October 20th

Snip. Snip. Snip.

"It's about time you got a haircut," Lori commented. "You've been shaggy since you got back."

Lincoln huffed, watching as the ring of hair collected around the stool. A towel was wrapped around his neck, making a sort of improvised shawl. His eldest sister clipped away, hacking off more and more of his dignity. He never thought much of his own face. Kind of thought he was doing everyone a favor, hiding it behind his hair.

"So what's his name?" Lynn demanded, leaning against the wardrobe. The new location for their towels.

Lincoln sighed. He came home with a wad of gum stuck to his hair. He didn't know what else to do, since the gunk was shoved so deep in his locks that he couldn't cut it out without making it super obvious. He had to explain this to Lori, in Lynn's presence; which meant that the whole house now knew.

The bathroom was fairly crowded now, as his five older sisters gathered inside the tiled room and stared at him, like a pack of jaguars, waiting for a betraying lead.

"Who's name, Lynn?" Lincoln played dumb.

"You didn't put the gum in your own hair," Luna sat at the rim of the tub. "We know that much."

"Whoever stuck that gum in your mane," Luan offered. "We just want to talk. Honest. I'm not lion."

She gave a hearty laugh, but then turned serious after a second.

"Seriously though," she added. "Tell us who did it. We'll make it look like an accident."

"Okay. Now you guys are scaring me," Lincoln commented. "I didn't think this family was a mafia."

"We are," Lori plainly promised. Her poker face in the mirror gave nothing away. She added nothing else, and continued cutting his hair.

Leni stood nearby. Lincoln wasn't sure what to make of her at first. She didn't make her intention obvious. She just hung out with the rest of them, happy to be here with a gentle smile on her face. But Lincoln knew better. He saw what the girl was capable of. That gentle face is masking something else.

Lori finished clipping his bangs, forever exposing his eyes and forehead to the world.

"Well," Leni commented. "We'll have to thank him for one thing."

She reached over and ran her fingers across his nose, briefly holding the sides of his face.

"I can finally see those baby blues!" she cheerfully noted.

Lincoln bowed his head and blushed. Compliments were still something he was trying to accept.

"Hold still!" Lori ordered, jerking his head back up. She continued snipping away.

"But who did this to you?" Leni then wondered, her voice never wavering from its fronted innocence. "And where do they live?"

"Guys," Lincoln shook his head, much to Lori's irritation. "Just chill."

"I mean, I'll find out," Lynn promised. "I got friends. My whole softball team can oust this boy."

"It's not…" Lincoln begged, trying to keep his head still. "It's not that simple."

"Why not?" Luna pressed.

"You can tell us, Lincoln," Lori insisted. "I know its embarrassing, but we're genuinely trying to help you."

"I know, but…"

"Just tell us," Luan told him.

"Tell us who," Lynn pestered.

"Why can't you tell us?" Leni sweetly pressed.

Lincoln finally had enough.

"Because it's a girl, okay?!" the boy exploded. "The bully… the guy picking on me... is a girl."

The whole room seemed to pause, the statement taking them aback. The room was silent for a solid couple of seconds, before Lincoln felt the scissors move away from his head. He watched as Lori stamped in place in the mirror, contorting her arms to her chest, and a scream work its way out of her throat. This trigger caused a chain reaction through the other girls; all of them screaming in unison in this tiny bathroom with an echo effect. All of them seemed to hit the same pitch, as well.

I'm going to be hard of hearing for a little while.

The screaming only lasted for a few seconds, before Leni put a hand on her brother's shoulder.

"What's her name?" She asked. This time, that air of malice had disappeared. In fact, everyone in the room was no more relaxed but the energy had done a complete 180.

"You're not going to stab her, are you?" Lincoln asked her, his ears still ringing.

Leni giggled, while Lori continued interrogating, though now the tone had changed.

"What does she do?"

Seeing the opportunity to get this pent up frustration off his chest, he complained about the things he's been through the past day.

