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I knew middle school was gonna be way different, but I had no idea there was gonna be so much walking! Between all my classes - between every single one_of them - I only got five minutes to walk across the entire school just to get to my next one. And it's not like the weather was helping either - it had to be at least eighty degrees outside! I never really noticed in the summer 'cuz I was always inside with the AC, but all this extra padding gets _really hot in the sun. Like, my fur was still all gross and sweaty by the time I spent an hour sitting in class - it sucked! And not to mention how cramped those desks were. I mean, I guess they were a little bigger than the ones back in elementary school, but they were barely any better! I was hoping I wouldn't have to squeeze into them anymore, at least for a while, but my belly still got all squished between the tables and took up a buncha space on my desk. Even though I kinda liked it, sitting in those things was still a pain in the butt - literally! I couldn't sit still for more than fifteen minutes without my butt getting sore in those tiny things! I bet Dek had it even worse with how much fatter he was.

Dang it! I still can't believe how long it took me to outgrow that culpeo. It'd been ages since I tried catching up to him. I was taller than him and everything! I just don't get it! It's like he was getting secret lessons from Aiden or something - oh gods... I can't even imagine how Aiden got in or out of those desks... That guy was huge... Oh well. At least I was still bigger than Koar; that jackal was always a lightweight. If I didn't know any better, I'd say he was watching his figure or something!

Speaking of the others, I couldn't believe I didn't get put in any of the same classes as them. Plus, I didn't really have any other friends yet, so school was definitely gonna be boring. Actually, I don't think I knew anyone in any_of my classes. I recognized a few kids from my old school, but everyone else was either from the other elementary school or older than me. It was kinda scary, ya know? Going to a new school after spending six years at my last one... No one knew me, and I was getting a lot of weird looks too. Especially from the older kids, like they saw me, and they were grossed out to even be _near me. In fact, first period hadn't even started yet - I'd hardly even sat down - when I first heard some giggling behind my back. It was hard to hear over everyone else talking, but I was just in my seat, waiting for the teacher to start class, when someone whispered, "Oh my gods. That kid's freakin' huge! Look at him!"

I shot my ears up in surprise and tucked them back down just as fast. I blushed, but I was curious. I'd never heard anyone talk about me or my friends like that before, and I thought it was sorta cool at first. I felt proud knowing that I was big enough to be noticed like that. Trying to hear more, I did my best to look out the corner of my eye and find who said it. Two desks behind me and one to my right was another wolf. I watched and listened. He was pointing at me... and laughing like crazy with his friends... making fun of me and calling me names.

"Hey, fatty!"

Someone jabbed at my back. I whipped around in shock, my desk screeching loudly against the tile floor. I instantly regretted it. Sitting right behind me, a striped hyena burst out laughing along with the wolf and a ferret. All I did was stare back at the other wolf. He had to be a year or two older than me. We couldn't have been more different, but... we were still the same, sorta. He was tall and skinny; I was short and fat. His fur was black and gray; mine was blue and green. He looked like a jock; I looked like a sumo wrestler. Just looking at him and then at myself made me feel really weird... like everything about him was right, and I was wrong. Maybe that's what they were all thinking. I was scared, and I didn't know how to react.

"Jeez! I even felt my finger sink in a little!" the hyena howled.

The other two roared twice as loud.

"Mommy feed you too many Twinkies or what, lardo? I swear you're more pig than you are wolf!" cried the ferret.

"Yeah, seriously! What kind of wolf are you?" the other wolf asked, "I didn't even know it was possible to be such a hog!"

I turned back around as fast as I could and put my head down, pressing my ears flat and trying to shut out their voices. I don't think they noticed when my chest bunched up in front of me and stopped me from hiding any lower. Either way, I only heard them laugh even louder. I felt my ears burning up with every second. I liked being big and all, and I knew my size made me different, but... it wasn't that bad... Was it? Being fat didn't have to be a bad thing... right? And so what if it was? My brother liked it. Koar and Aiden liked it. So what if I did too? It was none of their business to say I couldn't be fat! Those guys were even worse than Trevor and his idiot friends from last year!

I mean, we tease and call each other names all the time, but... it's different when we're friends, right? I dunno... These guys were just plain mean! I wanted to cry... But I knew that would only make everything worse, so I shut my eyes and did my best to ignore them... Even though it was already impossible with how they kept poking me and trying to get my attention... They only got louder and louder, and I didn't even know anymore if it was them or the rest of the class too. All I heard was muffled laughter. I swear I must've been red as a tomato.

