Fat Chances Read online

  Fat Chances

  Write More Publications

  Fat Chances

  J.S. Wilsoncroft

  Copyright © 2012 J.S. Wilsoncroft

  E-book Edition

  Published by Write More Publications

  ISBN: 978-0-9852189-6-6

  All rights reserved. The reproduction of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without permission of Write More Publications, www.writemorepublications.com

  First Write More Publications Printing 2012

  All the characters in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. All work is from the imagination of the author.

  All rights reserved.

  This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-Book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  DEDICATION

  This book is dedicated to all those women who are struggling or have struggled with weight problems. Being overweight can be a burden, but loving yourself shouldn't be. We can truly be happy people if we learn to love ourselves first. So stand up, put on your best smile and show the world that you are a loveable and laughable person.

  Chapter 1

  I've always been overweight, ever since I was a little girl. My family had this little joke. We always called ourselves, The Chunky Monkey family. My father, mother, brother and my twin sister and I are all overweight. So it was safe to say that being a chubbo, ran in the family. Or so I thought, when my sister decided to go on a diet and join the local gym.

  Sure, I’ve had my ups and downs with being overweight, and my bouts of depression, being taunted in school by skinny blonde cheerleaders who said that I would never get a boyfriend with my fat ass. Being a teenager and 80 pounds overweight wasn’t exactly a smooth ride, but I learned to muddle through middle school and most of high school. I’m a senior this year, so after graduation, I was finally going to be free of having to deal with ignorant, skinny people who got their jollies off tormenting fat people like me. Soon, I would be in the real world with real people with real problems; some like mine, some even worse.

  “Annie, are you coming?” Molly, my sister, asked. Molly and I are both 18 and yes, twins. Thank God, we don’t look alike. I could only imagine the name calling that came with fat twins. We both have Dad’s crystal blue eyes, but Molly inherited Mom’s button nose and I inherited Dad’s long straight nose. We both have dark brown hair, except Molly’s hair is long and wavy while I keep mine, short and pixie.

  “Yeah, yeah,” I groaned. I hated winter and today was our first day back to school from our Christmas vacation. I used to love going back to school after the holidays to show off my new clothes and jewelry, but this year I didn’t. I wasn’t happy that I was now officially wearing a size 2X shirt and size 18 jeans. Molly wasn’t as big as me. Of course it helps when you’re not vertically challenged like myself, which, by the way, makes me look even bigger. Molly had at least a good three inches on me, so her extra weight didn’t make her look as fat. But unlike me, I stood only five foot tall and looked rolly polly.

  As for our personalities, Molly was the complete opposite of me. She loved life and herself and even managed to become friends with some of our classmates who used to torment us in middle school. It’s like she forgot how evil some of those people were to us, but I certainly didn’t forget. While Molly was off running to parties and sleepovers, I stayed home alone in my room either reading or writing.

  I climbed into the red Dodge pick-up that Mom and Dad bought for us both. It was our sweet sixteen birthday present. Yeah, another joy of having a twin sister. We always had to share our presents. Whoopee fricking doo! I took a deep breath before lifting my short, stocky leg into the oversized truck. Why my parents chose to buy us a truck that stood three feet off the ground was beyond me. I needed a step ladder to get into the damned thing. I grabbed the handle inside of the roof just above the window and pulled myself up into the passenger seat, which was not an easy task. Molly didn’t seem to have a problem getting in, since she was blessed with longer legs.

  “UGH!” I grunted as I sat down in the black leather seats.

  “I’m serious, Annie, you really need to start going to the gym with me. There’s a new Zumba instructor there and he’s HOT!” she exclaimed. I shook my head and rolled my eyes as we pulled out of the driveway.

  “I’ll think about it,” I said, knowing full well that I would only think about it for a total of three seconds. I hated exercising. I hated it when my fat shook like a bowl full of jelly. I really hated gym class, too. My stomach would turn into knots just thinking about it.

