( Lincoln )
'Why did I agree to this?' Lincoln sighed as he stood in a changing room, surrounded by clothes that he had already tried on.
Lori had talked to her father about giving him a job at the restaurant. Lori had wanted him to help out in the arcade, but she was just the manager, not the owner. So, there wasn't much she could do without the chance of someone showing up and finding out. Working in the restaurant meant that he would interact with other people often. Which meant that he would need better clothes. Then of course, out of the sisters that had been present, it had been Leni that was interested, since she had been interested in helping him already.
Leni had just walked in. No knocking, nothing. It was a good thing that he had already been dressed, she put down another tack of clothes, and took the ones he had tried on. She had left only a few items behind, telling him to keep them separated so they didn't get mixed in with other clothes. He didn't know what the point was. It wasn't like he was able afford them all. One outfit would work.
Although, he couldn't tell that to Leni. There was one thing that he had learned so far since he had met the Louds, was that you could not argue with any of the loud sisters. Well, you could argue, but you couldn't win.
The shopping had continued about another hour, before they finally made it to the checkout.
…
Lincoln leaned against the table they were sitting at, in the food court. Never had he thought that spending money could be tiring. He had always assumed that those that ere shopping always had fun. He never imagined that it was so tiresome Even the prospect of food wasn't enough to keep him from laying his head down on the table.
He looked towards Leni, who was getting food for them. Maybe it's wasn't shopping in itself. Maybe it was just Leni. Leni did seem to have abundance of energy when it came to shopping for clothing, and fashion. Though, he had found that Lana was the same way when it came to being hyper. Lisa, when excited about some project, could be the same. Lori had her moments. Even Luan, the one that he thought was normal. Well, it seemed once you got to know her, she loved her jokes and pranks, and showed that with enthusiasm .
"O-M-Gosh, Lincy. Was it really that bad?" Her voice startled him, causing him to jump. He looked up at her smirk. "I scared you!"
She wasn't being malicious, but it did seem to amuse her a bit. He didn't know too much about Leni, but she didn't seem to be the type that would pick on someone. She seemed like... well, he didn't want to say dumb, because she wasn't. Not really. She was very intelligent when it came to clothing, materials, and fashion. She had been able to calculate how much everything she had picked out, would cost to the cent.
"Anyways, I totes got some burgers for us." Leni smiled, she seemed to always be smiling. Her smile was infectious. "I hope you don't mind."
"No, I don't mind at all." He didn't. He was never very picky about food. He couldn't afford to be.
"So like. You take care of your sister? That's totes cute how you watch out for her. My sisters explained it all to me." Leni smiled, though he wasn't entirely sure she completely understood. Leni seemed innocent that way.
"I try my best. Honestly, I feel guilty you buying these clothes for me. Lucy is the one that really needs more clothes." It was true, and something he always thought about. He wanted his sister to have the best things.
"Don't worry about that. We totes got that handled." Leni smiled. "
…
Lincoln looked around the restaurant that Mrs Lori's dad owned, and that he would be working at. He wondered what kind of man the Loud father would be. Based on the amount of children this man had, he could only imagine that he might have the same attitude as some of the orphanage workers. It wasn't that all of the people who worked in the orphanages were mean. It was because there were a lot of kids, who were not the most agreeable. Most orphans had lost their parents. Then there were those that came from broken homes, or had horrible parents. Not everyone had been like him and Lucy, they had never known their parents, so didn't act out for losing something that they never had. However, there were some that were just plain mean to them. The job was only about a paycheck, and they didn't care about them.
He shook his head, as if trying to shake out all of those thoughts of the mean workers from the past. He continued looking out over the restaurant, he hadn't taken in much of the inside before, because he had been more concerned with food, and tired from working at the park. It was a decent size restaurant. He wondered how long it would take to clean it. Hours, he guessed. Which most of the cleaning would be when they closed, that would get him back when it was late. But it would be steady work, and he couldn't walk away form that. If it worked out like he hoped, they could afford a lot more.
"Lincoln, sorry to keep you waiting." Luan had come from the kitchen. "Dad had some last minute things to take care of, and he'll be right out."
"It's okay, Miss. Luan." Even if Luan didn't seem to be that much older than he was, he didn't want to seem rude.
"Luan is fine. I'm not that old." She didn't sound offended, or angry.
"I'm sorry. I just..."
It's alright, Lincoln." Luan lead him over to a booth, and sat down. "Dad's just getting some roasts in the over, to slow cook over night. Until then, lets wait here. I didn't get much of a chance to get to talk to you. So, you live in a bus in the junkyard? I couldn't imagine what that's like."
"Well... It's honestly, not that bad." He looked down to the table. He was a little embarrassed, but not too much. He had learned that he could trust the loud sisters. "It's better now, since Lisa helped us out."
"I heard about that. Lisa is a genius with that science stuff. Don't get me wrong. I'm good with building some machines, but not like Lisa." She said. "Don't be embarrassed, Lincoln. You've achieved so much on your own, you should be proud of that."
