It never occurred to me that what Tracy did to herself was bad for her.
I had always been attracted to thin women, had always dated skinny girls. Tracy was by far the skinniest of any woman I'd ever dated, I don't think she'd ever been over a hundred pounds in her life, and she was under eighty by the time she moved in with me.
She liked to play at fainting, as I discovered that one hot, sunny day while we were out shopping. I think she enjoyed being perceived as weak; it gave her control over others. She certainly had me in the palm of her hand, and when she feigned illness in public, people fawned over her, did things for her, petted and soothed her. I suppose for someone like Tracy, the adoration of one doting boyfriend can never be enough. Tracy needed the whole world to adore her. For the most part, people regarded her with indifference, suspicion, disgust, or pity; but when she swooned, it was all solicitousness and kindness.
Now that we lived together and worked together, I almost never spent time away from her, and Tracy liked it that way. She was jealous and territorial to the point of irrationality, but I was so hypnotized by her that I didn't care. I'd do anything for her, anything to mollify her, anything to reassure her that I wanted no one else- because I didn't. Truly, normal female bodies had lost their appeal for me. I craved Tracy's bones and concave stomach; the music of her ribcage juxtaposed with her incongruous fake breasts, so round and large they looked to topple her frail body; and the poetry of the lines in her face defying the huge, dark pools of her eyes. Her collar bones haunted my dreams. Her proximity to me was inversely proportional to my ability to concentrate on anything else. I don't think she knew the extent of her sway over me. Or perhaps she did, but she was still too insecure to be satisfied.
We clung to each other. It was practically obscene. You would think that two people would get sick of being around one another constantly, all day, every day, but even after three months of flirting and trading lewd stares at work all day and fucking like animals at night, showering together and eating together (or not eating, as it were), Tracy and I never got sick of each other.
Our one year anniversary was approaching. One year since she'd fucked me at my desk the first time. It seemed like a lifetime ago, or just yesterday. The time had slipped by so fast, yet who was that man named Jack that did not know this girl Tracy? I didn't know him any more. Tracy had inextricably woven herself into the fabric of my being. I thought of her all day, even as I looked at her through my office window, and I wanted nothing more than to please her. We worked hard; she to keep her job and I to please my boss so that I could earn more and buy her more nice things. I surprised her with jewelry that I bought on my lunch break. I took her clothes shopping almost every weekend. I spent hours watching her try on clothes, and still more hours with her at the tailor, who reluctantly fitted each garment to cling lovingly to Tracy's emaciated body.
On our one-year anniversary, of course, I took her out to celebrate. I lavished her with a disgustingly large bouquet of three hundred and sixty-five roses in a dazzling array of colors. She wore an elegant white silk gown that hugged her breasts appreciatively and swallowed the rest of her body. She ate a salad without dressing and we drank champagne. Just one glass went straight to her head and made her cheeks flush.