Everyone had gathered down below at the first floor after Ronnie Anne confirmed they found Lynn, and a second text from Stella confirming they were on their way downstairs. The Loud Siblings gathered in the lobby, along with Ronnie Anne, Stella, Sid add Carlota.
"Thank goodness you found Lynn," Lori said, having faced Stella, Ronnie Anne and Sid.
"It's no trouble, we're glad we could help," Stella said.
Lori turned to Lynn, "As for you, try to to disappear like that again."
"Right, sorry," Lynn said. "Wasn't in a good state of mind after what happened earlier."
"That's understandable, I don't know what Lincoln said to you but I hope it was enough to get it through to you that what you've been doing wasn't proper," Lori said.
"Yeah, that sunk in eventually, Stella made sure of that," Lynn said.
"Well I'm happy to hear that," Lori said. "Maybe things can go bac to normal soon."
"I hope so," Lynn admitted.
"Lynn..." Lincoln said, making his way over to his troublesome sister.
"Hey bro," Lynn nervously greeted. "What's up?"
"Lynn, have you truly begun to understand what happened and what you did?" Lincoln asked. "And do you actually understand why I was so upset earlier?"
"Y-Yeah, kind of," Lynn said.
"I need a more reassuring answer that that Lynn," Lincoln scolded. "Keep in mind what you did was pretty serious, a total invasion of privacy, something you seem to struggle with at times. Though I understand in our house privacy is too good a luxury to have, at the very least we can try to respect the privacy of the friends we bring over."
Lynn nodded, "Yeah, you're right bro. I messed up badly, I'll admit it. I know you said making it up to you will be hard, but I promise I'll do everything in my power to do so. Whatever you want, I'll get it done, I promise!"
Lincoln thought about it a moment, one one hand he knows that Lynn might just slip back into her usual routine, but she is his sister, and he owes it to her to give her a chance.
"Lynn, just so you know, earning my forgiveness is gonna take a while, you have a LOT of making up to do," Lincoln warned.
"I'm ready for that," Lynn reassured. "I messed up, I know it. I'll take the penalty with grace."
"I'm holding you to that," Lincoln said. "I don't want to hate you Lynn, I don't want to be mad at you forever, I genuinely do want to forgive you, but I can't hand out a freebie this time. If you prove that you want to be forgiven and I can trust you to not be mean to my girlfriend, then I will forgive you and put everything behind me."
"Right, forgive and forget," Lynn said.
"Forgetting might be hard," Lincoln said. "But if you earn my forgiveness, I'll at least not hold this over your head."
"Yeah, that sounds good," Lynn said.
Lincoln then took his sister's hand in his own, "Please follow through on this Lynn, I know you're a lot better than this. I don't want to feel like these last few years of us bonding was a mistake. I really like spending time with you, I want to be able to do that without thinking you might hurt Stella again."
Lynn blushed a little at Lincoln's touch, she looked into his eyes, seeing such confidence in them. His eyes showed that he was completely serious about this, that he means it when he expects a change, and that if she messes up, then he may never forgive her. The idea of her brother hating her was too much for the athlete to bear. Thankfully within all that was a gentleness, the yearning eyes of a brother who just wanted the best for his sister. Lynn prides herself on a lot of things, but the one thing she prides herself on is being Lincoln's older sister. She had to admit, he's gotten so much more confident over the years, while still dorky he had the attitude to back it up. For a very brief second, she envied Stella because this was the type of guy Lynn could fall for. She should feel weird that she thought of her brother as good boyfried material, and she's not one to cross a line like that, but she wouldn't be honest with herself if that's what she had briefly thought.
"Lincoln, I promise as your older sister that you won't have to worry about me messing with Stella," Lynn said. "Turns out she's pretty cool, good thing I set you two up."
"Lynn, I hate to tell you, but it wasn't your planning that got us together," Lincoln said. "I've always had a crush on Stella, I just never acted on it because she told me she wasn't interested. The reason we're together now is because she admitted her crush to me on her own merits."
"Ahem..." Ronnie Anne said, getting Lincoln's attention and reminding him of one fact.
"And a little pep talk from Ronnie Anne, but that's all she did, a pep talk," Lincoln said. "It wasn't your planning, it was her own interest."
"I can verify that she did have a crush on Lincoln, she just wasn't comfortable saying anything yet," Luan said, with Stella nodding in confirmation.
"Lynn, you almost made things worse, especially since you did not listen to us," Lincoln said. "Do you understand what I'm saying?"
Lynn seemed disappointed that Lincoln felt this way, "I guess...I mean, maybe I didn't do a good job helping? I know I should have probably let you try on your own a bit."
