"Lucky me, I`ve been enrolled in that same school. Guess we`ll be seeing each other a lot." Ryan replied to Luan as she showed him the painfully drab and unremarkable building. Granted, even if he hadn't known this place already, he would be hard pressed to say anything positive about a school.
"Yeah...eh good for you that you won't have to worry about starting out all alone, huh?" Luan said shyly. "I`ll show you everything."
"Eh, I`m not all that worried, new challenges never frightened me. Me and Lynn are gonna be classmates anyway."
Luan`s eyelids dropped and she frowned slightly. "Oh right...her." she grumbled.
She looked back at the building, in the back of her mind she dreaded the end of summer, once school started Ryan would inevitably learn a few more things about her she`d rather not have him know.
Of course, he already knew about her less than stellar peer image, and contrary to what she might think now, he didn't look down on her because of it. He knew what that was like.
"Something bothering you?" his voice jolted her.
"No. Just...eh...the janitor proposed to my math teacher on the last day of school..."Luan replied nervously "...he sure swept her off her feet, get it?" she joked and pretended to laugh.
"Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!" she lamented inwardly.
"Interesting..." Ryan said idly.
He knew there was no point in asking Luan about her school life or if she had any friends. Why ruin the date and put Luan down by inquiring about something he already knew.
At that moment he heard the static from his walkie-talkie under his shirt.
"Shit!"
"But speaking of teachers?" Ryan asked quickly. "How are they? Any overly strict asshats I should look out for?"
Luan chortled. "Oh yes! Where do I even start?" she stared off into space pondering. "My first-year math teacher was unbearable. She`d give you detention for just cracking a smile..."
Ryan took the opportunity to grab and whisper into the walkie-talkie. "What is it? Did you find it?"
He looked back to Luan prattling on before whispering back into the phone through clenched teeth, "Then don't bother me and let me do my job, pipsqueak." He immediately ended the call.
"Hey, Ryan?"
Ryan hid the phone. "Eh...you were saying?"
Luan looked at him oddly, noticing him holding something behind his back. "Were you even listening to me? What are you ho-"
Ryan sighed. "Sorry, I wasn't..." he replied sheepishly before slowly smirking "...I sorta got lost in your eyes."
Luan froze. "...huh?"
Ryan smiled. Distraction: Success!
"Oh, I`m sorry if I'm coming on too strong, but I just couldn't help but notice how beautiful they are. So mesmerizing and full of...tenderness, and yet they have this spark in them, the spark of a kind and gentle soul, who nonetheless is full of...spunk and passion." Ryan improvised with his faux-poetic flirting, feeling his stomach twisting in a knot from disgust upon having to say that crap.
Yet it worked like a spell on Luan, who stared at him sparkly-eyed and completely stunned, her heart thumping like a humming bird`s, while Ryan placed his walkie-talkie back in his belt and pulled his shirt over.
"That...that was so...DEEP!" Luan squealed inwardly before feeling light-headed, her mind being reduced to mush.
"Ryan...I...I..." she stuttered like an idiot while blushing bashfully and rubbing her arms. "Aw...shucks...that...was...very kind of ya...to...say." she gazed down, feeling overwhelmingly flustered.
"Oh, Luan. Don't be so modest..." Ryan replied flirtatiously. "I`m sure I`m not the first guy who took notice of them, or your lovely, flowing hair and soft, creamy skin. You're a real vision."
Luan felt flattered, but her shy smile soon faltered. "Actually... " she admitted shamefully "...no boy has actually said that to me before." Luan immediately regretted saying that. Why did she say it? Why did she have to be so honest? She couldn't think straight!
Ryan knew she wasn't exactly popular, but this still came as a bit of surprise to him. He thought she was genuinely attractive, even with her buck teeth and braces. Did the boys in this town have such high standards for beauty?
"Really? Well, I`m glad to be the first one to notice, then." he told her sincerely and shrugged. "Their loss for being so oblivious."
