Great Lakes Getaway with the Gal Pals (Part Two)

(Story Summary: Continuing from the end of part one; after a visit to the salon, the gang continues their trip around the city. However, a nagging thought keeps eating away at Lincoln's mind during their tour; did Bobby heed his advice and if so...did it work?)

It was now almost noon and the gang had just finished getting their hair done. As Carol and her posse began paying Margarita for her services, Lincoln took a moment to admire his new hairdo. Much like after his first spa visit, his hair has been slicked back into a wavy pompadour; making him look like a sort of white-haired Elvis.

Needless to say; when she had finished, Margarita felt proud of herself. This new hairdo also garnered quite a bit of attention, both from the stylist and all the ladies present. "Ay, Papi" Carlota cried with delight while fanning herself, "Lincoln...this new look suits you."

The Gal Pals, Carlota and even Ronnie Anne couldn't help but agree (the third example suddenly feeling her face heating up slightly.) "Uh...y-yeah" murmured the young Latina in awe, "this new look really...it really works for you." The whole time they all talked, Lincoln was bashfully trying to let the compliments sink in.

"You guys think I look good" he murmured inquisitively, "maybe I should send a pic of it to the family and my pals back home...get their opinions." With that in mind, Lincoln prepared to snap a picture with his phone and e-mail it. But that was when Ronnie Anne interjected in saying "no need, dude; took one of ya before you got off the chair."

She then asked him to look up the picture on his phone on Social Media. When he did, Lincoln saw a series of comments from his friends and family back home.

Clyde: "Lookin' suave, buddy; does that stylist take house calls, by chance?"

Rusty: "Nice 'do, dude!"

Zach: "Very nice, Lincoln; it's as good as your other picture."

Liam: "She-oot, pardner; you look slicker as axel grease!"

Lincoln chortled softly at his friends' comments, particularly Clyde's; before giving each of them a "like." Next; he noticed some comments that were left by his parents, grandfather and even some of his sisters. He was particularly surprised by the third list of comments; not because they were rude, mind you but because of how unexpectedly they came up.

Lynn Sr.: Lookin' good there, sport!

Rita: Oh, honey; your new haircut looks wonderful!

Pop-Pop: Nice hairdo, kiddo; you look as snazzy as I did when I was your age.

Leni: OM GOSH, LINKY! When you come home, I've got just the outfit that matches your new look!

Luna: Rockin' 'do, Bro.

Lisa: Normally, I do not pay any attention to the looks of others. But...I daresay, Brother; you're looking quite dashing.

Finally; he noticed that Officers Higgins, Simmons and Campos also shared some of their own comments on his new look.

Higgins: Sugar, you look so debonair with your new haircut!

Simmons: Honey, you gonna get all the girls attention; come the next school year.

Campos: That Margarita's still got it; make sure to tell her I said "hi," chamaco.

Upon reading Officer Campos' comment, Lincoln blinked confusedly and passed along her greeting to Margarita. Then, the aforementioned stylist suddenly became even giddier than she was before. "Chulo, you never told me you knew Gabriella Campos" she squealed with delight, "she and I go waaaay back."

Feeling curious, Lincoln faced Margarita and asked how she knew her. "We've been friends since we were about your age" she stated, "we even ended up going to the same college here in Great Lakes City together, way back when." Upon hearing this, Sid couldn't help but giggle a little.

"Sounds almost like how you and I ended up becoming friends, Ronnie Anne" she whispered, "guess destiny really does have a way with bringing people together...just like your grandma often says." The moment these words passed her friend's lips, Ronnie Anne couldn't help but tense up inwardly. "That's true, buddy" she thought to herself, "but sometimes...Destiny and Fate can really screw people over."

This thought was, of course directed at the situation currently going on between Bobby and Lori. There was once a time where her Abuela told her "I can already see wedding bells in their future, rest assured." Now, after the whole business involving Lincoln and the trial; everyone wondered if that future was still in the cards for Bobby...including Ronnie Anne herself.

Suddenly, she heard the sounds of clicking in her ears; which quickly snapped her out of her train of thought. Afterwards; the young Latina saw Carol standing next to her, snapping her fingers in front of her face. "There we go" Carol sighed with relief, "you kinda spaced out on us there, Ronnie Anne."

After taking a moment to clear her head, Ronnie Anne saw that everyone was already up off their barber chairs and ready to leave; each one sporting either new haircuts or hairstyles. The only exception to the rule seemed to be Whitney, whose hair appeared seemingly untouched.

Apparently, despite however skilled she was; Margarita couldn't seem to cut or comb through Whitney's thick poof very well. In the end, all the stylist could do was soften it up with some hair products (though only a little bit.) "Sorry about that, Ma'am" Whitney murmured shamefully, "I can't even manage this hair on my own!"

As if sensing her distress, Margarita patted Whitney on her shoulder and smiled warmly. "Don't worry your pretty head over it, chula" she said reassuringly, "I've dealt with plenty of patrons who had the same problem." While these words didn't help Whitney feel any less embarrassed, she still found them comforting.

"Perhaps I could...how you say, lighten your load a little" Margarita suggested, "a little snip here and a trim there?" While it seemed like a bit of a long-shot; Whitney decided that if combing didn't work, trimming her poof might be the better option. "In that case...you may as well hang outside, gang" she said while addressing her friends, "this might take a while."

With that said; Whitney took a seat back down on the barber chair, as Margarita prepared to go to work once more.

(Line Break)

Sometime later, the gang had left Margarita's Salon; half of which feeling quite satisfied with their haircuts. "That woman certainly is a wiz; just like you said, Ronnie Anne" sighed Whitney blissfully, "my head feels a couple of pounds lighter now." Lincoln and the others couldn't help but agree with her friend, even though the visit didn't change her hairstyle too much.

Carol herself was particularly surprised by how Margarita was able to cut through Whitney's thick locks. But as she recalled earlier, that woman was no stranger to such circumstances. Regardless, everyone felt quite spiffy with their new/improved looks.

"So, Ronnie Anne; where should we head off to now" questioned Stella, "know any other cool places in the city?" There was much discussion between the group members, once the inquiry was made. Some wished to visit the zoo where Sid's mother worked, others wanted to see where Ronnie Anne's new school and a small number simply wished to enjoy the sights.

"Hang tight, Gals...and lil' dude" Carol interjected, "we've got all weekend to hang here, which gives us enough time to check out everything...if we're lucky." The crew murmured softly in agreement and went back to thinking up the next idea of where to go. That was when gals like Phoebe, Jordan, Cristina, Stella and even Haiku mildly insisted on visiting the zoo next.

"I'm sorry if I seem pushy about it, gang" Phoebe murmured dejectedly, "but...ever since we first heard about Mrs. Chang's job; I've been...like, totes excited to see those awesome animals!" After taking in their shutterbug friend's words, everyone admitted that they too were eager to see the zoo. Unfortunately, after looking up the city's map on her phone; Dana saw that it was clear across town.

"We can't possibly get there on foot" grumbled Carlota, "these boots of mine were not made for walkin' for that long!" With that statement, an idea came to Sid like a blow to the head. "Guys, I know the best and quickest way to get to the zoo...the Subway" she exclaimed, "and it's a great way for me to introduce you to my dad!"

The group's collective faces suddenly brightened at the idea and it would also give them the opportunity to explore the city's underground...to a degree. "The subway sounds like a good plan, Sid" Carol said proudly, "all those in favor...shout 'GAL PALS!'" Without hesitation, the others began chanting their group name; while Lincoln added the words "and little dude" at the end.