"If I ever do need help, I'll come to you," Lincoln reassured. "Maybe one day I will need your help, I hope I can count on you for that."
"Yeah, totally," Lynn said. "I promise to come right to your aid when you need it. I'm really sorry about acting all nuts about getting you with Stella, I wanted to see you happy and I took things too far."
"I guess that's the norm for our family," Lincoln said.
"Well, it's about time!" Lola shouted, getting everyone's attention. "Lynn finally admits she was being totally weird and obnoxious about this Lincoln dating Stella thing."
"For real, she's lucky Lincoln's even considering the idea of forgiveness," Luna said.
"Girls..." Lori warned.
"Like I said before Lori, Lynn can be a bit of a lost cause on occasion, why else do you think she ends up alone?" Luna asked.
"Luna, that's a bit harsh," Leni said.
"Reality is often harsh Leni, facts of life," Lola said.
"Plus Lynn deserves it for all the nonsense she put everyone through, always has to be Number One, even at being a screw-up," Lana said.
"Well Lynn, looks like you're not the only sister who needs to change up their act," Lincoln said.
"I'm not?" Lynn asked, before brushing it off to sound less surprised. "I mean, hell yeah I'm not!"
Lincoln turned to the rest of his sisters, "All of you have to shape up as well, you all have some pretty petty flaws yourselves."
Lola stepped away from the group to face her sisters, "You heard Linky, you're all a bunch of miscreants who are heading down a path of disaster!"
"What the hell Lola!?" Lana shouted.
"LANA!" The sisters quickly scolded.
Lola turned to Lincoln, "Don't worry Linky, I got you."
"Lola, back in line," Lincoln ordered. "You're just as much to blame right now."
"Huh? But I've been nice to Stella, I haven't sassed her in months!" Lola insisted. "Lana's the one who still calls her lame."
"You rat!" Lana shouted. "I only said that because she didn't let me eat what I wanted to."
"This isn't about Stella, it's about all of you in general," Lincoln corrected. "But Lana seriously, Stella is just looking out for you, she cares about you."
Lana pouted as she turned away, "Still..."
"Lincoln, what's this about?" Luna asked.
"You girls know that I love you and I care a great deal about you, and I do appreciate everything you do for me, but sometimes it seems like you go overboard with just about everything," Lincoln said. "I'm not happy with what Lynn did but I don't want our family falling apart over it."
"We're not 'falling apart' per say," Lola said. "We're just letting Lynn know that what she's doing is wrong."
"You went about it all wrong though, isolating Lynn wasn't the answer," Lincoln said. "This is why we all need to work on our communication."
"You forget Lincoln that this family is not statistically known for it's recollection skills," Lisa said. "Any time it seems like any of us learn a lesson, said lesson is forgotten about almost instantly, liking this family's memory span to that of a common goldfish."
"Hey, we're not that bad!" Luna said. "Things just take time, that's all."
"Well you are all known for jumping to conclusions, a mistake you have made repeatedly mind you," Lisa said.
"Hey don't act like you've never made mistakes Lisa, you're not perfect!" Lola shouted.
"At least I plan and calculate things, I offer to do it for you too but alas none of you have the logic or common sense to go along with me," Lisa said.
"You think your plans always work huh? Sure couldn't figure out the Sister Fight Protocol," Lana said.
"What are you talking about, I had everything planned," Lisa said.
"Didn't plan on Lincoln though," Lola said. "He threw in one wrench and your plan was null and void."
"To be fair, we told him not to indulge in our affairs, the blame falls squarely on him," Lisa said.
"I couldn't eat, use the bathroom and at one point I got kicked out of my room, what did you expect!?" Lincoln asked.
"It only escalated that far because you stepped in when you were told not to," Lisa said.
"I didn't want to do my business in a bucket!" Lincoln said. "But fine, not something I want to get back into. That whole thing was a mess and honestly it made no sense in the end. That was due to lack of proper communication, if you told me sooner I could have planned for it better."
"I never told you Lincoln because you hardly get into fights with our sisters, you're much more easy going, if we make you mad you brush it off, maybe you'll get angry but you get over it much quicker," Lisa said. "Our sisters don't get over it, as evident by their dislike toward Lynn."
"You were mad too Lisa!" Lana shouted.
"No more yelling, and Lisa I understand where you're coming from but I still want to know what's going on with my sisters, even if I can't help, sooner or later I might get affected anyway," Lincoln said.
"Fair enough, plus given your own hesitation to forgive Lynn, who's to say it won't happen with one of our other simpleton sisters, so I shall include you in the Protocol, after I rename it," Lisa said.
