The Chronicles of Moxie

by Z. B Heller

  “Miss Summers, what are you doing here? Did you know I was going to be here too?

  Did you know that the St. Louis Arch is six hundred and thirty feet tall? And did you know that it was designed by Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen and German-American structural engineer Hannskarl Bandel?”

  “Excuse me, how old is this kid?” David looked at me as I was trying to reseat myself on the blanket.

  “He’s in my class,” I answered.

  I turned to Dillion. “Dillion, I’m out with my friend, Mr. Goldman.”

  “Is he your boyfriend?” I looked at him as if he’d just asked me if I’d had my annual pap.

  “Dillion, your ice cream is melting,” I heard Miles as he approached our blanket.

  “But Dad, Miss Summers is here with her boyfriend.”

  I froze and looked directly at Miles. I was still angry about the night before, so I scooted next to David and put my hand on his thigh. Miles turned a shade of red that I don’t believe had a name in the Crayola box.

  “Miss Summers,” Miles said through gritted teeth.

  “Mr. Dane. I hope you’re enjoying this wonderful afternoon with your family.” My eyes darted to the brunette still by the ice cream cart. “I’m sure it’s nice to be with them after your busy night at the school camp-out,” I said with one of my brows arched.

  “Actually, I didn’t get much sleep at the camp-out. I was pretty distracted for most of the evening.” His face color returned to normal. Now he knew I was playing a game with him. But there was no way I was going to give him the upper hand. I nuzzled in close into David’s neck, surprising both men.

  “Daddy?”

  We all looked at Dillion, who started to look a little pale.

  “Kid, if you’re going to throw up, aim that way,” David said as he pointed to Miles.

  Miles ran to Dillion’s side and bent down to whisper something into his ear. Dillion started shaking and a blank glaze took over his eyes. I released David’s thigh and stood up to get to Dillion, but before I could reach them Miles picked Dillion up in his arms and started walking back to the brunette. I was speechless. I couldn’t call after him because I didn’t know what to say or if it was my place to say anything at all.

  “Weird kid,” I heard David say behind my back.

  “He’s actually a very sweet kid who has been though a lot,” I snapped unintentionally.

  “Whoa, down there, tiger,” he said. “Kids just freak me out a little. Why don’t we go back to my place and pick out a movie to watch?”

  I wasn’t really thinking when I responded. I just nodded my head and kept looking in the direction Miles and Dillion were headed. I couldn’t get rid of the aching feeling that something was wrong. David packed up the picnic and grabbed my hand to start walking.

  We walked to David’s high-rise apartment, which wasn’t too far from the park. I still felt a little unsettled about what had happened to Dillion, but I tried to put it out of my head, thinking it was none of my business. The building David lived in was modern with a hint of stuffiness. Something I definitely was not used to. He gave the doorman a nod of his head and we entered the elevator to go up to his apartment.

  “This is a really nice place,” I said.

  “You haven’t even seen my place yet,” he laughed.

  “I’m sure it’s nice, too.”

  “Well, don’t you want to come see for yourself?”

  He opened the door to the apartment and I had to pick up my jaw that had hit the floor. The foyer lead straight into the living room, which was furnished with modern décor. Off to the left was a kitchen which had granite countertops and stainless steel appliances.

  “You’re right,” I said. “The rest of the place is trashy compared to your apartment.”

  He chuckled and put down the bag he was carrying. He came up behind me and put his hands on my arms. He slowly started moving them up and down and bent his neck to whisper in my ear. “You know, I can help you tone up your arms.”

  I really wasn’t on the same page as he was, and my head was definitely in another universe altogether.

  “You jacking me off will give your arms a good workout.”

  Then he spun me around to face him and smashed his mouth onto mine. I stood there, not understanding what the hell had just happened. His mouth was everywhere. I even think he put his tongue in my nose. He pulled his mouth free from me and rubbed his erection up against my thigh.

  “You know, if we put you on a meal plan and workout with a trainer three times a week, you can get fit in no time. I bet you have a sexy woman under all of that,” he said.

