"Do you feel cold and lost in desperation?

You build up hope, but failures all you've known;

Remember all the sadness and frustration,

And let it go, let it go."

Linkin' Park, (Iridescent), 2011.

Break Out to Piece In

Chapter 2: Fighters Together

I should've eaten more pizza earlier.

Tranquility screamed in the dark hours of the night, unlike the restless Luan; every toss and turn, each moment of staring at the ceiling before closing her eyelids to see black again did nothing to stop the active thoughts running through her mind.

But around 10 in the evening, her eyes shut one last time before sleep pulled her in for an embrace.

And now, her stomach woke her up with its grumbling.

The clock on their drawer said 2 in the morning. Great. Out of all times, it had to be now?

Sneaking in midnight snacks in the Loud house is the one crime that'll put you on death row- aka intense grounding. With twelve people in this house and a slim budget, money is gripped tightly in the palm of mom and dad's hands. Everything was to be saved: from food, to water, to showers, and even time. It's not that hate ran in her blood, but sometimes… what'd it be like to live in a family as the only kid?

Lonely. Maybe. How about two?

Yes. It was envisioned now: A perfect, average sized family of two kids that had a beautiful, friendly relationship with no scuffles, no fights for the line in the bathroom, no argument over the Mac and Cheese bite leftovers. It's beautiful. No chaos, only peace.

But then again, even living in perfection gets boring. Take a look at her classmates; is that why they go hours on end trying to pull her down? They always complained about life being boring despite being the children of upper class business men. Maybe, who knows? Who cares?

With an inaudible groan, Luan threw the sheets away and got up. Today, maybe the stars would align. Tiptoeing to get a chance to peek at her roommate, oh goodie. Luna's blasting out 90's rock music in her headphones while sleeping again. Nice.

Mom and dad weren't home for the night the only person on the lookout now is Lori.

Who, thankfully, is a heavier sleeper than Aurora from Disney. That girl is living on a risk-Lori's the type who'd stay asleep in a middle of a housefire or flash flood.

Better than having to be on edge, wanting to swallow even just one sleeping pill for the night. Right?

There were cameras around the house that she did admittedly own, but it's an implemented rule to shut it off the moment the lights turn off for bedtime. So, for the rest of her siblings, well, who knows? It's not like she checks up on their sleeping habits. That's kinda weird.

Not to worry. They don't do no harm, other than asking for some snacks too, which is a problem when your family's on a budget.

Luan walked out coolly out of her room before not giving it another thought, and slammed the door-

Lola!

The door that was threatening to bump against its hinge was restrained by Luan's clutch on the knob. Cold sweat started to bead above her eyebrow. Lola… right. She can hear even the smallest pin drop, or in her case, jewelry.

And knowing the five-year-old, her favorite phrase is always "mooooom, daaaaad!". But if they weren't around then it's always "Loooori!", before spilling the tea on whatever tomfoolery any of them did- A tattletale for short.

Luan shut the door as quietly as possibly, visibly recoiling when it made a creak as hushed as a mouse. Which was still pretty loud in a house with incredibly thin walls.

She tiptoed down the stairs without a hitch. Though, around here, caution was to be heavily applied. The wood on these have grown and worn, it's sturdy but extremely creaky. One step might wake up the whole house.

Nope. A chilly tingle was sent down her spine. Not happening.

One…

Her right foot advanced to the first step down, before slowly moving her left one to do the same; holding tightly on the railings to maintain balance and not fall off.

Two…

Three…

Wait… Luan froze, refusing to blink. Was someone crying?

Dropping down into a squat, hands clutched the bannisters as Luan drifted her view to the living room, right where the noise was seen.

Though it was dark, the moon shone as an endearing miracle: a little tuft of brunette hair peeked its way out the couch as the light of the night shone its way through the open curtains.

Squinting, Luan leaned her head forward. Who could that be…? Who else is brunette in their house? Luna- no, she's asleep. Lisa? Impossible.

Ah! The stairs creaked!

Luan bit her lip till it nearly bled; it was all thanks to her aching foot adjusting its position in the slightest.

The sobbing stopped. Luan had to clutch her chest to stop the sound of her heart pounding roam free. Sweat started to dribble down her face.

"W-who's there?" The voice croaked.

Of course! Synapses fired in her brain as the dots connected. It was clear in the very beginning.

Maybe there was a chance and she could go back right now before-

Grgghhhh. Nope, that midnight snack was still waiting on her.

