Curves | ONC 2020 Shortlist

3. Jenny's First

Jenny unlocked her apartment, dropped her gym bag, and headed straight for the scale in the bathroom. She sighed heavily. An entire month of careful eating and trudging on the elliptical three times a week, and she had only managed to lose two pounds. What was she doing wrong? What was wrong with her?

She kicked the scale aside, ready to throw a tantrum. Ready to eat a quart of ice cream.

Damn. She just remembered she didn't keep ice cream in the freezer anymore. A quick trip to the supermarket could fix that, though!

She grabbed her keys. Froze mid-step.

What was she doing?

Failing. That's what she was doing.

She squeezed her eyes shut. Go away, self pity! She had no time for that nonsense. She had to take a shower and get ready for class. After that, she'd work on the assignments until collapsing into bed. In the morning, she'd study some more before rushing off to work. Gym visits were only recently squeezed into her schedule. She should thank Danielle for the membership, but couldn't bring herself to be so magnanimous yet.

Even if she had the energy.

She plunked onto the couch. She just needed a moment. Life wasn't supposed to be this tiring, was it? She missed her carefree days of living at home with her mom and working at the store. So few responsibilities.

So little respect.

Danielle had said she couldn't be with someone who wasn't going anywhere in life. That she was done waiting for Jenny to grow up. Until that moment, Jenny hadn't realized she had to go somewhere in life. But her ex had been right. It was time to grow up. Earn a respectable place in the world.

Become a person that someone would actually want to stay with.

Would Danielle have stayed if she'd started all this sooner? Proven that she wasn't a pointless lump on the couch? Jenny winced at the memory. She'd wanted to do a Netflix marathon with Danielle once. Nothing sounded cozier to her than snuggling up with popcorn, a remote, and a beautiful girlfriend. But the response she'd received was far from amenable.

"I'm not wasting time being a pointless couch lump," Danielle had said.

They'd gone hiking instead, which was nice even though she'd gotten bitten by mosquitos, but why couldn't they do what she wanted once in a while?

She wondered what Danielle was doing these days. Dating someone more fabulous than Jenny, most likely. Maybe a fellow law student.

A wistful sigh escaped her lips. Dating Danielle had been nothing short of amazing. The fact that she had been her first probably had something to do with it, but the woman had charisma. Knew what she wanted and went for it. To this day, Jenny still marveled over Danielle wanting her, even if only for a few months.

She glanced at the clock. Her body liked being a pointless couch lump. Maybe she would forgo the shower today and just hope no one noticed the smell in class. It was night school, so a lot of people went directly from work anyway.

She closed her eyes and let her body relax. What would Danielle think of her new life? Would she be proud?

Her mind wandered to the day Danielle walked into the sporting goods store where Jenny worked at the time. The woman was tall and imposing, her dark brown skin smooth and flawless. Her hair, though coarse, had been straightened and styled perfectly. Her nails were painted a bright shade of red. And her dark eyes were flashing with anger because the store clerk wouldn't give her a refund for the tennis racket she was bringing back.