She'd watched him for weeks. Sometimes, she took the long way home and walked past his house, her hands shoved into the oversized pockets of her hoodie, slackening her pace and scanning the front windows, hoping to catch a glimpse of him but rarely succeeding. She saw him at lunch every day. They sat together, they talked, but something was different, something she couldn't quite place. He was...distant. That was the word. Every so often she'd text him on a Saturday or a Sunday to see if he wanted to hang out. He hardly ever did. "I'm helping Lucy with a poem," he'd say, or "I'm helping Lynn practice." Excuses, excuses, excuses.

It was strange. There was a time, and not long ago, when he would text her asking if she wanted to go to the arcade or to the park. Sometimes she blew him off because all the girls' magazines she read said you should play hard to get. If a boy gives up too easily, he never really liked you in the first place. 99 percent of the time, she dropped whatever she was doing to see him.

Because she liked him.

God help her, she liked Lincoln Loud.

And he liked her too. Or so she thought. During the first half of the summer, they spent more time together than apart. Sure, sometimes he brought dopey Clyde along, but she didn't mind. Starting in August, however, the stopped coming, and when she reached out to him first, he was always busy.

It pissed her off.

Being virtually ignored in general pissed her off, but being ignored by a boy she liked? That really pissed her off, because it hurt.

Over the past week or week and a half, something changed in him, and her anger turned to concern. His face was white and his cheeks sunken, his eyes were perpetually bloodshot and puffy like he'd spent the night crying. When she tried to talk to him, he said he was fine, but that was all; it seemed like talking was too much for him lately. Today, the day before Halloween, he spent the lunch period alone in the library, sitting in a chair and staring out at the cold autumn rain. What was wrong with him? Why was he so depressed?

And why didn't he like her anymore?

Was it something she did?

She watched him for a long time before deciding she wanted answers. She stormed into the cafeteria and found Clyde eating lunch with a couple of his dork friends. She went up to him and slapped him lightly on the top of his head. He jerked and turned, his eyes going wide.

"Ron –?"

"What's the deal with Lincoln?" she demanded. "He's been acting strange lately."

"I don't know," Clyde said. "He won't talk to me about it."

She had a hard time believing that. Clyde was his best friend. Flashing, she grabbed him by the front of his shirt and pulled her fist back.

"I swear! He won't say!"

She sighed through clenched teeth, and shoved Clyde away. She turned on her heels, and that's when she saw Luan sitting at a table by herself. She didn't look too hot either. Come to think of it, all the Louds seemed a bit off lately. She considered going over to Luan and demanding an explanation, but stopped herself. It must be a family thing, like a dead relative or something. That thought gave her pause. If it was, she should probably give him his room.

She wasn't used to just sitting back and waiting. That wasn't her style. For Lincoln, though, she guessed she would.

She hoped he got over it soon.

She missed him.

At home, Luan sank onto her bed and prepared for another long night. The dreams were becoming more vivid, the empty feeling in her stomach when she woke worse. It had to end at some point, right?

"Hey," Lucy said from the door, and Luan jumped.

"I didn't mean to scare you," Lucy said. She looked over her shoulder and came into the room. "I...I think I know who it is."

Luan's stomach tightened. "Who?"

Lucy sat next to her on the bed and sighed. "I didn't want to say anything because..." she trailed off and looked at Luan, her eyes undiscernible behind her bangs. "I don't want to see our family come apart over this. I know you and Lincoln love each other, and that's great, he's great, but it scares me."

"Who?" Luan insisted.

"The night you got that second note, I got up to use the bathroom, and Leni was coming down the hall from the general direction of your room. She didn't see me."

Luan's cheeks flushed with rage. Leni?

"Don't tell Lynn," Lucy said. "Or Lori."

But Luan was already up, already stomping down the hall. "Luan!" Lucy called after her. "Please!"

Luan threw Lori and Leni's door open. Lori was typing on her laptop and Leni was doing her nails. They both looked up.

"You!" Luan spat, pointing at Leni.

"Me what?"

"You're the one who sent me those letters!"

Leni blinked, and Lori whipped her head around to glare at her.

"I am?"

"Lucy said she saw you by my room the night I got the second one."

Lori looked at Luan, then to Leni. "Is this true?"

Leni cocked her head and raised a finger to her chin, her tongue plastered to her upper lip. "I don't think so. If I was, I was sleepwalking."

"Sleepwalking?" Luan asked, incredulous.

Lori slowly nodded. "Yeah, she sleepwalks sometimes."

"Yeah," Leni said, "ask Lisa."

Three minutes later, Lisa nodded her head. "Leni sporadically walks in her sleep."

"I would never do that to you and Lincy," she said, hurt creeping into her voice. "I love you guys and I want you to be happy."

Luan felt like shit. "I'm sorry," she said, "I'm just...keyed up is all."

"Next time you have a suspicion, please come to me or Lori," Lisa said.

"The last thing this family needs is a witch hunt," Lori added. "Lise, how's the lie detector coming?"

"There were a few bugs I hadn't anticipated, but it should be ready by the day after tomorrow. Certainly no later than Friday."

Later still, one of Lincoln's sisters watched him sadly from the vent as he slept. She was stubborn. She had caused him so much pain, and Luan too. And at some point, her dark secret would come to light.

"I'm sorry, Lincoln," she whispered. "I love you."