"She's been doing all of these annoying pranks on me," Lincoln complained. "And only me." He looked at Lynn. "You know those sandwhiches at school? The ones with with the seeds, that cost ten bucks? Yeah, she shoved one of those down the back of my pants. And I had to pay for it!"

Lynn slapped a hand over her mouth to stifle her laughter. Lincoln spotted Lori biting her lip in the mirror.

"She pantsed me in the middle of gym," Lincoln continued. "And everyone saw!"

"Were you wearing clean underwear?" Leni expressed concern.

"Yes, I was!" Lincoln fumed. "Filled my locker with trash. Whoopie cushion on my seat."

"Classic," Luan nodded with appreciation.

"I mean," Lincoln threw his arms out. "I didn't think I'd have to deal with bullies like... like this."

Lori put a hand on her brother's shoulder, trying to console him with a bemused and knowing smile on her face.

"If a girl picks on you like that," she told him, "That only means one thing: she likes you."

She drew out the information, another tease. Lincoln, however, blinked and stared at his sister's reflection. She nodded, seemingly sincere. He looked to the other girls, and each of them nodded in agreement. They seemed to be holding something back, grinning and slightly squeaking.

"You're screwing with me," He decided, though a hopeful smile pulled at the corner of his mouth. "You have to be."

"I swear, I'm not!" Lori promised, holding her hands up.

"What's her name, though?" Luan wondered. "I really want to know!"

"I bet it's Roxanne," Luna listed off. "Or Amanda. Or Maggie Mae. Or Suzie Q."

"Luna, we get it," Lynn complained. "Lot's of songs with girl names in them. Can you just let him speak?"

Lincoln was still in shock over the revelation. A girl's got a crush on him of all people? "Uh..."

"You can tell us," Lori assured him. "We'll keep your secret."

"Her name's... uh..." he shook his head, feeling only half a head of hair. "Ronnie Anne."

"Oooooo…." the girls all said in unison. Lincoln blushed hotter and brighter.

"That's so sweet!" Leni giddily stamped in place, clapping her hands.

"Dang," Luna laughed. "I was close with Roxanne."

Lincoln smiled, but it faltered as he looked down in realization.

"I…" he spoke aloud. The girls paused their hushed whispers to listen to him. "I… invited her over. I was going to tell her off…"

"Oh, that's perfect!" Leni cheered, clapping her hands. "You can propose to her tonight!"

"Propose!?"

"Can I be the flower girl!" Lola called out from the bathroom doorway.

"I wanna be the flower girl!" Lana argued next to her twin.

The girls all broke out into a twister of teasing and prodding.

"We can shop for the ring on Saturday," Lori suggested.

"I'll provide the music for the wedding!"

"I'll make you a new suit!"

"You should really ask her father's permission first," Lucy suddenly appeared. Lincoln jumped. "Unless you plan on running away together."

This got a round of agreements and giggling from the girls.

Lincoln was glowing so much, he thought he might burst into flames. He grumbled and muttered his regret of revealing anything.

Lori patted Lincoln's head. "Sorry, Lincoln," she apologized. "We're just teasing you."

"So what do I do?" Lincoln wondered, coughing and hoping to just get a move on.

"Well," Lori provided. "She's already on her way over here, right? So, why don't you go take her on a date?"

Lincoln felt his eye twitch. "Uh... What kind of date?"

"What do you think?" Lori asked him, trying to help him figure it out. "What does she like?"

"I don't know," he shrugged. "What do... normal people do for dates?"

"There's an arcade you can go to," Lynn offered. "Don't you and Clyde hang out there sometimes?"

"Yeah," Lincoln remembered. "Sure."

It doesn't have to be, like, a date date, right? He doesn't have to take her to a five star restaurant, he just has to hang out with her. Arcades are fun, and he heard that there was a new dance machine being set up. He'd never played on one before, so why not give it a try?

"Well," Lori ran a hand through his hair, combing out any stray hairs that might have lingered. She then pulled the towel off his shoulders. "Now you have a nice new haircut. Leni, go help him pick out some clothes. Something nice, but casual."

