Hello! So if you couldn't tell by the title, this fic is for  Roundfeline and their birthday (which is October 4th)! Well more accurately his last birthday because I took almost *checks nonexistent watch* a year to get this done 😅, but hey his next birthday is coming up in October so this is close enough right?

Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this story and I would love to hear your thoughts! And of course if you are here and somehow don't know Round I cannot stress enough how amazing they are and to check out their stuff!

They also supplied the art for this wonderful thumbnail!

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The doorknob jingled as the sound of keys turned the lock. Kal opened the door as he walked into the entrance of the apartment, placing his keys in a small basket by the door. The round-maned lion walked towards his room, ready to change out of his running clothes after his evening jog. Kal easily slipped out of his slightly baggy gym shorts and top before slipping on some casual shorts and a T-shirt.

Going back to the hallway, Round stopped in front of his roommate's door, seeing it slightly ajar he decided to peek inside the dark room.

"Hey Gus, are you up?" Kal asked softly. After a moment of silence, a tired groan answered.

"Today was your last day of finals right?"

Again, a groan replied.

"Is it okay if I come in?"

"...yeahhhh…"

Kal's hand slowly reached for the light switch, turning it on and seeing the state of Gus's room. Usually, Gus tried to keep his room tidy enough, but with finals, that had taken lower priority as the Snow Leopard Lion hybrid focused on his classes, spending hours upon hours at his computer trying to get all of his assignments and projects done.

Strewn across the floor there were shirts, pants, and socks, a few pieces of garbage also joined the clutter, empty chip bags, cookie tins, and candy wrappers. This brought Kal to the point of bothering the tired feline after he had finished his classes.

Laying in bed covers crinkled and pushed into mounds around him, Gus lay on his side with his face down, his messy black mane obscuring his face from any light. What was exposed though, was a large chunk of white belly from under the black T-shirt he wore.

Kal had been worried for the past month. Gus was never skinny, always having a bit of chub, but this past finals month caused a lot of stress on him, and with that stress came a lot of stress eating. Made very apparent with just how many snack packages were sprinkled around the overfilled trash can. Gus had ballooned quite quickly in the short span of time. The few times Kal had seen him out of his room, his shirts failed to hide his growing frame more and more, having a slight jiggle to it that seemed to be more prominent every time he saw him.

"Think you did okay with finals?" Kal asked as he tested the waters, trying not to push his slightly more than-chubby roommate.

Rather than a verbal response, Gus raised his arm, his paw starting flat horizontally before rocking back and forth and then falling back onto the bed.

"Are you up enough to talk?"

It wasn't instantaneous, but eventually, Gus turned his head to his roommate and friend, not really replying, but seemingly willing to listen to the fit feline.

"So, I want to bring this up as soon as possible so we can start to plan this out, but you did agree that after classes that you would start coming with me on my runs." Before Kal could even add anymore Gus cut him off.

"I never said that."

"Yeah you did, I know you have been stressed out lately but you did agree to join me when classes finished." Kal knew he was playing a little dirty, he had popped the question when Gus had been in a rush to collect some food from the fridge and run back to a lecture. The hybrid gave a quick 'Yeah, sure, talk to you later!' Before softly jogging back into his room.

"If I did, I didn't mean it." Gus started to say as he turned his head to go back into his pillow more, slightly muffling the last bit of what he said. The feline is known for not particularly taking to exercise like Kal.

"Well you did, and even if you didn't, I think you really need it. You have been stuck in your room for the past month. You need to get out."

Gus remained silent.

"You probably feel pretty shitty right now, but I'm sure if you join me you will lose a lot of the weight… that is on your shoulders. Trust me." Kal said, deciding to avoid one of the main reasons he wanted to do this.

Another moment passed of silence before Gus erupted with a groan, only being slightly muffled by the pillow and his mane. "Fiiiiiiiiiiiine, just let me rest today, we can discuss it tomorrow."

"Of course!" Kal said as he quickly vacated the room to give Gus his rest, not wanting to overstay his welcome.

__________
2 weeks later

With a soft click, the door unlocked as Kal turned his key, light following him and Gus in.

"FINALLY! Home sweet home." Gus cried as he stepped into the air-conditioned apartment, arms fully outstretched as he felt the cold air against his slightly damp fur.

"We didn't even do two miles!" Kal put his keys back in the basket.

"I'm sorry not everyone is as perfectly athletic and adjustable to the weather as you Kal. Some of us do a lot better in the cold." Gus said as he walked to the kitchen.

Kal hadn't realized just how bad it had gotten for his roommate. Ever since they had started, Gus had been struggling. His jogging pace paled in comparison to Kal's, making him stop every few minutes to wait for the chubby hybrid to catch up.

