Hello Again, I have returned from my extended hiatus. I hope everybody is doing alright given our current predicament. There will be a separate author's note at the end with regards to the future of this fanfic. I don't own the Loud House, I just think it's really cool.
It had only been an hour since Lincoln Loud had departed his home, but while many in the house had already allowed exhaustion to claim them, the room that held the eldest daughters was filled with soft sobs.
"Leni? Are you still sad about Lincoln?" her roommate replied with a hint of irritation.
The platinum blonde ceased her crying and said "N-No, it's about Chaz."
The posture of her older sister changed immediately upon hearing that. It was Lori who had brought Chaz into her sister's life, being a part of her friend group in high school.
"What about him?"
Leni opened her mouth to say something, but another round of sobs drowned out her reply. Lori sighed before throwing her blanket off of her body and swung her legs to face her sister to her left.
"Leni, this clearly can't wait until morning," she said rubbing her forehead and eyes. "Why couldn't you have brought this up right after work?"
"But… It's after work now," she replied confusedly, tears still gently falling.
"Leni, please don't do this tonight," Lori said in a harsh whisper. "I meant immediately after work, in Vanzilla on our way home?"
Leni sat up in bed, wiping her face with a nearby tissue. "I don't know, OK?" she said defensively. "I guess Miguel and Fiona kept me happy after I talked to Chaz. And then seeing Lincoln again helped too."
"And what exactly did the two of you talk about?"
"Well… we talked about Linky for a while," she paused. "That's what made me think about our conversation today. But he didn't really get to tell me what he wanted to say in the end."
By this point, Leni's meandering was even more annoying as Lori and her for that matter had to be up early to go to work. So Lori had to hurry things along.
"Leni, did Chaz end things with you?"
"What? No… at least, I don't think so. He said he wanted to discuss something really important with me, but we spent so much time talking about Lincoln that he said he'd just tell me during my break the next day."
Lori pondered for a moment what to say.
"Alright Leni, listen to me!" she said sternly. "We'll discuss this tomorrow, OK?"
Wide eyed, Leni replied. "But, I can't sleep until I know things are going to be totes alright."
Sighing with frustration, Lori then put on a small smile and got up from her bed. She crossed the short distance to her roommates bed, and sat down.
"I'll tell you what," she began. "Why don't I sleep with you in your bed, just for tonight?" Leni soon leapt into her sisters arms with a teary eyed look.
"Oh thank you Lori," she cheered before getting shushed. "Oh, right, sorry," she whispered.
Meanwhile, in the master bedroom downstairs, a frantic Lynn Sr. was putting the finishing touches on the HELP NEEDED post on his restaurant website.
"Aannd, there we go," he said with a grin. "Good thing I never got rusty in my IT skills!"
He closed his laptop and placed it under his side of the bed before moving to turn off his table lamp. He stopped upon noticing that his wife had walked out of the bathroom in her pink robe.
"You know, things were going great for a while honey, we were even able to rebuild the second bathroom after only a month of the restaurant being open," she said.
"I do know," he replied. "If anything, there just isn't enough room anymore for everybody to have a seat."
Rita walked over to her side of the bed, laid down, and placed one hand on her husband's cheek.
"You'll figure things out, I just know it," she said as she caressed his face.
"Thanks honey," he told her, kissing her before reaching back towards his lamp. Then a thought occurred to him. "Sooo Rita? About my brother?"
Rita was reaching for the book on her nightstand when the question reached her. "What about Avery?"
"Do you forgive him? You know, for the kiss?" he asked inquistively.
Rita sighed, turning to face her husband.
"I don't know Lynn, on the one hand, it was so long ago that times have changed since then." Lynn nodded his head but his wife wasn't through her thoughts.
"But looking back, it was still a shock to have been kissed so harshly; And his breath Lynn, did he have to be so drunk when he kissed me?"
Lynn shook his head. "He did promise me that he'd keep his lips off the alcohol at the reception, so that was another disappointment in my eyes."
Rita placed her head in her hands, rubbing its sides in big circles. "I guess it'll depend on whether he can fix Lincoln, he may not be a psychiatrist but he's still a doctor, so he must have some idea of what to do."
"At least," Lynn Sr. added. "More of an idea than us." He looked at his alarm clock, noting the approaching morning. "I should get to bed, things are going to be hell at work if I don't." He finally turned off his light and tried to go to sleep.
Rita on the other hand, kept her light on and reached out for her book. It was then a thought occurred to her, why do I get the feeling I'm forgetting something else.
When she couldn't answer that question, she shrugged before opening her book.
