This one was not my greatest of chapters sorry if it felt it run on or sounds repetitive, I fax check as best I can and came to this

Chapter 5: Reflections and Revelations

Lincoln slumped on the floor, his back against his room door. The room was dark, with only a sliver of light breaking through the crevices of the door. He felt the weight of his memories pressing down on him, the echoes of past hurts reverberating in the silence.

A knock came at the door, soft but insistent. "Lincoln, it's Dad," Lynn Sr. called out gently. "Lana told me what happened and how you wanted to be left alone. I know you don't have to speak, and you don't have to write, but can you at least listen?"

Lincoln remained silent, his eyes fixed on the faint light.

Lynn Sr. sighed deeply. "Son, there's no amount of apologies or admissions of how wrong I was that could make up for the fact that I failed you as a father, plain and simple."

He then slumped to the floor, his back against the door, mirroring Lincoln's posture. "When I found out I was going to have a son, I was excited. I wanted to take you to sports games, teach you to cook, maybe even have you take over the family restaurant, Lynn's Table. I wanted to show you the ins and outs of being a man. But I failed in that department too."

Lynn Sr. paused, his voice heavy with emotion. "On the other hand, I was afraid. Raising girls felt different. It was about showing them love, support, and hoping they find the right man who treats them well. But with you, I thought boys should be resilient, strong, tough, and take responsibility for their actions. Characteristics I'm ashamed to admit, I don't have."

He took a deep breath, continuing, "My father, your grandfather, was a hard-working man, a fisherman. He was hardly around because of his long fishing trips. When he was around, I tried to get any chance to hang out with him, but he mostly spent time with my older brother, Lance. It drove me nuts. I thought he must have a favorite. Lance was muscular and athletic, everything I wasn't. I was more sensitive, easily scared of almost everything—a loser."

Lynn Sr. chuckled bitterly. "I didn't want you to grow up to be like me. I wanted you to be tougher and stronger, like your uncle and grandfather. But I should have raised you to be the man you wanted to be, not what I wanted you to be."

He hesitated before continuing, "When I first heard what Christina accused you of, I didn't want to believe it was true. But the rumors about you making advances towards her… I thought it was possible."

Lincoln's ears perked up, listening more closely.

"I was nothing like you during my younger days. You stood out in a good way. Girls naturally surrounded you because of your attentive, humble nature. Your carefree attitude also ignores the people who wished to see you fail. But I was the kid who had a party on the same day as another kid. My friends, my crush, and classmates lied, saying they couldn't make it, only for me to find out they went to the other kid's party instead. When I heard the rumor, I thought maybe your ego got the better of you. I thought your kind nature was just a ruse to get any girl you wanted and leave them when you got tired of them. I mean, you got your looks from your mother," he chuckled half-heartedly. "I thought you could pull off any girl you wanted to. Unlike me, who couldn't get my crush to know I existed. I feared you had the potential to grow up to be a womanizer. So, to me, the rumor felt more plausible at the time."

Lynn Sr. sighed deeply. "But when you decided to stop talking, I began to doubt the rumor. You closed yourself off from us, your family, and your academic life fell behind. It was when Principal Huggins suggested seeing a professional therapist that I realized how serious it was."

Lynn Sr. began to recount the first day they went to Dr. Lopez's office. Dr. Lopez, a Hispanic woman with a warm yet professional demeanor, had just finished evaluating Lincoln. She wanted to talk to Rita and Lynn Sr. as Lincoln switched rooms with his parents.

"Mr. and Mrs. Loud," Dr. Lopez began, "I asked Lincoln questions like why he became mute, what his family is like, and how the accusation made him feel. His response was silence, only staring around the room bored. But one question stood out. I asked him if the rumor about him was true? He looked at me and slowly shook his head no."

Rita and Lynn Sr. exchanged glances, their hearts heavy with guilt.

Dr. Lopez continued, "Lincoln chose to be mute as a way to cope with the trauma. He exhibits symptoms of selective mutism, a condition often triggered by severe anxiety. It's like a defense mechanism, a way to protect himself from further emotional pain."

She paused, letting the information sink in. "I believe Lincoln is telling the truth. His silence is not just about the accusation; it's about the broken trust and the feeling of betrayal from his family."

Dr. Lopez looked at them intently. "The danger of Lincoln's prolonged muteness could be permanent. He might stop interacting with everyone, isolating himself completely. His mutism is still in its early stages, so there is still a chance for him to speak again, but trust is crucial."

As Lynn Sr. finished telling his story, he said, "The point of all this, Lincoln, is that I let my insecurities cloud my judgment. The fact is, I didn't know how to raise you. I wanted you to be someone I wasn't, and in doing so, I failed you. I'm sorry, son."

Lincoln sat in silence, absorbing his father's words. The room was still, the only sound being the faint hum of the house. Lynn Sr. remained on the other side of the door, hoping his words had reached his son. A moment of silence filled the upper floor of the Loud house. Each sister, occupying their respective rooms, listened behind cracked doors to their father's heartfelt plea to their brother.

As the silence continued, Lynn Sr. took it as a sign of defeat and began to walk away, hoping he had reached out to his son. Suddenly, the door creaked open. Lincoln stood there, his face a mix of questioning and sternness.

"Lincoln?" Lynn Sr. turned around, surprised.

Lincoln began to write on his whiteboard, his hand shaking slightly. "Is what you say true? Is that how you see me?"

Lynn Sr. felt a pang of guilt. "Yes, son. I'm not proud of it."

Lincoln continued to write, "I thought you just hated me. I thought I was a disappointment to you.

Hearing him write it down, Lynn Sr. was shocked. "Lincoln, how could you ever think that? I never hated you. I… I just didn't know how to show you I cared."

Lincoln's eyes softened as he wrote, "I didn't know you had a rough childhood. Wanting your father's attention, always being picked second to your brother, and no one coming to your party. I'm sorry, Dad. That must've been so hard."

Lynn Sr. felt a wave of relief and anxiety wash over him. "It was, Lincoln. But hearing you say that… It means a lot."

Lincoln began to write why he was feeling sad. "I remembered why I became mute in the first place. The memory was just a bit tense, that's all."

Lynn Sr. asked, "Do you want to talk about it?"

Lincoln shook his head and wrote, "No, it's fine." He paused before writing again, "What I really want to tell you is that you're not a loser. If I had met you as a kid, I would have definitely come to your party. We would've been best friends."

Lynn Sr.'s heart warmed at his son's words. "Thank you, Lincoln. That means more to me than you know."

Lincoln wrote, "You're not a terrible father. You were just trying your best to raise me right."

Lynn Sr. smiled, tears welling up in his eyes. "I was, Lincoln. I really was."

Then Lincoln's face changed to a more serious tone. He wrote, "Do you think I'm a terrible son? Do you even consider me your son?" He held the whiteboard up, covering his face as he cried behind it.

Lynn Sr. could hear his son whimpering, the first sound he had heard from him in years. It wasn't a word, but it was a sound nonetheless. Trying his best to hold back his tears, Lynn Sr. grabbed the whiteboard and tossed it to the floor. He proceeded to hug Lincoln tightly as he whimpered on his chest.

"You're not a terrible son, Lincoln. You're already a better man than I am," Lynn Sr. said, his voice breaking. "You are my son, Lincoln. You are my son."

As they embraced for the first time in years, the sisters watched from their rooms, knowing that better days were coming.