by Jeff Erno
Oliver shook his head. “No, not yet. To be honest, I was sort of pathetic. I didn’t even defend myself or tell them all to go fuck themselves or anything. I just took the abuse and ended up leaving there a mess, bawling like a schoolgirl.”
“Oh, Ollie.” He actually did then begin to cry, tears streaming down both cheeks. “I’m so sorry.”
“Baby, don’t cry.” Oliver reached across the table and wiped Benjy’s face with his finger. “So I stormed out to my car, feeling sorry for myself. I was kind of having a pity party, whining about how nobody understood me or what it was like to be so fat, blah, blah, blah. That’s when I called in to work and headed over to McDonald’s, where I bought out practically the whole fucking restaurant.”
Benjy shook his head. “I saw all those bags.”
“But when I got home and rushed inside with all my fat food—or I mean, fast food….” He smiled and winked. “I peeled open the straw and shoved it in my drink, then took a sip. I was jonesing for it, Benjy. My mouth was literally watering, but when that sugar hit my palate, it just… I don’t know, it tasted weird. I could feel the coating of sugar in the inside of my mouth and on my lips. Then I tried a couple french fries. You remember how much I loved McDonald’s fries, right? Well, they tasted like tallow or something. I could feel their greasiness, and it grossed me out.”
“You’re not used to it anymore. The sugar, the fat—they’re foreign to you.”
“Yeah, I guess so. But that’s when I looked down at the counter, at all that food in front of me, and even though it smelled so good… even though it sounded so good, I realized it wasn’t. I just kept looking at it, and it was like for the first time ever this switch went on inside my head. That shit’s poison!”
Benjy smiled. “It really is.”
“And then I started thinking about what had just happened back at the gym. Benjy, I don’t even know those fuck faces. They don’t know me either. They have no clue what I’ve been through in my life, my genetics, my history, if I’m smart or funny or… or anything! They know nothing about me, but they were judging me simply based on what I look like.”
The tears were now flowing again as Benjy nodded. Oliver ignored them and continued. “Benjy, I’ve worked too fucking hard these past few months to let some shit stains like those airheaded gym bunnies ruin everything for me. I almost threw it all away. I almost went back to my former three-hundred-pound self. If I’d have backslid in that moment, that’s probably exactly what would have happened. I’d have just kept gorging myself, eating more and more until I was enormous again, probably bigger than ever before.”
“But you didn’t.”
“No! No, I didn’t. You know why? Because I want to be better than that. I am better than that, and I don’t want to do that to my body anymore. And I want to be your… your… your….”
“What? Ollie, say it.”
“Your boyfriend! Benjy, I love you, and I want to be your boyfriend!”
“I love you too!” He grabbed hold of Oliver’s hand and squeezed it as the waitress arrived with their salads.
“Aww.” She smiled sweetly as she slid the plates onto the booth table. “You two are such a sweet couple. Don’t let me interrupt.” She took a step back as Ollie leaned forward, across the table, and planted a passionate kiss on Benjy’s welcoming lips. The waitress clapped her hands gleefully.
When they left the restaurant a half hour later, Oliver dropped a twenty-dollar bill on the table.
Chapter Eleven
WHEN OLIVER returned to the gym the morning after his epiphany, he entered with a newfound resolve. Wearing his brand-new Walmart workout gear, he marched confidently down the stairs to the locker room, brushing past AJ.
“Oh, excuse me.” Oliver bodychecked the smaller though seemingly more muscular man, who stumbled backward, flailing his arms a bit before righting himself and regaining his footing. He leaned against one of the lockers and glared at Oliver.
“Dude, watch where you’re walking. You’re like a fucking ox plodding through here.”
“AJ, is it?” Oliver stared at him. “You’re right. I’m a big guy, always have been. I’m not nearly as toned and tweaked as you, and I probably never will be. But nothing’s ever going to change the fact I’m bigger. Even if I lose all my excess weight and develop a perfectly sculpted, Herculean body, I’ll probably still have a good fifty or sixty pounds on you. Right now, at this very minute, if I so desired, I could pick you up and snap you like a fucking twig.” He stepped closer. “You have a big mouth, but that’s about the only part of you that’s big.”
AJ’s eyes grew wide, and his mouth gaped as he stared at Oliver. “Are you… uh… threatening me?”
