Sorry for the delay! Now that the holidays are over, it's back to real life, which means less time to write. But I will try to be quicker in the future!

Thanks for the new reviews and follows. They make me smile :)

Chapter 6

"What's the point in even meeting anymore." Tina spoke angrily at Finn. "The season is over, and it's my senior year. I don't want to waste my time practicing for no reason."

Finn stood in front of the glee club, frustration written all over his face. "It's not for no reason Tina. We still have our holiday and spring concerts, and school pep rallies to perform at."

Artie scoffed. "I'm sorry, but coming off of a loss at Sectionals, I'm not performing in front of this school. It's like we're begging to be slushied."

Finn shook his arms in annoyance. "I don't know what you guys want me to say. Yes, we lost. But glee club is about so much more than winning or losing."

"Maybe if everyone wasn't so quick to name a tenth grader the new Rachel, we wouldn't be in this position," Tina sneered. "Marley is no Rachel. Rachel would never screw up like this."

Marley fidgeted in her seat. It was an awful idea to come to glee practice today. Of course they were angry. She anxiously twitched her ankle, the heel of her shoe tapping rhythmically against the metal chair leg.

Kitty sat in front of her, whispering and giggling with Brittany and Sugar. Marley couldn't help but lean forward slightly and try to catch a few of the words she was saying. She didn't know how she would really define her friendship with Kitty - could she even call it a friendship? - but it hurt her to think that she was talking about her behind her back. Sure, Kitty said nasty things to the brunette all the time. But lately she seemed kinder. Like her insults were only an act.

"... as if, Hello Kitty thinks she should be the new Rachel," Kitty's voice lilted in that teasing way Marley knew all too well. "I heard she used to pretend to have a stutter. That girl has some major psychological issues. Seriously, who does that?"

Marley had no idea if Kitty's rumors about Tina were true, but Brittany's fervent nodding seemed to validate the story.

"I almost feel bad for her, a senior jealous of a sophomore, it's pathetic," Kitty continued. "Marley was literally unconscious for her duet, and she was still more entertaining than Tina's lead in Gagnam Style."

Both girls burst into a fit of giggles. "So true," Sugar agreed enthusiastically, clearly eager to maintain this newfound attention from Kitty.

Marley winced instinctively after hearing her name and girlish giggles that followed. But as she processed what was said, a strange thought came to her. Was Kitty defending her? To be fair, she wasn't defending anyone, it was more a matter of tearing down Tina. But still.

Marley felt a hand rest on the small of her back. She shifted her attention back to Jake, who was sitting beside her. "You ok?" he mouthed.

She leaned in towards him, so her shoulder just barely grazed his chest. Even though she had to hide her dieting from him, she still felt a closeness. "Yea, it's fine," she whispered.

Tina, Artie, and Finn continued to bicker, but Marley let her thoughts slip into her own mind as she tuned the others out. Today was actually going to turn out okay. Lunch with Ms. Pillsbury was trying. But even after spending both lunch and study hour with the counselor, she was still able to get at least some of the cafeteria food up. After she left Ms. Pillsbury's office, she skipped US history and threw up what she could in the locker room bathroom. Plus, the new diet pills Kitty had given her were making her pulse beat twice as fast usual. Before Sectionals when Kitty had first given her diet pills, she told Marley that a crazy-fast heart rate meant the pills were working.

Dinner was going to be even easier to deal with. After glee, Marley was going to hang out with Jake for a few hours. It was perfect - she planned to tell Jake she was eating with her mom, and tell her mom that she ate with Jake. It was all going to be okay. Everyone could try to babysit Marley as much as they wanted, but she was still in control.

Marley followed Jake up the walkway towards his house. She had never been to his home before, but even from the outside she knew she would like it. It wasn't large and overwhelming like Kitty's house, nor was it ratty and beat-up like her own home. It was a modest house, but the yard was well taken care of and the outside was painted in a warm tan shade. She paused, taking it all in.

"Come on, it's freezing," Jake huffed, his breath condensing into a cloud in front of him. He looped his arm around her elbow and guided her up the front steps. As they walked through the front door, the warmth immediately enveloped her frame. "Can I take your jacket?"