Meanwhile, Sid looked at the scene before her in mild confusion; wondering what all the chanting was about. "Who or...what are the 'Gal Pals," guys" she asked, "is that some sort of club name for you or...something else?" Carol and her posse of three each giggled lightly at her, completely understanding her confusion.

"In a way...it's kinda a mix of both, Sid" Dana stated, "it's a group name we came up with, after how close we all became over the course of Spring Break." Jordan also added that the group was formed out of the one thing they all had in common, their history with Lincoln. "She's right" Cristina interjected, "in many ways, great or small, all of us have shared some sort of life experience with him."

After this, some of them began to discuss how the boy came into their lives. Cici and Phoebe were particularly giggly over their story, when their turn came. "According to him, Linc changed his shirt three times during his orientation trip to the Middle School" Phoebe chuckled, "lil' man was sweatin' like he just got out of the gym."

While Carlota felt that particular element of the story was...a little gross, she still couldn't help but find it all amusing. "So, you guys really weren't gonna hurt him" questioned Sid, "because from your story...it sounded like you were seriously cheesed off with him and his BFF." The two Middle Schoolers chuckled softly and assured their guide all was well.

"We knew him and his pal, Clyde were newbies to the school" Cici assured, "so...we wanted to make them sweat a little for fun." She then added that the same thing was done to her when she went on her orientation trip, long ago. "I won't go into too much detail" murmured Cici, "but I'll just say that I didn't sweat half as much as Linc did, during my Middle School Orientation."

After that, some of the older gals shared their first experiences with Lincoln. "Dana and I first met him at his house, when Lori was holding a 'sophisticated' house party" Becky stated, "long story short, her ideas of 'sophisticated' nearly had us all bored out of our minds!" Dana grumbled softly with a nod, recalling the line dancing Lori tried to talk them all into.

"Thankfully, her sibs tried to help liven things up" Becky stated, "Linc especially." Feeling curious, Ronnie Anne and Carlota asked just what Lincoln did to earn their attention. "Well, he did some very cool party tricks for us" Dana stated, "one of which involved him getting his underwear off...without using his hands."

Upon hearing this reveal, Ronnie Anne suddenly burst out into a light fit of laughter. She remembered the aforementioned trick all too well; in truth, it was the same one he used to earn the friendships of his other guy friends (Rusty, Liam and Zach.) "I can't believe you won them over with something like that, dude" she said between giggles, "where did you learn it anyway?"

With a sheepish grin on his face, Lincoln revealed that it was something his dad taught him. "He first showed me it when I was 8" he explained, "it's an excellent trick to learn if you're in a hurry with getting dressed." After this, he considered showing the trick...until he realized that they were out in public.

That was when Becky showed them a short video she took from the party (albeit discretely.) Surprisingly, Ronnie Anne found it both odd yet strangely cool to see Lincoln effortlessly shake his undies down his pant leg. "That's certainly impressive, Linc" she said with a light chuckle, "I can see why Becky thinks you're cool."

After that, the teen revealed something she and Lincoln shared in common; their love of Ace Savvy. "Dude...you still read those books" questioned Ronnie Anne dumbfounded, "I thought you'd grown out of them by now." Feeling mildly offended, Becky revealed that she had remained a fan of the comic series since she was seven.

"Not only is Ace a cool hero, when you've actually given his stories a look" she explained, "but Linc here has made quite a name for himself sharing his own ideas with Bill Buck, the comic's creator." It was here that the crew revealed that they saw pictures of Lincoln receiving a check for Checkmate, a series of Ace Savvy stories he made.

"What the what" cried Carlota while looking at the picture, "that check's gotta be worth like...thousands of dollars!" As a rebuttal; Becky revealed that while the series did prove successful, Mr. Buck received half of the profits (being the series' original creator and all.) But regardless; Lincoln still received a handsome share of five-grand for the Checkmate series.

"Seriously...that's more than what our...semi-rival store, Hi 'n' Buy makes in a month" exclaimed Ronnie Anne, "I can't believe you got so much money from a goofy comic." While his friend's words might've seemed hurtful, Lincoln took them with a grain of salt; believing it was simply her keeping up her "cool" persona. Then, in that moment; a rather mischievous formed in his mind.

"It's cool if you're not a superhero fan, Ronnie Anne; I totally respect that" he murmured, "but then...I guess that means I should probably take you out of the comic." With that small statement, the young Latina's curiosity suddenly got the better of her and she wished to learn the meaning behind Lincoln's words. "No, no...I really shouldn't" Lincoln murmured slyly, "you said the whole thing was silly, so..."

That did it, that final remark was enough to push Ronnie Anne's curiosities over the edge. But much to her surprise, she noticed that Sid and Carlota were just as eager to learn the "secret." "PLEEEEEASE, TELL US" the young half-Asian teen begged, "why is Ronnie Anne in your book and are any of us in it too?!" After hearing the word "please" echo in his ears for what felt like ages, Lincoln let out a soft grunt while smiling and decided to give in.

"To answer your question...sorry, Sid; you're not in the book" he said dejectedly, "but only because my story was made long before we met." Sid nodded in acceptance, fully understanding the circumstances and eagerly awaited the bio of Ronnie Anne's character. "In the Checkmate series, she's known as...Madame Roulette" Lincoln said dramatically, "her primary weapon is a specially designed shield that resembles a roulette wheel."

From here, he began to go into detail about certain "secrets" that the young heroine's weapon/defensive tool contained. "Aside from it being a throwing weapon; when she has it on her arm and spins it, Madame Roulette can blind or hypnotize her opponents with a series of flashing lights" Lincoln explained, "it's like your eyes are being assaulted by disco lights!" To give everyone a proper visual aid, he reached into his backpack and brought out a notebook; which contained a drawing of Ronnie Anne's character.

She was wearing a black mask over her face that featured a pair of red heart designs over her eyes, her suit was red but her gloves and shoes were both black and on the center of her chest was a roulette wheel emblem. At the same time, the drawing showed a series of colors blasting off of her shield (presumably in a blinding attack.)

Soon, the Great Lakes gals were studying the image in silence; leaving Lincoln to nervously wonder if they hated it. Then, after a while; he could hear them murmuring softly with approval. "Hmm...Not bad" Carlota said with a smile, "the clothes are rather stylish and I love how Ronnie Anne's rockin' that shield."

After that, Sid began to gush over the character as well; before utterly begging Lincoln to include her in the next story. Finally, Ronnie Anne smiled at her pal and gave him a swift yet playfully slap to the arm. "Nice work here, dude" she stated, "just make sure that my character is done proper justice...ya hear?"

Without a moment's hesitation, Lincoln gave her the "Scout's Honor" salute; symbolizing that he would not betray her trust. "I'm even thinking up some cool ideas for the rest of your family" he said with delight, "I've already got one for Bob..." Before he could finish his sentence, Lincoln suddenly felt a light chill of despair wash over him.

This behavior didn't go unnoticed by the Gal Pals, who all proceeded to ask what was wrong. Upon realizing his sudden shift in mood, Lincoln quickly snapped out of his daze and smiled. "What...no, nothing's wrong" he murmured, "I was just...we should probably get going before we miss our ride!"

With that said, he made a quick beeline for the nearest subway stairs; leaving the girls behind to wonder "what the heck is he hiding?"

(Line Break)

Sometime later, everyone was seated inside of the subway train; taking in their surroundings. "I never realized it was so cramped in these things" Cristina muttered softly, "do you guys take the train all the time?" Carlota responded with a shake of the head, while Sid and Ronnie Anne proclaimed it was their favorite way to travel in the city.

