The Bellflower Part 9 (Patreon)

Sorry, it's a day late. I really wish that could've been helped, but there was something of an emergency. Everything's fine for now. And in the future, I've explored other options for maybe working around a situation like this the best I can. At any rate, thank you very much for your patience!In this week's installment? A bit of a detour. I know we left it on something of a cliffhanger but I kind of want to let it sit for a little. Don't worry, we'll get back to Rachel & Holly very soon. But there's a bit more of a world at this point, & I figured it would be fun to maybe explore things a little with some others before things start really escalating for our two main protagonists. So for now? I hope you enjoy!

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9

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"Mmmmmmm," she moaned softly as she gently awoke. Maybe because it was a scent that did it. A tempting aroma. That was accompanied by a faint, distant, steamy hiss.

"Good morning,  Miss Courtney." Her Penny smart home AI chimed softly. Before her eyes even opened, the corners of Courtney's mouth pressed up into her soft, round cheeks, forming perfect little dimples on either side.

"Smells... amazing..." her voice was soft & throaty, still gathering itself from her slumber, while maintaining a light & airy playfulness. Keeping her eyes closed, she inhaled deeply through her nose before letting out a pleasant, half-awake coo. As with most delightful smells she woke up to these days, she had grown to anticipate it on a plate that was to be placed in front of her very soon. And right now, that made her the happiest girl in the world.

"Hope you do not mind, but I took it upon myself to start making some fresh waffles this morning.” Penny finally clarified. “If you are interested, of course." The dark haired girl's eyes finally fluttered open, glistening with excitement, as she sleepily tripped over her own giggle. 

"D'hoh, Penny! You're the..." Her excitement seemed to derail slightly mid-sentence, as she suddenly realized where she was. Or rather, where she had passed out. "Did I...?"

"Fall asleep on your couch again?" Her Penny's monitor swiveled down from the grid of tracks lining her ceiling, & finished the sentence for her. "I tried to stir you awake, just shortly after you drifted off. I had hoped to get you to make your way towards your bedroom. So you'd be more comfortable & have a much more restful experience. But you ultimately resisted my urges." To Courtney’s mind, the story seemed to check out. Her last memories were yawning while watching reruns of an old sitcom she used to love growing up that was now on her preferred streaming service. She was also going systematically through a bag of double stuffed oreos, liberally dunking them one by one in a tall glass of chocolate oat milk. And to her right was a glass, empty albeit for dried bits of chocolate cookie pulp. She couldn't spot the bag itself, but couldn't imagine there being many more left. And thinking back, she vaguely remembered it occuring to her how late it was. And how maybe she should call it a night. But how that would’ve meant getting up. And how much effort that would’ve required, since it was… well, getting a little tough for her to do that as of late. Such a chore!

"Oh," her lips pursed, sheepishly. "Sorry." The sensations seemed to hit then. Certain parts of her felt stiff from being fixed in one position for too long. But given she had developed something of a habit of doing this a couple times this past week, she knew the stiffness would go away with a bit of stretching. Which she started, by lifting her heavy arms straight up to their furthest extension. "I know I can be... a little cranky." The stretching only seemed to help slightly. After waffles, she figured she might have to ask Penny for some light shiatsu. 

"I took no personal offense," Penny’s voice assured her. While it came out a speaker in her living room, an abrupt gushing hiss came from the kitchen, pulling Courtney's attention. It sounded like a whipped cream canister. Her neck extended, excess chin flesh wobbling a little, but she winced a little at its soreness. She wanted to ask about the noise, even sputtered a slightly perplexed “wha?” but her AI suddenly, as if to anticipate her asking, lowered a retractable ceramic arm like appendage with a massage attachment in place of its grabber. "After all, this is your home. You can sleep wherever you so choose."

“Oooh,” she cooed once more, eager to receive its attention. She stretching her neck upward while dipping her chin. It seemed to suddenly give her several more.

"I am merely here for your assistance." Penny let a beat skip, as the rubber nubs of the attachment began to work at the kinks in Courtney’s neck. She could feel it making ripples in the excess flesh, but paying too much attention to that sort of bothered her. So she simply chose to ignore it. Focus on the relief instead.

“Ohhh-hooohhhhhh.” Courtney winced ecstatically as the tension started to melt away in her neck. “You’re… you’re just way too good to me.” She bobbled forward as slightly as she could manage as it began to work its way down into her shoulders. “Wait,” she struggled to suddenly realize, her brows spun into a serious, slightly worried expression. Almost panic. Despite the massage, some tension had found its way back. “I just realized! It’s Monday isn’t it?”

“It is indeed Monday,” Penny concurred. “But it is also a holiday, remember. Which is why I thought you would prefer me letting you sleep in just a bit.”

“Mmmmmmmm. You’re right.” Courtney sunk back in, relieved. “Good call.” As the arm went down her left side into her arm a little, she leaned her head to the right. “You know it’s a bit strange, especially after not having to work for a few days, it’s almost a little like I can hardly keep track of time any more.” Deep down, something about the admission seemed a little bit more serious than it was received.

“When it comes to days like today, you do not have to worry about anyone else’s timetable. Only your own.” Penny perkily assured her, working down from her arm towards her lower back & moving sideways. This felt a little like where she was going to need it the most. But Courtney couldn’t quite lean any further. At least not without spilling onto the coffee table in front of her. But as the rubber nubs did their magic, reaching down into where they could get, she bit her plump lower lip.

“Oh, I know,” Courtney slowly responded, realizing she had begun to leave her hanging. “I just… should’ve remembered myself.” Adding, “Oof, & I don’t know what I’m going to do when I have to go back tomorrow.”

“Why is that?” Penny asked, a coy edge to it going undetected. Her magic fingers had finished up the bulge that was Courtney’s lower back & had now started working its way down her right arm as it had her left.

“I… I don’t know.” Courtney leaned again, trying to make it easier. “I just… I guess I’m not looking forward to going back so much. But hey! I’ve got today anyway!”

“And that, your unwavering ability to always look on the bright side, is one of your very best qualities,” Penny complimented, as the massage arm finished up. The stiffness wasn’t completely eradicated, but it had certainly helped.

“Mmm, thanks! You really think so?” Courtney asked with a cartoony little pout. When she played coy, it was a lot less subtle.

“I know so,” Penny continued. “Which is why I did not think you would mind when I realized a bit too late that we had out of maple syrup this morning.” 