Marley handed him her jacket, which he dutifully hung in the closet, and then following his lead, kicked off her shoes and slung her backpack onto the floor.

"You wanna meet my mom?" Marley couldn't help but smile. Of course she did. She followed him into the kitchen. His mom sat on a kitchen stool reading a magazine. "Hey Mom, this is Marley."

Jake's mom put the magazine on the table and walked towards the two of them. "Hi, nice to meet you." She touched Marley's shoulder gently and smiled warmly at her. "Jake's told me all about you."

"Mom, stop." Jake rolled his eyes, but Marley could tell he wasn't really annoyed. Jake and his mom seemed to have an easy charisma between them. She found them charming.

Jake's mother spun around and walked towards the refrigerator. "Are you kids hungry? Can I fix you a snack?"

Marley took in a sharp breath. "No thanks," she answered too quickly.

"You sure?" Jake half-smiled, uneasiness spelled across his face. He exchanged an awkward glance with his mother, who nodded at him encouragingly. "I'm starving, I don't know, maybe we could share something?"

"No thanks," Marley repeated. Her cheeks felt hot as embarrassment washed over her. It was obvious from their interaction that Jake's mother knew about her eating problem. And why wouldn't she? Obviously she was in the audience during Marley's dramatic Gagnam Style performance. And clearly Jake and his mother were close. But still, it shook her to know that Jake's mother was already judging her.

Marley stared at her feet, unsure of what to do. "I ...", she started awkwardly. "I have to make a phone call," she said lamely. "My mom, I have to call my mom. Sorry, I'll be right back." Without looking at either Jake or his mother, Marley stormed out of the kitchen and sat on the stairway. She hated herself for the impression she must be making on Jake's mother, but she didn't know how else to behave. Marley slipped her phone out of her pocket and scrolled through her contacts. Was there anyone she could call? Not her mom, that was for sure.

Marley snapped her eyes up from her phone when she heard footsteps walking towards her. It was Jake.

"Hey, I'm sorry. Can we talk?" He held out a hand, which she reluctantly took, and he pulled her up off the stairs.

She crossed her arms across her chest. She knew she wasn't justified in feeling upset, but she couldn't help it. "You told your mom."

He grabbed her shoulder lightly and led her up into his room, closing the door behind him. "I'm sorry okay, I just..." Jake ran his hand through his hair. "I was talking to Ryder, and he told me a bunch of stuff... I don't know, it's just, I don't know anything about... eating disorders." Jake mumbled over his words. He paused, shrugging his shoulders. "I just want to do right by you."

Marley saw the pain that was written all over his face, and she knew that she was the cause of it. In that moment, she couldn't help but feel jealous of Kitty. How did Kitty manage to keep everything a secret? No one ever followed her around and made sure she ate. How would Kitty react in this situation? She strained her mind, trying to think quickly. On impulse, Marley leaned up and pushed her lips against Jake's.

Jake pulled away almost immediately. "Marley, what are you doing? We need to talk." Marley was embarrassed at first, but she saw the way his eyes were concentrated on her lips and the fast rise and fall of his chest. She believed him, Jake wanted to want to talk. But she knew she had him.

"Shh," she hushed him, pushing him back against his bedroom door. She pushed her body hard against his, and kissed him again. His lips were tense for a moment, but he quickly gave in. Marley had no idea what she was doing, this was about as far as she had ever gotten with a boy before. But she had to stay focused. She sucked on his lip gently as she placed both hands on his cheeks.

For a few moments, Jake kissed her back, his lips softening against her own. But he recovered more quickly than Marley had hoped. Suddenly, Jake put his hands on her shoulders and pushed her back so that their bodies were no longer touching. His face was flush. "We need to talk," he repeated. "I'm serious."

Marley chewed on her lip. She was sick of talking to people who didn't understand. She just wanted to hang out with her boyfriend like a normal teenager. What would Kitty do? Her thoughts raced. She had to up her game.