“Damn right I am. Leave me the fuck alone. You made it clear yesterday I’m not one of you. I don’t have the right body type, and I don’t buy the right clothes. Newsflash, bitch. I wouldn’t want to be a part of your inner circle if you paid me.”
“Whatever.” AJ took a step backward, away from Oliver. He didn’t turn around but kept his eyes on Oliver’s face as he inched his way down the corridor. “I don’t think the management’s going to appreciate you threatening the other members.”
“And I doubt they’ll appreciate you ridiculing my weight in their ‘judgment-free zone’ either. I’m like this close to filing a formal complaint against you.” He held up his fingers to indicate an inch of space. “Don’t push me.”
AJ twitched his head, flicking his pomade-sculpted hairdo effeminately, and squared his shoulders. “You’re nothing but a wannabe, and that’s all you’ll ever be.”
“Exactly. I want to be happy with who I am, and I don’t give a rat’s ass if you like it or not. So fuck off, little man.” He turned and opened his locker, then tossed his duffel inside before closing the door and spinning the combination lock. Without another word, he pivoted in the opposite direction and headed back out of the locker room and upstairs to his workout.
He pressed himself harder than ever before, pounding through the workout, a broad smile plastered across his face.
OLIVER’S PROGRESS, measured daily, seemed barely noticeable, at least from his perspective. Of course, he did notice how much easier it became to complete his workout routine, and as he relentlessly pushed himself to continue upping his game, he found himself performing exercises he previously wouldn’t have ever dreamed possible. But he yearned to see drastic change in the mirror. And even though his clothes continued to feel looser on his body, he couldn’t help but see himself as the fat boy he’d always been.
But Benjy noticed.
Saturday morning, three weeks after his confrontation with AJ, Oliver stumbled into the breakroom at work. He and Benjy normally didn’t work weekends but had been asked to pick up overtime to complete a deadline. They pretty much had the office to themselves, the building empty but for the two of them and another computer geek working on the second floor. Oliver had already finished his daily workout at the gym and had showered and changed as usual before heading to the office. He hadn’t seen Benjy yet but knew he was already busy at work. His car had been parked in the lot when Oliver pulled in. He smiled at the pot of fresh-brewed coffee. Benjy had even set out a cup of Oliver’s favorite french vanilla creamers.
As he poured the hot coffee into his mug and stirred in his cream, he noticed a gift-wrapped package on the counter. He’d been so focused on his caffeine fix, he hadn’t even noticed the gold metallic paper and bright, shiny oversized red bow. He took a sip of his java and looked closer. The small tag attached to the bundle stuck out from beneath the bow, and to Oliver’s surprise it bore his nickname: OLLIE.
“What the hell?” He grinned and set down his coffee. Examining the tag first, he removed it and turned it over.
YOU’RE LOOKING MORE AND MORE AMAZING EVERY DAY! CONGRATS ON YOUR PROGRESS. B.
Astonished, he nearly gasped. What was up with this? People didn’t just give him gifts like this, not for no reason. Christ, he was lucky to even get so much as a birt
hday card or Secret-Santa present. For most of his life, he’d been the forgotten one, the guy nobody remembered unless they were teasing or fat shaming him. He picked up the wrapped box from the counter and held it in his hands, blinking rapidly.
“Open it.”
Oliver looked up, glancing across the room to see Benjy standing just inside the door. “Benjy… why?”
“What do you mean, why? I thought we’d already had this conversation. It’s okay for friends to remember each other, buy gifts for one another. Right?” Benjy repeated the line he’d used when he’d given Oliver the wrist odometer.
“But… but….”
“Open it.” Benjy pointed to the gift.
“Benjy, I don’t know what to say. What’s the occasion?”
Benjy sighed, tilting his head slightly as he smiled. God, if he didn’t have the most adorable face. And those eyes, usually dark brown but now cast with an amber hue, bore a hole directly through Oliver’s heart.
The anger he’d felt toward AJ and the guys from the gym had dissipated, replaced at first with determination, a resolve to succeed and prove them wrong. But Oliver knew that AJ’s brash and childish remarks, all his scorn and ridicule, merely echoed what most everyone else thought, though didn’t have the balls to say out loud.