  I took my hands and pushed his chest so he went flying a few feet backwards.

  “What did you say?” I said quietly.

  “It’s not healthy to carry all that extra weight around. I can help you trim up and you’ll feel much better about yourself. I really think that your body has great potential.”

  I was blown away. I couldn’t even come up with a witty remark because I felt too insulted and humiliated.

  “Why, then?” I asked.

  “Why what?”

  “If you think I’m such a fucking whale, why did you even ask me out?” At this point I had raised my voice a couple of notches above normal. “What, is this the test drive Free Willy to get your rocks off?”

  David stood there with his hands on his hips and a look of irritation on his face.

  “Well?” I screamed.

  “My company has a new diet plan that they want to start rolling out next year. We need people to try out the program so we can get some testimonials for when the product launches. When our moms met in the store that day, your mom thought you might be a good candidate, but she thought that me asking you directly would have seemed too crass. So she asked me to take you out and get to know you before I asked you to do it.”

  I didn’t know what to process first. The fact that Martha basically set me up with a guy to help me lose weight, or the fact that I was about to castrate this man standing before me? I went with the latter. I strolled up to him with grace and placed both hands on his chest. I looked up at him through my eyelashes and pulled out my sweetest smile. Then I turned my head to whisper into his ear.

  “It’s a good thing you don’t like children,” I said sweetly. Then I lifted my knee with everything I had, straight into his crotch. He grabbed his balls and went straight to his knees, crying in pain. “Because you don’t have the balls to be a decent man.” I grabbed my purse and ran out of there, leaving David bent over in the same misery I was feeling.

  Chapter Thirteen

  I sat there, in my apartment, with my friend Jack. Jack is a good listener and he likes to soothe me. The best part about Jack is he never talks back. I poured the rest of the Jack that I had into the Coke in my cup and drank it all down in one swoop. It had been two days since the incident with David and I’d held myself prisoner in my apartment. I even took a sick day because I couldn’t stand the thought of me dragging my fat ass to work.

  I hadn’t even bothered brushing my hair or my teeth for the last two days. There were pizza boxes and empty ice cream cartons spread across the floor. Yes, I was in the middle of a pity party, and I was the host of the evening. Both Ryan and Renee had tried calling me, but I had let everything go to voicemail because I wasn’t in the mood for the pep talk. I did however manage to write an email to Martha, expressing my thoughts about her little arrangement she had put me in.

  From: moxiebun86@ibsglobal.net

  To: msummers@ibsglobal.net

  10:53 p.m. CST

  Subject: Fat farm

  Dear Mommy Dearest,

  You’ll be pleased to know that I have flown away to join a community of people that can accept me for who I am. A wonderful group of people with luscious rolls of fat seeping from their bodies. I’ve become best friends with a girl who has multiple chins and can hide pieces of food in there for us to snack on later. They provide wonderful activities including t
he Jelly Roll Jiggle, where we all slather jelly on our stomachs and smash into each other like in a mosh pit. My personal favorite pastime is the Hog’s Heaven Spa, where we all sit in a bunch of shit talking about how fat as pigs we are. Please do not come looking for me, as you will not be able to trace my steps. Unless you find the crumbs of the Snickerdoodle cookies I was eating on my way here.

  Sincerely,

  Your fabulously fat stepdaughter.

  Ok, so it was a little over the top. But I think it got the point across to her that I was pissed to say the least. I turned on the television and became engrossed in the show “I Gave Birth and Never Knew I was Pregnant.” Then I was a little concerned that I could very well have a baby growing inside of me and not know it. There was a knock at the door that broke my thoughts of giving birth on my couch. I opened the door and there stood Miles.

  “Still have a problem asking who’s at the door before answering, I see.”

  “What do you want? I have company,” I slurred.

  “Oh, yeah? Is it that winner from the park the other day?” he asked as he put both hands on the door frame.

  “No, I have a date with Jack. He’s super hot and is a good quick fuck,” I sneered.

  “You must have given him one hell of a blow job because I can smell him all over your breath.”

