A waiter pulled out a chair for Sharon, and she gingerly sat down. "Wow!" Elle said after Suzanne had introduced Sharon. "You look fantastic! I thought that I was big, but you are humungous! Oh, I'm so sorry! That was very rude of me, wasn't it?"
Sharon laughed, having taken to Elle iummediately. "Don't worry. I can hardly be offended, given the size I am."
"So how many are you expecting?"
"Six."
"Goodness! So many! Just the one for me, nearing full-term. You may find this hard to believe, but I actually envy you."
"Believe me, if I could transfer these" - she waved at her belly - "to you, then I would."
Meanwhile, Elizabeth and Suzanne seemed to be continuing their passive-aggressive competition, but neither Sharon nor Elle paid them any heed until Elizabeth said: "I suppose we'd better go up to the buffet, as they don't have waiter service here for brunch."
"That wouldn't be very easy for you, Sharon," Elle said, "so can I get you something?"
"Thanks. I'm not picky; I'll eat pretty much anything. But not too much please. I'm quite big enough already!"
Elle laughed, but evidently didn't take much notice, as when she returned a few minutes later she dumped a plate piled high with bacon, a couple of fried eggs, several sausages, a small mountain of hash browns, mushrooms and baked beans in front of Sharon.
"I can't possibly eat all this," Sharon protested.
"Of course you can. But if you can't, it doesn't matter. They won't mind if you leave some of it."
Sharon wasn't quite sure how it happened, but in no more than fifteen minutes the plate in front of her was empty. And she still felt hungry. Was something wrong with her? Apart from the obvious, that is.
Elle laughed. "You do have a good appetite," she said. "I'll get you some more."
"No, please don't." But Elle had already gone.
Sharon didn't want to seem ungrateful, so when Elle returned with a second plateful just as large as the first she decided that she would take a few mouthfuls before she stopped eating. But that proved to be easier said than done, and this plate's contents soon went the same way as the first. At least by the time she had finished it she no longer felt ravenous, but just a bit peckish.
Sharon realised that her clothes, which had been very tight to start with, felt even tighter now. Surely it shouldn't be possible to put on a couple of pounds that quickly, however much you ate? Just as well I couldn't get that wedding ring on my finger, she thought. I'd never have been able to remove it. Elle broke into her thoughts by saying: "Let me get you some dessert. The apple pie here is very good."
"No, I couldn't..." But again Elle had not waited for her response.
Before long the apple pie and ice-cream that Elle brought her had vanished too. They drank their coffees and, after some wrangling between Elizabeth and Suzanne, the two older women split the bill 50-50.
As Sharon heaved herself up from the table...
Thu Mar 05 16:19:52 2020