News about Lincoln's murder spread like wildfire throughout Royal Woods, Michigan. Never had such a case spurred such media coverage as this. Mr. and Mrs. Loud were heavily interrogated on why they had left their son outside. Naturally, no type of explanation fell in their favor. The parents were arrested due to child neglect, thus leaving the kids with no other option but to move to their dreaded Aunt Ruth's house for the time being. Seeing that there was nothing that could be done regarding their circumstance, the girls solemnly went to their rooms to gather their valuables.
"I don't want to go to Aunt Ruth's" groaned Lola "she'll make us eat molded pudding again!"
"Don't knock it till you try it, sis," suggested Lana. Lana was the only one who appreciated her aunt's moldy pudding. Though considering how she willingly eats gross foods on a daily basis, it didn't come as much of a surprise. Lola, however, nearly vomited upon thinking about the rancid pudding. Lynn held an ice pack against her cheek which bore the red markings from Clyde's slap.
"How's your cheek ?" asked Luan.
"It still stings a bit, but I'm fine. Dang, didn't know Clyde had it in him."
"Are you gonna give him an atomic wedgie for it?" asked Lola.
"Nah, that's the least of my problems" explained Lynn.
This peaked Lola's interest. "What happened?"
"I just received a text from Polly."
"You mean that girl you set up on a date with Linc?" inquired Luna.
"Yes. She had been avoiding me at school all day. I didn't know why, so I pulled her to the side at lunch, and she told me that she was disgusted at what I had done. She then socked me in the stomach, and we hadn't spoken sense."
Lucy sighed. "Ouch. Haiku had been noticeably distant from me." While the two still did things together, it was all but clear that Haiku did not want anything to do with Lucy anymore. The reality of this made Lucy feel more depressed than she usually was.
Luan looked down at her hands. Ever since the murder, Luan had hardly uttered a single joke, nor had she engaged in any gigs. In fact, her business was completely scrapped. She just felt that there wasn't anyway that she could continue on with the business without Lincoln. It's funny: she never realized how much Lincoln contributed to the business, it took Lincoln being taken away so suddenly for her to acknowledge his efforts. "That's nothing compared to what happened to me and Maggie," droned Luan.
Lori was glancing at her phone at that time, but she placed it on the table in fascination. "Do tell," insisted Lori.
Luan explained that she once received a text from Maggie stating that she wished to meet up with her at a fast food restaurant. She gets there, and she noticed that Maggie was looking more cynical than she usually was. She had a look of scorn pasted across her face. It legitimately made Luan nervous. The two received their orders, and they went to sit down at a booth. The two didn't say anything for a while; they just shared blank expressions with each other. The tension was killing Luan: why did Maggie text her to come here of all places? It didn't help that Maggie was eerily quiet throughout. She knew that she would at the very least give an annoyed grunt whenever she made a joke and the like, but now, she's being silent. Eventually the tension was becoming too thin.
"Maggie, what did you want to talk about?" asked Luan in an attempt to strike up a conversation.
Maggie placed her burger on the table, and stared at Luan with that same emotionless glare. "How could you do that to your own brother?"
Luan was confused by her question at first. It took some critical thinking for her to realize that she was referring to the murder case.
"I didn't know he'd be taken" said Luan "I just thought he was bad luck."
Maggie crossed her arms. "That is a really stupid explanation, Luan."
Luan was close to crying again. " I know; it's my fault for what happened. Can this day get any worse?
What happened next caught Luan at a disadvantage. Maggie sighed. "You know, I shouldn't be hanging out with some foolish person like you."
"What, what do you mean?" inquired Luan.
"We're through" stated Maggie in a cold tone.
Luan began to break down. She got out of her seat, and fell before Maggie. "No, Maggie, I can't lose you too!" exclaimed Luan.
Maggie looked down on Luan, quietly analyzing her while doing so. "Maybe you should've realized that the moment you left your brother out in the cold."
Maggie gathered the food wrappings, and walked past Luan, leaving her a hollow mess.
"There isn't anything you can do to make it up to her?" asked Luna.
Luan shook her head. "She removed my number from her phone. That should be enough to say that she doesn't want anything to do with me."
"I'm real sorry, sis," says Luna who gives her a hug.
Lori was going to say something next, only for her cellphone to suddenly ring. Lori went into another room to answer it. Glancing at her phone, Lori immediately recognized the number. It was her boyfriend. She quickly swiped the icon and placed the phone beside her right ear.
"Bobby Boo Boo Bear?" she says.
"Are you watching the news now?!" Bobby shrieks. Lori was taken aback by the frantic tone in his voice.