  “Fuck you,” I said and turned to walk back into my apartment.

  “Tempting,” he said. “But not why I came here.”

  “Oh, so you came here to get me hot and bothered, get me off, laugh at the fat girl and ditch me behind. Sorry, that game has already been played.”

  “Wait, what did you say?” I could hear his breathing become rough, like he was pissed.

  “I said, that game has already been played. David tried to get into my big girl panties so he could see if he could get me to drop the weight and be his model for his slim-trim company. Apparently, my fat ass could have been his model.”

  Miles took three long strides to get behind me. He grabbed my hips and spun me around. Then he moved his hands to my face and braced my cheeks.

  “I don’t want to ever hear you talk about yourself that way again. Do you understand me?” he said with a strained voice.

  “And why the fuck do you care? You go home to a beautiful skinny brunette every night. What? Does she not have enough junk in her trunk to hold onto when you screw her?”

  He looked me straight in the eyes. I could see the dark blue pools of his irises radiate through me.

  “I mean it, Moxie. You don’t know what the hell you’re talking about and you’re too drunk for me to explain any of it.”

  “Well, then it should be easy for you. Screw the fatty and then leave to go back to your happy little home.”

  “Moxie, it is taking everything inside me not to kiss that filthy mouth of yours. But you need to listen to me explain everything and I can’t do it with you like this,” he said calmly.

  “So what are you going to do about it? Sit on the damn stoop until the morning?” I snarled.

  “No, I’m going to strip you down, get you in the shower, because, frankly, you reek of Jack and Coke, then I’m going to put you to bed.”

  He lifted me off the ground and threw me over his shoulder. I let out a yelp of surprise as he walked me into the bathroom. He turned on the shower and set me down on the vanity. He stuck his hand in to feel the temperature of the water and when he deemed it comfortable he turned back to me. He grabbed the hem of my shirt and gently pulled it over my head. I hadn’t even bothered putting a bra on the past two days, so my breasts were fully exposed.

  He took my hips and glided me off the counter so I was standing up. Slowly, he tapped each ankle for me to lift my foot so he could remove my socks. He stood upright and sank his fingers into my sweat pants, and started to pull them down. I grabbed his hands in order for him to stop. But then he looked at me, and suddenly I felt safe. He pulled down my pants, along with my panties, and gazed back up to met my eyes. I felt the most vulnerable I ever had at that moment.

  “Ready to get wet?” he finally spoke.

  “I think I was already there when you came into my apartment,” I said in a breathy voice.

  He smiled and took my hand. He slid the shower curtain to the side and helped me into the tub. The water was perfect, warm and calming. I hadn’t expected what happened next. Miles reached for the back of his collar and lifted his shirt above his head. It was the first time I saw his broad chest and the dark hair covering it. The hair trailed past his navel and disappeared under his jeans. He unfastened his belt and my body began to shake, partly because of the cold air contrasting with the warm water, partly because I wanted to see what was under his jeans.

  His jeans fell to the floor and my Adonis stood there, looking sexy as hell in his boxer briefs. I suddenly felt conscious of my body, looking at this man that was made of pure muscle. I tried to use my hands to cover up my body, but when I did, Miles grabbed my wrists and brought them to my sides.

  “Don’t ever cover yourself in front of me,” he said in a husky tone.

  All I could do was nod, and he stepped in the tub with me. “Your boxers are getting wet,” I said, as I blatantly stared at his erection.

  “I’m trying my best to be somewhat of a gentleman. If I lose the boxers, I’ll also lose my self-control. All I want to do is wash you down, sober you up a little, and put you to bed.”

  “But then you’ll leave and go back to her,” I said, a little more harshly then I meant to.

  “I told you that we’d talk about it. But I won’t do it until your head is clear. Now pass me the soap so I can shampoo your hair.”

  It was one of the most intimate acts I’ve ever partaken in. Miles ran his fingers through my hair, massaging the scalp with the shampoo. I stood with my body facing the shower head, letting the water run down my front, warming me and taking my stress down the drain.

