Kapitel 76: 76. Ch 76- Back To The City
"Lincoln! We're going in five minutes!" Lori called from downstairs, adjusting her winter coat.
"Be right there!"
Lori rolled her eyes, then fished her phone out of her pocket. She saw that Bobby had texted her, saying:
Bobby: Can't wait to see you, Babe 3
She smiled at the text, though as much as she was looking forward to seeing her boyfriend in person again, she was still nervous about the other reason that she was going down to the city. These worries started to fill her mind, so she gave a quick shake of her head to focus herself. 'Everything will literally be okay,' she reminded herself. 'He's gonna have a good time with his friends, I'm gonna have a great day with Bobby, and then… well, then we can figure that out.'
She heard footsteps coming down the stairs and looked to see Lincoln descending, wearing his winter attire, carrying his backpack on his back and a skateboard under his arm. "Okay," he told her, "ready when you are."
"I can see. Are you sure about the skateboard, though? Weather might be icy."
"I checked with Ronnie Anne, she says the skate park should be clear."
"Do you have your helmet, then?" He opened his mouth, but said nothing as he realised his mistake. He turned around, muttering to himself as he headed back upstairs. "Thought not."
While she waited for her brother to return, she saw her mother enter from the dining room, holding Lily in one hand while she ate a cookie and car keys in the other. "Here you go, Lori," she told her daughter, handing her the keys. "You got everything you need?"
Lori nodded. "Got my phone in case of emergencies, got my wallet, Lana said there's a spare tire in the trunk, Lincoln's getting whatever he needs."
"Did your father give you some money to get dinner on the way back?"
"Yeah, he gave me some cash after breakfast. Bobby told me about a diner on the highway, so we might go there for dinner."
"Okay. Are you sure two will be alright by yourselves?" Though her smile weakened, she nodded again to her mother. "Well, then, have fun and call me if anything happens."
"We will."
Lincoln returned a second later, squeezing his helmet into his bag before putting it back on his back. "Okay, now I'm ready."
"Behave for the Casagrandes, Lincoln," Rita told him.
"I will, Mom."
"I know you will. We'll see you when you get back."
They both gave their mother a quick hug before heading to the front door, a cold breeze meeting them as they stepped outside. It wasn't snowing out again, but the front lawn was frosted, a sign that snowfall could soon occur. After shutting the door to the house, Lori went to Vanzilla. She unlocked the van, allowing her to get in the driver's seat whilst Lincoln took shotgun, putting his bag and skateboard on the seat behind him. Whilst Lincoln closed his door and put his seatbelt on, his sister did the same whilst checking the dashboard to make sure they were okay to drive. Once she was certain everything was okay and she checked her mirrors, she turned to her brother and asked him, "you ready?" He wordlessly nodded to her, so she turned on the engine and backed the car out of the driveway, turning the van around so they could drive away. "So, uh, Lincoln… you have any plans for when we get there?"
He shrugged. "Not really. Probably just do what the others usually do."
"Oh…"
She tried to think of something else to say, but didn't need to as Lincoln heard his phone ringing. He grabbed his phone out of his pocket and answered the call. "Hello?"
"Hey, Lincoln," he heard Jordan speak on the other end of the call.
"Hey, Jordan. What's up?"
"Me and the others were gonna head to the mall. You wanna join us?"
"Sorry, I can't. I'm headed to Great Lakes City to see Ronnie Anne and her friends."
"Oh, that sounds cool. Say hi to Ronnie Anne for me, okay?"
"No problem. I'll let her know."
"Thanks. I better going, so I guess I'll talk to you later."
"Okay. Talk to you later."
He hung up and returned his phone to his pocket. Lori looked at him out of her peripherals. "Was that Jordan?"
"Yeah, she wants me to say hi to Ronnie Anne when we get to the city."
"That's nice of her. Were she and Ronnie Anne friends before?"
"Not that I know of, though I think they spoke together a few weeks ago while me and Jordan were doing that geography project."
"Well, at least they get along. Maybe next time Ronnie Anne comes to visit, the three of you can hang out together." He shrugged, leaving a small moment of silence between them before Lori spoke again. "Hey, does Ronnie Anne know that you… well, you know?"