"It may feel crowded, at times...but it's actually fun here" said Ronnie Anne, "you'd be surprised by the amount of interesting people that travel the rails." As if on cue, the group heard a soft yet agitated voice cry out in complaint from close by. With a start, Carol turned around and quickly spotted the source of the cries.

Standing just a stone's throw away from herself and the crew was a woman with curly black hair, rather droopy-looking cheeks and a big nose. She wore a white visor around the top of her head, black sunglasses, red lipstick, golden earrings, a light orange sweater with a slightly darker orange sweater over it, a long red skirt and brown shoes. The woman appeared to be standing at the side of the car while holding onto a support hold above her head, much like other passengers near her.

Carlota, Ronnie Anne and Sid grumbled softly in annoyance at the sight of her; while their friends simply looked on in confusion. "Who's she" murmured Phoebe, "reminds me of one of my neighbors." Before anyone could answer her, the train suddenly shook a little due to a slight amount of turbulence.

This caused the woman to suddenly lose her grip on the hold and lose balance. With a cry of distress, she came close to falling onto the floor...until she suddenly felt someone grab hold of her arm and pull her back up. After taking a moment to adjust her sunglasses, the woman saw who it was that "saved" her; a young boy with a soft bucktoothed smile wearing an orange shirt and blue pants.

Much to his surprise; instead of being thanked for helping her, the woman suddenly began swatting her purse at him. "Y'all best back up" she cried, "ain't no way I'm gonna let you get a pass on me, old man!" Upon hearing the comment, Ronnie Anne quickly hurried over and stopped the woman from attacking her friend any further.

"Lay off him, Maybelle" she said firmly, "he's no old man...he's a boy!" The woman (whom Ronnie Anne called Maybelle,) once again adjusted her sunglasses to get a clearer view of who was in front of her. In moments, Lincoln's silhouette began to show clearly beneath their black lenses.

"Oh, well...I suppose that changes things a little" she murmured, "but how do I know he wasn't tryin' to snatch somethin' off of me like some kind of pint-sized pickpocket?" Upon hearing this accusation, Carol and her posse took a defensive stance around Lincoln and glared bitterly at the woman. "Don't you dare talk about Lincoln like that" growled Carol, "he would never steal from the elderly!"

The moment Lincoln's name was announced, everyone in the train car suddenly started murmuring in excited whispers. "Lincoln...as in Lincoln Loud" questioned Maybelle, "that lil' boy from Ronnie Anne's old stompin' grounds that the news wouldn't stop yappin' about?" With a nervous smile upon his face, the aforementioned boy nodded slightly and greeted the woman with a light bow.

After this, Maybelle's demeanor seemed to soften a little and she quickly apologized for her earlier outburst. "I'm sorry too for surprising you like that" Lincoln stated, "I just wanted to stop you from possibly having a bad fall." Maybelle smiled appreciatively at him and thanked Lincoln for coming to her aid.

"Just to let you know, boy; I could've saved myself on my own" she said firmly, "but...it's still nice to know that there's some decency left in this world." After that, Maybelle and Lincoln shook hands; signaling that there was no bad blood between them. Upon seeing this, the Gal Pals and Ronnie Anne each let out deep sighs of relief before taking their seats.

Once they were all comfortable again, everyone took the time to introduce themselves. "Linc, this here is Maybelle" Ronnie Anne stated, "she's another one of the building's residents, as well as one of the Mercado's most loyal...and often toughest customers." Upon hearing this, the woman grumbled softly at the young preteen; proclaiming that there was "no crime" in wanting everything to be in order.

Not long after that, a door opened from the head of the car they were in and a man dressed in a subway driver's uniform poked his head in. "Hey there, everybody" he greeted kindly, "heard a bit of shouting in here...is everything alright?" Without hesitation, Sid turned towards the man and assured him that they were all fine.

"Maybelle almost fell over after that bump, a moment ago" she explained, "but Lincoln here managed to save her before it happened." Upon hearing this, the aforementioned Loud boy blushed slightly and let out a bashful chuckle. "Ah, it was no biggie" he muttered, "I just did what anyone else would in this situation."

The driver chuckled softly and extended a heartfelt thank you to Lincoln for his actions. "This is my dad, Stanley; Stan to his buddies" Sid said with a giggle, "he runs the train here...which he calls the GLART." The moment Lincoln and the Gal Pals heard the word "GLART," they tilted their collective heads in confusion and asked what it meant.

"Oh...sorry, you all must be new to the subway" Mr. Chang cried out in realization, "see, GLART is an acronym I came up with that stands for Great Lakes Area Rapid Transit." With this statement, everyone now had a clear understanding of the odd term; while also thinking of how much of a mouthful saying each word at once must've been. "Anywho...Thanks for giving us a lift, Sir" Jordan called out, "you're right about some of us being first-timers."

Mr. Chang smiled at her and promised that the remainder of the ride will be going much smoother. "So, you ladies are heading off to the zoo, eh" he inquired, "you should look in on my wife while you're all there, if she's not too busy." Carol smiled warmly at the conductor and assured him that they planned on doing just that.

(Line Break)

Sometime after their ride ended, the gang climbed up the stairs and exited the subway; noticing that they were right across the street from the zoo. Upon passing through the gate, the Gal Pals gasped in awe at the sights around them. There were exotic birds, white tigers, tortoises, crocodiles, giraffes, all sorts of primates and Lincoln even spotted some rabbits and bunnies over at the petting zoo area.

As he watched the lil' critters hop playfully around their pen, Lincoln found himself staring down at one of them. "Hmm...I can't explain why" he thought to himself, "but something about this bunny feels...familiar." Upon observing the rabbit more closely, he noticed that its one bucktooth bore a slight chip and he had a tuft of fur on his head that seemed to resemble his cowlick.

(Note: Lincoln still possesses his new hairdo from Margarita's salon. The bunny's description is meant to reference Lincoln's typical look.)

Then, as Lincoln looks back at the older groups of bunnies and rabbits; he spots one from both groups starting to flirt with one another (in their own way.) Not long after, the female bunny immediately presented the bucktoothed one to a female bunny with dark-brown fur. Upon seeing the male in front of her, the brown-furred bunny suddenly gave it a swift slap across the face with her ears.

This behavior startled the chipped-toothed rabbit and he wanted nothing more than to retreat from the scene immediately. But then, he found himself surrounded by several more female bunnies. When Lincoln saw the exact number of females present, his eyes nearly bulged from his skull.

"Okay, this is really starting to look familiar" he thought, "these bunnies remind me a whole lot of me and my sisters." With this thought in mind, Lincoln's attention went back to the bunny and rabbit that were acting lovey-dovey with each other. It was then that he realized who they reminded him of; Lori and Bobby.

Upon making this comparison, Lincoln suddenly felt a mild chill of uncertainty run through him. He kept wondering if Bobby ever chose to take his advice and speak with Lori. More importantly; if Bobby did speak with her, how did their conversation play out?

While their hours of flirting and baby talk often drove him nuts, Lincoln hated the idea of them being unhappy. Just then, he felt a soft tapping against his shoulder; which caused him to snap out of his thoughts with a mild yelp.

Thinking quickly, Lincoln did a quick spin-around and took a defensive stance; expecting some kind of ambush. But what he saw instead was the smiling face of an older woman standing over him. She was a lovely woman with short blond hair, golden hoop earrings, blue jeans and wore a vest over her green shirt.

In an instant; Lincoln recognized this woman to be Sid's mother, Becca Chang and he immediately relaxed himself. "Saw you spacing out for a minute there, Linc" the woman said with a soft smile, "hope everything's okay." Lincoln chuckled softly at the woman and assured her he was doing fine.

