Workplace Weight Gain (12)
Chapter 12
At 550 pounds, things were definitely getting harder, no matter how much Evan tried to act like they werenât. He was slower in the mornings, clumsier getting dressed, and more easily winded by little things that once hadnât required thought. Shoes were becoming a chore. Socks were irritating. Buttons and belts had turned into daily annoyances. Even standing long enough to get ready for work could leave him flushed and sweating before the day had properly started.
That was part of why he had begun spending more and more nights at Claireâs place. At first it had been convenience, then comfort, and now it was something closer to quiet dependence. He liked how easy she made everything feel. She had room for him, food ready for him, and a way of stepping in before he had to ask for help that kept him from feeling too embarrassed about needing it. In the mornings she would smooth his shirt into place, help fasten things he struggled to reach, and smile as though there were nothing more natural in the world than helping her huge boyfriend get dressed.
Evan knew that should have bothered him more than it did, but Claire made dependence feel almost luxurious. âYou donât need to make life so hard on yourself,â she told him one morning while buttoning a shirt over the vast curve of his stomach, fingers deft and calm where his own had grown clumsy. âLet me take care of you.â Evan gave a weak laugh and said something about turning into a disaster, but Claire only kissed his cheek and told him not to be ridiculous. Then she handed him a loaded breakfast sandwich and a giant coffee for the drive to work.
He was still getting bigger, undeniably so, and he knew it every time he felt the car seat pressing around him or had to brace himself getting up from Claireâs couch. But he had settled into a dangerous sort of passivity. If things were harder, Claire was there to make them easier. If he was ashamed, she soothed him. If he was hungryâor even if he wasnâtâshe fed him. Spending the night at her place had started as romance. Now it was becoming practical. And because practicality felt so much less frightening than admitting how much he needed her, Evan let himself drift further into it.
















