24. The Athlete and The Pain Queen

A/N: Sorry for the long update. As some of you may have noticed, I had changed the cover to better represent the story. No offense to Lentex, but Ex did a damn good job with this one. Now, to carry on with business, Lincoln's first day at school hasn't gone as well as most would hope. His friends are now aware of his situation, and his sisters are actively seeking to avoid being within his general vicinity. However, it appears Ronnie Anne wants to ask one of them a few 'questions'. I think we all know how that's going to turn out.

Disclaimer: I own NOTHING from the Loud House.

Ronnie Anne stood several steps away from the front doors of the school, waiting for her target to appear. Her backpack was full and slung over one of her shoulders. Most of the students had already walked home or got on the bus, including Rusty, Liam, and Zach. She was currently texting back and forth with Clyde, who was taking a jittery Lincoln to his house.

Ronnie Anne, I know that look you had at lunch earlier can only mean trouble. What are you thinking of? - Clyde

When Lynn comes out, I'm gonna interrogate her. - RA

Ok, but why Lynn? Do you want to get suspended again? Why can't you just ask one of his other sisters? - Clyde

Nice to hear that you care. I'm not gonna get suspended for this. I mean, school's over right? Can't punish me if it's not on school grounds. - RA

That didn't answer my question :/ - Clyde

Alright alright...Lincoln's twin sisters and Lucy might be too scared to talk, but knowing Lynn, she would be easy to crack. - RA

And what if she doesn't? - Clyde

Well, I tried asking nicely :) - RA

Ronnie Anne, I know you beat Lynn last time and almost broke her arm, but I think you should really consider what you're doing. Lynn does a lot of sports and I think she also knows martial arts. - Clyde

Well, all those sports and training didn't help her now did it? - RA

With the 'Lincoln Protection Protocol' (as a certain user dubbed) now underway, the white-haired child's social circle was actively trying to keep Lincoln's stress down. To him, school felt like it was a death trap with the possibility of his sisters waiting for him around every corner. The fact he needed to make due on his academic obligations for four more days gnawed on his psyche even more. After lunch, the boys walked with Lincoln to their next class, screening the halls for any of the Loud sisters and would alert the others if they spotted one, or think they did. It was almost a reminiscent of the POTUS' secret service detail, though Rusty and Zach may have been overexaggerating their approach. They kept going all over the halls from one place to another like they were spies sneaking into a heavily fortified area. If this kept up, the two would land themselves in the Guinness Book of World Records for the amount of times they had been called weirdos in a single day. Ronnie Anne surely would've contributed to that if she didn't have to walk to a different section of the school for her next class. Having been in the company of his friends for the last few hours did put Lincoln at ease, if only a little. Once the final bell had rung, he was ready to jump out of his seat and dash for his locker. After Lincoln and Clyde grabbed whatever books they needed for homework, the duo briskly walked out of the school to minimize the chance of running into the Loud sisters. They even took an alternate route home since their usual trip also led to the Loud house.

The sound of those two heavy doors opening and closing had been going on repetitively for the past five minutes. The Hispanic girl casually looked up and scanned among the crowd, failing to spot any of the Louds. Giving a frustrated sigh, she focused back on her phone.

If it makes you feel any better, they might have already left. Not like I had any plans to march over to their house. - RA

Like a wise man once said, don't go looking for trouble if trouble isn't looking for you. - Clyde

Who said that? Your therapist?... - RA

No. First off, my therapist is female. Second, it's an Aesop. - Clyde

The buses began to pull away from the lot, tossing up dust and smoke. Ronnie Anne coughed a little before covering her nose and mouth with her shirt, glaring irritably at the transport wagons. The girl laminated on how she should've picked a better waiting spot, eyeing the benches in front of the school. However, she would've been easily spotted and the girls might try to avoid her. After the last bus pulled away, the fading engine noises were replaced by that of birds singing. The only students that remained were those that had carpooled to school, but they too would soon leave another boring school day behind them. Glancing at her phone, it's been almost 15 minutes since school ended, and still no sign of Lynn.

Ronnie Anne gave a frustrated sigh. "Dang it...they probably left in the middle of that crowd..."

The front doors moved again, drawing the 11 year old's attention. They inched out only a little, as if someone was peaking through the crack. "Do you see him out there?" A younger, tomboyish voice asked.

"No. Just a few other students." A monotonous voice replied.

