"Im proud of the curves."

You know the feeling you have, when you're about to meet a friend after some 8 years and odd? Everything comes back to you. You relive those moments, in your head, and smile as you wait for the person to come through that door.

So, was the same for me. Me and an old school friend, had decided to meet up. She told me she was in Delhi, for a week or so, and after a very long strenuous process of getting a good hold of her, and her number, we decided to meet at a cafe nearby my place. I remembered her as the most beautiful girl in the classroom. She had such beautiful, light features, that her one smile would light up a guy's day. She was my best friend those days, and considering how we couldnt stop talking over the phone, I assume safely she still is.

I expected her to be vivaciously stunning, in heels, and a proper chic get up, with the eyeliner and the gloss. You know, like a typical head turner is! Infact, I had already decided that my attire would be bland in front of her, anyway, so I just slipped on something random and made my way.

Instead, came this stout girl, in a Nirvana tshirt, and ripped jeans, through the door, smiling as she looked at me. For a minute , I thought maybe she mistook me for someone else, but when she called me out by my nickname, with the same glint in her eyes, I was determined it had to be her. But whatever happened, to those beautiful features, those tight jeans which hugged her body, like made for her, those dresses which her mother had made for her especially. They were all hidden under the double chin, the flab around her waist, the stretch marks, threatening to rip apart her tshirt any minute.

She then told me she suffers from thyroid, and the case was such that now her weight has been stabilized. She can't do anything to reduce it. I felt pity take over me for her, and as if she could sense it, she chuckled at herself.

"You know, I see so many of those girls, dressing up just like I used to, in those dresses and those heels, and I won't lie when I say I dont want to do the same. But, it is my fault that I am in a condition as such. I was on a gorging high for two to three years. Now, Im like this. And yes I am taunted, but what people forget is, I don't mind."

That took me by surprise a little , because she was a little conscious about how she looked 9 years ago, with all her clothes coordinated. I was always the plump one, so the clothes coordination and the hair and the dresses thingy. Infact, I was quite the tomboy. Nevermind me.

I was curious, so I asked her, "Don't you feel a little ashamed when you walk into a store and try one something and it doesnt fit you?"

She nodded, " Sometimes it does, but if the world were all about dressing, we wouldnt need brains na? I mean seriously, think about it. How does it matter that I can't fit into a proper pair of jeans, when Im enjoying what Im doing. I stand second in class, my teachers are all praise for me, and I love studying what Ive taken up! I'm a brainy kid. And as cliched, this may sound, looks come and go, but what you learn, and the way you mature, always remains. Nothing can erase that. Unless ofcourse, you want to transform yourself into something else, and brainwash yourself with all the glamour and glitz youre surrounded by."

I smile at what she says, and sip on my coffee while she continues, " I love my curves. Im proud of them. People can mock me all they like , but hey, we'll see whose laughing in a matter of 10 years from now, whatsay?!"

We laugh, and somehow the topic fades away among the things we had to catch up on, like how we both share an avid love for photography. But what she said, keeps lingering in one corner of my mind. For however long, atleast, she made me happy to have a few extra pounds on me, and not be like one of those airheaded chicks who'd rather worry about their diet schedule, than their study schedule.

To be honest a little bit of myself, was reflected in what I asked her. But she is right. Im studying to be a lawyer. The court is not going to grill me, if I have a few love handles. Course they will grill me, if I don't present myself as a lawyer well. At the end of the day, that's what Im going to be paid for, and not to see how good my ass can look in a pair of slim fit trousers.

Not putting across the wrong message here. I don't mean I can be a smart kid, by sitting in front of the tv, hogging on wafers. What I mean is, tor what my friend inspired me to mean is, being fat is not the end of the world. Clothes are only an outer image, of whom we potray to be. Behind closed doors, we are what we ACTUALLY are.

Somehow, I don't hate myself anymore for wolfing down that slice of cheesecake!