章節 97: 97. Ch 97- Cast Doubt
(A/N: hello again! First off, I apologise once again for the slower updates to this story. You've all been so patient with me, and so appreciative, so I hope that I haven't been letting any of you down. On a plus note, I finally got my hands on a new iPad! This means I can work with a bigger screen again, which I find allows me to be more observant when proofreading, and spot any mistakes I've made. It's not impossible for me to make mistakes, but it's easier for me to correct them now, so fingers crossed that I can get back on track.
That's all I have to say for now, so thank you all for reading, and enjoy!)
"Okay, kids! Feet on floor!" Rita declared from downstairs, bringing the boy in the former linen closet out of his slumber and to his senses. His eyes slowly opening, he quickly realised from the light peering through his window that it was morning. He sat up in his bed and yawned, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes before his gaze landed on the Muscle Fish clock on his wall. Seeing the time that was displayed, he realised that it was later than he had planned on waking up.
'Did my alarm not go off?' He thought, his head clearing from his prior state of sleep. 'Maybe it did, and I just overslept.'
"You too, Lincoln!" His mother called out once more, reminding him that he still had to go to school, so he threw off the bedding that covered his body and stood up from his bed. It was by this point that his brain had woken up enough for him to remember the events of the day before. Thinking about the beating he had taken, he undid the top two buttons on his pyjama shirt and opened it enough to look down at his body, but wasn't able to get a proper look at the bruising.
'I'd better look after I'm done in the bathroom.' So, he walked over to his door and opened it. Once on the landing, though, he realised that his sisters weren't queuing up for the bathroom, which was open and empty, but instead stood by their doors and looking at him, almost expectantly. "Uh… hi?"
"Morning, Bro," Luna greeted. "Still got that sleepy feeling, huh?"
"Something like that."
"How's your gut feeling?" Lynn asked.
"All things considered, okay. I'm not having any difficulty moving, so I think it's just bruised. I'll know for certain when I get changed." Most of his sisters visibly relaxed at hearing this, making him smile at their concern for his wellbeing. "So, how come you're all stood out here?"
"We decided to let you use the bathroom first," Luan answered, much to the boy's surprise.
"Really?"
"After the physical altercation you endured less than twenty four hours ago, we felt that it was the least we could offer to our sole male sibling," Lisa explained.
"It was a majority vote," Lana added, bobbing her head towards her twin, who rolled her eyes.
"Girls, I appreciate the thought, but how did you know I'd be up at this time? I was planning to get up early and help Dad with breakfast."
"I knew you'd need the extra sleep," Lynn replied with a bit of a grin. "You don't take a beating like that and get up without some extra rest."
"I guess. Still, you didn't have to—"
"Lincoln, we've literally been stood here waiting for you!" Lori reminded. "Get your butt in there, twerp!"
Knowing that her words were in jest, he smirked and rolled his eyes, before making his way towards the bathroom. Once inside, he closed the door behind him and went about his morning routine— brushing his teeth, washing his face, doing his business— then left as quickly as he went in. Leaving his sisters to bicker and complain about who would get to use it after him, he returned to his room to prepare for the day ahead. Removing his pyjama shirt first, he was finally met with the markings from his last encounter with his bully. Like he had figured, he had a few good sized and dark purple bruises spread across his torso, including a large one beneath his right pec, but none of them hurt.
"White hair with dark circles? If I was his height, I could probably be confused with Charles." He chuckled at his joke, before realising another change to his body. Rather than the stereotypical lanky nerd body he was used to, he was now sporting a modest amount of muscle. He was by no means buff and not all that toned, but it had only just dawned on him how much his body had changed over the few months since he started doing gymnastics. "Huh… I guess Lynn's workouts have really been paying off." He flexed his arm in wonder, seeing the mild yet noticeable change in his physique. "Woah…"
"Having fun in here?" He screamed loudly, doing a full one eighty in midair to face the sudden arrival. Lynn looked at him with a wide grin, her arms crossed cockily as she watched his panicked breathing, his hands lifted to cover his chest. "Geez, after all this time, I thought you'd stop being such a dork. Guess some things never change."
His surprise turned to irritation as he relaxed, his arms hanging down by his side whilst a growl escaped his throat. "Seriously, Lynn? You couldn't knock?"
