Author's note: All the characters and events are fictitious and have no resemblance (okay, some resemblance), with the real events. All the characters in the story are above 18 years of age.
This is my first attempt at writing a story. It might seem a little slow in the beginning but the wait should be worth it.
***
Katherine Wales shifted in her chair uneasily. This was the last place she'd wanted to be in right now. It wasn't the first time she had to monitor the students in the detention room, but this time, it was only a single student, and she was the reason he was put in there. Jeffery Hamilton, an eighteen-year-old youth, an average student, somebody who never stood out, either in academics, or sports, or mischief, sat quietly across her table, engrossed in what seemed to be his calculus homework. In any other circumstance, this would look like an ordinary situation, given the boy's innocent bespectacled face and slim build. An hour had passed and she noticed Jeffery, who probably out of boredom or pleading, raised his head and looked at Katherine. "How dare he!" was the first thought that came to Katherine's mind and she met his gaze with a glare of anger and disappointment.
It has been four years since Katherine had been teaching Mathematics in the Mid-Coast High. In that time, she had made peace with the fact that wherever she would go, one way or the other she'd be mocked for her physique, either directly or passively. Since her childhood, she had been the recipient of taunts and insults over her weight. As time flew, she felt her skin thicken over the insults, but at times, it would still become unbearable. And adding to the misery, it was her surname, that people would automatically morph into a torturous yet uninventive insult, calling her a "whale" then, and Ms. "whales" now. She knew it was inevitable, and it barely took a day in this school for the news of this development to reach Katherine's ears. She stopped paying much attention to such matters and was content if the students behaved decently, at least when in front of her.
In the timespan of four years, at an age of 38, she had developed habits that definitely helped her lose a few pounds, bringing her weight to 220 lbs. She could clearly observe the reduction in her thighs and tummy, giving her bosom and buttocks an ampler appearance. However, there was still fat deposited on her cheeks, making her face look a bit puffy. The only silver lining she thought was her decent height of 5 feet and a little below 8 inches, that did not make her body look disproportionate. A few years ago, she would not have thought of making drastic changes to her lifestyle. Over her lifetime, she had become accustomed to being called fat, mostly subtly, under the guise of "chubby" and "healthy", and overtly on occasions. And above all she had an accepting and caring boyfriend, Derek, who chose to be with her despite her supposed physical issues.
Derek worked as a civilian pilot, was decent looking and had a fairly muscular build. They met through a dating app and started seeing each other around six months ago, when Katherine was in between jobs. They were planning to move in together but Katherine insisted on waiting until she got a decent and permanent work. After all, she didn't want to become a burden on him. But keeping that aside, their relationship was working out smoothly. Being a pilot, Derek had to do a lot of traveling, but would manage to find time to be with her. And even though, their relationship started a bit late, they managed to maintain a healthy sexual lifestyle. Things seemed to going well, at least until that day.
She was called for an interview for the post of Mathematics lecturer in one of the neighborhood schools. After interviewing at and being rejected from several places, she was not feeling much hopeful and just wanted to get it over with. She was about to leave, when the phone buzzed.
"Hi Derek".
"Hey Babe!"
"Can you make it quick? The interview won't happen itself."
"Whoa! Nice to hear your voice too."
"Sorry! Just too stressed. I really don't want to miss out on this one."
"And you will not. And when you'll get selected, I have a couple of wines waiting in my apartment."
"Aww thanks. At least one of us thinks so. Wait! Your apartment? You mean you are here!"
"Yeah! Just landed at six. Let me know when the interview and I'll be at your place in a jiffy."
"And I thought we were meeting at your apartment."
"You are welcome to come here. But you won't need alcohol to get high. The stench itself will knock you down."
"Right! In that case, see you at six."
"Best of luck. Go get'em."
"Thanks. And I am not a kid anymore. Bye."
***
Though she did not enter the interview with high hopes and confidence, she was content with the way the interview went. And therefore, it hurt even more, when she was rejected. She was sitting quietly on a bench outside the school, dealing with the tempest of emotions hurling inside her. She could not muster the strength to get up, let alone get home. She took out her phone to call Derek, but decided against it. His voice would definitely get her choked up. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, she decided to go to Derek's house. Being alone at school wasn't helping her and she could not bear to be alone at home. She walked to her car, got inside and drove to Derek's place.
After twenty minutes of drive, she stopped the car in front of Derek's home and noticed a red car, different from Derek's, parked a few feet away. Had Derek forgot to mention that he would be meeting someone or deliberately left it out? She was too tired and upset to reach any conclusions. She got out of the vehicle and reached the entrance. Just when, she was about to ring the doorbell, she noticed the voices coming from the inside. A part of her brain tried to convince her it to be television, but still, instead of reaching for the doorbell, she used the spare key to open the door and entered the hallway. The voices from inside grew louder and seemed to be coming from Derek's bedroom. Since she was familiar with the house, she instinctively walked towards the sound. By now it was clear that the voices were of a lady and of course, Derek. As soon as she reached the bedroom's door, she heard the woman enquire:
"How are you still able to put up with that swine of a woman?"
"Respect! Joan!" Derek reprimanded. "Do not call the woman a swine. She has been nicknamed a whale and that's what we should stick to. Though I admit, she does sweat like pig sometimes."
Until the "swine", Katherine still believed the conversation was about somebody else. The realization came when she heard him call her a "whale". She knew at that moment that her misfortune was still not done with her and rejection was just the tip of the iceberg.
"And why are we even talking about her? I'll have to see her anyway in the evening and console her sorry ass for probably failing again. Can we focus at the work at hand?"
"Aye aye captain!" affirmed Joan.
Katherine was on the verge of exploding in tears. She thought of running back to her home, and if she had any luck, she would get caught in an accident midway, and die, or so she thought. But she chose to end things right there and then. Instead of barging in, she slowly made the door ajar and got the glimpse of what she was completely expecting now. Derek was lying on the bed on his back, fully naked, with his head towards the door. On top of him was Joan, mounting him in the cowgirl position, in her birthday suit. Derek was passionately groping and kneading her right breast, while furiously using his index finger to pinch and stretch the nipple on the left one. Joan had her eyes closed with ecstasy and sheer lust, while she continued riding him with urgency. Katherine could not take any further and threw the door open with a deafening thud.
Katherine was brought to the reality in the detention room with the sound of Jeffery's falling book. Jeffery picked the book from the ground, mumbled an unapologetic 'sorry', and went back to his homework. The breakup with Derek, his betrayal, all were still fresh in her mind. And then, there was today's incident.
She was to take the first lecture in Jeffery's class. Since she arrived a bit early, she decided to wait in the classroom. Most of the students would still be coming anyway. As soon as she reached the classroom and opened the door, she saw Jeffery standing in front of the board, with a black marker and a marker eraser in his hands. Her eyes drifted from Jeffery to the board, and she was horrified to see a large drawing of a whale, at the center of the board. Her seething eyes moved back and forth between the board and Jeffery's face, his lips now quivering with the fear of being caught. The only relief was that she and Jeffery were alone in the room, and hence, nobody else saw the board.
