needing to know, Paul pressed her, “What was it?

         “No, I can’t tell you, I don’t want to spoil it!”  Claire pouted, as she started pacing back and forth.

        “Then just give it to me.”  Paul urged, while he stood up and tried to calm his wife.

        “No!  It’s embarrassing!”  Claire shook her head, as Paul tenderly braced her to stop her from pacing.

        “Why is it embarrassing?”  Paul questioned earnestly.

        “It just is.”  Claire bit her lip, “Forget about it.”

        “I’m not going to forget about it.”  Paul shook his head.

        Realizing her husband was serious, Claire took a few breaths to calm herself.

        Paul loved her.  He thought she was the most attractive person on earth.  Maybe society didn’t believe that a fat wife could be confident and beautiful, but her husband certainly did.  He thought curves, and some extra padding, were the sexiest things in the world.  What was the harm in showing Paul her gift?  Heck, he’d probably love it, even though it made Claire cringe at the thought.  Making up her mind, Claire cleared her throat and replied, “Ugh!  Fine.  Wait here…  I’ll be right back.”

        Paul listened and waited, while his hefty wife lumbered upstairs to the bedroom.  As five minutes slowly turned into ten, Paul wondered what Claire was up to.  Letting his curiosity get the better of him, Paul made his way up the stairs.  Once he got upstairs, he could hear his wife quietly cussing in the bedroom.  She was getting changed.  But what was she changing into?  Paul couldn’t wait to even guess.  Instead, he burst into the bedroom.

        Claire turned toward him in surprise, and Paul observed his wife wearing the sexiest lingerie he’d ever seen!  The material looked expensive, and it was obvious Claire had outgrown everything by quite a lot.  Her big breasts spilled out from her bra, her butt couldn’t be contained, the thigh-high stocking that were pulled mostly all the way up dug into her fat thighs, and her rotund belly bulging out from her midsection was so massive that it covered the majority of her panties.  It was probably more accurate to say that her belly had engulfed them.

        Almost in a trance, Paul muttered in awe, “Claire…  I’m speechless.”

        Not looking upset her husband had barged in on her, Claire replied with a sensitive, “I know…  I bought it three months ago…  I was only 250lbs then…  I thought I was on track to be under 240 by now…  So…  I’ve outgrown your present by 40 f*cking pounds…”

        Paul was so turned on hearing her say that, he couldn’t sensor what was on his mind.  He just blurted out, “I think it couldn't fit you any better... well, unless… maybe… if you outgrow it by 50lbs...”

        “You’d still worship me if I gained another 50 pounds?”  Claire raised an eyebrow at her husband, misunderstanding that he’d only suggested she gain another ten pounds.

        “I would.”  Paul nodded, while he watched his wife tentatively brace her plump and squishy gut.

        Glancing at the picture of her and Paul on their nightstand, Claire picked it up.  She looked so tiny next to him at their wedding.  She’d been so skinny, and Paul had been so fat.  Now it was the other way around.  She’d ballooned into a hippo and he’d shredded himself into the best shape of his life.  Placing the wedding picture back on the nightstand and facing her husband, Claire spoke her mind, “Don’t you miss the old me?  The skinny me?  Even a little bit?”

        Grabbing his wife and pulling her into a hug, Paul swore, “First and foremost, I love you Claire.  Skinny or fat, I love you no matter what.  If you want to go back to being skinny, I’ll support you 100%.”

        “Ha!  You make it sound so easy.”  Claire laughed, as Paul pulled back and looked at her pensively.  Seeing the worry in his eyes, Claire decided that she did need to make a change in her life.  If she was unhappy with herself, her husband would be unhappy too.  She knew what her husband really wanted, and for the first time in a long time, she really knew what she wanted for herself.  Smiling sweetly, Claire grabbed both sides of her husband’s beard and pulled him in close so she could say with her next horny breath, “It would take a lot of effort to work off all my marriage weight.  I think the fat is here to stay.”

        “Really?”  Paul smiled, while his hands clung to his wife’s meaty love handles.  He was unsure if he was dreaming.

        “Really.”  Claire vowed, as she pulled her loving man in for a long kiss.

        As they tenderly parted, the feeder inside Paul just had to know, “Does that mean you’ll gain another 50 pounds for me??”

        Tilting her head upward, and grinning at her husband, Claire sweetly teased, “We’ll see about it.”

[polarisdreamer]

Author's Note:

That’s it! I hope you enjoyed the story! It has been a fun ride writing this. For those who might not have figured it out, Claire and Paul are indeed the same characters from my other collab with berserker1133, “Paul’s Dilemma.” However, you might recognize some other characters in the story from other stories by either myself or Berserker1133. I hope fans of our writing will enjoy these little crossovers and nods to previous stories, although it was my goal to make this story stand on its own, not just as a sequel to “Paul’s Dilemma,” “Fail Better,” “Grandma’s Cooking,” and others.

If you enjoyed the story please let me know! Please consider making a comment with feedback for me.  If you need some questions to guide your feedback, here is what I want to know:

What did you think of the story?

Who was your favorite character??

Did you enjoy the conclusion??

And most importantly: Which scene was your favorite and why??

Thanks again for reading! It really means a lot to me! And a big thanks to Berserker1133 who made all this possible in the first place!

[Jokeywokey]

That was amazing! Would hope for a sequel, I have a idea for it.

[polarisdreamer]

Feel free to PM me about it!

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