Ronnie Anne recognized Lucy's emotionless and dark tone anywhere. She put her phone away before scooting back several feet to not be noticed once they stepped out. Right after she moved away, Lucy, the twins, Lynn, and Luan stepped out of the building, intent on getting home as quick as possible. Aside from the change in clothing that had been forced upon a few of them, Ronnie Anne also noted that Lola for some reason had her hair shortened quite a lot today. She probably would've mistaken her for Lana had the tomboyish twin not been wearing her signature red cap.

Ronnie Anne furrowed her brows in thought. This would be harder than she anticipated, seeing that Lynn was in a group and she had one of her older sisters with her. However, one key aspect everyone knew about Ronnie Anne was that she was stubborn; when she had a goal set in place, the only person who could stop her was her own mother and probably Bobby. She wasn't about to let this opportunity slip past her, and Ronnie Anne wasn't sure if she'd ever get this chance again. Taking note of their direction, the tomboy took a shortcut to head them off.

Lola studied her hair in the small mirror she carried. "I already said this before, but I'm still surprised someone whose gross and dirty all the time knows how to properly cut hair." After having the nasty gum cut out, Lola expected Lana to do something horrible to her due. Instead, it looked like she had a recent visit to the salon. Cut from it's mid back length, the girly twin's hair rested evenly around her shoulders. No split ends or anything that would demean her appearance.

"Well, when you have someone whose obsessed with being clean and pretty...you learn a few things."

"You know half the class thought I was you for a moment..." Lola grumbled.

"Naw, I saw the way those boys were looking at you. All red in the face and what not. Besides, I'm keeping my pigtails." Lana pushed one of her locks up in a feminine way.

"...I think it'd be scary seeing you act like a proper lady than me acting like a pig." The younger twin stated.

"You know who would be more scary acting like a lady?" Luan asked.

"Who?" Lucy piped up.

"Lynn." The comedian chuckled a little.

Lynn gave a small glare at the 14 year old. "Very funny..." She scoffed, earning a few giggles from the rest.

"It was a good joke." A new, familiar voice cut in. Looking behind them, the Loud siblings saw Ronnie Anne leaning against a telephone pole, fiddling with her phone.

Lynn let out an exasperated groan. Last thing she wanted to do was deal with Lincoln's still peed-off girlfriend. "What do you want Ronnie Anne?..."

"Oh," The Hispanic girl put the phone in her pocket, "Just want to get a few answers from you." She glanced at the other girls. "Alone."

Lynn folded her arms, her gaze hardening at the 5th grader. "Oh really? You hardly say a word to me for over two weeks, tell me to go fuck myself whenever we pass in the hall, and all of a sudden you're asking to talk?"

Ronnie Anne pushed herself off the pole, calmly strolling towards Lynn. "I wasn't asking..."

"Well whatever you want to say, you can say it right in front of my sisters, cause I ain't going anywhere..." The jock stated firmly, walking towards her adversary.

"Look girls, let's not start any-"

"Not now Luan." Lynn barked, not even turning to address her sister. The two girls were now a few inches apart, sizing each other up. Lynn found this to be pointless though. While she was only slightly taller than Lincoln, the height difference was more noticeable between herself and Ronnie Anne; the top of her head only came up to the brunette's eye-level. It was a bit comical to see Ronnie Anne trying to make herself appear intimidating, but she was unaware that she was poking a lion this time. Lynn wasn't going to let herself be dragged into another bare-knuckle brawl, and if she needed to, she'd put Ronnie Anne down without a second thought. No one said anything for a moment, only the sounds of the wind whistling past their ears filling the void.

"I heard that Lincoln is completely afraid of you..." Ronnie Anne started.

"Figures she'd want to talk about that." Lynn gave a low snort. "Yeah? What else is new?..."

"So what did you do to him?..."

"What do you mean 'what did I do to him'? Linc developed that phobia all on his own..."

Ronnie Anne curled her hands into fists. "Yeah right. It's one thing to beat your own brother down, but putting that fear into him, making him think that you'll beat him up again? You guys must've did something to him while he was still in the hospital!"

Lynn gave a low growl through gritted teeth, making Ronnie Anne give a small smirk upon seeing the missing gaps in the jock's mouth. "All we did was visit him once! He flipped out on us because he thinks we'd hurt him again! All we want is nothing but to tell him how sorry we are and hope he comes home!"

"It's true. We even made a cake for him on our last visit." Lucy added.

"Well clearly something went wrong." The Hispanic girl moved her hands to her hips. "What did you do? Throw the cake at his face? Try to force feed it to him? I wouldn't be surprised given how you bullied him before..."