Dang it. She breathed out. There's no getting out of this. Luan stood up on shaky legs, before making her way downstairs. "Hey Lynn…"

"H-huh? Luan?" The girl glared at her with utter horror written on her pale face, shielding herself with a pillow in front of her. "W-what're you doing here?"

"Relax, relax." Luan hushed. "I was only here to get a midnight snack. I only ate like, one slice of pizza last night."

Lynn began to calm down. "Oh… okay."

You know what… maybe the snack can wait.

"Is something wrong?" She walked up to the curled-up ball Lynn had become. "You… were you crying?"

"No, I wasn't." Lynn sniffled. Easy guess, there. Yet it's so hard to believe.

Luan sat down right beside her on the couch, still maintaining a space in between them. This unfolded red blanket to the pillow resting besides Lynn… did she spend the night sleeping here? "Hey… you can tell me. I'm here for you."

"No, you aren't… you never were." Huh? … what is she talking about? "You were never there for me at school. Why only now?"

Oh…. Luan's chest tightened. "I… I don't even have a clue of what's wrong. Mind telling me?"

It was only one step away from wrapping an arm around Lynn and telling her sweet and somber words to soothe her away from whatever she's going through. But her own body refused, staying at the very edge of the couch. Despite the vast space between them, it was cramped. Or more like, it felt like it.

"You wouldn't get it, Luan." Lynn's voice was syrupy, muffled underneath the face she buried under her knees. "You're just being nosy again; you don't actually care."

That came across as a dart to the heart. "What? Of course, I do. Isn't that why I'm here?"

Poor choice of words. Lynn didn't even respond. So, she wasn't as tough as expected, huh? Who knew, girls like her broke too.

If this were one of the other younger siblings, like Lincoln, or Lola, getting them to confide in her isn't a mind-riddling puzzle. For one, Lincoln was already emotionally attached to all of them, so he had no qualms in hiding what he feels. Lola, well… she's four. That's an age where naivety is their whole personality, and their pure souls aren't tainted with trust issues yet. It's the same for Lana, who may have grown with the stigma that crying is for the weak. But in terms of filling her mind with the right information, it's a piece of cake to get the young tomboy, and the rest of them to rely on her as their big sister- part time crying shoulder, or support boulder.

But Lynn… she's the most complicated younger sister ever. She's twelve, on the onset of puberty just as Lori mentioned last night. And it's around this age of theirs when things turn upside down, especially with letting their guards down on people. It's more complicated than Leni or Lori- since they're very accepting towards their own femininity, and cry unashamedly most of the time despite how trivial it is. But Lynn? Miss I'm-too-strong-for-feelings? What're the chances she'll actually fess up to whatever's bothering her?

And what's worse is the gap between them. Technically speaking, it's only one year in age, but when it comes to themselves in general, they're pretty distant from each other. An athlete, and an annoying person- comedian- correction. What're the odds of them becoming close when sports are as interesting as ants walking to Luan, and as for comedy…everybody likes it. But Lynn's sense of humor-if hers was even counted as humor-is quite on the raunchy side. "Puns and dad jokes are for old people", she said once before.

Yet despite all barriers between them, love is there. It always is. "Seriously, what do you mean I was never there for you?"

Lynn pulled out her head from her knees, before reaching for her pillow and hugging it for a sense of security. "School issues… stuff. Forget what I said… just leave me alone."

The gurgling in her stomach had subsided at this point, replaced with a solid ache to know more. There wasn't a guide or any how to on how to get somebody to open up. Luan rested her elbow on the arm of the couch and rested her cheek on her hand. Maybe there was, but was there any chance her hands get on it when she's already living in the moment?

It's like those impromptu dramas at school. "Just have your fingers crossed, go with the flow, and pray for the best." An old friend by the name of Preppy told her once when Luan asked about how she was so good at adlibbing.

Right. Fingers crossed. Go with the flow. Pray for the best. "Look…I know how it's like to be in a new school. New adjustments, change, and all that. It's not easy."

"It's not that." Lynn said. Her voice wavered and faltered like the reading of a seismograph.

Her glossy, green eyes stared straight yet blinked with ferocious urgency; breaths were pushed out of pursed lips, as if living itself was already a trying task. Luan adjusted until she sat crossed leg on the couch, staring at Lynn with full interest on her face. "Then what is it? What's really bothering you?"

