Haley had heard that going from high school to college was a rough transition. But as it turned out, having a two-year gap between one education to the next had made things even more rocky for her. In the span of two years, she'd forgotten most of the stuff that was covered in her Gen. Ed. courses in favor of things like how to calculate sales tax, how much her employee discount covered at her old job, and exactly how many times they could eat out on the dollar menu without going broke. Haley was spending most of her time at the USC Upstate campus relearning her introductory math skills, and realizing that the piddly papers she'd written in high school couldn't hold a candle to the ten-page monsters that her professors expected from her now.
Luckily, she wasn't entirely alone in her endeavors.
"Hey, we're still good for our study sesh after Bio, right?" A smaller shape bounded up towards her as she exited the Humanities building.
Courtney Caldwell was a familiar face, at least. They'd gone to school together back at Boiling Springs High (go Bulldogs!). She was in the grade below Haley, and they'd hung around the same group of friends. It was only by luck that Courtney had decided to take a year off herself, or she'd have been long done with the basic courses that Haley really needed her help with. She was shorter, with a fuller figure than Haley's. She had sandy brown hair in a boyish cut.
"Definitely." Haley shifted her backpack, "Wanna do Big Daddy's again?"
"Sure, I'll pay this time."
They'd been coming to Big Daddy's since they were old enough to drive. After-Church dinners and impromptu lunches after classes were all held at Inman's one and only diner; a mishmash of eighties, nineties, and early naughties' sci-fi and NASCAR memorabilia that belied the best chili cheeseburger that you could find in the tri-county area. Haley hadn't been in since she'd been home until Courtney suggested it a few weeks back, but after a heaping helping of bacon cheese fries she'd begun remembering why she'd loved this place...
"Whoa there. Hold up. Two patties? On one burger?" Courtney speared a stack of fries with her fork, "Madness."
"It's really good." Haley took a wide-open bite from her burger. Chili oozed from beneath the bun and onto the wax paper it'd been served on, "Hey, can I steal some fries?"
"Just order your own." Courtney made a face behind her glasses, "I think I can spare another five bucks if it keeps you from taking all the good ones. Again."
"You sure?"
"Yeah, totally." Courtney held a hand up, "Hey, can we get another order of bacon cheese fries here?"
It seemed like lately, all Haley had been doing was eating. The big breakfasts at home hadn't stopped, and she'd been coming into Big Daddy's every Monday Wednesday and Friday after classes. Mom was going cooking crazy now that Haley was back home, making all of her favorites for dinner almost every. it probably didn't help that she'd been grabbing lunch at the CLC every day either. That commuter money was good eatin', and it was one less meal she had to pay for...
By the time everything was said and done, Haley felt no better about the fit of her jeans than she did about her Math 102 course.
"Thanks for paying!" Haley waved goodbye in the parking lot, trying to suck in her swollen stomach, "I'll get you next time!"
She got in her car, tapped on her phone until Courtney had left, and then leaned back in her seat. Finally relaxing, her belly surged forward into a round turgid lump that curved against her t-shirt. God, she was full. The drive home was almost unbearable—five minutes down the road felt like twenty as she fought back the fullness of her own gut.
"I've gotta start cutting back." Haley puffed her way up the walkway, "Or I'm literally gonna explode."
Throwing her keys in the bowl by the door and tossing her half-done homework to the side, Haley collapsed on the living room couch. She laid one arm over her eyes to block out the sun as she rubbed her belly with her free hand. She felt like a garbage disposal—maybe she'd been eating too much of that greasy diner food after all. Her belly was just so round and soft. It hadn't always been like that, had it?
Her last clear thought before drifting off to sleep was that she needed to cut back...
"Haley~!" Came the voice of her mother, hours later, "Dinner's almost ready!"
And her first clear thought upon waking up was wondering what was gonna be for dinner.
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