Fat Boy Controlled Me; Freed, I Made Him Beg

The moment I walked into the classroom, the boy in my class five-two, a hundred and fifty pounds lifted his face at me.

I told them you're chasing me, and nobody believes it. Go on, tell them yourself!

Inside my head I was screaming What is wrong with you, but what came out of my mouth was, I've been after you for half a year now. When are you finally going to say yes?

My face pulled itself into a fawning simper, like some lovesick idiot.

The whole class stared at me, stunned.

"Is the class beauty still half-asleep today?"

"No way. She's probably just messing with us. Dry humor, right?"

Sweat broke out all over me.

What I'd just said wasn't what I wanted to say at all.

But the second I opened my mouth, the words just came out

In front of me, Ferdinand Whitney looked thoroughly pleased with himself, jiggling his leg and glancing around at the others.

"See that? Would I lie to you?"

"Your precious goddess is nothing but my little simp."

Rage shot straight up through the top of my skull. I clenched my fist, dying to slam it into his face.

But the instant that thought formed, my arm locked up and wouldn't move.

I went completely blank.

He could control my body too?

Then I was in real danger.

The students around me broke into rounds of laughter.

But it was aimed at Ferdinand.

"The class beauty's roasting you, man. You can't even tell she's being sarcastic?"

"Not that I'm looking down on short fat guys, but seriously, your confidence is a little out of control."

Ferdinand tipped his chin up and pointed it at me.

"Crystal Fox, are you being sarcastic with me?"

Before I could react, my hands were already reaching out on their own to link through his grimy, dirt-streaked arm.

The stench of his sweat hit me full in the face, my stomach heaving, but the smile on my face was pure adoration.

"How could I ever be sarcastic with you? They're just jealous."

"I think you're more charming than the four biggest stars out there."

The whole class turned to look at me in unison, all of them frozen.

Adrian Henson, the class president, was the first to come to.

"Crystal, are you serious?"

Vivien Dickerson, the academic officer, came over and tugged at me. "What's going on? Is he threatening you with something?"

I wanted to explain, but my body wrenched free of Vivien and my brow furrowed in irritation.

"Can you people stop thinking so highly of yourselves?"

"Ferdinand's worth ten of you self-important types."

Vivien wore the look of someone whose good intentions had been fed to a dog.

"OK. Respect and best wishes."

Ferdinand smugly hawked a wad of spit onto the floor.

Adrian grabbed him.

"What are you doing? How many times have we said no spitting on the floor!"

Ferdinand pointed at me, contempt all over his face.

"Crystal will clean it up for me. What's the rush?"

The words were barely out before I'd pulled a tissue from my bag, crouched down, and started wiping it up.

My classmates looked at me like I was a lunatic.

I wanted to cry from the humiliation, but my eyes only stung for a second before the tears retreated on their own.

The warning bell rang.

I sat back down in my seat, thinking this whole absurd nightmare could finally pause.

But from the back row, Ferdinand called out to me.

"Crystal, if you want me to accept your feelings, go buy me a breakfast sandwich from Sunrise!"

Vivien glared at him. "Didn't you hear the bell? Class is about to start!"

But I was already up and moving. "Sure. And when I bring it back, you have to make me your girlfriend, okay?"

That bagel and deli wasn't far from school, but the line was always long.

I shuffled forward with the queue like a machine, my mind a tangle.

My phone buzzed. A message from Ferdinand.

Good little dog. You'll keep being this obedient from now on.

I typed back: You piece of trash, what did you do to me?

It sent.

So Ferdinand could control what I said and what I did, but not what I typed.

I was so worked up my whole body was shaking. I quickly opened the class group chat.

Ferdinand's controlling me somehow. No matter what I say or do, none of it is real. I'm not doing any of it by choice!

The moment the message went out, the group chat exploded.

No wonder Crystal's been so weird today, what did you do to her, Ferdinand?

You shameless piece of work, could you get any lower?

I thought Ferdinand would panic, that he'd lift whatever he'd done to me.

Instead, he typed back, unhurried:

I'm controlling her speech, controlling her into wiping my spit, and I can control her into standing in line to buy me a breakfast sandwich too?

Bunch of idiots. She's just scared you simps will stop chasing her later, so she's putting on this two-faced act.

Watch how she treats me in a minute and you'll know.

The class group chat went quiet.

I pulled in a deep breath and messaged my mom, telling her everything.

Mom knew a lot of people. She had to have some way

By the time I got back with the breakfast sandwich, the teacher was already at the front lecturing.

"What time do you call this? Stand outside the door!"

But I rushed into the classroom like I'd lost my mind, my mouth still going.

