Page 9 of Almost Yours

Party Central was a great addition to the company, because it allowed Frankie to keep track of events that were coming in, but also made it easy for everyone to pitch in if and when one of the planners had an emergency. Everything from the type of flowers to cake flavors, color palettes and fabrics for every event could be plugged into the software. It also allowed for collaborations and getting advice, tips and feedback from other planners.

As someone who liked being organized and having everything stored in one place—plus, cutting back on the amount of paper they used—Ginny loved Party Central and spent most of her time updating her clients’ info and requirements.

Her phone beeped with a text message, but Ginny ignored it. It would either be one of her siblings, her parents or Frankie insisting that she go home already. And Ginny didn’t want to have to explain herself to anyone. Instead, she nudged her phone further away and switched back to her personal email.

The subject lines of every single one sounded spammy, but she hoped that some of themmighthold some substance.

Possible partnership request

Let’s work together, @GinLife

New brand launch, perfect for you

We’d love to collaborate with you!

She scrolled up and down through the list and picked one at random. Even before she read the full email, Ginny knew that it was going to piss her off. It was the price she paid for being a body positivity influencer on Instagram. Rolling back her shoulders, she read the email out loud, putting on a fake accent just for the fun of it.

“Miss Thomas, your profile is one of our favorites and we truly believe you could be the next brand ambassador for our products. Unfortunately, there’s no payment involved, but I’m sure we could work out a barter system. You see, we’re a new and young blah blah blah…delete!”

The rest of the emails were in a similar vein—wanting to collaborate or partner with her, but no payment or barter involved—and Ginny deleted all of them. Along with a few spam ones with coupons and offers. There was a time when she would have accepted those collaborations, because she believed that you had to make yourself known somehow. But she’d been doing this for almost ten years and she wasn’t going to settle for anything less than a damn good deal.

@GinLife was initially an Instagram account where she posted badly taken pictures of her food and friends, just like everyone else. Ginny struggled to post pictures of herself for a while, and once she started doing that, the comments started to get ugly. She’d always been a chubby kid and a fat teenager, so struggling with her body was part of growing up. It didn’t help when her extended family made horrible comments about her weight or offered advice she didn’t ask for. But the older she got, the more she came to terms with the way she looked. She started to love her body and celebrated the little things about her shape.

The internet, however, was where assholes waited with bated breath just to shit all over someone for the fun of it.

Ginny could have run and hidden away after those initial comments. Instead, she channeled all that rage and frustration into changing what her account was about. Combining her love for gin cocktails and her body, Ginny turned @GinLife into a space to talk to people of all shapes and sizes so thattheydidn’t have to make themselves smaller or force-fit their bodies into a lifestyle that didn’t suit them. The trolls and assholes kept coming, but that fueled her desire to keep providing for those who needed her voice.

Every time she found a good outfit, she’d post about it and tag the brand, generating buzz and attention. Then she started offering guidance—sort of like an advice column—to anyone who sent in questions or DM’d her. Ginny knew how hard it was for a bigger woman to be appreciated and accepted, even in today’s world, so she made the Instagram profile a safe space for them. Those who followed her got to see Ginny’s personal life through a mostly filterless lens.

To her, @GinLife wasn’t about being and looking perfect, it was about enjoying life and not letting the world bring you down.

It took a long time to gain traction, but once people started sharing her content and brands started following and contacting her, Ginny’s profile grew. She had partnerships and sponsors, branded content that went up at least once a week. Ginny even attended events where she spoke about the importance of self-love and why ‘fat’ didn’t have to be a bad word. Being active on Instagram had gone from being a hassle and something she struggled with to becoming a fun learning experience. And to Ginny, that was the most important thing.

Her phone started beeping and buzzing with more texts, startling her from what she was doing. Unlocking the phone, she found a string of texts from Frankie asking Ginny why she was updating Party Central. Rolling her eyes, she started wrapping up work while sliding her AirPods in. She tapped Frankie’s name in her favorites list and pocketed the phone as she went about putting everything away.

“There’s nothing sexy about being a workaholic,” Frankie said as she answered the call.

“Says the woman who is obsessively checking Party Central.”

“I’m in a post-sex, best orgasm of my life state and my phone buzzed to tell me someone was updating something.”

Ginny made a face at the overshare, which was normal for Frankie. “Please tell me you’re not lying in bed naked and sweaty while we talk.” There was silence on the other end, followed by rustling and a deep chuckle that Ginny recognized as Milo. “Unbelievable.”

“You weren’t supposed to call! But hey, I just left myverynaked and very sexy boyfriend alone in bed to talk to you.”

“I don’t know how after all these years you continue to surprise me.”

“It’s part of my charm,” Frankie said, laughing softly. “But seriously, Gin, go home. Not just because it’s the holidays, but because you need to take a fucking break.”

“I like working, it keeps my mind busy and truthfully, I don’t know how to take a break.”

“That’s what worries me.”

Ginny sighed and tossed things into her tote, frowning when Frankie went silent on the other end of the phone.

“Frankie?”

“Yeah, yup, sorry. Are you packing up to leave?”

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