"I was just having a bit of a...deja vu feeling with these bunnies here" he murmured bashfully, "they reminded me of a time where I came across a group of bunnies in the woods." Her curiosities piqued, Mrs. Chang asked Lincoln to divulge more information on his encounter. "Well...long story short, this one male rabbit was the middle member of a family of twenty-five 'sister' bunnies" he explained, "and the whole thing reminded me of my sisters."

Mrs. Chang was taken aback by Lincoln's tale, to say the least; mostly because of the amount of "sister" bunnies he saw in the group. "Mind you, Ma'am; I only have ten sisters" the young Loud boy clarified, "but be it 10 or twenty-five...either way, things tend to feel crazy." With this statement, Mrs. Chang's expression faded from a look of shock to one of concern.

When she met Lincoln but a few moments ago; she was quite surprised by some of the bits of backstory he shared about himself, particularly his rather large family. "I suppose it goes without saying that due to having that many siblings, you must feel outnumbered at times" Mrs. Chang stated, "am I right?" With a soft yet disgruntled sigh, Lincoln gave the zoologist a sort of "on the nose" gesture.

"The biggest headache I've dealt with so far has to be my sisters meddling in whatever 'relationships' I hope to try to gain" he groaned, "especially when it involved girls." From here, Lincoln gestured at the eldest of the female bunnies trying to force her "brother" into mingling with the brown female bunny. "This particular situation represents how my sister, Lori relentlessly tried to pair me up with Ronnie Anne" he said with an eye-roll, "she thought we 'belonged together' just because she and Bobby were already a pair."

By this point in his story, Lincoln was on the verge of a mild stress relapse from the memories of how often Lori tried to force him into a relationship. But after performing some deep breathing taught to him by both Haiku and Dr. Lopez, he was calm again. "After a while; I got fed up and thought about telling Lori 'instead of messing with whatever 'love life' I have, worry about your own'" he cried, "now...I'm worried that she might not have one anymore."

Soon after he said this, Lincoln plonked himself down on a nearby bench and hunched himself into a depressed slump. In the meantime, Mrs. Chang simply looked at him with a bewildered expression; feeling unsure of what to say or do next. Then, an idea came into her head and she began to move her head around her; searching for something...or someone.

After about ten seconds, she finally found the person she needed. Just two or three feet away from where she stood, Carol and her posse were attempting to take a group selfie over by the panda habitat. Not too far away from them was Cici, who was playing a game of Chess against the gorilla known as Silver.

While this was going on, Phoebe was recording every moment on her camera phone. "C'mon Cici, you've got this" she cheered loudly, "show that monkey who the real Chess master is!" Upon hearing this, Silver briefly turned his attention away from the game to send the young photographer a message via sign language.

Now, Lincoln was no expert in understanding sign language; so, he asked Mrs. Chang what Silver was saying. "Oh...nothing much" she said with a light giggle, "he's just trying to tell your friend he's an ape, not a monkey." Lincoln shared a stifled giggle at the reveal and continued to watch the game.

After a while, the two just seemed to be moving their pawns here and there. But that was when Lincoln noticed something...familiar about this strategy. When he noticed Cici moving her Queen diagonally to the F3 spot on the board, Lincoln finally realized what was going to happen.

"Cici, don't move that way" he called out, "if you do, there's a chance that Silver..." Alas, it was too late for his friend to change her tactics. With a proud smile upon his lips, Silver the Gorilla moved his pawn to the G5 position and hooted loudly while pounding his chest in victory.

The whole time this was happening, Cici just stared wide-eyed at the display; feeling utterly confused. "What the...What the heck is going on" she asked, "did I win or lose?" Again, the silverback smiled at her and began giving the young teen a series of hand signs. Much like before, nearly everyone felt confused by it all and wondered what he was doing.

"He's trying to spell out something to you, Cici" Sid interjected, "I think it's...C-H-E-C-K-M..." Before she could finish, it soon became clear what Silver was trying to say. At which time, Cici's face scrunched up into a defeated expression and she turned towards Sid and whispered "are there any hand signs for 'I want a rematch?!'"

Needless to say, this moment was one for the record books (or in Phoebe's case, the Cloud.) After saying farewell to Silver, the Gal Pals reconvened over by Lincoln and began to share their experiences with him. "This place is so cool" Cristina gushed with delight, "you hardly find this kind of thing back in town."

The others happily agreed with their young friend, speaking about all the things they saw within the zoo. But while they talked, Mrs. Chang leaned over and whispered something into Carol's ear. Despite being unable to hear said whispers; when he saw his friend/guardian's expressions shifting between joyful to shocked, Lincoln could tell it wasn't good.

Then, Carol casually approached him and asked if he was feeling okay. "Yeah...I'm fine" Lincoln said hesitantly, "I just...have some stuff on my mind is all." Just as he was about to continue on with his statement; Carol pressed her index finger lightly against his lips, stopping him in his tracks.

"No need to explain, Linky" she said while kneeling down to his level, "Mrs. Chang told me everything you said...and I have a good idea of what's going on." After this, Carol gave Lincoln the biggest hug she could muster; making sure not to hurt or alarm him. "I'm sorry if I'm stressing over nothing" Lincoln murmured softly, "I just...I just want Bobby and Lori to be happy again."

Carol gave her young friend a sweet smile and assured him that in time, things would be normal between them again. "It's sweet of you to say that, it really is" Lincoln said with a half-smile, "but when I talked with him earlier, he looked like death warmed over...twice." Carol suddenly found herself smiling a little, thinking that such a statement would've been something Haiku would say.

But she chose to keep the thought to herself and continued to listen to Lincoln's words. "You know what he said to me, when I found him up on the roof" he inquired, "he told me 'I thought I'd be the last person you'd want to hang with' and he blames himself for the stuff I endured from Lori." Naturally, this statement caused Carol to let out a soft gasp of alarm.

Not long after, the other Gals overheard her and quickly rushed to her side; asking if she was alright. When Carol explained the current situation Lincoln was facing, every eye fell upon him. Then, Carlota knelt down and gave Lincoln a light kiss upon the forehead.

"Linc, it's really sweet for you to be worried about my primo" she said with a smile, "but this whole thing is his business to deal with...don't let it spoil your fun." Not long after, the other Gal Pals echoed the same reply; encouraging Lincoln to keep his chin up. "You're right, everybody; sorry again for stressing so much" he said with a smile, "on the plus side, Bobby was a bit surprised when I told him where Lori's been all this time."

Upon hearing this, Carlota and Ronnie Anne tilted their heads in confusion before asking where the "plus side" was in his statement. "Well...he told me that he missed out on the sentencing part of the trial" Lincoln replied, "said something about being locked in the dairy case." The moment this bit of info was revealed, the two Latina gals groaned softly in annoyance.

"This happens every time he goes to restock the milk or soda cans" Carlota grumbled, "can't he remember to leave the door just a little open behind him first...or at least, put the doorstop down beforehand?" After taking a moment to cool down; Lincoln continued on to explain that due to Bobby's situation at the time, he missed the part regarding Lori having to do community work and taking classes both in anger management and sensitivity training.

"When Bobby said she hadn't responded to his calls or messages, I told him that might've been the case" he stated, "the classes tend to go on into overtime for...(ahem) obvious reasons." With this statement, Ronnie Anne lightly waved her hand at Lincoln in a "stop" gesture; emphasizing that she understood the situation. "The point is...I'm just wondering if Bobby will follow up on my advice and call Lori" Lincoln stated, "I also wonder what she'll say...if she answers?"

