People are still griping that this story is obscene because Lincoln and Luan are together. I warned them. I really did. Well, the last few paragraphs is about them having sex. If you've stuck with me and stayed cool, and that offends you, I'm sorry, just stop reading after the scene with Ronnie Anne and Clyde. For you other gripers...guaranteed you're going to read it anyway, because even though you cry about how awful it is, deep down, that sort of thing titillates you. Well, titillate away, because here it comes.

PS. Maybe there will be a sequel, maybe not. I was thinking of doing an alternate timeline (as it were) where Lincoln winds up with Lynn. The story would involve a camping trip. Beyond that, I don't know anything else. If you like that idea, let me know.

The day after the storm, while the residents of Royal Woods dug out of nearly four feet of snow, Luan waited impatiently as Lisa analyzed a urine sample Luan had given her that morning. Lincoln waited with her. They held hands and talked about what they would do if the test came back positive. Luan told him about Lisa's offer of a chemical abortion, but Lincoln wasn't comfortable with that.

Neither was she, to be honest.

They decided that if they were pregnant, they would have to take responsibility, whatever form in which it may come. They also decided that, come hell or high water, they would keep their child.

At half past three, Lisa came into Lincoln's room and shut the door. She was holding a vial of pills in her hand.

"What are those?" Luan asked.

"I'll get to that," Lisa said. "First, the results are in. Luan...you are not pregnant."

Luan's heart skipped a beat. She didn't know whether to be relieved or disappointed.

Truth be told, she was a little of both.

"Then why have I been puking every morning?"

Lisa shrugged. "Nothing came back, so I'm going to assume it's stress. Carrying out an affair with your brother while trying to keep it hidden from your parents does that to you, I'd imagine."

"What's in the bottle?" Lincoln asked.

"Birth control." Lisa tossed the bottle at Lincoln, and he caught it. "One a week, that's all you need. It's very potent. I made sure of that. I haven't tested it, but if something gets through while you're on it, it's superhuman and will probably fight crime when it's older."

With that, Lisa took her leave.

Lincoln hugged his sister and kissed her cheek. "I'm kind of glad," Lincoln said. "I'm not ready to be a father."

"I'm not ready to be a mother," she said, "but I'm still kind of disappointed. I got used to the idea."

Across town, Clyde McBride knocked on Ronnie Anne Santiago's front door, and her mother answered.

"Hi, Mrs. Santiago," he said. "Is Ronnie Anne here?"

"Yes," Mrs. Santiago said, appreciatively eyeing the flowers the boy carried. Of the many stories printed in the Monday edition of the Royal Woods Republican, LOCAL BOY SAVES GIRL was one of the only, if not the only that ended on a happy note. They said he was a hero. He didn't feel like one, though. All he did was help someone get out of the snow. What kind of world was it where someone helping someone else was newsworthy?

Mrs. Santiago led Clyde to Ronnie Anne's room. She was sitting up in bed, the covers pulled to her waist. Her left ankle was sprained and the doctor ordered her to stay off of it for three to five days. When she saw Clyde, her eyes lit up, and Clyde's heart pounded. He and Ronnie Anne had texted a little since the storm.

Mrs. Santiago left, and Clyde drew up a chair.

"I-I brought you these," he said, handing the flowers to her. She took them and looked at them.

"You know, I don't really do flowers." She smelled them. "But these are pretty."

"Thanks," Clyde said.

For a moment they were silent, then Clyde started to speak what had been on his mind. "I know we were under extreme circumstances and all when we...you know...kissed, and I'll understand if you don't want to..."

"Clyde?"

He turned to her. "Yeah?"

"Come here."

Tensing, Clyde leaned in, and in one fluid motion Ronnie Anne grabbed him by his shirt, pulled him close, and kissed him.

"You're stuck with me, dork."

Clyde blinked. Then smiled.

"Wanna play a video game?"

That night, Lincoln and Luan made love for the first time since Luan watched him kill another human being. A part of her had been terrified at the savagery she saw in him, but another part liked it. He was vicious and protective. The wild animal quality was on her mind when she slipped into his bed past midnight, wearing only a flimsy night-gown through which her erect nipples poked. For a time they simply held each other, breathing in unison, their hearts beating in time. Then, with nimble fingers, she slipped her hand into his pajama bottoms and touched him: His penis stiffened.

"You kind of scared me the other day," she said as she gently stroked his rapidly inflating shaft. "But you also made me feel...safe."

Lincoln let out a small moan as she rubbed the tip with her thumb. She grinned up at him and slid his pants down, yanking them off and tossing them aside. She mounted him, grinding herself against his rigid penis. She wore nothing beneath her night-gown.

"You were like a wild beast," she said, sliding down just enough so that the head of his penis prodded her tight hole. "And I liked that a lot."

She settled onto him, his penis entering her and straining against her walls. She threw her head back and moaned as he filled her. His hands flew to her hips, then rubbed around to the front of her gown. They closed on her small breasts, and she shuddered, her nipples aching under Lincoln's expert touch.

In one motion, he rolled her onto her back. He was on top of her, pinning her arms to the bed, his eyes intense, a sly grin on his face. "You like it when I'm a wild beast?"

Luan nodded devilishly.

Lincoln thrust into her, and she gasped. He grabbed her breasts, tweaking her nipples, and slammed into her once, twice more. Her eyes rolled back in her head and her toes curled. One more rough thrust, one more grunt, and she was done, call her the minute girl: Her orgasm rocked her fevered body, and she trembled with its power. Her climax threw Lincoln into his, his hot seed filling her.

For a long time, they lay together, entagled and panting.

"We're pathetic," she finally said.

Lincoln shrugged. "It comes and goes, I guess."

They laughed.

"One thing, though," Luan said.

"What's that?"

"Who's sleeping in the wet spot?"