"That won't do, the sandwich won't be any good once it's cold!"

"Ferdie, eat it while it's hot."

Ferdinand took the sandwich and stuck his foot out in front of me.

"My shoelace is undone. Tie it for me."

His shoes had long since lost their original color, and they gave off a rank stench.

I wanted to smash the shoe into that greasy face of his, but my knee was already bending.

My hands even moved with a kind of devotion, carefully working that mud-caked lace into a pretty bow.

The classroom was terrifyingly silent.

I heard my own voice, sugary to the point of nausea: "All tied, Ferdie."

The teacher charged down from the front, grabbed my clothes, and threw me out of the classroom.

I stumbled back a couple of steps from the pull, and even as I backed toward the door I was still calling out to Ferdinand,

"How was I today? Can you be my boyfriend now?"

The classmates who'd just been defending me in the group chat now looked at me with nothing but contempt.

My face burned scarlet. It felt worse than death.

The bell rang, and I went back into the classroom.

Everyone gave me a wide berth, not sparing me a single glance.

Back at my seat, Vivien was packing up her things.

I grabbed her. "You're changing seats?"

She pushed my hand off with a look of disgust.

"Don't touch me with the hands you used to cup a stinking foot."

"Crystal, I don't want to meddle in your private life. If you've got some eating disorder, that's your business."

"But your behavior is just too vile"

"Vivien, I think you want to chase Ferdinand but don't have the guts, so you're jealous of me, aren't you?!"

That was what came shouting out of my mouth.

Vivien's face looked like she'd swallowed a fly.

The others couldn't even be bothered to laugh at me.

They chose to ignore me, to ignore the crazy girl.

On the school forum, Ferdinand uploaded the video of me tying his laces and wiping his spit.

The class beauty insists on being my simp, but I'm not into her type, so annoying.

The forum instantly boiled over.

So all that ice-queen act before was fake? Deep down she's just a slut?

Is Crystal blind, falling for a short, ugly guy like that? Every time I walk past him I can smell the sweat. What is she thinking?

You girls don't know squat. Ferdinand's definitely got his "big" advantage, and the way Crystal's acting, you can tell she got worn out in bed.

Ferdinand replied smugly: She wishes. I haven't even said yes yet.

Can't help it, I'm really not into her type. You all think she's the class beauty, but to me she's just a plain country girl.

I'm actually thinking, maybe on my birthday I'll take pity and say yes, call it a good deed.

Want to see how your goddess performs in bed? I can livestream it for you.

Someone started egging him on.

Support Ferdie. Always knew Crystal was a closet freak, let everyone see her true face.

Someone warned Ferdinand: You'd better be careful, though, secret filming is illegal. If she changes her mind and calls the cops, you'll have your hands full.

Ferdinand replied: Why would I need to film in secret? By then she won't just refuse to fight it, she'll be the one going along with me on her own. You believe me?

The comments filled up with people egging him on.

A chill crept down my back.

Ferdinand's birthday was the day after tomorrow.

If I couldn't find a way to break his hold on me before then, I was finished.

Or maybe I could take a leave, go home, and have my parents lock me inside so I couldn't get out.

But even if I dodged him on his birthday, what about after that?

I couldn't stay locked in the house for the rest of my life.

I fumbled my phone out, about to text my mother, when her call came through.

"I found someone who can help, but his flight out of the country leaves in three hours."

"I'm coming to the school gate to get you. Hurry out."

I gathered my things to go, and Ferdinand walked over and tossed a bag at me.

"Didn't you say you wanted to wash my socks? I saved up ten pairs for you!"

"Go rinse them clean at the tap."

The smell knifed through the bag, sharp and rank.

The few classmates near my seat covered their mouths and moved away.

Others were chatting, some reading.

But I knew their ears were all turned toward me.

I wanted to scream, to curse him, but what came out was, "Oh my gosh, I'm so lucky."

Carrying that bag of stiffened socks, I ran down to the water fountain outside the building.

Wave after wave of stench made me want to gag, yet my body wouldn't let me step away from the fountain.

There was even a happy smile on my face.

"So lucky, I actually get to wash Ferdie's socks!"

My mother's call came again.

"I'm at your school gate. Come out quick."

"If we miss this chance, we'll have to wait three months for the man to come back from overseas!"

I wanted to tell her I couldn't get out, but what came out was, "Stop bugging me, I'm washing Ferdie's socks!"

My mother went quiet for a beat, then hung up.

She called back, talking faster than before.

"Put on your earbuds right now, turn the music up as loud as it goes, loud enough that you can't hear anyone speak."

"After I hang up, power off your phone. Move faster, and the second you finish what he ordered, run for the school gate."