With every pump of his legs, Gus' belly jiggled and wobbled. His newly bought gym clothes struggled to contain all of the lard he had packed on while sitting at his computer. Every block or so huffing out a slight annoyance with the amount of hills in the area, or how hot it was on the slightly warm evenings. The hybrid was already exhausted when it was barely a third of the distance Kal would go on a normal basis. He relented and turned back when he saw just how tired he was from such a moderate pace and distance traveled.

It had been close to a week now of trying to do this, and Gus had some slight improvements, but they were very small. Even with the efforts to get Gus moving, his belly hadn't gone down any noticeable amount. If Kal had to guess there was a possibility that it was even slightly bigger!

Even though Gus had gone back to his usual cheerful personality, and his room had been finally picked up, the Snow leopard hybrid didn't drop the eating habits like Kal had hoped. His room was now free from clothes and wrappers sprinkled around the floor, but the trashcan was not saved as it was still constantly filled with wrappers from different snacks and treats.

Kal looked over at Gus as he stuck his head into the refrigerator, both to cool off and to look for what to eat, his tail swishing behind him. "You feeling hungry for anything Kal?"

"No, not really, I'll probably just eat the leftovers I made from yesterday."

"Leftovers?"

Kal paused behind Gus, "Yeah, the leftovers I had after I made some steamed chicken and broccoli."

"I don't see any leftovers in here, and I didn't eat any before, you sure you had leftovers for tonight and just didn't eat them earlier?"

Kal's face palmed at his mistake. "Ughhhhh I forgot I actually brought two lunches to work today because my coworker wanted to try it out since he is trying to start a diet. I completely forgot and I still need to get groceries." Not to mention I saw the white tiger raiding the vending machines throughout the day after eating lunch… Kal thought to himself, slightly bitter about the betrayal.

"Here let me treat you. It has been a bit since I have cooked, but I was planning to make some really good spaghetti."

Kal's mind ran through the sheer amount of calories and carbs that would be in store for him if he ate the hybrid's cooking, "I think I will be-" Kal was interrupted by the rumbling of his belly. Even though he didn't get to run as much as he usually got to, his body was still used to the routine of replenishing itself after a jog. "You know what, sure, I'll have a bit."