  “Seriously, Zumba really works. I’ve already lost ten pounds and I feel great,” Molly said, excited. I turned my head to look out the window so she couldn’t see me rolling my eyes again. Her losing ten pounds was all I’d heard about for the last two days. And frankly, I was getting sick of it!

  Before long, we pulled into the school parking lot. It didn’t take long, considering that we only lived ten minutes away. I groaned in disgust when I saw that the parking lot was already full. I couldn’t wait for the school year to be over. Then I wouldn’t have to see their faces ever again. I was looking forward to summer and moving from this small town of Penfield, Pennsylvania, to Maryland to live with my Aunt Kelly. Molly was staying home since she enrolled into a local college to study nursing. As for me, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with my life yet. All I knew for sure was that I wanted to get out of this stinking hell hole.

  “Hey, Annie! Hey, Molly!” My friend Natalee Ramoni hollered as she stood by my locker waiting for me. Natalee was my best friend since the third grade. She was the only girl, besides my sister, that I trusted with my life.

  “Hey, Nat, did you have a nice Christmas?” I asked, trying to sound cheerful, but I was feeling self-conscious about my 2X shirt. It felt like everyone was staring at me, as if I had a flashing neon sign on the back of my shirt reading XXLARGE. I knew I was just being paranoid, but it still felt like everyone was staring at my fat body.

  “Oh yeah, it was the best! Looky, what I got!” She squealed, holding her hand up, waving a shiny white stone that covered her whole finger. I grabbed her hand, snapping it closer to me.

  “OH, MY GOD! YOU’RE ENGAGED?!” I looked up at Natalee and she was beaming.

  “Yep! Tommy asked me to marry him. Can you believe it?” Tommy Hanson was her boyfriend since the eighth grade. He was in tenth grade when they started dating. For the last four years, he’d been working at a local lumber company, saving money to buy her a house. I envied Nat. She had everything that I ever dreamed in a man. Tommy was sweet and good to her and he loved everything about her. Even though Natalee wasn’t fat like me, she wasn’t exactly the skinny type either. And yet, Tommy treated her like she was the most beautiful girl in the world. I could see it in his green eyes when he looked at her. Tommy genuinely loved her.

  “Ahhhh … when’s the date?” Molly squealed when she saw the diamond ring.
/>   “This October! I told Tommy that I was not wearing a wedding dress in 90 degree weather.”

  I laughed when she said this. Natalee hates summer. She would rather be freezing her ass off than bake in the sun.

  The rest of the day went by quickly. Listening to Nat talk about her wedding plans was far more enjoyable than listening to Molly talk about Zumba and the ten pounds she had lost.

  “So, are you going to go to Zumba class with me tonight?” Molly asked as we pulled out of the parking lot after shool.

  I groaned under my breath. “I will only if you promise to quit talking for the rest of the night.”

  She laughed, then stopped and glanced over at me to see if I was serious. “Do you mean to quit talking to you or everybody?” she asked, her blue eyes wide.

  “Me,” I replied. Although I would have loved for her not to speak for the rest of the night, I knew it would be physically impossible for her to do. Miss Jabber Jaws.

  “DEAL!” She squealed.

  ***

  “What the hell am I supposed to wear?” I mumbled to myself while staring at all the clothes scattered across my bed. I didn’t want to wear sweatpants and sweat my bloody ass off, and I didn’t want to wear shorts, either. Everyone would see my thunder thighs! My purple t-shirt made me look like a grape. “Ugh!” I really didn’t have any other choice but to wear my black t-shirt and grey cotton capris that didn’t do justice at hiding my fat rolls, so I gave up and walked downstairs to the kitchen where Molly was waiting. Mom, Dad and my brother, Wayne, had already left to go watch Wayne play a basketball game. Once in a while I would go, but after a half hour of sitting on those hard, wooden bleachers, my ass and legs would go numb. There was nothing more embarrassing than standing up and walking like an 80-year-old lady because your fat body couldn’t sit in one position for very long.