"Watch who you're calling a simpleton Lease," Luna warned.
"But that brings up another point," Lori said. "You girls have to stop holding petty grudges, they don't do anything in the long term. How many of you are actually happy being angry for so long?" None of the sisters were quick to answer. "Exactly, anytime something happens we overreact. Before you say anything, I know I've overreacted in the past, between the strict rules about entering my room, and making Lincoln date Ronnie Anne, and anything else I've done."
"You all overreacted when Lincoln convinced me to 'act normal'," Lisa said. "If I couldn't help you with anything, you were quick to point blame at Lincoln, quite honestly it upset me to know that my only value to you was to be your walking super computer."
"Wait, I thought you didn't have human emotions," Lola sarcastically pointed out.
"I have more than you, considering your only joy comes from manipulation and putting others down," Lisa said. "Plus you're one of the worst offenders in your inability to learn a lesson. You bought Lincoln his 'victory undies' as he put it because you felt he shouldn't be judged for his 'weird hobbies', yet you along with the rest of our siblings poke fun at him when he used said undies for his Ace Savvy Cosplay."
"Hey I didn't judge him, I just laughed at him, you did too!" Lola shouted.
"I didn't, just putting that out there," Lucy said.
"Yeah we know he took the blame for you, we know that's why you're so loyal to him, give it a rest," Lola said.
"Yes, he took the blame after you tattled to our father," Lucy said.
"Hey you lied too just because you were overly sensitive to a few insults," Lola said. "You even tried framing us for your silly hobby!"
"At least I didn't blackmail my family like you did, just because you weren't allowed to partake in our sibling meetings, for justifiable reasons I might add," Lucy said.
"And you tied casting a spell on us!" Lola said.
"Will you two stop fighting already!?" Luan said. "This isn't going anywhere!"
"Oh don't act all high and mighty, you've caused so much strain on us too with your annoying pranks, and the one time we complained you overreacted and tried quitting comedy!" Lola said. "Kind of hard to go pro if you're gonna let a few harsh words get to you."
"Over sensitivity is our family's weakness, hence that foolish scheme you all conducted because Lincoln put on those ear buds," Lisa said. "That was a major overreaction."
"This coming from the girl who treats her family more as lab experiments than actual siblings," Luna said. "You put your passion before your family."
"Hey you did that once yourself when you freaked out about our family band," Lucy pointed out.
"Oh go read a Pony book," Luna said.
"Ha, Pony book, do you even still read that trash Lucy?" Lana asked.
"Thought you liked trash Miss 'Let me play my brother's game even though he asked me not to and ruin his hard work'," Lucy said.
"Hey that was an accident!" Lana shouted. "Besides he forgave me."
"Well, this has gone down the drain really fast," Lynn said. "Looks like Lincoln was right about all of you, I mean you have a ton of growing up to do."
"Hey! You're the WORST offender of us all Lynn!" Lola shouted. "Treating Lincoln like a punching bag, nearly ruining our older sisters' babysitting service! Lynner, Lynner, Chicken-Dinner, and last but definitely not least, BAD LUCK!"
"Bring up that bad luck shit again and see what happens!" Lynn warned. "I swear you all hold it over my head more than Lincoln does, you are all petty!"
Sid turned her attention to Ronnie Anne, "What's wrong with this family? They're really dysfunctional."
"Hey! I heard that!" Lola shouted.
"But it's true, you're all kind of terrible," Sid said. "My sister gets on my nerves sometimes but even we wouldn't stoop to the lengths you're all going through."
"Sid's right, you all need to lighten up," Ronnie Anne said. "My family argues but we never let it go this far."
"We're not gonna take that from the girl who bullied our brother!" Lola said. "He gives you a nice kiss and you punch him in the eye!"
"To be fair, how else was I gonna react to someone randomly kissing me?" Ronnie Anne said. "You girls need to stop basing your decisions off of teen magazines or whatever tv shows you watch."
"Still doesn't change the fact that you were cruel to him," Luna said.
"Hey at least I didn't lock him out of his own house," Ronnie Anne fired back. "Plus I apologized and stuck with it, I treat Lincoln better than half of you do."
Many of the sisters looked rather appalled by Ronnie Anne's claims, seeing this girl say with a straight face that she's a better friend than they are sisters.
"Alright, that does it!" Lola shouted, raising her sleeve. "I say we beat her up!"
Lola, Luna, Lana, Lisa and Lucy all looked ready to bring it to Ronnie Anne, even Luan and Leni looked a bit offended by the girl's words. Sid quickly rushed in front of Ronnie Anne, looking ready to fight off all the sisters to protect her best friend.