After hearing all this; the Gals murmured soft words of comfort to Lincoln and held him close in a group hug. Even Ronnie Anne, much to her surprise, found herself joining in. Once everyone pulled away, Mrs. Chang encouraged Lincoln to keep his chin up and pray for Bobby.

"I don't know how or when it will happen" she stated, "but things will get better, I promise you." Lincoln sniffled softly while wiping a tear from his eye, smiled up at the zoologist and thanked her for her kind words. With that settled, everyone continued their exploration of the zoo.

(Line Break)

Some time passed and the gang left the zoo behind them, happily reveling in the experience. It was almost 3 o'clock and they were making their way back to the apartment building. During the journey; the Gals, Ronnie Anne, Carlota and Sid were sharing photo op moments amongst themselves.

Meanwhile, Lincoln was hanging back a few steps away from the group; rubbing his hands lightly upon his forehead. "Okay...God, Fate or...whoever else is running things up there" he thought to himself, "I don't know if you can hear me but...please; give my friend, Bobby your strength." As his mind repeated the prayer; on the outside, Lincoln appeared to be muttering the word "please" softly under his breath.

As he and the Gal Pals continued their walk, a man was seen exiting a nearby pizza parlor. He was a short but round old man with thick eyebrows, light gray hair and a thin mustache that spread across his top lip. He wore a light-brown suit, a cream colored shirt, light-gray trousers, brown shoes and was sporting a pair of red suspenders.

As he was making his way home, the man caught sight of the girls heading his way down the sidewalk. Though he never associated too much with them; he recognized two of the girls as Hector Casagrande's granddaughters, Carlota and Ronnie Anne. But the other members of the group were relatively new to him.

Then, when he spotted Lincoln's slicked back hairdo; the man became alarmed and he suddenly plowed through the group of girls like a football player. Sore but showing no signs of injury from the collision, the Gal Pals picked each other up from the dirt and glared at the old man. "Dude! What is your deal, old man" Kat roared with annoyance, "why did you just ram through us like..."

Before she could finish her tirade, Kat watched in horror as the old man suddenly tackled Lincoln to the ground and started wrestling with him violently. "Jimmy the Rat, I thought I told you never to bother me anymore" he growled, "I already paid you back months ago!" Confused, Lincoln did everything he could to try and call the man off of him.

But alas; due to the size disadvantage he had against him, the young Loud boy could only fruitlessly struggle to pull himself loose from his grip. However, this tussle did not last for very long. In the blink of an eye, Ronnie Anne and Carlota quickly pulled the man off of Lincoln; whereby the Gal Pals helped their young friend off the ground.

"Vito Filliponio, what is your damage" Carlota growled in a reprimanding tone, "what gives you the right to attack people like this, especially my friends?!" As he stood there listening to the Casagrande teen yelling at him, the man called "Vito Filliponio" glanced slightly over at Lincoln and gave him a small yet angry glare.

"So...you're tellin' me you're friends with Jimmy now" Vito grumbled, "wait till I tell your Gramps about this, you makin' friends with a loan shark!" This outburst created quite a cacophony of offended outbursts within the group, especially from Lincoln. "Look, buddy; first of all, there's nobody named Jimmy here" growled Carol, "second of all...we outta report you to the police for attacking a minor!"

The moment he heard this reveal, Vito glanced back over at Lincoln and got a better look at him. When he saw how young the boy was and mentally compared his image with that of this "Jimmy the Rat" person, Vito began to sweat nervously. "Oh...Oh, wow" he mumbled, "I am so sorry about this, I...mistook you for someone else."

As he started dusting off Lincoln's clothes, Vito spotted his chipped tooth and let out an alarmed yelp. "Oh, boy; I'm sorry if I hurt you...I really am" he whimpered fearfully, "just please, don't rat me out to the Po-Po; one more citation and I'll be on garbage cleanup until New Year's Eve!" At first, Lincoln was about to question the man on why he was acting so odd.

But then, he quickly realized that he was getting worried over his chipped buck tooth. "This isn't your fault, Sir" Lincoln said reassuringly, "I've had this chip for many years." Upon saying this, Sid let out a soft yet pained hiss and asked how it happened.

"It's hard to say, to be honest" Lincoln muttered, "but it happened when I was two and...I think I was during my 'Teething Phase.'" With that, everyone had a pretty clear idea of what might've happened. Lincoln, in his desperate attempt to ease his aching mouth, might have been chewing on something hard.

This may have resulted in him earning his trademark chip. But in spite of this explanation, Vito still felt rather guilty of his actions and apologized to the boy. "Gang, this is Vito" Ronnie Anne stated, "he's one of my abuelo's friends and another one of the Bodega's most frequent costumers."

While still feeling flustered towards the man's earlier actions against Lincoln, the Gals still did the respectable thing and greeted him accordingly. "Hey...wait a minute, I think I know you ladies" Vito muttered, "I saw you all on the TV, weeks ago...same with that kid." The group groaned inwardly in annoyance, wishing that some people would cease referring to them as "those kids on the TV."

"Yeah, it's us" mumbled Lincoln, "although...we're doing all we can to put that whole experience behind us." Vito nodded silently in understanding before making a zipping gesture over his lips. "Quick question, Vito" inquired Carlota, "how could you confuse a preteen boy for some kind of loan shark?"

Without a moment's pause, the man simply gestured at Lincoln's hair; proclaiming that the color and the style reminded him of Jimmy. "First time I've ever seen a kid sport a do like that" he stated, "it suits ya." At first, Lincoln didn't know how to respond to such a comment.

But after a while, he decided to go with the best option and simply say "thank you." With that settled, the gang continued on their journey home and Vito did the same. "Sorry about that whole thing, Linc" Ronnie Anne whispered in his ear, "Vito sometimes acts like one of those paranoid retirees from the mafia."

Intrigued by this statement, Lincoln asked if he ever was part of such a group. "Can't really tell you, him and my abuelo have been friends since before I was even born" Carlota replied, "but with the way he's always gossiping around town...I guess he's worried about getting busted by somebody for it." With that said, the rest of the journey back to the building went smoothly.

(Scene Change: The Casagrande Apartment Complex, After Dark)

After a very satisfying dinner courtesy of Mrs. Casagrande, sometime later; everyone exited the apartment and went off to each of the rooms they would be bunking in. The last to leave was Lincoln, who was about to head into the hallway bathroom to wash up. "Have a good night sleep, Lincoln" Carol said with a yawn, "we'll see you for breakfast in the morning...'kay?"

After responding with a nod; Lincoln hugged his guardian tight, kissed her cheek lovingly and wished her goodnight. "Hey! What are we, chopped liver" Becky grumbled, "the three of us are your guardians too, Lincoln...don't we deserve some of that sugar?" After sharing a light chuckle at his friend's statement; Lincoln walked over and shared a hug and/or a kiss with the rest of Carol's crew as well

"See you in the morning, Linky" Dana said sweetly, "and remember what Mrs. Chang said...the best thing you can do for Bobby is to pray for him." Lincoln nodded slightly in understanding, bade everyone one last "goodnight" and made his way towards the hallway bathroom. But as he reached for the doorknob, his ears twitched at the light sounds of tapping and beeping.

Lincoln turned his head and noticed that the sounds were coming from one of the other bedroom doors. With great care, he tiptoed over towards the door and noticed that it was opened slightly and peeked in through the crack. It was then that he spotted Bobby sitting on the bed, which meant that this was his room.

"It looks like he's texting somebody" he thought to himself, "could he be trying to contact Lori...or is he just posting on his Social Media page?" His curiosity growing ever higher, Lincoln attempted to stick his head further into the room for a better look. But then, the door suddenly slid fully open; which resulted in him falling flat onto his face.

