Hey everyone, we're back again
Sorry for the long gap before an update, with life, summer, and COVID-19, we haven't been able to write consistently. But this story is still going strong
Lori shut the door to her car and walked around to the back to open the trunk. She picked up a laundry basket full of her clothes and then shut the trunk again, turning to head into the house. After taking a minute to unlock the front door, Lori stepped inside.
"I'm home!" She called as she shut the door behind her.
She saw no one around. The house was uncharacteristically quiet. Lori peeked into her parents bedroom, finding it as empty as the living room had been. Not bothering to question it, she just decided to bring her dirty clothes down to start washing them and then she'd raid the fridge for some of leftovers. The thought of enjoying her dad's delicious home cooking again was making her mouth water and she hurried to get her laundry out of the way.
As she opened the door to the basement, she heard the sound of voices. She recognized Lucy and Lincoln right away, but had trouble with the others. Her curiosity got the better of her and she stopped halfway down the steps to listen. She peered down into the basement, spotting her brother and sister with a bunch of older kids. All of them were in dark clothing and seemed to be goth from what Lori could tell. They were all sitting in a circle, eating snacks and listening to some sort of sad music.
"Lincoln, it's not like you need to notice. The truth is that sometimes, we have meetings where only us sisters talk about problems that boys don't need to know about." Lucy said, catching Lori's attention. "I only just started going, but I've heard enough to know that each of them has had hard experiences where they regret decisions they made or just felt like something wasn't right. Lori says it's just a part of growing up. She'd tell you the same thing if you talked with her about what's going on with you right now."
"Yeah, she probably would. I kinda wish she was around so I could ask her about it." Lincoln replied after sighing sadly.
"Ask me about what?" She asked before she had time to think.
All eyes were suddenly on her and she felt very awkward. Lori ignored the many strange faces in the basement and focused on her younger brother and sister.
"What is going on down here?"
"Lori!" Lincoln exclaimed, getting up onto his feet.
"Excited gasp." Lucy monotoned. "You're home."
"You're lucky I know you always sound sarcastic when you do that." Lori said, walking the rest of the way down the stairs and setting her basket onto the floor. "Now would either of you answer my question? I know our parents aren't home, so why are there so many of your friends over? Is this some kind of party?"
"Yeah, kinda." Lincoln said. "But we did get permission from Mom and Dad before we set all this up, just so you know. You can even call them and ask."
"Whatever. It's not really my business." Lori replied, grabbing her basket again. "Now make some room, I have laundry that needs washing. The washing machine at my dorm broke and they literally won't be able to replace it until after the weekend is over."
Lincoln and Lucy looked around at their guests, then at each other, sharing a sour look. The two Loud siblings nodded at each other, stood up, made their way up the stairs. Lincoln grabbed Lori's laundry basket, and the two siblings gently pushed her back up the stairs into the kitchen.
"Hey" she cried out "What gives? Why are you..."
Lincoln looked back through the basement entrance "We'll be right back" he said to the guests before shutting the door behind him and turning back to his eldest sister "Look Lori, is there anyways we could convince you to come back and do your laundry later?" he asked as he put the basket on the floor beside her "I mean...you don't have to leave, but we just need to keep the basement to ourselves for a while"
Lori folded her arms over her chest "OK" she said flatly "What's going on down there that you don't want me to see? And..." She looked the duo up and down, noticing how similarly the two of them were dressed "And what the heck are you wearing, Lincoln?" she asked "You're literally dressed like Lucy"
"What's wrong with dressing like me?" Lucy asked
"Don't try and change the subject" Lori said "Lincoln is dressed like a goth, there's a bunch of kids in the basement, and no one else is in the house...Seriously, what's going on here?"
"It's like you said before" Lucy said "We're having a party...of a sort."
"I won't interfere then" Lori said "You don't have to stop having fun just because I'm washing my clothes"
"This sort of party isn't really about having fun" Lucy said
"That doesn't sounds like a party at all" Lori said "Or...is it a private party with no other sisters allowed?"
"Pretty much" Lincoln said "We've got the whole basement reserved and we want to keep things private"
Lori snorted and kicked her basket of laundry "Ugh, fine then" she said "Have your private basement party then. I'll just wait until they all leave to do my laundry"
"We appreciate that" Lucy said
Lori knelt down to pick up her laundry basket "I come all this way just to see you guys and you tell me to go away" she grumbled "Have your creepy, private party then. I'll be in my room!"
"We'll come and get you as soon the guests leave" Lincoln said as Lori began to storm away "It shouldn't be much long...hey, wait a minute... I thought before you said you came to do laundry because the washing machine in your dorm broke"
"I did" Lori said "So what?"
"So you just said "I come all this way just to see you guys" Lincoln said
Lori dropped her basket, her cheeks beginning to redden. Lucy and Lincoln briefly exchanged looks with each other before looking back at Lori. The oldest sibling could tell from their expressions that they were suspicious and she gave them a stern glare.
"What? What are you looking at me like that for?" Lori asked.
"Well, which is it?" Lincoln asked in return. "Did you come here to see us or to do laundry?"