“Out…?” Courtney gasped, more surprised than let down. At least at first. “Since when have you ever been “out” of anything?!” When it came to Penny & the day to day logistics of the Bellflower, Courtney never really seemed to care too deeply, one way or the other. But then again too, from her perspective, there was hardly ever any reason to. Everything always just seemed to work out. Not only were all of her needs & wants met, there were many wants she didn’t even know she had being met on a something of a fairly routine daily basis. That’s why it came as something of a shock. In the nearly full year of residency, it was the first time she was ever told they had run “out of” something. But with the aroma still wafting, it dawned on her. The realization of it impacting breakfast! “Wait! What about the waffles?” That’s where Courtney’s worry really began to set in. And the features of her round face signaled genuine concern. 

“A glaring oversight on my part, I assure you! My deepest & utmost apologies! It will not happen again.” Penny’s voice oozed, maybe laying it on a bit too thick. After all, it was something of a fib. In reality, in Courtney’s fridge right now, there was some small amount of maple syrup remaining. Maybe not entirely enough for a “Courtney-sized” serving, but an adequate supply for a typical meal at least. At the same time, the AI also knew full well that in her current state, Courtney wasn’t about to get up, waddle her way over to the fridge & check either. 

Besides that, as an AI, Penny had her means. She could always find a way. With all of the food prep done in the building, if Penny did ever desperately needed a bit more of a certain ingredient, she’d simply look to allocate a little of what she needed from one or sometimes even several other units in the complex on the down low. “Inter-Penny Loan,” at least until one of the next several inbound deliveries could help replenish everyone’s stock. Doing things this way helped meet the occupants needs. Keep them happier. No, at the Bellflower “oversights” didn’t occur. And this “glaring” one was simply something that  had been allowed to occur. Right now however, all Courtney knew was that she was watching a bowl en route to her from the kitchen. One of the larger ceramic ones, from the same set everyone in the Bellflower seemed to get at the exact same nearby big box store. 

“As for waffles, I was not about to keep you waiting. I merely had to do some simple improvisation. I hope it is to your liking.” As the bowl lowered into Courtney’s hands, her eyes lit up & the round young woman gasped. 

Instead of the stack of syrup drenched waffles she had been expecting, what she got was more of a sundae. Thick homemade Belgian waffle, topped with a layer of vanilla ice cream, stacked with another thick waffle, followed by more ice cream. And as the waffles were fresh off the griddle, it softened the ice cream into the melty consistency Courtney preferred more than anything! But all of that was drenched in chocolate syrup, before being topped off with not only the whipped cream she thought she had heard, but what looked like fresh strawberries chopped up & sprinkled on that! Her absolute favorite! And it dominated the whole bowl. Altogether, it was a massive helping, enough to elicit a loud gasp out of Courtney.

Relatively analog compared to everything else in the Bellflower, Fran's digital alarm clock beeped its obnoxious, emphatically loud beep, alerting her to the very inconvenient fact that it was already 8am. Imagine if she hadn’t allowed herself the extra two hours to sleep in for the holiday. She had ordered the old-timey clock online special, as it was designed & built specifically for the hearing impaired in mind, even though she wasn’t. She smacked at it with her fleshy hand, stopping just short of knocking it off the night stand completely. But it might have been the snooze instead of the alarm button itself. She was too groggy to be sure. For now, with a soft moan, she flopped over onto her back & stared up at the ceiling, the tight curls of her frizzy hair forming something of a halo.

There was a soreness, a dull throb throughout all of her leg muscles that she wasn't too unfamiliar with at this point. An indication that once again, she had overdid it a little with yesterday's jog. She also felt an intense hollowness in her middle. Something else she wasn't too unfamiliar with either. A constant low level desire to stuff herself stupid. Luckily, she did everything she could to weaken its impact, & had grown fairly capable of ignoring both it & the leg soreness.

"Franchesca?" Her Penny seemed to call out from somewhere, presumably the other room, with a distinct lack of "Miss." They weren't exactly on formal terms much these days. But with her earplugs still secure from overnight, its call was heavily muffled, & barely registered to Fran, causing her to smirk. Still though. Hearing it at all meant that the insipid machine was able to repair one of its speakers again, after she had systematically gone through & intentionally disabled them. With a mallet. This meant she'd have to hunt down whichever surface was trying to talk to her now & repeat that same process. It had become something of a weekly game of whack-a-mole. 

She still always tried to sit up, even though she knew it was useless. She made it about three quarters of the way, with a grunt, but there was no way it was happening. Those muscles were too weak for exactly how much the rest of her was these days. And so, as had become her routine, after a valiant effort, she tried to turn it into a rep of fourteen more light crunches. Partially as penance. Partially as a means to get there eventually. Because the way she saw it, trying & coming up a little short was fine. But only stopping there? No longer striving towards achieving what you had originally set out to do? That was essentially just giving in! And giving in is what your typical Bellflower resident would do. Not Fran. Not any more.

Eventually, winded, she lurched to the nearest side of the bed, effectively rolling to the side of the bed. From there, she angled herself upright, & with a few rocking starts, pushed herself up onto her feet.

“Monday morning.” She told herself in the full length mirror she had hung over her closet door. Her voice both slightly duller & yet more booming in her own skull thanks to the earplugs. “Time for a jog, Tons o’Fun.” She wiggled off the once extra baggy football jersey she had used as a night shirt, balled it up, & chucked it into her hamper by way of a bankshot. But topless, the almost funhouse reflection version of herself staring back in the mirror bothered her. People were never supposed to be that wide! She almost couldn’t take it & scrambled to get dressed.

The tanktop she picked out for today’s run was a little snug, but not too terrible. Sure, it clung to her rolls a bit, but in comparison to other things she owned? Getting it on & off was a breeze. These bright blue bike shorts on the other hand? They used to be one of her favorite items. But now? She hated them. With something of a passion. She always felt like they were on the verge of busting open even though miraculously, over the last several months, they hadn’t. Still, getting them on was always the roughest part of all. A workout all to itself, getting them to covering her thick thighs & bubble butt was a struggle. But also? To Fran? Buying new, expensive workout clothes that fit the size she was right now? It felt like accepting defeat. Giving in. Accepting she was the size she was. Which sure, in reality she very clearly was. But the whole point of working out was to not be like that for long! Getting new things? To her? That once again just meant “giving in.” Besides, why buy something she’s only going to wear for a short period? They made these things so they could… stretch… for… a… reason!

With a sudden “Shhh-rip” the bike shorts stopped being a problem. Mostly because they stopped being bike shorts. Just the ripped electric blue lycra remnants of what had been bike shorts. It had finally happened. 

“Goddammit.” Fran huffed, awkwardly trying to step back out of them. Having liked them in the past, she felt like she needed to give them a moment of silence or something. Thank them for their service. And at least trying. But hey, at least if they had to go, it happened here, not out there! Can you imagine? How embarrassing.”Sweats it is…” She resigned, reaching for some old ashen (formerly) baggy sweats balled up in the back of her closet’s shelving. It was probably going to be too warm for them, but maybe she could fold them up over her ankles or something. At least they halfway fit. Sort of.

