Back in the present, both Sid and Ronnie Anne are having a laugh, though Lincoln was somewhat blushing at having to relieve that awkward experience.
"I honestly can't believe you went around and kissed all ten of your sisters and told them how much you love them," Ronnie Anne said.
"Again, Stella's idea," Lincoln said, looking a bit grumpy.
"Don't worry dude, I liked the story," Ronnie Anne said. "It's great that you showed how much you love your sisters, and I know they appreciated that. Lori wouldn't admit it at the time, but I know she did mention it to Bobby, how it was sweet of you to do something like that for her, even if she didn't appreciate it at the moment."
"I'm so happy Lori's lightened up over the years," Stella said. "Took some work but it was worth it in the end. In fact that love and affection thing really helped out, it was the first step Lori and I took to finally establishing a good relationship."
Back in the past, just a few minutes after the love and kissing adventure ended, Lincoln was downstairs in the living room, his ice pack carefully placed over his face.
"Another day, another bodily injury," Lincoln said. "Believe it or not, this might be the tamest of injuries I got from Lynn. At least she didn't bruise my ribs this time."
"How did she do that?" Stella asked.
"She asked me to be a practice goalie once, then she kicked the ball like if she had a bionic foot," Lincoln said. "My body didn't stand a chance."
"Unfortunately Lynn's always going to Lincoln for sports practice," Luan said.
"Why Lincoln? No offense to him but he's not very sporty," Stella said. "The most active thing I've seen him do was climb a rope all the way to the top in gym class, and that was just to prove a point to himself."
"Probably because I'm the only boy," Lincoln said. "I could be wrong but that's my guess."
"That's part of the reason," Luna confirmed. "But it's also because you don't stand up to her, you gotta learn to say 'no'."
"Come on Luna, you know that's hard for Lincoln to do," Luan said. "Let's be honest, we're not easy to say 'no' to, especially for Lincoln."
"Easy or not big brother, you gotta get more assertive," Lana said. "Because if I'm being honest, you do make it kind of easy to walk all over you."
"Which makes it harder for us to not try to exploit, you can't be too easy going in this house, otherwise you'd never get what you want," Lola said. "But you should know that by now."
"Actually Lincoln is capable of getting what he wants, he just takes a different approach," Lisa said. "He plans things out before acting, this way he avoids any potential conflict that may arise with the rest of us."
"But it doesn't always work for him," Lola said.
"Well he at least tries, so he is assertive, just with a more calculated approach," Lisa explained.
"Well big brother, you still have to show more backbone," Lola said. "It works for us, I don't let anyone walk all over me, I walk on them first!"
"Yeah you're a pro at it," Luna said, slightly annoyed. "But the point still stands little bro, you gotta stand up to Lynn more, she'll get mad but it's not like she'll hurt you that badly, none of us would ever do that."
"Well..." Lola said, and was then silenced with a glare. "Kidding!"
"Stella, word of advice, try not to take your eyes off of Lola," Luan said.
"Hey now, I would never do anything bad to Stella," Lola insisted. "She's not likely to cross me after all."
"Lola..." Lincoln warned, then turned to Stella. "Gotta love my sister."
"I think it's cute," Stella said, then turned to Lola. "Though I do suggest toning the sassiness down, people are gonna mistake you for being bratty, and I know you're better than that."
"I knew I liked you," Lola said, grinning at the girl.
"Alright, so obviously I need to 'grow a spine' as you might put it," Lincoln said. "Any suggestions?"
"For starters, you gotta act more confident," Luna said. "Know what you want and just go for it."
"Say 'no' and mean it," Luan said. "Look someone straight in the eyes and do it."
"And keep in mind that even if Lynn or any of us get angry, it'll pass," Leni said. "So don't say 'yes' or let yourself get walked on because you're worried someone's gonna wanna hurt you."
"Well to be fair, we haven't really given him a reason to think otherwise," Luan said. "But it's never personal Lincoln, it can happen to any of us."
"Yeah, not like we're always on the same side because you're the only boy and it's easier to go against you," Luna said. "You never thought that, did you?"
"Uh...no, of course not," Lincoln said, smiling nervously.
"In all fairness, we do seem to come together against him quite often, so it's only logical that Lincoln would think we females are all conspiring against him," Lisa pointed out. "However Lincoln, you're usually the one who instigates those situations."
"Uh, how?" Lincoln asked. "And more importantly, when!?"
"Well the chore strike comes to mind," Lisa said. "And those noise silencing ear buds."
"Well, what about the Sharon De'Moneit treasure hunt?" Lincoln said. "I was the only one looking for the money on my own!"
"So was I," Lisa reminded. "Everyone else had their roommates, that they ended up betraying."
"Well what about...um...come on there's gotta be something," Lincoln said, racking his brain.
"Lincoln if you really have to 'dig deep' on this then it's not really worth it," Stella said. "I mean maybe your sisters have felt singled out before."
"I sure have," Luan said. "Like when everyone got tired of my pranks and comedy."
"Hey you brought that on yourself by going overboard," Lola said.
"Lola..." Stella said, disapprovingly.
"Alright, maybe that was a bit harsh, but you've never been around for Luan's pranks," Lola said.
"Where are we even going with this?" Lincoln asked.
"Long story short, toughen up little bro," Luna said. "We'll help too."
"Anything to keep you from getting hurt again," Leni said.
"Well, thanks, I really appreciate that," Lincoln said. "And don't worry about the punch, I'm fine. Like I said, not the worse that's happened."
"We're so glad Linky," Leni said, bringing her little brother in for a hug.