Leni squealed and pulled Lincoln off the stool and down the hall. All his sisters watched him with a notable glow in their cheeks. He didn't argue with being pulled along this mad theory. He just went with it.

Even his worst day here is better than his best day in the city.

January 14th

Lincoln was startled in his room, interrupted from his homework to a facetime with Ronnie Anne.

"Hey," he answered, "What's up?"

"Where's your sister?" Ronnie Anne suddenly demanded.

Lincoln blinked, but then rolled his eyes.

"Nice to see you too," he greeted. "How's the family trip? And could you be a little more vague?"

"I need to speak to Lori, Lame-o," she deadpanned. "Let me talk to her."

With an irritated sigh, Lincoln kicked out from his desk and hunted down his sibling.

"Lori!" he called out, knocking on her door. "It's for you."

He opened up and showed the teenager the visual call.

What happened next was an absolute blur. Ronnie Anne spouted something that Lincoln didn't completely register, which sent Lori into a frenzy. The girl went downstairs to get some keys, back upstairs to get her purse, downstairs to grab her shoes, and back upstairs to get Lincoln.

"Are you ready to go?" Lori grabbed his arm.

"Ready to what?" Lincoln wondered. He had been hung up on by the other girl, after expressing her thanks, and he had resigned himself to going back to his room.

He never made it.

Before he knew it, he was in the passenger seat of vanzilla with a very pissed off older sister doing eighty on the highway!

"Okay," Lincoln clutched both his seat and the safety handle. "I get you're going to see Bobby. But why are you dragging me with you?"

"Because Bobby is my boyfriend," Lori fumed, "And Ronnie Anne is your girlfriend! And I am going to…!"

She didn't finish the thought, though Lincoln could tell it was anything but pleasant. Even with this, he felt the need to correct her.

"She's not my girlfriend," he muttered. Lori had let off the gas somewhat, but never dropped the look of intensity she had on her face. Honestly, Lincoln's met some mouthy cabdrivers that couldn't hold a candle to this girl.

"Where are we going, anyway?" Lincoln begrudgingly wondered. "I know Ronnie Anne went to see her family, but she never said where they were."

Lori blinked. Her fury melted as she glanced at her brother next to her. It was as though a realization had washed over her. She still looked angry, but now there was an equal piece of regret.

"…I should have left you at home," she muttered.

"Why?" Lincoln asked as he tried and failed to read a passing sign. "Where are we going?"

"…" Lori coughed. Lincoln stared at her, growing more and more frustrated with the passing silence. Lori tried to turn on the radio. Lincoln wordlessly and immediately turned it back off.

"…Great Lakes City," she finally answered.

Lincoln's heart dropped into his stomach. He gripped his chest as it threated to strangle his heart inside his ribcage.

"Stop the car," he wheezed.

"Lincoln, we can't just-"

"Stop. The damn. Car."

Lori pulled over to the side of the road, and before she could put it into park, Lincoln threw off his seatbelt and opened the door.

"Lincoln!" Lori called after him.

Lincoln walked past the van, back in the direction they were driving from. Lori somehow beat him around the side and blocked his path.

"You're not walking home." She declared.

"Watch me." Lincoln pushed past her and walked along the edge of the road. Cars rushed past them in roaring blurs. Each one too close for comfort. He zipped up his jacket and shoveled his hands into its pockets.

"Look," she called after him, yelling over the cars. "I'm sorry! I wasn't… I didn't realize…"

"Yeah, no kidding!" Lincoln turned back to face her. "You're dragging me back to the one place on earth that I hate more than anything else, because of your boy troubles?"

Lori looked down, and put her hands on her hips. She looked back up.

"I'm sorry," she said again. "I should have… I shouldn't have done that."

"Not everything revolves around you, you know!" Lincoln called her out.

"I know," Lori assured him. "I know. And I'm sorry. Can we have this talk in the van, please? At least?"

Lincoln wanted to stubbornly say no, but he could tell she was trying to compromise. He could almost hear her saying she'd take him back if he really wanted to.

And he did want to.