"It can be both, can't it? You do realize that there are laundromats near my school. I literally could have just gone to one of them. But I thought it would be nice to drop by and see everyone. It's not like I had to!"
"So why did you?" Lucy asked. "Did you miss us?"
"No!" Lori snapped, her cheeks going red again as she caught herself. "I mean… maybe. There's nothing wrong with that, if it were the case. I'm still getting used to living out of the house. It's…. weird not having all of you around to annoy me."
So you miss how we annoy you?" Lincoln inquired, starting to grin a little.
"Don't get cute with me, mister." Lori warned, pointing at him. "I said it's weird not having you around to annoy me, I never said I missed it."
"But you still miss us, right?" Lucy asked, tilting her head slightly. "Even though we annoy you?"
Lori sighed. "Yes. I miss all of you. But I came here mostly to do laundry. It costs a lot of quarters to use the machines in a laundromat."
"Wouldn't you have to spend more on gas to drive from your school to here and then back again?" Lincoln asked.
Lori froze, a nervous look on her face. Then she smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of her neck. She slowly started to step to the side while reaching down to pick up her basket of clothing, letting out a forced giggle.
"Wow, you're literally right. Silly me! I'll just keep that in mind the next time something like this happens. Now if you'll excuse me, I'll just head upstairs for a while. Bye!"
"Lori, wait!" Lucy said suddenly, her voice just a touch louder than usual. "Lincoln, a quick word, please."
Lucy stepped aside with Lincoln, starting to whisper to him. He whispered back after a moment's thought, glancing at Lori for a second. The two exchanged a few more whispers while Lori looked on, curious as to what they were up to. Lucy stepped back over and looked up at her older sister, who tried to meet her gaze through her dark bangs.
"Would you like to join us?" Lucy offered.
"What?" Lori asked in genuine surprise. "Why would I want to join your goth party?"
"It's not like the kind of party you're used to having." Lincoln answered. "I'm sure Maggie would be okay with it if you wanted to come."
"Yeah" said a dry lazy voice "I wouldn't mind"
The three Loud Siblings looked up to see Maggie looking at them expectantly, a crushed soda can in her palm "Are you sure?" Lincoln asked "I mean, this is your party and we don't wanna step on your toes"
"Well you two are the ones hosting" Maggie said with a shrug "It's your house and she's your sister so I can't really tell her where she can or can't go. It's your guys call"
"Cool then" Lucy said "Let's head downstairs and...hey...wait a second...were you eavesdropping on us?"
"No" Maggie said "Well...I heard a little but I was actually coming up to ask you were the bathroom is"
Lincoln jammed his thumb behind him "Upstairs to the left. The door at the very end of the hall"
Maggie made her way up the stairs, quietly grumbling under her breath about having too many sodas as the three Loud siblings made thier way down into the basement. Lori looked around as she hoisted her basket of laundry onto her shoulder. Several pairs of eyes were locked on her as she made her way into the room. She trembled a bit under thier gazes, some of which seemed to show disapproval. She gulped down a lump in her throat
"Uh hi" she said nervously "I'm Lori..uh...Don't mind me, I'll be out of your hair as soon as I start the washing machine and whoa..."
Lori's foot caught on the ice filled cooler, making her drop her basket on top of Lincoln, burying him in his sisters dirty clothes. There were a few laughs from the other partygoers
"Gross!" Lincoln said " Dirty sister laundry!"
"Sorry" Lori said "Its really dark in here"
"Get it off me before I start to smell like you!" Lincoln
"Oh, stop your whining, twerp" Lori said as she refilled her basket "This is nothing new. You literally used to do my laundry all the time"
"Yeah and it was just as bad then as it is now" Lincoln fired back "Now get it off me!"
Lori groaned as she scooped her clothes back into the basket "You're literally overreacting" she said "And besides it's not that bad. Now Lynn's dirty laundry...that's another story"
"She has a point about that" Lucy chimed in "It's part of the reason I sleep in coffins. They're airtight"
There were a few more laughs as Francis leaned over to whisper into Emily's ear "He really wasn't kidding about how she uses the word "literally"
Emily smirked and nodded as the watched the older teen sort her clothes and drop them into the washing machine. Lori caught onto her and gave her an annoyed look. She returned to her laundry after Emily turned her attention away and helped herself to another cookie and juice box. Lori finished starting her load of laundry and went to sit between her younger siblings.
"So, what's the point of all of this? It doesn't seem like any party I've been to before." Lori noted.
"It's not supposed to be." Lucy replied. "The parties you're thinking of are meant to be fun. But this is about venting our problems to one another. To express our woes and share our burdens."
"We meet up and talk about whatever is bothering us, no matter how little a problem it may seem." Maggie continued. "I started it up because I wanted a safe place to talk with people I trust about my problems. As we continued to have these 'parties' we grew in number. Your siblings joined us at my last party."
"Okay, so I can see Lucy being in on this sort of thing." Lori said, slowly turning to look at her brother. "But Lincoln? Something doesn't add up here."
"No. Your brother had quite a lot of baggage to unload." Maggie explained. "He ended up being a big focus in our last party. I would never have guessed he'd been through so much."