"Yeah, and here's something to help you feel better," Lola said, leaning in to kiss Lincoln's cheek, getting a blush from the boy. "Now we're even."
"Hey I wanna be even too!" Lana said, walking over to kiss Lincoln's other cheek.
"Aw, that's so adorable," Stella said in a gushing tone.
As this was going on downstairs, Lori was standing near the edge, hearing all the talk and support among the siblings. She's guessing this was Stella's endgame, to bring the family closer by having Lincoln act overly affectionate with everyone.
"That girl is so strange," Lori commented. "But, I will give her some credit, this was a bold plan."
She decided to go downstairs to check on Lincoln. He is her little brother and she does feel obligated to check on him. Plus she's just as worried, even if it seemed like she would have done the same thing.
As she made her way downstairs, she quickly caught the attention of the other sisters, each one a bit suspicious about her presence.
"Ease up everyone, I'm just here to check on Lincoln," Lori said, sensing the tension in the room.
"Took you long enough," Lola sassed.
"Watch your tone with me little missy, remember who does the Laundry, you don't want any 'accidents' happening to your pageant gowns, do you?" Lori warned, glaring down at Lola, who immediately backed off. Lori turned her attention to Stella, "Mind letting me sit next to Lincoln a moment?"
Stella had no arguments here, she moved aside, allowing Lori to sit next to her little brother. Stella, while a bit unsure about Lori's intentions, still had some faith that Lori just wanted to check on Lincoln and not make things worse.
Lori gently rubbed the area Lincoln got punched, "Wow, she really got you good. Does it hurt a lot?"
"No, not really," Lincoln said. "I know Lynn, she could hit harder than that, so it could have been worse. I still think she could have pulled her punch a little bit more though, maybe half her strength as opposed to like 90 percent."
"I still can't believe she would even resort to punching you," Stella said, then suspiciously glared at the sisters. "How often do you all resort to physical violence?"
This got a bit of an awkward silence from the siblings, not wanting to lie to the girl but at the same time, worried about her reaction.
"I'm not gonna sugarcoat it," Lori began. "We fight physically a lot, that's something siblings tend to do. Is it pretty? No, but it happens. When you live with a bunch of other kids, tensions rise and tempers can flare, I guarantee if you live in this house for a week, you're gonna feel the urge to punch at least one of us."
Stella couldn't fully disagree, she already has the urge to punch Lynn, and she doesn't even live in The Loud House.
"Well, aside from some minor swelling, you'll be just fine Lincoln," Lori concluded.
"Figured as much," Lincoln said. "Well I know I won't be kissing Lynn again anytime soon."
"Well that was a pretty random and out of nowhere thing to do," Lori said.
"But not unappreciated," Lola said. "To most of us at least."
"Well since little bro's alright, I say we leave him and his girl to some alone time," Luna suggested. "She can probably help make him feel much better, if you all catch my drift."
"I'm all for that, as long as they keep things to a minimum," Lori said.
"Like you do with Bobby?" Lola asked.
"Your dress Lola!" Lori warned, getting Lola to back off. "I'm old enough to control my urges with Bobby."
"Tch, yeah ok," Luna said. "Look they'll be fine, let's just give them their privacy."
"Yes, let's give them their alone time," Lola said, then leaned in to the couple. "If anything happens, I want all the juicy details."
"Hey I don't kiss and tell," Lincoln said.
"Fine, I'll just read about it in your diary," Lola said, walking off with the rest of her sisters.
"You have a diary?" Stella asked.
"Yeah but I barely write in it, as you just heard, I get no privacy," Lincoln said. "Though that's kind of Lola's thing, she gets into everyone's diary. Actually she pretty much knows what everyone does, you can't keep a secret in this house."
"Not wrong!" Lola said from upstairs.
"Lola, don't give us away!" Lana scolded.
"Ok, how many of you are at the stairs!?" Lincoln asked.
"Uh...just us two!" Lola said.
"Wait, I thought there was four of us," he heard Leni say.
"Next time let's leave Leni out of our waves dropping," Lisa suggested.
"All of you clear out," they heard Luna say.
"Yeah, this blockade is gonna cause a block for Lincoln," Luan said.
"Sis!" Luna scolded, this reaction getting a blush from Lincoln as well as Stella.
"Wait, I don't get it," Lana said.
"Tough crackers! Now march to your rooms!" Luna ordered. If Lincoln could see her, he'd know her face is just as red.
"Dang it Luan..." Lincoln muttered, then turned to Stella, laughing nervously. "My sister's quite the card isn't she?"
"Yeah, a Joker to be precise," Stella said.
"Well that is the name I gave the hero I based off her," Lincoln said. "Weird someone told me it sounds like a villain name, others say it sounds more anti-hero, but it's still the perfect name for a comedic hero."
"I think so too," Stella said. "I still think it's so nice you basically turned your sisters into Superheroes."
"Well, this might sound corny and cheesy, but after today I can't possibly feel more awkward than I do now," Lincoln began. "But in a way, my sisters are like my heroes, at least the older ones. I look up to them in different ways, Lori is a great leader, Luna and Luan are so fun and they know how to turn their hobbies into something much more, Leni's really sweet, and Lynn...she might be a bit of a bully, but I do admire her strength and her determination."
"You're such a sweet boy Lincoln, I just wish Lynn could appreciate that," Stella said. "I get the feeling she expects you to be different, like if she wants you to be a stereotypical boy...that just kind of irks me."
"Yeah I kind of got that vibe," Lincoln said. "It's pretty annoying, but thankfully she's the only one who has that mindset."
