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     New restaurants can run into many different problems when they open. Restaurants in this town had a unique problem, though. Gage was a rather toony tanuki in a tizzy. He’d heard about a new fast food place that had just opened its doors in town, and the sleazy mogul was determined to try it out. He strutted through the front door, full of swagger and bravado, completely apathetic to the concerned stares that met him.

     He surveyed the menu with a smug smirk, looking down his long fluffy snout at the many meals the place had to offer. One paw rubbed his paunch in a contemplative circle while the other snapped a suspender, making the poor fur waiting to take his order flinch. Gage’s mouth began to water as he thought of the succulent flavors that lingered in the air. His stomach loudly grumbled with anticipation, declaring his hunger aloud. His belly wobbled with a chuckle as his hands gave it an appreciative pat. He looked over a broad shoulder at the impatient line that had formed behind him. “I do apologize for taking my time,” he said in jest. The fur behind the counter looked visibly shaken by Gage’s presence but managed to stutter out a request for the tanuki’s order. Gage cocked his head to the side, an amused look on his face as he examined the nervous employee. “I believe I’ll have…one of everything,” he said with a cruel grin.

     The employee nervously cleared his throat, jumping at Gage’s piercing gaze. “I-I just w-want to make s-sure y-you’re aware of our p-p-policy…sir.” Gage impatiently drummed his claws on the counter, making the fur flinch again. “T-The company is a big promoter of reducing waste, s-so the chef recommends that customers only order one meal per-”

     “Or what? I told you my order, now put it in!” He pounded a fist into the counter, making the employee yelp and scurry away. He waddled over to an empty booth, expecting to make use of the plentiful table space. As he heaved himself into the seat, his belly pressed firmly into the edge, which tickled the tanuki. He loved how his size was too much for the world around him. He loved how much he inconvenienced people by existing alone. While his food was being prepared, he happily mused about how much bigger the meal was going to make him. As he waited, however, he could hear grumbling and complaining coming from the kitchen. He perked his ears up, curious about what was happening. Suddenly, the door to the kitchen flung open, and an angry-looking bear came stomping out. The fur on his head was tied back into a ponytail, and his apron was splattered with sauce and grease. He glared at Gage as he walked over to the booth.

     “Hey, you!” The cook growled. “You’re the one who ordered everything on the menu, right?”

     Gage smirked and patted his belly. “That’s me, pretty boy.~ Problem?”

     The cook leaned over the table, his eyes flashing with anger. “The problem is that smug look being bigger than your damn, stomach. Which is saying a lot, fatass!”

     The tanuki looked delighted by the bear’s comment as he pressed a finger into his chest, nudging him away. “You’re doing a lot of complaining, and not a lot of making my order.~ I’m quite famished and would like to empty your entire stock sooner rather than later.~”

     The bear’s nostrils flared for a moment as he stomped away, grumbling. “Let’s make sure of that, then…”

     Gage’s order was finally ready and the scrawny fur from behind the counter carried the loaded tray to his table with a nervous smile. “H-Here’s your order, sir,” he said, setting the tray in front of the pudgy tanuki. Gage grinned and reached for the stack of burgers. As he held his first of many burgers, he took a big whiff and his stomach grumbled in anticipation. He dove in and began to chow down on the greasy goodness, the sauce and fat dripping from his chin.  With each bite, his eyes lit up with glee as his stomach bubbled and churned.

     After eating the entire tray of burgers and sides, Gage gave his belly a congratulatory rub. He grinned as it loudly set to work digesting his meal. He could already feel the buttons of his vest and the chain that draped from pocket to pocket across his belly drawn tight. Gage pushed away the pile of empty baskets while letting out a content burp. However, before he could heft himself out of the booth, another tray was nervously clattered on the table. “S-Sorry…I-It was a big order; I had to split it between two trays.”

     Gage rubbed his hands together eagerly and laughed. “And here I was thinking was gonna leave hungry!~” As he began to devour the second tray of food, Gage felt a nagging feeling that he was being watched. The tanuki glanced around the restaurant and noticed that all eyes were on him, all mesmerized by his gluttony. Some whispered to each other while others were wide-eyed and slack-jawed in disbelief at the sheer amount of food that he could consume. A few of them had even taken out their phones to secretly capture the moment. Gage smiled as he stuffed the final portion of food into his mouth, then tipped his hat in appreciation for their admiration before attempting to push himself out of the booth.

     Another tray was dropped onto his table, and he looked up to see the cranky chef from earlier with an evil smile on his muzzle. “I’ve gotta say, that was some impressive work! I should have apologized for my attitude earlier, and what better way than to double your order?~ On the house!” Another tray was plopped down next to the first. The bear backed away as Gage looked at the food inquisitively, seeing that it was indeed the same order he just devoured. “Go on! Eat up! Unless you’re too full.~”

     The tanuki’s brow creased. The bear laughed and returned to the kitchen where Gage noticed that the employees inside were working much harder than when he first walked in. He leaned back in his chair, and the simple act of moving caused his suspenders to pop free and dangle over his shoulders. His belly was swollen and beginning to spill over the table. It looked as if it could burst at any moment. Gage rubbed his paunch and sighed.  Desperate to make the cocky bear look like a fool for doubting his gourmand prowess, Gage suppressed any feelings of fullness and began to tackle the food before him. With every bite, Gage felt his clothes grow tighter as they were being stretched to capacity with each swallow. The chain crossing his front even began to strain to contain his bulk.