Gus' face lit up at the response, "Great! Just relax and I'll get this out in a little bit!"

~~~30 min later~~~

Gus softly tapped the spoon against the pot, knocking off any remaining sauce back into the spaghetti. "Okay it's ready!"

Kal got up from the couch and sat at their kitchen table, he couldn't help himself from his mouth drooling just from the aroma that wafted through the air, Gus had always been a great cook, but Kal noticed how they weren't always the healthiest things so he tried to avoid them.

Gus gently set two plates filled with spaghetti on the table. The sauce and noodles glimmered in the evening light that showed through the blinds. Even though it looked delicious, Kal couldn't help but internally cringe a bit at just the amount of pasta that was on his plate. Gus had been kind enough to put less than what he gave himself, but even then it was still more than what the lion had in mind when he said a little. Kal would have probably served himself half of what the snow leopard lion had plated for him.

'It's fine, even if I don't finish I can have it for lunch tomorrow.' Kal thought to himself as he plunged his fork into the tangled mess of noodles, meat, and sauce. The steam rises and tickles his nose with how delectable it is.

Shoving the morsel into his maw, Kal waited a moment before chewing, seeing Gus dig into the food, face of pure bliss.

Kal took a bite,

At that moment, all of Kal's taste buds exploded with flavor. The sauce had such deep flavor, the garlic and spices adding to the complexity. That was not even mentioning the meat and noodles. Both are extremely tender and yielding. The meat danced on the edge of his tongue. He hadn't even realized how his tail curled behind him, completely enjoying the flavor and excitement he was feeling.

Unseasoned steamed chicken and broccoli couldn't even compare to the amount of flavor in the single bite of spaghetti he had taken.

"Dang this came out amazing, I did pretty good this time right?" Gus lightly boasted, Kal could only grunt in agreement as he went in for another bite, still somehow as amazing as the last. The cycle of bliss continued, each bite making him feel hungrier for the next bite, and the one after that.

It didn't take long, but before he knew it, when he went to grab another bite, all his fork met was an empty plate, every last noodle and chunk of meat devoured in mere minutes.

"O-oh…" Kal said in part disbelief and part disappointment.

"Seems like someone liked my cooking!" Gus teased a bit as he got up and went to the pot to fill his plate with seconds. "I'm glad you finally tried it out! I almost forgot how good my spaghetti is since I haven't had the time to make it in so long."

"Y-yeah, it was really good." Kal squeaked out in a bit of disbelief, he felt full, but couldn't shake off the feeling of wanting another taste despite it…

"Do you want some more? There is plenty still here, I'm used to cooking for my family so I cooked a bit more than I should have, hehe" Gus chuckled to himself as he sat back down at the table, his belly brushing up against the lip of it.

"No I should be good…" Kal said as he looked longingly at the pot.

"Are you sure? If you are worried about the calories I don't think that will be a huge problem, knowing you, you could have them burned off by tomorrow!" Gus said before digging into his second plate.

Kal sat there conflicted, trying to convince himself he truly didn't need the spaghetti no matter how delicious it was.

"Oh shoot! I forgot the Parmesan cheese!" Gus exclaimed as he abruptly stood upright and quickly stepped over to the fridge, his belly bumping into the table and making it wobble just as much as his belly did while he dug for the cheese.

I-It can taste even better?...

"Here we are!" Gus said as he held the wedge of cheese up. "I am really glad I brought this, I usually forget to restock on the fresh stuff!" Grabbing a grater, he sat back down and started to grate the cheese, the white flakes falling like snow onto the pasta.

"M-maybe I can have a bit more…" Kal said, partially to himself, pushing his stomach's warnings of being full to the side and prioritizing his taste buds.

"Go right ahead, I'm glad you are enjoying it!" Gus said as he happily devoured his food, head bobbing side to side as he chewed.

Kal got up and filled his plate with some more spaghetti. Walking back grabbing the wedge of cheese and grating it, covering it in about the same amount Gus had.

Again Kal dug in, the fresh cheese only added to the complexity of the flavor, deepening it and enhancing every aspect of it. Before he even realized it, Kal's fork was again scraping against the plate, trying to savor every last drop of sauce and morsel of meat and noodles.

Laying back in his chair, he let out a long and steady exhale, his stomach packed with more food than he had ever eaten in one sitting before.

"Are you doing okay Kal?" Gus asked as he finished his own plate.

"Yeah… just… feeling really full."

"I bet you are! I don't think I have seen you eat something like that before. I'm glad you liked my cooking that much though, it's always good to see people enjoying what I make." The hybrid smiled, the sauce still staining his white and gray fur near his lips.

Kal could barely focus on that as he tried to control his breathing so his stomach wouldn't hurt as much. "I think I, ugh, am gonna head to bed." The lion said as he slowly rose from the table before slowly making his way over to the sink to drop off his dishes. He held his stomach as he headed to his room, carefully getting into bed and letting the food coma take over.

Gus licked his lips as he enjoyed the last remnants of sauce, starting to feel full from the delicious dinner, but still feeling a bit hungry for more despite that.

"Heck, one more plate can't hurt~"

__________
5 weeks later

The doorknob jingled before opening, light pooling in from the outside. Kal walked in with a sigh as he put the keys into the basket by the front. He immediately heads towards his room to get dressed out of the clothes he wore to work.

This summer has been a hot one, even just getting inside from his car left the lion panting slightly, the heat having drained him of energy for almost the entire day he worked at the beach and making the walk to the house much more tiring than it should have been.

