Lucy slammed the book closed, the loud noise startling the occupants of classroom F-1. Her fellow students looked at her with varied expressions, some bemused, some startled, and one a bit confused. Mr. Bolhofner's snores ceased for a moment, and everyone save Lucy, held their breaths.

A collective sigh was heard as their homeroom teacher continued his light snooze.

It was the short 45 minute period of Open Study before A-Lunch. "A-Lunch" was when 6th graders were allowed into the cafeteria to stand in line for 30 minutes for upcharged prison-grade cafeteria food, those who were smart enough to pack their lunch had a good 45 minutes to eat it. The rest of them only had maybe 10. The idea of waking up Bolhofner sent chills up their collective spines. If he woke up, for any reason, the man would announce that the class would have to stay five minutes late. This didn't really cause any ire to be directed towards their classmate Lucy, for some odd reason Bolhofner never really noticed her.

Lucy hummed to herself as she contemplated the ending of the book she just read. As an avid reader her Accelerated Reader score was a staggering 1000 points, which is a bit worrying seeing as it's only the second week of school. You see- back in Royal Woods Elementary Lucy Loud exhausted the book supply of the school's library fairly quickly, she had to branch out and visit the local public library for more Content. The wealth of books she read were not available on Accelerated Reader tests back in elementary school, but now that she has entered middle school the ceiling has now been raised to "High School" level. She made sure to keep a good 2000 points worth of books in her back pocket for the next two years. But she is definitely going to the end of the year Pizza Party and trip to Dairy Land that is reserved to only the most Accelerated of Readers.

"Living in an apartment…" Lucy mused to herself, she looked up to see the bonde neighbor to the right of her giving her an eyebrow raise, "It must be very hectic." She nodded to the blonde in a brown hoodie- she didn't know her name nor had any plans to learn it, "All those people… running around. Very odd to think that you could live under a roof with someone and not even know who they are…" The girl blinked and contemplated her words and nodded, she quickly went back to her Spanish homework.

Lucy kicked her feet about as they dangled from her plastic seat and held the book in the air to block out the fluorescent light on her face. With a satisfied smile she dropped her borrowed copy of High-Rise by J. G. Ballard into her open backpack. The noise caused everyone to pause once again, but Bolhofner continued snoring.

She then retrieved her collectible Vampires of Melancholia tin lunchbox and placed it on her desk, the click and clatter of the metal filled the classroom. She opened it with a smile and the scent of smoked sausage and arbol chili breakfast burrito filled the room, causing stomachs to rumble. Lucy was out and about early this Monday morning, catching a ride with Haiku to arrive early for a visit to the school's library to peruse and catch up with each other. As a consequence she wasn't able to eat the breakfast Luan made for her that morning.

The girl to the right of her looked up, her eyes darted to the left and right. The smell of Lucy's lunch was oddly familiar, her late great-uncle often made his own homemade salsa with a very distinct scent to it. She squinted her eyes at her classmate's burrito and opened her mouth, only to close it when she remembered that she had to be quiet. She returned to conjugating verbs with a deflated mood.

Dark clouds loomed outside, flashes of light flickered in the sky with thunder that lightly buffeted the portable classroom's windows causing the blinds to rattle. Lucy smiled and set her foil wrapped burrito on her table after taking a couple bites. Hooking her feet to one edge of the desk she drooped and stretched down low to snag a particularly heavy and beat up seafoam 42 oz thermos with both hands. She carefully placed it on the desk and repeated the same, spider-like movements to grab a deck of oddly sized cards and a copper mug that gave a satisfying and calming ring as it clattered on the wooden desk.

With deft hands the thermos was opened, Lucy pressed the button and a low pop rang. The scent of burnt coffee filled the room as Lucy carefully poured a bit of the contents into the cup. Satisfied, she took a sip and nodded again.

With a smile Lucy basked in the oasis-like environment that was Royal Woods Middle School. The busy-bodied elementary teachers that henpecked every little small occurrence were no more, the classmates who vied for attention and conversation from anyone who was unlucky enough to share a classroom were no more, the soul-crushing monotony of the same thing day in and day out was no more. Here in these hallowed halls was a variety that came with different teachers and faces that she wasn't forced to remember, different opportunities and subjects to learn, and the silence that came with increased responsibility and maturity. People here stuck to their own circles. Periods of noise did occur, but the soft murmur of the pitter-pattering of feet from classroom to classroom and hushed conversation was like white noise to our Lucy Loud.