He frowned at the driver. "You mean the fact that I do gymnastics?"
"Lincoln, wait, I don't mean—"
"I get it. And, no, she doesn't know, but I'm gonna tell her." He turned to the window and muttered, "thanks for reminding me, I guess."
Lori frowned. "Lincoln, I—"
"I'm gonna listen to some music for a while." He fished his earphones out of his pocket, untangling them and plugging them into his phone. "Let me know when we have to stop or anything."
Once he put his earphones into his ears, Lori knew that he was going to be silent for the rest of the trip, so she sighed regretfully, lightly drumming her fingers on the steering wheel. 'Don't panic, there's still plenty of time,' she thought to herself, which allowed her to set those thoughts aside and focus on the road ahead.
In Great Lakes City, the streets were busy as ever, that familiar holiday feeling beginning to wash over everyone. Stores were beginning to put up holiday decorations, Christmas lights were put up at certain stores and many were getting started on their Christmas shopping. However, if you thought that things were festive outside, that was nothing compared to what it was like inside one particular apartment.
The living room was filled with a Latin family— two grandparents, two adults and three boys. The boys were decorating a Christmas tree, though the ginger haired infant was mostly just playing with baubles, rolling them around like balls. The elderly man in the brownish green jacket, beige shirt and dark green pants sat asleep in his chair, his snores bristling his grey moustache. A woman in a pink and green dress was painting the family as they did their things, while a bespectacled man in a green sweater and brown trousers held a step ladder for a woman in a navy dress with white fringe.
"Mama, are you sure we should be putting the Christmas decorations up this early?" the man in glasses asked to the elderly woman.
"Si, Carlos," the woman replied, climbing the step ladder with tinsel in hand. "School doesn't end until Friday, so the little ones won't have as much time to help decorate this year." As she prepared to nail the tinsel above the curtain, she heard a knock at the door, making her gasp excitedly. "They're here!"
She threw the tinsel to Carlos and stepped down from the ladder, walking past her alert family to answer the door. However, her excitement was suppressed when she saw a young Asian girl with long brown hair, wearing a blue puff jacket, grey joggers and pink ear muffs. "Oh, it's you, Sid," Rosa greeted. "Forgive me, I thought it might have been Lori and Lincoln."
"Oh, good! They're not here yet!" Sid replied with a relieved tone. "So, is Ronnie Anne in here?"
"Of course! Come on in!" She stepped aside, allowing the girl into the apartment. "I think she's in Carlota's room."
They then heard arguing from two other girls, making Sid nod. "I think you're right."
She walked down the hallway, just in time to see Ronnie Anne burst out of one of the rooms on the left, wearing an orange hoodie with a blue 'RW' on the front and black cargo pants, and looking annoyed. A taller girl, dressed in a mint green parka and dark purple winter leggings came out a second later.
"What is the matter with you? Don't you want to look nice for your boyfriend?" the taller girl complained.
"For the last time, Carlota! He's not my boyfriend!" Ronnie Anne argued. "I'm not putting on makeup any time my friend visits us!" It was then that she noticed Sid, who gave an awkward wave to her bestie. "Oh, hey, Sid. Sorry about that."
"No worries."
"I'm glad you're here, Sid," Carlota said to the guest, gesturing to her cousin. "Don't you think that Lincoln would appreciate it if Ronnie Anne looked nice for him?"
"I'm not trying to woo him," Ronnie Anne cut in. "He's not my boyfriend, and I don't wear makeup normally."
The teen rolled her eyes. "No duh! You save that for when you want to look nice, like when a special someone comes to see you."
Ronnie Anne growled through gritted teeth, her fist clenching. "He's not my special someone, and he's not going to be. How many times do I have to say it?"
"Hey, you're only lying to yourself."
She walked away, leaving Ronnie Anne to fume some more. "Unbelievable! No matter how many times I tell them, they just won't let it go."
"Yeah, I can only imagine Adelaide's gonna be like that when I get a crush," Sid agreed. "Still, it's not often you get to see Lincoln, so we're still gonna have fun, right?"