"What are they talking about, Lincoln?" Lori asked, raising an eyebrow.
"A lot of things I really don't want to bring up again." Lincoln replied. "Besides, I already had my turn. Everyone has in fact. So you can go ahead if you want."
"Oh, no. I don't think so." Lori said with a short, nervous laugh. "I'm easily the oldest one in this room. And I'm literally an adult now, so I can't be complaining about stuff."
"You're never too old to be sad about something." Lucy stated simply. "And no one here is going to make fun of you or tell anyone else."
Lori hesitated, looking down at her lap. She seemed to be debating something for a short while and then she looked up. It was clear to her brother and sister that she wasn't entirely sure about talking about anything personal in front of so many strange faces, all of which were younger than her. But she considered how her siblings were there and had done the same with no trouble. She started to feel like it could be worth a shot.
"I… I just started my first year at college. And there's a lot of stuff I love about it already. But there's also a lot that I'm still getting used to. Living in the dorms has had plenty of ups and downs. It's great to be out living with other people in my age group who have the same interests, but there are so many people around that it can be overwhelming. I thought living with ten siblings would have helped me adjust to it easily. I was so wrong."
"That doesn't sound so bad." Lincoln noted. "Not trying to undermine your situation or anything. But I felt sorta the same when I started middle school. There are a lot of people I still don't know and there's a lot of kids I don't see anymore that I'm used to seeing every day."
"It's not quite the same, Lincoln." Lori said. "You don't have to live at school. If you have an argument with someone, you have to worry about them the next time you head to class. If I get into an argument with someone, I could see them in my dorm. But that's not the only thing. I miss a lot of things now that I'm not at home anymore. I miss Dad's cooking. I miss watching the Dream Boat with all of you. I miss seeing all of you every morning while we all rush around like crazy to get ready for school."
A tear came to Lori's eye and she wiped it away. Lucy held up a box of tissues for her, but she politely declined with a wave of her hand. Lori took a moment to get ahold of herself before continuing.
"And on top of everything else, there's the money issue. I know that my parents can pay for my education. They've supported all of us for years with hardly any trouble. But I know it hasn't been easy for them and I've seen what it's going to cost for me to get through all the classes I need to take until I can graduate. I feel so bad for expecting them to pay for it when I know they have to still support my sisters and brother. So I've been thinking of finding a job near my school so I can start earning money to pay for it myself. I haven't told them that I'm doing this yet. A part of me is scared to talk to them about it. Is that weird?"
"Why are you scared to talk to them about that?" Lincoln asked. "It doesn't seem like a big deal."
"I don't want them to think I'm ungrateful or something like that."
"Not to butt in on family matters, but you aren't being ungrateful." Maggie said. "If anything else, your parents should see this as you trying to be responsible."
"Yeah, they should be proud that you want to pay for your own tuition." Emily added.
"And if they don't like the idea of making you pay for it, then just talk to them about why you want to pay for it yourself." Marcus said.
"Or you could all work on paying for it together." Gene suggested. "That would be fair."
Lori laughed a little. "Wow, I'm taking advice from a bunch of kids who probably aren't even in high school yet. Not how I expected to start my weekend."
"This coming from a girl who had her four year old sister tutor her in calculus" Lincoln said
"Asking for help in math is totally different from spilling your guts to a roomful of people you don't know" Lori said, before muttering to herself. "Especially when you're starting your social life all over again at a new school."
"Having trouble fitting in?" Dennis asked
"Like you wouldn't believe" Lori said "The thing about Fairway University is that most of it's curriculum is related to playing golf. Most EVERYTHING is related to golf. The uniforms, the classes, even the dorms."
"How can a building be golf related?" Emily asked
"Each floor was dedicated to an aspect of playing golf" Lori said "Driving Range floor had golf balls flying in every direction, The Caddy floor gave me a roommate who was watching me 24/7, Water Hazard and Sand Trap floors...well those are self explanatory"
"You stayed in a dorm filled with water and sand?" Jason asked "That...that just seems kinda...cartoony"
"I know" Lori said "But trust me, it's all real, I lived on those floors for a while. But the worst experience I had was staying on the Quiet Floor. Everyone who lives on the floor has to stay silent at all times! At ALL times! Loud is literally my last name. I couldn't so anything without being shushed, by the time I moved to a different floor, every on the quiet floor hated me"
Lori brought her knees up to her chest "I get that I just needed some time to adjust" Lori said "But I didn't realize just how much of a turn it was going to be. I guess I was trying to be optimistic...but was so hard being surrounded by so many strangers. So far away from my friends and family and...and...my Boo Boo Bear..."
Lori began sniffling, she could almost feel her mascara starting to run. She looked to her younger sister "I think I could use some of those tissues now" she said
Lucy handed her a few tissues which she quickly used to catch her tears "Ugh, I wouldn't have worn so much mascara if I'd known I'd be crying today" Lori said "When I cry I end up looking like a demented raccoon"
There were a few laughs with Maggie silenced with a glare "Your Boo boo bear?" she repeated "Is that some kind of stuffed animal you keep with you?"