“Well, I still got to go for my run with Gus…” Kal dreaded as he dug for his gym clothes. After Kal put on his shorts, he went to put on his shirt and stopped as the shirt was above his head, looking at the mirror. Putting down the shirt, Kal walked a bit closer to make sure his eyes couldn't possibly be tricking him. He turned to the side, lifting his arms up, and the slight bulge that made itself known stayed right there. Kal hesitantly poked it, the bulge yielded a soft pushback before reaching his muscles underneath were usually the first thing to be touched.

‘...It's probably just a bit of water weight, I have been drinking a lot of water today to stay hydrated…’ Kal thought as he remembered just how many times he went to refill his water, seeing Vince get some ice cream to cool off and how Kal joked the rounded ball of cookies and cream looked like him, much to the tiger’s annoyance.

Pulling his shirt over his mane Kal went back to getting ready for the jog, pushing the slight disturbance out of his head as nothing important.

“Gus, are you ready to head out there?” Kal asked as he knocked on the hybrid’s door, surprised to see it swing open slightly to reveal a dark and empty room. Kal walked over to the living room and was surprised to see Gus there. The hybrid lay sprawled out, shirtless and in basketball shorts, with a small tub of cookie dough ice cream under his arm and decorated with whipped cream and sprinkles. The hybrid looked exhausted, clearly more impacted by the heat than Kal had been, he even had a fan pointed at him in an attempt to cool himself off.

Kal couldn’t help but notice just how round the feline looked, his exposed belly looked bigger than ever, Kal had hoped the feline was just bad at washing his gym shorts and that was why they weren't fitting as well as they used to, but now it was obvious, despite his efforts, Gus was fatter. His belly sticks out further, now with bigger love handles and a more prominent overhang. His belly wasn't the only thing affected though as even his chest looks softer and starting to droop a bit. Even Gus' arms and tail looked more plush.

Kal didn't know what to say for a while as he saw just how fat his roommate had become, "Are you going out like that?"

"No… look I can't jog today. I hate the heat Kal, I can't do heat waves like this all day, let alone running in them."

"All day? You work in an air conditioned office."

"AC broke today, I also don't have AC in my car…"

Hearing that, Kal felt a bit bad about his initial accusatory question. Knowing that Gus dealt with the heat all day, it was understandable that he would be exhausted. Kal was used to them, but this one this year was especially brutal. For someone as big as Gus, Kal was surprised the cold weather feline survived the day. Plus, running out in that heat didn't particularly spark any motivation in the lion either.

"Okay okay, we can take a cheat day, this weather doesn't lend itself that well to working out in it anyway."

"Good, I would rather die than go back out in that heat."

Kal let out a sigh of disappointment and relief, glad to not be running in the heat, but also not too thrilled that the efforts they had been putting in hadn’t had any visible results. ‘It's fine, we will just make sure to really push it when the weather cools a bit…’

Gus rolled forward a bit and grabbed the remote on the table, his belly and chest squishing against the couch as his fingers were just able to grab it.

“I heard of this really good show, wanna watch it with me?” Gus asked before grunting slightly and rolling back into the position he was before as the TV turned on.

"Oh? What's the plot?"

"Essentially this guy gets transferred to another world and has a seemingly bad ability of an online grocery store. He goes on his own adventure trying to just get by, but attracts the attention of a powerful beast with his food that becomes his familiar and things just keep escalating. Overall a really funny show." Gus described as he booted up CrispyCylinder.

Kal weighed his options, part of him wanting to go back to his room so he could maybe fit in some pushups or some sort of exercise to supplement the loss of a workout today. But the show sounds pretty fun though…

~~3 hours later~~

A chorus of laughter came from the living room as the two felines watched the show.

"At this point I can't tell if he is very lucky or very unlucky."Gus managed to say between giggles.

"It's just both at this point, unlucky that his familiars attract so much attention and lucky that they are strong enough to deal with any possible consequences." Kal said, slapping the arm of the chair.

As Gus clicked to go to the next episode, his belly rumbled.

"Hmmmm, I really don't feel like cooking today… I'm probably gonna get a pizza, do you want some too?"

Now that Gus had brought up the topic of food, Kai realized that he was also feeling starved.

"Sure, what kind are you thinking?"

"Hawaiian."

"Hawaiian?"

"Yeah what's wrong?"

"I'm not that big of a fan of Hawaiian, I love it aside from the pineapple - not because I don't like pineapple, but because I'm sensitive to the flavor and usually all I end up tasting is pizza place pineapple."

"Okay I'll give you that, I'll just order a small one for myself and we can get another one to go with it. Any idea of what you want?”

“A Mona Lisa”

“A Mona what now?”

“Oh, have you not tried it before? It's like Hawaiian, but not? I don’t know if it is called other things, but it is Canadian bacon, ground beef, and pepperoni with the standard mozzarella.” Kai explained a bit sheepishly as he tried to find the right words to describe it since it had been so long since he had actually had it.

“That actually sounds really good, let's get that too!” Gus said as he licked his lips, his fingers digging into his basketball shorts to pull out his phone to order.

Shoot! I was supposed to be helping him lose weight! Not gain more! I haven’t had that stuff in years since it has way too many calories. Kal realized as Gus continued to tap on his phone, only taking a break to scratch his belly a bit. “Hey Gus, maybe we-”

