Forced to be Thin

Every inch of Jane's body trembled as she realized what time it was. Soon he would be returning home and her day would change drastically. She thought back to earlier when she felt like time was just dragging on, but now she didn't know how the day had escaped her. Hurring, she made her way to her bathroom to clean up and be ready for him. If he returned and saw her in the state she was in now, his disappointment would make for a very hard night for Jane, possibly even risking her night's meal. Jane's mouth salivated as she thought about what might be for dinner. She dreamed of the days when she used to be able to gorge on delicious pastas and breads, washing it down with sweet milkshakes or soda. But those days were long gone, and now Jane was happy to receive any kind of hot meat and vegetable. On special occasions, he would allow her to have fruit as a dessert. She never in a million years believed she could get excited about fruits the way she was now, but again, life was completely different than it once was. Once in the bathroom, Jane turned on her large shower and waited for it to get warm. She slowly undressed and inspected herself in the mirror as she did so. She hardly recognized the girl staring back at her. Jane's once overweight physique had transformed so much in the last few months. Now, her curves had almost disappeared, her stomach was beginning to flatten and her legs didn't rub together as much now when she moved. Jane's face was the biggest change she could see. She was beginning to remember how she once had looked back in the days of high school when she had done multiple sports and was fit and happy. It had been so long since she had seen that face. But now, against all odds, it was starting to come back. A storm of thoughts entered Jane's mind as the water from the hot shower rained down on her. How many days had she been in this prison, wishing she were back home again? It felt like it had been a couple of months, but the time now was starting to blur together. And now that she actually was starting to change, was she really unhappy to be away from her old life? She thought back, remembering how truly empty and hollow her life had become. Once she started gaining weight, she started to push everyone close to her away. She'd gone from being so physically fit, to not even recognizing herself and it had scared the crap out of her. Jane still remembered the first time she had seen a picture of herself and almost didn't even know it was her. She knew she was putting on a little weight but had no idea she'd let herself go as much as she had. The girl smiling in the photo was like a whole other person. And just like that, the insecurities crept in like an ugly storm. Jane realized how few of her clothes fit and ended up resorting to stretchy pants and over-sized shirts and sweat shirts to make her feel like she was hiding her weight. She hated how her arms looked, so she made sure to always keep them covered. And her stomach became her biggest insecurity of all, making her careful to never wear anything tight-fitting to add extra attention to it. Not that it mattered much because soon Jane spent less and less time with anyone who would see it, especially her family whom, everytime they did see her, would ask her how they could help and tell her that they were worried about her. Sadly, that only pushed her away more. She still saw some friends, but she was careful about who she hung with, keeping to friends who were around her size, and when they did hang out they did it mostly at her house, ordering in food and watching movies. She was able to get a remote job from home working in customer service and she really enjoyed that. Customers would tell her she had a beautiful voice and for a little while she could pretend like she was the most beautiful girl in the world. She felt so safe at home, like it really was her own personal reality and no one and nothing could hurt her. Jane hadn't realized just how messed up her life really had become. But that didn't give him the right to take it away from her. She was supposed to be in charge of her life, it was up to her to change it when she was ready, not be forced to change it because he thought it was time. The day he took her, he took everything away from her. Jane shivered even under the warm water, and realized she'd spent too long washing. Quickly, she turned off the water and wrapped a towel around her soaking wet body, noticing how she was able to put it all the way around her, unlike before when she was only able to dry off parts of her at a time. Regretably she did like that. She ran a brush through her hair and added some defrizzing serum he had got her, then sat at her vanity to apply her make-up. It had taken some practice learning how to do her makeup just right. He was very particular about how she wore it. Too much and he'd gotten angry and said she looked like a w***e, yet not enough and he said she wasn't even trying. Once she perfected her appearance, she ran to her closet to pick out an outfit. Most of her days while he was away she spent in workout clothes, so she did like putting on normal clothes, especially now that she was getting more and more comfortable with how they looked on her. She looked through her closet and picked out a button-up white blouse and black leggings. Before being taken, she avoided white like the plague, feeling like it made her appear even larger. But now it didn't look so bad on her. Just as she was buttoning her last button, she heard the code being typed into the keypad that locked her in her prison. He had arrived and she was