He followed her back in and slammed the door shut. Lori sat next to him, biting her lip. Lincoln didn't say anything for a minute, waiting for the pitch.

"This is rough for me too," Lori stated. "And not just because of Bobby, you know? I know what that place means to you. I know what it did to you. It did it to us too."

Lincoln looked up at her.

"It took you away from us," she continued. "And when I remembered that Bobby's extended family also lived there… I just about died. You should have heard the conversation we had; I tried to convince him to talk his entire family into moving down here, in Royal Woods."

She shook her head, wearing a sadder smile.

"Guess I was being selfish then too," she noted with a sigh.

Lincoln didn't comment. He just listened; his anger thoroughly deflated.

"If you really want me to take you back home," she offered. "I will. I'm sorry for dragging you out this far without even asking.

"But," she then offered. "I think this is another opportunity for you."

Lincoln jerked his head up at her.

"Hear me out," she held up a hand. "You spent eight years on the north side of Great Lakes. You've ever been to the south end?"

Lincoln thought about it.

"…Couple times," he shrugged.

"It's the nicer part of the city," Lori explained. "Bobby told me about it. It's where his family lives. If you decide to come with me- which is totally up to you- It's likely that you'll never see that old neighborhood you told me about. We'll just go there… visit, I guess, and leave. It'll be like you were never there at all."

Lincoln lowered his gaze, thinking about it.

"But the van doesn't move, until you say so," Lori declared. "That's a promise."

Lincoln's eyes rested on the dashboard. He gave it an honest bit of thought. He remembered a conversation he had with Dr. Lopez. There are good people, and there are bad people, the problem is that they're scattered everywhere.

Lincoln took in a deep breath, and sighed.

It'd be nice to invade Ronnie Anne's place for a change, Lincoln thought silently, Instead of her always invading mine.

"Let's…" he took another breath. "Let's go talk to Bobby, and see what's going on."

Lori nodded. "Okay," she answered, shifting the gear on the van. "We're on our way."

The city grew into view on the horizon, and all too soon they crossed the threshold into Great Lakes without incident.

Looking back on the place, Lincoln's imagination painted it like Gotham city. Some hellscape with a drugstore being robbed across from the alley that sells needles. Or just some awful place that encompassed the border of town like a bubble. Lincoln had held his breath as long as he could when they were driving through. Even when he finally had to start breathing again; it came in shallow breaths.

"You okay?" Lori asked without taking her eyes off the road. Lincoln blinked at her and nodded.

Let's just get this over with.

The pulled up on a sidewalk of an apartment building. The bottom corner of the building was a small grocery store, and a separate entrance led to the housing levels of the building.

Lori was already out of the car, having ripped the keys out and abandoning her purse. Lincoln took the bag and shoved it under his seat, not really checking to see if it was hidden, because he was more focused on chasing after his sister.

"Lori!" Lincoln called after her. She paused and waited for him to catch up. "You can't just-"

Lincoln felt a chill as he looked around and noticed a group of guys on the far corner of the block. They were all talking and laughing, shoving each other around.

"I know," Lori assured her brother. "I've been here before."

Lincoln looked up at his sister and she gave a small sigh.

"Why don't you go see Ronnie Anne?" Lori suggested. "I'm going to… have a talk… calmly… with Bobby. His family lives on the fourth floor, all the way to the top."

With that, Lori stormed her way into the bodega, an innocent ringing of the bell to announce a customer.

And with that, Lincoln was left to his own devices.

Hey, Snowball! Where're you going?

Lincoln's breathing hitched, and he scrambled to the door and slammed it shut behind him. He took a shaky breath.

Lincoln, are you aware of the term Agoraphobia?

I think I recently got a shot for that.

It's a phobia, a fear, of a particular environment. Usually without reason. You claim to hate the city, but is there a possibility that you might be afraid of it?

…

Lincoln took a deep breath, counted to ten, and looked around the lobby. Well, less of a lobby and just a stairway going up. There was an index next to the door, and he tried to read it over, but his brain was so frazzled he couldn't absorb the information labeled on it.