"Still, it just seems so terrible that Lynn would have a mindset like that," Stella said. "It just seems so..."
"Stella, listen," Lincoln began. "Please, I know Lynn seems bad, but she's really caring deep down, she just has trouble expressing her emotions. Just try to get to know her a little better, it'll help. Now I'm not saying she's secretly the best person in the world, she has a lot of faults, but you'll be able to look past them."
"I'll do that if you really want me to," Stella said. "I mean I do hope to get along with all of your sisters, and I guess having 8 out of 10 liking me so far is quite the head start. I just gotta hope the other sisters continue to like me."
"You'd have to really try hard to make my other sisters not like you," Lincoln said, then though a minute. "Well not that hard but you shouldn't have to worry. Just focus on Lori and Lynn, and between you and me, I think Lori is gonna be easier than you think. She can be quite the softie."
"Well I hope I can get on her good side soon," Stella said. "Any tips?"
"From my personal experience, don't try to hard to butter her up, she'll see right through you," Lincoln explained. "Just be yourself and keep it natural, something tells she'll like who just fine."
"If it were that easy, wouldn't she have liked me right away?" Stella asked.
"Yeah, that's something I'll need to ask her about later," Lincoln said. "It's so weird, she spent so much time telling me to be a perfect gentleman to you, then she pulls this? Starting to wonder if that was some elaborate test."
"Why would she put you through a test like that?" Stella asked.
"I don't even know, she can be a bit complicated to fully understand," Lincoln explained. "But she's probably the best friend you can have when she really likes you, so it's worth going for."
Moments later, the door opened, revealing the Loud Parents, Rita and Lynn Sr.
"Lincoln!?" Rita called. "Where are you honey!?"
"Mom! I'm over here!" Lincoln called, Rita and her husband quickly making their way over.
"Lincoln, are you alright dear?" Rita asked, bending down to check on him. "Leni told me what happened, don't worry I'll set Lynn straight."
"She didn't knock your teeth out did she? You think having a dentist for a wife would be easier on the bills," Lynn Sr said, earning him a glare from his wife. "And because that would be just terrible, I don't want my kids hurt after all."
"My teeth are still there, I double checked," Lincoln said. "She hit hard but at least it wasn't full force."
"Man what a champ, taking a slug to the jaw from an athlete," Lynn Sr said, rubbing Lincoln's head. "You're one tough hombre."
"Um, Mr. and Mrs. Loud?" Stella said, getting their attention.
"Oh, Stella, we're so sorry dear, we didn't even notice you there," Rita said. "I don't suppose you were around when this happened."
"I was, and I feel like this was my fault," Stella said.
"Stella, no it wasn't," Lincoln said.
"Why would you think that?" Lynn Sr asked. "I mean we're not expecting you to be a bodyguard for our son, he's got some pride as a man."
"Lynn!" Rita shouted.
"Oops, sorry, that came out wrong!" Lynn Sr said. "For what it's worth, I see no shame in a girl wanting to protect a guy, it's admirable! Something so unusual that it's inspiring." The glare did not subside. "I'm just gonna stop talking now."
Stella couldn't help but find this somewhat funny, Lincoln's father could be so goofy like. "It's fine Mr. Loud, I know you meant no offense."
"I knew I liked you," Lynn Sr said, doing a double gun point. "You're a great kid, glad you're dating my son now. Guys like us need girls like you to prevent us from being foolish."
"Well I'm glad you're talking some sense now," Rita said, then turned back to Stella. "Sorry about that dear, but why do you feel like you're at fault?"
"This only happened because I encouraged Lincoln to hug and kiss his sisters, Lynn wasn't too thrilled about that unfortunately," Stella said. "Lincoln did warn me that some of his sisters wouldn't like that, but I encouraged him anyway."
"To be fair, I expected more of my sisters to try and beat me, up," Lincoln admitted. "So the fact that only Lynn punched me should count this as a success...at least that's how I'm counting it."
"Any reason you tried getting Lincoln to doing something like that?" Lynn Sr asked.
"I thought it would increase his bond with his sisters, and result in less bickering," Stella said. "Then it'd be easier for Lincoln to find peace with his sisters."
"Well that's a very kind gesture from you Stella," Rita said. "It's so nice that you care so much about Lincoln's relationship with his sisters."
"And it worked, sort of," Lynn Sr said. "So I take it all the girls liked the kisses? Aside from Junior I mean?"
"Well they were weirded out at first but they ended up liking the feeling," Stella said. "Though I have yet to see Lucy's reaction."
"Oh right, Lucy!" Lincoln said. "I gotta check on her."
"Why, what's wrong?" Rita asked.
"She fainted after I kissed her, I guess I really took her by surprise when I did that," Lincoln said.
"Wait, she fainted!?" Lynn Sr asked. "Where is she?"
"In my room," Lincoln said. "I put her on my bed right afterwards."
"I should go check on her, poor girl's not good with emotions," Lynn Sr said, making his way upstairs.
"I'll be joining him in a moment, mainly to figure out this room situation," Rita said.
"Uh, about that mom," Lincoln began. "I know you and dad want the girls to bunk together, and I might understand why, but I do like having Lucy as a roommate, I'm not sure if that affects your decision, but I figured I'd throw it out there so you don't think Lucy being in my room is an inconvenience."
"Well, I appreciate you telling me that," Rita said. "The only problem is that your room's too small for Lucy to stay in, it really doesn't have to do with the gender." Rita thought a moment, "Well maybe it does to your father but I myself don't see the harm in you wanting to bunk with your sisters, though as you get older you might start to question the idea for...several reasons."