"Thanks, Luan."
"Mind if I join you guy's party out here?" Mr. Loud had come out from the kitchen, carrying a couple styrofoam trays. Mr. Loud was balding, though not bald, a soft smile, that seemed genuine. A green sweater, and beige slacks. He set the trays down on the table.
"We're hoe-down for that." Luan snickered. "Get it?"
"I shin-dig it." He laughed, and Lincoln wondered what he had gotten himself into, as father and daughter broke out in giggles.
Mr. Loud sat in the booth across from him, and next to his daughter, after they had stopped giggling, and he wiped a tear from his eye. He seemed to be a nice guy. Which made Lincoln feel a little more relaxed.
"So, a lot of my daughters have come to me, and explained to me your situation. So, we've decided to help you as best we can. I had thought about having you help me with clean up at night, though. My daughters," He looked over to Luan, "Neglected to tell me how young you were. I can't have you walking home alone so late, alone. It wouldn't be safe. But there are several things that you can help with daily. Is that okay?"
"Anything is alright, honestly. Mr. Loud." It was true, after the urine soaked plastic balls from the ball pit, he didn't think there was anything here that could be worse.
"I'm told that you've been doing things all over town. Lori has spoken quite highly of you. So, we're going to give you a chance. We'll pay you, of course, but will also provide meals for you and your sister." Mr. Loud patted the trays. "These are for you take back with you. I'd like talk more with you, but it's getting late, we can talk more tomorrow. Luan's going to drive you where you need to be, if that's okay."
"Yes, Mr. Loud, thank you very much, Sir."
…
Snow had started to fall on his way home. Luan had dropped him off a block from the junkyard. She was willing to go closer, but he didn't want anyone to see the car, and get suspicious. It was still a bit early for that this time a year, though he knew that it had been coming. Lincoln sure was glad that they now had power at the bus. He had been dreading the winter, the one before this had almost gotten the best of them. This year, it would be different. They would have heat, and food that wasn't canned. Even would have some money, since he was going to be working at the restaurant. This year would be different.
He stepped into the bus, closing the door behind him. First he noticed that it was cold inside, dark, and no one was there. He turned on the lamp, and heater before looking around. He looked on the bed, the sofa, then finally the table, where he found a piece of paper that had come from one of Lucy's notebooks.
'Big Brother, I am with Lana, and Luna. Luna is one of Lana's other sisters. They requested my company to go shopping. Then invited me to slumber at their home. I agreed, however I did not want you to worry about me, so I am leaving this note. Lucy.' Lincoln read.
"Okay, so. Just me tonight." He said aloud. He didn't think he had ever actually been alone before, not like this. Of course he had been alone while working, or doing something. Though, he had never been alone before, and he wasn't sure what to do.
When you're homeless, and can't afford much. There wasn't much in the way of entertainment. No tv, or smart phone, or a computer to occupy your time. Lucy usually read to him. He had listened just to give her something to do, because he thought it was for her entertainment. He hadn't realized just how much he had enjoyed it until this moment.
"Alright." Lincoln said to himself, before looking around. His eyes fell on a stack of books that he had gotten from various places for Lucy. Then to the dinner he ad brought. He would enjoy dinner, then read one of Lucy's books. Normally, he would be tired. Since he had spent the day with Leni, instead of working like he usually did. So, he wasn't as tired as he would be. Though, being herded around by Leni wasn't very easy either. Though, it was no where near as bad as manual labor.
Lincoln opened the bag that he had brought back with him from the restaurant, pulling out the trays he had been given, curious about what was inside. He opened the tray, revealing beef roast, and potatoes, which smelled heavenly. If nothing else, working at Lynn's Kitchen for the food alone, was going to be worth it. He tucked into his meal.
When he was done with his meal, and the trash tossed out, he had moved to the couch, and started reading one of Lucy's books, for some entertainment, before bed. He missed Lucy, her monotone voice lulled him to sleep, but at the same time he hoped that she was having fun. She deserved to have human contact other than him.
Lincoln sighed as he put the book down on the table, then turned off the light. Normally, the lack of light would make it impossible to see in the bus, but with the small heater, a soft orange glow lit up at least the floor so he wouldn't trip over anything. Not that he and Lucy left things around often, but there was always the chance that something could be on the floor.
He sighed louder as he laid on the bed. He had slept on the bed recently, while sharing with his sister. But it had been a long time since he had a bed to himself. It was soft and comfortable. He felt himself drifting as soon as he laid down.
…
Loud banging, startled him awake. He wasn't sure what was going on. At first he had thought that it had been a dream, as he sat up and didn't hear anything. He looked around the bus to see if something could have fallen over. He didn't see anything that had fallen.
'Must have been a drea...' He thought, until more knocking came from the side of the bus.
"Whoever's in there, you gotta leave." A gruff voice came from outside the bus, and his heart sunk. "I'll give you two hours. When I come back, don't be here."