"That's enough!" Lori shouted, running in front of her sisters. "You all need to take a step back right now!"
"No way, she insulted our love for our only brother!" Lola shouted. "How dare she say she's better than us!"
"She is!" Sid shouted. "Have you even gotten a good look at yourselves!? Arguing over petty differences! Ready to fight with someone just for point out your flaws!?" Sid said. "This is what Lincoln was talking about, you're all way too out of whack! Never have I seen such an egotistical bunch!"
"We're not gonna take that from the girl who made out with our brother!" Lola shouted. "Let's get her too!"
"Uh, we can't hurt Sid Lols, she's Adelaide's older sister, I don't want her mad at me, and I don't think you want her mad at you," Lana said.
Lola groaned in annoyance before letting up, "Fine, but still, we shouldn't have to listen to her, she's obviously crazy!"
"Alright, who will you listen to then?" Sid asked. "You won't listen to your brother who always tries to see the best in you, you won't listen to your oldest sister who's just looking out for you, and you won't listen to a girl on the outside who can see you for how you truly are. All Lincoln asks is that you try to understand that you're all a very flawed bunch, and instead of trying to blame one another or anyone else you can think of, accept that you're not perfect and you could use a little helping hand."
"I hate to admit this, but Sid's got a point," Lynn said. "I'll girl up and admit that I have to work on my sister skills, if not for me but at least for Lincoln, the only one of you who's actually stood by me, even if I didn't deserve it."
The other sisters glanced at each other, trying to think this over. Maybe it's pride they were struggling with, or their own stubbornness, but they did struggle with their decision. In the end they just wanted to go with whatever would make everyone happy.
"Alright, I'll do it for Linky too," Lola said.
"Same, I guess we can try to work on ourselves a bit more," Lana said.
"I'll concede as well," Lisa said.
"If it'll make Lincoln happy," Lucy said.
"I'll try to ease up then," Luna said.
"It's nice that you girls want to do this for my sake," Lincoln said. "But also remember it's for your own good as well."
"Sure thing bro," Luna said. "Whatever you want."
"I don't want you girls to change completely, I like you all just the way you are, but I really want you to dial it back a little," Lincoln said. "And please try to be forgiving of each other and others, especially Ronnie Anne."
"Whatever Ronnie Anne did to Lincoln before, that's not who she is now," Sid said. "The Ronnie Anne I know has a pure heart, a girl who looks out for others, both friends and family. If Lincoln could forgive Ronnie Anne, why can't any of you?"
"Also Lincoln forgave Stella for cheating on him, so I think all of you should make sure you completely forgive that as well," Lynn said.
"Lincoln's a smart boy, trust his judgement," Sid said.
"No doubt he's intelligent," Lisa said. "But I suppose one thing he has over us is his morals, in a house like ours, you're kind of bred to be assertive, that's how you get what you want, but myself like my sisters have used that mindset too well in our lives."
"That's a good mindset to have, just manage it," Stella said. "Lincoln does, even if it gets him into trouble."
"We also need to work on not overreacting, I've seen how bad it gets," Lori said. "I nearly lost my scholarship at Fairway because a certain sister overreacted to me leaving."
"Hey I wasn't as bad as dad was at least," Leni said.
"We all overreact, I do it too," Lincoln said. "I've overreacted to being predictable, I overreacted when I thought Clyde liked you all better than me, I overreacted at my Elementary School Summer Camp when I tricked everyone into hiking with me and nearly getting lost."
"He did what?" Ronnie Anne asked, turning to Stella.
"Don't ask..." Stella said, lamenting a bit on that day, which was another reason she had trouble liking Lynn since she was indirectly involved with that.
"I want to grow as well, and I think we can do it together, we're a family, we help each other out, and we're better than this pettiness," Lincoln said. "I say we work together and create a better future for us, it will be hard but hard work always triumphs in the end!"
"And the rewards will be even greater," Lori said. "A happier family, isn't that what we want?" The sisters exchanged glances and nodded in approval.
"I know this won't happen overnight but every journey begins with a single step, so let's take that step now," Lincoln said
"When did you become a guru?" Ronnie Anne asked.
"I wouldn't use Guru, that title comes with bad memories," Lincoln said.
"Oh right, that Girl Guru thing everyone at school was talking about," Ronnie Anne said. "How did that even happen exactly?"
Lincoln wanted to tell Ronnie Anne it started when his sisters ate his chocolate, but he was worried about his work being undone. "A little mishap, one I completely forgave."
Of course the sisters knew it likely was their doing given Lincoln's response, they'll ask him later when the time is right.
