Chapter 4

Nolan tapped his fingers on the steering wheel as he pulled into the space nearest to Amy's apartment building. His phone vibrated for what felt like the thousandth time that evening. Swiping the screen, he saw it was yet another message from one of his friends asking about Amy. It was comforting that so many people were concerned about her, but what was he supposed to tell them? He gave a stock response and shut his phone off. Digging around in the back seat, he pulled out a large plastic bag containing Amy's possessions and clothes and headed inside. Halfway down the hall, Megan popped out from the apartment and waved.

"Hey big guy."

"What's up?" Nolan replied. "Going out for a night of partying, are we?"

"You know it. This semester was kicking my ass so hard that I was stuck studying with the bookworm." She gestured at the apartment with her thumb. "Gotta make up for lost time, right?"

"Just don't come back completely wasted, okay?"

"Don't worry. I came back wasted one time and made a real mess. Amy had to take care of me. Girl went nuts the next morning. She was so mad said she'd literally throw me out the window if I ever came back like that again."

"God damn," Nolan chuckled. "I can't say I'd blame her, though."

"Neither can I. At the time I just laughed my ass off at the idea little Amy manhandling me. Guess the joke's on me now, huh? She'd probably fling me like a ragdoll."

"I would pay to watch a game of Megan-tossing."

"Yeah, screw you, too," Megan said, giving a wry smile that faded quickly as her expression turned serious. "I tried to coax Amy into coming and bringing you along just to get out and she said no."

"That's not really surprising. She didn't like parties to begin with."

"Yeah, but that's not the issue. What bothered me was that she said she didn't want to go out because she's 'freakishly huge'. I don't want her to feel like she needs to hide and be completely withdrawn."

Nolan frowned at the thought. As it was, Amy was already pretty shy and introverted. If she saw herself the way Megan described, she might get to the point where she didn't want to go out in public at all.

"I did remind her what you said before, though. That corny 'body of a goddess' line or whatever. You wouldn't believe how much that perked her up."

"Well, it's true. I didn't think it would have that kind of effect, though."

"Of course it would. What if you were in her position? Wouldn't you want to hear something like that from the love of your life? Especially if you had pretty crappy self-esteem like she does?"

"I probably would. I'm sure it's been harder on her than she's let on. She's tough, though; a lot tougher than she looks on the outside."

"You have no idea," she sighed, brushing her hair back. "Well, anyway, I shouldn't be holding you up; she's dying to see you. Catch you two later!" She gave a wave and jogged off.

Nolan put his hand on the doorknob and paused. Anxiety was setting in but he couldn't pinpoint why. Shaking it off, he twisted the doorknob and stepped inside. He immediately spotted Amy laid back on the couch, draped in a blanket and reading a book that looked more like a pamphlet in her large hands. He wondering how she could be comfortable there; she was tall enough to take up the entirety of the couch and much more. From the knees down, her legs dangled over the edge, swinging back and forth freely and nearly touching the apartment floor. She lowered the book and locked eyes with him. It was still a bit difficult for his mind to associate her adorable, girlish face with her new curvaceous body.

"Hi, sweetheart," she greeted him with a diffident smile.

"Hey you. You getting by okay?"

"About as well as a giant girl can, I think." Amy propped herself up on the couch. "What's in the bag?"

"Oh, I got your belongings and clothes together. Well, what's left of them, anyway. I couldn't find your phone, though."

"I already had it, apparently. Don't remember ever picking it up, but stranger things have happened. Like us getting an order of a half-dozen pizzas out of nowhere." She pointed over her shoulder at the pile of empty boxes and soda bottles on the kitchen counter. "I actually ate five of them by myself." She quickly added, "and yes, I brushed my teeth."

"Well, don't worry, you don't look like you've gained an ounce."

"Thank goodness." Amy patted the cushion next to her. "Come sit down. You look wiped."

"Yeah, I kinda am. Is the air conditioning too low?" he asked as he plopped on the warm cushion. "It's like eighty-five outside and you're covering with a blanket."

Amy's face went bright pink as she looked down at him. "No, I'm fine. It's just, um, Megan made me something to wear around the apartment to relax in, but...I'm a little embarrassed by it. It's kinda skimpy."

"Um, babe, you wanted me to look when you were-"

Amy raised her hand to cut him off. She tightened her grip on the blanket. "Yes, naked, I know. But that was because I needed to know I wasn't repulsive to you just because I was huge. This isn't the same thing. You know how shy I am about showing skin, right?"

"Yeah, I do. You didn't even want to wear a two-piece when we were out at spring break."

"Exactly. All those girls walking around on the beach with their bikinis and I'm sitting there in a t-shirt. It was bad enough to be shy when I was short little Amy, flat as an ironing board, but now I finally have real curves and I'm still too bashful to show off even a little bit." She took a deep breath and shook her head." I'm sorry, you shouldn't have to deal with me being such a dork."

Nolan rested his hand on her upper leg. "Hey, it's just how you are! Uh, timid, I mean, not a dork. Besides, you're really cute when you get all shy. That's exactly how you were when we met, remember?"

"You mean how I introduced myself? And by 'introduced myself' I mean 'said hi and stared at the ground'?"

"Yep, I was just studying when this cute girl came up to me. Man, you were blushing so hard, too. "

"It wasn't easy to do. After I told Megan you looked cute, she wouldn't stop badgering me until I went over and talked to you. Took me a good ten minutes to get the courage to walk over there."

