Next Wednesday…

Luan Loud found herself in an unfamiliar territory; the detention room.

As an up and coming comedian, you have to be willing and able to take risks. That typically means going as far as possible to get new material for your act. If anything, Luan thought this experience would give her a short story to tell an audience...

"Alright, Miss Loud, you're free to leave. And don't let me catch you in here again!"

The detention monitor, Mrs. Treat, had dismissed her. The lockup was over.

"Oh, don't worry about me, Mrs. Treat," Luan said in a glum voice. "It won't happen again, believe me…"

Mrs Treat wasn't the brightest teacher, but she knew how to make someone feel better. It was her job, after all; she was also the school nurse.

"Oh, Luan, cheer up! Almost everyone gets detention at least once in their life! Why, I got my first in third grade. I tried to hit my teacher with a yardstick!"

Though it was ridiculous to believe, Luan smiled.

"You must have been a model A student, huh?"

"Oh, if THAT'S what you call it… have a nice night, Luan."

"You too!"

Luan walked out of the detention room, closing the floor behind her. She began to walk towards her locker, offhandedly mumbling to herself as she did.

"Seriously, I don't even know why I got detention in the first place! I mean, my jokes were good enough... and everyone was laughing except for Reeser! I always knew he was a sour puss..."

-FLASHBACK-

"Alright, guys, we're going to be having a test for this lesson on Friday," said the school chemistry teacher, Mr. Reeser. "I expect you all to pass this, seeing how we've been going over it for the past weekend, now. So, any questions?"

The room was motionless. No one dared raise their hand in that class. Chances are you'd either be yelled at, embarrassed, or both: Mr Reeser was a good teacher, but BOY, was he a jerk at times.

"Alright, then. Now, moving on-"

"Wait! Mr. Reeser!"

A single hand shot up from the back of the room.

"What?" He asked, slightly startled someone actually had a question. "Oh, uh, what is it, Miss Loud?"

"Ok, ok... what do you do with a dead chemist?"

The teacher was taken back for a brief moment before answering.

"What?"

"You Barium! Ha ha ha, get it?"

Aside from a few snickers, the room was silent. Especially Mr. Reeser.

"Well, um, OK then. Now, what is-"

"Mr. Reeser! I have another question!"

"-sigh- What, Luan?"

"What do you call it when someone throws Sodium Chloride at you?"

"Look, Miss Loud, I have a class to teach right now, so if you could-"

"A SALT! ha ha ha!"

This time, a larger group of students began to laugh, which did not please the teacher in the slightest.

"Ok, now that the jokes are aside, lets-"

"Why does hamburger have lower energy than steak? Because it's in the ground state!"

"I think we've had our fun for today, Miss Loud... Now, moving on-"

"I never trust atoms... They make up everything!"

Mr. Reeser spun on his heel to face Luan, a look of sheer anger in his eyes.

"Miss Loud, If you don't stop with your chemistry puns right now, then I will NOT hesitate to give you a detention! Got it?"

Luan looked a bit worried, but she replied.

"Of course, sir. I don't even know any more chemistry jokes."

A face of both shock and relief came over his face.

"Wait, really?"

"Na..."

That was it. Luan began laughing hysterically at her own humor. It took a little while for the class to understand, but once they did, the class began to laugh again, and Mr. Reesers face turned red.

"That's it!" He said as he walked back to his desk, pulling out the dreaded yellow slips. He began to write on it, then tore it off, marched to the desk, and slammed it down hard, causing the class to go silent.

"Miss Loud, this is a science classroom, not a comedy club! I thought you knew better than that, honestly... well, no matter. Go to Mrs. Treat at the end of the day."

Luans face immediately changed to a look of dread. Realizing a pun would likely end the situation badly, she kept her mouth shut.

"Now, then. Anyway, the element of carbon is a very..."

-END OF FLASHBACK-

"And I thought he would LIKE my chemistry puns! I don't know what I'm doing..." she thought as she gathered her books up and began to leave.