Their eyes met for a second, and only then was it seen how much undue pressure Lynn was holding inside. One second won't capture a vivid image in mind, but her eyes are visibly puffy; a tear was already advancing down her freckled cheek. "Look… ugh. It's nothing…"

Of course, big bad Lynn Loud won't give in that easily. But nor would she. "Come on, Lynn. You're crying- in the middle of the night might I add; of course, there's something wrong here."

"But why do you care…?"

"I'm your sister. Why wouldn't I?" Luan said. Her back leaned on the couch as she tapped heavy fingers into the soft cushion. "You can tell me. It's not like I'll tell anyone."

"If you get out of my sight, then fine…" She rasped out with a groan. "I'm getting bullied."

It seems that the load had been pushed off the atmosphere. Be it just them, but the revelation was dew honey on the cake of tension. Luan is officially the worst sister ever for letting it slip under her nose- which makes the cherry on top. "You? Getting bullied?"

Lynn nodded, burrowing her face onto the pillow.

A new weight introduced itself on her shoulder, when Lynn shot her head up, the space between her and Luan is gone.

"You're not alone."

The pain in Lynn's slumped posture shifted as she backed away from the touch, twisting her head to Luan with knitted brows and an open frown. "I-I don't get it… you? You're getting bullied too?"

Luan dropped her hand and intertwined it with her other one. "I am… so you're not exactly alone in this."

"What? But you're popular at school! H-how, why would anyone do that to you?"

Was popular at school.

"Some things change, Lynn. The people you once knew don't even say hi to you anymore." Luan said. "How about you?"

Her face softened "It's horrible." Lynn whispered. "In whatever I do… there's always somebody talking me down. All my classmates do whatever they can to push me under the bus and it's…" A small whine slipped out of her. "It's eating me alive; I don't wanna go to school anymore."

How did she let this slip under the rug? "I'm sorry… I had no idea…"

"Well, now you do." Lynn said, clinging onto her pillow tighter. "I hate middle school; why was I even so excited to transfer…you always told me it'd be a good place; how could you lie?"

"It used to be…" Luan mumbled, wringing her sweaty hands despite the cold dead of the night. "But now, I totally feel the same as you."

"Do you really?" She shot her an interrogating glare. "Or are you saying that to make me feel better?"

Luan swallowed the boiling blood reeving in her veins. Those words threw away everything she gone through from betrayals, to insults, to the head-dunking and the minor scrapes and bruises still marked on her skin. Words are weak, Lynn always said it herself. Maybe she had a point.

Pulling her yellow pajama sleeve up, were bruises and scratches decorating her pale skin. "This." A second later, her pajama top was pulled to her stomach to show a new array of bruises. "This." And one more time, Luan lifted up the hem of her right pajama up to her knee. "And this. These are the results of it."

Lynn's mouth was wide agape, and her pinkish eyes were staring at blank space. "Y-your stomach… those bruises look fresh. What happened?"

Luan's hand instinctively flew to her stomach, as if the reminder triggered the pain receptors in her mind. "I got punched there… as a joke. Don't worry… it was a bet, and I lost to him so-"

"Why didn't you say anything?" Lynn snarled, her jaw tight and her face scrunched in scrutiny. "I would've beaten them to the ground! I would've killed them!"

"And why would I drag you into something you shouldn't be involved in?" Lynn stopped in between her words. "I don't wanna hear another word of you saying that. How can you be so sure you can knock them dead, when you yourself claim to get bullied?"

Bragging, and living in her own fantasy where she's number one-it's always been her problem. "Right… my bad."

There it was again; the air so thick you can slice it with a knife. The invisible wall prying them apart.

Luan cleared her throat "So… what exactly do they do to you?"

The pillow was out of Lynn's hands; instead, her hands reached for her blanket, nestling herself in tight. "Stuff. When I came home upset, that's because I was embarrassed in front of all of them for farting."

For the first time in forever, was she sorry for nearly cracking up. "Oh… what else did they do?"

"A few days ago, I got humiliated in Math class… getting called dumb names for answering a question wrong. She said. "A-and… even Mister Bolhofner himself… he said my brain is the size of a pea; and that all of my 'older sisters' look like rocket scientists compared to me."" There was a flower known to close its buds upon being touched by a stranger. Lynn was like that flower. She wrapped herself in a ball with the blanket, only her head jutted out but even her bangs covered the rest of her face. Not long, hitched breaths were heard.