"What?..." Lynn's voice was barely a whisper as that sentence was fully registered in her brain. Coming out of the sudden shock, the jock balled her fists as she shook uncontrollably, coming ever closer to crushing the little girl in front of her into the pavement. "You're the one to talk about bullying, seeing as that's exactly what you were doing to Lincoln before I put an end to it!" She spat, sending small trickles of saliva at Ronnie Anne's face.

The 11 year old flinched a little, seeing Lynn almost ready to blow her top. But, she wasn't going to back down. "Yes it was," She wiped her face clean, "But the main difference is that I actually liked Lincoln and took some bad advice! Plus, what I did was just a bunch of pranks! What you did was just barbaric! All he wanted to do was help you," She prodded Lynn's chest with her finger, "And you send him to the hospital over it?! WHO DOES THAT?! How did this all even start in the first place?!"

"...It was over a dress..." Luan stated.

The Hispanic girl's glare disappeared within an instant. Her mouth slung open, thinking she heard Luan wrong. "...A dress?..."

Lynn nodded. "...Lori and Leni had a fight over getting the same dress, so we had to keep them separate until they cooled off. Lincoln...we didn't tell Lincoln about the protocol we were using, and everything fell to pieces because he tried to resolve it, but failed..."

Ronnie Anne held her look of disbelief for a moment, before she erupted into a fit of laughter, much to the confusion of everyone else.

"What's so funny?" Lola asked.

Ronnie Anne held her sides as she continued to laugh. "You guys!" She took a moment to regulate her breathing. "I thought it might have been over something serious, but a DRESS?! No wonder you guys are so stupid!"

All of the Louds glared at Ronnie Anne. "Excuse me?..." Lynn spoke, her tone becoming saturated with venom.

"Let me guess," The 11 year old finally stopped, regaining her cold demeanor. "He thought it was very stupid and tried to solve it immediately, but you morons wanted to uphold whatever dumb system you had in place. And so Linc probably got sick of it and tried harder, but then that failed and he had to go to Clyde's house for a bit."

"Wait, how do you-" Lana started.

"Clyde told me." Ronnie Anne answered. "So he probably came back later and tried to solve it again, but at that point all of you had enough and said 'it's all Lincoln's fault. Let's teach him a lesson so he won't interfere with our petty BS'..." She folded her arms. "Am I right or am I wrong?..."

Lynn stared at the ground in guilt. "No...but-"

"But what?" Ronnie Anne rapped her fingers on her arm. "For all I know you probably threatened him to never tell anyone else or you'll break the rest of his ribs."

The 13 year old felt herself losing it again. "You better shut up Ronnie Anne..." The jock warned, clenching and unclenching her hands. The other sisters were about to step in, but soon decided against it seeing how much Lynn's temper was rising.

"So what else did you threaten him over in the past? A car seat? Taking the last of your food? A trip to the store gone wrong or something else that was petty? You might've even blamed him for losing a game for all I know." Ronnie Anne continued, oblivious to the deteriorating temperament of the 13 year old.

"S-Shut up!..." Lynn yelled, her voice cracking as her face became a faint red. She repeatedly took deep breaths as she tried to keep herself composed, steam visibly blowing out of her nostrils with each exhale. Luan grew worried, dropping her backpack on the ground as she felt her sister was about to go ballistic.

"Heck, that might be why you always pick him as your 'partner' for when you train for sports, given what he's told me some time ago. You know he's weak, so in reality, he's just target practice for you and an easy win. I may have picked on Lincoln in the past, but at least I didn't physically abuse him whenever I had the chance."

Lynn's pupils shrank after that last sentence. Ronnie Anne had no idea how close to home that accusation was. It was the same problem Lynn accused herself of doing before she talked to Dr. Lopez. She didn't pick on Lincoln just because she felt like it; she just wanted to see her brother grow into the strong man she knows he can be. The brunette was still trying to convince herself that this was the case, but the fact Ronnie Anne was trying to denounce this made Lynn's blood boil. Her brain sent ripples of anger throughout her entire body, and directed the nerves of her right arm to prepare for physical contact. It was at that point that Ronnie Anne finally noticed the look of murderous intent that Lynn was giving her. Nervousness took over as the 11 year old realized she probably said too much. Before the Hispanic girl could react, Lynn's fist was already rocketing towards her. Ronnie Anne's vision whited out as the jock's hand collided with her forehead, sending her flying back several feet. The 11 year old landed on her upper back, flipping over until she was lying on her stomach. Her backpack slipped off during the roll, lying just a step away. She didn't even get so much as a whimper out before her vision faded to black.