Lincoln suppressed a laugh "Actually it's her boyfriend, Bobby" he said "He moved away to live with his family in Great Lakes City before Lori went to college"
"We don't see each other as often now" Lori said "We chat at least once every day, and even if we miss our time to chat, we always make time for each other later. But its not the same as having him with me. And what's worse is that...well...having him so far away...I worry. Some days I think "what if the distance gets to us? What if we can't make it work, and he decides he doesn't want a long distance relationship anymore? What if he wants to date someone else closer to him?"
Emily crossed her arms "And this is why I don't think I'm ready for a boyfriend" she said "I mean sure, it might be great to have someone to open up to and be romantic with, but I dunno if I could deal with having so much of my identity invested in someone else"
"I can be a lot to deal with" Lori said " When you have someone who you love, someone who you feel that completes you, then that means you feel incomplete without them. And even moreso when they're so far away. Sometimes I don't even know how we can manage without them"
"We?" Gene asked "And them? Who's "we" and "them"?"
"We is "Me and Lincoln" Lori said jabbing her thumb in her brothers direction "And them are "Bobby and Lincolns girlfriend Ronnie Anne"
Lincoln looked up "Lori, please don't start with this again" he asked in exasperation
"Its OK, kid" Francis said "We already know that she's your girlfriend. You talked about her during the last Pity Party, remember"
Lincoln's face fell a bit "Oh yeah" he said "Well still...she's not my girlfriend"
"Riiiiiiight" everyone said in a sarcastic tone
"Really!" Lincoln said "She's not"
"When Bobby moved away Ronnie Anne moved away with with him" Lori went on "And it's actually been pretty hard for Lincoln too. He spent like 4 days just waiting outside her old house"
"Because she wanted me to pick up a package that was getting delivered there" Lincoln said hotly "And it turns out that stupid package was just a stupid prank she wanted to pull on me"
Lori shrugged "And what did you say after the prank?" she asked
Lincoln's shuffled uncomfortably "That...I guess...I do miss her" he said "I guess"
Lori gently took her brother by he arm and pulled him into a hug. "I know how you feel. It isn't easy to have someone so important leave. Not having them around as often is a lot to get used to. It's the same with you and all of our sisters. I miss seeing you every day…" She admitted, cracking a small smirk. "Even though you all literally drive me crazy."
"Hey, that's a bit unfair!" Lincoln protested, pushing away from her. "I'm not that bad compared to all of our sisters!"
"Oh please." Lori scoffed. "Just because you aren't running around, wreaking havoc doesn't change that you cause your own kind of problems, mister. You are sneaky and manipulative. Whenever there's something that you want, you go around and start plotting some scheme and pulling strings to get your way. Like the time you got our sisters to overthrow me and tie me up so I wouldn't be in charge while our parents were out."
Jason snorted. "Wish my sisters could help me do that with our older brother. Guy is a total control freak."
"It wouldn't be enough to stop my pain in the neck sister." Emily said. "If nothing else it would give her reason to try harder to drive me nuts."
"Wait, wait a second…" Maggie cut in, peering at Lincoln through narrowed eyes. "You tied up your older sister so she wouldn't have to babysit you?"
Lincoln let out a nervous chuckle. "Just once and I learned my lesson. But in my defense, Lori always went drill sergeant on us when she used to babysit."
"Because you guys needed strict supervision." Lori stated, sounding a bit defensive. "Looking after all of you at once is a really big job. Aside of you being 'the man with the plan', I also have to look after a genius four year old who is always working some kind of crazy experiment. She's so wrapped up in her work that she gets in over her head sometimes! Then we have Luan, who is immature and prank-happy. I've got scars from some of the things she's set up on April fool's day!"
"Uhhh…. What are you…." Gene began.
"Hush." Maggie whispered. "She's venting."
"And then there's Lynn." Lori continued, getting up on her feet and starting to pace back and forth. "Not only is she stubborn and short tempered, but she's literally a reckless daredevil. Remember the time I had to rush her to the hospital after she screwed up trying to jump over Vanzilla on her bike and broke her collar bone? I do! Especially when I called our mom and had to explain what happened!"
Lori let out an exasperated breath and leaned against the dryer. After a moment she sat back down in the circle and closed her eyes while she let herself calm down. Once she felt at ease again, she opened her eyes and grabbed a cupcake, popping it into her mouth.
"The rest of our siblings aren't quite as much as a problem, but still can be a handful." She said, sounding a bit sad.
"Luna just wants to play her guitar, and I wouldn't honestly care if it weren't for the noise complaints and the occasional power surge. The twins can get into a fight at any time over almost nothing. Lucy… I'm sorry, but you frighten me. You're fixation with death just doesn't seem right."
"Not the first time I've been told that." Lucy replied. "Doubt it will be the last. But don't worry about it, no offense taken."
"Thanks. I guess." Lori said, grabbing a cooking to nibble on. "Then we have Lily, our baby sister. Our innocent, super impressionable baby sister. She sees a lot of the things we do and I literally worry about how it will affect her as she grows up. What if she starts to do reckless stunts like Lynn? Or worse…" Lori shuddered. "What if she starts to act like Luan?"