"I don't know what's going on this week... my grades are dropping, I failed my math test last night, and now this! What am I doing wrong?"

Her thoughts were cut short as she stopped. In the hallway was another person that she knew. He saw her, and began to walk over to meet her.

"Luan? What's up? What are you doing here?"

"Oh, hey, Heath. Nothing, really. I just got out of detention."

His goatee bristled as he grimaced.

"Ooh, the big house… don't worry about it! Everybody gets detention! Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go home and text your sister!"

He brushed past her and walked out of the building, leaving Luan alone.

As Luan walked down the hall, she lost herself in thought. She thought of the past week, of Luna's so called "friend" and Leni's midnight visitor. Finally, she pieced it together.

"That's it!" She said out loud to no one in particular. "It's Heath and Jordan! Gee, I guess I've been too busy thinking of my sister's friends to focus on me..."

She walked out into the main foyer, the doors to the school auditorium on the side.

"I mean, I guess that it's good they're talking to boys, right? They're teenage girls! It's what they do! It's just... just, well, kinda weird, I guess. I've never seen Luna focused on anything except music, and now she does nothing but text! And Leni... she's still, well, Leni, but it's the same thing! They're focused on boys and not what they really like to do!"

She passed by the stage doors, heading towards the stairs to the door.

"And the thing is, they aren't ANYTHING like each other! Luna and Jordan like the Rolling Stones or whatever theyre called… and Leni and Heath... I don't know, have blond hair? I mean, if I was talking to a boy, at least I'd make sure we actually liked the same-"

"Hey, where do birds get their money from? The FEATHERal Reserve! Ha!"

She stopped as she heard the joke that had come out of the auditorium. Looking around, she dropped her bag and went to the door, peering in onto the stage.

On stage was a table with three people sitting behind it, though the only one that Luan recognized was the chorus teacher. In front of the table stood a guy, though she couldn't tell who it was from the back.

"So what did you think? Did you like it?" The guy asked in a surprisingly clear, deep voice. There was a silence that lingered in the air, though, until finally one of the people behind the table spoke up.

"*ahem!* Well, uh, Mr. Johnson-"

"Oh, you can call me Noah, Miss Wendell. Mr. Johnson is my dad, and he goes by Ernie most of the time."

"I see. Well, Noah, I saw three main issues in your audition."

"Oh, shoot... it was the props, wasn't it? I always forget the gag flower is filled...

"No, not that. See, Noah, for one, I must be honest, the jokes you used, well... they were more groan inducing than funny."

"Oooh! That hurt like a kick to the "groan!" Ha!"

"Yes, very funny..." the chorus teacher said, looking at his notes. "Second, we were seeing more of a comedian out there than an actor, if you know what I'm saying. There's a big difference, you know."

"Oh, believe me, I know. In fact, I tried to pull a Christian and "Bale" this audition, but I thought twice!"

"Third!" The last woman said, sounding angrier than the rest of the judges. "Do you realize what you were trying out for, son?!"

"Uh, well, the flyer said "Spring Play," so unless I took a wrong turn..."

"ROMEO AND JULIET! THE SADDEST PLAY IN EXISTENCE, AND YOU HAVE THE AUDACITY TO TELL JOKES ON MY STAGE! HAVE YOU NO-"

"Woah, Roberta, settle down there!" The chorus teacher said to the judge, still fuming. He turned back to the person on stage and began to talk again.

"Well, Noah, you had some highlights in there, I believe. I especially liked the one about the rooster and the screwdriver... but anyways, like Mrs Elgin said-"

"A MOCKERY!"

"Yes, like she said, this is Romeo and Juliet here. Unless you would like to play the village idiot, son, I'm afraid there isn't a spot for you in the show. Sorry."

The boy had only a hint of dissapointment in his voice.