She eyed the light switch to the right of Jake's shoulder, and before she had time to evaluate her plan, she flicked the switch off and pulled her sweater over her shoulders, tossing it onto the floor. She again leaned her body into Jake's and tugged upwards on his polo shirt, trying to pull it off.

"Marley, stop it." Jake pushed her away for a third time while straightening his shirt. "I don't want it to be like this." He reached over and turned the light back on. "I like you a lot, but we have to talk about this first." Jake shifted his eyes downwards towards her torso. "Oh my god. Marley," he breathed.

Marley crossed her arms across her chest, mortified. How exactly did she get herself in this situation? She was standing here, in Jake's bedroom, wearing worn navy blue skinny jeans and an old, cotton bra. She looked hideous, fat, and poor. And not only had Jake rejected her, he wouldn't stop staring at her. Marley's face grew hot. He was probably staring at the muffin top that was undoubtedly spilling over the top of her jeans. "I get it, I'm fat."

Jake's eyes widened as he studied Marley's face. "You're joking." He tentatively reached towards Marley's stomach and traced her ribs with his fingers. She winced at his touch. "Do you not see your bones sticking out? You look awful."

Marley laughed pathetically, burning tears starting to stream down her face. "Thanks. You look good too," she spat.

"That's not what I meant," he said shaking his head. "You look sick... really sick."

She couldn't think of anything to say. There she was, standing in her boyfriend's bedroom half-naked after being told she looked awful. What the hell was there to say? Marley bent down to pick up her sweater and get dressed, before shoving Jake out of the way and fleeing his bedroom. Hurrying down the stairs and towards the front door, she grabbed her jacket and backpack, and slid on her shoes.

Jake's mother saw her as she was putting on her jacket. She looked at her curiously, worry etched across her forehead. "Honey, are you okay?"

"Yea," Marley pushed out, on autopilot. She was sick of people asking her that when it was clear she was anything but ok. "I just have to go." With that, she stormed out of Jake's house into the cold.

"You going to tell me what's going on Boo Boo?" Marley sat cross-legged on Kitty's couch, a heavy blanket draped over her shoulders and hot tea in her hands. "You can't just call me up crying and ask me to pick you up in the middle-of-nowhere in below freezing weather and expect me not to be curious."

Marley didn't know what to say. She was grateful to Kitty, of course. If it weren't for Kitty, she would have had to call her mother or maybe even Ryder or Unique, and they wouldn't understand. But did she want to explain herself to Kitty? She was so embarrassed, and besides, Kitty used to have a thing for Jake too. It just didn't feel right.

"I know you were at Jake's, and I don't care," Kitty stated simply, as if she had read Marley's mind. "Just tell me what he did. Is he pressuring you for sex? I can order a slushie attack on him Monday, no problem."

Marley sighed. "He wasn't pressuring me for sex, more the opposite," she mumbled, her face reddening.

"Marley Rose!" Kitty exclaimed, a smile spreading across her face. "Are you trying to swipe your v-card?" She grabbed Marley's free hand in her own and squeezed it. "Jake's an idiot, I don't know what his deal is. But I can set you up with tons of guys, you're totally bangable."

Marley chewed on her lip and tried to show annoyance with the blonde, but she couldn't help a few small giggles from tumbling out of her lips. "That's not what it's like," she said softly. "It's just, he always wants to try to feed me or talk about food, and never do normal boyfriend-girlfriend things. I thought if I could make it more... physical," Marley said quietly, embarrassed, "maybe it would distract him from all of that."

Kitty squeaked in delight, her eyes shining. "You little sex kitten!" But after a moment, her eyes scrunched together in confusion. "Wait, but it didn't work? How could that not work? Tell me what happened."

Marley sighed, and then started to explain the entire story to Kitty, down to each embarrassing detail. A few days ago, she never would have guessed that she would confide things like this to Kitty of all people, but she was the only one who seemed to understand nowadays. "He's the first boy who's seen me with my shirt off, and he told me I looked awful," Marley finished, her eyes staring down into her lap. "It was mortifying."

"He told you that you looked awful? Are you sure you heard him correctly?" Kitty asked skeptically.

