The year Ellie turned thirty, she declared war on her thighs.
After class, Ellie shuffled up to Mara, embarrassed and raw. "I don’t know how to do that," she whispered. "I don’t even know what my body wants anymore."
Well , she thought. Time to fix this.
"I used to starve myself for the same reason you’re counting almonds," Mara said, her eyes closed, hands resting on her belly. "I thought if I could just get small enough, I’d finally be safe. I’d finally be good. But you know what happens when you chase small? You shrink your life. You say no to birthday cake. You skip the hike because you’re too weak. You turn down sex because you’re ashamed of your own shadow."
She pulled out her phone and typed a message to her group chat: Teen Nudist Photos Free
But the burn didn't love her back. By week three, her hair was thinning. Her periods stopped. She lay awake at 2:00 AM, stomach growling, scrolling through fitness influencers with rib cages that looked like xylophones. She hated them. She hated herself for hating them.
Her thighs touched beneath the picnic table. The sun was warm on her shoulders. The year Ellie turned thirty, she declared war on her thighs
It was peace.