FAT

Chapter One

"Hi." She said with a smile. He knew she was there for him. And he wanted to say hi. He wanted to be nice. But everyone was giving him shit for it. They had been since she moved there and fell in love with him or something. He couldn't help who liked him. But he'd have done the same thing to one of his buddies if she had been obsessed with them instead. She patiently waited for his acknowledgement, and eventually the table quieted down, also waiting for his response. Finally, he looked up at her.

"Hi." He replied with a half-smile. Her smile turned into a grin. She held her acoustic bass in one hand, and a white box in the other. Her face wasn't ugly, though she wasn't as pretty as the girls he hung out with. She wore some make-up, eyeliner and she did something with her eye shadow that made her eyes look smoky. She usually wore her long chocolate colored hair down, letting it frame her face. And she actually looked good. But that wasn't why everyone gave him a hard time. She wore a white crop top. It was almost sheer, and it was obvious she wasn't wearing a bra. She had huge tits and her nipples were hard. It was impossible to ignore. She wore a long-sleeved flannel over it, black, navy and a dim yellow pattern. It was left unbuttoned. And considering guys loved boobs, it was a cute outfit, paired with ripped grunge jeans that hung low on her hips. It was in-between that garnered the mockery from his friends. She was fat. And she was in love with him.

"Cupcakes." She said, holding the box up. "For you." The two people in front of her moved aside so she could place the box in front of him. He knew that she heard the snickers. But her smile never faltered.

"Thanks." He said to be polite.

"You're welcome." She was just about to turn and walk away when a teacher stopped her.

"Miss Jenkins." She turned towards the teacher, trying real hard not to roll her eyes. "I think you know the dress code by now." Her eyes flickered down to her crop top. She met the teacher's eyes again, and then her gaze flickered to Lindsey. The thinnest and arguably prettiest girl in the school, and her equally short crop top. She looked back at the teacher.

"Yes, I do." She admitted.

"You need to change your shirt, or you're suspended." She raised her eyebrows.

"Suspended." She repeated flatly.

"Yes. You repeatedly violate the dress code." The teacher reiterated.

"But I have straight A's even as a transfer student, and I've never been in trouble in or out of school." She was setting the foundation for her get out of jail free card.

"Doesn't matter. Take off the shirt." She glared at him.

"Fine." For her, it was a rush of adrenaline and rage. For everyone else, it was a slow motion of disbelief. She handed her bass to the person on her right. She slid off the flannel and kept eye contact with the asshole teacher as amongst gasps and hoots, she pulled her crop top off and tossed it at the teacher. He caught it, and his yes burned with hatred. "Why are you so obsessed with me?" She asked as she tried not to shiver. It was cold. And she was completely topless in front of the entire cafeteria.

"You're suspended out of school for three days." He threw her shirt back at her and stormed off.

"Her tits are amazing." Dennis's friend, Jordan, whispered to him as she put her shirt back on. He was right. Dennis peeled his eyes away as she grabbed her flannel off the floor and took her bass back.

"Andrea!" The principal yelled her name from the front of the cafeteria. He was pissed. "My office! Now!" He bellowed. Everyone shouted and taunted as she walked out of the cafeteria.

"Dude, break out the cupcakes." Jordan urged. Dennis opened the box and immediately felt bad for thinking she was fat. For letting his friends mock her. They were chocolate cupcakes, each in a black paper pastry cup with white music notes on them. They had red frosting, and each was adorned with an edible black electric guitar. His guitar was electric. And black. "Damn." Jordan observed. "Girls got skills and nice tits."

"Yeah," another friend piped in. "But cupcakes aren't the only thing she has in her bakery!" Dennis glared at the asshole that had said it, understanding the fat joke. No one even noticed. His friends started grabbing the cupcakes, and he was lucky to have snagged the last one.

...

"When every other girl who wears crop tops is also punished, I'll stop." She said with her folded across her chest in stone cold defiance. She stared down the principal and the guidance counselor.

"What happens to the other students is none of your business." He replied. Her mother was on her way. They were stalling for time.

"I'm being singled out. Why is that?" She asked, knowing full well why. Neither of them replied. She smirked. "At least you're not denying it." She added. Her mother finally walked in looking one hundred percent the preacher's wife that she was.

"I am so sorry she acted inappropriately. She was not raised like this." Her mother said as she entered. Andrea whipped her head around. "I was inappropriate?!" She yelled in awe. "They constantly single me out. And Mr. Labelle is ALWAYS staring at my chest. THAT'S what's inappropriate!"

"I don't know why you can't just wear clothes that cover your body." Her mother lectured. "Are you even wearing a bra?" She whispered in disgust.

"No, I'm not. And there's nothing in the dress code about that. I checked." Andrea fired back.

"Here's the deal. Three days out of school suspension." The principal interrupted the family argument.

"Fine. As long as Mr. Labelle also gets suspended." Andrea countered.

"What for!?" Her mother asked.

"For singling me out and constantly making an issue of my body!" She said, the obviousness and their lack of awareness mind blowing.

"It's not singling you out if you violate the dress code, and he holds you accountable." Her mother lectured.

"If he called out every girl violating the dress code, fine. But he doesn't. Just today, I was standing ten feet away from another girl wearing a crop top. Why didn't they say anything to her??" She asked rhetorically.

"Maybe she was wearing a bra!" Her mother shot back.

"He wouldn't notice if he wasn't looking." Andrea pointed out in disgust. "It's because I'm not a size four. It's cute and acceptable when the other girls do it, but I do, and it's gross, no one wants to see it. I'm being fat shamed under the guise of following the rules." No one spoke. "Wow. No one is even going to deny it." They sat in an awkward silence for a few minutes. And she knew it was useless to continue arguing. They had the power, and even if they let her speak, they weren't listening. Their minds were made up. Society had made their minds up for them. She'd be suspended out of school for three days. Her mother would babysit her; her mother would pray for her. She followed her mother out of the office, the principal watching from the door to make sure she left as soon as she grabbed her things, and that she didn't pull any stunts in the meantime. That's what they called her crop tops. Stunts. Because dressing how you're comfortable is a stunt when you're fat. She looked up as she turned the corner after getting her things from her locker and following her mother to the car, having heard snickers. Dennis was standing nearby, watching. She met his eyes, but she was too upset to offer a smile. He held her gaze. And he wanted to say thank you. The cupcakes were way cool, and they tasted amazing. But he didn't.