Lynn breathed heavily, her arm muscles tensed as she held her fist out where it impacted Ronnie Anne. The other girls stood there with their mouths agape, their brains catching up to what happened. They were brought back to reality when Lola finally screamed.

"LYNN! YOU KILLED HER!" The six year old panicked.

Lucy walked over to the sprawled out tomboy, putting 2 fingers against Ronnie Anne's neck. She gave a small sigh of relief when the skin pulsated against her digits. "She's not dead, just knocked out."

"Oh." Lola regained her composure, placing her hands on her hips. "She'll be fine then."

Lynn finally simmered down enough, looking at her hand. The knuckles were a little red from the blunt force applied, along with how uncomfortable it felt to fully close her fingers. Seeing Ronnie Anne on the ground, the sports fanatic finally realized what she did. Gripping strands of her hair in panic, "Ohcrapohcrapohcrap!..." She muttered repeatedly as she sank to her knees.

Luan knelt down next to her, rubbing her back as a means of comfort. "I...I didn't mean to hit her. She just wound me up!..."

"Lynn, she kinda had it coming. Ronnie Anne has a right to be mad, but even I think she was going a little overboard with what she was saying to us."

"We would never threaten Lincoln like that." Lola grabbed their attention. "We already felt bad enough that he was even in the hospital. Why should we make it worse? Oh wait, it got worse when we weren't even around him."

Lynn shifted her attention from the girly twin to Lucy. "H-How bad is it?"

Lucy lifted Ronnie Anne's head. Aside from a few scrapes here and there due to the roll, she didn't look too bad. " It's just a mild concussion. Aside from the bruise that's forming on her forehead, she'll live."

Lana strolled up to get a better look. "Yeah, that's gonna swell pretty hard. So, do we just leave her like this, or..."

"We can't just leave her here! Then she'll think she was right about us!" Lynn protested, standing up. "We gotta take her home."

Luan looked at Lynn questioningly before getting to her feet. "Her home? What would her mother say to us if she saw her like that?"

"Not her house. Ours..." The jock corrected.

"And what happens when she wakes up?" The tomboyish twin pointed out, poking Ronnie Anne with a stick.

"Look, I'll...I'll just deal with her ok? But, don't tell anyone else I knocked her out." Lynn grabbed the unconscious girl and gingerly her placed over her shoulder. She then grabbed the 11 year old's book bag before walking in the direction of her house. The others were unsure about this, but decided to just let Lynn do her thing. After all, from what the girls learned, it was better to fix problems as soon as they start than let them fester into something worse.

Ronnie Anne's eyes moved around behind her closed lids as she started to get her senses back in order. The first thing she noticed was a cold sensation on her forehead, followed by what sounded like someone talking. Squinting her eyes a little, she opened them slowly, finding herself staring at a ceiling. She moved her head left and right a little, noticing that she was lying on a couch and appeared to be in a living room. At first, she thought she might be at home, but upon looking at the floor, she realized this wasn't her house. Lily was on the floor, playing with one of her baby toys. She also saw that her backpack and shoes were by the front door. That cold feeling made itself noticeable again, making the girl put a hand up to her forehead. First thing she felt was some medical wrapping tape, followed by a thick object that was pressed to her head.

A few questions arose. How did she end up in the Loud house? What happened to her head? How long had she been out? Ronnie Anne sat up, giving a small groan as she felt a headache coming on. She lifted the bandages just enough to where her skin was exposed to the open air. Ronnie Anne poked the sensitive area under the wrapping, immediately wishing she hadn't done so. Waves of pain etched across her head, making the 11 year old hiss noisily. She then heard a mature feminine voice speaking in the room where a large dinner table sat.

Rita walked past the entryway, holding a house phone to her ear. "He's had two Miranda. He had one Saturday night and Clyde believes he had another one after nodding off in class. Are you sure you can't see him sooner?" She paused as the doctor spoke on the other line. "Friday? But I'm not sure if-...alright, not like we have much of a choice. I just hope Lincoln can wait that long...no no it's fine. Thank you." The matriarch ended the call. As she walked back to the kitchen, she gave a side glance at the couch before fully noticing an awake Ronnie Anne. "Oh good, you're awake. Are you ok? Do you remember your name? How many fingers am I holding up?"