This brought a grin to her friend's face. "Totally. I told the others we'd meet them at the skate park, and I told Lincoln to bring his board. You got yours?"
"It's in my room. I'll grab it on the way down."
"Okay." They heard another knock at the door, which Ronnie Anne started to answer. "I've got it!" She opened the door, being met with the sight of Lincoln and Lori. "Hey, Lame-O."
"What's up, dork?" the boy greeted back as he and his sister were let into the apartment. "Jordan says hi."
"Oh, cool. Think you can tell her hi for me?"
"Sure." He saw Sid and gave a small wave to her. "Hey, Sid."
"Hey, Lincoln. Nice to see you again."
"You too."
"Lincoln!" they heard someone call out as the boy in the yellow top, blue shorts and red cape came into the hallway, giving the white haired boy a hug that he was happy to return.
"Hey there, buddy."
The rest of the Casagrande's weren't far behind, entering the hallway to greet the two Louds. Among them, the young boy in the red coat and navy pants approached Lori, combing his hair before giving a wink to the girl. "Hola, mi amor."
Lori rolled her eyes before replying, "hi, Carl!"
"Babe!" Bobby was heard shouting as he pushed his way through the crowd, his big smile matched by Lori's.
"Boo Boo Bear!"
She walked past Carl so she could hug her boyfriend, ignoring the angry growl the kid gave. "Whatever."
"How was your trip?" Rosa asked. "You two must be starving."
"No thank you, Mrs Casagrande," Lori answered first. "Me and Bobby are probably going to have lunch together."
"Fair enough. What about you, Lincoln? I'm sure you'd like something to eat."
"Actually, Abuela, we were planning to grab hotdogs at the park," Ronnie Anne intervened. "We should actually get going, they're probably waiting for us."
"Oh, nonsense! I can whip something up, no problem!"
"That's okay, Mrs Casagrande," Lincoln insisted. "I don't want to be a bother, and I don't want to keep them waiting."
"Well, if you change your mind, then let me know."
"We will." Ronnie turned to her friend. "I see you brought your board. You ready?"
"You bet."
"Have fun, Lincoln," Lori called to her brother as he and his friends made their way out of the apartment, receiving a thumbs up in response from the boy. Once they were gone and the rest of the family went back to what they originally had in mind, Bobby turned to his girlfriend.
"So, you ready to go too, Babe?"
"In a second, yeah."
He reached out and grabbed her hands, looking her in the eyes with concern. "You okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just… thinking about things, I guess."
He knew what 'things' she was referring to, so he pulled her close and gave her an assuring smile. "Babe, you'll work this out. I'm sure he wants to patch things up too."
She looked down as she nodded. "I know, I know. I'm probably overthinking this, aren't I?"
"You're not overthinking anything. You're just concerned, and that's good. If you weren't, then it would mean you didn't care, which I know you do."
She couldn't resist smiling, looking back up to meet his gaze once more. "You're too good to me, Boo Boo Bear." They both leaned in, sharing a short yet tender kiss on the lips. "Okay, I think I'm ready to go now. Where are we going?"
He smirked as he linked his arm with hers. "You'll see."
Elsewhere, Lincoln, Ronnie Anne and Sid were calmly making their way towards the skate park, all carrying their boards under their arms. Lincoln and Sid were getting to know each other better, since they didn't speak much the first time they met, and they only knew what Ronnie Anne had told each of them about the other. Other than that, they mostly spoke about things that hey had been up to recently.
"So, do you fight the robots, or do the robots fight each other?" Lincoln asked.
"It's mostly the second one," Ronnie Anne explained, "though there's a little bit of the first too. If you thought Lynn was tough, then you better hope you don't anger Becky. The two of them in a fight would be something fierce."
Lincoln's eyes went wide, so he looked to Sid for affirmation. "I can't speak for whoever Lynn is, but Becky gets real crazy in the ring." The boy gave a whistle of surprise. "Yep. Anyway, what about you? Any new hobbies?"