Unable to believe her ears, Luan squeaked meekly. Wasn`t Ryan holding something? She had already forgotten entirely. "You mean that?"
"Sure I do, said casually. "I mean, yeah, you're funny, quirky and charming, but not to sound shallow or anything, but before I came to know you I couldn't help but notice how you were a sight for sore eyes."
Feeling completely inamoured, Luan suddenly fell back, prompting Ryan to catch her again.
"Wow! You alright?"
Feeling like she was sleeping on a cloud, Luan slowly opened her eyes and grew a blissful smile. "Enchanted..." she answered dreamily.
Ryan pulled her back up."Yeah...eh.." he cleared his throat. "So, how about we continue the tour, where to next?"
"Wherever you wish to go." a lovestruck Luan replied.
"I dunno...why don't we go to that amusement park, that place would be right up your fun-loving alley."
"Amusement park?"
"Yeah, isn't that the ideal place for a date? My treat of course."
"Awww...that`s very sweet of you. I...I`d like that." Luan gushed. Few people ever did something like that for her. And she felt like doing a cartwheel after hearing him use the word "date".
"Just being a gentleman." a chill Ryan shrugged and offered her his hand. "Would you care to show me the way?"
Luan felt overjoyed and took it.
Ryan wasn`t exactly familiar with using walkie-talkies and failed to properly turn it off. Lincoln and Lynn listened in on the conversion. They soon regretted their decision.
"Just being a gentleman. Would you care to show me the way?" the audio was sort of fuzzy and muffled but unfortunately still audible enough. A nauseated Lincoln finally turned it off.
"I can't believe that guy. Just how mushy and melodramatic can you get!" Lynn lamented. "You`re a tender soul full of spark and passion" she recited mockingly before gagging.
"Blah! Remind me to give him a good smack to the head later!"
"I won't be able to eat for a week..." Lincoln felt like he had just stepped out of a roller coaster.
"Yeah, thanks a lot for subjecting me to this filth!" Lynn told him curtly before turning back and resuming rummaging through the attic.
"Excuse me?" her brother retorted indignantly. "You were the one who insisted we listen in on him?" he pointed out before ducking from a book that Lynn threw over her shoulder and fell through the attic`s door.
"Whatever, we`re wasting time! Find the damn letter!" the jock retorted angrily. She pulled out a red fox toy wearing a pink jacket and holding a microphone. Its smile immediately creeped her out and she threw it away.
"Hey!" Lincoln yelped as he ducked again. "Lynn, you can't just throw things out of the attic! We`re trying to prevent messes, not make them!" he complained.
"Will you pipe down and keep searching!" Lynn shouted as she threw something else over her shoulder. That thing was Cliff, and Lincoln caught him from falling out.
Holding the shaking cat, Lincoln`s brow furrowed in concern. "Lynn, are you feeling okay? You seem a bit...jumpy?"
Lynn abruptly stood up and faced them, looking extremely irritated. Her glare gave them both shivers.
"Jumpy?! Who's jumpy?! I`m not jumpy! Who are you calling jumpy! I`m not jumpy! You're the one who's jumpy! How dare you call me jumpy!" Lynn ranted until she was out of breath and massaged her temples.
"You know what, nevermind! You can keep searching! It's my turn for lookout duty! I need some air!" she said abruptly, pushed past him and climbed down.
Now alone, a confused Lincoln stared at the ladder for a while before turning to Cliff and asking the cat, "Eh...what just happened?"
"I`m getting the impression that this place wasn't built for the lactose intolerant in mind." Ryan quipped as he and Luan strolled through the crowded park.
Truth be told, he felt kind of uncomfortable being surrounded by so many people, he was more used to sneaking around and lurking in the shadows, and his presence usually scared away large crowds, at least if they were other kids.
Luan snickered. "That's funny, you're funny."
