The Subaru bounced and jostled as Jim ran over a pothole on his way to work. He couldn't help but look over at his wife, who was starting to become the definition of "letting yourself go." Her ill-fitting, un-ironed, button-up work shirt sat unevenly on her body, revealing a sliver of her newly fattened stomach as it bulged over the seatbelt. Her breasts, also struggling to stay within the confines of her shirt due to their newly massive size, now jiggled very noticeably whenever the family car hit a pothole or a rough surface. Her hair was a frizzy mess, bags were beginning to form beneath her eyes, and she was lucky she'd even buttoned her pants—she often forgot to do so before leaving the house.

Turning his attention back to the road, and then back to Pam, Jim marveled at Pam's transformation: with each and every day she got a little fatter and more slobbish. Not only was she putting on weight—no doubt due to the passive-aggressive stuffing sessions he'd managed to secretly watch in the middle of the night—but she was also making no attempt to hide it anymore. She'd walk around the house with her pants and shirt unbuttoned, she'd no longer excuse herself when she burped at the dinner table, and here she was sitting in the car on her way to work with a pasty white fat roll spilling over the seatbelt, and she didn't seem to care one bit.

Jim still didn't know exactly why she was doing this, but he certainly wasn't complaining. It wasn't a bad way to start off a boring weekday. And truth be told, he was also excited to see Karen, who had just returned from an extra-long weekend.

Jim entered the break room, honestly just expecting to retrieve a snack and a coffee, but not at all displeased to see Karen Filippelli sitting in the same spot she always did. It was practically like she worked in here, with the amount of time she spent in here drinking her endless supply of soda, and the amount of money she spent picking delicious treats from that conveniently-placed vending machine.

He couldn't see much of her body behind the food-laden table, but that soon became a non-issue as Karen stood up to greet Jim. And for the second time this morning, Jim was pleasantly surprised.

Even more so than Pam, Karen was now positively fat—she must have been nearing the big 200-pound mark. A newly formed double chin appeared as she smiled seductively and said "Hi, Jim!" Her hips had grown wider than Jim was used to seeing, filling out a pair of pants that was definitely several sizes larger than before—and yet there were still bulges of golden brown fat peeking out between her silky pants and blouse, as if demanding an even-larger size. Her previously average lower half had become deliciously shapely with the added weight. Less traditionally shapely, though, was Jim's favorite part of her: the fat gut that protruded from her middle even more than before, positively nine-months-pregnant in size, straining her shirt, and sagging over her waistband. He also noticed an ample amount of jewelry she hadn't been wearing before—clearly she was enjoying her newfound wealth in several ways.

"I said hi, Jim," repeated Karen, smiling devilishly as she noticed Jim's eyes wandering. Jim snapped out of it and realized she was extending her arms for a hug. "Come on, don't you want a hug? It's been forever since we hugged!"

"Of course!" Jim couldn't think of any decent excuse not to do so, so he obliged. As he squeezed Karen's newly blimp-like body, he was amazed by just how soft every single part of her was. Her breasts and belly pressed tight against his own body—surely not by mistake—and even the parts of her back and sides that his hands landed on seemed to be coated in a soft layer of pudge.

Suddenly Jim noticed that Karen's hand had been wandering up to the blinds and closing them mid-hug, so he could no longer see out into the workplace. Before he could say anything, she let go of him and struck a pose for Jim, highlighting the new bulges in her shapely figure. "I didn't get too fat on vacation, did I?" she asked innocently.

"Karen, listen, I know we had a moment before, but—"

"Are you sure?" interrupted Karen, and Jim now realized why she'd closed the blinds. She was slowly pulling up her shirt, revealing a truly massive gut to Jim. "I don't look like I've gained any weight, do I?" she teased. "That's funny, I was sure I would, drinking all day long and having ice cream sundaes between every meal..."

"Karen, you look great, you know you do, but—"

"Thank you so much, Jim! I just didn't know if you'd be able to... feel the difference..." She grabbed Jim's hand and touched it to one of her protruding love handles. Jim shuddered, as he dreamed of doing this, but knew he couldn't.

"Karen! I'm with Pam, and I love her, and—and she could come in here any minute," he added hastily.

Karen's expression changed to one of genuine interest. "Oh, Pam, that's right... Pardon me for asking, but hasn't she been, uh..."

"What?" asked Jim.

"...packing on the pounds, herself?" Karen finished.

"Y-yes, just a bit," said Jim, unable to deny what everyone in the office surely noticed by now. "It's just been a stressful time for her, and—"

"How much has she gained?" asked Karen with a smile, knowing that Jim probably knew the number by heart.

"44 pounds," said Jim under his breath.

"Oh my," replied Karen with a glint in her eye, "That is a lot. You don't suppose she's, uh... jealous, of what we have here?"

"We don't have anything here," said Jim firmly. "We're just friends and you know that."

Suddenly the door opened, and in walked Pam for her 10 o'clock coffee. She slowed down at the sight of Jim and Karen standing in the corner immersed in conversation, but kept walking towards the coffee pot. Both Karen and Jim noticed the bouncing of her body in her now-ill-fitting shirt as she paced across the floor.

"Pam!" cried Jim, jogging over to hug her, and relieved that he had a way out of Karen's taunting. "How's your day going?"

"Not now," said Pam groggily as she poured her coffee. "Just, not having a great morning. Need some peace and quiet."

"Okay babe," said Jim comfortingly. He looked back at Karen and noticed she was raising her eyebrows and motioning towards Pam's ass, which was noticeably bigger and rounder than before, topped by two love handles that were quite reminiscent of Karen's, though much paler and with an angry red mark towards the bottom where her pants were digging in. Jim frowned and did his best to mouth "Stop!" at Karen, who continued smiling.

Pam turned around with her cup of coffee, got something out of the fridge, and sat down, her poor, straining shirt sliding up slightly to allow some of her pale white spare tire to leak out into the open, much to the delight of her two officemates. They both sat down at Pam's table.

She opened the box she'd gotten from the fridge, and Karen had to stifle a laugh. It was the very same rich, dense chocolate cake Jim had seen her wolfing down in the middle of the night as he sleepily watched from the staircase.

Karen leaned over to Jim. "At least she's on a diet!" she whispered.

Pam swallowed another bite of the cake, and looked up to see Karen and Jim sitting down. Jim could tell she was paying attention to Karen's newly huge size, with something between disgust and envy.

"How was your vacation, Karen?" asked Pam coldly, her eyes still lingering on her protruding gut for a second.

"It was wonderful, thanks for asking!" chimed Karen, stretching her arms above her head in what seemed like an innocent stretch, although it revealed the huge mound of smooth, tan fat spilling amply across her lap.

"That's *burp* good," mumbled Pam through her burp, as she continued digging in to the rich cake, looking darkly from Jim to Karen and back again.

"Well, I have to get back to work," sighed Karen, getting up from the table and walking towards the door. "See you two at lunch!"

As the door closed behind her, Pam looked at Jim. "Do you think she's pretty?" she asked.

"Well—yes, she's a good-looking woman, but not as beautiful as you babe," said Jim confidently.

"You really mean it?" asked Pam. "You really think I'm *burp* pretty?" Crumbs of chocolate cake stuck to the sides of her mouth and littered her lap, where a newly-developed roll of belly flab still sat out in the open.

"Of course I mean it," said Jim.