Even during the most rowdiest of periods and classrooms Lucy found solace- she did come from a relatively noisy household, after all. So, to be fair, even a packed concert venue would pale in comparison to the decibel levels she usually has to put up with.

The girl to the right of her shifted in her seat. She didn't really know her great-uncle that well, he passed when she was young. What she could piece together from her hazy recollections was the scent of coffee that hung in the lobby of the motel that she and her family stayed at on the few times she was able to visit. She can't seem to recall his face, his voice, or even his name. Just the smell of cheap burnt coffee and the hum of air conditioning units.

Lucy caught the girl looking at her and she quickly went back to her homework, but she could still see the raven hair girl looking at her from the corner of her eye. She placed her pencil down and blinked at Lucy as the girl left her seat in the corner of the classroom to the water cooler. Her footsteps made no noise. Lucy retrieved a styrofoam cup and brought it back to her desk to fill with the obsidian black liquid. She tilted her head at the blonde girl and gave a polite smile before deftly swinging from her seat to retrieve a small plastic container of creamer, a packet of sugar, and a black straw.

After pouring the creamer into the cup she carefully measured out half of the sugar packet and stirred the mixture with the plastic straw. She placed the white cup on her classmates desk, the girl looked at it and nodded. Lucy nodded back.

The world that Lucy was lucky enough to be born in was cruel, unjust, filled with never-ending torments, and suffering. Lucy smiled. She wouldn't have it any other way- but being polite is something that she can't seem to get away from. She has a lot of younger sisters, and as she has gotten older, now she has a certain modicum of decorum she has to put up with to serve as a good role model. Or: perhaps Lucy is a nice person, she inwardly grimaced at the thought and almost smiled.

The blonde girl took a tentative sip.

He had green eyes, like hers.

She silently placed the cup to the side and went back to conjugating verbs.

Lucy withdrew the cards and held it up to her ear, with a stroke of her thumb she stroked a corner of the deck and listened to the cards clap together. A light drizzle pitter-pattered on the windows.

She placed the deck on the table and closed her eyes with her head pointed at the ceiling. With a breath she broke the deck into two and shuffled once. The sound of paper fluttering and the increasing trickle of rain resonated together, everyone ceased what they were doing and took a collective breath. Lucy cut the deck into two again and placed it down on the desk, lightning streaked across the sky and touched down somewhere near and somewhere far. Thunder rocked the portable building a good 8 seconds after the flash, Lucy held that number in her head.

With each successive shuffle and cut the rain increased. At the eighth and final shuffle the lights flickered on and off. The plugged-in VCR that sat underneath the old CRT television flicked 88:88 off and on. Lucy looked up at the ceiling and saw that only 8 of the lights overhead out of the 10 in total were working. Lucy smiled and took a sip of coffee.

She drew a card.

A goofy looking boy in a dorky shirt greeted him. A white dog was to his side and in his arms was one of those hobo-bindle things. The boy looked like he was about to walk off of a cliff. "Foolish." Lucy said with a nod, her voice drowned out by another barrage of thunder.

Mr. Bolhofner woke up with a scream. "NO! THAT'S A LANDMI-" He leaped up from his seat and blinked in confusion. "Oh. Yeah. Just another day-terror…" Bolhofner sighed and sat back down, "I apologize for interrupting your studies." He sighed and shook his head, took a sniff, and shot up again, "Whoa, which one of you maggots made coffee?"

A collective of heads all turned to the girl in the corner. Lucy raised her hand, "Excuse me. That would be me. Would you like some, Mr…" Lucy looked to the girl on her right who mouthed Bolhofner, "Bolhoner?"