"What, and miss Ace Savvy's little muscle show?" She approached her brother when he started growling again. "Relax, I'm joshing you, bro."
"Yeah, I know, just…"
Realising what he was getting at, she frowned. "Sorry. Guess I probably shouldn't have been joking right now."
Her brother shook his head. "No, it's fine. I know you don't mean anything by it, so don't worry. We're cool."
"Thanks." She then looked down, observing his bruising. "Huh. Not gonna lie, from the video, I though you would've had more bruises than that." She looked back to her brother with a grin. "Guess training with Coach Lynn's been toughening you up, huh?"
"Really? 'Coach Lynn'?" He scoffed. "And you call me a dork." She gave him a quick, painless jab to the shoulder, making them both laugh and lifting the mood between them. "Also, for clarity, I'm not a dork. I'm a nerd."
"There's a difference?"
He deadpanned at her question. "I'm gonna pretend you didn't say that."
Lynn rolled her eyes. "Whatever. So, you gonna be going to practice again?"
"Yeah, I feel like I can handle it. Besides, the showcase is coming up, and I won't have that many more sessions before then. I need to practice now more than ever."
"Right. Well, I'll let you get changed. See you at breakfast, bro."
"See you." So, she left the boy's room, closing the door behind her. Now alone, Lincoln was about to continue getting changed, until he saw his phone on his desk. Walking over to it, he turned it on and checked the group chat he had been messaging in the night before, but the latest messages were the ones that he and the others had sent before he went to bed. 'Nothing, huh?' he thought with a sigh. 'Oh well. I'll see them at school, so hopefully everything's alright.'
After turning his phone off again, he got changed and went downstairs to join his family for breakfast. While they all ate, he apologised to his Dad for not helping him in the kitchen, but the father of eleven was fine with letting his son sleep in. Rita then asked the boy if he was sure that he would be okay with going to gymnastics later on, to which he was insistent that he was feeling fine and really wanted to go, and this was enough to put her mind at ease and allow him to do so. Other than that, breakfast was a peaceful occasion before the kids all got into Vanzilla, so Lori could drive them to school.
The ride to the elementary school was pretty good for Lincoln, sat next to Luna and Lynn while listening to music with the former, but they eventually reached their destination. Lynn got out of the van first so Lincoln could exit, while his younger sisters all made their own way out. "Aren't you getting back in?" Lincoln asked when the jock didn't move.
"Nah, I'm gonna get a jog in before class," she replied, making him raise an eyebrow.
"You sure you can make it on time?"
She grinned, jabbing a thumb against her chest. "Remember who you're talking to, bro! I'll be there in no time, just you watch!"
He rolled his eyes as she 'jogged'— though, it was more like sprinting— away from the elementary school and towards the middle school. He didn't watch for too long before shutting the van door and waving goodbye to his eldest sisters as they drove off to high school. He then turned to the school and began to walk towards the front door.
"Lincoln!" He heard Stella call out, so he turned around and saw her approaching, with Clyde and Liam walking alongside her. "Hey, how are you feeling?"
"I'm okay," he told her. "Bruised, but nothing serious."
"That's a relief," Clyde sighed. "We were worried that you were going to have something more serious."
"I was a little, too, but it's nothing like that."
"Well, we're glad you're okay," Liam then told his friend. "We also heard about what happened to Markus and his goons."
"Good riddance," Stella stated, disdain in her voice. "Even before everything happened, he was a jerk, so it was about time they did something."
Lincoln could see his other friends nodding in solidarity. "Yeah, you're right. Still, what's done is done, so we can't dwell on it for too long. I'm happy to just put it behind me now."
"Good attitude to have, buddy," Liam agreed.
"Hey, have any of you seen Jordan or Artie yet? I want to talk to them before class."
"Sorry, Lincoln," Clyde said, with a shake of his head. "Haven't seen them yet, but we haven't been in yet either."
"Okay. I'm gonna see if I can find them, so I'll catch you in class." The others nodded back to him, so he walked ahead to enter the school building. There were numerous other students dotted around the hallway, but no sign of his gymnastics friends. He knew he would see them eventually, so he decided to visit his locker while he waited. As he began sorting through his stuff and making sure he had what he needed in his bag, he heard someone begin to approach. When he closed his locker again, he saw that it was Coach Pacowski who had walked up to him.
