Through most of my 20s I lived in the same apartment building. It wasn't the most luxurious place but the rent was cheap and people minded their own business so that was enough for me to stay. I lived on the top floor and although the stairs were a bit of a workout I got used to them over time, plus there was only one other apartment on the top floor so it was a bit more private which I also preferred.
Laura had lived across the hall for about a year. She was a few years older than me and on the occasional instance where we met in the hallway she was always courteous. We were both quiet types so no more than friendly greetings were ever exchanged between us. For a while she had a boyfriend that would stop by a lot but for the last few of months he hadn't been around and after the couple blowups I heard through the thin walls it seemed like he probably wouldn't be by anytime soon.
It was a sunny yet crisp afternoon in April as spring had certainly arrived but hadn't gotten comfortable yet. I arrived home from running a few errands and as I was ascending the stairs I came across Laura on the third floor as she was carrying a rather large and awkward sized box so I called out that I'd help her make it the rest of the way. She sighed with relief and thankfully accepted my offer. Together we made it up the last few stairs and put the box down in front of her door so she could unlock and open it.
"Thank you so much it's not even so much that it's heavy it's just so awkward ya know," Laura said as she turned the key and pushed her door open.
"Not a problem at all," I politely responded as I breathed for a second and got ready to help her bring the box inside.
We finished the task and as I leaned back up from helping place the box on the small living room floor she again thanked me and I again told her it wasn't a problem at all. As I turned to leave she continued to speak.
"That was pretty good timing on your part cuz I was starting to get frustrated with this thing," Laura confessed as I turned back toward her. "It's not as easy to move stuff like that with just one person."
"Yeah that's definitely a 2 person job. Glad I could be of assistance," I again politely responded and once again went to turn around to leave but again she interrupted my exit.
"I'm sure you've noticed Mike hasn't been around recently. You probably heard us fighting too," she said with an embarrassed look. "I'm sorry if we were loud."
I assured her that it I wasn't bothered by the arguments and confirmed that yes I had noticed he wasn't coming by anymore but hadn't given it much thought.
"You know why he left me?" Laura rhetorical asked. "He said I was getting too fat for him. I mean what kind of asshole thing is that to say? I mean yeah so I put on a little weight while we were together but really that's why you're gonna leave me?"
"Yeah that's kind of a dick thing to say," I somewhat mumbled as a response, not knowing what else to say.
"Although you've probably noticed I've put on even more weight since he left but whatever," Laura admitted.
I didn't know how to respond so I stood there, a couple feet from the door in the her living room, probably awkwardly quiet, and I'm guessing she could tell I was at a loss for words as she kept going but didn't much help with her next statement.
"It's ok you can be honest, I've put on a lot of weight in the last few months," Laura proclaimed with a sigh.
I was stuck. I had definitely noticed she'd gotten bigger in recent months but as someone who likes a larger framed woman I actually thought she'd gotten sexier as of recent. Not that she wasn't fairly attractive before but her arms had developed some flab and they jiggled when she moved them and her belly had gone from peeking over her pants to straight up flopping down over them, something I had noticed especially during the moving of the box.
I decided to do what I could to make her feel better. "I think Mike doesn't know what he's missing out on. I think you look even better now so it's his loss."
"Really?" Laura inquired. "You think I look better with this gut?" she asked as she grabbed at her belly roll and jiggled it once.
I stumbled a bit to respond. "I mean yeah there's just more to enjoy right?" I managed to get out as she gave me a slightly puzzled yet intrigued look.
"You into fat girls?" she asked me and at this point figuring I was already in over my head I decided to just be honest.
"Yeah I guess I've always been more attracted to bigger women".
"Oh yeah?" Laura retorted. "Prove it".