"Lori, you're overthinking things." Lincoln said. "Lily won't turn out like Luan. She spends a lot of time with Leni lately, if anything she'll act a bit more like her."
"That's not necessarily a good thing, Lincoln." Lori replied. "Leni is far from perfect. Sure, she's a total sweetheart and has great social skills. But she's….. well….. super gullible. Out of all of my siblings, she worries me the most. When we were in middle school, some jerks used to mislead her all the time with stupid little lies. It was all just so they could get a quick laugh, but I can't help but think it could have been worse. I'm so scared that Leni will make friends with bad people because she's too nice. Or worse…. That she may end up in a bad relationship one day."
"Don't you trust her to make good decisions?" Emily asked
"It's not that I don't trust her" Lori said pinching the bridge of her nose "I mean...she's the second oldest, so growing up I had hoped that she'd share some of the responsibility when looking after our younger siblings. But I actually needed to look out for her just as much, if not more. And even now she comes to me rather than making decisions on her own. She can be so...so..."Scatterbrained?" Lucy suggested
"Ditzy" Lincoln said
"Absentminded" Maggie suggested
"Stupid" Emily piped up
"That last one is a bit harsher than I would've put it" Lori said "But try all of the above for the other three. She forgets things all the time, she messes things up because she takes things literally, she can barely read, barely spell, barely count...she can barely so much as walk and chew gum at the same time without walking into a wall"
Lori gave a frustrated groan and buried her head in her hands as the other spoke up "That...kinda sounds like your sister might have a legit learning disability" Dennis said
"Or only half a working brain cell" Emily muttered
"That's still my sister you're talking about" Lori said crossly
Emily bit down on her lower lip anxiously as her cheeks went pink "Sorry"
"What's ironic is that Leni, the second oldest is the most dense" Lori went on "While Lisa, the second youngest, is the most smart. But she's just as frustrating in a whole different way. I mean, when you have someone who's super smart but with NO social skills or world experience..." Lori shuddered "She's always doing experiments on everyone and everything she can get her hands on, including us"
"Like the time she switched out Leni's acne cream for a skin color changing cream" Lincoln said
"Or the time that she gave Luan a cookie that made her glow in the dark" Lucy said
"Or the time that she came up with a hair spray that made Lola's hair fall out" Lori said
She looked around to see the other kids staring at her in shock "Seriously?" Maggie said "I'm sorry, I know you don't like us insulting your siblings but...what is wrong with this kid?"
"It's just that" Lori went on "She's a kid. As smart as she is, she's literally only five years old. For all the things she knows, she really doesn't know better than this. I mean five years isn't long enough to develop a moral compass."
"Well..." Lincoln piped up "She did say she switched out Leni's acne cream because she knew she wouldn't let Lisa try it out on her if she had asked"
"Sounds to me like she knows right from wrong" Francis said "But she just chooses wrong"
"Like I said, she may be a genius but she's five" Lori said "Smart enough to know right from wrong, but not mature enough to make the right choices. I mean you'd think with 10 siblings she'd have enough role models to learn from...but then again, maybe she is learning from us. With ten siblings there's never enough of anything for just one of us, so we can all get pretty selfish."
She looked over to Lincoln and Lucy who nodded "And besides" Jason piped up "Shouldn't teaching this kid right from wrong be your parents job?"
"They clearly couldn't do that with your jock sister" Marcus said "So why expect that with any of the others"
Lori looked up at Marcus "Jock sister" she repeated "Do you mean Lynn? What do you know about Lynn?"
"I know she thinks throwing her brother under the bus is better idea than admitting that you can't win all the time" Marcus said "So from that I think it's pretty clear your parents didn't teach her anything about being a good sister, let alone a good sport"
Lori stared at Marcus blankly before slowly bringing her eyes back to her brother "You told them about...the whole bad luck incident" she asked
Lincoln gulped down a nervous lump in his throat, and nodded wordlessly. Lori's face fell a bit, her cheeks reddening as her eyes dropped to the floor "I was hoping I wouldn't have to hear about that again' she muttered
Kamali leaned over and whispered to Emily "What's she talking about?" she asked "What's this whole "bad luck" incident?"
"Its something we talked about in the last party" Emily whispered back "You'll probably hear about it at some point this party. Just sit back and listen"
Lori pinched the bridge of her nose, trembling a bit as Maggie reached over to put her hand on Lori shoulder "Feel free to change the subject" she said "You don't have to talk about it if you don't feel up to it"
Lori looked up, her eyes a bit damp. She took a deep breath to steady herself before she spoke again "Our parents do thier best" Lori said "I mean, two parents with eleven kids have to work hard to provide for us all. They even try to divide up attention as best they can, but sometimes they can only spare 5 minutes at a time so...sometimes I pick up the slack. I look after my siblings all the time, and I play golf so..I dunno..maybe I could've taught Lynn about being a good sport"
"Still sounds like at least one of your parents should get involved." Francis said. "I mean, just look at what's happened already. What if she manages to do something worse next time?"
"What could be worse than my little brother being singled out by our entire family, to the point where he isn't even allowed to sleep inside?" Lori asked.
