The Weight of Reality: Chapter 1

Bret awoke and dashed to the bathroom to empty his bowels. He could barely remember last night, but judging by volume he must have ate and drank even more than usual. He breathed a sigh of relief as he flushed the toilet. It felt like he had lost ten pounds, yet he still looked chunkier than ever. He took a whiff of his armpit. He smelled like onions and bacon grease.

After a long hot shower he styled his hair and applied his make up. He opened the closet and fished out a white tee he hadn’t worn since they started filming. He had avoided this shirt because he knew he was too fat for it, but if wearing it secured ratings and his place on the show then that’s what he would do. He pulled it over his head and couldn’t help but chuckle. It barely covered the bulbous curve of his navel.

When he entered the patio he felt all eyes on him. One of the producers whispered to a camera guy and Bret got the sense they were zooming in on his belly. He turned to their daily breakfast buffet and was taken aback. It was always a nice spread, but this looked particularly indulgent. Waffles and french toast? Creme and fruit and a chocolate fountain? And this was all in addition to their normal bacon, ham, eggs, and toast. Bret knew what was going on.

“Ah, smells great,” he declared and rubbed his belly.

Bret proceeded to pile a mountain of food onto two plates. It looked so obscene you could barely distinguish one thing from another on the plate.

“Damn bro,” declared Jonny. “You didn’t get your fill last night?”

Bret wasn’t entirely sure what Jonny meant by that comment. He supposed this wasn’t the first time he was making a pig of himself. He shrugged, scooped some whipped cream onto his finger and licked it off.

“I’m a hungry boy,” he said. “You should try it out sometime. Might as well indulge while we can.”

Jonny chuckled and then looked at his empty plate. “You know, you’re right!”

Nearby the girls looked at each other and rolled their eyes as one by one each of the five remaining men headed back to the buffet to load up their plates. The cameras languished over their swollen bodies and eager expressions. Bret grinned to himself at this quiet revolution. Ratings were good, but he had to remain the star of the show. So he ate.

Bret ate as fast as he could, shoveling heaping forkfuls of food into his mouth. He made sure every bite was dripping with cream or syrup. As he finished the first plate he lifted it to his lips and let the remaining sludge fall into his gaping mouth. He set it down and looked at the second plate onerously. He already felt pretty full but he knew what he had to do. He had to eat. So he did, bite after bite until every last morsel was packed into his overstretched stomach.

“Fuck,” Bret murmured and then belched into his fist.

He sighed heavily and, noticing the camera to his left trained on him, slowly reached his arms back over his head and stretched. He felt the white T-shirt ride up along his happy trail revealing the expanse of his pudgy center. When he returned to his normal position he could tell once again that all eyes were on him. The guys were in shock, the girls grossed out, and the producers were giddy. He tugged the shirt back down over his belly and grinned.

That day they had a therapy challenge which was Bret’s least favorite type of challenge. It involved opening up on camera and revealing some sort of compelling trauma from one’s past. Everything everyone said was bullshit and concocted for the cameras, and it was difficult coming up with a good storyline sometimes. After he finished his scene he watched as Dennis performed for the cameras.

Dennis had some sob story about being bisexual and not fitting in. He had been leaning on the bisexual card all season long and it irritated Bret, until… An idea struck him. If viewership with gay guys was increasing then why not start a little romance with Dennis? Bret was straight, but he had let some gay guys blow him in college. He considered himself progressive and open minded, so why not?

Later that night, the five remaining men lay spread across the sectional. More often than not these days the genders were segregated. Conversation arose as to why this was, with most of the guys feeling resentful the girls weren’t putting out. As the men expressed their woes Bret was zoned out. He was looking at all five of them and realizing how much weight they had collectively gained. It was actually shocking.

When they arrived at the villa each one of them had a chiseled six pack and now nary an ab was visible. They all had paunches, some more so than others. Their faces looked softer and their arms less defined. Thick thighs spread out before them barely contained by tiny shorts. Their bodies were well padded and straining the clothes that used to fit ten, twenty, maybe thirty pounds ago. It was kind of incredible.

Bret snapped back to attention as a couple of the guys left to try and find the girls. At that moment Bret realized he was sitting next to Dennis and the time was ripe to make a move. He shuffled closer to Dennis so that they were nearly touching.

“Hey Dennis, I really admired what you said in therapy today.”

“Oh?” Dennis seemed surprised. He looked Bret in the face and then down to his chest where his nipples were visible through a snug tank.

“Yeah, my brother is bi,” Bret uttered this flat-out lie with ease, “and I know it can be difficult. Especially…” Bret’s hand slid onto the thick exposed meat of Dennis’s thigh, “when you have no one to talk to about it. I mean, you can always come to my room and talk to me if you’re feeling, you know…”

Dennis’s eyes flooded with a sultry darkness that actually surprised Bret. He didn’t flinch though, and moved his hand further up Dennis’s thigh until he noticed the man’s cock twitch.

“That’s good to know,” Dennis reached over and placed his hand on Bret’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “I may take you up on that.”

Bret was surprised to feel himself getting sucked into Dennis’s allure. He even felt his own dick stir to attention and tried to justify it by reminding himself it had been days since he’d last gotten off. In fact, a part of him wanted to kiss Dennis right there and then. He was about to suggest a nightcap in that very moment when the two men were interrupted by the rest.

“The girls said we’re getting too fucking fat!” Vince, the fattest of the bunch, exclaimed. “Can you believe it, they literally said every single one of us is fat and that we acted like pigs at breakfast today. Can you believe it?”

Incredulous chatter exploded amongst the men. Bret let them get riled up for a moment before shouting above the noise: “Fuck it, I’m hungry!”