“There we go! All set to be delivered in 45 minutes.” Gus exclaimed excitedly as he let his phone flop onto his belly, the action causing a ripple to be sent through the soft layers of flab.

Shit

~~45 Min later~~

The floor shook a bit as Gus shut the door using his hips, the snow leopard quickly making his way down the hall with some pep in his step as the aroma of the pizzas wafted into his nostrils. Gus quickly set them down on the living room table and began to open them.

Kal watched, a bit unsure of what to do in order to make sure his fat roommate didn't overindulge, but any idea that popped into his head either felt too rude or would waste money.

Gus opened up the pizzas and Kal couldn't help but notice just how good the pizzas looked, perfectly cooked and glistening slightly in the light of the living room ceiling light. The Mona Lisa pizza looked especially delicious to the lion as the many kinds of meat were plentiful, the pizzeria made sure not to skimp out on them, it was also balanced to not have too much of one over the other. A pizza to rival the painting it had been named after.

Gus immediately started to pull a slice out of his own pizza, the pineapple and Canadian bacon glistening before being swiftly devoured. The snow leopard had a face of pure bliss as he savored the taste.

Well, there really isn't anything I can do right now, we can just make sure to work hard once this heat wave ends… Kal relented as he reached for a slice of the pizza he had wanted, as the smell got closer to his nose he couldn't keep his mouth from salivating.

Taking a bite, Kal felt his whole body relax as the delightful flavors danced on his tongue. Memories of him eating this pizza before came flooding back, he used to eat this pizza so often but stopped once he got his summer job of being a lifeguard. Switching to healthier meals and avoiding anything that would compromise his diet and figure. He would never have admitted to it, but he missed it.

Before he knew it, the slice was gone.

“Dang Kal! This pizza is really good, I'm glad you suggested it!” Gus said, pulling Kal out of his own head, not even noticing the hybrid had taken a slice of the Mona Lisa.

“Y-yeah, I used to eat this a lot, I almost forgot how good it was…”

“Yeah it's great! I definitely need to get this more often.” Gus said as he reached for another slice of Mona Lisa.

Hopefully not too often… Kal couldn't help but find himself wishing, even though he reached for another slice shortly after Gus, reliving both nostalgia and just how good the pizza tastes.

__________
7 weeks later

Kal opened the door to the shack with a huff. Already enjoying the shade the small break area provided.

“Getting winded already, Round?” Vince the white tiger commented as he sipped his large slushy.

Kalvin could only manage a groan as he went over to a chair and slumped into it, “You seem really attached to that nickname lately, I get it, my mane is round.”

“That isn’t the only round thing about you lately.” He said slyly before quickly slurping his sugary drink.

“And what is that supposed to mean?” Kal shot back with slight irritation.

“All I’m saying is that you are starting to look like some of the guys who come here only for the ice cream.”

“That’s rich coming from the guy who is currently drinking a slushy and has been raiding every vending machine he can.”

Vince spits his drink back into the cup, clearly not expecting the rebuttal, “I'm just bulking!”

“Surrrre you are, those arms are looking absolutely doughy dude. You are starting to look like an overstuffed zebra cake with those stripes of yours.”

Vince’s sour expression worsened as he prepared to say anything he was holding back, until both Round and Vince’s Walkie Talkies sounded off.

“Hey guys, just got word from the Department of Health that the beach has to close, too hot outside for anyone to be out there, even reptiles. Make sure no one is on the beach and we can go home.”

Both felines sighed, but one was disappointed while the other lion-ey one was relieved.

"Whelp, you heard 'em, Vince! Go check out the beach and I'll close up here." Kalvin said, not moving an inch despite his declaration.

"What? Why me??" the chubby tiger complained.

"You've been on break longer!" Kalvin replied, "If it'll make you feel any better, take the slushy out with you."

Vince just sighed, grabbing his slushy and heading out of the shack.

"Lazy housecat." Vince grumbled as he walked down the beach.

After a few snacks, Kalvin locked up the shack, slushy in hand. He wiped a bead of sweat from his brow; this heat wave was no joke!

With confidence that Vince would take care of the beach, Kal meandered his way home. Or at least, to the bus stop because his car was in the shop after his engine light turned on. If he had any hope of working out with Gus when he got back, he would need to avoid walking home in this blistering heat.

He figured he was working up enough of a sweat just waiting for the bus! When it finally arrived, a few minutes later, little remained of Kalvin's slushy.

That didn't matter, however, as the AC of the bus was like a gift from the heavens. He took a seat on the pleasantly cool, if slightly crowded bus, not registering the furs on either side of him scooting a little to make room for the not-so-thin lion.

Despite being refreshed from the bus ride, Kalvin was a sweaty mess by the time he made it back to his apartment from the bus stop, entering with a huff. Without a slushy or another way to cool off, he'd tried to hurry back home to get out of the heat. The hot air was messing with his rhythm though, finding the light jog home to be far more exerting than he expected. Maybe he wouldn't do a workout with Gus today?

No, no, he can't cancel another day of exercise for the spotted cat. If Vince was looking like a zebra cake, Gus was starting to look more and more like a tub of cookies n' cream ice cream.

Kalvin was kicking himself because he knew it was partially his fault. He's been too lenient on Gus's workout routine. Kalvin was struggling to remember the last workout they didn't cancel or cut short. That will end today!!