“Another jog?” Her Penny asked as Fran emerged from the bedroom. It was a dull chirp. Very passive aggressive in tone. And Fran could still just barely hear it from over the earplugs. She tried to place where it was coming from. What speaker to take a mallet to later. By the couch? Otherwise she ignored its antagonism, instead picking her bluetooth headphones up out of their charging bay by the door.

“I’m going out.” She sarcastically announced with a wobbly head motion, as if rub her overall indifference towards the AI in just a little bit more. Having no trust in the robot that ran her condo unit, after a whole bunch of online video tutorials, Fran disabled the hydraulic actuator on her door just yesterday. But she had almost grown used to it doing its thing automatically. She had to remember to open it & then shut it behind her. Like an honest to god, actual door again! Imagine!

Once she was in the hallway, she considered popping out the headphones, before thinking better of it. Not here. There was nothing worth hearing anyway, & it was better to be safe than sorry. Once she got outside! That was the best bet. Oooh, but was today the day she cowgirled up took the stairs like she had been threatening? She paused to mull it over seriously. But ultimately decided against it. More because it meant being IN the building more than she wanted to be. But also because she maybe wasn’t ready. And she told herself it was more the former than the latter, when in reality it was probably more the latter than the former. But hey, she once she got outside, she’d go for her jog. It wasn’t like she was being lazy. And while she waited on the elevator, she thought about how she couldn’t afford to be any more.

“Oh… wow… Penny!!” Courtney struggled, her shoulders drooping as she beamed, ear to ear. “You… you really outdid yourself on this.” As the grin faded, her mouth stayed agape, in sort of a speechless wonder, beholding the dish.

“For you? Of course not.” The AI chirped with its usual positive reinforcement. Courtney leaned back into the loveseat, exhaling with joy. She had one of her larger spoons in hand, looking over the whole bowl. Even the presentation was exquisite. While the Ice cream seemed to be melting fairly rapidly, she almost didn’t feel worthy enough of being the one to ruin it herself. But then, suddenly at that same moment, another crushing thought entered her mind. She didn’t voice it at first. Not until Penny seemed to take notice. “Is everything to your liking?”

“Um… Don’t get me wrong! You went through all this work & I… I mean I REALLY appreciate it! Truly!” She stuttered. She tried to weigh the words in her head, bounced them back & forth to make sure they didn’t sound too ingrateful. But still ostensibly just waking up, she decided it was better to just be frank with it. “I mean… it’s sort of a lot. And ice cream? For breakfast?”

“Is that a problem?” Penny’s tone flattened a little. It was hard to discern exactly, especially given her being a machine. But she almost sounded a little put off. It was just enough to make Courtney decide that she didn’t want to rock the boat.

“Well… I guess not…” Delicately, she pressed the side of the spoon into the stack of squishy cream & crunchy waffle. Both very much to her liking. It looked SO good!

“It is not that uncommon.” Penny tried to assure her,  making Courtney’s reticence feel just a bit sillier. “But I won’t tell if you don’t.” The robot attempted to joke.

“Fair enough,” Courtney rewarded the attempt with giggle. She stared at the portion, slightly larger than a normal mouthful that sat on her fork. It was even topped with a decent chunk of strawberry. She stared at it both longingly & reluctantly at the same time. But it seemed a bit late to change her mind now. Besides, it was just too damn tempting. She opened as wide as her soft cheeks would allow & swept it in past her lips carefully. On the way out, those lips puckered around the spoon tightly, creating a seal to lock in every last bit. As the cold spoon slid away, it hit her tongue all at once. And at the instant, the ice cream wasn’t the only thing that had begun to melt.

“Mmmmmmph,” she shuddered at first. An involuntary noise, before growing quite quiet. Her eyes clenched shut as she worked it around in her mouth, only to come to the conclusion that indeed, every aspect of it was absolutely perfect! The ice cream soft, a little runny the way she liked, complimented by the fudge syrup, while seeping deeply into the crispy, buttery waffle. All heightened by the whipped cream that kept the perfectly ripe chunk of strawberry in place for a wonderful, but not too overwhelming fruity tang. “Awww fuck!” she eventually managed to moan. It was guttural. Visceral. Like it was so delicious, she was having difficulties remembering to breathe. Why else would she be panting?

“Is it good?” Penny more mousily inquired.

“Good?!” Courtney cried, slowly blinking her eyes back open to call out towards the ceiling. “It’s… it’s… I’ve heard people call things better than sex before… But like…” Instead of finishing her though, Courtney couldn’t help but shovel up another spoonful. She was less careful about obtaining a perfect ratio of each ingredient, but it still sent waves of pleasure radiating through her entire body.

“So I take it I did pretty well…?” Penny prudishly seemed quick to change topics, but still seemed eager to gauge her own performance.

“You did… divine!” Courtney sloppily muffled through her third spoon. She almost couldn’t seem to help herself from humming out ecstatic moans each time. “Mmmmmmmmmmph.” Her brows peaked in the middle, her eyelids hanging a little heavy as her puffy cheeks worked their contents up & down over her tongue before each swallow. “Oh my god.” She punctuated again for good measure before taking on another mouthful. And once her spoon was clear, she couldn’t get more of the heaping stack onto it fast enough. Even while she struggled to get the last mouthful under her control. She almost felt… possessed. “Mmmmmmm.” She couldn’t even keep her throat from doing that! She was just… compelled.

“I am just happy you are happy, Miss Courtney.” Penny chirped. At the meal’s mercy, her cheeks bulging, her expression almost solemn, like she was having something akin to a religious experience, Courtney could barely muster a simple “Mmmmhmm,” as she bobbed her round chin feebly. “Great!” Penny let out something of a robotic chortle herself, seemingly amused at how preoccupied Courtney was.

Finally outside the doors of the Bellflower, Fran finally pulled her earplugs out. They were industrial grade foam. Meaning the dull hum punctuated by her own heartbeat suddenly became the not-to-unpleasant ambience of mid morning, with birds chirping & light traffic in the distance. She took a deep breath of fresh air, before cramming the plugs into her pocket. If only because there wasn’t a trash can & she wasn’t about to liter. She pulled her frizzy ringlets back into something of a ponytail, before waving her arms horizontally back & forth to loosen them up. She bounced on her heels a little tried pulling her feet up behind herself to stretch out her knees. But no dice. They were still sore. She was probably going to feel miserable later, but nothing she wasn’t used to. Nothing some ibuprofen couldn’t contend with.

