Two Girls, Fat and Thin
Two Girls, Fat and Thin, Mary Gaitskill, 1991. "At the beginning of October a new kid entered Justine's class. Her name was Cheryl Thomson. She was big, she had acne, and she wore old plaid skirts that were obviously not from Sears or Wards. This would've been all right; some very cool kids--Dody among them--dressed this way. But they had a sloppy panache, a loose-limbed grace that made their flapping shirt-tails and shifting skirts seem sassy; halting, thick-bodied Cheryl did not. She sat in her seat with her stubby hands in her lap, talking to people politely before class, a dull dreamy look coating her gray eyes. Then the teacher came in and, in an innocent effort to help everyone get to know the new student, opened class by asking Cheryl questions meant to gently reveal her, for example, 'What is your favorite food?' Cheryl did all right with that, but when asked about music, instead of saying 'the Monkees' or 'the Beatles' she answered 'country music,' causing a ripple of disbelief to alert the room. From that point on, every answer she gave confirmed her to be a hopeless alien in the world of primary-colored surfaces. She wanted to be a fire fighter when she grew up! Her favorite TV show was Andy of Mayberry! She liked to go fishing!"