"I already have an idea," Lincoln said. "The walls are paper thin and I've heard the things Lori has had to say about certain topics."
"...I really should have a word with that girl on what not to say," Rita said. "Still, even if you're ok with that, there's still the size of your room."
"Maybe Lincoln can move into Lucy's room then," Stella suggested. "That way he and Lucy can be roommates, and you can give Lincoln's room to Lynn."
"Sounds good to me," Lincoln said.
Rita tapped her chin, "I'll think about that, but I can't make any promises." Rita stood up, "I'm gonna go check on Lucy now, then give Lynn Junior a proper lecture, you two enjoy the rest of your day together." Rita started making her way up to Lincoln's room.
"Your parents are really nice," Stella complimented. "They seem to handle the responsibility of raising 11 kids really well, I kind of admire that about them."
"My dad really wanted a big family," Lincoln said. "I think it was because he was lonely as a boy so he wanted to make sure that didn't happen to us."
"So I take it loneliness was never a problem for you," Stella said.
"No, though sometimes I wish I could have alone time," Lincoln said. "I mean a guy's gotta have time to themselves once in a while."
"That's understandable, I can be the same way," Stella said. "Granted I don't have a large family like this but anyone would need time to themselves."
"Come to think of it, I wonder if that could also help my sisters?" Lincoln wondered. "Sometimes I forget they probably want alone time as well, maybe that's another reason why they can be irritable on occasion, I can be when I'm overwhelmed."
"That could be your next goal, finding ways to help your sisters feel less stressed," Stella said. "My suggestion is to try to gauge what they're going through in their own lives, see if there's anything you can do to help, if they want it at least."
"After the Sister Fight Protocol, I'm never butting into my sister's problems without asking them first," Lincoln said.
"If you keep a close eye out for your sisters, you never would have had to worry about that at all," Stella said. "You probably could have prevented that."
"Uh, how?" Lincoln asked. "They fought because they bought the same dress, I can't keep track of what they buy."
"We'll figure something out," Stella said. "Still, how did they resolve that dress issue, I don't think you ever told me."
"Apparently the deal was that Leni can wear the dress on any day of the week that doesn't end in 'Y'," Lincoln said.
Stella counted the days in her head a moment, "Uh...that's everyday though."
"Exactly Lori's plan," Lincoln said.
Stella grimaced at that, feeling pity for Leni's lack of intelligence. "That's so sneaky."
"Well I guess it's like Lola said, in this house, sometimes you gotta be sneaky or show a little imitative if you want to get anything," Lincoln said. "Might sound cruel but that's how the cookie crumbles."
Stella knew she couldn't argue that, everyone needs initiative, something she felt like she lacked for the most part. If it wasn't for how ambitious the Loud Sisters were, she might have given up on her goal of dating Lincoln when she ran into trouble. She's actually grateful for their help, perhaps she too can learn a little initiative from them.
Upstairs the parents had finished checking on Lucy, the goth girl having woken up, a bit dazed, and blushing.
"You alright Lucy?" Lynn Sr asked.
"I'm fine, just surprised..." Lucy said. "Uh, I don't know if you're aware of what happened but-"
"We know dear," Rita interjected. "Lincoln told us."
"Your big brother really loves you huh?" Lynn Sr said.
"Well, I never doubted that but..." Lucy kept blushing. "He's never been that affectionate."
"Oh, you're not bothered are you dear?" Rita asked. "Your brother meant no harm, he just wanted to show you how much he cared about you."
"I'm not bothered...I actually kind of liked it, I don't know why," Lucy said. "Lincoln makes me feel so...happy sometimes, I feel more at ease when I'm with him."
"Well that's good honey, it sounds like Lincoln's plan was indeed a success then," Rita said.
"Mom...I know you want me to move back with Lynn, but I really, really like staying with Lincoln," Lucy said. "Is there anyway to switch to him permanently?"
"Lucy I know you had a fight with Lynn but you have to make up sometime," Lynn Sr said.
"It's not even about my fight with Lynn anymore, I just like Lincoln better," Lucy said. "Besides Lynn and I just aren't compatible, I'm tired of disagreeing with her and I'm tired of her smug comments. Lincoln's much more mature than she is, and that's what I want, maturity from my older sibling."
"I know you two get along really well, but in a few years time, your brother might not find it appealing sharing a room with his sister," Lynn said. "And you might not like sharing it with your brother."
"I'm not gonna complain about my breast size to him if that's what you're worried about," Lucy said, earning a huge blush out of Lynn Sr.
"Young lady where did you hear that type of talk!?" The father of 11 frantically asked.
"Lori, the walls are paper thin after all," Lucy said.
"For the record Lynn, Lincoln told me the same thing," Rita said. "Apparently Lori's been saying certain things out loud."
"Not just Lori, I hear it from Leni too, but she mostly talks about butt size," Lucy said.
Lynn Sr covered up his ears, "No more, I get the point!" He started sulking a bit, "Look, I'll give an extra night for both of us to think about it, now I gotta get dinner started." Lynn Sr sulkingly made his way out the room, "It feels like just the other day I was spoon feeding them...why did they have to grow up and become women? I want my little girls back now."
Rita shook her head, unfortunately her husband can't get used to the idea of his daughters talking about such mature things. Rita knew it was perfectly normal, though of course she sometimes feels the same way when hearing Lincoln talking about chest hair and facial hair, just seeing him with a girlfriend has the mother of 11 a little uneasy but she promised not to keep any of her kids cooped up in the nest, tough as it may be.
