Chapter 2: Exposed
The two friends, at long last, made it to their destination. Margo placed her duffle bag atop the vacant bench, then opened the zipper to reveal a pair of rollerblades, two helmets, and a skateboard. Margo smiled slyly as she tossed one helmet to Lynn, who scoffed at the vigorous throw from her best friend.
"Hundred 'n' ten?" Margo remarked as she pulled the rollerblades from her bag. Lynn grabbed for the skateboard, hoisting it confidently on her shoulder.
"When I'm dead! Cranking it up to one-fifty baby!" Lynn boasted as she quickly made her way to the half pipe. Margo's expression shifted in concern for her best friend, from a grin to a grimace since she realized that Lynn needed to exercise caution in her maternity.
"Wait, Lynn! Your condition!" she said anxiously. In a comedic manner, Lynn dug her feet into the gravel, bringing herself to a screeching halt. She then doubled back and ran over to Margo, covering her friend's mouth in the hopes of avoiding any potential premature revelations.
"Dude, quiet!" Lynn said nervously through gritted teeth. "I think someone's here." The two friends listened carefully to the sounds of vinyl wheels rolling against the pavement, soon seeing a boy wearing slim fit jeans and a black Asking Alexandria t-shirt. The two girls glanced at each other, then back at the tan complected teen.
"Isn't that one of Francisco's friends?" asked Lynn.
"I think so. Kyle Suresh?" Margo responded as she walked over to the boy, Lynn following. The boy glanced at his phone to check the time. It was then that he glanced up to see the two friends steadily approaching him. Noticing Lynn, he nervously froze, trying to dress himself in a facade of calm and cool-headedness.
"What's up?" he asked as the girls closed the distance.
"S'up, Suresh!" Margo greeted.
"Waiting for Devin and Alexis..." he said with masked aggravation.
"Well, Lynn needs to ask you something," she remarked before Lynn elbowed her side. Kyle's eyes widened nervously at Margo's statement. Or at least the fact that a girl he had a deep respect for wanted to ask him a potentially personal and important question.
"Have you talked to Francisco lately?" Lynn asked anxiously.
"Fran? No not since he started hanging out with Palmer and Stiles more," Kyle said with much frustration against his former friend. Lynn lowered her head in disappointment with both Margo and Kyle growing more and more malcontent with this answer.
"Lynn-sanity's needing to talk to him. Like, last week!" Margo said, emphasizing the gravity of her best friend's delicate position. "And he's going out of his way to make himself an enormous douchebag!"
"So, uh... Why do you need to talk to him?" Kyle asked.
"Oh, ummm... No reason?" said Lynn as her cheeks glowed bright red.
"Was that a question?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.
"No! No! Not at all. I..." The teen became increasingly flustered as she tried with her entire will to maintain her composure.
"Dude, he's cool. I know he won't tell a soul if you told him your secret," Margo said confidently. Lynn released a shaky sigh of defeat, then looked around for any possible eavesdroppers. She swallowed hard, then moved in toward the skater boy. Realizing she wanted to tell him her secret discreetly, Kyle turned his head slightly to meet his ear with her mouth. His eyes widened as Lynn made her revelation.
"Are you serious!?" he said with disbelief.
"Y-yeah..." Lynn replied as she crossed her arms, frustrated.
"See what we mean?" Margo added, upset with her best friend's state of mind. His gaze returned to Lynn, now equally upset. He sent a text quickly and dropped his board onto the pavement wheels first, readying himself for a speedy take off.
"Just tell Francisco that Lynn needs to talk to him. Nothing else!" Margo ordered.
"Got it," Kyle said with a nod.
"I appreciate it, Suresh. I really do," Lynn added sincerely. He smiled bashfully as he turned to hide his flushed cheeks, only to take one last look behind him at the brown haired, freckle cheeked girl that held his deepest admiration.
"No problem," he said as he quickly wheeled away. "I'll track Fran down for you!" Margo smiled knowingly at her friend as he faded further away from their immediate view. She glanced back at Lynn to see her returning the board and helmet to Margo's duffle bag.
"Hey, don't you want to hit the half pipe?" Margo asked with growing concern for her friend.
"Not really feeling it anymore. I think I'm just gonna head home," Lynn said, forlorn.
"I'll go with you. And if we run into Fran, we'll tell him off together!" Margo quickly changed out of her rollerblades and back into her running shoes, returning her helmet to the duffle bag. She effortlessly hoisted the bag onto her shoulders before they made their way out of the skate park.
"Do you think he'll track down Francisco?" Lynn asked as she peered into the evening sky.
"I dunno, but he'll try for sure," Margo answered, attempting to alleviate her friend's stress.
After half an hour, the friends arrived at 1216 Franklin Avenue. Lynn's home. The roof was peppered with various toys and other random belongings, undoubtedly launched from the overzealous playtime from at least two of her ten siblings. Margo looked around, still in awe at the sight of the debris left by the younger Loud children. Even though she made regular visits with Lynn, the image of the Loud house still intrigued her. They stopped suddenly at the front door with Lynn looking around cautiously.
"Now listen. Not a word past this door," Lynn asserted.
"Don't worry. My lips are sealed," Margo said as her hand gestured closing a zipper across her lips.
The friends snuck quietly into the seemingly empty house. As Lynn carefully closed the front door, she bumped into her best friend in an alarmed stupor.
"Dude! We need to be careful, my sister's are–" Lynn started with an angry whisper.
"Literally behind you," a voice called from within the silence of the house. Lynn's eyes widened, realizing that they had been discovered by her eldest sister. She slowly turned, nervously awaiting Lori's scrutiny. Her nervousness only heightened with the revelation of not just one, but all four of her older sisters standing there with crossed arms, blocking the staircase.
"S-s'up!" Lynn greeted nervously.
"You tell us, sis," Luna said with a knowing smirk.
"W-what do you mean?" Lynn asked.
"You know what we mean, baby!" Luan giggled aloud only to gain a sigh of frustration from her sisters.
"So, now that I'm completely confused, Margo and I are gonna go, uh..." Lynn trailed as she struggled to find an excuse to avoid her interrogators.
"Practice for extreme table football," Margo quickly improvised.
"Oh, yeah! Hyper-competitive. Sessions get pretty intense, so we need to practice for a few hours... Maybe a few days, or weeks! Gotta go!" Lynn clumsily proclaimed as they forced their way past the mob of Loud sisters.
"Okay, have fun," Lori said nonchalantly as Lynn passed by.
"Will do, sis!" Lynn said as she kept up her facade of ignorance. Lori smirked coyly, turning to face her sporty younger sister. She then retrieved the bundle of plastic sticks from her back pocket.
"Oh and Lynn…" Lori said with a cheekiness under her breath.
"What?" Lynn inquired.
"You might not want to forget these." The group turned in unison to face their sister, devilish grins upon their faces expressing their almost sadistic delight in the tangible proof of the reckless behavior Lynn had partaken in, which resulted in her current predicament. Instantly, her expression of overconfidence in her ploy faded into one of gloom and mortification at her exposure. Lynn's 'secret' was exposed.