*Disclaimer* I do not own The Loud House.

AN: Welcome dear readers to another AU of "The Loud House" created by yours truly. This time, I decided to do an alternate take on Lincoln starting middle school.

(June – 2017)
(Location: Royal Woods Elementary School)

The sound of the ticking clock was almost a tease for the impatient students. They could feel the seconds counting down. Meanwhile, Mrs. Johnson was looking at the clock with a sad sigh.

She then looked at her students. "Well class, this is our last day together. In some ways, this day is a bummer for me. But in other ways it's the ultimate high, every milestone that you kids pass is another step towards…" "Um, Mrs. Johnson?" Mollie interrupted as she raised her hand. "Yes Mollie?" "I don't mean to interrupt, but…" the teacher then looked at the clock and smiled. "Oh yes, be my guest" she tells her student.

Mollie and the rest of the class rose from their desks, "Six…five…four…three…two…one!" they chanted.

BBBRRRIIINNNGGG

And just like that, the entire school erupted in screams of joy.

The building's front doors burst opened. And practically every student and teacher ran out in a frenzy of happiness, some were even doing cartwheels. "FREEDOM!" Coach Pacowski shouted to the heavens.

Meanwhile, a certain snow haired child chose not to run out the front door when the bell rang. As Lincoln calmly got up from his desk, he walked over to his now former teacher. "I hope you have a great summer Mrs. Johnson" he tells her. "Thank you Lincoln" she replied, "I hope you have a great summer too."

Not too long after, Lincoln opened up his locker for the last time and collected all of his belongings to make sure not to leave anything behind. Just then, Clyde and the others finally caught up with their unofficial leader.

"Where were you? We couldn't find you when the bell rang" Clyde exclaimed. "Sorry, I stayed behind. I get trampled by stampedes enough at home" the Loud boy answered. "So, what are everyone's plans for the summer?" he asks in attempt to change the subject.

"My dads are planning this really awesome trip to Paris where we get to tour the finest culinary establishments in the city" Clyde explains with clear excitement in his tone. "My folks and I are taking a road trip to Roswell, New Mexico" Zach answers. "I got summer school" Rusty grumbles in clear annoyance. "I'll be working on my family's farm" Liam answers. "My parents and I are planning to visit my grandma who lives in the Philippines" Stella answers.

Lincoln then felt a sense of relief knowing that his friends had plans for the summer. But felt sorry for Rusty that he has to take summer school in order to move on to the next grade. "What about you Man With a Plan, got any big plans?" Clyde asks. Lincoln smiles, "As a matter of fact I do" he then pulls out a pamphlet from his pants pocket and shows it to his friends.

"I'll be spending my summer at Camp Lakewood. It's actually a rite of passage in my family. Lori, Leni, Luna, Luan and Lynn all went to it when they were my age and now it's my turn!" the snow haired child explains.

He then passed the pamphlet around so everyone could see the details. "Dang, this summer camp looks really awesome" Clyde commented while the others nod in agreement. "When do you have to leave?" Stella asks with curiosity. "First thing tomorrow morning" Lincoln answered.

Then Rusty stepped forward and placed his hand on the Loud boy's shoulder.

"Well then I say we stop standing around here and give our boy here one last night of pizza and video games before he ships out!" the freckled ginger proclaimed. The others then looked like they were in agreement, one last hurrah at Gus' Games 'n' Grub before truly starting their vacations sounded like a good idea.

(Later that night…)

(Location: the Loud house)

After getting dropped off by the McBrides, Lincoln wasted no time racing his room to pack up. "Let's see…" he muttered as he looked over the list he wrote down as he checked off items.

"I think I'm all packed" he thought out loud while smiling.

KNOCK-KNOCK!

"Who is it?" Lincoln calls out. The door opened to reveal Lynn. "Hey, do you have a moment?" she asks. "Yeah, just finished packing" he answers. The two siblings then sat on the bed. "You excited for tomorrow?" Lynn asks. "Yeah, but also am a little nervous" the snow haired child admitted "last time I was at a campground I almost lost my friends because I was acting too clingy." The athlete winced. She feels guilty for all the stuff she said about once you get to middle school everything changes, even your friends.

"Actually, that's what I wanted to talk to you about" Lynn admitted.

