Fat Chances

by J. S. Wilsoncroft

  “Okay,” Cory laughed, then asked, “how about man, then? What if I’m your man?” He laughed. I set the glass on the counter and turned to walk back to the living room, when something caught my eye.

  “Is that a dog bed?” I asked, eyeing a dark green dog bed sitting in the corner of the kitchen next to two small bowls. One was filled with water while the other was empty except for a few small crumbs. Hmpf! I didn’t hear any dog when we came in here nor had he mentioned anything about a dog.

  “Yes. I have a Cocker Spaniel puppy,” Cory replied, eyeing the bed and bowls on the floor. She’s at the vet’s right now, getting spayed. That was where I was coming from when I saw you in the parking lot.” Then he pulled me into the living room and we both sat down on the couch. I grabbed one of the maroon pillows and held it against my stomach, hiding my fat. Cory watched what I was doing, but didn’t say a word.

  “What’s your dog’s name?” I asked, curious. I’ve always loved dogs, but we weren’t allowed to have any because Molly was highly allergic to cats and dogs. His face turned pink when I asked him this. I thought it was funny and strange at the same time. I’d never made a man blush before and I didn’t even say anything perverted, sexy or funny, for that matter.

  “You promise not to get mad?” he asked nervously, laughing, then leaned back and crossed his legs. I gave him a peculiar glance.

  “Well, that depends. Does it have to do with a girl?” I asked, lifting an eyebrow.

  “Hmmmm ... yes, it does,” he replied, smiling widely, showing his perfect white teeth.

  “Hmfp!” I snorted. Part of me was curious now, but the other part of me didn’t want to hear it. I didn’t want to hear about his other girlfriends or relationships that he had in the past. I was never the jealous type. Molly inherited that trait. But picturing Cory with any girl made my blood boil. Then I remembered the nurse from the ER. Beth? Yes, that was her name.

  “What? Are you going to give me the cold shoulder now?” Cory asked, laughing, then gently took my chin into his hand, forcing me to look into his eyes.

  “Her name is Annie, okay?” He stared at me with wide eyes.

  “Wha ... ” I gasped. “Annie?” I asked, tilting my head, confused.

  “Well ... it’s a long story,” he said, pushing a strand of my hair behind my ear. Cory’s touch sent tingles across my cheeks.

  I could barely catch my breath when I spoke, “I want to know.” I needed to know why he would name a dog after me. I wasn’t sure if I should take it as a compliment or an insult.

  Cory stared at me long and hard, debating on whether to tell me. Then he took in a deep breath, and slowly blew it out. “That night, the night we had a fight ... ” I shook my head, swallowing the hard lump in my throat as I thought about that night, the night that I had been a complete ass.

  “I felt really bad about ...”

  “Wait a minute!” I interrupted. “I was the one that acted like a total bitch ...” But before I could finish, he pressed his finger to my lips, shushing me.

  “Let me finish,” he replied. I sighed heavily. Now I really felt like shit. He was blaming himself for how I was acting. I bent my head down to stare at my hands. I felt too guilty now to look at him.

  “Annie, please look at me,” Cory begged, and when I looked up to see him smiling at me. My heart sank deeper into my chest as I was about to cry. God, he is so beautiful and perfect ... unlike me.

  “I spent days trying to figure out a way to make it up to you. I bought flowers ... but I threw them away. I bought a box of chocolates ... but I threw them away, too. I bought a pair of earrings, but I was afraid that you would think I was being too pushy or needy so I ended up sending them to my mother.”

  Cory took another deep breath then sighed heavily. I could feel tears welling up inside me as he continued to tell his story.

  “Anyway, I was coming home from work one night and I saw a sign: ‘Puppy: Free to a Good Home’ and I immediately thought of you.” I raised an eyebrow at him. He chuckled and continued, “I pulled into the driveway of the house and knocked on the door. When the guy opened the door a little black dog ran out to greet me. I knew then that puppy would be the perfect gift to give you.”

  I took in a jagged breath when I realized where this story was going.

  “I was on my way over to give her to you, but then I asked myself. What if she doesn’t like dogs? What if she just slams the door in my face and tells me to get lost? So I took the puppy home with me that night and she’s been here ever since. I named her Annie because with one look she stole my heart just like you did that day at the gym.”