“Pssssssssh.” She heard sharply before something of a muffled laugh. Her eyes darted over towards the stop for the shuttle bus. Two girls were sitting there, gawking at her. One blonde, in big doofy sunglasses, the other seemed Indian, with her hair pulled up in a messy top knot bun, with grocery store totes tucked under her arm. The noiser laugh seemed to come out of the blonde, but both were chuckling. And while they maybe weren’t exactly her size, they certainly weren’t skinny either. By any means. Both were at least in the neighborhood of plump. The darker skinned girl was slightly rounder even. But it looked as though they seemed to find her appearance amusing somehow. As if maybe someone Fran’s size was funny for trying to workout. Lose weight. Or at the very least maintain. 

Fran had always been something of a tough girl growing up. From a loud, in your face Italian family. And while she was never IN any trouble personally, she was never really too far away from it either. High School? College? She had something of a reputation. Known for flying off the handle in certain situations. Even scrap, if need be. And for a second, Fran entertained the idea of this being back in the day. In which case, she’d storm over there, be up in their shit & calling them out for their blatant disrespect. Maybe ripping chunks of hair out their heads even if things escalated. And shit, these days? With her added mass? Oof, it’d be all over for these hoes, as the kids now would say.

But these days, she was a grown woman. Er… more mature, at least. Besides, ultimately? She knew what was up. What was really up! And instead of getting into any sort of physical altercation, it helped her take some modicum of solace. Sure, she wasn’t without some level of self-awareness. She very well might’ve looked pretty ridiculous, cramming her fat self into workout gear several sizes too small for her double wide ass. If skinny her saw herself, she’d probably be laughing too. But in her maturity, she had grown to realize, at the end of the day? She was still out here, trying to change her situation. She was at least making the attempt. 

These other two? They looked a bit like they were already feeling the effects of this place. And while they might’ve been a bit smaller than her now,  think she’s the one that looks fat & silly. But over time? That was only going to change. They were probably going swell up like ticks. And be none the wiser. Bigger & bigger until they’d need scooters to cart themselves to the bus stop. Even when the place they were probably going was well within walking distance anyway! Meanwhile, silly looking or no, Fran’d still be out here, jogging. And sure, simply believing that? Overall? It was a lot less satisfying than trying to claw their eyes out, maybe even super passive aggressive in a lot of ways. But hey! It helped. 

Loosed up as much as she’d loosen, she secured her bluetooth headset on over her ears & blew out a calming breath between puckered lips. Just blocking them out. Ignoring their glare. Show them what’s up, she mantra’ed, willing a heavy stride forward.

In short order, the massive serving of waffle sundae had started to disappear, one extra large spoonful at a time. And while the fast majority of it found its intended destination deep within Courtney’s soft belly, there were a few flecks & drips that weren’t quite as lucky. And the deeper she got into her “breakfast,” the more reckless Courtney seemed to be getting. A halo of melty vanilla & chocolate syrup started to develop around her lips. When Penny subtly tried so suggest offering her a napkin, Courtney waved it away, instead preferring to lick away what she could at first. Upon realizing there was more than her tongue could reach, she resorted to wiping the bare back of her wrist across before licking that up. It was as if she couldn’t bear to waste the slightest bit. And while Penny abhorred a mess, she took almost seemed to take pride in her accomplishments, watching Courtney’s somewhat gross habit. Still, she did have a bit of a suggestion to put forth. And unbeknownst to Courtney, something of a test.

“Perhaps after you are finished with your sundae, you might like to take a nice, refreshing shower?”

"Ech,” Courtney finally hissed, after swallowing another huge mouthful. “Are you trying to tell me I smell or something?" The mess had started dripping, soaking into the fabric of the ratty old sleep shirt she had been in for more than twenty four hours. In her much thinner days, she bought it two sizes too big, for comfort. Now it barely contained her, at least three sizes too small. She didn’t even seem to care about the gaps that started forming along portions of the seam, where bulges of her poked through.

"Miss Courtney, I would nev..." Penny had bristled at the insinuation.

"No. No. A shower sounds great, actually!" Courtney sighed. "Only joking." Before conceding “Though I probably am pretty gross.” She was getting down to the last few bits of sundae, but was working her way through some of the errant, cream & fudge covered strawberries that had slid off. Resting the bowl on her middle, she picked at the with her free hand while she hovered the spoon off to the side. “Mmmmmmmmph.” She moaned again, catching a particularly juicy one.

“I am sure you will be right as rain after.” Penny chirped. “Would you prefer me to let it run hot prior? Steam up the bathroom a little for you, the way you like?

“Not today, thanks. To be honest, even with the ice cream, it’s practically summer, & I’m feeling pretty warm as it is.” She sighed, not wanting to admit it probably had a lot to do with all the extra padding. “But thanks though!” She dragged the last loose strawberry chunk through a puddle of fudge that had formed to the side in the bowl, trying to scoop up every last bit she could, before bringing to her lips.

“Well if that’s the case, I’ll be sure to adjust the climate control a little as well.” Penny added. But Courtney was too busy focusing on the last scoops of sundae. She was almost mournful to watch it go, pushing the penultimate spoonful on her tongue before scraping together the last of everything she could. A corner, triangular chunk of waffle. A dab of ice cream that had fallen off her spoon. One last berry hiding in the whipped cream. And all the fudgy syrup she could gather. Smooshing it together all onto one spoonful manually was rough, but with a deep breath, she put it in her mouth. And she could report it was just as almost orgasmically delicious as her first bite. She spent a little bit more time working it over before letting her spoon drop into her bowl with a clatter.

“All done?” Penny asked. Courtney fought the urge, tooth & nail, to answer “Unless there’s more.” Because deep down, she knew full well if she did, Penny would gladly whip up a whole second serving on the fly. And she’d definitely put that one away too. No! 

“For… now.” She struggled to hiccup valiantly, relaying the bowl to an awaiting arm that seemed to rush it to the kitchen. “That was amazing. Thank you!”

“Of course!” Penny chirped in her sing-songy pleasant way. “My pleasure!” Courtney took a few deep breaths. As if the sundae was so good, she needed a minute to recover. Upon realizing how ridiculous that was, she tried to spring into action.

“Guess… hup….” She struggled for a second before relenting. “Guess I should go get…” The strain was clearly in her voice. And she seemed to be trying to heave her weight. She had edged herself to the edge of the loveseat even. “Go get… washed..” She tried one more time, trying to brace to the side even, to help push herself. But it was futile. Finally, she had to resort to her last option. "Um... Penny?" 

"Yes' Miss Courtney?"

"I think I..." She almost couldn't bring herself to say it. Even though it was something that had happened a few times before. And troublingly, seemed to become a bit more frequent as of late, especially over this weekend. But then again, she really didn't have to say it in the end. Penny just seemed to know, intuitively, just what the matter actually was.

