Capítulo 59: 59. Ch 59- A Scare Shared
"Sounds like you had a good Thanksgiving," Jordan remarked to Lincoln.
"Yeah, all things considered, it was fun. What about you?"
It was Friday, and now that school was over, the two were sat in the back of Mrs Rosato's car as she drove them towards her house, so that they could continue working on their geography project. As a way of passing the time, Jordan had decided to ask what had happened since they parted ways the day before, whilst the adult in the driver's seat simply smiled as the kids got along.
"It was alright. Nothing particularly exciting happened, but it was nice to see my Aunt and Uncle again. Plus, they showed us the pictures of their new dog, and she looked so cute!"
"Tell him what Ajax did," Mrs Rosato called to the back as she turned a corner.
"Oh, right!" She saw that the boy looked curious about this, so she told him the story. "So, while they were showing us their dog, Ajax jumped on the couch to see what we were doing, and when he saw the pictures, he got jealous and walked away! He stuck his nose up and everything!"
This made Lincoln smile. "That's adorable! I imagine you made up for it, right?"
"Of course. Soon as he did that, I picked him up to cuddle him, and he wouldn't leave my lap until dinner was ready." Lincoln gave a laugh as he imagined this, which got Jordan laughing as well. "But, yeah. Apart from that, it was pretty quiet."
"That's because you had nine less people in the house."
"You're not wrong."
'I couldn't imagine catering to that many people,' Mrs Rosato thought to herself, just as her house appeared near the end of the street. "Okay, kids! We're here!"
She pulled the car into the driveway, slowing it to a stop and turning off the engine. Taking off their seatbelts, Jordan and Lincoln grabbed their bags and exited the car, shutting the doors so Mrs Rosato could lock the car before she let them into the house. After stepping inside, Lincoln immediately caught sight of the spotty furred dog they had just been talking about. He didn't need to say anything before the dog caught sight of him, barking happily and running up to the Loud boy, planting his front paws on Lincoln's legs. Lincoln smiled at the affection, kneeling down to pet the dog and scratch behind his ears.
"Hey there, buddy," he greeted. "Did you miss me?" Ajax barked happily, his trial wagging rapidly. He leapt up slightly to lick Lincoln on the face, making the boy and the two Rosato's laugh. "I missed you too, Ajax."
"Alright, come here, you," Mrs Rosato then said, picking up the dog who then gave her a lick as well. "Jordan can play with you later, and if he has time, maybe Lincoln will too." She turned to the two kids. "I'll take this hyper guy on a walk in a little while. Lincoln, would you like anything to drink or eat?"
"I'm okay, Mrs Rosato. Thanks for offering, though."
"Alright. Jordan, you want anything, sweetie?" Her daughter simply shook her head. "Okay. If you want something, you know where everything is. Have fun with your project."
"Thanks, Mom," Jordan replied, before her mother disappeared up the staircase, leaving the two kids to themselves. "So, I need to grab my laptop so we can work. Make yourself comfortable in the living room. I'd suggest we work in the dining room, but Mom insists on only having dinner stuff on that table."
"Okay." She nodded back, and made her way upstairs as well. While she was grabbing whatever they needed, he went into the living room, sitting himself down on the black couch which he quickly found was insanely comfortable. He practically sank into it, a relaxed sigh escaping his lips. "That's crazy…"
"Comfy?" He heard Jordan say, turning to see the girl had a smirk on her face, a light blue laptop under her arm.
"Very." She couldn't help but giggle at his response, sitting down beside him. "If we had a couch like this, me and my sisters would be fighting over who got to use it. AS A BED."
"You would not."
"You'd be surprised." Once again, she laughed, this time more heartily, bringing a smile to his face as he sat up straight. "So, where were we at last time?"
"I think we were looking at some of the culture. Literature, art, fashion… there's a reason they consider Italy one of the most romantic places in the world."
"Yeah, I get what you mean." He saw her open the laptop and turned it on, so he looked away while she put in her password, waiting for her to tap him on the shoulder so he could look again. When she did, he saw that her screen was showing what they had been working on that past Wednesday. "So, should we just continue where we left off?"
"Sure."