"Well as long as we're making peace," Lucy said, then turned her attention to Ronnie Anne. "I'm really sorry for judging you so harshly, if Lincoln likes you and forgives you then I should be able to as well."
"Yeah, we're sorry Ronnie Anne," Lana said.
"We all are, you're not a bad kid after all," Luna said.
"But if you cross us again you're gonna..." Lola noticed the glares and quickly put a smile back on her face. "Take your words into consideration...hehe."
Lincoln shook his head, but as he said before, this was gonna be a process. "Glad that's settled."
Meanwhile Bobby had arrived with Lily and Adelaide, noticing all the kids gathered around outside the apartment building. "What's going on?"
"Some type of family bonding," Carlota answered. "Those Loud girls are a bit strange."
"You get used to it, and you grow to love it," Bobby said.
Luna checked her watch, "Oh man, it's time for me to get going. Sam and the others are at the venue."
"I guess we should all start getting ready," Lincoln said, then pulled out his passes. "I should hand these out." He turned to his jock sister, "So, Lynn, I know things are bad but, do you want to-"
"Hey! Lincoln!" the boy heard a familiar voice. He looked and saw a friend of his leaving his parents' car.
"Clyde?" Lincoln said, surprised to see his best friend.
"Sup buddy? Guess who got lucky in traffic?" Clyde said, fist bumping Lincoln.
"Oh man, I'm so glad you could get here sooner," Lincoln said. "Just in time, we're about to head to the concert."
"Sweet," Clyde said, then noticed the others. "Hey everyone, how's it going?
"Hi Clyde, good to see you, how's Penelope?" Lori asked.
"She's doing great, wish she could come but I know how hard these seats are to get," Clyde said.
"We're glad you could make it dude," Luna said.
"I look forward to seeing you play Luna," Clyde said, before turning to the other kids. "Hey, you three girls ready too?"
"We sure are Clyde," Stella said, making her way over with the others. "It's gonna be so much fun."
"Yeah, Lincoln has backstage passes, we get to meet the guys performing," Sid said.
"You got passes?" Clyde asked.
"Yeah, five to be exact, one for me, one for Stella, one for Ronnie Anne, one for Sid and one for..." Lincoln thought. "Well I intended it to be Lynn since we thought you'd be late..."
"That's fine, if you promised it to Lynn then you can take her," Clyde said.
"It's cool Clyde, you can have it," Lynn said.
"You sure?" Clyde asked. "It's really no big deal."
"It's fine, I only took it because Lincoln had no one else to give it to, except Leni but she didn't want it either," Lynn said. "Plus this is a big moment, Lincoln should spend it with his best friend."
"Thanks Lynn, I appreciate you giving Clyde this chance," Lincoln said, then grabbed the pass. "Ready to go buddy?"
"Sweet! That means I get to meet Smooch! Again!" Clyde said, holding up his ticket.
"Me and Ronnie Anne get to meet Twelve is Midnight," Sid said, grabbing her ticket.
"We're totally getting Yun Kwan's autograph," Ronnie Anne said.
"Let's get going then," Stella said.
"We'll let the 'rents now, you kids can come with me so you can meet the other stars," Luna said.
"Sure thing Luna, I'll let mom and dad know so we can leave."
"Sweet, I'll call the ride," Luna said, dialing up on her phone.
Sid made her way over to Leni, "You're a Boyz will be Boyz fan right? I'll get you an autograph too."
"Aw, you're so nice," Leni said, the brought Sid in for a hug, the girl's face against the older blond's chest. "Linky has such nice friends."
Sid felt kind of nice right now, eagerly returning the hug, before moving her hands a little further down Leni's back.
"Let's go Sid!" Ronnie Anne shouted. "Luna's ride will be in soon and don't think we won't leave you behind!"
Leni let go of Sid, though noticed something peculiar, "Uh, why is your nose bleeding?"
"No reason..." Sid said, walking back to her friends in a very giddy mood. "So squishy." She noticed how annoyed Ronnie Anne and Lincoln were. "What's up?"
BAM! POW!
Stella and Clyde looked taken back to see the pervy girl down on the ground, seeing stars. Lincoln and Ronnie Anne just turned away in annoyance, leaving the rest of the sisters confused, but some amused.
"Your sister's weird," Lily said to Adelaide.
"Yeah, she is," Adelaide confirmed.
Within the hour the kids had been brought to the concert area with Luna, making full use of their backstage passes. Lincoln and Clyde got to pose for some pictures with Smooch, the boy amazed that the band remembered Lincoln, not often that they play a concert outside of someone's room after all. Ronnie Anne getting an autograph from the Twelve is Midnight members, especially Yun Kwan. Upon Sid's turn, she nearly took things too far, trapping the pop idol in a crushing hug, resulting in Ronnie Anne trying to pull her away. Stella got to meet the Boyz will be Boyz members, her time with Lori over the years helping her appreciate just how dreamy these boys were, and their cute outfits.