And then Mr. Gregor shut everyone up; class had finally started. I looked up at the clock. Even though it was only a few minutes, it ended up feeling like hours. I shifted my butt in my seat to sit up. There were a few last snickers before the class went quiet. I groaned to myself. I just wanted that class to end.

---

Luckily, none of those jerks from first period were in my next two classes. I guess since multimedia wasn't a core class, I got put with some older kids too... Although, math and history weren't much better either. Even though I got to be left alone, everyone was still looking at me strange. By the time it was lunch, I didn't know if I could take it anymore. As soon as the bell finally rang, I grabbed my backpack and did my best to get to the lunch lines without attracting any attention. It was still as hot as ever outside. When I thought I made it though, it was just my luck that that wolf found me again...

"Well, look who it is!" My ears fell flat. He was suddenly in line behind me. "You already eat all your Twinkies or what?"

I flinched, but I didn't turn around.

"Hey! I'm talking to you, wide load!" He shoved me into the lioness in front of me. She yelped and whirled around but faced right back forward after a short glance. I stood silently in fear, pretending to ignore the other wolf. "Tch! How'd you even get here, kid? You get a truck to tow your fat ass or did your parents have to roll you to school? And how come they haven't gotten you one of those fatty scooters yet, huh? I bet you're fat enough they'd let you use one!" He howled with laughter.

Everyone around me stared and giggled while I tried to hide my face - all that did was make me look even fatter with my second chin bulging out. All I wanted was him to shut up, but he just kept on going and going! I didn't think my heart could sink any lower. It didn't make sense either. Dek and Koar and I were bullied last year too, but we never really let it get to us. Trevor and his friends were always mean since we started gaining weight; we were just never really that afraid of them. Of course, Koar was always there to stand up to him. Dek might have done it too if he had to, but I never had the courage to do it myself. They were always stronger than me when it came to that... Now though, I was all alone and scared, and I didn't know what to say or what to do, so I just stood there, whimpering like a stupid cub. Maybe they would've known how to handle it better. I'm sure Koar would just tell the wolf off like it was nothing. He always made it look so easy... I guess I'm just bad with words.

Another shove and a sneering laugh reminded me I was still waiting in line for lunch. At least it was moving pretty fast; I was almost at the front. The lioness got her food and quickly walked away. I stepped forward for my turn. I kept my head down and mumbled my order to the lunch lady, "Can I have a cheeseburger and -"

"Hey, lady!" the other wolf cut me off. He was almost shouting in my ears. "Better hold off the fries on this guy. He's fat enough as he is!"

I waited for him to finish before continuing, "... fries... please." Sighing, I looked up at the badger behind the register and reached into my pocket for my lunch money - I coulda sworn my pants felt tighter. I actually had enough money for two burgers; there's no way that would've went well though. I waited for her to take my money, but she was obviously annoyed by the guy behind me.

She took a quick look at the food warmer; there were only two packets of fries left. Reaching over to fill my order, she grabbed a burger and not one, but both packets and put everything on my tray, along with a juice box. As she leaned forward to take my money, she looked at me sympathetically and whispered, "The second one's on me. I'm sorry you've had to put up with him." She motioned her head behind me.

I couldn't believe it. That was the first nice thing to happen to me all day. And it was from the lunch lady of all people! My tail gave a happy flick as I tried to smile back. Maybe middle school wouldn't be all bad. I said a quiet "Thank you" and left to find my friends.

"What gives? That was the last one!" I heard the wolf complain. I grinned to myself as I ran - well... waddled, I guess - off as fast as I could. That way he couldn't follow me.

Walking across the quad with my food, I went to find the spot where my friends and I agreed to eat. It was pretty far away from the main lunch area, so there weren't many other people; just a few teachers walked by every now and then. After what happened last summer, we knew it would've been a bad idea to eat with the other kids. Most importantly, though, our spot was shady and had a nice breeze. It felt like I was on fire outside, and my shirt was getting all sticky and soaked with sweat. I would've just taken it off if I wasn't at school! Anyway, I walked down a path under some trees and ducked behind one of the buildings.

"Heya, Kazan!" Aiden was the first one there, already sitting on his massive rear end and munching on a slice of pizza. His legs were spread out in front of him, too swollen with lard to let him sit cross-legged - although, I guess I'm not in much better shape. His thighs looked more like tree trunks than anything else.