With a painful groan, Lincoln began to rub his sore nose in hopes of easing the pain. But he quickly stopped, when he saw the pajama-clad form of Bobby standing over him. With a startled yelp, Lincoln tried to think of a way to explain why he was there...only for him to be silenced by Bobby's raised hand.

"I know why you're here, lil' dude" he muttered, "Nini texted me earlier and told me." With this reveal; Lincoln suddenly felt an odd combination of worry, embarrassment, fear and curiosity swirling around in his gut. "There's no need to be nervous, Lincoln" Bobby said with a friendly smile, "I'm actually glad you're here...can we talk before you hit the hay?"

At first, Lincoln was mildly confused by his friend's request. But when he saw the pleading look in Bobby's eyes, he decided to play along and entered the room. Once the door was closed, Lincoln got a good look at Bobby's phone and saw the all too familiar sight of Lori's pout selfie on the screen.

Upon seeing this, Lincoln couldn't help but smile; thinking that perhaps, Bobby did take his advice after all. Finally; Bobby locked the door, took a seat on his bed, looked down at his phone and sighed deeply. "I thought about what you said earlier, dude" he murmured, "after a while, I gave Lori another call...but she wasn't answering."

From there; Bobby went on to explain that after their chat on the roof, he got the confidence he needed to try talking to Lori again. "I called up her cell earlier but I only got her voicemail" he said with a frown, "I figured she might've been workin' with the family or in one of those classes you mentioned."

Lincoln nodded slightly in understanding, feeling inwardly happy that he'd managed to get through to Bobby. "So, if Lori isn't home right now...why were you typing earlier" he asked, "were you sending a text in case she missed any calls you made?" Bobby nodded with a bright smile, stating that he hoped that he hoped Lori would answer to at least one of the messages.

"So, what now" Lincoln inquired, "are you two going to get back together and be like you were before...or are you planning to break things off?" Bobby's smile waned slightly and he began to tap his chin in thought. Finally, he revealed that he did plan on getting back together with Lori again...just not yet.

"She broke my trust and my faith in her, when I learned of the bad stuff going on between you two" he explained, "so, I want to see if Lori can make the right steps to earn my love and affection again." With that said; he told Lincoln that by agreeing to the terms of the trial sentence, Lori was taking a step in the right direction. "She'll be happy to hear that" Lincoln said with relief, "thanks for not giving up on her."

After that; the two boys shared a quick fist-bump, said good night to each other and retired to their respective sleeping spaces for a well-earned rest.

(Line Break)

After a good night's sleep, Lincoln and the Gal Pals' stay in Great Lakes City went relatively smoothly. On the following morning, Ronnie Anne took them back downtown; where she introduced the gang to her new school. Lincoln couldn't help but gasp in awe, saying that it looked a lot bigger than Royal Woods Elementary.

Before leaving, the group caught a glimpse of an old poster that read "Join the Lucha Libre Robotics Club Today." Feeling curious, Lincoln asked what the club was about and who were the ones in charge of it. "Oh, that; it's just something me and Sid came up with" Ronnie Anne stated, "we had trouble finding a club where we could both hang together and have fun at the same time."

"I was so nervous about not finding one" Sid muttered fearfully, "if we couldn't be in a club together, it would mean losing two hours of hang-time a day...which equals approximately 10 hours a week and 40 hours a month of not...hanging...out!" The moment this thought came into her head, Sid was on the verge of a mild panic attack. Thinking quickly, Ronnie Anne handed her bestie a paper bag; where she began breathing into it frantically.

As Lincoln watched the scene before him, he couldn't help but remember a similar fear Clyde had a long time ago. It was then that he felt the two of them would be a good match; if not romantically, then platonically. "I'm guessing all the other clubs didn't meet your standards" Jordan asked, "so...how did you come up with this robotics club?"

In response, Sid explained that the club embodied their two favorite things; her love for building robots from scratch and Ronnie Anne's love of masked wrestling. "Are students allowed to fight these bots" inquired Kat, "if so, I've wanted to test out some kickboxing moves I've been practicing last Fall." This statement caused the group to laugh heartily, believing that their friend would be one tough cookie for any bot to beat.

"So, wait...you two just came up with your own club" Lincoln asked, "I thought all the after school clubs were stuff the school board thought up." Before anyone could make a reply, an older voice suddenly spoke up; catching their attention. "That's true for cases like Glee or Chess Club" the voice said, "but anyone is allowed to come up with a new one...as long as it's school appropriate."

Upon hearing the voice, Ronnie Anne smiled and turned to find a familiar sight; a trio of city kids. One was a young dark-skinned lad with a red hoodie over a pink t-shirt, gray shorts, white high tops with blue laces and a black and white checkered hat turned backwards. The second was a rather small kid with a rugged head of brown hair, a round nose, a sleeveless yellow stripped shirt, dark blue shorts and red clogs.

The third of the trio was a tall yet lanky girl; she wore a sky-blue hoodie, blue Capri jeans and pink low tops shoes. She had blonde hair that seemed to cover one side of her face, held a black skateboard beside her and as she stood waving at Ronnie Anne, the Gal Pals could see that her smile was missing a tooth. Curious, Jordan asked Ronnie Anne if she knew the kids somehow.

"Of course I do" the young Latina said with glee, "they're some of the first pals I made here in the city." With that said, she led everyone over to the trio and began with the introductions. "The dude sporting the checkered hat is Casey, the lil' man is Sameer and that's Nikki" Ronnie Anne stated, "you guys already know Lincoln...but these here are his...what do you call yourselves again, Gal Pals."

The group giggled softly and waved hello to the trio of city kids. "Ronnie's told us a lot about you guys" Casey stated, "said you're all pretty tight." Nikki nodded in agreement and added how "lucky" Lincoln was to have the attention of so many girls. "Oh...it's nothing like that, you guys" he murmured shyly, "we're all just...close friends."

This response caused the trio to laugh heartily before informing Lincoln that they were "just ribbing him." "We heading on over to the park" Casey informed, "you guys are all welcome to hang, if you like." Without a moment's pause, Lincoln and the Gal Pals all responded to the offer with a highly enthusiastic "YEAH!"

(Line Break)

Upon arriving at the park, everyone decided to partake in a small game of Dodgeball. At first, it looked like Ronnie Anne's team (consisting of herself, Sid, Nikki, Cici and Jordan) was close to beating Lincoln's team (which consisted of himself, Stella, Casey, Sameer and Kat.) But then, the tables turned; when Stella commanded everyone to assume a "scorpion formation."

When the moment was right; Stella, acting as the team's "tail," launched the ball towards Ronnie Anne. Not only did the sudden attack managed to hit her in the face. But once it did, the ball then bounced against every other member of the team.

Afterwards, the ball then rolled slowly across the floor over towards Lincoln's team; whereby Stella stopped it beneath her foot. "That's how we do it back in the Woods" she said proudly, "y'all put up quite a fight...but in the end, we win." As Team Lincoln began cheering with joy, Ronnie Anne pushed herself up and glared at Stella.

Upon seeing the look on her face, The Gal Pals suddenly stopped cheering and watched Ronnie Anne stomp angrily in Stella's direction. "Okay, missy" she growled softly with venom in her voice, "I've got just one question for you." Now, very little seems to frighten Stella; she may appear dainty but she is much tougher than you think.

But when she saw the anger in Ronnie Anne's eyes and remembered how tough she used to be with Lincoln, she couldn't help but quiver a little. Finally, she watched as Ronnie Anne reached into the back of her hoodie; presumably going for some kind of hidden weapon. But a split-second later, what Stella saw instead was her pulling out a notebook and pen.