It wasn't a shock at all knowing where it came from…but having the audacity to call her younger sister dumb like that, and then to use all of them as a bogus comparison? "That's… that's really harsh." Luan choked on her words. Not even 3 years of middle school gave her an experience as bad as that.

It wasn't good to continue this conversation anymore, with the way Lynn became too emotional to even speak.

Tears of their own began to puddle from her eyes. No joke or crude quip could lull the mass of splutter her younger sister turned into… what's worse is the fact she's an audience clawing into whatever dignity Lynn has left. It's like watching a movie, with the main character reaching their breaking point. But even so, the viewers can't do anything about it no matter how many frustrated screams the screen receives.

But this was real life, yet why is this so awkward?...

No… Luan, be the older sister you're meant to be.

Be the older sister that Lynn so needs right now.

Whatever hesitation remained was thrown out the window as arms wrapped around Lynn. The younger girl wasted no time but to unwrap herself from the blanket, before jumping to hug her back tightly. She was forced back on the couch, her head landing on the armrest. Luan's pajamas became soaked with unshed burdens that were hidden for who knows how long.

"Y-you a-aren't g-gonna… judge me?" Lynn whined.

"Cry." It was one simple command. "Don't be shy. I'm here for you this time."

Lynn's mind worked like a computer's and with one word, all the strength left in her snapped like a twig; wracked on sobs, with muffled whimpers vibrating against Luan's body. Her aching head was being soothed by Luan, who ran who fingers through her hair as her sister came undone before her. More questions resurfaced in a bubble that were dying to pop out, but Lynn was in an unruly state. Her breaths came out in quivering gasps, and her throat was too compressed with the weight coming from her heart to let her speak.

Trying to keep it together isn't easy when another unloads their cargo on you. Luan is just a girl. An ordinary teenager in this crazy world. One extra member of the family, one other random student at school. Who would blame her when keeping it together became a mission rather than an impulse? It was only a step away from tumbling down the cliff and landing on the flood of release; waves coming in order as everything from her teachers to her bullies' taunts surge over one more time.

Yet a bigger part of her restrained the dam with a thin string. The tears were already falling, but her lungs were still crying out to hitch. The venom in her hear pleading for her to cry out even for one night. It won't happen. Because Lynn needed a boulder- not a hapless sack of soggy noodles that was infected by her emotional contagion.

"I-I wish t-they didn't have to be so cruel…" Lynn trembled underneath her touch. "W-what's so wrong with… with being honest… or for b-being kind?"

But it wasn't long when the fact became clear: Lynn didn't need empty, words to soften her on whatever is to come in the near future. No. What she needed was somebody to walk with her in the long run- a shoulder to cry with.

One more whimper was all it took to tear her own mask open. Not long, they became a mess- a tangle of limbs clinging onto one another like all they had was each other. Through it all, the anxiety of never being enough for Lynn faded away into a blank void. It hurt. It hurt to hurt. But what would be more painful is to never find out the chains that held Lynn down to her fullest potential. To know that she's alone everyday as she walked into those doors of Royal Woods Middle school was a fear that knew no bounds, and it was a sword compared to the dagger that stabbed her upon coming to terms that her younger sister was treated so harshly. No word, no encouragement, nothing would ever eradicate or erase the feeling of loneliness. Of feeling like it's you against the world. Yet who knew, you'd find the easiest solution for it in the most unexpected means of crying with the one you loved? Nothing exchanged in between; just tears, and withheld weights coming to a drop at full force.

It wasn't a pretty picture, as two of them became a mix of pain without tissue: fluid from Luan's eyes and nose dribbled down, and occasionally her sleeve would go to wipe it, while her once dry pajamas are sodden thanks to Lynn.

Then that was it; it was all over. It's all been emptied out to the last drop. The tears they shed had brought along the energy with them out. Lynn's breaths returned to its normal pace, even as wetness continued to soak up on Luan. No longer did she have the strength to lift her hand up, yet she still continued to pat on Lynn's back with the gentleness of a mother. It did its magic- Lynn began to still down like a baby heading to sleep.

"Luan?" A part of them would never admit… but it's really embarrassing. Having to be seen like this- having to be in a position like this. Submissively giving each other the share of the load. It's not… it's not something that happens every day. To both of them nonetheless.

"Yeah?" Lynn stared at her, resting on her stomach.