Kal peeled off his sweaty shirt, hardly registering the bounce of his belly as it was freed from the confines of his now tight uniform. Smushing a thumb against a love handle, he hooked it into his shorts and shimmied free of his trunks. He really needed to check on their detergent...

He tossed his uniform over his mirror, which was already covered with other discarded clothes. Kalvin made a mental note to maybe clean up his room a bit, as it was a lot less tidy than he was used to.

Kalvin quickly knocked on the door for the hybrid before opening, “Gus, we need to get out there, I'm not pushing this workout back anymore.”

Kalvin only felt more sure of his resolve as he took in the scene before him, Gus’ room was, for the most part, clean if you ignored the overfilled trash can of wrappers and the second pile that seemed to be growing on his desk and the few that had fallen to the floor. The destroyer of treats sat still, slightly turned to the lion as a cheese puff remained in his hand, his mouth slightly agape, stuck mid-bite.

One of the other blaring issues he could also see was just how out of control the hybrid’s weight had gotten. Gus sat in his chair and it looked to be constricting him as his love handles and butt pushed against the armrests that kind of dug into him. But those weren’t the only things digging into the hybrid, Gus was in his underwear and a t-shirt that also didn’t properly fit him. The underwear seemed to pull tight over his rear and thighs while his shirt struggled to even go past his navel and showed off his expansive fluffy belly.

Before Kal could say anything more, Gus quickly chomped on the waiting cheese puff and threw the now empty wrapper into the pile, rolling down a bit before catching on to others.

“Do we have to? It is so hot out, and you know how I do in heat like this.” Gus said on the verge of pouting about the mere idea of going out into the blistering oven that was the city.

“No more pushing it back, we haven’t had a full workout in weeks now, I know it sucks but I have let you slack way too much on this.” Kalvin said before leaving the room to get his shoes on and give Gus some privacy to change.

“I’m not the only one slacking…” Gus grumbled to himself as he got up to get ready, knowing there was no way to convince Kal to not suffer in the melting heatwave. The irony didn’t lose itself on the hybrid as he saw the other lion’s belly poking out of the bottom of his once loose jogging shirt.

A few groans later and both lions were out the door, Gus’s face turned into a disgusted sneer at the audacity of the sun to make it so unbearably hot.

By the time the two had gotten down the stairs of the apartment, Gus could feel the will to exist evaporating from his body as fast as any energy he had before leaving the apartment. Although Kal would never admit it, he was having his doubts about this idea already, the heat feeling heavy with the grossly high humidity.

“Okay, lets just keep a good jog and we will be fine okay?” Kal said as he started to jog in place a bit to get himself ready, internally chalking up his feeling of awkwardness in his form to the oppressive heat and time away from running.

Gus only responded with an annoyed groan before starting a half-hearted jog, his shirt immediately slipping from his shorts and riding up to reveal his overhang, his whole body jiggling from each step. Even just getting past the parking lot and getting to the sidewalk Gus could already feel his breathing grow more labored and bothered.

“We got this Gus, *huff* you are doing great!” Kal tried to say as they continued, confused if he was messing up his breathing patterns or if the heat was affecting him more than he realized. Could it be that he is taking too pronounced steps? He could feel an after-effect of weight being applied to each step he took. Sweat beads were already forming on his brow and they had gone only two blocks.

At the third block, Kal noticed he wasn't hearing such hard breathing from Gus, so he turned to see and saw the hybrid doing a combination of a walk and waddle, having already run out of steam. Stopping his jog, Kal walked over to his severely out-of-shape friend, astonished that Gus had let himself go so far that he could barely go 3 blocks before being completely out of breath.

“Kal, guh, I can't do this anymore.” Gus struggled to say as he leaned forward, hands and his chunky thighs that pulled his shorts skin tight.

“We need to keep going, we have barely started.”

“Then at least let me take a break, please.” Gus begged as he looked up at Kal, sweat dripping off of his chin.

“... Fine, but only for a couple of minutes.” The lion said before looking around and spotting a beach that was thankfully in the shade of a building.

Both felines made their way over to the solitary bench, Kal getting to it first and sitting down, hearing the wood creak a little as he did, quickly followed by Gus’s cacophony of creaks and whines from the wood that held the bench together.

Even in the shadow of the building, both cats couldn’t escape the humidity and heat that infested the area. Kal could feel more sweat forming despite the lack of movement.

Just one more minute, one more minute of rest and we can finish this exercise, one more minute and Gus will be on track to get in shape.

Kal’s thinking was interrupted as he heard a joyful chime. Recognizing the tune, Kal slowly turned his head in the direction of the noise, the white truck, recognizing it as an immediate and dangerous obstacle to all the effort he had put in the day.

The ice cream truck seemed to barrel towards them as he saw Gus jump out of the seat with more enthusiasm than he had given this entire jog.

Gus waved his flabby arm with vigor as the ice cream truck slowed its roll.

“Gus! You shouldn't be eating ice cream! We have to get back to jogging!”

“It's just a little! I promise that if I have some I'll finish the jog without any more breaks!”

“Fine, as long as it's only a little and it helps you get the energy to finish this.”