"Hi, Aiden," I greeted him, my back turned while I dropped my backpack and put my tray down. I plopped down next to him against the wall, my belly sloshing around as I landed, and sighed; I was relieved to finally sit in the shade. Our sides brushed up against each other, and I just sat there for a bit, watching him eat. Sometimes I couldn't believe how unbelievably fat that 'roo was. I wish I could be like him...

"Um... Kazan?"

Even though we hung out like every day, I always felt a little jealous of him. Like mine, his gut spilled out over his pants and onto his lap. But instead of stopping after a few inches, it just kept going and forced his thighs apart like a giant water balloon - I think I even saw some of it touch the ground.

"Oi! Kaz! Ya there, mate?"

"Ack! Huh? What?" I jumped a little and found Aiden poking my belly.

He chuckled and swallowed a mouthful of pizza. "You sorta spaced out there," he said, still giggling a bit as he took another bite, "I know ya wanna be as big as me, but just watching me eat ain't doin' ya any favors!"

"Oh," I laughed a little nervously and picked up my tray, "Right. Wait..." I noticed something weird about his pizza. "Where'd you even get that, Aiden? I thought they only sold cheese and pepperoni." I looked a little closer and saw a bunch of veggies and stuff on it. Blech...

"What, this?" he asked, holding up his slice, "I ordered it."

"From...?"

"Pizza Mutt, silly!" he laughed again and shoved the rest of it in his muzzle.

"Wha - how?!" I cried, "You just had pizza delivered to school?! When did you even have time to order it?"

With his cheeks stuffed full of crust, he wiped the grease from his paws onto his shirt, which wasn't doing a very good job stretching over his gut, and reached into his pocket. He fumbled for a bit, no doubt having trouble with how tight his shorts looked, and pulled out his fancy smartphone. Lucky 'roo... His dad was super rich or something, so he always had the coolest stuff. He swallowed heavily and unlocked it to show me his order on the Pizza Mutt app. "See?"

I stared at the screen for a second. "You ordered an entire pizza?" I couldn't believe it. He was so. Fat. "On your phone? In class?!"

"Yeah?" He shrugged and jammed the phone back in his pocket. Turning around, he dragged a box out from the other side in front of him. I couldn't even _see_it behind his gigantic body. "Extra-large and stuffed crust too!" I gawked in disbelief at the sixteen-inch pie; only one slice was missing so far until he reached down for another. A long gooey strand of cheese stretched across the air as he tore off a big chunk. It wasn't until Dek and Koar showed up too that I slurped up the spit dripping out of my mouth before I ended up drooling all over myself.

"Hey, guys!" Koar greeted us energetically, "How's -"

"What the?!" Dek interrupted him, nearly dropping his lunch. "Where the heck did you get that?" he demanded, gaping and pointing at the nearly full pizza on the ground.

I rolled my eyes, hearing Aiden's snickering next to me. "This piggy," I cocked my head toward the 'roo, "ordered an entire extra-large, stuffed crust pizza for himself, on his phone, while he was in class." I paused for effect, "And had it delivered to school."

"Mhm!" Aiden nodded through a mouth full of pizza and gulped. At this point, Koar was gaping too. I don't think any of us could believe how big of a fatty Aiden was. "You're all welcome to take some if ya want, but I know you guys don't like veggie so... more for me!" He chomped down with a wide grin. I swear he was just trying to make us hungrier. To be honest, it wasn't really that much food; any of us could've handled an extra-large on our own, easy. It was just that it wasn't during one of our binge fests, so I guess it caught us off guard.

"Hmph! Yeah, yeah. Eat up, fatty," I huffed back sarcastically, "All I got is this lousy burger and some fries. We all know you wouldn't share that anyway!" I did my best to pretend nothing happened earlier.

All four of us burst out giggling. I always loved hanging out with these guys. Even if all we ever did together was eat, that was the best part! We all loved food, and we all loved to eat, but most of all, we all loved being fat and everything about it. I don't know how or why, but it was like we were meant to be best friends, ya know? Almost like magic... Like, I can't think of a single time when we ate together and didn't have a blast. Sometimes we got really competitive with each other when it came to eating contests and gaining, especially between Dek and me, but it was always fun. And then we would end up totally full and stuffed to bursting - now that was the best part. There was nothing else like it, cramming your face with so much food that you feel like you're gonna explode. It kinda hurts, but it feels amazing at the same time, like you're pushing yourself further and further with every bite - I don't know how else to describe it. And then, you just let the food coma hit you, and you wake up hours later after some of that food has digested and turned into more fat, so you can do it all over again. It's great - simple as that! Although, as much fun as that is, just being with each other and having enough food to go around, which was a lot of food, was all we ever needed for a great time.