"If he can't reach you with a new command, he can't control you!"

I jammed the earbuds in, the music almost splitting my eardrums.

Once all ten pairs were washed, sure enough, I could leave the fountain.

I ran for the gate with everything I had.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Ferdinand coming toward me from the sports field, his mouth moving, saying something.

I couldn't hear him. I just kept charging forward.

I made it out the gate, and my mother threw the passenger door open.

"Get in, hurry!"

I jumped in, she stamped on the gas, and we tore away.

In the side mirror, Ferdinand had chased all the way to the gate, round as a rubber ball.

My mother glanced over.

"Disgusting."

I pulled the earbuds out, and the tears spilled over.

An hour later, I powered my phone back on.

Ferdinand's messages came pouring in one after another.

You ran off without even hanging up my socks to dry? Get back here and hang them out!

So you got clever and learned to switch off your phone? Ridiculous. Once it's back on you'll do exactly as I say, same as always.

You made me lose face today, Crystal. Just you wait for my birthday tomorrow!

My mother dropped me at the school gate, smoothed my hair, let out a sigh, and drove off.

I walked back into school.

A crowd had already gathered at the fountain, gawking at Ferdinand's socks scattered across the water.

"This is hilarious. Didn't he say Crystal begged to wash his stinky socks? So why'd she dump the whole lot in the fountain and run?"

"Maybe Crystal got hexed or something, and just now she suddenly snapped out of it?"

Ferdinand stood off to the side, sour-faced.

"My charm needs a hex? She was just so overwhelmed she went off to cry on her own, scared you'd all laugh at her."

"See? She's back, isn't she?"

Under Ferdinand's smug stare, I folded each of those socks carefully and looked at him, eager to please.

"I was wrong. I'll take these back to the dorm and hang them up right now."

Ferdinand leaned in and slung an arm around my shoulders.

"Tomorrow's my birthday. We're eating at the Bayview with the class tonight, and once they leave, I'll get a room upstairs and reward you properly."

The stink of his breath made my stomach heave, but I put a delighted look on my face.

"Really? Is my dream finally coming true?"

Ferdinand whispered in my ear, "That order's already given. Tomorrow, even if you switch off your phone, even if you don't listen to a word I say, you'll come running to the Bayview on your own. You can't get away."

"A woman shouldn't be so picky. Looks and all that, close your eyes and it's all the same. But skill, now that's not something everybody's got. I've learned plenty of tricks off videos. I promise you'll be satisfied."

"Don't worry. If I get you knocked up, big bro here will take responsibility."

Ferdinand patted my shoulder and swaggered off.

I couldn't hold back what was rising in my stomach any longer, and threw up over and over beside the water fountain.

Students walking past turned to stare.

"Is Crystal sick or something?"

"Sick, please. I say she's knocked up. She won't even turn down Ferdinand, no telling how many guys she's slept with on the side."

I wiped the corner of my mouth and left under everyone's disgusted eyes.

I glanced at the watch on my wrist.

Twenty-four hours.

Just twenty-four hours, and Ferdinand's control over me would break.

And I'd prepared a special "gift," down to the last detail.

Ferdinand, tomorrow's your birthday. I'll make it one you'll never forget.

The next day, I walked into the private room at the Bayview along with my classmates.

Ferdinand had already set up his phone.

The moment we walked in, he spoke to the camera. "Like your boy promised, a birthday livestream. First I'll show you the 'appetizer,' and later we'll get a room upstairs so you can catch the main event!"

Then he waved me over.

"Crystal, you don't deserve me, but it's my birthday today, so I'm feeling generous."

"As long as you behave, I might just let you be my girlfriend. How about that?"

I asked, "So how do I behave?"

Ferdinand directed the others to their seats, then walked up to me, all five foot two of him tilting his head back to look up at my five foot eight.

"I've wanted a dog since I was a kid. My mom never let me."

"First task: get down on all fours and bark. Let me see what it's like to own a dog."

By now the class had gone from baffled to simply respecting other people's fates.

Nobody stepped in to stop me anymore. Instead, every eye was fixed on me, waiting to see how I'd fawn over Ferdinand.

The livestream comments were louder still.

Who all chased Crystal before? Come embarrass yourselves!

Dying, lol. The goddess you losers couldn't get is playing dog for a short fat troll. How's that feel?

Stop it, I'm gonna hurl. Chasing her is my darkest history.

Under everyone's expectant eyes, I looked down at Ferdinand and didn't move.

Ferdinand frowned.

"Not obeying? You want me to sleep with you tonight or not? Behave, now!"

Watching how smug he looked, the corners of my mouth slowly curled up.

"Ferdinand, get down on the floor right now and bark three times."