She Keeps Me Warm

“You should eat more,” the other model told her. “Put more meat on those bones.”

It could’ve been a harmless comment, but it plagued Anna’s thoughts the whole way home. She thought that she was doing better. That she was eating more. That she had more meat on her bones. Not that much more, though. She still kept track of what she ate. She wanted to stay skinny, but she wanted to be healthy, too.

Anna stepped off the bus, once again exposed to the frigid weather. She hunched her shoulders and dug her hands into her coat pockets as she blinked away tears. Despite the layers of clothes she wore, the cold still found a way to seep in. She shivered and quickened her pace, heading straight home, back to the apartment she shared with her girlfriend.

Cassidy knew something was wrong the moment she walked in the door. As Anna unraveled, Cassidy was there to comfort her. She was there to wrap her up in blankets, to make her decaffienated tea that chased the chills from her body.

“You’re doing great, babe.” Cassidy reassured, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “Don’t you ever let anyone tell you otherwise.”