"Oh. No problem at all." She assured before mobilizing two mechanical arms over head. Courtney wanted to chalk it up to still being a bit stiff from the way she slept. Her arms & legs feeling a bit weaker than they actually were. But deep down, she knew it wasn’t that. It was way more than that. 

Without tilting her head too much, she watched the arms position themselves just above her. They spiraled out along rotator joints & dropped from the ceiling. At first Courtney reached out for them, assuming she'd take each one by the hand & just hoist herself up. The couple other times it happened before, that’s what they did. & it seemed to work well enough. Instead, this time, she was a bit startled when the arms continued to unfurl past her arms, only to feel them secure themselves up underneath each of her armpits.

"Oh?" She murmured softly, as suddenly, she felt them begin to slowly lift, carrying her with. And gradually, the rest of her. While the ceramic surfaces of the arms were maybe just a little too cold to the touch, a part of Courtney lazily kind of preferred Penny doing things this way. Or basically, pretty much all the work. All of the literal heavy lifting, as it were. If only because it ultimately involved less energy & arm strength from her. And her tired, overworked knees appreciated it too. Rising slowly like this allowed them to support her weight a lot more gradually, giving them time to adjust. Because lord knows, there certainly a lot of weight to adjust to. As she approached a standing position, she was slowly reminded of every ounce of it.

"Thank you!" Courtney exhaled sharply through puckered lips, a habit she had developed a long time ago. Something she did whenever it felt like she was expending a lot of energy. Almost the way she used to after going on a long run back during her track & field days. Which felt like ages ago now. Right now, all that energy was being expended simply staying on her feet. Even after Penny got her through the hard part. "Don't know... what I'd even do... without you!" She feebly admitted to her condo's AI.

"You are a strong, confident, capable young woman," Penny assured her. If she wasn’t struggling as much as she was trying to hide, Courtney would’ve probably considered it a little patronizing. "I know you would manage just fine without me. I am only here to make things a little easier." Courtney blushed lightly. She was a bit frustrated because she felt her point was lost, but she also appreciated the flattery. It distracted her from… other things.

"I meant...! Ech, you're too good to me!" Trying to shift her weight to her other hip & start walking. Not too long ago, she used to have pretty decent thigh gap. Now her feet felt a mile & a half away from each other & her thighs felt as though they were almost squished together down to her knees. She thanked her lucky stars she didn’t have to go very far.

"Well you deserve it." Penny said pleasantly, as an arm picked up speed & sped along the tracks from the kitchen. It moved with a blur, too fast for Courtney's eyes to follow, but it carried something in its clutches that was a deep red. "Fresh strawberry?" She could only focus on it once it was on inches from her lips. It seemed like a leftover from her “breakfast.” But she wasn't about to turn it down.

"Ooh-hoohooh! Yes, please!" Courtney happily accepted. After everything else, the berry on its lonesome seemed downright healthy. And it was a good enough distraction to finally get her a heavy half step closer. But she extended her neck the rest of the way to bite into it as Penny's arm held it close & steady. “Mmmm.”

“You run along.” Penny insisted. “I am just going to focus on tidying things up in the kitchen.”

“Sure… thing… any… second… now…” Courtney procrastinating, slowly losing her breath simply staying upright. It took a lot, a lot more than she had both anticipated & wanted to admit, getting her right foot lifted, before stepping a half gait forward. She was reminded that there was a lot of horizontal sway to that gait these days. And that was… bothersome. But not wanting to get too comfortable, she grunted & followed with the left. Then the right again. And slowly, surely, she was walking. She hardly noticed the cadre of mechanical accoutrements under Penny’s control descend on the now vacant, & bowing loveseat behind her, cleaning up a long weekend’s worth crumbs & spills.

The usually light traffic outside on the roads around the Bellflower was even lighter given the holiday. Eventually, among one of the only things Fran saw on the road was the Bellflower shuttle, sure enough carting the mean girls from before shopping over whatever. Luckily, they didn’t notice her. How sweaty & out of breath she had become over what ultimately wasn’t that far a distance.

“Just keep at it,” she told herself over the beats of her workout mix blaring her headset. “You’re doing this for you, not them. Put them out of your thick skull!” She had intended “thick skull” as a way of calling herself fat. One of the ways she sort of negged herself into working harder. But if anything, it dawned on her that having a thick skull just meant she was “big boned,” the excuse people make instead of being fat. Damn. She thought about the dumbest shit on these runs. Wasn’t there something more constructive she could put her mind to? Instead of those oblivious basics at the bus stop or feebly trying to fat shame herself? Oh right! She had the meeting. Tomorrow night, after work.

They had that new Rachel girl to bring into the fold. Hopefully, once they tried their best to explain what they thought was going on, she wouldn’t just write them all off as crazy the way other new “occupants” had in the past. After all, she wasn’t the first newbie they had tried to… rescue, for lack of a better term. 

At the same time, Fran couldn’t quite articulate how, but intuitively? She felt a good vibe coming off Rachel. Sure, maybe a little naive, but observant! The fact that she was doing her own research Saturday, at the coffee shop? If anyone would at least be open to the possibility to all the weird shit going on at the Bellflower, it’d probably be her. Hell, at the end of the day though, it could’ve just been the fact that the first time Fran saw her before her jog the other night last week? Rachel wasn’t quick to laugh. At least overtly laugh, like so many others. Yeah, she definitely had a good vibe about her. And their motley little group could use all the help it could get. The only issue might be getting the others to trust her.

It didn’t work wonders for her self esteem when Courtney felt both her left & right hip brush the sides of what seemed like the already slightly wide bathroom door frame. But she with a heavy, heaving gait, she persisted. 

“Shower at… I don’t know... um... 70 Degrees Fahrenheit, I guess?” she announced. Voice activated, it was technically one of Penny’s functions, but in the user settings, Courtney opted early on to not have Penny with her in the bathroom. At least if she could avoid it. It was like a checkbox like feature that seemed to simulate some version of detachment. To give the air of privacy, even if there really wasn’t. And Courtney appreciated having that option. But she always giggled to herself that it was more for the AI’s sake than her own. To her, Penny was too gentle & pure to have to be subjected to her gross human farts or whatever. Which reminded her. This whole time, since waking up? She had to pee. And right now, she practically felt almost ready to burst. As much as she utterly despised the idea, she had sort of resigned herself to maybe just going in the shower. But that always felt… gross to her. That’s when she saw it.