"Well if you're feeling alright, then I'll leave you be, I gotta have a word with Lynn about her recent behavior," Rita said.
"Why? What did she do?" Lucy asked.
"Don't worry about it dear, let me handle this," Rita said, making her way out the room.
Of course that answer wasn't good enough for Lucy, being the sneaky girl she is, she crawled into the vents and made her way toward the vents above Lynn's room. "Alright, what did you pull this time you she-demon?"
"So young lady, care to explain why you punched your brother in the face today?" Rita asked, looking right down at her daughter.
"Knee jerk reaction," Lynn explained.
"Knee jerk reaction?" Rita asked, somewhat in disbelief. "Your brother just kissed you on the cheek, how would that cause a knee jerk reaction to punching him?"
"It was weird! That's why," Lynn said. "Why would he do something that gross."
"Lynn, you are not six years old, acting like this because your brother kissed you," Rita said. "You're already grounded as it is, what made you think this would be any better!?"
"Sorry, I couldn't help myself!" Lynn said.
"Don't apologize to me, you should apologize to your brother!" Rita said.
"But I already did," Lynn replied. "He already forgave me."
"Hm, well I will be discussing this with your father, don't be surprised if your punishment gets extended," Rita said, making her way out the room.
Lynn groaned in annoyance, "Stupid Lincoln, I already know he loves me, he doesn't have to be so mushy about it, it ain't manly."
Lucy, who was still watching from the vents, had a look of pure disgust on her face, "You should count your lucky stars he would show you affection after all you've done, to throw it away like that was completely asinine."
Back in the present.
"Wait, how did you know about that part?" Sid asked.
"Lucy told me later, I'll get to that in a sec," Lincoln explained. "Anyway, Lynn did come downstairs, and it was pretty awkward."
Back in the past.
"Hey Stella," Lynn Sr said. "Are you staying for dinner? I'm making my world famous Goulash!"
"I'm very certain anything you make is world famous, at least according to your kids," Stella said.
"Aw, my kids are the best," Lynn Sr bashfully said. "So is that a 'yes'?"
"If you don't mind, I just need to let my mom know," Stella said.
"Sounds good to me, see you in a bit," Lynn Sr said.
"Your father's so friendly," Stella said, then got off the couch. "Mind if I use the bathroom?"
"Hey I won't stop you," Lincoln said. "You know where it is right?"
"Next to Luna and Luan's room," Stella said, walking toward the stairs. "Be back in a jiffy."
Lincoln waved bye, then sat back, "I really hope dinner tonight goes well after what happened."
"Me too," Lucy said, appearing out of nowhere and startling Lincoln.
"Lucy..." Lincoln began.
"Right, sorry," Lucy said, sitting next to him, feeling much more bashful than normal. "So..."
"So? What so?" Lincoln asked.
"That kiss earlier, the one you gave me," Lucy began, getting a nervous reaction from Lincoln, he almost forgot that she would likely confront him about it.
"I'm sorry if that bothered you, I won't do it again," Lincoln said, getting a look of surprise from Lucy.
"Don't be sorry, I didn't mind," Lucy said. "I'm flattered you're willing to do that, I know it's hard since you usually don't like showing mushy emotions to us, but I assure you that I liked the feeling. Thanks for being affectionate with me Lincoln."
"Oh, um no problem Lucy," Lincoln said, not sure what more to say.
"If I may ask though," Lucy began. "What brought that up anyway? No offense but this doesn't seem like something you'd normally do."
"It was Stella's idea, she suggested that I kiss all my sisters, and then tell them how much I love them," Lincoln explained.
"Hm, that would explain what I heard from Lynn," Lucy said. "So you kissed all of our sisters?"
"Yeah, they all took it well, mostly," Lincoln said. "The twins were grossed out at first but they didn't mind in the end. Lori looked pretty mad, but she managed to chill out before things got too bad. Lynn was the only real failure in this plan."
"Her loss then," Lucy said. She then turned to Lincoln and placed a kiss of her own on his cheek. "I love you, big brother."
"Hehe, thanks Lucy," Lincoln said, placing his arm around his sister and pulling her into a side hug, one she greatly appreciated.
Upstairs Stella had come out of the bathroom, about to make her way down to Lincoln when she heard a voice call to her.
"Stella, mind coming over a moment?" Stella turned to see that it was Lori who called her. "Just for a quick talk."
Stella looked a little distrustful of Lori, not really wanting to be alone with her. Though maybe she won't have to be, Lori does share a room with Leni. Though Stella seemed to notice right away that Leni wasn't there.
"Stella, I know you don't trust me, and I don't blame you," Lori began. "But I really just want to talk to you for a moment, please, I promise nothing will happen."
Stella would have liked it better if Leni was there, but she figured there was no harm in hearing Lori out, hopefully she won't too anything too foolish with Lincoln's parents home.
"Where's Leni?" Stella asked as she stepped into the room.
"Leni left for the moment, I asked her to while you were in the bathroom," Lori said. "I just want to talk to you alone." Lori gestured to Leni's bed. "Make yourself comfortable if you want."
Stella took Lori's offer, making her way onto Leni's bed, sitting down on top of the mattress. "Alright, what did you need me for?"
"Well, before that, I have something to get off my chest," Lori took a good hard look at Stella. "I really want to apologize for my behavior yesterday, no, this past week. I know you said it's gonna take time for you to forgive me, but I just want you to know I truly am sorry, there was absolutely no excuse for the lousy things I've done. I never should have treated you so horribly, it was very immature of me to act the way I did, and I promise I will do anything I can to make it up to you."
