New Employee 10

“Is that really her?”

“That can’t be Cass, it just can’t be!”

“Whoa, I thought there was a weight limit for all species except elephants!”

Cass tucked her beak into her chest as best she could and averted her eyes from the stares she had received upon walking into Mango Fitness for the first time in almost 6 months. She had hoped that since it was a random Tuesday at 10 am (she had taken off of work), no one would be there, but, unfortunately for her, that was not the case.

It wasn’t like her former friends were there, but there were a contingent of furs she had taken classes with before, all of whom were amazed at the sheer girth Cass had added in the past year plus, taking her from fit bird to one that rivaled the size of a bear. She had gotten fat all over, though the bulk of her added poundage had gone to her breasts and belly, both of which now completely obscured her view when looking down. It had caused some problems at work as on some days she was wearing different shoes, leading her to just put out her flats the night before so there wouldn’t be any issues.

She was wearing a matching outfit today, though it all was ill fitting and covered in sweat and food stains. The dove at the front door had given her dirty looks as she glanced at Cass’ shirt, which had the remnants from the prior two days dinner on it. The grease from the pizza and fries adorned it, showing that she wasn’t exactly the neatest of eaters. Being around her coworkers, this wasn’t uncommon, but in the middle of a fitness center, even if she wasn’t several hundred pounds heftier than everyone else, it was out of place.

Cass waddled as fast as she could past the gawking onlookers, making her way past the weights and slowly trudging toward the cardio machines. She knew that she needed something simple, probably the elliptical, but all were in use. Grunting, Cass found an open treadmill and, after a moment of hesitation, placed one foot on the machine. She ignored the treads sinking in a bit and went about getting on. She clutched the arm bar and hoisted her other leg up, her lard quivering from so much exertion. She took another deep breath and took her steps on to the device, huffing and puffing before it even went on.

“I’ll, gasp, just, wheeze, start off slow. I, pant, can do it at a 1.0.”

Cass placed a fat finger on the center console and then tapped the up button twice, getting the machine to start and the tread to move. She lifted a mammoth leg up and placed it down, trying to do so with her other foot. She again heard the machine groan, but figured it would stop eventually.

She was right, though not for reasons she could have fathomed. The machine hit a minute and a half, with Cass barely moving. She was caked in sweat and felt like her heart was going to explode from her chest. She moved towards the console once more, hearing the gears churn louder and louder. She panted to it, trying to lower the speed, but then felt the machine itself stop moving. At first, she thought she had accidently hit the large “Stop” button in the middle of the device and was ready to press it again to resume. When she looked past her voluminous cleavage and drooping belly, she saw that the tread was bunched up. The machine groaned again and then cracked.

Cass felt her entire body wobble as she and the machine sunk in the ground, her belly and breasts jostling violently up and down. She had broken the machine, a machine that was designed to hold at least 600 pounds. That meant she had passed 600 pounds. More than any bear at the gym. More than any elephant at the gym. She was massive, and now, trying to even to do something about it, had caused a disaster.

Her eyes filled with tears and the obese bird dropped from the machine, waddled to the counter, and asked how much the treadmills cost. The counter girl was confused, but Cass left her phone number and told her she wanted to talk to the manager later. With that, she left the gym for the last time, not knowing what to expect next.