Francis shrugged. "No idea. But you never know when things could get worse."
"I guess that makes sense." Lori said. "I can talk to my mom about Lynn the next time does something. I'd literally love any excuse to spend time with her, so why not talk about my little sister's superstitious nature or her sore loser attitude?"
"What do you mean, you would love an excuse to spend time with mom?" Lincoln asked. "Don't you get to spend some time with her just like the rest of us?"
"Not lately." Lori answered sadly. "Between her getting more focused on her book and me being busy getting ready for college, I've been letting the rest of you get your time and taking my turns less often. But now that I'm doing that, I realize just how much I miss it. As it is, I don't really feel like I have as strong a bond with her as I used to. It seems like the more responsibility I took on looking after all of my younger siblings, the less time I needed our mom to devote to me."
"I'm sorry, Lori." Lincoln said sympathetically. "I know what it's like dealing with how crazy our family can be like."
Lori let out a laugh. "Oh, that's literally rich coming from you, Mr. Man-with-a-plan. For someone who complains about the trouble our sisters' cause, you sure make enough of your own."
"Why would you say that?" Lincoln asked.
"Oh, I don't know… let's see…" Lori replied, starting to count on her fingers. "You had our sisters work with you to rebel against me when I was babysitting and then you let them trash the house. You took advantage of my position working at Gus's Games N Grub to get perks and almost got me fired. Oh, and one of my favorites. Because you made Bobby's little sister cry, he dumped me!"
"Hey! I wasn't trying to make Ronnie Anne cry! I didn't even know she was Bobby's sister at the time! And I would never had said what I said if I had known she was standing right behind me!"
"What did you say anyway?" Lucy asked.
Lincoln hesitated and looked down at the floor. "Well, because she kept picking on me, some of the other guys at school kept giving me grief about her being my girlfriend." He answered, playing with his shoelace. "So I said stuff like she was gross and I'd rather lick the bathroom floor than kiss her."
"Wow…" Emily whispered, wincing a bit.
"Not cool, little dude." Gene said. "That's no way to talk about your girlfriend.
"She was more of a bully than a girlfriend!" Lincoln said a touch defensively. "I don't care if she was doing it because she liked me, I hated how she'd do things like stuffing my locker full of garbage or shoving a sandwich down my pants!"
"Well you didn't have to make her cry." Lori stated, crossing her arms. "You're just lucky that double date we went on with them worked out. If you hadn't apologized to her in front of the whole restaurant, I literally would never have forgiven you myself."
"You made him apologize to her in front of a bunch of strangers?" Jason asked, quirking an eyebrow. "Isn't that a little much?"
"I didn't make him do that. He did that of his own free will." Lori replied.
Lincoln snorted. "Only because I thought you would hit me over the head with the side table in our living room. You were pretty much ready to throw it at me after I said I didn't want to go on the date in the first place."
All eyes turned to Lori, some questioning and some with surprise. Lori chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of her neck.
"I wasn't really going to do it. I just needed to make it clear I wasn't fooling around."
"So you were threatening him just so he would apologize to the girl who was bullying him?" Dennis asked.
"A bully with a crush on him." Lori pointed out.
"Still a bully." Maggie countered.
"And Lincoln said he wasn't trying to make her cry." Lucy added. "Even if what he said was colder than a cadaver in the morgue."
"I thought she'd be fine! She's such a tough girl, I didn't actually think a few words would upset her so much!" Lincoln explained. "If she had just talked to me about it, I would have definitely said I was sorry right then and there!"
"You literally don't know girls that well, Lincoln." Lori grumbled.
"Well how could I?!" Lincoln snapped. "I thought with ten sisters I'd have at least a good idea, but you told me that girls aren't all alike! And you know what? You're right! Sorry I can't read minds, Lori!"
"You don't need to read a girl's mind to pick up on things." Lori replied calmly. "The fact that someone who is as tough as Ronnie Anne cried because you insulted her should have made certain things very obvious to you."
"I'll tell you what was obvious" Lincoln said "What was obvious is that my sister puts her relationship above her brother! I mean yeah, I was wrong to insult Ronnie Anne but she was bullying me! She put gum in my hair, tied my shoelaces together, she gave me a black eye, but what do you care about? Keeping your boyfriend happy!"
Lori's flinched a bit at the amount of steel in his voice "All 10 of you were ready to fight when you found out I was being bullied." he went on "But as soon as you found out I was getting bullied by a girl, suddenly its ok because "she likes you"
"We were right though" Lori said "She only bullied you because she like...
That's not the point!" Lincoln said hotly "You stopped caring that I was getting bullied when you found out my bully was a girl. Then Bobby dumped you because I hurt Ronnie Anne's feelings. So suddenly, I'm the one at fault! Forget all the times she picked on me, or how when I took your advice and kissed her I got punched in the eye. All you cared about was getting back together with Bobby. It was like that was all that mattered! Is it too much to ask for some support from my big sister when I'm getting bullied?"
"Apparently it is when her boyfriend is involved" Emily muttered
"Oh come on!" Lori said "I just...I mean I...I was upset and I..."