  “I’m so excited that you’re coming with me! You’re going to fall in love with Cory,” Molly squealed, literally bouncing in her seat.

  “Shhhhh,” I replied, reminding her of our deal.

  Molly laughed then turned to look at the road as she drove us to the other side of town.

  “Who’s Cory?” I asked, thinking about the name she’d just mentioned. I was pretty sure I had never heard that name before. With one hand on the wheel, she pointed at her pressed lips, hinting that she wasn’t allowed to speak.

  “Okay!” I replied, laughing. “Just tell me who Cory is, then you can shut up again.”

  “He’s the Zumba instructor. He’s tall, dark, and handsome. I’m telling you, Annie, he’s like one of those guys you envision when reading one of your Harlequin romance books,” she gushed. Molly wasn’t much of a reader like I was, but she read the Harlequin books only because they were smutty. Molly was a fan of smut. I shook my head and laughed. But this Cory being that good looking remained to be seen.

  “Good evening, ladies,” I heard a male voice greet each woman as we stood in line at the gym waiting to get in. I sighed heavily, holding my towel and water bottle close to my stomach, hoping to conceal some of my fat. Why did I agree to come here? Oh yeah, because I’m that fricking stupid.

  “Good evening, girls! I’m so glad to see you here, tonight!” The young male voice sang as we approached him. Molly giggled like an idiot as she pulled me close to her side. I hesitated to look up for a moment, but then I was curious to see what all the fuss was about with this guy. I looked up and a small gasp escaped my lips. And Molly was telling the truth. This guy was a character from a Harlequin book. He was tall, dark, and handsome, and did I mention HOT? I could feel the heat rush to my face as I stared at him. He had short dark brown hair that was feathered on the sides, and his bronze skin matched his chocolate brown eyes perfectly. Two dimples formed around his perfect mouth when he smiled. And did I mention his body? OMG! He was the god of muscles in his white tank top and black spandex shorts. His arms were a solid mass of muscles and perfect, not like some of those guys that walked around like they are holding basketballs under their armpits. Ewww, gross! No, Cory was built perfectly in every way.

  Quickly, I bent my head down to stare at the floor. I was embarrassed, not because he was staring at me, but because I was fat and gross. I looked like a tubby tooby girl standing next to this perfect, handsome guy.

  “Ahhh … who is this?” he asked Molly. My head snapped up when I realized that he was asking about me.

  “Cory, this is my sister Annie,” she replied, tugging at my arm, pulling me closer toward the two of them. The smell of clean soap tickled my nose as I stood before him.

  “Annie! That’s a beautiful name. I’m so glad you’ve come to join us tonight. I’d really like it if you and your sister could join me up front.” Then he smiled and winked before turning to the young lady standing behind me.

  “Oh, my God, he wants us to be up front!” Molly gushed, then grabbed my wrist and pulled me through another door. Great! I wanted to tell Molly that I thought he was being a jerk, but she was just too damned happy. I could feel my face getting hot at the very idea of standing in the front row, shaking my fat ass while everyone watched … ugh! I wanted to turn around and walk out the door, but instead, I followed Molly into a large room. The floor was a shiny oak, the same color as the gym floor at the high school. The cement walls were painted pale yellow and posters of hot looking men and woman in exercise gear hung in various places along the walls.

  Molly tugged me along to the right side of the room, where there was a state-of-the-art stereo system. CD’s were scattered all over the floor and there was a silver and red water bottle with the name “Cory” written on it. I knew, then, that this was where the front row started.

  “Are you fricking nuts? I’m not standing up front!” I replied, but Molly turned around, giving me her sad puppy dog eyes while her lips pushed out into a pout. “You can stay here, but I’m keeping my ass in the back.” I bellowed.

  “Annie, please! He’s never asked anyone to stand up front with him before. This is HUGE!” Molly begged.