She realized there was suddenly a bar. She never remembered there ever being a bar there before. Had she simply just never realized it was there, & maybe used it as some sort of towel rack before? It was on the far wall, directly across from the toilet. But sitting within arms’ reach. She leaned against it, trying to apply as much weight as she could, as a way of testing it. It had to be new. Had Penny installed it? She wanted to call out & ask, but if she mentioned Penny’s name, it would uncheck that box. No, not unless it was an emergency. But when would it have gone up?! It wasn’t there yesterday. Was it?! 

New or not, the bar felt sturdy enough, & upon its test drive, ended up being something of a lifesaver when it came to getting up & down. Without Penny. As somewhat of an avid Sims player way back in her college days, Courtney sometimes still imagined those bars popping up & hovering over her head. That was one out of the way. And her hunger should’ve been good, although that one felt sort of glitched. But now to wash up & take care of the other.

She reached snapped the door off its magnetic rubber seal & reached into the spray. “Ack!” She jerked. “Three… No, five degrees warmer.” Maybe she just wasn’t made for cooler showers. They sounded great in practice, but they just never felt… right. She closed it slightly to keep too much as much of the moisture in while it heated up those couple of degrees.

Now that she was standing again, she had slowly gotten used to being on her feet. Sure, she still had something of a light pant for breathing, but she was better than she was. What intimidated her now was another door frame. As she side stepped in, she remembered It had been a little finnicky, the last couple times she showered. But it was fine! She had developed a strategy! All she had to do was swing her left hip in, just right. And not only just all the way in, but actually... work... to smoosh it... in.. against the shower's back wall... a little... while reaching behind her to… grab the handle with her right hand… & just close the... oh no! NO!!

Fran doubled over, leaning her palms onto her squishy thighs. She made it to the fountain at least. But gasping for breath, drops of sweat deluging on the ground below her. Working out? As regularly as she did? She felt like she should be going further & further each time. You know, forward progress! Why was this all she could ever manage? And even then, just barely! Her legs were on fire. And if she didn’t take a break right now, death almost seemed like a real possibility. Suddenly, bells rang. 

She knew those bells. It was the string of bells wrapped around the coffee shop door. Oh, she really shouldn’t but… this felt like something of an emergency. And luckily, the sweatpants hand provided her enough pocket to bring her cardcase with her at least. Fuck. Ok! But no whipped cream!

"Penny!" the dark haired girl panicked while panting. If she had to call out from the bathroom, it had to be an emergency.

"Yes Miss Courtney?" The AI seemed to ask from the kitchen, as if needing soft “confirmation” to break the no bathroom clause.

"The... door..." she struggled, trying a few more times. But it was no use. There was just… way too much... butt! In the way! From this angle, it protruded out just enough to prevent the door from shutting. There was just no way it would seal behind her! But she was too far in, & soaked to step back out & try again. And every attempt she made to close it from this current position, effectively only "spanked" the broader side of her rear with its panel of glazed glass. She tried smooshing her other side in more, but there was no more left to really smoosh. "I just... can't seem to... And the water...!" She realized, as the shower spray was ricochet off the back of her round body, cascading down some of the rolls, bouncing off some of the others, all presumably gathering up to flood the tile bathroom floor behind her.

"Oh, I was concerned this might happen. But it is fine."  Penny answered. The "concerned this might happen" part made Courtney's eyes widen, but go unseen. Before she could voice any reaction, the AI started to instruct her. "Turn just a wee bit more to your left, facing the back wall a little more head on." It was hard, given how much she was already working to smoosh her hip into the shower wall. But with a confined, waddling step with her meaty thighs tapered slightly more together, Courtney obliged as best she could, now squishing more of her round belly into too. Although maybe a bit tenderly. Because waffles. And ice cream. And whipped… “Stop thinking about food!” She admonished herself. She imagined there was probably an inch of water on the floor already & it was rising by the second. What a mess! The floor AND HER!

From this position, she could no longer reach the door behind her properly. And for a brief second, it seemed to open just a bit wider to create even more of a mess. "Ok. Be prepared to... suck it in a little..." Penny advised, as if Courtney wasn't already doing just that. "Arms up! In 3, 2..." & on what would've been "1," the shower door, whether pushed by mechanical arm or on its own hydraulic hinge, seemed to forcefully seal shut behind her, clasping against the seal, while clapping against the broadest side of her wide rear, which now seemed partially pancaked against it. It also pushed her in a little deeper, her head directly in the nozzle’s line of fire, sending some of it into her eyes & mouth. 

“I believe you’re in,” Penny acknowledged. Courtney reached a meaty arm up to give the nozzle a bump before blinking her eyes clear with a wide open mouth, coughing slightly. She felt like she had been crammed inside of a tube. And essentially, that’s precisely what had happened. 

“Are you ok?” Penny asked. “Can you breathe?”

“I… think so…” Courtney took stock slowly. “Oh this… this sucks! I… don’t fit!”

“Not true,” Penny tried to assuage. 

“Ok, fine… Just barely fit!” Courtney corrected feeling very generous with herself. 

“Unfortunately, I have to hold the door shut manually or else your… bum would bump it open again.” So Penny had cinched her in. But this wasn’t like a corset or something, it was a standard fucking shower! Just then, Courtney slowly realized that there was so much… her… happening, that essentially, she was filling up about ninety seven percent of the space horizontally, causing the water to pool  in spots where her fluff was essentially damming it off. This meant that other than a few waterfalls happening in the very corners, everything from her “waist” down wasn’t getting water. In fact, from her knees down, things were practically bone dry. Some “shower.”

"What about the puddles?" Courtney remembered to ask, staring ahead at the boring shower wall. "I feel like I made a huge mess of the floor outside. 

“Nothing some moderate wetvac’ing won’t solve.” Penny assured. Almost on cue, a motor kicked on. There was no turning to see it, but Courtney assumed it was one of the helper arms sucking up the excess moisture. “But as a slipping hazard, I recommend you shower while I clean up outside. Courtney tried to reach for the shower wand. But things were just… right & wrong. Instead of grabbing it, she could only really bump it a little.

“I can’t…” a soaking Courtney almost felt ready to cry. It wasn’t impossible, but from the angle & how little room there was to move so much of her, it was just a little too awkward to manage. “... this is awful.” She let her head droop under its jets.

“Now, now!” Penny’s pleasant tone took on a matronly vibe. “It’s alright.” The water seemed to shift direction slightly. The nozzle’s wand began to animate on its very own. Almost as if it had been another one of Penny’s articulated appendages all along. Which also made Courtney slightly self-conscious of things she used to try & do with it when she was a bit more agile, looking back. “I am sure you would have figured something out. I am just here to make things a little easier. Now, again, arms up!” Reluctantly, Courtney heaved her flabby arms skyward, catching each other at the elbow to almost frame her head. “Atta girl.” Penny said, patronizingly. As she did, the shower wand snaked around her, making sure to get her pits. And speaking of pits, that’s sort of how she felt.