"Why?"
They're talking about Lincoln!
"I see."
Lori nearly froze up by what he said next.
"They said that he was locked out of the house all night."
Lori gulped in anxiety. Bobby seemed to become suspicious by that.
"Babe, just tell me one thing..."
"What is it, dear?" Lori asked whilst trying to stave away his suspicions.
"Please tell me that you didn't lock Lincoln out on purpose!" he cried "Please tell me it was an accident!"
It didn't take much for Lori to realize that Bobby was silently crying on the other line. The pain in her heart returned, this time even more potent. She knew that it was wrong to lie to Bobby, but she knew how close he was to Lincoln. Lying just this once should put him at ease.
Lori was on the brink of crying herself, but she tried to compose herself so that she could be strong for herself and Bobby. "Yes, Bobby. It was an accident."
Bobby's sobbing lessened. "You promise?"
"Would I lie to you?" Lori asked through her teeth.
"I just wish I could've done something for Linc" mourned Bobby.
"We all do."
With that, she ended her call with Bobby, and she rubbed the palms of her hands onto her face.
Lynn walked into the room, having heard everything that she had said. "Why'd you lie to him? I already lied to Clyde, and everyone knows how that went."
Lori avoided Lynn's eyes. "I...I don't know. I know how close Bobby was to Lincoln, I just...froze."
Lynn narrowed her eyes. "What will you do when he finds out?"
Lori grabbed her by the collar of her shirt. "He won't find out. Got that?"
Lori loosened her grip on Lynn when she saw that she was hurting her. Lori wipes her hands on her shirt, and clears her throat. "He won't find out. Now everyone, calm down and let's continue packing."
Meanwhile, Ronnie Anne was alone in her room, looking at some photos that were of her and Lincoln. She had already told herself that she wouldn't cry, but she couldn't resist. Tears erupted from her eye ducts like a flowing stream. The more she looked at the pictures, a flame burned within her. It intensified the more she thought about Lincoln's untimely demise, and how it happened during a time where he was most vulnerable. Yes Ronnie Anne began to despise the Loud family and desired to get back at them for what they had done. But how?
Bobby knocked on her door. "Sis, can I come in?"
"Door's open" states Ronnie Anne in her usual deadpan tone.
Bobby opens the door, and walks into the room. "How are you feeling?"
Ronnie Anne forced a smile onto her face. "Better. Who said I was crying? I'm not crying, just sweating...through my eyes."
Bobby looked at her and embraces her. For once, Ronnie Anne returned the gesture.
"Ronnie Anne, I miss Lincoln as much as you do, but we can pull through this. Together."
"No one can replace him" bemoaned Ronnie Anne.
Bobby agreed. "No, they can't. Anyway, I just got off the phone with Lori, and..."
Ronnie Anne interjected "To tell her that you're breaking up with her?"
Bobby shook his head. "To tell her about how the news is researching Lincoln's murder."
Ronnie Anne pouted "Hmph. Why can't you just dump her?"
Bobby sighed. "Look, baby sister, I know you're mad at them for what happened, but Lori insisted that she had no part in what happened to Lincoln."
Ronnie Anne frowned at the answer. "It's like you to believe that whore..."
"Now, Ronnie Anne..."
Ronnie Anne did not want to hear one of his many lectures again. "Get out of my room" she demanded.
Bobby was saddened by this. "But..."
"GET OUT!" screamed Ronnie Anne at the top of her lungs. She even began to throw her stuffed animals at her older brother to further beckon him to leave.
Bobby sighed, and headed out of the room.
Ronnie Anne was steaming. "I knew he would believe her automatically... I guess it's time for me to take matters into my own hands."
While browsing through Lincoln's text messages, Ronnie Anne remembered that he texted her once about his displeasure of having to attend his sister's softball game. Curious, Ronnie Anne decided to track down Lynn's teammates and push them for answers. Even if it required beating the truth out of them. The next day, Ronnie Anne walked into the girls' locker room, and immediately recognizes some of Lynn's teammates. Without as much as a thought, she grabbed one of the girls by the collar of her shirt. The girl was in the middle of changing into her gym clothes.
"Eek, please don't hurt me!" shrieked the girl.
Ronnie Anne pat her lightly on the back of her neck. "Relax" Ronnie states in a reassuring manner "I won't hurt you...as long as you tell me what I want to hear."
The half-decent girl nearly wet herself in fear. "Wh-what do you want from me?!" she breathed fearfully.
Ronnie Anne grins at her. "Tell me what happened the day that your team lost that softball game."