Gus’s face lit up at the reluctant approval, even as he struggled to fish his wallet out of his too-tight shorts. The ice cream truck pulled to the side with a slightly ear-piercing screech. The ice cream truck shook side to side as the driver moved out of the driver's seat. The order window with the logo of “Super Effective!” swung open as a very large Dragonite prepped the window, his puffy jacket being a surprising choice of clothing on a hot day like this one, but any questions about it were immediately pushed aside as both felines felt a wave of frigid air roll over the top of the counter.

“Well hey there you two, need something to help with the summer heat?” The jovial dragon asked as he gestured to the many options that the truck offered its customers.

“Oooo, so many options, can I have two waffle cones, one with two scoops of strawberry and the other with two scoops of cookie dough?” Gus said as his large tail happily swished behind him.

“Excellent choices, and can I get anything for you?” The Dragonite asked, referring to the other feline, who had turned the other direction after hearing Gus order his refreshing desserts.

Stay strong, you don’t need any ice cream, you have to set a good example for Gus… “No, I'm fine, I’ll survive.” Kal had said coldly, barely even wanting to acknowledge the truck of temptation.

“Wow you have so many options here! You have superman, blue moon, peanut butter and chocolate, you even have fudge moose tracks!”

If either were paying attention to Kal they would have seen how his tail jolted at the last flavor, stopping him in his tracks. “Y-you have fudge moose tracks?” Kal said as he slowly turned around.

“Of course! I always carry a wide variety of ice cream to cater to every customer I can!” the Dragonite said before leaning forward a bit with a smile, “Are you interested in having some?”

Fuck

The ice cream truck pulled away, its chime resuming as it took a turn at the end of the block and went on its merry way.

Kal just looked at his ice cream cone with two scoops of moose tracks, his mouth watering despite the slight feeling of defeat of giving in so easily. Gus on the other hand was thoroughly enjoying himself as he alternated between his two cones, somehow managing to keep up with both as the heat started to take its toll on the frozen desserts.

Taking a deep sigh, Kal started to work on his cone, his eyes widening at how good it tasted, the fudge and moose tracks tasting absolutely divine on a boiling day like this.

So divine in fact, Kal didn’t notice that the heat had already started to make his ice cream melt faster than what normally would be expected. After demolishing the majority of the cone to the point he was eating the waffle cone of his ice cream, Kal felt something weird with how his shirt felt on top of his stomach, it felt cold.

Looking down revealed the ice cream had already started to drip onto his white jogging shirt, the fudge swirl staining it.

“Ah shit.” Kal sighed annoyed with himself as he quickly brought up the spot of melted ice cream to his mouth and attempted to lick it clean. What surprised him more was the sudden shock of cold that he felt on his lower belly. Again, more ice cream dripped off, and this time onto the lion himself. Growing slightly annoyed, Kal finished off his cone before going to rub off the small amount of cream, feeling his belly jiggle from the sudden wipe…

Jiggle?

The sensation felt foreign to the lion, when did he ever jiggle from something so simple like that? Looking at his belly, Kal couldn’t help but notice how round and soft it looked, his partially pulled-up shirt revealing the lower half of his belly just below his belly button. His eyes bulged a bit from his head at his apparent new discovery of his newfound pudge that he was sure was not there at the start of the walk.

“Uh, hey, Gus?” Kal said, trying not to panic at all

“Yeah?” Gus said, his attention finally turned away to his now significantly smaller scoops of ice cream.

“Let's, uh, cut this walk short today and head back.”

Gus's face seemed to light up at the very mention of skipping out of doing this abhorrent workout, “You don't have to tell me twice!”

As Kal tried to hurriedly jog back to examine the damage he had somehow not noticed before, he could feel why his jog was off now, every step caused a bounce with his belly and chest. He could feel the edge of his shirt ever so slightly pulling up and exposing what wasn't supposed to be there. Kal felt his cheeks burning even through the summer heat, filled with embarrassment at how he only just now noticed something so seemingly obvious.

The lion almost couldn't get to his room and lock the door fast enough. Cleaning off his mirror, Kal quickly removed his shirt and stared in shock at what he saw.

Before him looked like a fun house mirror, his once usually thin and lithe torso had widened and stretched significantly, and his sides that used to go seamlessly down to his shorts now had rolls and love handles that bulged over the lip of them.

Slowly bringing his hands up to the bulge of fat in front of him, Kal was able to grip it with his hands and give it a shake, causing the rest of his pudgy body to follow suit. The movement caused his eyes to slowly scan up, seeing how his belly bellowed out before coming back only a little bit. On top of all of that, Kal could not ignore how big his chest had gotten, what used to be tight pecs were now flabby and soft, two mounds of fat puffed out and were starting to wrap around to the side of him.

Turning to the side, Kal got an even better view of his profile, what once was a thin lithe body of muscle and fur, was now bulging out, curves dominating his appearance both from the front and from the behind as his shorts looked extremely full. Looking up again Kal really looked at his reflection, seeing even his face looked rounder and fuller.

When did this happen? How did this start? He looked even bigger than Gus a few weeks after taking finals!

Flopping back into bed Kal stared up at the ceiling, his hands dragging across his face, inadvertently feeling how plump his cheeks had gotten.

How did I let things get this far and only just now notice?

“I meant to help Gus lose weight but he is bigger than ever and I'm looking bigger than he was…”