"Bobby supported Ronnie Anne" Lucy said " He actually dumped you out of support for her because he put her feelings first. But...we all did stop caring that he was getting bullied when we found out his bully was a girl. Even if Ronnie Anne was only doing it because she liked him, that shouldn't have been a free pass to annoy and harass him. Plus, he got a black eye when he took our advice"
Lucy turned to Lincoln "Sorry about that...again" she said
Lori stared at Lincoln blankly for a few seconds before burying her face in her hands. She groaned in frustration for a bit, her voice slightly muffled before going silent. Then a few other sounds rang out
Sniff...sob...sniff
Lincoln crept closer to his eldest sister "Uh...Lori?"
"Mmmph crmmbll wwmmbdddrr zzztrrr" she said
The kids looked around at each other "Uh, what was that?" he asked
She took her head out of her hands. Still looking down so that they couldn't see the look on her face, but raising it just enough so that the tears in her eyes could freely fall down her cheeks "I said "Maybe Carol really would've made a better sister"
Carol?" Lincoln said "Wait...do you mean Carol Pingrey?"
"Who's Carol Pingrey" asked Maggie
"A rival turned friend to our sister" Lucy said
"Relax" Lori said glumly "It's nothing I haven't dealt with before. Carol...she and I used to be rivals. or I guess...I used to think of her as my rival because she used to outdo me at everything. When we we both Bluebell Scouts she sold more cookies than me. She beat me in a golf tournament. She beat me for homecoming queen. She beat me for prom queen..."
"Aren't homecoming queen and prom queen the same thing?" Francis asked
"No!" said every teenaged girl in the room making Francis flinch from the sound
"I had felt like I was competing with Carol ever since I was a kid" Lori said "But turns out she had similar feelings towards me. She was jealous of me for being the first person to make our varsity golf team as a freshman. She was jealous of me getting my drivers license on my first try when she failed the test four times before she got hers. And the biggest shock, she was actually really lonely and jealous of how I was a big sister"
There was a loud snorting sound from Maggie's direction "I'm sorry" she said "Did you say this Carol chick failed her driving test four times?
Lori nodded "I didn't know you were allowed to take the test four times" Kamali added
"Y'know even if you and CaroI managed to bury the hatchet" Emily said "I bet it felt good to know there was something you had that she couldn't do better than you"
Lori rubbed the back of her head sheepishly"To be honest, it kinda did" she said "Turns out just being able to pretend that she was a big sister was the whole reason she wanted to be in Lincoln's picture"
"Picture" Lincoln said "What about a picture?"
"The picture" Lori said "Remember like a year or two ago when you wanted to give Mom and dad a picture of us for their anniversary"
Lincoln furrowed his brow as he struggled to recall "I think so" he said "The first picture didn't go as well as I'd hoped so I tried to get another one done and..."
Lincoln's eyes widened as the rest of memories came back to him "Oh right" he said "When I asked Carol to..."
"What" Maggie asked "What did you ask her to do?"
"Well" he began "I wanted to get something really nice for our parents, so I figured a picture of all of us would be perfect. But when the first one didn't turn out well I tried to do another. Most of my sisters wouldn't go for it unless I...changed their minds"
"Why do I get the feeling that "Changing thier minds" meant doing something you shouldn't have done" Francis asked
"Because you've been paying attention" Gene said "And this kid can be a schemer when he wants to be"
"I got some of them to do the reshoot by leading them back outside" Lincoln said "Two of them went along with it because I took their stuff and refused to give it back. But Lori...well...I figured that Lori wouldn't want to do it so I called Carol, asked her to be in the picture, and told Lori that I had replaced her"
There was some chatter among the kids as Lincoln fidgeted uncomfortably "It worked and got Lori to be in the second picture" he said "But in the end, it was a waste of time because I wound up deciding that the first picture was a better choice"
There was silence in the basement for a few moments before Francis chuckled "Leave it to a younger sibling to know just the right way to get under your skin" he said "Kinda like my kid sister with her pranks. Putting whoopee cushions on my chair, on the floor next to my bed, in my backpack, once she even rigged my shoes to make fart noises when I walk."
"I dunno" Emily said "There's "Playing pranks" and there's "Playing on your insecurities". And I'm all for sticking it to an annoying and unreasonable big sister, but don't you think telling her that you replaced her with her rival in a family photo was...a bit much"
"It actually does seem pretty...calculated" Gene said "I mean, this is someone she felt inferior to. She felt that Carol was better than her and outdoing her at everything. Then you ask her to replace her in your family photo? It seems kinda...well...I hope you know that I don't think this about you kid, but what you did seems kinda...malicious"
Lori shoulders seemed to slump a bit further "Malicious?" Lincoln repeated "I wasn't trying to hurt Lori, I just wanted her to be in the second photo. I figured bringing Carol in would change her mind about...wait..."
Lincoln turned to his eldest sister, her head still down, staring at the floor "Lori" he said "When I asked Carol to take your place in the photo...did...did I hurt you?"
Lori looked up at her brother, bottom lip quivering and eyes damp "I know that getting a good anniversary gift for mom and dad was really important to you" she said "And, to be honest I didn't really have any reason to refuse to take the second photo. I could've gone through with it just to make you happy...but I didn't. I know I can be angry and bossy and selfish but...but..."
