Betrayal

Mallory Ann Popper was sixteen years old and had struggled with weight her entire life. Even at four or five years old, she’d have her first bowl of Lucky Charms and two-percent milk at seven-thirty in the morning, and when Mother went to shower and Father came down from his, Mallory would pour herself a second bowl and enjoy breakfast, Part Two. By the third grade, Mallory had increased both Parts One and Two by one half-bowl each, and even inserted a clandestine two-bowl prelude at seven-fifteen. She drank Kool-Aid by the six-pack.

            Were Mallory’s dietary habits a result of unfortunate genetics, extremely poor parenting, or an eating disorder? It was unlikely, for Mr. and Mrs. Popper were neither neglectful nor irresponsible—they brought Mallory to the doctor for her semi-annual check-ups, reminded each other not to bring unnecessary sweets and fried foods to the home, and encouraged their elder daughter to join her parents on weekend hikes in the woods behind their neighborhood. Besides, the Poppers’ younger daughter, fourteen-year-old Nancy Kate, was of a very healthy weight, and both girls seemed to be mentally happy children; the only problem was that Mallory’s weight had escalated within the past year.

           

            It was on one particular night, during the summer before junior year, that everything terrible seemed to hit Mallory at once. She and Nancy Kate—who Mallory considered to be her best friend and top-tier confidante—were flipping through the September issue of Seventeen, appropriately themed Back-to-School.

            Nancy Kate was fussing about her first day of high school; Mallory was browsing the fashion section of the magazine (“Get Boys to Notice You First!”).

            “It says that high school is a social battle, and that the classes are going to be much more difficult and larger, and what if a boy never asks me to a single dance?” Nancy Kate threw herself onto Mallory’s bed, wallowing in her lamentation.

            And at that instant, Mallory realized that everything Nancy Kate had said was true, in her own life—but Nancy Kate was pretty, thin, and smart and had the chance to make a wonderful high school experience (or as good as it could get), while Mallory knew very well that her next two years could only descend in its path of dreadfulness.

            She stared quite futilely at the clothes Seventeen had put on is models, and Nancy Kate, still prostrate on Mallory’s bed, realized she’d made a grave mistake.

            “We’ll starting running in the mornings,” Nancy Kate said quickly. “I need it too—I have no muscle. Look at my calves! We’ll start tomorrow, and that’ll give us a good, hearty two weeks before school begins.”

            Mallory agreed, and the two sisters decided to retire to bed early.

            So for the next fourteen mornings, Mallory skipped half her cereal installments, and she and Nancy-Kate ran and walked for forty-five minutes each morning. It was difficult but uplifting: by September 1^st, Mallory had lost almost six pounds. That night she laid out her back-to-school outfit at the foot of her bed: a green sweater, white shirt, and dark blue jeans that Mallory hoped would not fit quite right. Nancy-Kate smiled as she climbed into bed.

            “Three more months of this and you’ll have to start wearing my clothes!” she commented brightly.

            Mallory blushed at the comment, agreeing—what a day that would be!

            The next day the girls were dropped off at the high school; Nancy spotted her first classroom in the distance as Mallory waved good-bye and headed to English. She was glad she’d completed all the summer reading on time—perhaps the teacher would be impressed with her first in-class essay.

           

As she’d expected, the essay prompt was not very challenging.

At lunch, Mallory was making her way to her locker when she spotted Nancy Kate walking in her direction, a good-looking boy at her side. Mallory felt a sort of prideful warmth inside; maybe her little sister would become Class President one day. She waved excitedly.

Nancy Kate returned her greeting with a thin, hesitant smile, and did not stop to say anything more.