"Morning, Loud," the gym teacher greeted. "How're your ribs feeling this morning?"
"Okay. Just got a few bruises."
"That's good. It was one hell of a beating you took, but you took it like a trooper. Shame I couldn't get there sooner, though. Would've stopped it before it started if I could."
"Don't worry about it, Coach. It's already happened, so there's nothing we can change."
"Yeah, you're right. That's pretty wise of you, Loud."
Lincoln rubbed the back of his head. "Well, it took a friend of mine to make me see that… even if they had to tell me multiple times."
Pacowski gave a big chuckle. "I would have been the same. Anywho, it's good to see you on your feet. I'll see you around, kid."
"You too, Coach." Lincoln waited for the faculty member to begin walking away, and was about to head towards the classroom, when he caught sight of Jordan leaving the cafeteria with the rest of the girls. A smile coming to his face, he began to head their way. "Jordan!"
Hearing the boy call her name, Jordan looked his way and smiled. She jogged over to him, closing the gap between them in a matter of seconds so that she could throw her arms around him. Though he was surprised by this, Lincoln didn't hesitate in hugging her back, a blush filling both of their faces as they held each other.
"Hey," she told him. "I'm glad you're okay." Her eyes then went wide, and she immediately pulled herself out of the hug. "You are okay, right? I didn't hurt you just now?"
"Don't worry, I'm fine. It's just bruised." He then looked at her black eye, which was still dark purple, but looked a bit lighter than yesterday. It still made him frown as he remembered why she had it. "How's your eye?"
"It's fine as long as I don't touch it." She noticed how her friend was frowning, so she gave him a small smirk. "Lincoln, don't you be feeling sorry for me. We went over this yesterday."
"Yeah, I know, but… still doesn't make me feel less upset about it. I don't want to see you get hurt."
"And I don't want see you get hurt either. You mean too much to me."
"You mean a lot to me too, Jordan."
It was at this moment that Mollie cleared her throat, alerting them to the presence of the others and making them turn to the group with full blushes. "Hope we're not interrupting," she told them, raising an eyebrow as she grinned. "We can give you a minute, if you'd like."
The girls behind Mollie all giggled as the two of them blushed even more. "Th-That won't be necessary," Lincoln muttered, his eyes looking off to the side. "What's up?"
"We were just coming to see how you were doing," Kat explained.
"And to thank you for what you did yesterday," Sadie added, much to Lincoln's confusion.
"Thank me for what?"
"Duh, you put that jerk in his place after he hit Jordan," Joy bluntly answered. "Honestly, I was hoping you would take a swing at his head for doing that."
"Come on, you know that Lincoln is better than that," Jordan insisted. "It's better that he didn't get into trouble as well."
"Actually," Lincoln interrupted, scratching his cheek timidly, "had the other two not pulled me off and started to kick my ass… I probably would have."
Jordan's eyes went wide. "You… you were really going to fight him?"
"I mean, I guess. It's just, the second I saw you go down after he hit you, I felt such a… a wave of anger crash over me. I honestly don't know if I would have been able to stop myself."
The emotions that Jordan felt at hearing this were a mixed set— knowing Lincoln to be a sweet and caring boy, it was difficult to imagine him showing such an aggressive display, and was something she hoped never to see. That said, hearing that he was so willing to stand up for her and felt that way because of what happened to her, she couldn't help but feel like he truly cared for her, a thought that made her feel a little giddy. Still, she was able to suppress this enough to avoid her friends finding out. Putting a hand on the boy's arm, she smiled softly to him and looked him in the eyes. "Lincoln, I know you're better than that. I really do appreciate you looking out for me, it means so much to me… I just don't want to see you getting in trouble because of it."
He returned her smile in kind. "I know, and I'll try not to let that happen, though hopefully I'll never have to see you get hurt like that again."
"Let's hope so." They then heard the bell ring, so she removed her hand from his arm. "We'd better head to class." Lincoln nodded, before the group all headed back down the corridor towards their classroom. Once inside, Lincoln sat down next to Clyde and began to converse with his friends, whilst Jordan sat down with Mollie beside her, the brunette having the same grin on her face as before. "Oh, God, please don't ruin the mood."
