Homeless Jackie moves in with Marco's feeder parents

The first time it happened it was an accident. At least I think it was an accident. Marco's Dad took me home one night, and by home I mean I gave him directions to an apartment building next to a park. But I accidentally left my skateboard inside his car. So he noticed it and drove around the block hoping to give it back to me. And when he asked why I was in the park instead of heading into the apartments, I had to make up something on the spot. Something about my roommate losing her key. I don't think he believed me. I know I didn't believe me.

So I ended up staying a night at Marco's. Marco was already asleep by the time we got back. I don't really like relying on anyone else for anything. Too many people out there that would barely give anything to some homeless girl, and more that wouldn't give without expecting something in return. I tried to see if there was any part of them that didn't like that they had to do this. But they gave me everything without a second's thought. Warm bed, hot shower, fluffy robe while they ran my clothes through the washer. I feel like I could have torn their hearts out and they would have apologized for making me work through all that sinew. I ate through a pint of salted caramel ice cream that night. If they noticed it gone, they didn't say a word.

That happened maybe twice before summer vacation. After what went down with Star confessing, Marco requested that I stay awhile and help him forget about her. So I did. As much as I love the streets that raised me, it's hard to turn down a solid roof over you head. Just weeks of nothing but cartoons, making out, and all the food I could handle. Probably the first time I had a steady diet since I was... Six? Hard to say. I was just loving all the food I was getting. I knew I was gaining some weight, but it kinda got pushed into the back of my mind. Something I avoided thinking about while Marco avoided thinking about Star. I didn't have to think about it till one night Angie commented that she was jealous of my ability to pack on the pounds. Apparently all of Rafael's brothers all have wives that are twice the weight of their husbands, more common in Mexican culture. I didn't know what to think about that, but they did make hamburger mac+cheese that night, which I have a hard time saying no to.

Marco became really bad about keeping his hands off my thighs if we were alone for a while. Angie seemed more than willing to go shopping for more clothes with me. Rafael kept making more and more fatty foods. If this made them happy, who was I to not pay them back for their kindness?

It really became obvious how much weight I packed on when Star came for a visit. She said there was a lot of stuff going down in her kingdom, I bet she probably wasn't eating right due to all the stress. She looked thin before, but she almost looked frail at this point. I was probably at least twice her width, thought obviously I didn't measure. I remember glaring at Marco after their first hug, and I think most of his actions after that were trying to prove to me that he was more devoted to his girlfriend than this girl. Before summer, I remember Star making this face out of the corner of my eye. Like she was hurt, confused, and angry all at once. That night, she could barely stop making that face. It was like watching her entire worldview collapse around her. That her whole life, she's been taught to be this fit and airy princess, never to show gluttony or to eat without a measured dainty touch. But here was this fat chick, the antithesis of what a princess should be, being treated like a queen. She packed her plate as full as I did, but she ended up visibly ill before she finished a third of them. The look on her face that night was almost more delicious than the enchiladas we had. Almost.

At the very least, it was worth whatever I did to my body.