“Mmm, that really hit the spot,” Twilight said as she wiped off any excess burger grease from her lips, trying to stifle an embarrassing belch. “But I don’t think I can eat another bite.”

“Oh, I was actually going to ask if you could finish my food,” her mother, Twilight Velvet, suddenly chimed in from across the food court table. She was waving a freshly-cooked burger towards Twilight before pulling it back. “But if you’re cutting back now, then…”

“Oh, no. I don’t mind.” Though she tried to play it off as nonchalantly as she could, as this would be her fourth burger in a single sitting, she really couldn’t help herself. Twilight reached out as far as her chunky arm could go until her mother finally handed the food over. “Thanks Mom.”

“I really just wanted fries, but thank you anyway for the food.” Despite a small part of her hoping her daughter’s weight gain was starting to slow down, Velvet still smiled as she watched her take a huge bite out of the burger. “You know, it’s funny,” Velvet began to reminisce. “I remember a long time ago, you used to ask me or your father or your brother to finish whatever food you had left. Seems to be the other way around now.”

With her mouth full, Twilight couldn’t say anything at first. So she simply smiled and nodded before finally being able to speak. “Well, it’s a good thing I’m out of the house most of the time. I’d be finishing up more than just leftovers.”

“I guess that’s true,” Velvet chuckled to herself as she bit into her last few fries, still watching as her daughter already finished off half of the burger. She knew it was something Twilight couldn’t control, but having watched her grow visibly fatter by the day, it was easy to forget how much smaller she used to be just a few years ago. In fact, the same could be said for just a couple of months ago. Things truly felt like they were happening quite fast. “Now that I think about it, it has been a while since you and I had a chance to go out, hasn’t it?”

Quickly swallowing the last of her burger, Twilight replied. “Yeah, I know. And I’m sorry about that. But with the train ride to and back from the university every day, needing to study for essays and tests, and… you know… other things weighing me down,” she said this with a shrug, gesturing towards her massive belly before continuing, “It’s just not as easy to find the time to do this.”

“Oh, your father and I completely understand. You know that we’re both very proud of you for always doing your best, even with everything you’re going through right now. But if I’m being honest here, with you being out all the time and your brother getting married later this year, we’re already starting to miss you two.” Velvet got up from her seat and started stacking all the trays together. “First, Shining. And then sooner or later, you’ll be moving out too. You know, once everything starts to resolve itself,” she added as she headed towards the nearest trash can.

“Yeah, hopefully sooner rather than later,” Twilight sighed to herself as she rubbed her bulging stomach, barely feeling full despite the hefty lunch she just ate.