7 AM
Morning came sooner than expected for the eldest residents of the Loud House. The alarms went off in the master bedroom and the room of the two eldest daughters.
"Ugh, literally," Lori groaned before sitting up, or at least, trying to sit up, before she noticed the weight to her left holding her down. She then took notice of a damp feeling on her chest and looked down to see a large damp spot.
"Please tell me this is just tears?" she muttered quietly. She considered sniffing the spot, but figured better. "I'm just going to assume so."
She moved to turn off her cell phone alarm, but Leni was still clinging to her side. In response, she shook her temporary bed buddy.
"C'mon Len, get up," she whispered harshly. "And don't think we can shower together either."
But the grip the younger sister had on her only tightened. Lori was going to have to get creative, a little mean perhaps, but creative.
"Leni!" she said in a faux excited tone. "Lincoln's here, it was all just a bad dream."
That did the trick, as Leni released the hold she had on her older sister, enough for Lori to bring an end to a symphonic version of "Ooh girl, if I could."
"Really, where is he? Linky!" she said excitedly. A hush from her roommate brought her back to reality.
"Sorry Leni, but Lincoln isn't here," she said with legit sympathy. "We really do need to get ready though, but I'm getting in the shower first, since you take 40 minutes and there's no hot water afterwards."
Leni only nodded sadly before walking over to her dresser and sorting through it to find the perfect outfit for the day.
Downstairs
Lynn Sr was already up and in the kitchen preparing the morning meal for his eldest daughters. The rest of the family was asleep.
"Good morning Lori, Leni," he greeted the newly showered girls. Lori responded with a more chipper attitude. Leni however, was still downcast, the turquoise dress clad teen visibly depressed.
"Hey Leni, everything OK?" he asked her. She responded by slowly shaking her head.
"Is it about Lincoln?" the father replied inquisitively.
"Actually dad," the eldest daughter spoke up. "It's about a different boy."
"Who?" the father inquired
"You remember Chaz, right?" Lori replied
Lynn Sr pondered for a moment.
"Chaz? Isn't he the plus sized boy with a cap and striped shirt?" he questioned
"So you do know him?" she said with her arms crossed
"Only from description, I haven't gotten to actually meet him like I did with Bobby and Sam."
"Well, with any luck, you will. Leni is supposed to meet with him today about something important, and Leni is too freaked out about what's going to happen." She then leaned in close to her father and whispered.
"That he might break up with her."
"I'm sure everything will be fine," the father said with a smile. "Now c'mon, time for first chow of the day, fresh off the stove."
With a yawn, both Lori and Leni entered the kitchen to grab a serving of oatmeal.
"The only good thing about waking up early during the summer, is that at least I'll be the first to get a toaster pastry." thought Lori.
At a Hazeltucky Farm
Lincoln woke up in an unfamiliar room, in an unusually comfortable bed. The late morning rays of sun pushed into the bedroom to wake its occupant. He rubbed his eyes before peeking under the bed's comforter to see… he was still in his orange shirt and jeans from last night. How did he get into bed?
Suddenly there was a knock on the bedroom door.
"Hey Lincoln, are you awake?"
Lincoln let out an audible "Uh huh" before the door creaked open to reveal the face of his uncle, dressed out of his tan suit and wearing a more casual outfit of khakis and a collared shirt.
"Great!" he said excitedly. "Why don't you get changed and come meet me downstairs so we can discuss how the day is going to play out?" Lincoln nodded and Avery shut the door, his footsteps echoing down the hall and hitting the stairs.
"Uncle Avery must have carried me inside when we arrived."
The boy stretched his arms before throwing his covers to the side and slipping out of the bed onto a hardwood floor.
"I wonder if he brought my bag in too?"
His question was answered when he caught a glimpse of the thing under the bed. Chuckling to himself, Lincoln pulled the bag out and unzipped it.
"Might as well look presentable," he said to himself. He pulled out a sky blue t-shirt and denim jeans before closing their container. He then walked over to the lone window of the room and parted the curtains the rest of the way.
What he saw were vast fields of golden agriculture stretching all the way to a woody clearing in the distance.
"I wouldn't mind waking up to this every day." Lincoln opened his window and took a deep breath, catching a strong scent of barley and …. bacon?
"I wonder if that's breakfast? I guess I'll wait to put on new clothes."
Lincoln wasted no time rushing to the door of the bedroom and opening it wide. The hallway reached on in both directions, with doors aligning each side.
"This reminds me of that one movie with Tom Hanks as a Southerner. Now where are the stairs?"
Lincoln stepped out of the bedroom and closed the door before taking a sharp left and beginning his search for the ground level. Luckily, the house wasn't too big as Lincoln spotted a flight of stairs and immediately descended them, following the smell of breakfast all the way.