"Oh, you're fine. I'm not even really good at being an actor, anyway. I just wanted to tell my jokes on stage. Anyway, have a good night!"

He hopped off the stage, beginning to walk straight towards the door that Luan was eavesdropping on. Luckily, she saw him coming, and ducked by the trophy case as he walked out.

"Alright, I'm in the clear!" She thought as she did a silent fist pump. "I'm just looking at these trophies and NOT spying on-"

"Hello."

"AHH!"

She turned to face the voice directly behind her. A boy a few inches taller stood there, with dark brown skin and green eyes. He had a rather smooth fade cut, with a thin stubble growing around his chin. In his hand, he held Luans backpack.

"Uhh... I think you dropped this," he said, holding out the bag.

Luan, still trying to regain her senses, eyed the kid up and down before reaching out her hand and quickly taking the backpack.

"Thanks, I guess..."

"What are you doing here so late?"

"Oh, well, I was just, uh..."

"Ohhh, I got it. You're trying out for the play, too, aren't you?"

"Uh, well..." she stammered, trying to find words.

"Well, don't bother. The clowns in this school wouldn't know sarcasm if it bit them on the nose. Believe me, I know."

"I wouldn't doubt it," she finally said, thinking of her crazy day so far. "No one understands humor these days, I guess..."

"Man, I wish that people actually liked my jokes like they used to. I still remember when people laughed at mine..."

"Oh, it's that bad? How many months has it been?"

"Actually, it was just last weekend," he said as he leaned against the wall. "My dad laughes at everything, but hey! At least I can make him laugh."

"Yeah? My sister is the one that laughs at my jokes...but she's only one, so it's more of a moral victory..."

She stopped as he comically held his hand out.

"Hold up. You like comedy, too?"

"Uh, does Eddie Murphy voice Donkey in Shrek?"

"Man, finally!" He said with a smile as he stood up straight. "I thought I was the ONLY one in school that has a sense of humor!"

"Well, it looks like you found another person, I guess," she smiled.

"I guess I did, uh..." he said, raising his eyebrows and making circles with his hand.

"Oh, it's Luan. Luan Loud."

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Luan. The names Noah," he said as he stuck his hand out. Luan reached her hand out, but Noah drew it back at the last second.

"Hah! SIKE! Fell for the oldest trick in the book!"

"Oh, wow, you're SO funny..."

"Why, thanks. I try my best," he said with a mock bow, which drew a chuckle from her. He began to walk, and to her surprise, Luan followed him.

"So, why exactly are you here, Luan? Were you trying to audition, too?"

"Oh, god no! I'm a horrible actor! Unless its acting sick, I'm worse than Keanu Reeves."

"Oh, throwing some shade, too, I see..."

"What can I say?" She asked with a shrug. "It's part of the gig."

"Yeah, right. You still haven't answered the question, though..."

"Oh, yeah! I had detention today."

He snickered to himself.

"Ha! You? Not to be mean or anything, but you look more "Born to be Mild" than "Wild." What'd you do?"

"Oh, I don't even know. I was telling jokes in class and my teacher gave me it."

"Oh, you rebel! I can't believe the police weren't called for your dangerous crime!"

"I know, right?" She said, playing along. "I practically started a riot in chemistry!"

He stopped, turning to her with exaggerated horror.

"Wait, chemistry? With Mr. Reeser?"

"Yep, that's the one…"

"Man! I can't tell you how much I hated him! He's good and all, but he has NO sense of humor."

"Yeah! He wouldn't smile if you got a perfect grade in his class!"

"Yeah..." he said, trying to change topics. "I don't think I've ever seen you here before, Luan."

"Really? I've been in town for 14 years. How'd you miss me?"

"Well, actually, I just moved here a few years ago. From Pittsburgh. I don't blame you, though. It took me ages to get to know everyone."

"Wait, are you a sophomore or a freshman?"

"Me? I'm a sophomore. Not much comedy in my grade, though. Mostly just a buncha jocks and music wannabes."