"At least someone appreciates my zingers." Ryan thought as they walked past a guy stumbling by in a bulky cow suit.
"That poor guy looks like wants to kill himself." Ryan whispered to Luan..
"It must be very stuffy being stuffed in such a suit." Luan quipped in response.
"It certainly looks like a nightmare moooving in that thing." Ryan replied.
Luan giggled before seeing a stand. "Uhh...mind if I go for a sec to buy something?"
"Nope." Ryan shrugged before looking off in disbelief at what most of the park-goers were wearing. Suddenly, the mascot guy from before looked like the lucky one.
He snickered uncontrollably as Luan came back behind him. "Oh, god. This is so stupid."
"Eh...what is?" Luan asked innocently.
His gaze still on the park-goers, Ryan kept snickering. "What the hell are those people wearing? They do realize that they have bovine boobies on their heads, right?"
Gulping, Luan looked down at the two hats she was holding along with a brochure, and quickly threw the former two in a trash bin before Ryan could notice.
"Yeah, what losers..." she laughed nervously. "Utter hats? It's utterly ridiculous!"
"Good one!" Ryan slapped her on the back while whipping away a tear. "Never has that phrase been more appropriate!"
"Um...thanks." a relieved Luan smiled and blushed.
"A park brochure? Cool, lemme see!" Ryan snatched it and looked it over.
"Anyplace you wanna visit first?" he asked her politely.
"Nah, nah, this is your first time here, you should decide." Luan insisted.
"If you say so?" Ryan shrugged and read about the various attractions.
"Lame. Boring. Lame. Lame. Stupid. Done it a hundred times. Boring. That sounds like animal abuse. Lame. La-Hmmmm....." something eventually caught his eye.
"The Milk Shaker? You`re guaranteed to get hit in the face by your own vomit if you don't keep your mouth closed? Sounds interesting. I wanna see if that ballzy claim`s true?"
The color drained from Luan`s face. "The roller coaster?" she gulped. "Ehhh...could we start with something else maybe?"
Ryan groaned inwardly but smiled outwardly. "Sure, Luan. Any suggestions?"
"Eh..well eh..." Luan fiddled and looked around. "Eh...wanna test your aim?"
Ryan smirked. "Want me to win you a prize? No problemo." he took her hand and led her to the nearest shooting booth.
Luan soon watched in awe and clutched her hands dreamily as Ryan handled a rifle and shoot down some cardboard heifer with ease.
Ryan quickly handed her a stuffed panda. "A small gift for m`lady." he said charmingly.
Luan smiled brightly and hugged it. It wasn't like a 13-year-old like she cared or had much use for plush toys, but it was the thought that made it special. Nobody had ever risked their money on theme park games just to win her prize.
"Thanks...eh..." the flustered girl stammered "...didn`t you...want a...prize?"
"Nah...I already have the best prize there is with me." he replied suggestively.
Luan turned crimson.
"So...want me to take a few more cheap shots?" Ryan suggested casually.
"Oh..." Luan scratched her neck "...you don't have to. You don't need-"
"Don`t be silly!" Ryan interjected jovially." No prize is too pricey for you."
Luan blushed some more. "Well..." she responded timidly "...if you insist."
Two hours later...
Ryan had partially plundered almost every booth in the park. He had no idea that his aim was that good. Apparently, the desire to look cool at all times and impress his date gave him the focus needed to accomplish that.
Right now he was struggling to hold up half of the junk he had won for Luan, who was carrying the other half of the pile.
"Y`know, I may have gotten in over my head with this..." he told Luan. "What are we even supposed to do with all of these toys?"
"Oh, I have no use to them." she replied chipperly. "But I'm sure there`ll be plenty of kids who would love a free souvenir!"
"You gotta be shitting me." Ryan`s face dropped. All that money spent so they could play Santa Claus for a bunch of snot-nosed brats?
