With his freshly repaired hoodie back on, Lincoln turned side to side in the mirror. The patch Leni added didn't just fix it—it made it even cooler than before. It looked like something right out of a limited-edition Ace Savvy drop.
"Alright," Leni said, brushing off her hands like a fashion show director, "now you have to do a runway walk."
Lincoln laughed. "What, like through the hallway?"
"Duh! Let's make it a thing."
A few minutes later, the upstairs hallway turned into the Loud House's very own fashion runway. Leni played music on her phone while Lincoln strutted down the hall in slow motion.
"Work it, Linky!" she cheered. "You're serving comic-hero realness!"
Luna peeked out of her room. "Whoa, bro! That patch is wicked!"
Lola followed with a skeptical squint. "Wait… that actually looks custom."
"It is," Lincoln said proudly. "Leni fixed it for me."
"More like upgraded it," Leni added with a wink.
Soon enough, more sisters poked out from rooms and doorways to admire the hoodie. Even Lisa made a rare appearance to observe the crowd.
"I must admit," she said, adjusting her glasses, "this is an uncharacteristically impressive use of fabric reconstruction. Well done, Leni."
"Thank yooou!" Leni sang.
Lincoln stood in the middle of the hallway, surrounded by cheering sisters and feeling something he hadn't in a while—confident. Not because of the hoodie, but because of the people who helped him feel seen.
Later that night, as he folded the hoodie and placed it neatly on his chair, he looked over at Leni across the hall.
"Hey, Leni?"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks. Not just for fixing my hoodie, but for… making me feel cool."
She smiled wide. "You don't need a hoodie for that, Linky. You've always been cool to me."