"Who said that?" Mr. Bolhofner looked behind him as the lights flickered on and off again, "Did any of you guys hear that?" The classroom pointed to the girl carrying a large seafoam thermos and a single styrofoam cup standing in front of his desk, "ARREGH! OH GO- oh, it's… one of the Loud kids, right?" Lucy simply poured the ichor into the cup and slid it forward to her teacher, "Hm. Loogie, right? Wait- don't tell me." Bolhofner snatched the cup and sipped, "Daaang that's goo- Lucy. Lucy. Your name is Lucy… right?" Lucy tucked her arms behind her back and gave a polite nod, "Ha! I like this one! Quiet.

"Your sisters? Not that quiet at all- and don't get me started on your brother" Bolhofner took a sip and gave a satisfied sigh, "Now- don't get me wrong. They're good kids- even that Luan…" Lucy checked her watch as he continued, "But boy oh boy those kids can be loud… almost got me to stop teaching!" Bolhofner gave a gravelly laugh, "But hey- I was a little stinker when I was your age too… patience is a virtue- or so I'm told by my ex-wife." Lucy tapped her foot impatiently as Bolhofner helped himself to the thermos, "That Lori? Always in lunch detention for being on her smartphone. Leni? Always in lunch detention for talking in class. Lulu- er, Luna? Always in lunch detention for sneaking in that mp3 player. Luan? She basically is the RWMS reigning champion of getting lunch detention. Lynn? Always picking fights- even with me, me, Mr. Freakin' Bolhofner. And Lincoln?" Mr. Bolhofner rolled his eyes and smiled, "That kid just loooves to hear himself talk- I think of that kid as my protégé, but man." Mr. Bolhofner gave a warm smile, "That kid must have lovedlunch detention or somethi-"

"Mr. Bolhofner, what is Lunch Detention? I've never gotten it myself." Lucy thought that maybe saying something would get him to shut up.

"Basically it's the anathema to little snot-nosed brats like you," Bolhofner shifted his attention to a couple kids who were eavesdropping at random, they quickly went back to work, "No talking. Just eating your lunch, doing your homework, or reading, nothing to listen to but the sounds of your own guilty conscience…"

"How is being productive a punishment?"

Mr. Bolhofner blinked in response, "Well… in that case I'd probably have you sweep up and clean around the classr-"

"How is helping my fellow students and my teacher a punishment?" Lucy sighed, "Sigh, I suppose there is still much for me to learn. Please be patient with me, I have been told by others that I possess certain… troubles with things of this nature- er, the pageantry of it all." Lucy had trouble putting her thoughts in order, most teachers never gave her a chance to speak in "conversations".

Mr. Bolhofner nodded and scratched the back of his head, "I suppose we all have things we aren't great at, kiddo. Just take things at your own pace." The gruff man downed the last remaining sips of his coffee and grimaced, "Wish the rest of the Louds were more like you…"

"I apologize on their behalf. I hope to prove myself as not as much of a hindrance to your classroom." Lucy icily announced.

"Ha! Ha!" Mr. Bolhofner poured himself another cup and pointed at her with a large smile, "Now you listen here, kiddo." Lucy nodded and tilted her ear towards her teacher, "I looooove screamin' at kids. That's like my whole deal- you take that from me and I'm just some slob sleeping on the job." He slapped his knee and Lucy tilted her head in confusion, "Seriously, kiddo, be yourself. Pick fights, talk trash, push buttons, piss people off. Who cares? It's a win-win, the way I see things. Blow off steam and hot air and I get to put you in your place, teach you some humility. It's my job as a teacher to make sure- '' Mr. Bolhofner addressed the whole class, "All of you grow up to be well-rounded individuals. Worst case scenario? You get detention. So what? Time is cheap."

"I understand." Lucy acknowledged, "But- and I must apologize, I am not really one to get into trouble."

The phone on Mr. Bolhoners desk rang and Lucy let her arms fall to her side, she cracked her neck and stretched in anticipation.

"But trouble has a tendency to find me."

Mr. Bolhofner silently shook his head and chuckled before snatching the phone, "YEAH." He nodded, "HA. SPEAK OF THE DEVIL." He was screaming into the phone for some weird reason, "ALRIGHT- BUT IT IS RAINING PRETTY HARD OUT THERE ARE YOU SU-" The classroom erupted in concerned murmurs, "ALRIGHT, FINE. BUT IF SHE GETS PNEUMONIA OR TRENCH FOOT I'M NOT THE ONE THAT'S GETTI- WHAT DO YOU MEAN YELLING? THIS IS JUST HOW. I. SOUND. ON. THE. PHO-" Mr. Bolhofner sighed and put the phone back into the receiver, "She hung up one me…" He slumped down in his chair before slowly getting up.