  By the time he finished, tears were streaming down my cheeks. I was speechless. No man had ever done anything so sweet like that for me before, except maybe my father, but that didn’t count. Without saying a word, I leaned over to kiss him and eagerly wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him closer to me. My heart did flips when I felt his arms wrap around my waist. Tears streamed down my cheeks, wetting both of our cheeks as we continued to kiss.

  My mind raced, trying not to think about my weight and how fat I must feel in his arms. Instead, I concentrated on kissing him and ran my fingers threw his thick dark hair. I let out a sharp breath when I felt his hands cupping my butt, bringing my hips closer to his and I felt his male hardness pressing against my leg as he gripped me tighter.

  “Do I still have it?” I breathed as Cory moved to kiss my neck.

  “What?” he asked, his breath hot against my skin.

  “Your heart?” I asked, as a huge smile formed across his face and he squeezed me tighter.

  “You’ll always have my heart. No other woman has affected me the way you have,” he replied, then leaned down and kissed my neck again. “God, you smell so good,” he groaned as I removed my fingers from his hair, then slowly moved my fingers along the lines of his muscles in his back. Oh, God, he was hot! I couldn’t believe that I was in the arms of this gorgeous man, let alone make out with him.

  His hands slowly moved across my body as I continued to trace the contours of his back. My body shuddered when he cupped my breast and rubbed the tips through my shirt. Oh, how they ached for his touch. I never had a man touch me like this and now I couldn’t get enough. I needed him to touch me ... I wanted him to touch me ...

  The shrill ring of the phone broke my train of thoughts.

  “Damn it,” Cory breathed into my ear and I chuckled, breathlessly. I waited on the couch while he rushed to the kitchen to get the phone.

  “That was the veterinarian. Annie’s ready for me to pick up,” he announced, smiling. “Would you like to come with me?” I was thrilled at the idea of seeing the puppy present named after me.

  “Yes!” I stood up then noticed the clock on an end table.

  “Oh, my God! It’s five o’clock. I’ve got to go. I was supposed to pick Molly up at school.” I stammered, looking for my purse.

  “What are you looking for?” he asked, grabbing my hands and pulled me around to face him.

  “My purse!”

  “You didn’t bring your purse,” he replied.

  Oh shit! I left it in the truck. “I have to go. Can you take me back to my truck?” I asked as I grabbed my coat and struggled to push my arms through the sleeves until Cory pulled the sleeve out for me. He hurried and threw on his leather jacket then grabbed his car keys and patted his back pocket to make sure that he had his wallet handy. I smiled, knowing that I had felt his wallet, too.

  “Molly is going to kill me,” I replied, panicked, as Cory turned into the parking lot of the Civic Center. There were now only a few cars in the parking lot, including my red truck.

  “Oh, she is not going to kill you,” he chuckled.

  “Oh, yes she will,” I countered. She and I haven’t been of the best of friends lately, not since ...” I hesitated to say ‘since the night she found us kissing’.

  “Can I call you tonight? Or better yet, do you want to go to the movies?” he asked, th
en grabbed my hand and pressed it to his lips. The heat of his lips burned my hand as he pulled away.

  “Sure, or we could just go back to your house and play with Annie,” I suggested.

  A huge smile stretched across his handsome face, exposing his two dimples. “I like that idea even better. How about we have dinner at my place? Do you like Italian?” he asked, hopeful.

  But before I could answer, he crushed his lips onto mine. We kissed a few more times before I finally peeled myself away from him and got into my truck. Cory followed me until I pulled into my driveway, then he continued on in the direction of the veterinarian’s office. I had just pulled the key out of the ignition when Molly stormed out of the house.

  “Where in the hell were you? I tried texting and calling you a hundred times, but you didn’t answer. I ended up walking home. Walking! Did you hear me? You knew that I wore heels today and you purposely made me walk home! I ended up breaking a heel off one of my favorite shoes and now you owe me a new pair,” Molly continued to scream at me until Mom came out.