"Fourth floor," Lincoln remembered, and climbed the stairs.

He soon entered the hallway, hearing a lot of yelling. At first, he thought it was an argument, but the two or three women involved were just sharing information.

"Frida?" a woman called out. "I still can't find it. Can you check your pouches again?"

"I keep telling you," the other woman answered, "It's not in my pencil- Oh. Never mind! I found it!"

The two women met in the hallway, one sheepishly handing the camera off to the other. Lincoln recognized one of them as Ronnie Anne's mother.

"Oh, hello," the woman noticed Lincoln. "Wait. Aren't you Ronnie's friend?"

"Uh," Lincoln awkwardly waved. "Hi. Is, uh, Ronnie Anne here?"

Upon hearing her name, the girl appeared in the hallway with wide eyes and an urgent look.

"Lincoln!" she called out. She ran down the hallway and assaulted him with a hug. "Ugh. Thank god you're here. Where's Lori?"

"She's talking to Bobby right now."

"Good," Ronnie nodded. "She'll turn him over to our side, and then we can make the case to mom."

"Ronnie?" her mother approached them. "It's rude not to introduce your friends."

"Does Ronnie Anne have a friend over?" an elderly woman called out. "Bring them in! We can eat!"

"Ugh, fine," Ronnie Anne dragged the hapless boy into the room. A crowd of new people followed them into the room. "Lincoln, this is my family. You know my Mom, Maria. These are my grandparents; Abuelo and Abuela, Hector and Rosa. That's my aunt and uncle, Carlos and Frida Casagrande. These are their kids, my cousins: Carlotta, CJ, Carlino, and Carlitos. Oh, and that's Sergei and Lolo. Everyone, this is Lincoln."

"Your boyfriend?" Frida suggested with obvious glee.

The two kids denied it outright in the same breath.

"He's not my boyfriend."

"She's not my girlfriend."

Ronnie Anne had talked so fast it took a second for Lincoln to process it all. It was a big family, certainly big enough to rival the Louds in numbers. With a noisy parrot and a big guard dog to boot. Both are useful for something like a home invasion.

Lincoln coughed into his fist.

"Uh," Lincoln spoke first, "It's nice to meet you all, but I-"

"Have we met before?" Hector then suggested. "I could've sword I've seen you somewhere before."

Lincoln stared at the older fellow with wide eyes. All the memories of people he's stolen wallets from or tripped up while running away, or otherwise inconvenienced while surviving began bubbling up to the surface of his mind. He didn't recognize any of them, but the possibility was there.

"…I kind of hope not," he answered honestly.

"No, no," Rosa then added, "I think I know you from somewhere too. Where have we seen you?"

Lincoln shuddered, as he realized all the eyes in the room were on him. He looked over to his friend, who was also looking at him strangely.

He gulped, sweat running down the back of his neck. He had to give them a bite if they were going to leave the subject alone.

"I… use to live here," he offered.

"Here in the city?" Ronnie Anne wondered. Then her eyes went wide, as she remembered what the boy had told her.

"That's what it was!" Hector bombastically answered. "You were at the sandwich shop at second and third?"

Lincoln blinked. He allowed for half a smile.

"Best grinders in the city," Lincoln answered back. "Sometimes those were the best part of my day."

"Ah, you're a man of great taste, my friend!" Hector laughed. "Do you get everything on it? Sauerkraut, toasted tomatoes?"

"That's the only way to do it, man," Lincoln laughed.

The family laughed around him. Some of the girls rolling their eyes at something so trivial.

"Okay," Ronnie Anne tugged on the boy's arm. "Linc and I have to go take care of something. We'll be right back."

"Take your time!" Frida suggested waving them off.

The two skirted off to the hallway and down the stairs.

"I'm…" Ronnie shook her head.

"It's okay," Lincoln brushed it off. Though, admittedly he didn't want to hear it. It came out a tad more aggressive than he meant to. "Now will you tell me what this is all about?"

They stopped in the stairway and faced each other.

"My mom wants us to move here," she explained, "but I can't just… I just can't."

"Why not?"