Stella took a moment to register this situation, from the sound of things, Lori seemed to be very genuine in her apology, and the proper thing to do would be to give Lori a chance to make up for her actions.
"Lori, I appreciate this, but the way you treated me this past week, it really wasn't pleasant," Stella said. "You made me feel like garbage."
"I know, it was terrible of me," Lori said.
"You hurt me a lot Lori, I felt so terrible for a while, like I was nothing but a burden," Stella said. "How could I even be friends with someone who has a sister that wasn't fond of me, let alone be that person's girlfriend."
"Stella..." Lori wanted to say something comforting, but she was really at a loss. "I'm sorry, I just don't really know what to say."
"Can you answer one thing for me at least," Stella said, looking down shyly.
"Sure, what is it?" Lori asked.
Stella looked up at Lori with a look of inadequacy in her eyes, "Do you...not like me? Do you hate me Lori?"
Something about that question tugged at Lori's heartstrings, that and the look in Stella's eyes. Stella may be a mature kid, but she's still just that, a kid who has been put through an emotional test of endurance.
"Stella, if this is about what I said yesterday, please don't take that to heart, I didn't mean what I said," Lori said. "I don't hate you, I never really did."
"You sounded so angry though, like I really upset you, I mean I know you had your heart set on Ronnie Anne but the way everyone made it sound, you didn't get that way until I started showing up, they said you never had a problem with Lincoln liking another girl," Stella said. "Was there something about me you didn't like? Do you not think I can be a good girlfriend to your brother? Am I...Do you think I'm ugly?"
"Ugly?" Lori asked. "Stella you're really pretty, ugly is the furthest thing from my mind. If anything at the time I knew you had the looks on your side, I think Ronnie Anne is a cute girl but you're just as adorable."
"You and that other girl kept saying I was freakishly tall, and you said I packed a lot of...junk back there," Stella said.
"I promise you Stella, everything I said I didn't mean," Lori insisted. "Please, I don't think you're unattractive in anyway, you're a beautiful young girl, and I can see why Lincoln was so attracted to you. Plus I'll give you credit, you seem to put up with this family quite well, something even my friends struggle with."
Stella held her stomach, almost as of feeling herself, or rather trying to comfort herself. "So, you don't think there's anything wrong with me."
"No Stella," Lori knelt down in front of her. "You're fine just the way you are." Lori saw a glimmer of a tear in Stella's eyes. Lori was really starting to realize just how mean she was to this girl, a really nice girl who didn't deserve her cruelty. Stella had done nothing wrong to Lori after all, even Lori now can't understand what got into her.
Without a second thought, Lori pulled Stella into a hug, gently caressing the young girl and hoping to sooth her worries. Stella was a little surprised but could feel that the friendly vibes Lori was giving her were genuine. She slowly returned Lori's hug, the two finally moving towards peace.
"I really am sorry Stella, you're not flawed, you're a great girl, and I'm glad you're dating my brother," Lori pulled back a little, wiping the tear from Stella's eyes. "Just try not to make-out too much or too passionately, you're both still young."
"Sure, you got it Lori," Stella said. "And thanks, you really are a nice girl, just like Lincoln said."
"Lincoln's been calling me nice?" Lori asked, playfully in disbelief. "Are you sure he didn't mean Leni?"
"He meant you Lori, come on you know Lincoln loves you, even if you two do disagree a lot," Stella said.
"Well I guess he showed us today how much he really loves us...which brings me to my next question," Lori said. "Why did you want Lincoln to do that? I mean I heard your explanation before to my sisters but why were you so interested in making Lincoln do that?"
"Honestly, it just seemed weird to me that he said it's so rare and awkward for the siblings in this house to be more honest with their feelings," Stella said. "Seems like everyone hides behind some tough, hostile exterior. I know you have to be assertive in this family, at least that's what Lincoln says, but hearing about the Sister Fight Protocol and the Bad Luck Incident, I feel like you need to really remind each other that you do love one another in the end. I get that siblings fight, we have classmates that complain about something their sibling did, and I know if I had a sibling around I probably wouldn't always get along with them, but I worry that your family has more of a negative vibe than a positive one. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
"Yes, I do understand what you mean," Lori said. "But I hope that you understand that we really do love each other, even if we don't always say it."
"I believe you do," Stella said. "I just wanted to see Lincoln show it, it was cute really, seeing him kiss all his sisters, and telling them how much he loves them, he must have made them all so happy doing that. Didn't it make you happy?"
"I hate to admit it, but, it kind of did," Lori said. "He used to do that more when he was younger, though as he got older, or rather as me and the other sisters got older, we stopped caring about that type of stuff. I think Lincoln sensed that, in addition to me blowing him off all the time. Maybe it wouldn't hurt to go back to that, if he wants to at least."
"I'll be honest, he seemed really uncomfortable at first so it might take a while for him to get used to again," Stella said. "I just hope this won't cause any more trouble for him, I didn't fully regret this until Lynn punched him. I should have just listened to him before."
"Don't blame yourself, you heard the other sisters, they liked the affection, and maybe this will make us closer," Lori said.
"I hope so, I do admit though, this was a risky idea, and maybe it wasn't my place to decide whether or not you should be more affectionate," Stella said. "I'm sorry if I overstepped my boundaries doing this."
"Don't be, you had good intentions," Lori said. "You're a sweet girl Stella, don't forget that."
"Thanks again Lori," Stella said. "Um if you don't mind, I should head downstairs, Lincoln's probably waiting for me."