  “Molly, get inside, NOW!” Mom ordered then turned to face me. “Annie, you have some explaining to do,” she stood in the doorway with her arms crossed over her chest. I reached across the seat and grabbed my purse then slammed the door shut. Mom waited until I got inside to scold me.

  “ANNIE POWERS! Where in God’s green earth were you? Your sister and I have been calling all over town looking for you for the last two hours! Even Natalee was looking for you! She said you were supposed to meet her after school, but you were gone! Where did you go?” Molly was sitting at the top of the stairs watching and listening to us. I could see the smirk on her face as Mom continued to give me the third degree.

  “I was out,” I replied, tilting my head down to stare at my boots.

  “What do you mean ‘out?’ Out where? You could have at least answered your cell phone,” Mom yelled, pointing toward the door. Her long, fake, hot pink finger nails stuck out as she continued to point at me then at the air toward the door.

  “I wasn’t feeling well after lunch so I left. Then I ran into a friend and we chatted for a while. I must have lost track of time. I’m sorry Mom. It won’t happen again,” I said truthfully. I mean really, it was the truth. I did feel sick, sick to my stomach about Cory and I did lose track of time chatting and kissing a friend, but she didn’t need to know the exact details.

  I could hear Molly stomp down the stairs. “Who’s the friend?” Molly asked, accusing, even though Mom seemed content with my excuse, as she gave me a hug then continued back into the kitchen to make dinner.

  “What?” I turned around to face her. She stood there with her auburn hair pulled back in a ponytail, glaring.

  “WHO WAS THE FRIEND?” She hollered as she tilted her head back and forth sarcastically. I threw my purse on the floor and started up the stairs. I didn’t have to answer to her, and I wasn’t going to. Not when she was acting like a royal bitch to me.

  “Was it Cory?”

  I stopped dead in my tracks and turned around. She gave me an evil grin. “MOOOMMM! Annie was with a boy this afternoon doing God’s knows what,” she yelled, cupped her hand around her mouth to holler. Just then Dad walked through the door.

  “What’s all the screaming about?” he demanded, glaring at Molly, recognizing her big mouth. “Dad, Annie skipped classes to make out with a boy,” she said, accusing. My eyes grew wide as I shot a glance at her, then at Dad. My cheeks instantly started to burn.

  “Dad, she’s lying,” I replied, curling my lip and glaring at her.

  “No, I’m not,” Molly continued, thinking she had me. “I saw her kissing Cory and making out with him.” A series of gasps fell from my lips. Did she? Where? When? Was she eaves dropping or was she just talking shit to get me in trouble? I could feel my legs tremble as I stared at them both.

  “Is she telling the truth Annie?” Dad asked, standing straight with his arms crossed, waiting for an answer.

  “What? NO!” I lied. Damn it! My voice cracked. Why did my voice have to go on me now?

  “Hmfp! I suggest you go to your room until I tell you when to come down,” Dad ordered.

  “But, Dad ...” I yelled.

  “Go!” He pointed toward the stairs. Molly watched with a smirk on her face, thinking she’d won.

  “You too, Molly,” Dad continued, turning to face her. “I had a bad day at work and coming home to listen to you two squabble ... well, I’ve had it! Now go, you two, and I don’t want to hear another word out of either one of you!”

  Tears clouded my eyes as I stomped up the stairs. I was supposed to be at Cory’s house in an hour and now I wasn’t allowed to leave my room until my parents said so. My first real date with Cory and once again, Molly ruined it.

  Chapter 7

  My room was a blurry mess when I threw myself onto my bed, crying. Why was life so unfair? Tonight was supposed to be my first real date with Cory and I was stuck in my bedroom. Worse, I left my purse downstairs by the front door, so I couldn’t even call and tell him that I wouldn’t be coming over. He’s going to think that I stood him up. Or worse, he might think that I don’t like him and Lord knows that was far from the truth.

  I blew out a jagged sigh as tears streamed down my cheeks, soaking my favorite pillow. Memories of our afternoon together kept playing over and over again in my head. I chuckled quietly through my tears when I thought of Cory doing the moon walk across his living room floor. And the way his dark eyes looked into mine just before he kissed me. My lips still burned from our last passionate kiss in the parking lot. I could still feel where his hands had touched my back, arms ... my breasts. My stomach tightened at the thought of him touching me again. I wanted his lips on me, caressing and fondling me. For that brief moment, I didn’t care if his hands would be touching my ‘rolls’ or not. My mind was somewhere else.

