Lincoln Loud stood over the envelope on his floor, his heart pounding. It was early the next morning, February 13th, and he didn't notice it until he got up to go to the bathroom: It was by the door, like someone had slipped it underneath.

He swallowed, bent down, and picked it up. He ripped it open with trembling fingers and took out the card. It was red and covered with glittery hearts. Inside was a sappy love poem, but he skipped that in favor of what was written beneath in purple loops.

Lincoln, I want you to know how deeply I love you. You are the light of my life and the most important thing in the world to me. I'm terrified of losing you which is why I didn't tell you sooner, but I need your hand and your heart. Please don't let anything change your mind. Nothing matters but what I feel for you.

Lincoln read it and reread it, falling heavily onto the edge of his bed. He felt something bubbling up inside of him, starting in the pit of his stomach and rising through his chest. When it hit his brain, he recognized it for the realization that it was.

It was one of his sisters. It had to be. His mind flashed back to the other day when he found the card on his bed. What did it say? He grabbed it now and opened it:

Lincoln...you make my heart beat fast and my stomach feel like it has butterflies in it. You are very special to me. Sweet. Thoughtful. Handsome. Amazing. Awesome. And totally not a dork. Xoxoxoxo – A girl with a crush.

Something was fishy, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. He wracked his brain, revelation dancing a mocking watusi just beyond his reach. Sweet. Thoughtful. Handsome. Amazing. Awesome. And totally not a dork.

It hit him then.

The night before he got that card, his sisters gathered in his room and he told them about his crush.

"It's about time someone fell in love with Lincoln," Luan said, "he's awesome."

He said that he wasn't, and Lynn...what did she say? "Yes you are, even if you can be a dork sometimes."

Lincoln's heart came to a full stop.

Please don't let anything change your mind. Nothing matters but what I feel for you.

Nothing matters...like the fact they were siblings?

Lincoln licked his lips. It made sense. She talked (well...wrote) like she knew him...and knew him well. The only girl who knew him with any degree of profundity outside of his sisters was Ronnie Anne. Otherwise, there were none. How could a girl formulate such a strong impression of him (sweet, thoughtful, amazing) without knowing him? And if it wasn't Ronnie Anne...

One of my sisters is in love with me.

His first reaction was to cringe, but looking at the card in his hands, and thinking of the other ones on his nightstand, the love he felt in his chest did not abate, did not falter. He swallowed against a sandpaper throat and turned the card over in his hands; they were shaking. He envisioned each of his sisters in his mind one-by-one, starting with Lori and working his way down. Each one was beautiful, each one was unique, and he deeply loved each one. They were all special to him.

Brotherly love, however, is a far cry from romantic love. Could he heed the most recent note's plea and not let anything change his mind...or the way he felt?

He read the card again, admiring that beautiful purple handwriting, the cute heart dotting the 'I' in his name. He looked at the teddy bear sitting on his nightstand.

It was one of his sisters...but God help him, he didn't care. She was beautiful, perfect, and he loved her.

In the hall, he waited in line for the bathroom behind Luna and Luan. When he walked up, Luan looked over her shoulder and grunted her morning greeting: Her eyes were bloodshot and strands of hair had fallen out of her ponytail. She looked like a zombie. Unlike Lincoln, she was not a morning person.

Was it her?

The first two cards were pun-based. Bee mine. I loaf you. Those were definitely the types of cards that would jump out at her. Then again, there was the you rock my world card. Maybe it was Luna. Oh...what about the you're # 1 card? Lynn, perhaps?

He didn't know.

All that day, he wracked his brain for further clues, but couldn't come up with any. So far, there were three prime suspects, and they were only prime suspects because of the cards.

After lunch, he went to his locker to pick up a few books. As he approached, he spotted something taped to the door. Another envelope. His name was on it.

He opened it. The card was simple. Red with a big pink heart. Inside, she wrote: Tomorrow is Valentine's...the perfect day for us to meet...I'm so nervous, Lincoln. You are my light...you hold my heart in your hands.

Lincoln gulped.

She held his in hers.

So it's Luan or Lynn, he thought later, as he sat in class. It would have to be, since they were the only ones who went to school with him. There was no way Lori, Leni, or Luna could have done it. The high school was miles away, and there wouldn't be enough time for them to leave, come here, drop the card, and then get back.

For the first time in days, he waited for them after the final bell. When they walked up and saw him, he scanned their faces for any reaction that might give them away. Maybe he was just dense, but he saw only two girls seeing their brother. "Hey, Linc!" Luan said. "Lin-coln!" Lynn said, and punched the shit out of his arm.

"Hey, guys," he said, rubbing the spot Lynn virtually destroyed. "How's it going?"

"I hate math," Luan said. They were walking now. "I'm pretty sure I flunked that test."

"I aced my history test," Lynn said happily. She made a fist and shoved it into the air. "I rock."

"You're a show-off," Luan said. "How are you doing, Linc?"

"Good," he said with a dreamy smile. "Really good."

"That's awesome," she replied, and leaned into him, knocking him off balance. "I'm happy for you."

"So am I," Lynn said, wrapping her arm around Lincoln's neck and drawing him into a nugie. He cried out. "Our little Lincy's growing up. Got himself a giiiiiiirlfriend."

Lincoln pulled away and started to say no I don't, but that was a lie. He did. "She's great," he said instead.

"How do you know?" Luan asked. "You haven't even met her yet."

"I can tell," Lincoln replied.

"Oh?" Lynn said. "What if she's really fat?"

"I don't care," Lincoln said. He doubted she was, but if he was wrong about it being one of his sisters and she was really fat, so be it. He would love her just the same.

"What if she's not funny?" Luan asked.

"I don't care."

"What if she's an old lady?" Lynn asked.

"Don't care."

"What if she's a man?" Luan asked.

Okay, that made Lincoln pause. "I would probably care about that," he said, nodding.

At home, he went upstairs, and found something on his bed.

The Ace Savvy comic that had been so important just a few days ago, but now meant very little. Someone had taken it out of its packaging. He sat, picked it up, and opened it, flipping through the pages. Every so often there was a yellow sticky note with purple writing on it. "You're my superhero," "we'd make a great team," "will you be my partner in fighting crime...and everything else?" Lincoln smiled.

Only after he'd read every one several times, basking in them the way a cat might bask in a warm bar of sunshine lying across the floor, did it occur to him that it couldn't be Luan or Lynn. They all walked through the front door together.

Lori, Leni, and Luna were already home.

Lincoln was totally, completely, and utterly baffled.