"I tried to kiss him," Marley admitted sheepishly, "but he just keep pushing me away and touching my rib bones. He said my bones were sticking out and that I looked awful." As she finished her story, her phone buzzed in her pocket. She pulled it out and looked at the screen. Another missed call from Jake. He'd called her seventeen times since she'd left his house half an hour ago.

"That him?" Kitty asked. "I can yell at him if you want."

Marley shook her head. "No, it's fine. I'll just not answer for awhile." She hit the reject call button on her phone to stop the buzzing. "Besides, I guess on some level it's sweet that he cares. Especially considering how repulsive he finds my body."

"Hey, none of that." Kitty snapped her fingers in Marley's face. "Snap out of it. You are Woman Fierce, remember?" She bounced up quickly. "Look, it's Friday night. After you stopped crying, I was going to kick you out and have some of the Cheerios over. But change of plans, because I'm making it my personal mission to get you to have fun tonight."

Butterflies filled Marley's stomach almost instantaneously. She was starting to trust Kitty, weirdly enough, but she didn't really know what a fun night with the blonde meant. "Thanks, but I think I'm just going to go home."

She felt Kitty's surprisingly strong hand circle around her wrist and pull her forward. "No. Marley, listen to me. You're going to text Mama Rose that you're staying late at Jake's, we're going to raid my parent's liquor cabinet to get you loosened up, and then we're going to have some Kitty-Marley quality time."

Marley was flopped across Kitty's bed, the blonde lying next to her. Kitty's laptop was in front of both girls, and Kitty was purposefully scrolling through her facebook friends.

"Okay," Kitty announced, setting on the page of some guy with light hair and freckles. "Josh, he's the one. What do you think?"

"What?" Marley took little sips from the drink Kitty had made for her. It burned in the back of her throat. She had never had any kind of liquor before, except for a few sips of wine in church, so she had no idea if that was how it was supposed to taste. "What are you talking about?"

Kitty rolled her eyes impatiently. "Josh would totally bone you, you wouldn't even have to try. And his sister Kayla is in Cheerios, so I can set up you two crazy kids." Kitty's eyes danced, but Marley just stared at her.

"Ew, are you crazy? I don't even know him."

"Well, duh." Kitty spoke slowly, as if she were speaking to a small child. "It's cleaner that way. Marley, it's girlfriend jealousy 101, how can you not know this?"

Marley didn't know how to respond, so she just shook her head and drank more from her cup.

"Ok, do I have to spell it out for you? Jake was out of line, so you break up with him. You fuck Josh, who, frankly, is better looking then half-black-half-Jew Jake. Jake gets jealous, comes crawling back to you, and you win." Kitty nodded triumphantly. "You'll get all the control."

Marley shook her head. "I don't want to control him, Kitty. You don't understand."

"Whatever," Kitty said, closing her laptop and putting it on her nightstand. "Ignore my wisdom, your loss." She picked up her solo cup from her nightstand and downed the rest of the liquid in one big gulp. "I'm making myself another rum and diet coke, are you ready for a refill?"

The cup in Marley's hands was still about half full. She swirled her cup gently, watching the bubbles appear on the surface. "Does this stuff have a lot of calories?" she asked impulsively. Lately, it was hard to force herself to swallow anything, even liquids. Sure, beverages weren't as bulky as foods, but there were plenty of hidden calories secretly sloshing through fluids. In that way, liquids were even more dangerous than solid foods.

Kitty grunted, and rolled her eyes. "You are unbelievable." She squirmed over so her body was closer to Marley's, and peered into her cup. "Just chug it, you'll feel calmer, I swear" she said, her voice strangely gentle. "Alcohol calories are worth it. You can trust me, we're the same kind of crazy, remember?" The blonde nudged her shoulder playfully, but Marley could see the seriousness in her eyes.

"Yeah, ok," Marley resolved. She stared down the cup in her hands defiantly, determined to defeat it, and then quickly poured it's contents down the back of her throat. The aftertaste burned the back of her throat, a feeling not all that different from the end of a long purging session. She grinned at Kitty, her head suddenly feeling wonderfully light. "I'm ready for that refill."

Let me know what you think! And thanks so much to those of you who reviewed my previous chapters :)