A cute smile slid across her face. "Thank you."

"It's no problem… I needed it too." Luan stroked her hair. "I'm sorry I didn't defend you before…I guess I am a bad sister."

"Woah, woah! I never said you're a bad sister!" Lynn shifted and lifted herself up with her arms. "You think of yourself that way?"

"No. Maybe… yes." Luan said. "I can't believe I let you out loose in that school full of monsters… I-I should've been there."

"You're right on that one, no offense." Lynn said with all the tact a twelve-year-old can have. "But all is forgiven, Lu. I would've understood sooner… if only you told me. Or the family."

"You would most probably laugh at my expense." Luan said. "That's all you guys would ever do."

"What? Why would we ever laugh at you?" Lynn pulled herself up into a sitting position. "We're family! We help each other out!"

"Oh, really?" Luan followed at sat up too, crossing her arms with a dark scowl. "What happened last time then? Don't you remember? You were like 'Shake it off, Luan! I bet those guys would like you more if you did.', while laughing your insides out?"

Lynn's sucked in a gasp and she averted her gaze to the couch, a hand rubbing her arm. "Oh… right… that was a joke."

A flood of memories kicked in like a sparrow. They were anything but nice, glittery tales to tell. "None of you ever seem to feel bad; it's always 'oh, that sucks.', at the least or awful jokes at the worst. Tell me, why?"

"We thought… lighting up the mood would make you feel better. You hardly take things seriously… not even our insults mean anything to you because you're so passive to just laugh it off." Lynn stammered. "Plus, you're a happy-go-lucky girl. We all know that when you're upset now, you're gonna crack a pun the next second."

"So, all of you assumed that nothing bothers me because I tend to laugh a lot?" Lynn nodded. "I can't blame you guys for not seeing through my mask… I've already been getting enough stuff from school. I just didn't want any of you to see, no matter how much it hurts to cover it up with a smile."

Lynn head shot up; her eyebrows raised. "Huh? What have they been telling you?"

"Oh, the daily serve of 'you suck' and the occasional name-calling to kill my self-esteem."

"I get it." Lynn said, her knee bouncing up and down. "But what exactly do they say?"

Luan twiddled with her fingers as her younger sister stared. "They tell me I'm never good enough. They shove all these things in my lockers. Tell me that I'm talentless- and that the excuses I have as talents are jokes." She wiped her face with a pajama sleeve. "Like how I'm a joke too."

"Stop." Lynn said. "You know those aren't true."

"Are they? My classmates don't lie, Lynn."

"Well, they think they don't. Whatever they're seeing about you ain't anything but a lie." She said, before rolling her eyes to the ceiling with a neck scratching behind her neck. "To be honest, I actually like your jokes."

"You do?" Lincoln was right about it, huh?

"Yeah…it's pretty well thought of and… and uh… I'm not really good with words…" Lynn chuckled. "But it's a whole lotta hard work you put in it. I give you that. I've been missing your jokes lately too. It's been a while."

"You know why." Luan ignored her look and stared at the empty furnace behind her. "I've been questioning on whether or not I should give up on comedy-

"Don't!" Luan smacked a hand on her mouth, before taking it out. "Sorry… I meant don't. People love your jokes, Luan. We love it, Pop-pop and the oldies love it, and you were even the first person to make Lucy smile!"

"I tripped on a banana that time, Lynn…"

"Still! Isn't that why you started pratfalls?" Lynn gripped her shoulders and shook her frame ever so lightly. "You affected us in a good way Luan. Without you, the Loud family won't be the same. I'm willing to bet that by the time mom and dad come home, the new baby would love your jokes."

Her mouth was unconsciously pulled up into a heavy smile. "You mean that?"

Lynn nodded fiercely. "Uh-huh. Why wouldn't I?"

"Thanks…" Luan let out an awkward chuckle. "My classmates just make it seem so hard to believe nowadays."

"I-is that why we rarely ever see you down?" Lynn said. "Do you hide it to stop everyone from making fun of you?"

"Because if I don't hide it, everyone's gonna go wild on competing against each other to assault me; crying in school is a technically suicide mission for me." Yeah. It's so widespread around their classes that at this point it should have a name of its own: Like Humiliate-the-wannabe-comedian-for-being-a-wuss-challenge.

"I agree. They do the same to me. But please… don't tell anyone. I don't want them to think I'm weak." Lynn said, before looking up at her with pleading eyes. "Why do you think they do that?"