"Yeah, I won't keep you," Lori said. "Remember though, my little brother is very precious to me, so promise you'll always do right by him."
"Lincoln means a lot to me, he has since the day I met him, when he was the first kid to show me kindness," Stella said. "He told me it was all of you who gave him that confidence."
"Lincoln already had it in him, we just needed to remind him," Lori said. "Good thing too, unless you like greasy hair boys in leather jackets, you might have been put off at first."
Stella giggled a bit, "I almost want to see that, I mean I saw his gelled up hair but not the jacket."
"Wait...he actually went through with the hair?" Lori asked, sighing in disappointment. "Lincoln, sometimes he's too quick to go back to plan a as he would put it."
"I'm just glad it worked out," Stella said, getting off the bed. "I'll see you at dinner Lori."
"See you then," Lori said, then as Stella left, she pulled out her cell phone. "Hey, Bobby? It's me Lori...no I don't need anything from you, I just felt like talking, do you have time? ...No I'm not breaking up with you! Ugh, can you just let me have a sentimental moment with you!? ...Thank you Boo Boo Bear, you really are a sweetheart."
Dinner time came and went, things went normal, one difference between last time and this time was one less rude sister. Lincoln was fairly pleased that Lori wasn't being mean to Stella, and that she was being actively friendly with his girlfriend. The only downside was Lynn being extremely grouchy, barely talking to anyone and casting dirty glances to Lincoln and Stella.
At the end of dinner, Stella bid her good-byes to everyone, the twins being the first to receive her attention.
"Bye Stella!" Each twin said, wrapping her in a hug.
"Bye Lana, bye Lola, it was nice seeing you," Stella said.
"Oh I love your accent, only for me too," Lola said.
"Sure, only for you," Stella said, chuckling slightly, then turned to her best friends. "Luna, Luan..."
The two sisters then wrapped around Stella as well, similar to the twins a moment ago.
"See ya Stell, don't be a stranger," Luna said.
"Yeah, you're always A Loud to be here," Luan said with a giggle.
Afterward, Lucy took the moment to hug Stella, which surprised some of the sisters given Lucy's usual dislike of physical contact.
"Thanks Stella, for shining your bright light in the shadows of my dark heart," Lucy said.
"Aw, you're so cute Lucy!" Stella said, returning the hug. "I don't think I've had a chance to read many of your poems, you gotta pull me aside one day to show me."
"I will, I have something planned for that honestly," Lucy said.
Stella bid her good-byes to Lisa, Leni, Lily, (with a kiss to boot) and finally Lori.
"See you soon Lori," Stella said.
"Like everyone has said, you're always welcome here, but I think you've realized that by now," Lori said.
"I appreciate that, and I appreciate your parents for allowing me in their home," Stella said.
"Bit more refreshing than Clyde too," Lynn Sr said, then got a glare from the rest of the family. "Man the words are not coming out right today. What I mean is that it's great to see more of Lincoln's friends here, especially his girlfriend. Clyde's still welcome, we like him too."
"That reminds me," Stella turned to Lincoln. "Maybe try to make time to spend with Clyde soon, you know how he is when you two are apart too long."
"Oh that reminds me, I haven't even told Clyde we're dating yet!" Lincoln said. "I wanted to tell him over the phone but that seems like something I should tell him in person. Same with the others."
"We'll break it to them together," Stella said, then finally turned her attention to the last sister. "Did I say good-bye to everyone?"
"You didn't say good-bye to Lynn, but she's not here," Leni said.
"Oh...well I won't bother her then, if you don't mind, tell her for me," Stella said.
"If she can stop being so stubborn," Lana added.
"Lana..." Rita lightly scolded, then turned to Stella. "I'll let her know dear." She knelt down to Stella, "I'm also really sorry for any grief she may have caused you."
"Don't worry about it, she's a teenager right? Maybe it's hormones," Stella said. "I think she'll come around." Stella wasn't too sure herself but she did want to alleviate Rita's worries.
"You're so nice dear, to echo my daughters, you're always welcome here," Rita said.
"Thank you Mrs. Loud," Stella said, then turned to her boyfriend. "Bye Linky, see you tomorrow."
"She ya Stell...y? Note to self, come up with a pet name," Lincoln said.
"I can help you with that," Lori added.
"Take your time, I might need to come up with something a bit more original myself," Stella said, then brought Lincoln in for a kiss. "Goodnight."
Stella made her way home, Lincoln waving in a love struck manner.
"I still can't believe I have a girlfriend," Lincoln said.
"Seems like you're the only one who's surprised," Luna said. "We all knew you had it in you."
"You are pretty mature for your age," Lori said. "Well, sometimes at least."
"Thanks, I..." Lincoln turned to Lori. "What do you mean 'sometimes'?"
"Just take the compliment squirt," Lori teased, rubbing Lincoln's hair. "You're a good kid, and I love you."
Soon the other sisters wrapped him in a group hug, all stating the same thing, "We love you too Linky!"
"Hehe, thanks girls, same here," Lincoln said, bit nervous and somewhat feeling crushed by the affection.
"Aw, isn't that sweet Lynn?" Rita said, turning to her husband, who seemed to be holding back tears.
"It's so beautiful!" Lynn pulled out a handkerchief to blow his nose into. "My kids are just so darn great! I love them so much!"
Lynn started sobbing onto his wife's shoulder, who proceeded to gently pat his back, flashing a small smile to her husband.
