6:30 P.M. A cool Spring evening in the city of Adipea. Somewhere, deep in the section of town known as 'the Biz', was a quaint little sushi house by the name of the Black Cat. A stylish crimson sign hung above the entrance, depicting a black cat curled around a platter of nigiri. Strangely, it seemed to possess two tails, one just slightly above the other.

The inside of the establishment was empty, save for a single employee who was diligently cleaning the tables. He appeared to be a Half-Elf, judging by his slightly pointed ears… but that's about where any resemblance he held to Elvenkind ended. There was no way to put this delicately; Palen was obese, morbidly so. His face was round, positively cherubic with how often his chubby cheeks were stained pink with blush. His torso possessed a quality most would call 'doughy', 'dumpy', or 'utterly rotund'. Thickly padded arms flanked what could be grossly misinterpreted as a pot belly, if one would consider a full sized cauldron a pot, atop which two melon sized… well, melons rest. So round and plump they were, one would not be faulted for assuming he were a woman! All this paled in comparison to the absolute girth of his bottom half. To call Palen 'pear-shaped' would be a disservice to pears the world over, who could not hope to achieve the level of curvitude this young man possessed. If someone were to push Palen onto his rear, he would still stand, er, sit at a solid 4 feet tall.

Gotta make sure these tables are spotless for Kuro-san! He thought to himself, focused on the task before him. The quick, repetitive motion of wiping the table down made every inch of him wobble like pink gelatin, a sensation that he had long since stopped taking any serious note of. "Palen, would you come here please?" The sound of a stern, familiar voice called into the main area. The young Half-Elf looked up and toward the back, where it originated from. Tucking his cleaning cloth into the front pocket of his apron, he quickly walked- No, waddled to his boss' office. Peering in past the paper sliding door, he smiled nervously. "Yes, Kuro-san? Is everything alright?"

Seated at his desk was a particularly grouchy looking cat man, a Nekomimi to be exact. Triangular ears sat atop hair the color of coal dust, the tips of white were a stark white contrast. Bright, almost glowing golden eyes stared at the blob-like Half-Elf through small, round lenses. A cat tail idly swished back and forth behind the man, a second tail following close behind it, out of sync. "Please sit down." Kuro gestured to the chair across from him. Nodding obediently, he did as instructed. The poor mahogany furniture creaked and groaned in agony as it did its damnedest to support the near one ton of Elven flesh atop it.

"...I've been doing some serious thinking." "O-Oh?" "Yes. Profit margins have, sadly, not been doing so well these past few months. Despite selling bulk orders of sushi and fried rice at such low prices, the amount of new restaurants cropping up in this city have made turning a profit harder and harder." Oh no… He thought. This was it; He was finally being fired. He knew this day would come. Whether it was knocking furniture over with his immense proportions, crushing it under his bulk, or consuming thousands of gold worth of fish using his 'employee discount', he knew he was a screw-up. Tears welled up in the corners of his soft green eyes. "I-I unders-stand Kuro-san, I-I'm sorry I-I'm such a sc-screwup. I-I'll-" "Palen, what are you crying for?" The twin-tailed cat man's tone was utterly confused, a curious eyebrow cocked at his behavior. "...A-Aren't you g-gonna fire me?" "What?! No! Palen, I was going to ask if you'd help me with implementing some fresh ideas to get customers rolling in!"

The (seriously) overweight lad's cheeks burned heavily with shame and embarrassment as he reached up to rub the back of his blubberous neck. "O-Oh… S-So you're-" "Of course not. You're one of my hardest working employees, Palen." Kuro sighed softly, giving a firm but reassuring smile. He may have been something of a sourpuss, but deep down he was a kind man and he treasured someone like Palen. "That's why I need your help with this." "...T-Thank you, Kuro-san." A sniffling chuckle escaped him as he wiped the tears from his eyes. "S-Sorry about that. W-What was your id-dea?"

"...K-K-Kuro-san, I don't kn-now about this…" "Palen, don't tell me you're getting cold feet already?" The Neko chided, clicking his tongue in disapproval. "...N-No… Just… A-Are you s-sure that I'm the ri-right fit for this?" "Well, you were the most open to the idea besides Naomi, but she technically doesn't work here." "S-She's invested in half the c-company!" "Technically, I said, Technically! Now c'mon out and lay down." A small, mortified groan escaped Palen as he slowly stepped into view.

