If the gym had been closed for over an hour, why were there voices coming from inside the women's locker room? Sydney paused at the door, leaned close, and put her ear to it. It sounded like someone was getting chewed out by one of her fellow instructors; Maya probably- she was a prickly one. But the words were still too muddied. Sydney opened the door slowly, a crack, then just wide enough for her to shoulder her way into the darkened space beyond.She sidestepped, and her protruding chest hit the door with a soft thump. Dammit!"Did you hear that?" Sydney didn't recognize the new voice.The other woman was definitely Maya. "All I heard was your stomach grumbling. Still hungry after all those shakes? You're a bottomless pit."Sydney edged closer to the source of the sound. She peeked around a row of lockers and there they were: Maya stood alongside one of the gym's recent members, an enormous woman named Heather. Maya's hands were all over Heather's doughy midsection."Is this not big enough for you? Keep it up and this ridiculous gut you keep fueling is gonna reach your knees. Would you enjoy that? Imagine the looks you'd get as you waddled around the gym. Everyone else getting thinner, fitter, and you keep going the opposite way. Do you like that idea?"Heather bit back a moan."I think you do. I think that this-" Maya shook Heather's stomach blubber. "Is you giving up. You're a pig that's out of control and I want you to admit it.""I-I'm a-"That was it! Sydney marched out of the shadows. "Heather, don't you dare say that! And Maya- what on earth are you doing? We are supposed to be creating a supportive environment. Apologize to poor Heather."Heather froze like a frightened rabbit. Her already-flushed face got even redder.Maya jumped a foot in the air. She bit back a torrent of savage insults as she struggled to formulate a reply. "How much did you...? Whatever. You've got it all wrong. This is a, uh- a new- a new sort of weight loss therapy. Shame based. New stuff. It operates on tough love principles. I'm letting Heather know what's wrong so she can target problem areas." All of a sudden, Maya smiled. "You're an instructor; you can help me. Help her.""Maya!" Heather whined.Sydney put her hand on Heather's shoulder in solidarity. "The way to help isn't with insults. It's by caring."Maya's trap snapped shut. "Wrong! That's exactly the attitude that got Heather to where she is now. A few college pounds show up around her middle and her friends keep saying she looks good. Then after graduation she's living in her parent's basement and nobody stops her from raiding the fridge every night. Months pass. Her folks are proud she's finally found a job, even if it's working fast food, so they don't call her out on how much she makes the stairs creak as she huffs and puffs up them. Does her boss say anything about the way her uniform's polo shirt continues to ride up her burger-fed belly? No- they'll take any slob that can operate a cash register.""Hey!" Heather squeaked. Flustered, she started playing with the generous roll above her navel.Maya ignored her. "Are you gonna side with the people that let her get this way? Shake her up!" Maya jostled Heather's stomach fat, gripped it rudely, turning the large woman until she faced Sydney, offering it to her.