My shift at the petrol station was boring, like every other night. There may be two cars an hour that come and refill, with the odd long-haul truck driver coming in and asking to use the putrid bathroom. I took the job doing the graveyard shift because it paid double time compared to during the day, and it meant I could just spend the time doing some of my study for university in-between serving the five customers each night. However, tonight was slightly different compared to others.
A white Volkswagen Polo came into the covered area. Nothing suspicious, just a regular car. However, it took a couple of seconds between the car stopping and the driver's door opening. Upon the door opening, I could see a guy slowly getting out of the car. He seemed normal from the back - if anything, it was a bit unusual that he had one hand supporting his back while his other hand held the door. When he turned towards the fuel pumps, that's when my eyes widened.
His belly was massive. It looked like a blimp jutting its way out of his abdomen. It was shocking because otherwise his body appeared pretty normal. He didn't have a whole lot of muscle - if anything, he looked relatively lithe if it wasn't for the belly. He seemed to grunt as he waddled, not walked, to the pumps and grabbed the Unleaded 98 pump.
As he turned back around to open his fuel cap, I took in the whole sight. His belly seemed lower and wider than normal. It also seemed pretty solid, not flabby like most of the truckers who come through the station. He also seemed to have a slightly wider waist than normal. I guess his body has adjusted to the solid weight in his belly? Weird... oh shit! He saw me! I quickly turned away and tried to look busy at the counter.
The doorbell rang as the sliding door opened a couple of minutes later. I looked up and saw the guy slowly make his way towards the counter. I felt my face turn red in embarrassment over my gawking of his body. However, I couldn't help but notice the positioning of his hands. He had one hand supporting his back, while his other hand rested on the bottom of his belly. His belly seemed to stick out from under his tank top he was wearing. I truly couldn't believe it.
"Uh, hi. I'm number 2." the man said as he got to the counter.
"Hi there.. uhh, yes, the only customer I see here." I tried to be funny to lighten the mood, but he didn't seem to be in a laughing mood. His face looked exhausted. He had bags under his eyes, clearly looking like he had not slept well, or at all, in days. And I swear I could see something move in his belly...
He quietly grunted as he moved his hand across his belly as I typed on the keyboard to confirm his total amount. Weird...
"Alright, so that comes to $84.59. Do you have a loyalty card with us to get 4 cents a litre off?"
"No..." the guy quietly said, as if he was trying to hold in a groan.
"Sir, are you okay?" I was slightly worried that he was about to scream in pain.
"No, I'm fine. It's just... nothing. I don't have a loyalty card."
"Ok, no worries." I didn't buy his answer, but didn't want to push it. "Pay by card?"
"Yes, please." He slowly grabbed his phone to pay for the petrol. As the card machine dinged to confirm his payment, he slowly began to waddle out of the store, one hand again resting on his back. He clearly wanted to get out of here as soon as possible, so I didn't even worry about asking if he wanted the receipt.
I sat at the counter and watched him slowly get back into his car. He took a deep breath just as he was about to get into the car, as if he was psyching himself up to sit back down, rubbing the side of his belly. After 30 seconds, he was back in his car and quickly drove away.
A couple of months later, on another night shift, I saw a white Volkswagen Polo drive in. As the driver's door opened, I saw a slender man get out of the car. Is that... oh my god, that's the guy with the blimp belly! But it's.. gone?
I kept watching him as he was refilling his car. I could see he was smirking and making faces to something or someone in the back seat of his car. I looked closely into the back seat of the car, and could see a small baby.
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