"I don't know." Luan said. "We don't fit in?"

"Maybe, yeah. That makes sense." Lynn said. "I'm too nice… I should probably try being meaner."

"Lynn, no." Luan said firmly. "Whoever you are right now in the present is good enough!"

"Yeah, but I wanna be better than best!"

Of course, she would. "No. Don't be mean just because of that. You're already awesome enough. They can go kiss my punching glove for disagreeing."

"Heh. That sounds like what I'd say." Lynn said. "Speaking of which, where's your squirting flower anyway? That thing is your identity!"

"Oh yeah… I thought I could fit in if I'm cooler."

"I won't lie that the easiest way to be cool is to be a jock, but I don't think you're that bad."

That made it better. A little… "You're right about the jock part. But how come people still mock you if you're an athlete?"

Lynn chuckled nervously. "Lynn, what are you not telling me?"

"I didn't join the teams." A ton dropped to her tummy. Say what now?

"What? You said you would!" Lynn bragged about signing up the whole week before school started, apparently to 'make an impression'. But where was that girl now?

"Well about that…." Lynn scratched her head. "These jocks kind of shoved me away, so I scurried off without thinking because I didn't wanna end up suspended for beating them up. Like before…"

"I'm not saying you should change the way you are, but I am glad that you're trying to heal from your anger issues." Luan said with a yawn. "I've been meaning to ask, why did you stop wearing your red and white jersey when middle school started, but wore it again earlier?"

Lynn shifted uncomfortably. "Oh yeah… I forgot to tell you, that earlier that day, I had sports tryouts."

Oh, but didn't she cowardly run off? "And?"

"Well… I passed."

"Congrats, but I already expected that!" Luan chuckled, ruffling Lynn's hair. "But why aren't you happy?"

"…I was. But later that day, we had a standardized test and that's when I got mocked for being Farty-McStink-Pants…"

"You know you aren't." Luan patted Lynn on the shoulder, as a yawn escaped her mouth before she could restrain it. "I'm getting sleepy. Today was a long day. You?"

"It's like, 4 AM in the morning? Only four hours since today started and you're tired?"

Luan giggled and bopped her on the nose. "You know what I mean, Lynn."

It knocked a short-lived titter out of them both.

She moved her feet to the ground, getting ready to leave. They still had school later.

"Hey… uh, wanna crash with me for the rest of the night?" Lynn rubbed her arm in gentle strokes. "I…I could really use some company."

Luan smiled. Sitting back down and pulling her into a side-hug. "Of course."

They both fell on the soft cushion of the couch. Lynn buried her face deeper into Luan, kicking the blanket on the edge of the couch with her socket feet as it covered both of them. "You're the best, Luan."

"Goodnight to you too, Lynn."

And at that point, Lynn was already snoring and passed out, with a serene smile on her face. Wow, that's quick. Hehe.

In the meantime, as she stared at the lights of the night sky outside, there were so many lessons learned today: One being, people aren't what they seem at first glance. You may assume to know them because you both live under one roof, but it only remains as that: Merely assumptions. Two, while the dark entity living in her mind wasn't banished yet, the snoozing Lynn in her arms told her that she wasn't alone in the battle too. Both of them were scums in this school full of swaggers; a pair of wimps who had no place in the property of awesomeness.

But that doesn't mean they needed to break out of their own standards for the sake of getting pieced in the cliques at school. What's the point of earning friends if you lose your own soul?

Also, having to wait to see their newborn sister tomorrow should really be counted as murder.

When Luan's eyelids drooped into a close, for the first time in 2 months, a searing clarity swept over the darkness. No when, no want, no worry.

And in so long, sleeping wasn't just about closing her eyes anymore to make the evening run faster. The true essence was rediscovered: to regain the courage and might to fight the next day's wars. And thankfully, there were things waiting for her tomorrow. This war against the world didn't need to be battled alone.

November nights were always chilly and lonely in the dead of the night. But tonight, as the blanket and her sister kept her warm, maybe it didn't need to be anymore.

The world closed in around her when she saw nothing. And at last, the fatigue and respite this day has given tucked her in for a good night's rest.

.

.

.

.

"Luan and Lynn Loud, responsible for the anti-bullying organization at school. How did this little idea of yours become a booming success?"