"Hey, my sister's in that grade, you know. She's not a wannabe!"

He stopped, trying to think of who her sister was. After a minute, he snapped his fingers.

"Luna Loud?"

"She's the one!"

"Ehh, She's not that bad, I guess... Not a big time star, but she has the potential," he said as an old car pulled into the parking lot.

"Oh, my rides here! I gotta go!" He said, leaving Luan and running over to the door. But as he grabbed the handle, he turned back around.

"Hey, Luan, do you need a ride? I have plenty of room in the car."

"Oh, no thanks. I live a few blocks from here. I'll be fine."

"Oh," he said. Even though he was still smiling, Luan saw a tiny bit of disappointment in his face. "Well, I'll talk to you later then, I guess. See ya!"

"Bye!" She yelled as he ran out the door to his car, which drove off. She walked out the doors and into the sunlight, beginning to walk home.

"Well, he was nice, I guess," she thought to herself. "I mean, he was funny and all.. and polite..."

She stopped her train of thought.

"What am I doing? I'm not falling for the same thing my sisters did! I don't care if he's the nicest guy in the world, I'm not losing my personality! And besides, he's a sophomore. It wouldn't work even if he wanted it to."

But although she tried to push it out of her mind, she kept finding herself thinking of the same guy every time. Even at dinner, she wasn't thinking straight. In fact, she was almost paranoid.

"So how was everyone's day? Luan?"

"FEATHERS!" she shouted, startled by the sound of her name.

"What?"

"Oh, uh, nothing! Just a study we're doing in chemistry. Not a big deal."

"Wait..." Lisa said from the other table. "You're learning about feathers in CHEMISTRY?"

"Well, yeah!" She lied. After years of comedy, Luan had perfected the tecnique of improvisation. "It's a study on the chemicals in them."

"Hmm...fascinating," she said as she turned back to the kid table.

"Phew! That was close!" Luan thought to herself as she picked at her food. "As long as no one finds out about Noah, I'm fine. I just need to-"

"Alright, you're all excused. Except Luan. We need to talk to her about something."

"Oh, yaaay..." she thought as the kids were excused. She turned in her seat to face her parents, who did not look pleased.

Her dad was the first to speak.

"Luan, I know you know as well as I do why we're sitting here."

She sighed, beginning to explain .

"Look, guys, I'm sorry that I was tal-"

"Uh, you should be sorry!" Her mother interjected. "Detention is not a good thing!"

"I promise, he's just!... wait, what?"

"You know what, Luan. We got a call from the school today. I'm sure you can explain."

"Oh, yeah. That," she said, relieved that they hadn't known about Noah. "It wasn't a big deal. I just told a few jokes during class, and that was it."

"Uh, DURING class? When there was something being taught?"

"-sigh- Yeah... look, guys, I'm REALLY sorry. I promise it won't happen again. Pinky swear on it!"

"Hmmm..." her dad thought, leaning back in his chair. "Well, since this is your first detention, dear, I'll let you off with a warning. But I'll make it clear right now, if you get another detention, then you WILL be punished for it. Understand?"

"Yes, dad...Can I go to my room now? I, uh, need to think of some new material."

"Yes, Luan, you're excused," her mom said. Immediately, she jumped from her seat and began to run to her room

"Wow, I'm stupid. They weren't even there to see me talking too him. How would they know?"

She got to her room, where Luna was texting.

"Hey, sis. Can't talk right now. Jordan's telling me about his new job. He's working at Burp'n Burger this spring!"

"You're fine, Luna. I have to think, anyway..." she said as she lay on her bed, thinking about the boy who shared her sense of humor.

Yeah, you didn't think I'd actually quit, did you? I like this story too much to stop it when things are getting good. Honestly, Noah is probably one of my favorite OC's I've made, due to his character development later on in the story. Keep the good times rolling, guys! Review, like, favorite, whatever! Thanks for reading!