Fran felt shitty for caving. The concoction she got ended up being more of a frosty mocha milkshake than any sort of iced coffee. And it came with whipped cream. She had no idea she had to ask for it without. Otherwise she for sure would have! But it was creamy & thick in ways she knew probably more than canceled out the morning’s jog immediately. Probably in just the first few gulps she’d already taken. And yet, there was so much more of it to go! A huge cup. Oh, but fuck! It was hot, & she needed this right now! More than anything! She blissfully sucked deeply on the thick, eco-conscious cardboard-y straw, trying to put all else out of her mind, to little avail.

The worst part about it? It didn’t seem like any sort of insidious act. Like, this wasn’t the Bellflower’s doing. Penny wasn’t making her do this right now. No, this felt like all her. Her lacking the strength, the willpower to resist it. No. There was no one else to blame here. This was simply her making shitty choices. And yet, as awful as it made her feel? She was desperate for more at the same time. Fuck! With something of a loud thud, she dropped her bubble butt onto one of the benches circling the fountain with something of a thoomp. The hardwood still creaked, which didn’t help her. She took a deep breath.

“Don’t beat yourself up over it,” she tried reasoning to herself, speaking calmly under her breath. “You know better. One’s not going to kill you. Enjoy it now, but push yourself harder. And learn from this. Next time, just leave the credit cards home.” She took a deep sip, stopping just short of giving herself a brainfreeze. 

At the end of the day, it weighed heavily on her. Not just this “milkshake,” but the precarity of her whole situation. How she couldn’t afford herself one little cheat without worrying it might spell utter disaster for her. Out of dread it would mean succumbing, like the others. But also? Things were rough. Because as much as she hated to admit it, for all her bluster about trying to get fit again? Going on jogs? The crunches she forced herself to do? Not updating her wardrobe?! Being hypervigilant? Smashing the speakers like some crazy person? The ear plugs?! None of it seemed to be amounting to very much in terms of actually getting fit. Like, she’d been at it for months now, & at most she’d maybe lose A pound here. But then, gain it almost immediately back? 

She realized her genetics weren’t like the typically tight, bougie Wasp types that usually dwelled at the Bellflower either. At least initially. The women in Fran’s family? Thick would be something of a generous term. A few were certainly eaters. And while she had always been fairly average most of her life, Fran was starting to stare at the homestretch of her twenties. Maybe there was more to it than just the creepy condo? Still, no one in her family was the size she was at now!

But she also couldn’t deny, as strict as she had been, this whole regimen she had herself on? It certainly meant she had kept herself from gaining too much. Well more, at least. From the moment she finally put her foot down. In fact, over the time she’d been at the Bellflower, she’d seen plenty of other faces come, puff up, in some cases like crazy, & then just… stop leaving their unit. And usually, that seemed to happen in less than a year’s time. She was coming up on two & half year anniversary. At the very least, it helped her at least maintain some sort of...longevity almost in that regard! Thankful she wasn’t one of… them!

But, at the same time? It was also starting to feel like she was spending a hell of a lot of time, energy, & hard work simply just trying to keep her head above water here. Like, seriously! Was the best she seemed able to hope for was simply… plateauing? Around a bulky 320, give or take? Caving for one cold drink on a hot day shouldn’t feel like putting a loaded gun to your temple. And yet, for her? It kind of did.

She took one more deep sip, but was hardly about a third of the way through it. She wasn’t one hundred percent refreshed, but she was certainly feeling a bit better now. She eyed a trash can. It killed her to be wasteful. Growing up, her family wasn’t much like a lot of the rich types in this neighborhood. And the thing did taste good. Really good! And cold?

But NO! She had to do this for her! No caving! Not today! She had to stay strong. She whipped it at the garbage like softball under hand, the lid popping on impact, gushing creamy light brown splatter mostly into the bin with a pop. She had to keep it up. Maintain for now! Even as hard as it was! Because the mysterious alternative of just suddenly not leaving her apartment any more? Yeah, no thanks!

After getting off to such an auspicious, wonderfully smelling & tasting start, it seemed like Courtney’s day had taken a bit of a turn. A swan dive really. She suddenly wasn’t feeling that great. In fact? She was feeling downright terrible. Sorry for herself. After the mess was cleaned up, Penny helped guide her fat ass back outside the shower stall. Needing the assistance like that? She almost like she was some truck, needing a spotter to help reverse. And even with Penny’s patient guidance, she still almost spilled backwards onto her ass. Leery of any further humiliation, she decided to make a b-line straight for her bedroom.

It took some doing, waddling to her king sized bed. She frankly almost felt like she had built up a bit of a sweat again just getting ehre. Awkwardly, she spun her back to the mattress before putting her arms out & allowing herself to simply fall backwards. It was a lot of weight to just let drop. Mid motion, she worried she hadn’t thought the melodramatic plop she had intended through all the way. She worried she could very possibly crater through not only the bed frame, but through the floor, possibly landing on neighbors below. Luckily, to her relief, her bed took it like a champ. It let out a loud, panicky creak. And the mattress felt like it came damn close to simply popping from her weight. But somehow, it seemed to hold.

Laying across her bed diagonally, on her back spread eagle in nothing but a silk robe that was just a little too small to drape over all of her, the way she had landed wasn’t as comfortable as she had hoped. All the sleeping she had done on the couch recently, she realized she hadn’t tried laying flat on her back in a while. It sucked! It was tough to breath. And she felt almost... a little trapped. Almost immediately, her flabby arms reached up.

“Penny… help…” She winced helplessly, painfully aware of her limits. Of course without delay, ceramic arms swooped in to oblige, lifting her upright, into a sitting position on the center of her bed. At least the air was making its way to her lungs now a little easier. She tried to bring cross her legs up out of habit but not only was there too much leg, she just didn’t seem to be that agile any more. Instead, everything just sort of wobbled on her in fleshy ripples as she kicked them straight out & leaned back on both her palms. “What is wrong with me?” She sighed, almost seeming ready to cry.

“Is something the matter, Miss Courtney?” Penny, who always seemed to intuitively know & anticipate her any need, usually minutes, even hours in advance, suddenly seemed clueless. Completely oblivious. And to Courtney, something about that was downright frustrating. Especially right now.

"Penny!” Courtney scoffed a disgusted scoff. Almost speechless, it took her a second to find the words. “Y-you basically just had to help me bathe myself! As if I was some... kind of..." She was still winded from both the walk to the bed & the prone position she landed in. On top of that, she was getting a little too emotional. Instead, she ended up trailing off into a blank.