But he could turn this around. He could get back into shape! He just had to get back into eating his planned meals and get back to his usual routine. That can't be hard! He had been doing it for years! Trying to get up without rolling over, Kal tried to do a crunch to get out of bed, embarrassingly failing once before gaining momentum and succeeding on the second try.

I got this, I can turn this around, and then I can help Gus get back into shape too!

__________
9 weeks later

The doorknob jingled as the sound of keys turned the lock. Gus opened the door as he walked into the entrance of the apartment, placing his keys in a small basket by the door as he balanced two large pink boxes in his other hand. Gracefully waddling his way to the kitchen, he placed both boxes on the counter, whistling softly as he did so. Digging his phone out of his shorts, the hybrid pulled up his checklist.

“Yup, did that, Duvet said he would take care of that… Okay! All that is left is to wake up the birthday boy.”

Slowly waddling over to the lion's door, Gus gently knocked before cracking the door open. Inside, Gus was met with lots of clothes strewn about, many residing on the floor, but even the wardrobe wasn't spared as it had shirts and pants hanging off the sides and a few even from the knobs on each drawer. Among the clothes were many different kinds of boxes, most of them food-related, breakfast burritos, snack cakes, and even fizzy drink boxes. All of this circled the main attraction of Kal’s bed where a large rounded mass lay in the center.

“Hey Round? It's time to get up.” Gus could feel himself cringe a bit at accidentally letting the nickname slip, even though he tried to refer to the lion by his actual name, he couldn't deny that the nickname was both catchy and very fitting with the lion’s mane… and his new physique. It even seemed like the lion may have started to accept the name, even if he wouldn't admit it.

Slowly, a thick arm rose and fell, the lion using it to rub his face and push away the drowsiness he felt. Trying to get up from his position, Round swung his arms to try to get momentum and sit up, the effort only causing him to struggle against the mass he had on top of him. A few more attempts only left the lion breathing heavily before huffing and slowly rolling over to the edge of the bed, the sheets being pulled along with him as he heaved himself up.

“I’ll be out in a bit.” Round grumbled as he started a long yawn.

“Okay, just to let you know they should be here in a bit so be out soon!” Gus said as he shut the door and went back into the apartment to double-check everything.

With a stifled grunt, the lion pushed himself up from his bed, the blankets falling away to reveal his bulky form.

If Round had been fat before, now he was downright obese, rivaling the state Gus had been in only a few months prior. Slowly waddling over to his dresser, Round pulled it open and pulled out a pair of basketball shorts and a large T-shirt.

Sitting back on the bed, Round leaned forward, barely able to reach the hem of the shorts as his belly bunched up against his thunder thighs. Pulling up, Round started to feel a familiar feeling, as the shorts went up, Round could feel them getting tighter and tighter until they completely came to a halt right under his cushy posterior.

Standing up, Round started his increasingly common battle, pulling his shorts all the way up.

Dang it Gus, did he lend me the wrong pair of shorts? These must have shrunk in the wash again, I swear he had these fit him months ago, they should be able to easily fit me…

Laying back onto the bed, Round huffed and puffed after each attempt, finally letting out a sigh of relief as he felt the fabric slip up and around his blubbery behind.

Taking a moment to catch his breath, Round again rolled off the bed, taking his shirt with him as he pulled it over himself, letting it drape down to cover most of his body, the pudgy lion pulling down on the hem of the shirt to force it the rest of the way, only for it to again reveal the bottom of his overhang.

Waddling to the kitchen, the Lion starts to feel more awake as he smells the fresh buttercream frosting inside both of the pink boxes that lay on the counter.

Looking over at Gus, the hybrid was busy struggling to make sure the place was presentable, dusting, and the like. Licking his lips, Round tip-toed as best as he could over to the container.

Surely no one would mind if I had just a quick early taste test… Round thought to himself as he started to lift the lid, only to be interrupted by a playful slap to his paws from Gus.

“Oh my goodness, how the hell do you do that Gus?” The sudden appearance of the larger hybrid startled Round. Somehow, despite the size of him, Gus was still scarily good at being silent when he did decide to walk

“No touching, you have to be patient.” Gus said as he decided to put both out of eyesight in the fridge.

“Oh come on, just a little taste can't be that bad, I feel like I have been waiting for these famous cakes for almost a whole year.”

“And what happened to that ‘Got to get fit’ attitude? You should be thanking me.~” Gus smirked as he went back to the living room to wait for the guests to arrive.

“Hey I will! It's our birthday though, I feel like that should be let as a cheat day…” Round excused as he followed Gus to the living room.

A few minutes later the place was packed, less because of the sheer volume of guests, but ironically due to the sheer volume of each guest. With the dimming of the lights, Duvet held each cake in his hands as he placed them in front of the birthday boys, not without the forest cat’s belly accidentally shifting the table forward.

After a terribly off-tune singing of Happy Birthday with a certain chubby Mexican dragon adding in some Spanish flair to make it even more chaotic. The first slices of cake were passed to each birthday boy, a single slice of spice cake for Round because “I am planning on cutting soon” and two for the hybrid who happily devoured his strawberry cake.

As the slices were passed out, Round took a large bite of his spice cake, his tail curling around as he let out an audible hum of delight. Maybe just one more slice can't hurt…

HAPPY LATE (early?) BIRTHDAY ROUND!

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Thank you again for reading and I hope you enjoyed it! Would love to learn about what you all thought!