The girl swallows hardly before conversing. "Well, Lynn was pretty ticked off...she always does these...rituals before she plays to stave off bad luck."
"Bad luck, huh?"
"She always does those rituals, but this time, it seemed as though it was all for nought."
"What happened?" asked Ronnie Abbe in a more threatening tone of voice.
"Please, that's all I know!" screamed the girl who was beginning to weep profusely.
Ronnie Anne looked at her in disgust. "Pathetic..."
She tosses the girl to the ground, and storms out of the locker room.
The room became silent after she left, barring the sorrowful cries that the girl was making. A second girl spoke up after she left. "I think I need some new panties..."
Ronnie Anne was walking down the hallway, quietly meditating on that girl's cryptic remarks.
"So bad luck? Then that must mean..."
At that moment, it all made sense to her. The likely scenario entered her mind at full blast, making her already immense hatred for the Loud family even more profound.
"That's it...that bitch..."
Meanwhile, Lynn was trying to eat her lunch at the cafeteria, but she notices how everyone was avoiding her, passing judgmental glares at her. There is no doubt that they had also watched the news report dedicated to Lincoln's murder case. She saw that even her teammates were giving her the cold shoulder. Even though she was in no way the one who took away her brother's life, she could feel herself being labeled as a murderer, or at the least "brother killer." But who was she to complain? She had failed to protect her only brother when it was the most crucial, so in a way, she did "kill" her brother. There was no doubt in her mind about that.
"I guess I should get used to this..."
Before she continued to eat her lunch, the doors to the cafeteria suddenly slammed open. Ronnie Anne was on the other side of the door.
"Lynn!" Ronnie Anne screamed. Not only did Lynn jump, but the entirety of the cafeteria jumped with her.
Lynn looked her over. "Ronnie Anne? What are you doing here?"
Lynn's jaw dropped open by what Ronnie Anne said next: "I know what you did!"
Lynn tried to lightly pass off her accusation as a joke. "What...what did I do?"
Ronnie Anne crossed her arms and scowled at her. "Don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about! You locked your brother out in the first place!"
The students were looking at Lynn at that point. She began to feel nauseous.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"You locked him out of his own house because you lost one softball game."
The pressure was getting to Lynn. She had already tried to lie before, and she knew where that got her at. The judgmental expressions her classmates were dishing her with only enhanced her guilt.
"OK, I did. I thought he was jinxing my games, so my family and I decided it be best for him to spend the night outside."
Ronnie Anne cracked her knuckles simultaneously at her response. "He's dead because of you"
Without warning, Ronnie Anne tackles Lynn to the ground, and she starts to beat her face in. Lynn desperately tried to dodge her beatings, but she was unable to. Ronnie Anne then wraps her hands around the tomboy's throat, and she starts to strangle her. Lynn gagged for air, trying to use her free hand to push Ronnie Anne off of her. Nearing the brink of unconsciousness, Lynn spotted something shiny on the floor. Squinting at it, she realizes that it was a fork. She tries to make a grab towards it, but Ronnie Anne's grip on her neck was firm. Lynn notices that one of Ronnie Anne's fingers was extremely close to her mouth, Lynn - in a moment of desperation - bit down hardly on her finger, drawing blood as a result. Ronnie Anne yelps in pain, and immediately releases Lynn. Lynn grabs the fork, and she slashes it across Ronnie Anne's cheek, tearing it open. Ronnie Anne wrestles Lynn for the fork, and kicks her in the stomach. Lynn falls down with a thud. Taking the fork, Ronnie Anne rammed it into Lynn's hand. Hot tears rushed out of Lynn's eyes as the pain burned within her.
Ronnie Anne smirked at her. "So you like playing softball, huh? Well, I'll be sure that you never play in it again."
Without as much as a warning. Ronnie Anne lifted her foot, and stomped hardly on Lynn's arm. Lynn yelled for her to stop, but her pleas fell on deaf ears. Lynn could feel her bones shatter and the tendons in her fingers splinter. Before Ronnie Anne could deliver the final blow, she gets tackled to the ground by an officer. Apparently, one of the students ran out the cafeteria to alert about the events that were transpiring. Ronnie Anne is dragged out of the cafeteria, but not before she delivered a final threat to Lynn.
"This isn't over, Lynn! I will make you pay for what you did to Lincoln! You'll see!"
With Ronnie Anne detained, Lynn sighs, and she fainted from the blood loss.
And there was Chapter 4. Hopefully the story won't be too extremely long. I'm hoping to get to the funeral scene as well as how each of the sisters grieve for their brother in the only way they knew how. Anyway, hope you're enjoying the story so far. As always, criticism is appreciated.