"That`s...a wonderful idea." he forced a smile "...you`re so thoughtful." He made a note to himself to find more cost-efficient ways to woo her.
"Lana Loud, adventurer and archeo..mo..nologist, I`ve been lost in the jungle for three months now! No signs of people, just lotsa trees, bushes and vines! I had to fight wild beasts and eat bugs and worms just to survive!"
Wearing a safari outfit and carrying a plastic sword, Lana sneaked through the bushes in her backyard, all while monologing to herself.
"Mosquitoes are bitting me relentlessly, the quicksand is trying to swallow me, a man-eating crocodile could be lurking anywhere, yet I bravely keep on going! Nothing can stop me!"
Suddenly she heard meowing and quickly made out a yellowish form amongst the branches.
"A wild leopard`s attacking! Back, you savage beast! I`m not going down without a fight! En Garde!" Lana swung her sword.
Rearing up, Marceline purred and played with the sword.
Watching them through the window, Lynn smiled fondly before sighing.
She didn't know why she lashed out at her brother back in the attic, it was just a random episode she couldn't figure the cause of. Her best guess was that the stress of finding the letter was starting to get to her.
She saw her father still sleeping on the couch, judging from his appearance she figured that must have had a busy night repairing what was left of Luan`s damage.
Her mother`s car was nowhere to be seen and neither was she, presumably she went to buy groceries for dinner or run some errands.
Lynn didn't waste time guessing, she grabbed an energy drink from the fridge and drank it to stay focused before crushing the can against her forehead and throwing it into the trash bin. She walked upstairs to check on her sisters.
Peaking into the twins` room, she saw Leni tailoring a dress on Lola.
Next, she visited Luna`s and Luan`s room. Thankfully the rocker was still absent.
She went over to Lori`s and Leni`s room and saw a warning tapped on the door in big, red letters, reading: "KEEP OUT IF YOU VALUE YOUR LIVES".
Lynn pressed her ear against the door and heard the repeated sound of snapshots. "Yeah, Lori`s preoccupied." the jock snidely concluded and strolled back towards the attic, recounting everything.
"Okay, so mom, dad, Lana, Lola, Leni, Luna, Lori and...ugh...Luan are all taken care off. That just leaves-"
"Lynn, I was hoping to locate you." came Lisa`s distinct monotonous, lispy voice. Lynn walked into the toddler genius who was carrying a long roll of paper containing various data.
"Lisa, what is it?"
"Fortunately nothing of concern, in spite of my previous misassumptions." Lisa replied plainly while adjusting her glasses, her gaze glued to the paper.
"I have spent the entire night cycle meticulously examining and reexamining the genetic makeup of the selected few strands of hair which I had removed from your new associate, Ryan Taylor was it? And my diagnosis is that he does not host any known illnesses, merely some inconsequential pigmentation disorder, therefore leaving no need for any quarantining."
"You mind speaking in English, egghead?" Lynn rolled her eyes.
Lisa sighed indignantly. "He`s not sick. Just pale."
Lynn snorted. "Really? Well thanks for the update. I had no idea." she retorted sarcastically. "It never occurred to me to ask my friend for weeks if he was sick."
"Actually, I did find one anomaly in the sample." Lisa replied simply. "I found one foreign hair entangled within the human hair. That specific hair tested as Canis lupus lycaon."
Lynn exhaled exasperatedly. "Again, smarty pants. I don't speak Nerd-ese. Mind clarifying?"
"I discovered a wolf hair on your friend`s head."
Lynn`s face dropped at the revelation.
"Now this discovery did arouse my curiosity." Lisa admitted stoically. "How pray tell did your friend come into contact with a wolf in order for this to have happened?"
"Wolf hair..." Lynn`s voice trailed off, not knowing how to respond. "Pfff...wolf hair?" she changed her tune to one of faux-amusement. "What's that supposed to imply? That Ryan`s a werewolf? Get real?"