Afterwards, Ronnie Anne said one simple phrase that took everyone off-guard; "how did you do that and teach it to me now." Everyone on both teams immediately let out deep and relieved sighs before falling over to the ground, after that. "Phew! That's a relief" murmured Stella, "for a second, I thought you were gonna hurt me."

Upon hearing this; Ronnie Anne chuckled loudly at the statement and assured everyone that she had changed quite a bit, since moving to the city. "I've even stopped harassing Lincoln like how I used to" she informed, "just...don't tell anyone back in Royal Woods about that yet, I've got a rep to maintain." Everyone chuckled lightly at the statement, fully understanding Ronnie Anne's wishes and performed a light lip-zipping gesture over their mouths.

"These guys are loads of fun, Santiago" Nikki said with great pride, "especially the lil' dude." Carol giggled softly before echoing the same compliment back to Ronnie Anne's group. Then, in that moment, an idea began to form in the teenager's mind. "In fact; since you guys made our stay here go so well thus far, I'd like to reward y'all" she stated, "come over here and kneel...you know how to do that, right?"

While this request did confuse the group a little, they openly obeyed it and did as Carol requested. Then, she reached into her purse and brought out one of her most fancy-looking combs. "Um, Carol" murmured Lincoln confusedly, "what do you plan to do with that?"

Before continuing, Carol took a moment to look over her shoulder and smile at Lincoln; telling to simply "watch and learn." After that, she turned her gaze back at the group before her and asked them to make a sort of "pledge." "As our friends, do you swear to uphold our friendship from this day forth" she asked, "to answer our calls for help, assist us whenever we may be in need...or to simply hang with us however possible?"

At first, these questions seemed rather odd; leaving everyone to wonder where Carol was going with all this. But regardless, everyone did the respectable thing and answered with a simple "to this we swear." "Then...as Lincoln's eldest legal guardian and 'leader' of the 'Gal Pals'" she began, "I hereby appoint the five of you...as the newest members of the crew."

After this, Carol tapped her brush against everyone's shoulders and tapped each of them lightly upon the head; thus "initiating" them into the Gal Pals group. After this, Carol asked for each of their cellphones; whereby she proceeded to share her number with them and vice-versa.

"As members of the crew, we should remain in touch with one another; in case anything happens" Carol explained, "I'm planning on doing this with a few others before our weekend stay is over." As you might expect, Ronnie Anne was at a complete loss for words over this. The whole thing caused a whirlwind of emotions to swirl within her, from confusion to humble.

Finally, the young Latina came to her senses enough to offer up a smile at Carol. "Thanks, this is really nice of you" she murmured, "does this mean we have to get the rest of your numbers as well?" This statement caused everyone to lightly giggle at her until Lincoln assured her that they'd have plenty of time for that later.

"I just have one question" Sameer interjected, "if the group is called 'Gal Pals,' then...does that apply to me, Casey and Lincoln?" It took a moment for the meaning behind the statement to click. But when it did, Lincoln chuckled and informed the boys that his friend, Clyde once asked the same thing. "In the end, Carol decided to call us 'Honorary Gal Pals'" he stated, "which I've decided to call 'Guy Squad...' does that make sense?"

Casey smiled lightly at Lincoln, upon being asked this and answered his inquiry with a hearty high-five. Afterwards, Dana looked at the time on her phone and saw that it was nearly lunchtime. "Okay, folks; time to take a breather" Ronnie Anne announced, "there's a picnic area we can sit at near the basketball court."

With that said, everyone made their way over to the tables; eager to fill up their bellies before having some more fun.

(Scene Change: the apartment building - Bobby's Room)

Back at the building, Bobby was sitting in his room; staring helplessly at his cellphone. He had sent Lori four text messages almost an hour ago and he'd yet to hear her call back since then. Now, some onlookers would see this as a sign of Bobby regressing back to his old lovesick puppy self.

But in reality, the reason for his desperation was much more desperate than you think. Not only did he wish to touch base with Lori after several days...or weeks, rather of not talking with her. But he had something he needed to say to her right away, something incredibly important.

Finally, he heard the familiar tune of "Ooh, Girl" by Boyz Will Be Boyz playing on his phone; which he immediately recognized as Lori's personal ringtone. With a startled yelp, Bobby suddenly stumbled off his bed and landed on the floor painfully. A few seconds later, he found himself frantically juggling the phone in his hands; desperate to try and get a grip on it.

When he finally managed to get a hold of the phone (and himself,) Bobby took a few breaths and answered the call. "Uh...hey, ba...I mean, Lori" he murmured, "it's been a while hasn't it?" There was a light giggle on the other line before Lori's voice responded with a simple "yeah, it has."

Against his better judgment; Bobby suddenly felt his heart swell with joy, the moment he heard Lori's voice. After not speaking with her for so long; to him, his (shall we say) on-the-fence lover's voice sounded like a choir of angels. "I just got back from helping my family with beach cleanup" Lori informed, "you can't imagine all the trash people leave behind after they've left the shore."

After that, she went on to mention how she came across Bobby's earlier messages but was unable to respond. "Don't worry, Linc told me all about it" he assured her, "of course...it was my first time hearing about your Community Service sentence and the classes you were ordered to take." On the cellphone's screen, Lori gave her "former" boyfriend a confused stare.

Upon seeing said expression; Bobby, while trying desperately to cover a light blush on his cheeks, told Lori he missed it all due to being trapped in the dairy case again. Lori couldn't help but giggle a little, happy to see that her boo was still himself; in spite of things. "So, Lincoln and his friends got to the city safely" she inquired, "I'm hoping they're all having fun there."

Bobby smiled at Lori fondly and assured her that everyone was fine. "Linc's crew really hit it off well with the fam" he stated, "the other tenants in the building seem to love 'em too." After that, Bobby could hear Lori sighing slightly on the other line.

Unfortunately, he wasn't sure if it was a sigh of relief or anguish. With this in mind, he asked her if she was okay. "Of course, Bobby" Lori said with a smile, "I'm just a little exhausted is all, gotta get my rest before my Anger Management class at 1:00 PM."

Bobby nodded in understanding and was prepared to end the call at that. But then, he remembered the original reason why he wanted to call Lori and asked for a moment of her time. "Of course, Bobby" she said with some concern, "what do you want to talk about?"

For a moment or two, Bobby found himself desperately struggling; unsure of what to say or how he should say it. Then, after taking a couple of deep breaths; he finally got the nerve he needed to talk again. "Listen, the reason I called is...I wanted to talk...about us" Bobby said bluntly, "this whole business with your family's drama and Lincoln getting caught in the crossfire really left my head spinning...especially after I learned about the stuff you said and did to him in the past."

The moment she heard all this, Lori let out a loud gasp and fell hard upon the sofa in her living room; almost landing on Lily. After taking a moment to steel her nerves, she found the strength to speak again and said "I understand...I'd want to break up with me too, after learning all that." It was in that moment that Lori came dangerously close to ending the conversation then and there...until Bobby quickly stopped her.

"No, babe; I don't want to break up" he said reassuringly, "I just...I'm not ready for us to be like how we were before...not yet, at least." Feeling both worried yet curious, Lori asked Bobby what he was trying to say. "Thing is...I still care about you, babe" he said with a soft grin, "but...if you want me to love you like I did before, you're gonna have to earn it."

From here; Bobby swore that if Lori kept going to her classes, adhere to every lesson and try to better herself from them...he would happily take her back. "I know you can do this, babe" he said warmly, "if you're strong enough to handle watching over ten siblings...these lessons should be a cakewalk for you." After taking a moment to let Bobby's words sink in; Lori, for the first time in a long time, began to shed small tears.