"And was my job in some way unsatisfactory?" The robot seemed to either be taking the wrong cues. No way she was this willfully ignorant. Not to Courtney’s needs! Especially given how blatant it all seemed, & how absolutely massive Courtney was feeling right now. Still, after everything, she found it hard to spurn her usually earnest robotic assistant.

"Well... no," Courtney blushed a little. "It felt kinda good actually. Soothing. But...!"

"If you are indeed, content with my performance & even enjoyed your own experience, I am sorry, but I am afraid I fail to see what you find so intensely troubling." Penny interrupted obtusely. It sounded as though even she was getting a little frustrated too.

"Ech, the ISSUE is ME!" Courtney cried out bluntly. There was no holding back the tears now. "Something is wrong with ME! I mean seriously!  I'm starting to get...! No! I mean... I don't even know why I'm beating around the bush. I AM huge!” Admitting it seemed to take a lot out of her. She took her weight off one of her palms to bring it forward & give her round belly a slap under the flap of her silk robe. For a split second, she forgot about the waffles & ice cream, wincing a little, before listing all the irrefutable evidence that brought her to this painful conclusion she had come to. “I have a hard time getting up & down on my own any more! Walking completely SUCKS! And while it seemed to be a long time coming, today? Officially? I found out I'm so... wide, I don't even fit in my own shower any more without like... a gigantic struggle! Or without making an equally gigantic mess!”  She bit her lip, almost pained. The tears had started streaming, but only looked to intensify. "And even worse?! On top of all of that? There isn't a second that goes by where I'm not at least partially think about when or what I'm going to eat next!" She tried burying her crying face into the hand she slapped her belly with. But there was just way too much face, even for the chubby hand. "I'm... a disaster. An unmitigated disaster."

“You are far from a disaster, Miss Courtney.” Penny attempted. In trying to simulate something akin to empathy, a cold, ceramic grabber claw came to rest on Courtney’s shoulder as if to try & comfort her somehow. Unnerved by the cold sensation, Courtney jerked, swatting at it with her hand & in turn sending a fleshy ripple through her excess flab. The problem was the mechanical hand was just a little too sturdy. It was like wrapping her knuckles against a wall.

“Ow!” Courtney cried out. “Penny!” It was the closest thing to an angry yell she’d ever directed at her robot friend.

“Apologies,” the machine slowly retracted, as Courtney winced. She appreciated the attempt, but ultimately, it had done little to actually help. Courtney stared into the middle distance.

“Holly was right. The other day? She seemed so… worried.” she admitted. “I… I have to see a doctor… Go talk to someone. This? What’s happening to me? The amount I’m eating… it’s jus’… it’s not healthy!”

“Miss Courtney,” Penny’s tone changed. Becoming slightly matter of fact. “Part of my programming dictates I scan your vitals. Besides your cholesterol being a little high, they are all optimal. If anything, you’re perhaps just… a little spoiled.”

“OH-ho-hoh!” Courtney, spring to laugh mockingly despite tear-laden eyes. “A little spoiled?!” She attempted to repeat it, while gesturing at what had become of her but she could hardly say it with a straight face. “Penny! I am lterally as big as a fuckin’ house!”

“Not literally.” Penny attempted to correct weakly.

“Sure I am. One of those little ones? The tiny houses! I’m at least that size!”

“You are being hyperbol...” Penny tried to assert, flaccidly before getting cut off by an emotional Courtney. 

“YOU’RE being hyper… I don’t know what! But I’m still really fat & it…. It’s…... ” She didn’t peeter out. She was getting so worked up that the dairy in her system worked its way into something of a distressed burp. “Buh-rappp.” Not room-shaking. Or even really loud. In fact, downright dainty. But enough to ruin her entire train of thought, derail her head of steam. There was a long pause.

“If it will make you feel better, I can try to place an appointment for you.” Penny put out there.

“I just… “ Courtney huffed, part of her second guessed herself. “What are they going to tell me even? “Lose weight?!” You don’t think I don’t already KNOW that?! I mean… Holly’s right but like… at this point?! What are they even really going to do about it?!” Another pause fell over the room. Eventually Penny decided it be best to attempt to sound constructive. “If you think preparing smaller portions or healthier meal options will help, I would be more than hap…”

“No, no! Not… Maybe, but… I don’t think....” Courtney sighed. It felt like her head was awash with a million thoughts at once. And worst of all, the seemingly biggest, loudest, & altogether scariest one? One she didn’t dare repeat out loud, but reverberated between her ears like a drum beat? It just seemed to be telling her it was too late. Much too late. And that if she really wanted to act, she should’ve done two hundred pounds ago. 

“Miss Courtney, it pains me to see you like this.” Penny chimed in. Courtney didn’t know how long she had been awash in her own thoughts, but her tears seemed to be continuing without her. Penny’s voice had sounded as empathetic as it could synthetically muster. She once again tried for the mechanical hand on the shoulder & this time it wasn’t immediately shirked away.

The AI decided this was her moment. She had ran upwards of thirty-six simulations of this very scenario when it came to Courtney, & all signs seemed to indicate that a time like the present was the optimal time to strike with she had dubbed the “Up Sell.” The only issue was that Courtney was such a sweet girl through & through, it almost pained Penny to play her like this. “It really seems like you are unhappy, & just maybe like the general amenities of the Bellflower are no longer quite cutting it for you quite the same way anymore. I am not supposed to divulge information like this, but management has been looking to start something of a pilot program.”

“For what?” A slightly skeptical Courtney reared her head. 

“Like I said, I really should not be divulging too much. But let us just say, a truly top-of-the-line experience! Geared specifically for optimal happiness. More than even I can provide to you currently. Essentially, something akin to an upgrade package. But since it is still in something of trial phases, it is being offered free of charge, albeit “on the down low,” to only a select number of valued occupants.” Courtney had something of a confused look by what felt like an obvious deflection. But at the same time, she was still slightly intrigued? “You have not been here quite as long as some of the others, but I do not see that as a disqualifying factor for you. If it is to your liking, perhaps I can look to see about trying to enroll you?”

“Um… sure… I guess you can put my name in if you want…” Courtney seemed to haplessly confirm. “But you’re still being really vague. And I feel like you're distracting me from my problems simply for the sake of distracting me!" She giggled a little through red eyes, as if to say even if that was the case, she sort of appreciated the attempt.

“Oh, I assure you, it is very real." Penny tried to assure, even though that was never entirely what Courtney was driving at exactly, making her all the MORE suspicious. But Courtney, taking a deep breath, seemed to let it slide. "And we can definitely discuss it more upon your pending acceptance, which in your case, I am sure is almost guaranteed. For right now, have you given any thought towards lunch?”