Lincoln titled his head in slight confusion. The athlete sighed. "I want to say I'm sorry for painting a rather bleak picture of middle school for you. My first year was just so rotten I didn't want you to suffer the same fate I did. But after seeing how you handled yourself during the orientation, I realized that you were going to be fine. And I'm also sorry for that crack about once you enter, everything changes."

Lincoln then placed his hand on Lynn's shoulder.

"I appreciate the apology" he tells her, "I know it's hard for you to express your feelings verbally." The athlete responded with putting the snow haired child in a headlock and giving him a gentle noogie.

"Why did you have to make this all sappy?" she jokingly whined. "Force of habit" he answered her.

Lynn then let her brother go and took a moment to regain composure. "Mind if I ask you something, what do you remember about Camp Lakewood?"Lincoln asks. Lynn had to think for a moment. "Well, I remember there was a lot and I do mean a lot of activities. So many in fact that I'm not even sure if I got to do them all."

This made Lincoln even more curious, "Do you remember anything else?" he asked in hopes of learning more.

"The thing I remember the most was participating in all the competitions the camp offered. And believe it or not, I actually tied every time." This caught Lincoln by surprise. "Who did you tie with?" he asked. "Chris Taylor" Lynn answered without a second thought, "the only boy in the world that was an even match for me in every sense of the term. We actually hung out a lot when we weren't competing against each other. I remember this one time, we shared this mammoth sized sandwich I made in the mess hall. He thought I was crazy for wanting to eat all of that myself, so he insisted that he would eat it as well."

The snow haired child had a sneaky suspicion. "This guy was more than a friend to you, wasn't he?"

Lynn let out a soulful sigh that would even impress Lucy. "I liked him a lot, I'll admit it. We still keep up with each other actually." "Really?" Lincoln asked. "I didn't consider you the sentimental type."

"Normally, I'm not, but…" Lynn said, "There's something special about that boy." "You're not going soft on me, are you?" Lincoln replied with a laugh. "Don't push your luck," Lynn advised him. "I'm only telling you this because you never know. Maybe you'll run into someone special of your own while at camp."

The athlete let out another sigh. "Well, enough about me. I just want you to know that I'm really gonna miss you this summer. But I know that you're going to have a great time. And I know that I don't say this enough. I'm really proud of you." Lynn's speech nearly brought a tear to the snow haired child's eye.

The two shared one more hug and then Lynn got up and went to back to her room.

Lincoln then decided it was time for bed, especially considering he needed to be up bright and early for tomorrow. He then changed into his pajamas and then climbed into bed and turned off his light.

'Here's to my last night in the Loud house for the summer' he thought to himself as he drifts off to sleep.

(The next day…)

(Location: RW Elementary School parking lot)

After a hearty breakfast cooked by Lynn Sr, the Loud family was giving their only son/brother the farewell he deserved. First came the parents, "I'm gonna miss you kiddo" the father tells his son. "I'm gonna miss you too dad" Lincoln tells him. Then Rita had her turn, she then presented her son with a little present.

The Loud boy opened it and saw it was a leather bound journal.

"I was thinking that you might enjoy writing down your experiences at camp, as if it was an epic adventure" the matriarch explained. "Aw, this is really nice mom. I'll make sure to write in it" Lincoln tells her.

And then came the sisters' goodbyes.

First up was Lori. "Have fun little brother" she tells him, "there's a chance that I might be gone for college when you return though" she confessed. "I know, and it's okay" Lincoln tells her.

Then it was Leni's turn, she picked the boy up and gave him a bone crushing hug. "I'm gonna miss you Linky!" she blubbered. "It's not going to be forever Leni" Lincoln gasped for air. The fashionista then let go. "Sorry" she muttered. "It's okay Leni, I know this is hard for you" Lincoln said in an attempt to comfort her.

Up next was Luna. "Keep on truckin' bro" she told him in her British accent. "I will" Lincoln tells her.

Luan held her hand out, Lincoln was apprehensive due to all the times he got shocked with her supercharged joy buzzer. But he decided to give his comedic sister the benefit of the doubt. As he shook her hand, Luan pulled him into a hug. "Saying goodbye is never a joke" she whispered into his ear.