late. Jane ran as fast as she possibly could to greet him at the door, feeling sick to her stomach as she moved. She got there just as he opened the door. Jane breathed in deeply and held it as he looked her up and down. She prayed he approved of her outfit, knowing he would't be impressed with her still damp hair. His eyes were dark as he took her all in. "New look?" His low voice sent chills down her spine. "I'm so sorry sir, I lost track of time working out." Jane trembled her reply. "I see. There are worse things that could happen. I trust my security camera will prove your statement true." Jane looked at him wide-eyed and nodded in agreement. For once, she actually was being honest and had been in the middle of a treadmill workout when she realized what time it was. She followed her tall, broad-shouldered captor to the kitchen. Jane wished so badly she could see what his face looked like beneath his well-fitted silicone mask, but he had made it very clear from the beginning what would happen if she ever attempted to see what his face actually looked like. Jane had tested and defied him before and to this very day she regretted it. But it still made her wonder if under his mask he looked like the actual monster he really was. "You know Jane," his voice cut through her thoughts, "You are a very lucky girl. Even if you don't understand it just yet." Lucky?! Jane thought to herself. How the hell can he call this lucky?! Not being able to see or talk to the one's she loved, not being able to make any decisions on her own, being forced to workout for hours a day and eat the plainest foods, ya, she sure had won the lottery. "I designed this place so that it would be state of the art, just so you would be comfortable. Have you ever been in such a nice home before? And now you live here." He finished talking without letting her speak. But he was right, she hadn't been anywhere remotely this nice before. It was an odd benefit of being held captive. If there was one thing she was thankful for, it was that if she had to be taken by a mad man, at least she wasn't being kept in a dark, disgusting place somewhere. Her captor appeared to be very well off and if the place she was being hidden in was this nice, she could only imagine what his actual home looked like. She knew very little about his residence and where it was located, but she knew she was beneath it in a noise-proof type of bunker. Down here she had access to a state of the art chef's kitchen with a large oven and fridge, (sadly though, only filled with healthy food.) She had a living room area with large comfortable chairs and sectional couch. It had a TV but only a dvd player. When Jane was rewarded for her weight loss, she would be allowed to choose a dvd for her Friday night off and it had become the highlight of week. Her room was beautiful and large too with a comfortable bed, that, by the end of her long days, was absolutely her heaven. She wished she was in her bed right now, her brain and body were tired and she never quite knew what kind of mood he was going to be in. But at the same time, she was alone all day, so sometimes, as sick as it was to her, she almost welcomed his company, it was better than nothing. Jane went to the fridge and pulled out the chicken and asparagus to start making for dinner. Her stomach growled in anticipation. "Jane,"her captor said slowly. "I think it's time we talked." Jane put the chicken she was holding down on the counter and looked at him, not knowing what he was about to say next. "You've been doing exceptionally well with my program. It is clear that you are taking this seriously and you are making progress. If you can continue making the appropriate changes, it is almost time for us to be able to discuss your release." Jane froze, her mouth gaping wide open. Did he really just say those words to her or had she imagined it? "Well, isn't that what you want?" His eyes were dark and unreadable. Jane had no idea if he was being serious or if this was just another one of his traps. If she told him how excited she was to go back home and start her life over again, would he punish her, finding a way to make it seem as though she wasn't "grateful" as he would say for what he'd "done" for her here. The words inside her head made her a bit nauseated even though she knew it was only how he perceived it, not herself. Every inch of her body wanted to scream at him. All she wanted was for these games to stop. How he could even dangle her potential freedom infront of her like this was beyond disgusting. Of course Jane had worked hard and she wanted nothing more then to leave this prison. But she couldn't let him know just how badly she wanted it. "Are we not speaking tonight?" his smooth words cut through her thoughts like a dagger. "I'm sorry, there's just a lot on my mind right now," Jane hesitated, picking her words carefully. "I have been proud of my results and it would be nice to show the people in my life the changes I've made." He remained silent for a moment, thinking over her answer, but the silence was defining. Jane could actually hear her heart beating as though it was going to burst right out of her chest. Finally he nodded looking her carefully up and down."Yes," he finally said. "You're not quite at the finish line, but you are starting to get close. I think you have it in you to succeed." "However, my graciousness is not free." His tone was low and chilling. "This chance will be your only one. Should you decide to fail after returning to your previous life, returning to the physical state I saved you from and you alone will be responsible for the consequences."