"NO! It can't go like this! It can't!" Lola shouted in anger as she paced back and forth around her and Lana's bedroom.

"What can't go like what?" Lana asked, reading Captain Underpants on her bed.

"I can't be partners with Lindsay! She'll ruin everything for me!"

"Oh. You're having problems with her again?" the tomboy said in a disinterested tone. As Lola's closest sibling and roommate, Lana's used to her sister complaining about her pageant-related problems, especially when it comes to her archrival Lindsay Sweetwater; by this point, Lana does not really care.

"What did she do? Set off another of her stage traps?" Lana asked, still not taking her eyes off her book.

"Didn't you just hear me?!" Lola snapped. "I said I can't be partners with Lindsay! And like what you just said, she might pull another trap on me!"

Lana was taken aback by her twin's sudden snap, finally averting her eyes from her book. She scooted back a bit on her bed. "Woah! Chill! I'm just asking! Sheesh!"

Lola sighed a bit irritatedly, "I am paired up with Lindsay."

Lana was hit by a wave of bewilderment. "Why did you pair up with Lindsay? I thought you hated her guts with a passion." This is a surprise to the mud-loving tomboy as she knew Lola would stay as far away from Lindsay as possible unless she plotted revenge against the Sweetwater for doing something...funny to her. Maybe Lola has yet again another revenge plot against Lindsay.

"I didn't pair up with Lindsay! Mrs. Dufresne did!"

"And why did Mrs. Dufresne pair you up with Lindsay?" Lana grew a bit intrigued.

"I don't know. Why don't you ask her that?" Lola scoffed sarcastically.

"If you're gonna complain to me about your stupid pageant problems, at least don't give me attitude," Lana became a bit irritated from Lola's behavior.

"Don't make me angrier than I already am, Lana!" the princess shouted. "Despite Mrs. Dufresne knowing that I loathe Lindsay with every fiber of my being, she still pairs me up with Lindsay!"

"You make a big deal out of everything," scoffed Lana.

"Of course it's a big deal, Lana! Did you forget the horrible things Lindsay had done to me during the past few months?! She set traps all around the stage for me or the other pageant ladies to trip on, she almost took Winston as her Prince Charming for the first princess-and-prince pageant, she and Francis sabotaged our dance performance and almost ruined our chances of winning the dance competition, and she falsely accused me of being a thief with everyone believing her! Thankfully, Winston disproved Lindsay's false accusation, but still!"

"But didn't her parents ground Lindsay for doing all those things?" Lana reminded her pageant-obsessed twin sister. "Shouldn't that make her regret doing all that stuff to you?"

"NO!" Lola retorted. "Lindsay will never change! She is the most jealous girl I've ever met! And she's gotten more jealous ever since Winston became my prince! So much to the point of doing horrible things to me! Sorry, but I don't see Lindsay changing anytime soon!"

"Uh, I don't know, Lola," said the tomboy. "Maybe one day she'll reflect on the actions she committed during the previous months and begin regretting what she did to you."

"Puh-lease! You act as if she wouldn't mind being in second place. Nope! She'll take whatever it takes to win first place! Maybe she is setting another trap just for me! She's taking this opportunity to ruin and embarrass me and permanently damage my pageant career for good!"

"You seriously still think Lindsay is gonna do something like that after being grounded so many times?" Lana, by this point, is in disbelief with her sister.

Lola groans in frustration, "You still don't get it?! Lindsay will never change. Period! If she does anything funny to me, I swear I will rip her head off!"

Lana wanted to say something but thought against it. The last thing she wants to do is to anger her already angry sister more.

Lola sighed as she calmed down, "I'm gonna get some water. All this yelling made my throat hurt."

And with that, she leaves the room. As Lana watched her go, she sighed in disbelief before returning to read her book. When will she learn? She asked herself mentally.

Meanwhile, at the Milbourne mansion, Winston is at his master bedroom strolling back and forth as he is thinking about something. Unlike Lola, he is not angry as he is feeling rather somewhat distressed.