"I do not believe in such non-scientific nonsense as lycanthropy. The only logical conclusion based on the data is that your associate came into physical contact with a wolf."
"Yeah, sure." Lynn used snark to mask her unease. "He must have gone into the woods and played fetch with one. I think you made a mistake."
Lisa suddenly looked agitated. "I do not make mistakes! Especially not with something as basic as identifying a species based on fully intact DNA!"
"Wow, chill Einstein. Ryan has a dog, that's probably where the hair came from." Lynn dismissed her.
"Impossible! The hair very blatantly stemmed from a Canis lupus lycaon, not a Canis lupus familiaris! Their genetic codes are very easy to differentiate!" Lisa argued adamantly.
Lynn cupped her face. "Uhhhh...you know a bunch of Greece words. Am I supposed to be in awe?" she teased her.
Lisa started twitching and narrowed her eyes. "First of, the adjective you're looking for is Greek, not Greece. Secondly, those words are of Latin origin, not Greek! And don't you dare mock me you intellectually-impaired halfwit-ah!"
Lynn ruffled up Lisa`s hair, cutting her off. "Yeah, yeah, you and your fancy words are very cute, but a big girl like me has more important things to do than talk about doggies." she explained smarmily. Lisa growled.
Lynn noticed the fox toy lying in the hall, grabbed it and shoved it into Lisa`s hands.
"Here, go play with this why don't ya! Just stop pestering me." Lynn smirked at her before scaling up the ladder. "Dodged that bullet."
Lisa glowered up before looking at the toy she had been given.
"Pffff...what am I supposed to do with this plastic distraction for infants?" she thought condescendingly before accidentally pulling on the switch.
"Cheer up, baby, don't you cry. No more tears, it's cheer up time." the fox started singing and dancing in her grasp. Suddenly, Lisa felt a little more interested and switched it off.
"Hmmmm...this cheap contraption appears to have inbuilt animatronic qualities. Perhaps this could be my answer for building my android assistant?" Lisa mused and switched it on.
"Laugh with me and we will be. Happy, happy, happy!" Lisa frowned and switched it off again.
"But first I need to replace its voice chip. Immediately."
Peaking from above, Lynn sighed with relief. Lisa might be a super genius but you could still toy with her attention span like with any other toddler.
"Lynn, is something wrong?" she heard Lincoln`s voice.
She sighed again. "Bro, I think we have a minor situation..."
"Wasn`t this fun?" Luan said to Ryan as they sat on a bench. They had spent an hour giving away free toys.
"Exhilarating..." the boy answered with an underlying tone of sarcasm.
"I know, right!" the oblivious Luan replied. "I always love giving smiles to others. Especially little kids, don`t you?"
"I love giving them a good fright."
"Eh...sure I do." Ryan answered unenthusiastically. "Glad I made you happy."
"You really did." Luan smiled as she scooted closer to him. "I was kinda feeling bummed out today. Everyone was angry at me and giving me the cold shoulder over yesterday but you really lifted my spirit."
Ryan shrugged. "Glad to be of service. It was pretty fun hanging out with you, and the day`s still young. Being with you, I never know what's gonna happen next."
"Yeah...life`s never fun when it's too predictable, keeps you guessing..." Luan`s voice trailed off.
"I know, it gets kinda boring. I didn't know what to expect crossing the ocean and having to move into a new home, but turns out it isn't so bad..." he stopped to look at Luan "...I`d even say I like it better here."
"Oh? Any particular reason?" Luan asked, this time with more confidence and even a hint of mischief.
Ryan smirked. "Lovelier company for one..."
Smiling and moving closer until they were rubbing shoulders, Luan leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. Ryan froze stiff.
"Thanks." Luan said sweetly as she leaned back batting her eyelashes.
Feeling dumbstruck, Ryan shook himself out of his trance. "Eh...you`re... welcome.." he stammered dumbly.
Luan giggled. "You're cute when you can't think clearly."