So, they continued with their research project, looking more into some of the culture of some of the cities they were looking at, from the birth of opera and some of the early classical composers, to the art of the Renaissance and the old school Italian literature, as well as some of the fashion trends and festivals. They looked at this stuff for close to three quarters of an hour, until they saw Mrs Rosato appear, Ajax trying to get to them but being held back by the woman by his dog leash.
"Sweetie, I'll be back in about an hour," she said to her daughter. "Your father should be back by then, but he said he might be working late today."
"Okay, mom," Jordan called back.
"If I'm not back before then, I'll ring the house phone." She looked to the boy sat next to her daughter. "Lincoln, if your parents come to collect you before then, it was nice seeing you again."
"You too, Mrs Rosato."
"Have fun, kids."
Jordan waited for her mom to shut the door before turning to her friend. "Do all of your friends mom's like you that much?"
He raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
"Lincoln, I've had a bunch of friends here, but she has never been as nice around any of them as she has been around you. Sure, she's nice to them, but not like she is to you."
"Come on, you don't mean that."
"I'm serious! You've made a real impression on her." Her smile turned into a smirk as she narrowed her eyes at him. "You wouldn't be trying to charm her, would you?" She watched in delight as the boy turned bright red and began stammering his denial, until she was unable to hold back her laughter. "I'm kidding!" Though he was thankful that she was, he still felt embarrassed, not helped by the fact her laughter took just a little too long to die down. "On that note, I think it's time we took a break. I'm gonna go grab a soda. You want one?"
"Yes, please," he grumbled, giving a slight pout. She rolled her eyes and shook her head as she began walking away, giving Lincoln the chance to calm down after the sudden little joke she played with him. If he was being honest, he didn't feel mad at her, and he'd probably see that it was kind of funny. Of course, it helped him to get over it when he saw her return with something as well as soda. "Cookies?"
"Figured we'd earned them. Plus, this way, you can't be mad at me or I won't let you have any."
"Touché. Is your mom okay with this?"
"I won't tell her if you won't."
He chuckled, accepting the soda and grabbing a choc chip cookie from the plate once she had set it on the coffee table. "Someone's feeling a bit mischievous today."
"What can I say? I'm in a good mood today."
"I hear that."
They both took a bite of their cookies, sitting in silence for a few moments as they enjoyed the sugary treats, before Jordan put her soda down. "Lincoln? Can I ask you something? It's… something I've been wondering about, and… I wasn't sure whether I should say something or not."
This caught his curiosity, his brain trying and failing to figure out what she would ask. "What is it?" She tried to ask, but she hesitated, her eyes mirroring her conflicted thoughts, so he put a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "You can ask."
She met his eyes, seeing a friendly warmth in them, so she took a deep breath and asked him. "You remember gym class on Wednesday? What was that?"
As his mind went back to that time in question, his eyes went wide.
The whistle resonated throughout the gym hall, getting all kids to stop what they were doing. "Okay, line up!" Coach Pacowski ordered. "Because it's warm outside, and the school wants to make sure I'm incorporating 'fun' into your lessons, we're going to be doing something different this week. Before that, everyone do two laps of the hall, then meet me outside."
Before anyone could question it, he blew his whistle again, getting everyone to begin their laps around the gym hall. As they ran, Lincoln looked to his friends. "What do you think he's gonna make us do?"
"I have no idea," Rusty replied, "but whenever Coach says 'fun', I get worried."
"Still, it'll be nice to have class outside today," Stella argued. "It should still be nice out."
"Yeah, way better than the heatwave last week," Zach agreed.
"Either way," Lincoln then said, "I don't wanna see what Coach'll do if we take too long."
They all agreed and picked up the pace, completing the rest of their laps in relatively quick time before heading outside. Once he saw everyone was there, making sure that Clyde- who was unfortunate enough to be the last one out- did ten press ups as well, he turned to the class. "Okay. Now that we're all gathered, we're going to be doing something different today."
"You already said that, Coach!"
He gave a glare to the boy who yelled that out. "Jackson! Ten press ups! Now!" The boy whined before dropping to the floor to do those press ups. "As I was saying, since the weather is somewhat pleasant, you kids are going to play the all time Great American pastime: softball!"
Some of the kids cheered at the announcement, happy to be playing the game. As they listened to the gym teacher explain what they would be doing, however, Jordan looked to her left and caught sight of Lincoln, who was in a bad state. He had paled, his eyes were wide, and his chest was moving up and down with each frantic breath he took. Concerned for her friend, she raised her hand to say something, but then found that she didn't need to.