Upstairs Lynn could see the affection of the family, deep down she felt a sense of sadness, knowing she could be part of that. But her pride won't let her open up her vulnerabilities to her family.
Deep down, she did like the kiss Lincoln gave her, and to hear her brother say 'I love you' really meant a lot to her. But at the same time, she doesn't even know if she deserved that level of affection, and part of he doesn't understand why Lincoln is so quick to still look at her with admiration even in the roughest of times.
The day he came back into the house after the bad luck incident, he hardly held a grudge. He was mad for a while but he quickly got over it and was just happy to be home. She won't admit it, but he's a tough kid to endure that and still look on the bright side of things.
"Lincoln...I love you too. I really hope you know that, I just wish I could just freaking admit it," Lynn clenched her fists hard. "Ugh, this sucks, why do things need to be sappy anyway? I show you how much I love you in my own way, every punch, every kick, every noogie, the name calling, it's just how I show him affection, how I show everyone affection, it's the only way I know how."
Lynn groaned in annoyance, thinking over everything, every detail of what's happened. "Is it me? No, it can't be, maybe it's them. I just gotta toughen Lincoln up a bit more, he's a boy, he should love this stuff. Being surrounded by girls isn't helping much, and Stella sure as hell isn't doing much to help either." Lynn looked downstairs, "Don't worry little bro, your big sister will help you out and make you into the man I know you can be."
That night, Lincoln was laying in his bed with Lucy right beside him. He was video chatting with Ronnie Anne, explaining what's been happening.
"So things have soothed over a bit, Lori and Lynn did face punishment from my parents, so Lori can't use Vanzilla for a while and Lynn has to give up sports for about a month," Lincoln explained.
"Sucks for them, but maybe they shouldn't have pulled the stunt they did," Ronnie Anne said. "Yeah my tio Carlos and tia Frieda weren't too happy with what Carlota did, but they barely did much. They just said 'Don't do it again', such a let down, after what she did to Stella she deserved more than that!"
"Well she is 18, there's probably not much her parents can do to really discipline her, she has to figure out herself what's right and wrong," Lincoln said.
"Well I'll be honest, when my family found out you got with Stella, they were a teensy bit disappointed, turns out everyone was on board with us getting together," Ronnie Anne said. "I mean, my life isn't a Novella, it's no big deal if I have a boyfriend or not, I'm only 11, I got time."
"Well it seems like Lori has become more accepting of Stella, thank goodness," Lincoln said. "Seems like she really felt bad about this."
"I wouldn't be surprised if Lori only did all that because Carlota got in her head, in fact I'm sure of it because I overheard Bobby talking with Lori before, and it sounds like Carlota was mainly the one pulling the strings, I bet if Carlota didn't say anything that Lori would not have cared," Ronnie Anne said. "Anyway what's done is done, I'm glad you got your girl. She's quite the looker."
"She'll appreciate that," Lincoln said. "Hey how's Sid doing by the way? How has she handled all this?"
"She's happy for you too, she only wishes she could have spent more time with you, she's really taken a liking to you," Ronnie Anne said.
"That's great...it is just friendly right?" Lincoln asked.
"Oh get over yourself Lincoln, not every girl in existence wants to make out with you or anything," Ronnie Anne said. "Sid just thinks you're a nice boy, helps that I've been putting a good word in for you. Next time we gotta make plans for you to come to Great Lakes or for me and Sid to come to Royal Woods. Honestly I'd like to see Stella again so I might try asking my mom when we can go back, or if Stella could see if she can come down here."
"She'll appreciate that," Lincoln said. "Anyway it's late, and I don't wanna keep Lucy up."
"You're not bothering me," Lucy said.
"Uh, is she on your bed?" Ronnie Anne asked.
"She's been bunking with me the last few days, she and Lynn aren't talking right now, I mean it was suppose to be a night or two but Lynn kind of made things worse," Lincoln said.
"Like she always does, leave it to her to turn a light drizzle into a thunderstorm," Lucy said.
"Well good luck with all that, and I'll see you around Linc," Ronnie Anne said.
"Goodnight Ronnie Anne," Lincoln said, powering of his computer. "Well, let's turn in for the night."
Without a word, Lucy kissed Lincoln right on the cheek, taking him by surprise, "I love you."
Lincoln again felt awkward, but he's starting to get used to this feeling, "I love you too Lucy." Lincoln returned the kiss to Lucy on her cheek, getting a blush out of her.
"Lincoln, can I ask you one thing before I drift into my slumber?" Lucy asked. "Why don't you see me as a freak, like our sisters do?"
"Huh? No one thinks you're a freak Lucy," Lincoln said. "We all love you."
"I know you all love me, but it feels like everyone treats me like an outcast, you're the only one who doesn't," Lucy said. "Why do you show me more kindness?"
Lincoln sighed, "I can't speak for my sisters, and honestly I don't think they're that cruel to think you're a freak, but for me, I would never consider you one because well, you're my little sister. You're very special to me Lucy, all my sisters are. All I want is for you to be happy with who you are, and if you like being a goth then that's fine." Lincoln gently stroked Lucy's hair. "I love you just how you are Lucy."
Lucy almost felt a tear come to her eye, she hugged her brother really tightly, "Promise me something Lincoln, promise me that no matter what, you'll always be by my side."
"Easy promise to make," Lincoln said, returning the hug. "I'm here for you Luce, never forget that."
Lucy felt the truth of his words, continuing the hug that Lincoln eventually returned. The two drifted off to sleep, still wrapped in each other's embrace, forming a brother-sister bond that they feel can never be tested.
Looks like Stella knew what she was doing after all.