He was naked. Buck naked. Not a shred of decency to be found, save for the natural censor his giant gut gave his genitals. Despite being unable to cover anything, the portly Half-Elf's hands did their best to cover what they could… which amounted to him suggestively cradling his bosom and halfheartedly groping the lower half of his stomach, as if it would somehow prevent anyone from seeing past his flab toward his nethers. His entire face was alight with fresh hot blush, almost as if he was wearing face paint! Kuro was sat across from one of the sturdier tables in the restaurant, gazing up at him with a somewhat stoic, if impatient looking expression… Was he blushing too? Palen couldn't tell as his eyes fell from his boss to the rather large platter of sushi beside him. "S-So… A-All I gotta do is ju-just lay down and… a-and…" "And let people eat sushi off you, yes." "Y-You make it sound so e-easy, boss…"

"If this trial run makes you feel… uncomfortable, Palen, then we'll try something else. I'll pay you extra this week if that will make you feel better." "N-No! Th-that's fine, Kuro-san, I-I'll… be fine." Slowly, Palen crept over to the table. A thin sheen of sweat had formed on his brow from sheer nervousness. What if the table broke? What if people thought he was to ugly to eat off of? By the time he was out of hypotheticals to assault himself with, he was gently seating his oversized rear on the table's edge. "That's it, Palen, just lay back… Nice and slow." The calm, even tone of the Neko helped put the Half-Elf at ease, slowly hefting all of his weight onto the table and laying down. Everything creaked a bit as he did, gravity pulling all 600 pounds of him down. Even with his arms and legs held together, his mass took up almost the entire table! With a nod of approval, Kuro began to decorate the enormous employee with large, flat plant leaves. "W-What are-" "Shh! Part of this tradition demands that you are silent. Act as if you are the table itself." Swallowing nervously, he nodded gently and focused his attention to the ceiling. The leaves gently tickled his skin, feeling them be placed all across his massive mountain of a gut, as well as across his bountiful man breasts. "The leaves are supposed to keep the sushi sterile, in case you were wondering." Another small, silent nod. Kuro smiled, patting his flank. "There you go."

By the time everything was prepared, Palen was covered in no less than 100 pieces of sushi! Seems all his flab made for a good serving platter. Looking over his work, Kuro nodded to himself and produced a pair of chopsticks from his sleeve. Staying as still as he could, the Half-Elven man would watch as his feline employer began to eat. It was… relaxing, in an odd way. The gentle feeling of chopsticks grazing his flesh, the soft sounds of someone eating beside him… It was nice. Especially since it was Kuro right now. He always did think he was cute, even if he was such a grump sometimes. Smiling to himself, Palen closed his eyes. Just for a bit. It was just so… relaxing…

Bwoorp!

Startled awake by a sudden belch, Palen whipped his head back and forth. "Huh? Wha?" "Oh, you're- urp -awake, Palen. Did you enjoy your nap?" Kuro was currently patting a napkin to his lips, having finished his meal apparently. "O-Oh! Uh… Yes, I did, I guess. I didn't even mean to-" His eyes trailed down, falling upon his boss' incredibly taut tummy! Stuffed full of sushi, it bulged over his pants into his lap and strained at the buttons of his work shirt. A long strip of pale belly was exposed, as well as between the gaps of his top. "...Something the matter, Palen?" Blushing heavily, Palen simply shook his head and smiled. "N-Not at all sir! In fact… I think I m-might like this!" After all, if it means I can see more full bellies like this… I guess this won't be so bad! "Ahh, excellent! I'm happy to- hic -hear that! Oof, I suppose preparing and eating all of that sushi might have been a bit… excessive, but I had to see how much I could put on you!" Idly rubbing his stomach, Kuro chuckled and slowly rose up from his seat. His bloated gut was just an inch away from Palen's face, close enough for him to feel his breath against it. Oh yeah… Definitely worth it~ "Well then, I'd say you're free to redress and head home for the evening, Palen! Expect a full run of this starting next week." "Yes sir!~"