"Lincoln!" everyone heard Stella shout, just as the Loud boy dropped down onto his behind, his head shaking back and forth in his hands as he muttered to himself. The students crowded around him, all muttering what was happening, until Coach Pacowski made them back off. Jordan was worried, unable to see her friend through the crowd, so she pushed through until she found Stella.
"What's going on?"
"I have no idea," the Filipina admitted.
"QUIET!" their gym teacher yelled, before kneeling down in front of the white haired child, grasping his shoulders with both hands. "Loud! Loud, look at me!" It took a few moments and a gentle shaking, but Lincoln eventually calmed down enough to face the teacher, no longer shaking his head and his breathing lowered somewhat. "You okay there, Loud?"
"I… I think so, Coach."
"Hmm… you don't look too good." He looked over his shoulder at the other students. "McBride, take Lincoln to the nurse's office, then come back. I'll come to check on him in a little while."
Clyde nodded, walking over to help Lincoln to his feet, then taking the boy back into the school. All Jordan could do was wonder what had happened.
As his mind thought on this, she saw that he was beginning to have the same reaction- his face went pale, his breathing sharpened, his head began shaking- so she moved towards him, putting one hand on his shoulder and the other on the side of his head. "Lincoln! Lincoln! Look at me!" His eyes seemed to be darting about, but after a few seconds, they met her gaze, one full of concern. "You're okay. Just breathe." He started to take deep breaths, Jordan doing so with him to help, and after a few moments, he was able to calm down. "You alright?"
"Yeah, I'm… I'm okay," he replied, frowning. "Sorry about that."
She shook her head, frowning as well. "Don't be. I shouldn't have asked, I should've known that you would have a reaction. I'm an idiot."
"No, you're not. You were just…" As he realised how they were currently positioned, he blushed. "Um, your hand is kind of… on my cheek."
Realising that she had held it there for too long, she pulled her hand back and put it on her lap, blushing as well. "Sorry."
"I-it's okay." They were silent for a couple of seconds, before he decided to speak again. "I'm... guessing you're wondering what that was about."
"A little... but, Lincoln, if it makes you uncomfortable, you don't have to say, really. I don't want to force you."
"Thanks. I… the truth is, other than my family, no one else knew about that until Wednesday. That was… the first time it's happened outside of home."
She gave him a sympathetic look, her heart aching at hearing him sound so lost. "Lincoln… you know you can tell me anything, right? If it's too much, then I understand, but if you want to talk about it, I'm here."
He looked at her, and she gave a small smile to affirm her words. "Well… okay. Just… please don't be upset." Though she wondered why he would say that, she decided to nod and let him speak first. "At the start of summer break, my sister Lynn invited me to one of her s…" He began gripping at his leg, trying to prevent a reaction from happening again. "One of her games. I had already been to see a lot of my sisters' events that week, and I was hoping for some alone time, so I tried saying no, but she kind of… forced me to go." He saw that Jordan was going to ask about that, so he quickly added, "I'd rather not talk about that." Understanding that that was a no-go area, she nodded, allowing him to continue. "Well, I went to see her… g-game, and her team lost. I tried to cheer her up, but she instead started… calling me bad luck."
"Bad luck? Really?" Seeing how he was starting to breathe a little shakier, she knew he was telling the truth. "It's okay, Lincoln. Take your time."
He nodded, taking a drink from his soda, being careful not to spill any of it. "So… after that, she tried to make the others think I was bad luck, and… me being the idiot I am, I saw that as a way to… get some alone time. I played along with it, and for a couple of days, I actually enjoyed it, but then they stopped letting me go to family things, like cinema trips and shopping at the mall. It went like that for another day or so, until… the nightmare happened."
Jordan saw that Lincoln was getting more emotional now, so she shuffled towards him and put a hand on his back. "It's okay, Lincoln. You don't have to keep going if you don't want."
"No, no. I just… need a moment."
"Don't worry. I'm right here, Lincoln. Don't push yourself too much."