Standing side by side in the school's blacktop, were the two Loud sisters, as the microphone with the number 3 was pointed at them. "Well, I'd like to give my younger sister Lynn the credits. Without her, we never would've stood up for each other."

"The pleasure is all mine." Lynn smiled smugly. "But if it weren't for Luan, I'd never had the chance to open up about what happened to me, or be open about anything in general."

"Yeah," Luan continued. "We never intended to become a big group. It was just me and Lynn hanging out together since hardly anybody else was around. Some shy kids joined in when they saw us at the very edge of the cafeteria and everything went north from there."

Lynn nodded. "At first, we were all criticized for different reasons; like Margo for her weird teeth, or Giggles for her silly name- but ever since we became one group; they all bullied us for the same reason: being outcasts."

Her body was pulled close by Luan, who wrapped an arm around her. "People look down on new things they're not familiar with most of the time. But eventually, they start to open up to it, and who knows? Someone might be just like us; waiting for a group to fit in as well. Just a bunch of castaways trying to survive in a world we don't fit in. And that's how we all decided to speak up and start a school rally."

"Aw, how sweet!" The camera shifted to the news reporter, as she continued to ramble on.

Lynn and Luan walked out of the scene. "You nervous?" Luan started, wrapping her arm over Lynn.

"Was." They both laughed. "That was really cool."

"Yeah, it was." Luan said. "Never realized bullying is that serious in our school."

5 months of growing into a large organization full of students having backgrounds of with detective work had uncovered the fact that as it turns out- there were nine hundred students in their school- with around 70 percent fallen victim to the act of bullying based on the surveys they handed out thanks to the connections Luan had to the news team of the school. It's a horrid ratio, but it's the truth. Only around 30 percent haven't fallen as victims, while 19 percent were bullies themselves. The School's Supreme Government spoke up to this in response and Lynn and Luan founded the Anti-bullying Organization, otherwise known as ABO. In the end, nearly the whole school joined and traced the bullies down with their handwritings on the survey, and the prime witnesses and testimonies of the students.

And after 5 months since that one fateful night, Luan and Lynn have been closer as sisters now. The fact that they're different from each other? Forget that. There's more to them than having the same parents now. Helping each other through every little thing from algebra to P.E homework, to dealing with life and struggling through working out. As for emotional talks, the Loud family may have been a close-knit family, but ever since then, the promotion and spread of opening up to one another became like wildfire; from Luna to Lucy, Luan's been receiving the end of multiple admiration that's said never before. One that drowns out every sibling bicker they've thrown towards one another.

And the best part? Newborn baby Lily loved her jokes.

"Excuse me, Ms. Lynn and Luan!" They both turned to find the reporters running up to them. "Before we end this friendly little interview, what's one piece of advice you can give to all other children struggling behind closed doors?"

Lynn and Luan exchanged glances, before turning to all of the journalists, cameramen staring at them with anticipating smiles that pushed them to speak. "Chances are, somebody's waiting for a group to fit into, but there doesn't seem to be any. Surely with nine-hundred students in the school, you'd have no sweat finding a friend. Only a different story is told when it comes to the groups and organizations."

Once Lynn made her point, Luan cleared her throat and continued. "If you don't fit in, then don't try. Instead, start something new. You might get pushed down and thrown on the ground for it, but if you stand for what you love; then everyone will fall back with respect for your courage and wish to be like you. As they always say, 'if you can't beat them, join them'!"

And with that, Lynn along with everyone else shared a laugh at Luan's little quip. "Well, this is Katherine Mulligan of TV News 3, in Royal Woods Middle School reporting the success story of two young fighters, speaking up together and letting their peers' voices be heard."

The End.

…

Author's Note:

This is yet again inspired by true events that have been incorporated into this idea my friend had shared to me one day. Of course, as I've said before, all credits go to one of my best friends ( meilodramatic) on Instagram for the idea-check her out, she's a talented artist full of a mind of ideas! You WON'T regret it.

But as I wrote the draft, it had specially reminded me of how my school friends and I were before, in the last year we had to face to face classes (because even after 2 years, we're the only country in this planet left behind on actual real time school, guess where haha). Both Luan and Lynn have a special place in my heart, and majority of what I've written down in their characters here have been experienced by me first-hand. From Lynn's touchdown-humiliations, to Luan not being taken seriously.

I hope you guys enjoyed, and learned a little something out of this! Leave a favorite and review if so!

And as always, see you in the next universe I conjure up!

To God be the glory!

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