"Yeah, you told me you'd taken up sport," Ronnie Anne added with a grin. "What was it again? Dodgeball?"
He scratched his cheek nervously with his finger, giving a sheepish smile. "Uh… yeah, about that…"
"You were lying, weren't you?"
Lincoln's eyes widened. "Wait, you knew?"
"Yeah, it wasn't too hard to tell. Besides, when I spoke to Jordan a while back, she didn't tell me what it was you actually do but I could tell she was hiding it for you."
He gave a small gulp out of guilt. "Yeah, s-sorry about that. It wasn't personal, I just… hadn't figured out to tell the others, and I didn't want Lori to find out through Bobby."
"That's horrible!" Sid spoke with disappointment.
"Actually, Sid, I kind of get it," Ronnie Anne interrupted, furthering her friend's surprise. "In a big family, it's hard to keep secrets. You've got to think about the loose ends." She turned to the white haired boy and added, "that's why you did it, right?"
"Yeah. So… does this mean we're cool?"
"We're cool."
While Lincoln sighed in relief, Sid was shaking her head. "I don't get it, though. Why would you hide… whatever it is you do from your sisters?"
"Think you've got to ask this first, Sid," Ronnie pointed out as she raised an eyebrow to the boy. "If it's not dodgeball, then what have you taken up?"
He sighed again, knowing this was coming. "Promise you won't laugh?" The two girls looked to each other, then nodded to him. "I've been doing gymnastics."
"No way! That sounds cool!"
To put it lightly, he was surprised by the enthusiasm of Sid's response. "Wait, really?"
"Yeah, I remember seeing that at the Olympics on TV! Those moves looked so awesome!"
"So, do you do the whole ribbon dance thing?" Ronnie Anne inquired, to which Lincoln shook his head.
"No, I do the vault, rings, bars and pommel horse."
"Okay. Still, that's pretty cool. Guessing you were worried your sisters wouldn't think so?"
He nodded as he rubbed the back oh his neck. "Yeah. They know now, though. They weren't thrilled to hear I hid that from them, but we've patched things up, more or less."
"Well, that's good," Sid remarked. "At least everything's okay with your family now. I wouldn't want Adelaide to be mad at me for too long." The Loud boy gave a chuckle, though he was fortunate that his friends didn't notice the nervousness behind it, with Sid pointing ahead. "I see the others!"
Lincoln looked ahead and saw the open gate to the skate park, many kids already skating up the ramps and half pipes. Stood next to the gate were three kids that Lincoln recognised. One was Casey, a dark skinned boy wearing a red zip up hoodie, black jeans and a black and white chequered hat; one was Sameer, a boy with tan skin and thick, bushy brown hair, wearing a black puff coat and grey jeans; the other was Nikki, a tall, fair skinned girl with blonde hair over one eye, dressed somewhat inappropriately for the weather in a blue hoodie with the hood up and ripped jeans.
As the trio stood by the gate, Nikki saw their friends and Lincoln heading their way. "There they are," she called out, alerting the boys as the trio crossed the road to get to them. "Good to see you again, Loud."
"Good to see you too, guys."
"How are things back in Royal Woods?" Sameer asked.
"About the same as usual. How's city life?"
"Yeah, same as always."
"Hey, are we gonna be skating, or are we just gonna stand here and chat?" Casey pointed out, to which Ronnie Anne rolled her eyes.
"Dude, relax. We've got all day." She gestured for the group to follow her. "Come on, let's go." So, they entered the skate park, the sounds of cheering and shouts from the other skaters becoming more apparent. "So, are we gonna grab some grub first, or should we just hit the decks?"
"Skate first, food later! Let's do this!"
Casey's declaration was followed by cheers as he ran and threw his board forward, hopping onto it and dropping into the bowl.
"Hey! Wait for us!" Sameer shouted, him and Nikki following their friend's example. Sid followed after them, while Ronnie Anne turned to Lincoln.
"Let's see if your balance is any better, gymnastics boy," she taunted before following suit. Lincoln shook his head and chuckled, strapping on his helmet before joining his friends for a day of fun.
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
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Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein