Once Colin got to the basement, he cried. The last 2 days had been the m I st stressful, em8t Before today, he had cried about 5 times in his life, but today was not a normal day in the slightest. He couldn't believe in the horrible luck he had had over the last 2 days. First, he was transported to this world, and now this? Mama and Chica wouldn't be able to keep their house! Their store! They would be on the streets! and it would be all his fault.

"Hey."

He looked up to see all of the kids standing there. He wiped his eyes, and not being able to make eye contact, he looked away and asked, "what are you all doing down here?"

"Lisa told us everything," Lincoln said. "The portal, her machine, your family..."

"It doesnt matter anymore, Chico. They'll probably be either moved or dead by the time I manage to get back. And there isn't anything left to do about it."

"That actually isn't true," Lisa said. "According to my calculations, I could probably get the new machine done in 10 months instead of 12." Noticing that her calculations weren't cheering him up, she said, "I'm sorry I dropped the machine, Colin, I really am. But there isn't anything else to do but get to work on the new one."

"It really isn't the fact that they're all alone, though. Look at me! I'm in a strange place, I look strange, and I don't know anybody here! And what am I supposed to do for the next 12 months? I mean, I can't just sit here in the basement!"

"Of course you cant, Colin," Lori said. "But you can't give up! I'm sure you could probably be enrolled at the school, and you always have the air mattress to sleep on. I'm sure to and dad will understand." With that, the kids voiced their pleasure at the idea of having a 12th sibling.

Colin thought long and hard. If he stays here, then he would be guaranteed a place to stay and live. He would go to school, find new friends, and...maybe, just maybe, he thought, he might have a chance. A chance to see what life was like on the good side of things. Not the slums, nut fighting for survival, but just living.

"Well, I guess if it's ok with your parents..."

"YES!" They all said with happiness in their voices.

"But there's a problem, though. I hardly know any of you guys."

There was a long silence. Then Lunas chimed in with, "Well, I guess we'll just have to get to know each other better, mate. We still got 2 weeks before school starts again. That's plenty of time to find out what we're like."

Colin thought hard. About home. Mama. Chica. San Diego. These 11 people who had just offered him a spot in their already massive family. Pretty soon, he smiled as he told Luna his final decision.

"Yeah, I guess that would work... hermana."

Luna looked at him, confused.

"Wait, what does that mean?"

"In spanish, it means "sister," Colin said as he stood up and spread his arms out for a hug.

"Awwwww!" The girls and Lincoln said as they got up and gave Colin the biggest hug he had ever had. He hugged them back, then turned and thought out loud to himself.

"You know, I'm gonna miss Mama and Chica. But honestly, there isn't any way that I'm going home any time soon. So I might as well just go with the flow for a while. I'll bide my time here, and when Lisa gets the portal machine up and running, then I'll go home. But for now, i think I'm going to enjoy being in the Loud House." Little did he know that by the next year, he'd find that he wouldn't trade the world for living with the Louds.