"Thank you." He took another drink of his soda, then rubbed the back of his arm, still gripping his leg tightly. "I dreamt that… my family… l-locked me out for… being bad luck. I tried to… tell them the truth, but… they wouldn't listen. So, I… disguised myself as the mascot for Lynn's team, to prove she could win if I was near. She won, but instead of believing I wasn't bad luck, my family… thought I was good luck if I wore the suit, so… th-they wouldn't let me take it off." Jordan gave a small gasp, but didn't interrupt as she saw the tears starting to roll from his eyes. "It just got… worse a-and worse, until I woke up. I-I told my family the truth, and they told me that they knew, that they were teaching me a lesson for lying to them so I could get free time. I apologised and they forgave me, but… I'm just not over it yet." He finally let go of his leg, which was a little sore from his grip, and wiped away his tears, even though new ones took their place. "You probably think the worst of me now, huh?"
"Not at all," she answered in a gentle voice. "Sure, you went about it the wrong way, but you just wanted some free time, and you've clearly learnt your lesson."
He sniffled. "Really?"
"Yes. Lincoln, what you did wasn't right, but I don't care about what you did. I care about what it's done to you."
"Honestly, it's not as bad as it used to be. It's still kinda bad, but… for the first few weeks, I was… a wreck. I had reactions like that to a number of things- sports in general, squirrels, the beach… Lynn."
Jordan's eyes went wide again. "You were… scared of your own sister?" He shamefully nodded, making her frown more deeply. "Oh, Lincoln…"
"I know. Honestly, I think that was what made me realise I needed help. I couldn't even be in the same room as her for anything. So, I went to see someone who tried to help me, and for the most part, she did. My issues with Lynn went away, I'm not scared of squirrels or the beach or most of that stuff anymore. Just can't get over… th-that last thing, and she said that... I just kind of have to phase it out."
She gave a small nod. "I get it, Lincoln. It's okay, really. Do you still see whoever it was you saw?"
"Not anymore, but I have her number if I need it, and she taught me a few things that help. It's mostly stuff to help me calm down, though."
"Don't worry. You'll figure it out." He gave a small nod, but the look in his eyes told her that he questioned it. "Did I ever tell you why I'm so scared of barbed wire?"
"Um… now that you mention it, I don't think so."
"Well, it started when I was in first grade. I was with my parents on holiday, and we were walking around this little village near Chicago, when suddenly, we saw two massive, rabid dogs break out of a nearby van. One of them saw me with an angry look, and began to chase after me. My parents tried stopping it, but the other dog got in their way, so I just ran as fast as I could. I tried to escape through an alleyway and get through a barbed wire fence, but I tripped, and I got caught in it. My hair was completely caught, my legs were cut up, I had a cut on my cheek, and the more I tried to get out, the more it hurt." She felt a tear roll down her face as the memories appeared in her mind. "I saw the dog coming towards me, and all I could do was cry and hope someone would help me. If it wasn't for the butcher in the shop, that dog could've attacked me, but he was able to get me free. Once the dogs were taken away, my parents found me and took me to a nearby hospital, and everything was fine, but ever since then, barbed wire has always freaked me out. The idea that it can just trap you like that… I never want that to happen again."
As she wiped away the tear, Lincoln couldn't help but feel bad for her. "Woah… I'm so sorry you had to go through that."
There was no helping the smile that came to her face. "Lincoln, you don't have to say that. It was years ago, and it still scares me a little, but I've started to get past it too. Point is, you'll find a way to get past this. I just… it scared me to see you like that, you know?"
"I'm sorry."
She patted his knee. "Stop saying you're sorry, okay? I'm not mad at you, I just want to know you're okay."
"I am. I know you said not to, but… sorry I scared you. I don't want to scare you."
"You're sweet, Lincoln. Don't worry about me." They smiled at each other for a few seconds, before Jordan stood up. "Come on, let's not let this ruin the mood."
He raised an eyebrow, wondering what she was doing as she approached the TV, and was going to ask until he heard music begin to play. As he heard a familiar guitar riff, his eyes lit up. "No way! You like Smooch too?!"
"Of course! I listen to a mix of music, but this is one band I can't say no to!" She started to bop her head and move along with the beat, before looking at the boy again. "Don't just sit there, let's dance!"
Not needing to be told twice, he got up and joined her, the two rocking out with big grins on their faces, the somber mood of the previous conversation now gone, and not a care in the world. They were having fun, and in that moment, that's all that mattered to them.
Estado de energía semanal
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