Lynn simply gave him a knowing nod. Lincoln smiled and nodded back as they shared a fist bump, he knows that the things she said to him last night was her way of saying goodbye.

Lucy walked up to Lincoln and took both his hands. "I've instructed the spirits to watch over you while you're away" she explains. "Thanks Lucy" he tells her, and then the little goth simply smiled.

Lana and Lola took both their turns at once. "We'll miss you!" they exclaimed in unison as they latched onto both of his arms. "I know, but I'm not going to be gone forever" he tells them.

After pulling off the twins, Lisa took her turn. She walked up to him and uncharacteristically hugged his legs. "I will miss you elder brother" she whispered. "I'll miss you Lis" he whispered back.

And last but certainly not least came Lily's turn. "Buh-bye Winky?" she asked in a rather sad tone. "Yes Lily, but not buh-bye forever" Lincoln tells her in hopes that she'll understand what he means.

Just then, a boy that looked to be about Lynn's age approached the snow haired child and tapped him on the shoulder. "Excuse me, are you Lincoln Loud?" the boy asks. "Yes I am" Lincoln answered. The boy smiled, "I thought so. Lynn's description of you was spot on." The Loud boy tilted his head in confusion.

"Wait, how do you know my-" "Long time no see Blue Shell" Lynn interrupted. "Indeed" the boy replied.

Lincoln took a moment to fully process what was happening. "What, this is Chris? The same Chris you told me about?" Lincoln blurted out. "The one and only" Lynn answered with joy in her tone.

"It's been a long time" Chris commented. "Too dang long" Lynn replied.

"I wondered when the next Loud would come to Camp Lakewood" Chris mused. "In our defense, Lincoln's two years younger than me. So there was a gap year" Lynn explained. "In any case" Chris continued, "I'll make sure to keep a sharp eye on this one" he says while ruffling the snow haired child's hair in a playful manner.

"I'm going to hold you to that" Lynn commented, "Because I will hunt you down if anything bad happens to him" she semi-jokes. "I wouldn't have it any other way" Chris says in a heartbeat.

Lincoln coughed into his hand in an attempt to get their attentions. "Oh, sorry about that…" Chris mutters while his cheeks blushed.

"The bus will be leaving shortly, so you might want to go snag a seat while you can" he tells the Loud boy. Lincoln could see what was going on, and decided to give his sister some privacy. "Dually noted" he commented, and then said one last goodbye to his family and then ran to the bus.

Chris then turned his attention back to the athletic Loud sister.

"Promise me you'll keep an eye on him?" Lynn asks in a rather soft tone while crossing her arms.

Chris then placed both of his hands on her shoulders. "You have my absolute word" he whispers to her. The two then let go of each other and Chris tells Lynn that he'll be in touch with her soon, and then he had to rush to the bus as he did not want to be left behind.

The Loud family watched as the last of the campers piled into the bus. As the last child climbed aboard, the vehicle closed its doors. And then the big bus began to move and drive out of the parking lot.

Everyone waved goodbye one last goodbye to the camp attendees.

"Have fun Lincoln" Lynn whispered to herself.

(Later…)

The bus was cruising along the highway and all the campers expressions varied from super excited to super nervous, as this was their first time away from home.

Lincoln was a little surprised when Chris decided to sit next to him. When he asked the older boy wouldn't he rather sit somewhere else the teen replied with "I'm exactly where I need to be" he explained with a smile. Lincoln deducted that Lynn must've asked Chris to watch over him since she couldn't.

The snow haired child thought it was a rather sweet gesture on his sister's half. 'I wonder what kind of experiences I'm gonna have while at camp' he thought to himself.

Little did Lincoln know that he was about to experience an unforgettable summer.

(To be continued…)

Special Guest Appearances by:

Chris Taylor (created by Creshosk)

AN: So this is the first installment of the summer camp arc and then I plan to transit into the plot of Lincoln entering middle school. And just a small head's up, this is the result of me exploring the concept of applying OCs and me wanting to find a way to rewrite Lincoln preparing to enter middle school. And I know some might not like this, but I don't particularly care for you haters. This is something I'm doing for me.

I also want to give a special thank you to Timothy D and the rest of my creative team. They were and still are a huge help in making this project possible.