Her voice caught in her throat and she sniffled a bit "Do you really think Carol would've made better big sister than me?" she asked "Would you really rather have her for a big sister...over me?"
She sniffled again, tears beginning to flow out the corners of her eyes. Her mascara began to run, trailing dark streams towards her cheeks. Maggie held up the tissue box, offering it to the older teen. Lori accepted it with silent gratitude and used one tissue to clear her running makeup and another to soak up the tears. With the third, she cleared her nostrils with a loud honk.
Lincoln looked up at his older sister with concern. He felt guilt creeping up on him as he thought back to his actions that day. He had meant to get under Lori's skin, but not so much as to strike a nerve. It was so long ago, he felt an apology would be not as meaningful as it would have been after the fact.
"I'm so sorry, Lincoln." Lori said, catching Lincoln off guard. "I know I'm not perfect. And I could... should have handled that situation with Ronnie Anne better. I just was so upset when Bobby dumped me over it that all I could think about was making things better for myself. Just like I did with the babysitting fiasco. I knew our sisters would go out of control and wreck the house. And I wanted them to do it too."
"You did?" Lucy asked with a trace of shock in her normally monotone voice.
Lori nodded. "He was outnumbered and with three of his older sisters in the mix. It was doomed to fail. I literally couldn't wait for him to come crawling to beg me for help. But looking back on it now, I realize I was being a selfish jerk."
"Lori..." Lincoln began. "You weren't..."
"I was!" Lori cut in with a sob. "I knew they'd push you around and do whatever they wanted and I was waiting to say 'I told you so'! I even practiced a few times not even literally one minute after you left! I wanted to rub it in your face that you couldn't handle being in charge! And when you came to ask me for help, it made me feel so good to know that I had been right! I wasn't even thinking about what kind of bad things could've happened while all heck was breaking loose in the house! You could've been hurt or one of our sisters could've been hurt or... or... or..."
Lincoln moved in and hugged Lori, stopping her hysterics. He squeezed her as best he could with his scrawny arms, nearly crawling into her lap to get as he got as close as he could. Lori slowly tilted her head to look down at him, almost as if she didn't understand what he was doing. But she wrapped her arms around him and let her tears continue to flow until they finally came to a stop.
Once Lori had stopped crying, she let Lincoln go and he scooted back out of her lap. He got her a box of tissues which she used to wipe away her ruined mascara. Lucy then offered Lori some of the cookies that Clyde had made for the party as a comfort food. Lori swiped half a dozen off of the platter in Lucy's hands, mumbling in gratitude before starting to stuff her face.
After she took a couple minutes to eat her feelings, Lori washed them down with a few sips from a bottle of iced tea. Then she put the cap back on the bottle and set it aside before pulling Lincoln back into her arms. She kept the embrace brief and followed it up with a little kiss on his forehead.
"You're a great little brother and I'm sorry I don't tell you that more often."
Lincoln looked up at her "Do you really mean that?" He asked, almost skeptical of the compliment.
"Don't get me wrong. You're literally far from perfect. Not that I'm one to talk. But yeah, you're a really good kid and I wouldn't trade you for any other brother in the world."
"Wish my sister could be more like that." Emily grumbled.
"We've got plenty to spare, feel free to take one." Lucy said. "How do you feel about a sister who likes sports."
"I feel like this is a trick." Emily replied.
"It literally is." Lori told her. "Lynn is not the pick of the litter. I'm free to be traded though. My siblings don't really need me anymore."
"Why would you say that?" Lucy asked.
"Well… because ever since I went to college, you guys haven't been asking me for help as much." Lori explained.
"That's because we don't want to bug you when you're at college." Lincoln told her. "And besides, it shouldn't matter if we need you or not. We still want you around."
"Well… because ever since I went to college, you guys haven't been asking me for help as much." Lori explained.
"That's because we don't want to bug you when you're at college." Lincoln told her. "And besides, it shouldn't matter if we need you or not. We still want you around."
"Aw, thanks. But I really miss being here to help out and watch after you. Is it kinda weird that I miss that?"
"Oh, you mean that you miss being in charge?" Lincoln asked jokingly. "I can't imagine why you'd miss that."
"Not because it was fun, if that is what you're thinking. Because it wasn't. Literally never."
"True enough. I still regret how I took over being in charge that one time." Lincoln said with a small shudder. "Things got out of hand so fast. I'm surprised that Leni was able to figure out how to handle things so easily."
Lori smiled sadly. "Yeah. I know. I guess even she doesn't need her big sister anymore."
"I wouldn't say that." Lincoln replied. "I feel like she's always going to need you. For Leni reasons."
"Who's Leni Reasons?" came a voice.
The group looked to the stairs where they saw a young blonde girl in a teal dress with sunglasses on her head. She took a look around the basement, confused by the many unfamiliar faced. But then her eyes landed on Lori and she let out an excited gasp.
"Lori!" She exclaimed, rushing over to her and giving her a big hug. "I totes am sooo glad to see you! I need your help with stuff!
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