  I sat up on the edge of the bed, using the front of my shirt to wipe the tears from my cheeks, but another round of tears quickly filled my eyes when I got a whiff of Cory’s cologne on my shirt. How could they do this to me? I’m eighteen, for God’s sake! I stood up, this time wiping my cheeks with the back of my hand. I wasn’t going to lie here in bed all night and cry. One way or another I was going to be in Cory’s arms, tonight. I just needed to think of a plan and fast. The clock on my nightstand read 6:10 p.m. I promised Cory that I’d be at his house by 6:30 p.m. That gave me twenty minutes to come up with a plan to get the hell out of here. I felt like one of those bad teenagers who were always sneaking out of their houses at night to meet up with friends to drink or their boyfriends or girlfriends. I was never one of those types, until now ... I could feel adrenaline rush through me as I tried to think of an escape plan.

  I needed to call Cory, but I needed to get to my phone without Mom or Dad hearing me. And that was going to be difficult. This house was old and creaky. No one could sneak down those steps without the old wooden boards creaking loudly under their feet. With Mom and Dad in the next room, they would surely hear me. DAMN IT!!!

  I rubbed my temples, hoping to stir something up inside my brain as I paced back and forth in my room. The clock read 6:13p.m. I stopped dead on my feet when I suddenly remembered that mom kept her cell phone on her dresser in her bedroom. “Yes!” I shrieked under my breath.

  I slowly opened my door and listened for Mom and Dad. They were downstairs in the kitchen talking about Dad’s boss. I glanced over at Molly’s door, whose room was right across from mine. There was a dim light coming from under of her door. I could hear her singing quietly to herself. I knew then that she was listening to her MP3 player, which was to my benefit. The last thing I needed was for her to catch me in the act and tell Mom and Dad, again.

  I opened my door open just wide enough to fit my fat ass through then tippy- toed to Mom and Dad’s bedroom down the hall while keeping my ears tuned in for any odd sounds. Like a thief in the night and as quietly as physically possible, I snuck into their room and grabbed Mom’s cell
, then quickly rushed back to my bedroom.

  The adrenaline rush was unbelievable as I started dialing Cory’s number. Even though he just gave it to me this afternoon, I already had it memorized by heart.

  “Hello?” Cory answered. There was hesitation in his voice.

  “Cory, it’s me. Annie,” I was out of breath, not from running from my parent’s room, but because I was excited. I knew in a matter of a few minutes that I would be in his arms, kissing him.

  “Annie? Where are you? Whose number are you calling from?” I could hear the urgency in his voice. This made me smile.

  “Listen. I’ll explain everything to you later. I need you to do me a favor,” I said in a rush. My mind was scrambling to come up with a plan.

  “Meet me at the stop sign at the end of my street in fifteen minutes,” I said, taking a deep breath. I could feel my heart pounding through my chest as I glanced out my bedroom window. The porch roof! That was my escape!

  “What? What are you talking about?” Cory asked, confused. I laughed.

  “My parents sent me to my room. It’s all Molly’s fault. I’ll explain it to you later,” I said briefly, not wanting to get into any details. All I wanted was for him to get here.

  “Wha ... Annie! What’s going on?” he asked again. My heart was beating in my ears as I stared out the window at the porch roof. God, I hope it’s sturdy.

  “Cory! Just meet me here in fifteen minutes!” I shouted, then hung up the phone. Hearing the anxiety in his voice was not helping my nerves. I needed to do this before I chickened out.

  I quickly changed my clothes and slipped into my black hoodie and grey sweatpants as beads of sweat formed across my forehead. I slowly unlatched the lock on the window, opening it as wide as it would go. Then I unlatched the two locks on each side of the screen before popping it out and setting it inside against the wall. I slowly crawled through the window, holding onto the window sill with all my might. As soon as I got out onto the roof, I knew that it was a stupid idea. The ground was much farther down than I anticipated and it was slippery with ice. If I jumped now, I would surely break a leg or two. I looked around to see if there was something that I could use to climb down.