  “Well, then, go ahead! Dance up front, but I’m staying in the back,” I argued, then walked back to the last line next to the wall and sat my towel and water bottle on the floor and waited with my arms crossed for the stupid Zumba class to start. Molly sighed heavily then followed me. She threw her bag and towel down beside mine and gave me a disgusted look. I knew she was pissed, but I didn’t care. I wasn’t about to make an ass out of myself because she had the hots for this Zumba instructor.

  Then suddenly Cory walked into the room, clapping his hands, just as everyone hurried to find their spots. “Are we ready, ladies, to make some sweat?” he chimed then turned around and popped a CD into the stereo. A few of the ladies giggled, Molly included. I just rolled my eyes. He started off slow with a few warm ups, stretching our arms and legs then touching our toes … which was physically impossible for me. Why did I agree to come here? Oh, to embarrass the hell out of myself … yeah, now I remember, I thought to myself.

  Then the real music started. Suddenly, a combination of Congo and hip hop music blasted from every corner of the room. “All right ladies, lets shake those hips. Show me watcha got!” he cheered, waving his arms up and down. Soon the whole group was in unison, moving and swaying to the music. That is, everyone but me. But I felt bad for Molly and another lady standing beside me as I kept bumping into them, stepping on their toes. Apparently I wasn’t aware of how wide my girth really was.

  Sweat poured off my body as I pushed myself to keep up with the music. A couple of times Cory danced his way toward the back of the line, encouraging everyone to “Move those muscles! Feel the burn!” I kept my eyes trained on the floor, avoiding his eye contact. At one point, I nearly jumped out of my skin when I felt his cool hand touch my shoulder. I turned to see him smiling at me from ear to ear, showing off his insanely white teeth. I tried to smile, but I knew it probably ended up looking more like a frown.

  “Okay, ladies, let’s take a ten minute break,” he spoke evenl
y after what felt like an eternity. I was shocked that he wasn’t short of breath, when I, on the other hand, was panting like a dog in the desert. I felt like I was going to pass out as I became lightheaded. I leaned against the wall to steady myself, wiping the sweat off my forehead. My hair was a sopping mess and so was my shirt. I looked at Molly and she was sweating, too, but not as much as I was. I bent down to grab my water bottle when a hand snatched it from under me.

  “Here you go,” Cory said in a polite tone then handed me my water bottle.

  “Thanks,” I wheezed. I had to tilt my head back to look into his dark eyes.

  “Are you feeling okay?” he asked as his eyebrows pulled together, concerned.

  “Uh … yeah … I’m just not used to this kind of exercis ….”

  “I begged her to come with me when I first started coming here,” Molly interrupted, then leaned against Cory, trying to get him to look at her.

  “Excuse me, but where’s the bathroom?” I asked, glancing at the two of them. Molly pointed to the opposite end of the large gymnasium, never taking her eyes off Cory.

  “Over there in that corner,” Cory said in a low tone, then gave me a strange look as I turned around and grabbed my towel and quickly walked toward the far corner of the room. All of the other ladies were standing around talking and drinking from their water bottles. Some of them were gazing at Cory. Now I understood why so many women came here to exercise. It wasn’t to get in shape, but to ogle over the hot Zumba instructor.

  I walked over to the mirror and gasped in horror. I knew that my face was flushed with sweat, but not like this. It was beat red, like I was ready to have a heat stroke. I quickly splashed cold water on my face, trying to cool myself down, knowing I couldn’t go back out there, not when my face looked like a ripe tomato. Tears pricked my eyes as I sat down in one of the stalls to go to the bathroom. I hated Molly and I hated myself even more for agreeing to come here. The music started up again, just as I was pulling up my capris. I needed to get out of here, so I walked to the other end of the bathroom to see if there was another exit. No! Shit! The only way that I could leave here was to walk back out into the gymnasium where everyone was exercising again. Where Cory would see my tomato face again.