"I don't suppose one of you guys has an outfit like you're wearing that can fit my boyfriend, do you?" Stella asked.
"Sid! Chill!" Ronnie Anne shouted from nearby, keeping Sid away from Yun Kwan.
"But he's so dreamy! I need more hugs! And some of his hair!" Sid said as her friend pulled her away.
Yun Kwan chuckled a bit, "Kids, so adorable."
"Hey everyone," Luna said, getting their attention. "The show's about to start. Uh how are they, not causing too much trouble I hope?"
"No they're fine, little fangirl like but we're used to it," Yun Kwan said.
"Your brother's as cool as ever," a Smooch guy said.
"I can totally give this girl's boyfriend an outfit similar to mine," A Boyz member said.
"Huh?" Lincoln asked. "Matching outfit?"
"Make her fantasies reality bro," Luna said, then noticed Sid still trying to struggle. "Need help Ronnie?"
"I'm good, thanks," Ronnie Anne said.
"Heh, reminds me of my early days," Luna said.
"You look up to Mick, that right?" The Smooch lead singer said. "He told me about you, said your family did a great job at a county fair. He's got high expectations for you, but I can tell you'll be able to meet that, you have the look for it."
"Thanks dude, I owe it to my family, their support got me this far, especially my little brother's," Luna said.
"That's so sweet," the Boyz members said.
"Well, I'm up, wish me luck out there," Luna said.
"You don't need luck, you have talent," Lincoln reassured.
"Go show them what you got Luna," Ronnie Anne said.
"I believe in you," Stella said.
"YUN KWAN!" Sid shouted.
"Time to Light'em Up," Luna said and made her way out with her band just as Lincoln and the others started making their way back to their seats.
The concert was a total success, Luna really giving a good show and gaining a round of approval from the audience, much to the pride of her family who watched on in glee. The other bands of course put on a stellar performance as well, even at one point doing a combined song between the four groups as Smooch, Twelve is Midnight, Boyz will be Boyz and Luna's band put on an awesome combined performance.
This night was special to Lincoln, being able to spend it with his sisters, his best friends and his girlfriend. Any bit of lingering stress he felt that night had gone down, instead enjoying the moment with the people he loved.
After the concert, and the autographs, it was time to head home. It was nearly midnight and everyone was pretty exhausted. The Louds, McBrides and Stella had booked a room at a hotel, though through Ronnie Anne's pleading, she got Lincoln and Stella to come over for a slumber party.
They would be in the living room of the Casagrande apartment along with Sid while everyone else went back to the motel.
Lincoln was dropped off with Stella, saying bye to his sisters. "See you all tomorrow morning."
"Bye Linc, have fun with the girls," Leni said.
"But not too much fun!" Luna teased.
"Come on now, you might blow it for us," Lincoln playfully warned.
Luan was about to make a pun on the blowing part but Lori glared right at her, "Don't even think about it." Of course Luan was annoyed at missing out on the perfect joke, maybe next time.
"Isn't Clyde joining you?" Lana asked.
"You know how protective his dads are, they insisted that they weren't properly prepared for this," Lincoln said.
"Hey don't complain, you get to be in an apartment with three pretty girls," Lola said.
"I...well I guess that's true," Lincoln said. "Still, we're just gonna be hanging out and sleeping."
"Plus Ronnie Anne's family will be there too, so clean up that dirty mind I know a lot of you have," Stella said.
"You can't prove nothing!" Lana said, though one glare from Stella caused her to back down a little.
"Wait, if Linky can sleepover with Ronnie Anne, how come I can't sleep over with Adelaide?" Lola asked.
"You can ask my mom, that's if your mom's alright with it," Sid said.
"Mommy?" Lola asked, batting her eyes at her mother.
Rita shook her head in annoyance, "Lola, that's cute but you really need to outgrow that, you're not a little girl anymore."
"But I'm your little girl," Lola said, using her puppy dog eyes.
"Oh Mr. and Mrs. Chang won't mind if we at least ask," Lynn Sr said. "Now come on."
Rita shrugged it off and turned to Lori, "We'll be right back."
As the parents left, Lynn Jr made her way over to Lincoln, getting the boy's attention. "What's up Lynn?"
The jock blushed quite a bit before doing something surprising. She pulled Lincoln into a hug and kissed his cheek. "I love you Lincoln."
Lincoln didn't expect this, not that he was opposed to it. He returned the hug, stroking Lynn's hair. "I love you too."