Ryan tried to pull himself together. How could a small display of affection like a kiss from one of the Loud sisters pack such a punch? First Lynn, now her.
"Well, a dude can only think so much with such a mesmerizing sight right in front of him." he smirked at her.
"You're such a charmer..." the girl giggled.
"Nah, I`m just brutally honest with the ladies. Can't expect me to tell a fib when I'm week and helpless against your feminine wiles." he joked.
Wiles? Wasn't he supposed to trick her or talk her into doing something? Oh, right! He finally remembered. The April Fools thing?
Luan moved closer and placed both her hands on his shoulders, making him sweat nervously as her face was getting closer to his.
"I can show you my feminine wiles." she whispered seductively.
Fighting the overwhelming temptation to let Luan do whatever she planned to do, Ryan mustered the willpower to avert her gaze and jerked back.
"Oh look! A ferris wheel! " he pointed up anxiously to distract her, and himself. "I always wanted to ride one!"
Looking extremely disappointed, Luan pouted and looked in the direction he was pointing.
"Oh. Yeah. That." she replied drearily. "It`s very big...and...eh... wheely." she tried to hide the disappointment in her voice.
"Yeah, just imagine that view from up there! We should grab the chance before a long line forms in front of it!" Ryan proclaimed rapidly and took her hand to drag her towards it.
"I`ll be. This view was worth the price of admission." Ryan marveled along with his date as their seat rotated all the way to the top when the ferris wheel stopped spinning, allowing them to take in the full view of Royal Woods from one side and the panorama of forests, hills and the placid river streaming through the gorge below the bridge on the other.
"Clean air too." he added.
Luan was in awe, the view was majestic, and even more so, the two of them were alone, no one there to distract them on their own private seat looking down at the big, wide world together under the clear blue sky.
Now she understood why Ryan had insisted on doing this. Why squander such a precious moment on a filthy, old bench when there were much better options.
"And more romantic..." she said suggestively as she leaned against Ryan. The boy started to sweat and grew goosebumps.
"I wouldn't know, I don't know much about romance..." he tried to joke but grew increasingly anxious as he ended up looking into her eyes.
"Hold yourself together man! You`ve got a job to do! You`re better than letting some eyelash batting broad get the better of you! Remember Lynn. You're spoken for her!" his brain told him like an angry coach.
"All evidence to the contrary..." Luan replied seductively as her face came closer. Ryan felt his breathing rapidly getting shallower.
"Lynn just thinks of you as a friend. This fine babe is throwing herself at you. You have no commitments to betray. Just let nature run its course." something else told Ryan otherwise.
Luan closed her eyes and puckered her lips, and Ryan held his breath.
"Do it. It's only natural. You`ve earned your reward. Grab her and smooch her like there's no tomorrow!" sweating bullets Ryan was on the verge of giving into the temptation when suddenly, he grabbed Luan by the waist and pushed her back.
"Luan, please! Not on the first date." he said with a nervous chuckle.
Looking down, Luan`s cheeks turned scarlet and she giggled. Ryan promptly got his hands off her, blushing as well.
"I didn't peg you for the shy type." the girl joked.
Composing himself, Ryan struggled to put on an air of nonchalance."Shy? Me! As if!"
"Then why did you get so grabby? Not that I minded it." Luan smirked.
"Eh...it's just..." Ryan was actually at a loss for words. "...I...eh...never kissed a girl before...eh..and..."
Luan giggled. "It`s okay. I never kissed a boy before." she admitted. "But there's a first for everything."
Ryan grinned uneasily and pointed a finger up. "Right. But... I`m not one for rushing things. I like to, y`know, slow down and smell the roses. Y`know, think things trough...and..."
"Oh, I see." Luan concluded cheekily. "You're nervous about taking that first step, I won't rush you."
She immediately scooted closer and wrapped her arms around him, gently caressing his shoulders.