"Well, I'm glad you did. Best thing that ever happened to me."

Those words filled Amy with such warmth that she couldn't help but giggle with joy. "Me too."

She leaned down and gave Nolan a peck on the cheek. Pulling back, she looked pensively at her blanket and gripped it tight.

"You know...I really am being silly, aren't I? There's no reason I should be reluctant to show off around you."

Before Nolan could answer, and, more importantly, before she could have second thoughts, Amy yanked the blanket off in one swift motion. The cold air of the apartment washed over her body as she sat before her boyfriend in what was likely the skimpiest outfit she'd ever worn; a white tanktop and a pair of shorts, both apparently crafted from the same sheets as earlier. The top barely covered half her midriff and left her flat stomach exposed. The thin fabric left little to the imagination, struggling to restrain breasts larger than bowling balls, to say nothing of the considerable cleavage. Her chest bounced and wobbled with every motion as she shifted her weight and folded one leg onto the couch to face Nolan. Despite her earlier proclamation, Amy's red face betrayed her embarrassment.

"So...do you like it?"

Even though he'd seen her in all her naked glory only a few hours prior, Nolan was no less impressed by what he saw this time around.

"It's hot," Nolan blurted out and immediately cringed at those words. "I mean, you're hot. Not that you didn't look great before. Because you did, just in a different way. You were beautiful and had a great figure. This is just so much different. They're so big and round. Not that there's not appeal to smaller ones. You can stop me from digging this hole for myself anytime you want."

"Just put down the shovel and no one gets hurt," Amy grinned.

Nolan put his hands up in faux surrender. "Deal! You really do look amazing, though." "I'm glad. So...ready to watch that movie?" she asked.

"That was the plan. I was surprised you hadn't seen it before."

"Friend loaned it to me the other day and I hadn't gotten around to watching it yet. I already popped it in." Amy pushed aside a large pack of breath mints and the broken controller from earlier and grabbed the DVD remote from the table.

"Whoa, what happened there!?" Nolan gestured at the shattered device. "Never seen you rage at a game before, let alone actually break something."

"I just got lost in thought and gripped it too hard, honest," she said with a weak laugh. "Oh, good. I was afraid I might be next if I ticked you off."

Amy shot him a glare but mostly ignored him. "I just have to get used to my new strength, that's all. It's more than I expected considering I don't have guns like yours." She wrapped her hand most of the way around Nolan's bicep and gave it a squeeze. Despite its size, her hand looked as delicate as before, her touch as gentle as always.

"Probably wouldn't call them guns. I haven't been working out as rigorously as I should." "Don't be modest! They're still impressive even from waaaaaay up here."

"T-thanks," he stammered.

"Aw, now you're the flustered one!"

"Not really."

"You're blushing!"

"Can we just start the movie?"

Chortling a bit, Amy fiddled with the remote and the DVD player whirred to life and the opening began to play.

"I'm not too big to cuddle with, am I? It might be awkward."

Nolan answered by sliding along the couch and pressing himself against her warm body. Thankfully, he was just tall enough that his head rose above her breasts, avoiding the potential embarrassment of resting his head on one. Then again, that does sound pretty comfortable, he pondered. Emasculating as all hell, but comfortable.

Amy made things much easier by stretching out her long, thin legs on the coffee table and sinking down almost lowering herself to eye-level. She rested her head against his and pressed play.

It was difficult for Nolan to pay attention to the movie, and not just because he had seen it twice before. He figured Amy's outfit wouldn't affect him much, but he found himself unable to think about anything but her enormous, scantily clad body. It didn't help that her scent was driving him nuts. It must have been a new body wash, a blend of vanilla and some other fragrances he couldn't recognize that formed the most pleasant aroma he'd ever experienced.

Amy was also being more hands-on than usual. Right after the movie started, she lightly ran her fingers across his shoulder and massaged the nape of his neck. She would occasionally trace her finger along his chest and down his stomach, and at one point ran her hand along the inside of his thigh. Looking over to make a joke about her unusual friskiness, he saw Amy staring straight at him, her face as red as he had ever seen. He could hear her foot nervously tapping against the table.

"Uh. what's up?" he asked with a confused look.

Amy's eyes darted away and she remained silent while she mentally slapped herself. For all her regrets about their relatively slow love life, she knew this was the driving force behind it. How was stuff supposed to happen when she was so damn awkward about anything remotely sexual? It wasn't for lack of trying on Nolan's part, but her reluctance to risk embarrassing herself or leaving him disappointed meant none of his attempts ever got off the ground.

"C'mon, babe, you're being weird. What's wrong?"

This time has to be different, Amy thought. You've already come so far today. Just say it!

"Well, it's...it might have seemed like it earlier when I grew, but that wasn't a real 'release'. Don't misunderstand, I've never felt anything better in my life, but it left me wanting something more."

Nolan's eyes went wide with surprise at her sudden forwardness. Like so many times before, a lump formed in her throat as she started to consider all the ways this could go wrong.

Maybe you blindsided him...this did come out of almost nowhere. No, stop thinking and just do something!

"I, um..."

One of her large hands suddenly gripped Nolan's collar and pulled him to within an inch of her face. Her breath washed over him as she uttered three words he never thought he'd hear.

"I need you."