But for some reason, everything felt different when he was around Benjy. Oliver didn’t feel like a circus freak. He sometimes didn’t even remember how different he was from average-sized people. The way Benjy looked at him—like he was right now in this frozen moment of time—made Oliver feel… attractive?
“Open it. Please.”
Oliver gulped, then laughed nervously. Finally he shrugged and stepped over a couple feet and placed the gift on the breakroom table. Gingerly he peeled off the bow, then flipped the box to find the taped edge of the wrapping paper.
“Please tell me you’re not one of those people. You don’t save every little piece of wrapping paper and open your presents extra carefully so you don’t damage them.”
Oliver laughed, then turned to Benjy, smiling. “You know me. I’m nothing like that. As a kid, I used to just tear into my Christmas gifts. Wrapping paper wadded up everywhere, thrown across the room. You, on the other hand, seem like you’d be a careful present opener.”
“Then why’re you being such a pussy about opening it?”
Oliver bit his bottom lip and closed his eyes for about a second. “Good question.” He chuckled, then quickly ripped through the wrapping paper, tearing it away carelessly. The plain white box beneath gave nothing away, and once the gift wrap was gone, Oliver removed the lid.
“Benjy!” He stared down at the contents of the box. Workout gear, but not just some el cheapo knockoffs from Walmart. “Under Armour?”
He reached into the box and removed the silky shirt, noting immediately it was way too small. “These are expensive.”
Benjy moved closer, sidling beside him. Oliver’s heart raced a bit as he felt the gentle touch of Benjy’s palm against his back. “No, I got a good deal. It’s to celebrate your progress.”
“Benjy, they’re awesome.” He pulled the pants out of the box to reveal a pair of shorts beneath. “You got me shorts and pants both?”
“And a hoodie. I didn’t wrap that one, though. It’s in my cubicle.”
“Benjy… I…. Uh. What am I supposed to say? You’re too good to me.”
“Those guys made fun of you ’cause of your clothes. Now you’ll be the best-dressed gym bunny.”
“Ha! Yeah right. Me, a gym bunny.”
“Will you put them on for me? I wanna see you in them. I wanna see your muscle.” Benjy gently squeezed Oliver’s bicep, and Oliver turned to him, staring into Benjy’s eyes.
“I love the clothes. I really do, Benjy. But I know I can’t wear these yet. I’m not ready. I’m not small enough.”
The smile never faded from Benjy’s angelic face. “Yes, you are,” he whispered. “You so are. Trust me.”
Oliver held up the shirt, taking a step back to show Benjy. He pulled it against his torso. “I’ve never worn this size in my life.”
“It’s supposed to fit you tight.”
“No… I can’t wear tight-fitting stuff, not with all my rolls.”
“That’s just it!” Benjy giggled. “Oliver, your rolls are gone. You’re now building muscle. That shirt’s gonna show off your ripped body.”
Oliver placed the shirt back in the box and grabbed Benjy by the shoulders. “Baby, how can you look at me and see that?”
“How can you not see it? Ollie, try on the shirt… and the pants. And then let me suck you off in your new gym gear.” He’d lowered his voice to a whisper, sultry and sensual.
Oliver’s heart skipped a beat as his cock pulsated in his khakis. “I can’t believe you just said that.” He felt his cheeks grow warmer.
“Please,” Benjy pleaded. “I want to make love to every inch of your gorgeous body… with my lips and tongue. I want to deep-throat your big fat cock.”
Oliver leaned in, pulling Benjy toward him, and planted a searing kiss on his dirty-talking little mouth. Benjy’s arms snaked around Oliver’s torso, his hands caressing Oliver’s shoulder blades as they kissed. Oliver held Benjy close, driving his tongue into Benjy’s eager mouth, and Benjy’s fingertips ghosted down the back of Oliver’s polo shirt until at last they slipped beneath the tail and pressed against Oliver’s bare skin.
“Right here?” Oliver blurted a raspy stutter as he pulled back.
Benjy gripped the polo shirt and tugged upward. “Hell yes. Right here. Right now.”
