sweetheart either."
"Sweethea... uh, Patricia, your father was
big because he ate too much and he didn't take care of himself.
It's not contagious. You can't catch it.
Right then the pink sheet covering the mirror
slid off onto the floor and Patricia looked at herself for a long
time. I think she forgot I was there. She looked pretty sad. "You
always said I had his eyes," she said to Mom through the door.
"...that I've got his chin, well now I've got his pant size
too."
Mom sounded like she was starting to get mad
now. "Don't be ridiculous. Your father was a size forty-three.
You're not even a size five, six at the most. Why don't you come
out here where we can talk about it?"
Daddy died when I was just a little baby so I
don't remember him too well. It was a cornery, whatever that is,
and it happened one time when Daddy was looking all over for the TV
remote. This cornery made his heart stop.
Patricia put the sheet back over the mirror
again. "You even let him give me a fat name. People don't even have
to see me to know."
"Swee... uh dear, I'm afraid I really don't
follow you. Patricia's not a fat name. We could have called you
Connie, that's a fat name, or Evelyn, that's..."
"Oh yeah? What about Fatty Patty, or big fat
Patty, or Fat Pat?! That's what they call me when I'm not there you
know, Fat Pat."
It was true, some of the big kids did call her that but it was just
to be mean. Big kids are really mean to each other all the
time.
"Patricia dear, I really do think you're
getting carried away."
When Patricia didn't answer her, Mom called
out to me. "Katie honey, tell Patricia to open the door and come
out here so we can talk like grownups."
I looked at Patricia and she looked hard at
me again so I kept quiet.
I heard Mom lean against the door and say to
herself "What did I do to deserve this?"
Patricia heard her too. "Who are you talking
to out there?"
"Myself. I'm talking to myself. That's what
all this is doing to me. It's making me insane."
Patricia looked at the stuff on her vanity
and let out a big sigh. I thought right then "Some day that'll
be my vanity and this will be my room".
"Patricia, would you feel better if we signed
you up for an exercise program?"
"I don't think they could do much for me by
tomorrow Mother. I've got the thighs of a polar bear."
"Patricia you have to go to school tomorrow,
that's all there is to it."
"I'll take a correspondence course.
"Sweetheart, be sensible."
"Stop calling me that."
I heard Mom talking to herself again then
she said loud to the door "When I was your age I didn't have my own
room to lock myself in." and I thought about the vanity and the
closet and the desk and the whole room being mine again someday.
"Has it occurred to you" Mom said, "that you probably don't weight
any more than most of the
girls in your class."
"Don't you mean most of the boys? I want to
go to school in another town."
"Wouldn't that be kind of expensive?"
"Is that all it means to you, money?"
"Of course not but... well, wouldn't there be
people there who would see you too?"
Patricia let out a big kind of angry sound
that made me jump.
Mom didn't give up. "Darling, can't you just
give it one day and see how you feel? Then, if you don't want to go
back, then we'll talk about it. Okay?"
Now Patricia had everything from her vanity
drawers out and lined up in front of her. "There's nothing to talk
about Mother, my life might as well be over, that's all."
Then Mom's voice got really serious.
"Darling?" Patricia didn't say anything. Instead she dumped a bunch
of powder right out on the vanity. "Honey?" Mom said through the
door. "Please answer me."
Patricia didn't say anything, she just kept
dumping the cosmetics out. I looked in that drawer lots of times
before but I never realized she had so much of that stuff.
"You won't do anything... foolish will you?"
Mom said.
"You mean like rip down all my wallpaper or
something?"
Patricia looked around at the pink, yellow
and blue
"Sweethea... uh, Patricia, your father was
big because he ate too much and he didn't take care of himself.
It's not contagious. You can't catch it.
Right then the pink sheet covering the mirror
slid off onto the floor and Patricia looked at herself for a long
time. I think she forgot I was there. She looked pretty sad. "You
always said I had his eyes," she said to Mom through the door.
"...that I've got his chin, well now I've got his pant size
too."
Mom sounded like she was starting to get mad
now. "Don't be ridiculous. Your father was a size forty-three.
You're not even a size five, six at the most. Why don't you come
out here where we can talk about it?"
Daddy died when I was just a little baby so I
don't remember him too well. It was a cornery, whatever that is,
and it happened one time when Daddy was looking all over for the TV
remote. This cornery made his heart stop.
Patricia put the sheet back over the mirror
again. "You even let him give me a fat name. People don't even have
to see me to know."
"Swee... uh dear, I'm afraid I really don't
follow you. Patricia's not a fat name. We could have called you
Connie, that's a fat name, or Evelyn, that's..."
"Oh yeah? What about Fatty Patty, or big fat
Patty, or Fat Pat?! That's what they call me when I'm not there you
know, Fat Pat."
It was true, some of the big kids did call her that but it was just
to be mean. Big kids are really mean to each other all the
time.
"Patricia dear, I really do think you're
getting carried away."
When Patricia didn't answer her, Mom called
out to me. "Katie honey, tell Patricia to open the door and come
out here so we can talk like grownups."
I looked at Patricia and she looked hard at
me again so I kept quiet.
I heard Mom lean against the door and say to
herself "What did I do to deserve this?"
Patricia heard her too. "Who are you talking
to out there?"
"Myself. I'm talking to myself. That's what
all this is doing to me. It's making me insane."
Patricia looked at the stuff on her vanity
and let out a big sigh. I thought right then "Some day that'll
be my vanity and this will be my room".
"Patricia, would you feel better if we signed
you up for an exercise program?"
"I don't think they could do much for me by
tomorrow Mother. I've got the thighs of a polar bear."
"Patricia you have to go to school tomorrow,
that's all there is to it."
"I'll take a correspondence course.
"Sweetheart, be sensible."
"Stop calling me that."
I heard Mom talking to herself again then
she said loud to the door "When I was your age I didn't have my own
room to lock myself in." and I thought about the vanity and the
closet and the desk and the whole room being mine again someday.
"Has it occurred to you" Mom said, "that you probably don't weight
any more than most of the
girls in your class."
"Don't you mean most of the boys? I want to
go to school in another town."
"Wouldn't that be kind of expensive?"
"Is that all it means to you, money?"
"Of course not but... well, wouldn't there be
people there who would see you too?"
Patricia let out a big kind of angry sound
that made me jump.
Mom didn't give up. "Darling, can't you just
give it one day and see how you feel? Then, if you don't want to go
back, then we'll talk about it. Okay?"
Now Patricia had everything from her vanity
drawers out and lined up in front of her. "There's nothing to talk
about Mother, my life might as well be over, that's all."
Then Mom's voice got really serious.
"Darling?" Patricia didn't say anything. Instead she dumped a bunch
of powder right out on the vanity. "Honey?" Mom said through the
door. "Please answer me."
Patricia didn't say anything, she just kept
dumping the cosmetics out. I looked in that drawer lots of times
before but I never realized she had so much of that stuff.
"You won't do anything... foolish will you?"
Mom said.
"You mean like rip down all my wallpaper or
something?"
Patricia looked around at the pink, yellow
and blue
Similar Books
Wolf Heart: Shifter Romance - BWWM Paranormal Romantic & Erotic Werewolf Standalone Erotica Short Story Novelette
Lady Aingealicia, Romance Shifter