Anyway, after we had our little laugh, Dek and Koar sat down too and started eating. It was kinda funny actually, seeing Koar sitting between Dek and Aiden. Even though we all knew Koar was a fatty-jackal at heart, one who could almost pack as much food away as Aiden could, compared to the rest of us, he could almost pass as "normal." The little guy just couldn't put on any weight. I grabbed a few fries and popped them in my mouth while I unwrapped my burger.

"Hey, Kaz," Dek looked up curiously from his lunch, the same as mine but with a second burger, "How come you only got one cheeseburger? Dad gave us extra lunch money today."

Aiden looked at my lunch too; he was probably wondering the same thing. I thought back to what happened in line and frowned, my ears drooping down. I couldn't ignore it anymore.

"Or did you eat it already?" Dek added, nudging my side and chuckling.

I swallowed the fries in my mouth and lowered my head, staring down at my burger. The buns were slightly soggy and half crushed from sitting in the wrapper, and the patty looked dry and unappetizing while the cheese looked like yellow rubber. "No, I only bought one," I mumbled.

"Well..." my brother paused. I could tell from his voice that he was getting worried. "Is something wrong?"

A quiet whine creaked out of my throat. "I..." I took a deep breath, "Some guy behind me was being a jerk to me in line." I was about to cry again, but I managed to blink the tears back. The others stopped eating and went silent. "He pushed me... and called me names and made fun of me in front of everyone. I didn't want to buy two lunches in front of him," I explained, "The only reason I have two fries is 'cuz the lunch lady felt bad and gave them to me for free."

The others stared back at me, speechless. I wrapped my tail wrapped around my waist, biting my lip anxiously and looking down at my food until Koar broke the silence. "Come on, Kaz. How can you just let one guy get to you like that? You're better than that. We're all better than that!"

I didn't say anything. I just kept my head down and fumbled with the wrapper in my paws, picturing the wolf in my head and replaying what happened in first period.

"If it makes you feel any better," Koar said, calming down, "I know how it feels -"

"How can you say that?" I barked, "You're half the size of any of us!" I saw his ears flick back, and I wanted to apologize. I didn't mean to yell at him. "... And you're not a wolf either."

His head tilted slightly at that last part, but I heard a quiet growl from him. "So what! If you're not gonna do it, then point out this jerk-wad and I'll tell him off for you! Nobody messes with my friends and gets away with it!"

"No!" I tried to argue back, but I couldn't find the right words. "No... It's just - I don't know... He's another wolf, and it's just weird how..." I wasn't really sure how to put it, "how different we are." The others kept watching, ears up and listening. "But... at the same time, we're still sorta the same." I looked up but only found my friends' confused faces. "And because of that," I had to stop and think of how to explain it, "I can't help but compare myself to him when he's all up in my face. He's taller than me, he's stronger than me, he's more fit than me, he looks better than me, he -"

"Wait, wait, wait," my brother interrupted me. Almost angrily, he asked, "Since when did you like being a skinny pile of bones more than being fat?"

"I don't! I just - it feels like... he's just better than me," I mumbled hopelessly, hanging my muzzle against my chest. "Why else would I have gone through with all this?" I put my burger down and grabbed a thick roll of flab between my paws to prove my point.

I caught Dek's tail curling up tightly behind him as he went quiet. Aiden was just watching and listening with a worried frown. I remember when he first got me into gaining - when we first met... Before then, it was just something I would daydream about whenever I lurked around on his blog or had trouble trying to force myself to finish seconds at dinner; that was a long time ago - before Dek and I were even brothers. Everything changed after that though. He showed me a whole new world of fat and gaining. I loved it and did my best to impress him, but I never really thought twice about it until now. I wonder if maybe he thought this was his fault.

A light breeze blew by and rustled our fur. Koar nodded slowly after a long silence. "I think I get it, Kaz. Still, I don't like seeing my friends upset, and you guys are my best friends," he said, smiling a little. "I can't make you, but if you ever want us to help, we got your back." The others didn't say anything, but I saw them cheer up and smile a bit too. There was no doubt we would do anything for each other. I smiled back. It made me feel like the luckiest kid in the world to have friends like them. Maybe things wouldn't be so bad after all.