Lincoln heard the crackling of what was certainly the bacon in a room mere yards away. Standing in the kitchen was his uncle, wearing nothing that would protect his clothes from any splattering grease that could come at him. Avery turned from the pan and acknowledged his nephew.
"Good morning, Lincoln. I bet you slept well."
Lincoln let out a short yawn in response.
"I don't remember walking up the stairs last night, did you carry me inside?"
Avery nodded.
"You were pretty out of it once we left Royal Woods, and I tried shaking you awake, but you were already in a deep sleep." He flipped the strips of bacon over, which Lincoln noticed were still light grey.
"I'm guessing that's turkey bacon," the boy asked.
"Indeed," the doctor replied. "There's also toast and fruit already on the table," he added, pointing over his shoulder to an entire loaf of bread that was sliced into pieces and golden brown, next to a medium sized bowl of fruit salad.
"The bacon shouldn't be long now, go ahead and help yourself." Avery handed Lincoln a plate and Lincoln wasted no time charging towards the table. "What kind of jam or jelly do you like, Lincoln?" Avery asked.
"What kind do you have?"
"Everything," he replied.
Lincoln dropped his jaw. "Then I guess I'll have grape."
"Good choice," the older man said, walking over to the massive fridge and fiddling around until he pulled out a jar of grape jelly.
"This stuff is made fresh from another farm nearby," he told the boy, unscrewing the cap and placing it down next to him. "I'll just fetch the bacon and then we can begin our day right."
He pulled another plate from the cabinet above him, covered the surface with napkins, then gingerly plucked each slice of bacon from the pan, allowing the excess grease to fall.
"Be careful," he told his young guest. "Better wait a minute or so before putting this into your mouth." The plate was put in between Lincoln and his host, who sat in the chair next to him.
"Oh, shoot," Avery said, standing suddenly. "You've got nothing to drink. Would you like orange juice? Or are you old enough to like coffee?"
"Orange juice, absolutely." Lincoln replied, already smearing a piece of toast with the grape jelly. Avery nodded before power walking back to the fridge and retrieving a rotund, glass pitcher with a layer of film covering the top, filled with what was clearly orange juice.
"Let me guess, that's fresh too?"
"Mm hmm," the bald man said, not looking Lincoln's direction since he was searching for a large glass in the cabinets above him. "This'll do," he said, walking back towards the table and pouring his nephew a tall glass. "Now… we're ready to eat."
Lincoln reached for a couple pieces of the bacon, which were still a little too hot to eat, but not to touch.
As Avery sipped from his mug, he stared at Lincoln, pondering what to say next. Finally…
"So Lincoln," he began. "How are you feeling this morning? You know… given the way you spoke to your family and acted yesterday?"
Lincoln stopped chewing the piece of toast he held in his hand. After swallowing, he replied.
"It's… hard to say. I mean, I meant every word of what I told them. But…," his voice trailed off, thinking back to last night. "Now that I've gotten the best sleep I've had in a long time, I can't help but wonder whose really to blame after all," he said downcast.
Suddenly, a Maine Coon cat hopped up onto the kitchen table and let out a soft "Merawr"
"Ah, there you are fluffy boy," the bald man said with a smile as he stroked the tan, long haired feline.
"Lincoln, this is Bert."
"Bert? That's an… interesting name for a cat."
His uncle only laughed. "Yeah, it was your Uncle Maurie's idea to name him after the actor who played the Cowardly Lion from Wizard of Oz." He lightly shoved the adorable intruder off the table and away from the late breakfast.
"He didn't get anything on your food did he?" Avery asked with a half smile.
Lincoln looked at his plate closely before shaking his head.
"Good; Now, what were you saying about yesterday?"
Lincoln took the time to chew a piece of bacon before replying.
"What I was getting to… was that my sisters may have left me in the dust, but… it was those stupid judges that liked all of them so much, even though, as I said yesterday, Lynn and Lisa were the only remotely impressive ones."
Lincoln paused to collect his thoughts, taking a sip of juice, which tasted amazing by the way.
This really is the best juice ever!
"Anyway," he said once the juice was down his throat. "I can't help but think this whole problem could've been resolved if I'd either just asked my sisters to include me, or..."
After a pregnant pause from the tween, Avery looked at Lincoln inquisitively. "Yes?"
"If I had just created an original character around myself, and that way not only would I be included, but I would've been seen as equal to them, even though I'd just be a sidekick like the rest of them were written as."
Avery nodded while taking a sip of his coffee. "Both of those sound like good ideas… if we were still in the past. The real question here is, what are you going to do to fix the problem NOW?"