  “What the hell is this?” Miles asked.

  I turned my head to see what he was talking about. “It’s a poof,” I said with a smile.

  “A what?”

  “You know, a poof.”

  “Is it some kind of sex toy?” he teased.

  I grabbed the poof out of his hand and put some soap into it, lathered it up and handed it back to Miles.

  “Isn’t this why they make washcloths?” I could hear the smile in his voice.

  “You have thirty seconds to loofa my ass or I’m kicking you out of the shower,” I demanded.

  “Yes, Ma’am!”

  When Miles was done rinsing me off, he turned off the shower and opened the curtain. He grabbed a towel off the drying rack and wiped me dry, staying a little longer on my breasts to make sure they were thoroughly dried. He took the second towel and wrapped it around his waist. Miles lifted me out of the tub, cradled me into his arms and walked us back into my bedroom. He pulled the covers off and I didn’t even bother putting some pajamas on. The sheets felt comfortable on my skin, like laying on a soft cloud.

  “I promise we’ll talk,” he whispered as he smoothed my hair off my forehead. Then he bent down to give me a kiss on the cheek. I don’t remember what happened after that because I feel into deep, peaceful sleep.

  A bunch of girls were trampling over my head to get over to the boy band that was playing. I opened my eyes and realized that no girls were smashing my head and the alarm was blasting Back Street Boys. The feeling I had in my head was a hangover from hell. My friend Jack was now officially disowned.

  I reached my hand over to shut off the alarm, when I quickly realized that it was Tuesday and I needed to get ready for work. I wondered what would happen if I quit today and lived off the land. Then again, I didn’t believe that the land provided Prada handbags.

  I walked into my closet to find something that was work suitable, but also comfortable. The last thing I wanted was a pair of Spanx trying to squeeze the remaining alcohol out of my body. I decided to go with gray slacks with an elastic waistband and a black lo
ng tunic, to hide the fact that I was wearing pants only seen on little old ladies.

  Glancing into my refrigerator, I found nothing that seemed remotely appetizing for breakfast. I had a feeling that anything I ended up eating would be revisited through vomit later on. I loved Lucky Charms, but I didn’t think that the pot of gold mixed with vomit would work. I settled on grabbing a can of diet Coke and a piece of dry toast.

  I nibbled on my toast, trying desperately to reflect on what had transpired the night before. Besides my raging affair with Jack and having a ménage with several pizza boxes, I remembered Miles paying me a visit. I also recalled a shower, my poof, and he slipping me into bed, mumbling something about promising to tell me something. I heard my phone buzz, and hoped that it was him. But it was a text from Ryan.

  Ryan: Jimmy’s pizza called me last night. They said you put me down as an emergency contact in case you ordered more than three pizzas.

  Moxie: I had a bit of a rough night.

  Ryan: Ordering five pizzas and a side of bread sticks with extra oil qualifies as more than a rough night.

  Moxie: Is this an intervention?

  Ryan: I think we passed intervention and established a direct connection with the Betty Ford Clinic.

  Moxie: Fuck off.

  Ryan: Tom and I already did this morning, thank you. Want to meet for coffee after school?

  Moxie: Fine, Douche Canoe.

  Ryan: Wow, things must be bad. Your insults are pathetic. See you then. SMOOCH

  I didn’t know if I wanted to rehash the whole incident with Ryan, about David and what happened. The last thing I wanted to do was discuss how my body apparently had more rolls than Benny’s Bakery. It wasn’t like I didn’t realize my size. However, my stepmother dreamed of having a stick-thin daughter so we can shop at Bebe’s and Forever 21.

  I grabbed my bag for work and walked down the stairs, since the elevator was broken. I’d forgotten to check my mail the whole weekend, so I stopped by the mailboxes and opened the little box with my name on it. I sifted through the bills and junk mail, but ran across a white letter that just had my name on the front. There was no return address. I was beginning to wonder if I should handle it with gloves in case it was a ransom note. But I didn’t have anything worth being held for ransom.