     Finally, Gage cleared the trays and rubbed his belly contently. He seemed ready to make a snarky speech, but a loud gurgle filled the air. All eyes fell on the tanuki, and there was a pregnant pause. Gage’s belly wobbled and bubbled as a rumble traveled up his chest before exploding out as a massive, prolonged belch. As he let out a sigh, his belly relaxed, getting one last creak from the chain on his vest before the metal tore apart with a PING. No one was aware of how much work that chain was doing until Gage’s belly surged forward, no longer being held back by the puny scraps of metal. His gut spilled over more of the table, pushing aside the empty trays, and his vest popped open in an instant. His buttoned-up shirt was still intact, but just barely so.

     Out of breath from the outburst, Gage attempted to get out of the booth, but his much, MUCH larger stomach held him stuck fast! He tried pushing himself up with his hands, but they were no match for the sheer mass of his midsection. The bolted-down table had him trapped. Tried as he might, he couldn’t wiggle his way out, eliciting plenty of stares of shock and entertained giggles from the other restaurant patrons. A familiar voice laughed, “Do we have a problem?~”

     The tanuki snarled at the snarky bear, “Shut your damn mouth and get me out of here!”

     The bear flashed a toothy grin, “Sorry, but you’re pretty stuck. You probably shouldn’t have eaten so much! One less bite, you probably could’ve wiggled your way out.~”

     As he spoke, the bear poked and prodded the tanuki’s rotund gut. With each poke, Gage’s face grew hotter. He couldn’t believe someone would dare treat him like this. “If you don’t get me out of this booth, I’ll… I’ll…!”
“You’ll what?~ Even if you weren’t stuck, I don’t think you could waddle fast enough to catch a snail! I’ll help you out, but you have to do one thing for me.~”

     “And what’s that?”

     The bear placed a tray of food on top of Gage’s belly, who gulped upon seeing it. “You said you wanted to empty my entire stock, right?~ My employees will be helping you!” As the bear laughed, the rest of the waitstaff began to line up, each holding a tray of food. Before he could protest, the bear shoved a greasy burger into his maw. All the employees and the chef took turns force-feeding the tanuki who tried his hardest to shove the food back. He didn’t want to admit it, but he was feeling dangerously close to his limit. However, he couldn’t stop. He was fighting a losing battle as many hands set upon him, feeding him burgers and massaging his near-bursting belly. A muffled cry of protest could be heard inside his belly as it began to boom and gurgle like a boiling cauldron. Gage’s clothes were stretched even further than he was and began to rip and tear and fall apart in tatters around him.

     All the while, Gage could feel everyone’s eyes on him as he became a bigger spectacle with each passing second. The intimidating air he had about him was severely diminished, so no one was that afraid to ogle him anymore. Many of them even went without muting the shutter on the camera phones, making it so he could hear the many pictures that were being taken of his embarrassing display of forced gluttony.  He closed his eyes. The discomfort in his belly; the humiliation; it was all beginning to feel too much. And then, it happened.

     A loud, metallic snap shocked everyone in the restaurant except for the grinning bear and the tanuki who let out a deep sigh of relief. As the waitstaff cleared away, it was revealed that his table had finally given up the ghost. In the process of becoming a whale of blubber, his belly ripped the table out of the restaurant’s very foundation.

     Gage didn’t speak a word. He tried his hardest to catch his breath, making his chest wobble with each heaving inhale. The tanuki winced in discomfort as a rumble emanated from the swollen orb that his belly became. Another thunderous belch rattled the restaurant, much to the chef’s delight. Gage could only sit there, awestruck by the magnitude of his growth. He swallowed nervously before straightening his tie and tipping his hat, the only articles of clothing he had still intact.

     With a groan, he heaved himself up and began to walk with shaky, uncertain thuds towards the exit. Everyone marveled at the fact that he was able to take a few steps, but unfortunately for him, that was all he could muster. With one last thud, he leaned forward, resting on his mountainous gut, panting up a storm. He had just become too heavy now. Gage winced as he felt a smack against his side before the bear that initiated his torture threw an arm over his shoulder. “Glad you decided to stay! I still have plenty of stock left, and you still have to prove me wrong, tubby.~”

     A nervous worker climbed up the front of his belly and sat down while another passed him a tray of food. He held the burger nervously as he looked at the angry tanuki. Finally, Gage sighed, “Just get it over with, pipsqueak…” The worker gulped and shoved the burger forward, and Gage reluctantly began to chew. All he could do was hope that this damn restaurant didn’t recently get their stock refilled.