Lynn pulled away, blushing a lot, it didn't help that she could hear the 'Aws' of her sisters, so cheesy. "See you tomorrow."
Lynn quickly went back into the car, Lincoln just smiling in satisfaction. He just needs to help Lynn feel less ashamed about affection, or at least meet her in the middle.
Later in the apartment, the four kids were in their PJs, talking over the concert.
"I still can't believe I got to meet Yun Kwan," Ronnie Anne said. "He's so awesome."
"Dreamy too," Sid said, gushing over the idol. "I even got to hug him."
"We know, we were there," Lincoln said.
"Yeah, you went nuts," Clyde said from the speaker phone.
"It was cute, Sid's very affectionate when she wants to be," Stella said. "Maybe too affectionate but that could be a good thing, I think."
"Hey if she ever falls in love then whoever she's with will be showered with tons of affection, sounds like a win to me," Clyde said.
"Sid does like someone, but she won't say who," Ronnie Anne said.
"Oh really? Well I wish you luck on that person Sid," Clyde said.
"Thanks bud, I just need to work up the nerve to tell them," Sid said. "But I'm gonna need the support of my friends here."
"Sure, I'll support you one hundred percent," Clyde said.
"I'm here for you Sid," Lincoln Stella said.
"Same here, just promise me that after you confess, you'll ease up on being a pervert," Lincoln said. "No more flirting with me, or Stella, and don't try to grab a feel on any of my sisters."
"I'll do my best," Sid said. "I want this person to know I truly do like them, and that I'll calm my desires for them."
"This I gotta see, who do you like?" Ronnie Anne asked. "Come on, spill it already."
"Well, it's a bit embarrassing to admit, this person's actually right here," Sid said.
"Here? You mean physically here right? As in not Clyde?" Ronnie Anne asked, looking to Lincoln's phone.
"No, not Clyde," Sid said.
"Already taken anyway, not that I wouldn't have been flattered," Clyde said.
"It's not one of my cousins is it?" Ronnie Anne asked.
"It's you Ronnie Anne," Sid said. "You're my crush."
Ronnie Anne had a feeling this would be her answer, given how weird she was acting before, but hearing it still surprised her. Her best friend had feelings for her, she probably should have expected that but she hardly really knew if Sid was even into girls or not. Ronnie Anne never considered liking Sid though, she didn't know what to say. "Huh...so you like me?"
"It's fine if you don't like me back, I know this might be surprising, I know you'd prefer a boy, but I've felt this way for a while and I wasn't sure how to go about it," Sid said. "Ronnie Anne, I really like you, a whole lot, and I would love to be your girlfriend. Just throwing that out there."
"Ah, I see then," Ronnie Anne said, still confused. She turned to Lincoln and Stella, "You two don't really look surprised by this."
"I kind of already knew," Lincoln said. "She told me after she kissed me, she wanted that loose end taken care of so she can be fully loyal to you."
"I knew as well, I encouraged her to tell you," Stella said.
"Well, I kind of suspected it, I just didn't think it'd be for real," Ronnie Anne said. "I mean, how long have you liked me this way?"
"A couple of years ago when I kissed you," Sid said. "I enjoyed it much more than I expected, and since then, I've been harboring these feelings."
"Well...I feel flattered," Ronnie Anne said, still confused.
"I'm sorry, I made you feel awkward, didn't it?" Sid asked, sounding dejected.
"Huh? No, that's not it," Ronnie Anne insisted.
"It's fine, if you want I can leave, I'll go back home and tell my mom I wasn't feeling well," Sid said.
"Sid, you don't have to go, please stay," Ronnie Anne said. "Look, I can't return your feelings right now, but you're still my best friend, and I want you here. Unless you don't feel comfortable, then I completely understand."
"I...well, I want to spend time with you, even if you don't like me that way, I just don't want to lose our friendship," Sid said.
"You won't, so stay with us," Ronnie Anne said
Sid felt relieved and sat close to Ronnie Anne, "We're still friends right?"
"Yeah, we are, right Lincoln?" Ronnie Anne asked.
"Yeah," Lincoln said, holding his fist out. "To the best of friends."
"Al mejor de los amigos," Ronnie Anne said, putting her fist out.
"Sa pinakamahusay na mga kaibigan," Stella said, putting out her fist.
Sid took a moment to think before remembering, "Wèile zuì hǎo de péngyǒu."
"It's cool hearing you do the language quartet," Clyde said.
"That's probably the only thing I can say close to fluently," Sid said, getting a laugh from the others.
"Well you did it well Sid," Ronnie Anne said.