Taking a deep breath, Lincoln rubbed his face before realizing something.
"Ah, dammit, I still have grease on my hands," he said before covering his mouth.
"Sorry," the boy said meekly.
The doctor only waved his hand in dismissal.
"Don't worry about it, I know a lot of kids your age cuss, and you didn't use a stronger word even if you could've."
"Thanks, I appreciate it."
"Tell you what, let's leave the 'therapy talk' for after breakfast, and instead discuss what we're going to do today. Your Uncle Maurice won't be back for another few days, so why don't we do something fun?"
Lincoln gave a look of confusion
"You mean I don't have to work at all today?"
His uncle chuckled. "Of course not, Maurie has always been the expert when it comes to agriculture, so there's no way he'd trust me to supervise you and any other farm hands."
Lincoln's look of confusion dissolved into one of relief.
"So here's what I was thinking," Avery's voice alerted the young man. "Why don't we start with a tour of the farm? Your Uncle Maurie wouldn't be opposed to you getting used to your work area."
"Does it involve a lot of walking?" the bandaged boy asked. With a smirk, the doctor replied, "only to the shed where I keep the golf cart."
"That sounds good to me," Lincoln said with his mouth partially full. After swallowing what he had, Lincoln spoke again.
"I already caught a glimpse of the golden fields and the treeline when I opened my window earlier, but I can't wait to see what else there is."
"Excellent, just don't forget to close the window before we head out after breakfast. Oh, and by the way, this is what you can expect to eat for breakfast until Maurie returns. He's the real chef in this house, and will cook you a real farmers breakfast every morning if you ask him to."
Lincoln shrugged. "I'm OK with toast and bacon for the next few days," he said while scooping some fruit salad onto his plate.
"Well then, take your time with breakfast," the uncle said as he downed the last of his coffee. "I'll be in my office over there working until you're done."
Avery carried his mug to the sink, washed it out, then placed it in the dishwasher before walking past his nephew, past the stairs, and into a room with two large doors open to welcome its occupant.
I could used to this, Lincoln thought to himself. As he plunged his fork into a piece of cantaloupe, Lincoln couldn't help but smile.
Back in Royal Woods
Leni sat in the food court of the Royal Woods mall, nervously sipping a smoothie while seated between Miguel and Fiona.
"Well, he should be here any moment," Fiona told her co-worker with an encouraging back rub added. "Don't worry Leni, we'll be here for you no matter what."
"Yeah girl," Miguel added. "Best friends for life!"
At that moment, the familiar shape of a large teenager came into the view of the trio. He waved before quickening his pace until he was feet away from Leni.
"H-Hi Chaz," she said meekly. Miguel and Fiona stood from their seats and began to walk away.
"We won't be far, girl," Miguel said with an assuring wink while Fiona gave a subtle glare at the new arrival.
"Don't let him get away with keeping you in a lurch," Fiona whispered.
When the teens were far enough away, Chaz pulled up a seat and sat.
"Sooo, Leni," he spouted nervously. "How have you been?"
How had she been? The last 16 hours were probably the worst she'd ever experienced emotion wise.
"The worst!" she finally said. "First, I worried this whole time what you were going to tell me, but then Lincoln came home and I was happy to see him, but he shaved his head and if it weren't for the bandages he'd be totes adorable, so ..."
"LENI!" Chaz interrupted. "Please slow down, and breath. Now, what were you saying about Lincoln being bald?"
Leni grew a frown on her face, tired of the delay in finding out the fate of her relationship.
"Oh no, I'm not saying anything about Linky until you tell me what you were going to tell me yesterday," she said with her hands on her hips.
Taken aback by this new side to his 'girlfriend,' Chaz sighed.
"Alright Len, I guess the time has come. But, I don't really know the best way to say this, it's just… so weird."
"Chaz, just start talking," she replied as she grabbed one of his hands with both of hers.
"Look Leni, there's this girl from my church who I think really likes me. I just can't stop thinking about her." The portly boy said nervously.
Leni's eyes widened at this news.
"I have….. competition?"
It was brought to my attention a while ago that a plot point of my story is very similar to an existing episode of King of the Hill. I had no idea this episode existed, and I can't be expected to know all media. That being said, if anything about my story going forward feels too familiar, feel free to let me know, and I'll decide whether it's worth changing. The same goes for existing fanfics as well, as I can't possibly read every last one of them.
Between graduating from college, getting a full time job, and moving into a new place; With everything else going on, it's taken me close to half a year to get re-established in my writing. I'm going to be better at communicating my progress going forward.