"What am I gonna do? What am I gonna do?" he muttered to himself. "I can't be partners with Francis! What if he plans something that'll embarrass me in front of the audience? I can't let that happen!"

Just then, Winston's bedroom door suddenly opened, and Benjamin, one of the Milbourne family's butlers, enters the room. The butler's unexpected entry to the room startled Winston a bit.

"Master Winston, is something bothering you?" asked Benjamin, feeling a bit concerned. "I heard you muttering to yourself in here.

"It's…" Winston was a bit hesitant to tell his butler about his current dilemma, but he knew Benjamin would press on due to his overprotectiveness, so he spilled the beans. "It's about the upcoming pageant, Benjamin."

"The pageant? You mean this pair-based pageant you told me about?"

Winston nods in confirmation.

"Is something about the pageant concerning you?" the butler pressed on.

"Well...it isn't the pageant itself that concerns me. It's actually my partner that concerns me," said Winston.

"And who is this partner you're talking about?"

Winston took a deep sigh and finally uttered the name of his so-called partner, "Francis. Francis Stewart."

Benjamin's heart skipped a beat after hearing the name of Winston's archrival. Ever since he was first placed in charge of taking care of Winston when he was an infant, Benjamin was well aware of the rivalry between Winston and Francis. Before the Stewarts temporarily left Royal Woods, he would always listen to Winston complain about how Francis is jealous of him and how he would tease him sometimes; when the Stewarts returned, the complaints resumed but not as much since nowadays Winston knows how to deal with Francis as well as his girlfriend Lindsay. For these reasons, Benjamin disliked Francis for teasing the person he is required to protect; now that Winston had mentioned his name again, this really concerned the butler.

"Francis? Do you mean that kid that always teased you?! What? What did he do?! Insult you?!" Benjamin asked frantically, waiting for Winston to answer his questions.

"No, Benjamin." Winston paused for a bit. "At least not yet."

"Why did you pair up with him?!" demanded Benjamin.

"Because Mrs. Dufresne assigned us as pairs," replied the affluent boy. "And I don't know how to say this, but I don't want Francis as my partner."

"Did you ask Mrs. Dufresne to switch?"

"Yes, but she said it's too late to switch partners as the pairs are now made official, and because of that I'm stuck with Francis until the pageant is over." Winston looked down in sadness after explaining.

Benjamin couldn't help but feel sympathy for the boy. He understands why Winston doesn't want Francis as his partner and knows why. Knowing how devious Francis can act, Benjamin feared that something bad might happen to Winston like he might fall for a nasty prank planned by Francis. He wished he wanted to do something about this, but he can't. He is not one of the people in charge of the team-based pageant, so he can't make a change. He has no choice but accept that Francis is Winston's partner. With this in mind, Benjamin needs to think of a way to bring Winston's spirits back up, and then it finally comes to mind.

Benjamin kneels down to Winston's eye level and slowly lifts Winston's head up with his index finger. "Winston, I know this may sound crazy, but something tells me that things are going to change for you and Francis."

Winston was confused by that statement. "Change? What are you talking about?"

"I don't know, but that could be the reason why Mrs. Dufresne paired you up with Winston. She wants you and Francis to change. Mostly Francis.

Winston was still confused, but immediately after he realized what Benjamin meant by "change," "Wait, you mean Francis will change for the better?"

The butler nodded in agreement.

"I don't know, Benjamin. Knowing Francis, he might never change," Winston felt unsure if Benjamin was right.

"Don't be so sure, Master Winston," Benjamin reassured. "You'll never know if he doesn't change or not, but if he didn't, then don't hesitate to tell me, the other butlers, the maids, or your parents."

After hearing Benjamin's words of reassurement, a small smile appeared on Winston's face. He felt good that he had so many people he can look forward to, especially his butler.

"Thanks, Benjamin," was all Winston said.

Benjamin stands up to his normal eye level and then began walking towards the door. When he opens the door, Benjamin looks back at Winston to see him smiling at him. Benjamin gives a warm smile at the boy before leaving the room and closing the door behind him.

For the first time since Winston and Francis first met, Winston was proud to have Francis as his partner.