"We can ease in into the moment..." she said gently as she rested her head on his shoulder, clinging on to him and humming softly.
Ryan twitched and grew tense. Why did it feel so wrong yet so tempting to just give in? He was on a real date, with a real, pretty girl, who went on the date willingly and actually liked him, and they had practically done every single thing a couple would do short of reaching first base. Maybe he should just go with the flow...
"Focus, you numbskull! April Fools! Talk about that!"
"Maybe..." he sighed. "But I was meaning to ask you something?"
Luan`s eyes lit up. "What`s the most romantic dinner in town? If I have a date for homecoming!"
"Not exactly..." Ryan interjected "...actually, I was gonna ask you something about your April Fools tradition."
"What`s there to tell ya? I already told you everything." a carefree Luan asked.
"Well, I kind of noticed how your sisters gave you hell over it this morning."
Luan`s eyes shot open upon hearing that and she rose up, looking at Ryan with an uneasy expression. "You...saw that?"
Finally having the upper hand in the conversation again, Ryan sighed. "I did. Didn't want to barge into a family argument but I think your brand of comedy isn't to your family`s liking."
Luan`s timidness and unease from before returned full force, as she shrank back uncomfortably.
"Yeah, it was pretty harsh. They didn`t look very amused by your shenanigans." Ryan continued. "Do they react like that to your pranks a lot?"
Luan bit her lip, uncertain how to answer to that.
"Well...eh...they don't...well...actually...they sorta do." she stuttered ashamedly.
"Really?" Ryan faked surprise. "So they aren't fans of your comedy?"
Looking embarrassed, Luan turned silent while avoiding eye contact and rubbed her arms uncomfortably.
"Luan, you can tell me. I won't laugh, I promise. You can be honest with me." Ryan tried persuading her to talk.
Luan thought about it. Ryan had been nothing but kind to her all day, maybe she should tell him? This has been bothering her for years and she always wished to be able to talk to someone about it and vent out her feelings. Now she could.
Scrambling together the courage, Luan fiddled nervously before eventually releasing a long sigh.
"Well, they don't usually react with such hostility, but.." she scratched her neck "...I suppose my pranks aren't usually on the same scale as they are on April 1st. I go a little nuts making sure my pranks are up to par for the big day, I suppose?"
Ryan didn't need confirmation for that, he saw it with his own two eyes."Ah, and how do they usually react?"
"Not much at all, I guess. They just look at me, eyes half closed and groan, and usually ignore me." Luan admitted, growing bitter. "I can get a hint, contrary to what some of them might think."
"Unpleasable audience, huh? And does that bother you?" Ryan asked the obvious, more or less already knowing the answer already.
Luan was hesitant to answer when their cart shook slightly, jolting them both as they started going downwards.
"Oh, looks like our ride is almost over, hold that thought." Ryan told her, trying to savor some levity while he could, knowing that there won't anything funny with Luan once they start talking.
Lincoln splashed some water on his face from the bathroom sink to calm down. He looked into the mirror, his eyes slowly turning bloodshot from the stress. This was really starting to get to him. Nearly six hours of searching and no results.
Sighing, he clutched the sink tensely and stared into his own reflection with a determined look. "Just keep a cool head, Linc, we will find that letter soon enough, we just have to! We`ve searched the entire attic. Everything`s under control. Lisa finding a wolf hair on Taylor`s head doesn't mean anything, he`ll lie our way out of it in a heartbeat once he returns. No way one little hair could possibly throw a wrench in our current plan, it's not possible. Don't overreact. You just checked on all your sisters, they're still distracted like they should be. Everything`s running smoothly." he reassured himself just before hearing the static from his walkie-talkie, which he had left on the washing machine.
Lincoln picked it up. "Hello, Lynn? What is it?"
A tired and frustrated Lynn was standing in the attic which had every single one of its items pilled onto its right side, leaving the left side with nothing but lots of boards and occasional spiderwebs.