He managed only to pull it partially up Oliver’s torso when suddenly Oliver realized if he removed the shirt, he’d be standing in the middle of the employee breakroom, naked from the waist up. What if, God forbid, someone were to walk in? The irony of his thoughts, the fact he was more concerned about being caught shirtless than being in the midst of sexual congress with another man, struck him as amusing, and he laughed spontaneously. Benjy grinned and laughed along with him, continuing to tug on the shirt, now pushing it upward in an attempt to raise it above Oliver’s pectorals.
“Lift your arms, big guy.” Benjy leaned in to kiss an exposed nipple. With their height difference, his head was positioned perfectly so Benjy’s lips could easily press against Oliver’s chest.
“I’ve never had public sex,” Oliver whispered, as if saying the words quietly somehow made them secret. He took a step backward, bending slightly at the waist, which allowed Benjy to peel the shirt over his head. Before Ollie could reach for his new, silky Under Armour shirt, Benjy had cast the polo aside, and his hands were all over Oliver’s chest, roaming freely.
“Baby, do you want me to try on my new clothes?”
“Mmm.” He sucked Oliver’s left nipple between his lips and nibbled ever so slightly.
“Aaahh!” Oliver cried out. “Jesus Christ!” He pulled back as the most erotic sensation traveled down his body, like a jolt of electricity from his nipples directly to his now-throbbing cock. He snatched the shirt from the box on the table and quickly pulled it over his head.
Benjy held back, smiling in the most teasing, seductive manner, and reached down to rub his own bulge as he watched Oliver pull the shirt down over his pecs. As Oliver felt the soft, stretchy fabric against his skin, he hesitated. This wasn’t going to be good. He couldn’t squeeze himself into this kind of shirt. He’d look like a big, bulging blob and would feel like a bloated beached whale. But as he pulled it down his torso, the shirt slid smoothly against his frame and amazingly fit him like a glove.
“Mmm-hmm. Now that’s what I’m talking about.” Benjy stared directly at Oliver’s rather pronounced clefted pectorals. Could it actually be true? Did he now have normal pecs?
He still didn’t look perfect. His skin was loose and saggy. He still had some excess weight around his midsection, and his loose, flabby skin, stretched by all the fat he’d carried around for so long, had begun to form an “apron.” But damn
, the tight-fitting shirt all but concealed these remaining flaws. Benjy moved closer once more, sliding his fingertips against the smooth fabric of the shirt. His touch felt amazing, a tantalizing tickle as his fingers danced across Oliver’s chest.
“Sexy as hell,” Benjy whispered as he trailed his hands down Oliver’s torso, across his much-flatter and tighter abs, and found the button of his khakis. Benjy stood on tiptoe to kiss Oliver once more as he deftly unfastened the pants, peeling back the fly. His hand found Oliver’s raging hard-on the exact same moment Benjy’s tongue plunged into Oliver’s mouth.
Stumbling backward, Oliver steadied himself against the countertop, gripping the cabinet ledge with both hands. Benjy danced the dance, keeping his body pressed against Oliver, gripping his rigid cock firmly as they continued to kiss. Now pinned against the counter, Oliver widened his stance, partially to afford Benjy easier access, and partly to keep his now wide-open pants from slipping down his thighs. As Benjy slid smoothly to his knees, though, he dragged Oliver’s pants and underwear down past his thighs.
“D-don’t you want me to try on the shorts too?”
Benjy cocked his head back in order to stare up at Oliver. Grinning, he grabbed hold of Oliver’s shaft by the base. “Wouldn’t want to get a cum stain on ’em or anything.” He immediately directed his attention to Oliver’s bulbous cockhead, which was now oozing a pearly white drop. Benjy’s tongue darted outward, licking it up, and then he inhaled him.
Oliver moaned as the silky warmth of Benjy’s mouth surrounded his throbbing cock. Without deliberation, he reflexively thrust his pelvis upward and out. Benjy swallowed the entirety of the shaft deftly, laving the sensitive underside with his moist tongue. Oliver stared down in awe as he watched Benjy’s cheeks cave in while he sucked.
Slowly, perhaps worshipfully, Benjy serviced Oliver with the expertise of a porn star. And as he continued to bob, stroke, and suck, Oliver tossed his head back, soaring to the pinnacle of ecstasy when at last he moaned and released volleys of cum into Benjy’s hungry mouth. Benjy remained on his knees, sucking out every last drop as Oliver trembled. Chills and goose bumps traveled down his extremities.