"Because… you saw what I was dealing with in there," she complained. "So many people in… such a small space."

"Long bathroom lines?"

"Yeah!"

"No personal space? No peace and quiet?"

"Yeah, yeah!" Ronnie Anne agreed. "You'd you-?"

Then it dawned on her.

"Oh. Right. Sorry."

Lincoln sighed and shook his head.

"Look," he said, "I'm not an expert on stuff like this. But isn't getting a bigger family… like, a good thing?"

She looked down, thinking.

"I told you I was missing since this past year," he told her. "During that time, I had no idea what family I had. I would have killed to have… this." He waved and arm at the building around them. "And… your family seems really… cool."

Ronnie Anne looked up at him uncertainly.

"So… maybe just give it a chance?"

Ronnie Anne thought it over a few more seconds. Then, she sighed.

"Well," she rubbed the back of her head. "I guess I should go help Bobby, huh?"

Lincoln nodded. "Yeah… Lori might have killed him already."

The two of them hurried down to the bodega, bursting outside to see the two teens hugging it out on the street.

"What happened?" Ronnie asked as the two pulled away.

"Well," Lori knelt down to her level. "Turns out, Bobby put a bit more thought into this than I gave him credit for. While he's working here, he gets to spend more time with you and your family. And I'm not going to be able to see him for a while, but we can go to the college your uncle teaches at. All this… it's for you."

Ronnie Anne was speechless. The truth being, the girl had a lonely upbringing for the past couple of years. Both her mom and her brother working tirelessly night and day. And when Bobby wasn't talking to Lori or working on schoolwork, he was sleeping. She knew he still loved her endlessly. He's the only one she'll let call her by her nickname.

"Ronnie Anne!" Maria called from the upper windows. "Come upstairs! We have a surprise for you!"

Back up in the apartment, Lincoln followed his friend to a familiar scene: the unveiling of a brand-new room. The girl walked in, seeing a cramped space, but ultimately personalized to her tastes. It even had a minifridge in the corner, and a collage of pictures against the wall over her bed.

Lori wrapped an arm around Lincoln's shoulder.

"You going to be okay?" she asked in a hushed tone.

"She's moving away," Lincoln sighed with the realization.

"Yeah…" Lori agreed. "It kind of sucks, doesn't it?"

"Yeah," Lincoln took a deep breath. He watched as the girl threw herself to a wall of people, who huddled around her in a loving embrace. "She needs this, though."

Lori nodded.

"We can visit them," Lori suggested. "And you can keep in touch."

Lincoln nodded.

"I'm still going to miss her," he stated.

"I know," Lori sympathized. "I am too."

The group hug was starting to disperse.

"Let's keep a stiff upper lip for now, though," His sister instructed. "Let's be happy for them."

"Yeah," Lincoln coughed. "Okay."

The Casagrandes invited them to stay for dinner before heading out. Ronnie Anne gave him a genuine hug that lasted a few minutes.

"You're coming back, right?"

"Of course," Lincoln answered. "We're friends, right?"

"Yeah," she looked away. "Stay safe, lame-o."

"You stay safe," he told her with a laugh.

The family waved them off and saw them on their way. The drive home was quiet, though some sniffs and nose blowing filled the silence. They didn't acknowledge the sadness between them, but they both understood it. They ended up pulling into the driveway as the clock closed in on midnight.

"Linc?" Lori said as the boy was ready to climb the stairs. "Thanks for coming along with me."

She walked over and gave him a big hug. She kissed his cheek.

"I know this is rough for you too," she sympathized.

"I'll be fine," he promised her. He hugged her back, squeezing her tightly.

After they broke the embrace, they climbed the stairs together.

"Mom and Dad are going to kill me tomorrow," Lori sighed. "Running off like that."

"You can tell them I kidnapped you," Lincoln joked, but something occurred to him as he got to the top step.

"What's wrong?" Lori wondered.

"Oh…!" No cursing in the house. "…Dang it. I forgot about my homework."

Lori hissed in sympathy, and promised to help him with it tomorrow.