Mollie held her hands up defensively. "I am saying nothing," she stated, a statement that proved to be false within seconds. "Though, you've got to admit, that was a pretty sweet moment between the two of you."
"Well, that's more Lincoln than me. He's the one that's sweet." She could see her friend biting her lip, a telltale sign that she wanted to say something but didn't want to make things awkward, so Jordan rolled her eyes. "Don't say it."
"I can't help it, you sound so…" Again, she bit her lip. "Never mind. I'll drop it."
"Wait, what were you going to say?"
"Oh, now you want me to say it, huh? I thought you wanted me to drop it."
"Come on, you can't just start saying something like that and then just—"
She stopped herself when she heard the rattling of a doorknob. Looking towards the door, she expected to see Mrs Johnson come in, but instead saw Artie's head on the other side of the window. "Hey, can someone help me with this?" he called into the classroom.
"Hold on," Mollie called back, getting up from her chair. She had a concerned look on her face as she approached the door, but when she opened it and saw Artie in full, that look became one of despair. "Oh my God…"
She stepped aside and allowed the brown haired boy to enter the classroom, drawing gasps from the others inside as he did. Lincoln in particular paled as he saw his friend walking in, using crutches to help him walk, his upper left leg looking to be padded and limping. The white haired boy got up from his seat and approached him tentatively. "Artie… I… how bad is it?"
"It's not awful," Artie replied, a sliver of a smile on his face. "Sorry I didn't message you guys last night. Turns out that, when they were stomping my leg, they broke my phone, so I couldn't access the group chat."
"Artie, forget about that!" Joy half shouted, gesturing to the limping leg. "What did the doctor say about your leg?"
"Well, I got to the ER and waited for about twenty minutes before Doctor Johnson got to see me. He checked to see where it hurt and then took an X-ray to see what the damage was."
"And?" Kat asked, to which the boy frowned.
"I've got a partial hairline fracture in my femur. It's not a complete fracture, and I didn't need surgery, but I pretty much couldn't walk on it unassisted, so they had to put a cast on to support it." His friends all frowned at hearing this, but none more so than Lincoln. This was partly because it was very similar to the injury Lynn got when she filled in for him in football, but mainly because of how Artie got the injury to begin with. Before Lincoln could say anything, though, Artie turned to him. "Don't blame this on yourself, Lincoln. You're not responsible, and if the fight happened again, I wouldn't do anything differently."
"Really? Even though you can barely walk?"
"Well, obviously, I'd try and protect myself better, yeah." Despite the situation, this got Lincoln to chuckle a little, making Artie smile. "But I'd still stand up for you if that happened again."
"Thanks."
"So, how long are you going to be on crutches?" Sadie then asked, making the smile disappear again.
"I'll be attending physio for a few weeks, but they said it could be at least six weeks, four if I'm lucky."
"But… that means you can't do the showcase!" Kat realised, making the rest of the girls and Lincoln's guts sink.
"Afraid so. I wish I could, but it'll just make my injury worse."
"We wouldn't want that," Jordan recognised. "It's just… now what? The floor routine relies on you."
"Well, there's only one real option left."
He then turned to Lincoln, who quickly caught on to what he was suggesting. "What, me?! I can't do that! I saw the routine you guys were working on, and I am not prepared for that in the slightest!"
"I know it's a lot to ask, but we really don't have any other choice."
"But, I— I can't! I'm just going to screw it up, and this is way too big for me to do that!"
"Lincoln, you're spiralling!" Clyde spoke up, noticing his friend's increasing panic. "Just breathe."
With Clyde's help, Lincoln did just that, taking a few deep breaths that started shaky but grew calmer in succession, settling his panicked state. "You're right, I'm… I'm sorry."
"Hey, I know this is a lot, but you're not alone," Artie reminded. "My mom's letting me go to practice to help you guys prepare, so I'll coach you through it wherever you need me to."
"And we'll help you too," Jordan added. "We're all part of the routine, so as long as we work together on this, we can do it."
"She's right," Mollie agreed. "We're not gonna leave you out to dry on this."
This was followed by the others voicing their agreement and showing their support to the white haired boy. "You… you really mean it?" Seeing his friends all nod to him, he felt some of his initial fear settle in his mind. "In that case… I'll do it."
每周推薦票狀態
-- 推薦票
榜單 
-- 推薦票