"This is hopeless, Lincoln!" the jock ranted flippantly while pulling her own hair. "I`ve searched every single goddamn inch of this place and found no letter!"
"It can`t be! It has to be somewhere up there?" she could hear the panic seeping into his voice.
"It`s not!" Lynn snapped. "What if Luan lied about where she found it?!"
She got no response.
"Lincoln?!" she asked angrily.
"Someone`s knocking...I`m coming back! We`ll search it over again! Lincoln out!" he spoke in a rushed tone and ended the call.
"Search it over again?!" Lynn blurted in disbelief. She couldn't stand looking at this infernal attic for another minute!
Boiling mad, Lynn growled through gritted teeth and in her rage delivered a brutal kick to the wall, breaking two boards in two.
As she slowly cooled down and the dust around the small crater settled down, Lynn saw something white bulging out of it.
Her eyes opened wide as she grabbed it, unrolled it and grew an ecstatic smile upon reading the words: Sharon DeMonet.
"Jackpot!" she jumped up. "Wait?" she realized something upon reexamining the letter. "That name sounds like "sharing the money"?"
Lynn snorted with bitter sarcasm. "Real creative, dad."
Lincoln came out to find Lana, dressed in safari clothes, doing the pee-pee dance.
"Oh, hey Lana! Sorry to keep you waiting!" he greeted her nervously.
"Lincoln? Where have you been all day?" the little tomboy asked him, but he brushed past her and towards the ladder.
"Sorry, can't chat! Got...homework to do!"
"Homework? But it's summer?"
Ignoring her, Lincoln tried climbing up the ladder when someone grabbed his shoulder and turned him around. He was faced with an extremely pissed Lori.
Lincoln started sweating. "Lori? Eh...everything alright?"
"No." she answered bluntly. "I just found out that Carol Pingrey has left to be a summer camp counselor a week ago and hasn't posted anything since!"
The boy swallowed a lump. "Oh...oh...her name`s Carol Pingrey? Not Carol...Pinney? Upps, eh...my bad." he grinned fearfully. "I thought I got something wrong, Carol isn't a redhead, isn't she?"
Lori growled.
"I`m so sorry for wasting your time. But hey, you love taking selfies, and you'll upstage Carol for a while, so...eh..no harm no foul. By!" Lincoln tried to climb up but was yanked back down.
"Hold on a second!" Lori glared at him scrutinizingly. "I know you're not dense enough to make such a stupid mistake. And since when did you care about browsing social media? And what do you want in the attic anyway?"
"Eh...early spring cleaning." Lincoln grinned nervously.
"Hey, Lori? Do you mind letting me in our room? I left some sewing needles there." Leni suddenly approached them.
"Not now! I`m interrogating the twerp!" Lori lashed out at her. "I smell something fishy."
"Leni! Come back and finish my sundress!" Lola stormed in, clad in partially-sewed fabrics.
"Ohhhhh...I feel so much better now." a relieved-looking Lana joined them. "What's everybody doing?"
"No,no,no,no..." Lincoln started panicking and broke free of Lori`s grasp and stumbled back against the ladder.
Lori stepped ahead and loomed over him. "Alright, what are you up to?" she demanded.
"Lori, I swear! I`m not up to any-"
Suddenly, Lynn jumped down and accidentally crashed into Lincoln. The others took a step back as Lynn shook her head and looked at her brother, who was pinned and groaning beneath her.
"Ah, Linc!" she spoke excitedly. "I found the..." she stopped as she realized they weren't alone. Lori, Leni and the twins were looking at them.
"Ah crap..." Lynn muttered exasperatedly.
Don't you just hate it when you`ve searched for hours to find something to no avail when a random kick to the wall would have immediately and conveniently revealed the thing you were looking for? Fiction XD
And is it just me or is someone starting to come off as a green-eyed monster? Look out, a sisterly catfight might be on its way XD