But these were not tears of distress or anguish, mind you; they were tears of utter joy. "Thank you...Thank you so much for saying that, Bobby" she said in a heartfelt tone, "it means so much to know that you still care and believe in me." After this, Lori was just about ready to end their conversation there.

But then, Bobby quickly stopped her and offered the eldest Loud Sister a sort of proposition. "How does this sound" he began, "after every class, you and I chat for...a half hour or forty minutes and you can tell me how things went?" At first, Lori felt that thirty-to-forty minutes was too short of time compared to their previous text/phone/video chat sessions.

But then, she suspected that there was more to the idea and urged him to continue. "If I hear that you're doing well in class, I'll consider giving us another shot" he suggested, "but if there are signs of trouble...well, you get the idea." Lori took a moment to consider the idea and then, she offered Bobby the smallest yet sweetest of smiles.

"Okay, Bobby; I promise I'll give it my all from here on out" she assured, "so...until next time?" Without missing a beat; the young Santiago teen nodded slightly, gave Lori a sweet smile and echoed the words "until next time" in reply." After that, the line went dead and all was silent within the room again.

With a soft yet pleased sigh, Bobby fell back onto his pillow and could feel the cool wave of relief rush through him; happy to finally be able to move forward again with Lori. But unbeknownst to him; just outside his door, his mother and relatives were seen silently listening in on the whole conversation.

At the same time; Frida, Rosa and even Bobby's mother, Maria did everything in their power not to cry too loudly with joy. But regardless, they were all no less happily with this wonderful turn of events.

(Line Break)

On the third day of the three-day weekend stay in Great Lakes, Lincoln and the Gals agreed to just take it easy at the building and hang out with everyone there. They laughed, goofed around and Lincoln even caught Ronnie Anne up on some things that were going on back in Royal Woods. Needless to say, the whole trip turned out to be a rather successful one.

But alas, the time soon came where everyone had to bid each other farewell. After Rosa fed them an early supper, everyone in the building helped the gang load their things into their van. "Thank you so much for helping us pack, letting us stay with you and...darn near everything else; everyone" Carol said gratefully, "it'll be sad to say goodbye to this awesome city."

Upon sensing her mild despair, Whitney patted Carol's back tenderly; assuring her that this wasn't goodbye forever, just "so long until next time." "You got that right" Ronnie Anne interjected with a chuckle, "us 'Gal Pals' have gotta stick together, right?" The moment this was said, Sid and Carlota gasped loudly; proclaiming they had something to show everyone before the gang left.

"It's a little something we came up with, just to say thanks for making us part of your posse" Sid stated, "hope you like it." With that, Carlota began frantically tapping her thumbs upon her phone; which made everyone feel quite curious. Not long after that, Lincoln and the Gals suddenly heard their phones go off; alerting them of an incoming message.

When each of them brought it up, they saw what looked like a sort of poem on their screens. "Sid came up with the words and I thought about making it into a chant/cheer" Carlota stated, "got the idea from the time I served in Cheer Squad last year at school." As the gang began reading over the words of the "chant/cheer," all of the building's tenants asked what the whole thing was all about.

"Long story short, we officially made these young ladies outer city members of our crew" Becky stated, "and for being such gracious hosts...we think it's only fair for you to be part of it as well." At first, the residents of the apartment complex (particularly, the females) didn't know how to respond to the whole thing. But after Ronnie Anne explained everything to them, it all became clear as day.

"I've already sent the text out to Margarita and Nikki" Carlota informed, "now, whenever you come to see us; this how we'll welcome you." After that, the Gal Pals and Lincoln burst with laughter; proclaiming the idea to be weirdly awesome. "Well, I speak for us all when I say...gracias niño y niñas" Rosa murmured happily while wiping away a tear from her eye, "if you ever need help with anything, do not hesitate to call any of us."

Everyone else, especially the building's female residents, all happily seconded Mrs. Casagrande's notion and expressed equal thanks for placing such trust in them as well. "If any of you are ever in the city again, pop by the zoo during your stay" Mrs. Chang stated, "an associate of mine informed me he's doing what he can to help rescue a family of polar bears up in the north." Upon hearing these words, Cristina and Jordan's faces contorted into a pair of "anime-style" happy faces and they started "squeeing" shrilly with joy.

"I think you just said the secret word, Mrs. Chang" Lincoln whispered, "these two just love polar bears." After everyone had a good laugh about the reveal, everyone resumed saying their goodbyes. The most surprising of these goodbyes was Ronnie Anne's, who openly held Lincoln in a brief but lovingly friendly embrace.

"Smell you later, lame-o" she said with a smile, "and thanks for helping Bobby out...I think he's getting back to his usual goofy self again." This news filled Lincoln with a great deal of pride, to say the least. After returning Ronnie Anne's hug, he asked her to let him know on her brother's progress; to which she happily agreed.

With that done, everyone climbed into the van and began their drive back to Royal Woods. As the apartment residents watched the vehicle go off into the distance, Sid smiled coyly and began playing a parade tune on her phone. Call it coincidence or, as Rosa would claim, some kind of spell...but as soon as the music played and the van drove down the road, every friend the group made in the city (male and female) began to chant Carlota's chant/cheer.

"We're Gal Pals and, yes, we shall conquer the world one day!

We're no sweet bunnies, we're smart and funny and we demand equal pay!

We'll shout 'Gal Pals' right into your ear canal and bang it on a drum!

We're sweet and nice, but take our advice cross us and you'll be chum!"

Then, all of a sudden; a shocking/annoying surprise occurred in the van. Just as the Gals ended the chant with a hearty cheer, Whitney's poofy hair suddenly expanded back into its original state with a "SPROING" sound. The moment it happened, the aforementioned teen patted her hands atop the poof and cried out in annoyance "AH, DANG IT;" just as their vehicle disappeared into the distance.

(Scene Change: Bobby's Bedroom – minutes away from bedtime)

Sometime after the gang's departure, Bobby was finishing up on brushing his teeth and was just about to head off to sleep. When he suddenly heard Lori's ringtone going off on his phone in the bedroom. Without a moment's pause, he hurried inside and saw that it was an oncoming message from Lori.

Bobby lightly tapped his thumb upon the message icon and then, a small white screen appeared; which showed off the words "just got back from AM, wanna talk?" After taking a few seconds to think it over, Bobby smiled and pressed the timer on his phone. Soon after, an electronic timer appeared on the top right corner of the phone; which showed the number forty flashing slightly.

Once the time was set, Bobby reclined himself into his bed and casually asked "so...how was class today?"

(First AN: Thus, the gang's trip to the city ends and on a positive note at that. Bobby and Lori are taking the first big steps into regaining each other's love. Only time will tell if they will become the same lovestruck pair they once were.)

(Second AN: I pray you will all not mind the whole "Mrs. Chang trapped between the zoo cage bars" scene. At the behest of one crafordbrian17, I felt obligated to include it in the oneshot. But rest assured, this will be the only time this sort of moment will be used.)

(Third AN: The scene where Lincoln sees the white rabbit with 25 bunny sisters is a light reference to the Loud House episode White Hare. Said episode, for those unaware, was the original idea the creators had in mind for the series; before deciding on human characters.)

(Final AN: Carlota and Sid's chant for the Gal Pals crew originally comes from the Spongebob episode, Cabin in the Kelp; which also happens to contain another sort of Gal Pals crew. When I first heard it, I thought it'd be perfect for our heroes.)