The teacher dug through his desk and found a roll of large black trash bags and cut three holes into one with a pocket knife before tossing it to Lucy, "Here… Lucy Loud, you've been called to the principal's office." Mr. Bolhofner sat back in his seat, "Apparently you're in trouble or something- couldn't hear Ramirez over the phone, she's always whispering into the thing…" Lucy squatted down to pick up the trash bag and put it on, "It's flooding out there… reminds me of Saigon…" Mr. Bolhofner gave a sad sigh, "Learned how to dive back there in the French Foriegn Legion- the constant rain drove me nuts…" Lucy was already at the door, "But I got used to it after a while, you will too, kiddo…"

The raven-haired girl blinked and looked back at her teacher who was staring up at the ceiling, his eyes reflecting back a lifetime's worth of memories from the back of his head. She nodded and opened the door, rain pelted her body and she quickly stepped out of the dingy classroom. Her own eyes staring down a cliff.

There exists, in another time or place, a Lucy Loud that would get a bit upset at the prospect of being in trouble. But that Lucy isn't the one that was currently splashing about in puddles behind the school.

Our Lucy is quite fine with being in trouble, what will mom and dad do to her? Take away her laptop and phone? She can still send letters or talk to her friends at school. Sequester her in her room as soon as she gets home? Lucy would enjoy the quiet time. Make her help out around the house with extra chores? She'd honestly be thankful for the excuse to finally scrub the filth off of Lynn's side of the room.

In Lucy's mind, anything that could be taken away from her wasn't her's in the first place- a lesson taught to her by her siblings. Even her freedom wasn't a guarantee. The things she cherishes the most, her books, are quite literally borrowed and don't actually belong to her. Mom and Dad could be vindictive and take away her library card, but at that point she'd probably move in with Lori and sleep in her car or something. Lucy, at 11 years old, is pretty much ungovernable.

She gave a polite wave to a teacher that was giving her a dirty look in the classroom and took another leap into a puddle. The weather was absolutely perfect, the only complaint Lucy had at the moment is that she wasn't at the beach. She did a quick spin around to watch the lightning light up the sky and saw the teacher bang on the window and point towards the direction of the back entrance of the school, Lucy gave another wave and a bow and scampered off in that direction.

She was soaking wet at this point, and cold as ice. The trash bag held together for the first five minutes or so, but Lucy's fun in the lack of sun made short work of it. The sickly glow of the school's interior flickered on and off and Lucy figured it was about time to go see the principal. The girl figured that if the conversation was so important, Principal Ramirez should have come to pick her up herself- so Lucy didn't mind making her wait a little bit while she took her time.

With a pleasant sigh, she approached the doors that suddenly flung open. A boy with a head of white hair snatched her arm and dragged her into the warmth of the school.

"I'd ask what you did-" Lincoln announced as he flicked specks of rain water off of his jacket, his eyes looked like he hadn't slept in years, "But I could care less." He opened up a locker that wasn't his by waving an odd looking device over the lock and withdrew a towel that he threw onto the face of his little sister, "All that matters to me is that I got to Ramirez in time. I reduced your sentence from 2 months of detention to just 1 day. Don't thank me just ye-"

Lucy towel dried her hair and nodded, "Thank you for your assistance, Lincoln. But-" Lucy tilted her head and wrapped the towel around her neck, "I don't remember doing anything wrong, and honestly: I mean no offense in this, but I'm a big girl now-"

"I know. I promised myself that I was only going to do this once. You'll be changing your own diapers from here on out, so make sure they're only number ones." Lincoln smiled and started walking after stowing away a journal in his backpack, "Follow me. We'll talk on the way."

Lucy let Lincoln walk for a good 30 seconds as she dried herself off a bit more. He didn't notice she wasn't following until he was at the end of the hallway.