"Thanks, and thanks for not being uncomfortable around me," Sid said.
"You got it," Ronnie Anne said. "And thanks for being honest with me, I do appreciate that."
"Anything for you," Sid said, blushing a bit. "I love you."
Ronnie Anne found that pretty adorable, then turned her cheek to Sid, tapping it a bit, "I'll throw you a bone."
Sid eagerly leaned in to kiss Ronnie Anne's cheek, "Thanks bestie."
"So adorable..." Stella gushed. "I hope you two get together one day."
"Me too, you look cute together," Lincoln said.
"I third that statement," Clyde added.
Sid felt a bit more confident, one day maybe she and Ronnie Anne can have what Lincoln and Stella have, but she's content with waiting.
This wasn't the end of either journey, but while Sid and Ronnie Anne had to figure their life out on their own, both Lincoln and Stella continued their path of romance, developing a newly found honesty policy with one another, maintaining their level of trust with one another. The two continued to be close, at least as close as they possibly could, until one day.
Two years had passed, Lincoln and Stella both sixteen years old, enjoying High School to the best of their ability. They still had all their old friends, even Rusty, who over the years came to terms on Lincoln and Stella dating, knowing there were other fish in the sea. The only thing they hadn't done, but one day they were ready. The two were so in love, they were ready to act on it in the physical sense and planned for that moment.
Lincoln would get what he needed to make sure it was a safe practice, and had went with Clyde to pick it up at a pharmacy when Clyde had gone to get an inhaler. Upon getting home, Lincoln had gone upstairs into his room, both his roommates being out for the moment.
In his room, waiting for her moment, was Stella. She was under the covers, not wearing much, which was fine since she didn't need any clothes for what was about to be done.
"Hey Stella, you look ready," Lincoln said.
"Yeah, ready as I can be," Stella said.
"Are you nervous?" Lincoln asked. "We don't have to do this if you don't feel up to it."
"No, I want to do this, I'll be fine," Stella said. "I love you, and I know I won't regret this. So don't worry too much about me."
"I love you too Stella," Lincoln said, taking off his shirt. "I'm gonna make sure you enjoy this."
"I know you will," Stella said. "By the way, do you have what you need?"
"Yeah, right in here," Lincoln said, pulling the item out.
"Uh...since when do you need an inhaler?" Stella asked.
Lincoln's eyes widened in shock, "Nani!?" He looked and saw that he grabbed the wrong item. "Wait, where are the...oh dang."
At the McBride home, Clyde was in the middle of his most embarrassing moment, his dads having seen what was meant for Lincoln.
"So...Clyde, you and Penelope are really getting serious," Harold said.
"It's not what you think!" Clyde insisted.
"It's alright son, it's perfectly normal to have those urges, this just proves you're being responsible about it," Howard said.
"And that's all we care about," Harold added.
Clyde took off his classes to safely bang his head against the table, this was gonna be hard to live down.
Back at the Loud House, Lincoln looked rather annoyed, "Great, so much for that."
"Hold on...aren't Luna and Luan active with their lovers?" Stella asked.
"Yeah, what about it?" Lincoln asked. "I can't go to Benny's house to ask him for a spare, Sam's a girl so she and Luna don't need anything like that."
"But doesn't Luan have something on her end?" Stella asked. "And neither she nor Luan are home right now right?"
"What are you getting at?" Lincoln asked.
Moments later, Stella had snuck into the shared room of Luna and Luan, grabbing some pills she found in Luan's underwear drawer. "Bingo!"
She made her way back to Lincoln's room, the boy noticing his girlfriend with some pills. "Are those?"
Stella took one and ate it, "Hm...this tastes a lot sweeter than I though." She crawled back onto bed, "So where were we?"
Lincoln wasn't sure if it was still a good idea, but Stella was eager and he wanted this. Plus it seemed safe enough, seemed just as good as his original plan. Putting on some music for some added privacy, a tip he got from Ronnie Anne, he just did what any good boyfriend would do, make his girlfriend happy, and in the end, that's all they cared about, each other's happiness. Nothing could possibly go wrong for them.
Later on.
"Hey! Who took my candy!?" Luan asked, searching through her drawer. "Geez, I figured putting it with my underwear would be a deterrent. Oh well, I'll get to the bottom of this, hehe."
Lincoln and Stella may be on the path to a very interesting future.
That ends this story, apologies for the cliffhanger, at least the door's open if I want to continue, either a third story with Lincoln and Stella or a Casagrandes side story with Ronnie Anne and Sid. Appreciate the support, and the understanding of how I portrayed Sid. Hoping enough unresolved conflicts had a meaningful conclusion, and and until next time.