"Kinda, Ronalda Anne Santiago, and you're holding up 2 fingers..." Ronnie Anne spoke, rubbing her eyes a little. "How'd I get here Mrs. L?"

"Lynn said you weren't looking where you were going and slammed into a pole. She and a few of the other girls brought you home since they weren't sure if your parents were home."

"Lynn...pole?..." Ronnie Anne questioned, racking her memories of the last few minutes. She remembered practically yelling at Lynn, right up until the jock became livid. After that, all she knew was white and black. With how hard Lynn decked her, she might as well have been that 'pole'. The tomboy was unsure if she should be angry that Lynn knocked her out, or upset that she let it happen. Even more so, she was surprised it was just her forehead that took a beating. No injuries to her nose, eyes, or mouth.

"How long was I out?"

"As I predicted, only 180 minutes. Three hours in simple terms, but nothing unusual for a small concussion." Lisa stated as she came downstairs. "Mind if I get a look at said injury?"

Lisa climbed onto the couch as Ronnie Anne let the 4 year old take the bandages off. Once they were removed, Lisa stared quizzically at the bruise, giving it a few pokes (much to the Hispanic girl's pain). "I'd give it a day or so before this bruise disappears. However, I recommend keeping an ice pack handy for the next few hours, as well as pain medication. I also advise steering away from any land-based telephone lines and traffic lights from now on." Satisfied that Ronnie Anne would be ok, Rita went back to the kitchen.

Once her mother was out of earshot, Lisa continued. "Telephone poles? That would be a likely cover story." She reapplied the wrap to the older girl's head. "So what did you say to Lynn that made her force you out of consciousness? I knew that bruise came from human altercation and not that phony excuse she made up."

"...I think I said something that was a little too personal, and didn't pay attention to how pissed she was getting until it was too late..."Ronnie Anne folded her arms, her face flushed with embarrassment.

Lisa adjusted her glasses a little. "Sounds plausible. Out of all of us, you seem to hold a major grudge against Lynn, which likely was caused by that altercation in your school."

"So? What's it to you?" The 11 year old spoke defensively.

"In words Lori would say: you literally need to not be so hot-headed."

Ronnie Anne was about to form a rebuttal when a new voice cut in. "Back from the dead, huh?" Looking up, all three girls saw Lynn leaning on the stair railing.

Ronnie Anne bit her lip before giving a hard glare at the sports fanatic. Lisa took this as her cue to leave while Lynn took her spot on the couch. "So...how do you feel?" The brunette started.

The dark-haired child directed her gaze at the sofa cushions. "In pain, angry...and a little crappy." She looked back at Lynn. "Thanks for knocking me out by the way..."

Lynn brushed off the sarcasm, holding a look of indifference as she folded her arms. "Hey, it could be worse. I could've aimed for any other place besides that big forehead of yours."

"I'm surprised you didn't try to kill me while I was down..."

"Oh trust me Ronalda. In those few seconds after I punched you, I wanted to jump on you and cave your face in. But I didn't for two reasons:" She lifted a finger. "One, you were already down and I consider that payback for knocking some of my teeth out. Also, it was for nearly breaking my arm." She lifted another digit. "Two, given how close you are to Lincoln..." The 13 year old retracted her fingers, looking at one of the pictures hanging on the wall. "Given how close you are to him, if he saw you in a worse shape than you are now...he might think we did it, and think we're bigger monsters than he already does. I consider it lucky I didn't aim lower, cause I just picked a random spot on your face and swung."

"You mean aside from being the monsters you were before this started?" Ronnie Anne spat.

Lynn bit her lip in frustration. She closed her eyes tight and balled her fist, trying to not let the tomboy's words get under her skin. Last thing she wanted to do was have a repeat of earlier. She took a deep breath through her nostrils and exhaled from her mouth. Once she was back to being calm, Lynn leaned back on the couch. "Look Ronalda, you're right, you probably don't have any reason to believe anything myself or my sisters tell you. In fact, the only sister whose innocent in all of this is right there." She pointed at Lily, who glanced confusingly at the sudden attention. "She's the only sister we have that Lincoln trusts and she is aware of sorry all of us feel."

Ronnie Anne shifted her lip a little, wondering where Lynn was going with this. "Have I been a bully to Lincoln? In some ways, I have. You're right, many times I've dragged him into helping me practice or try to spar, but I don't do it just for the sake of my health." The Hispanic girl gave a look that told Lynn she wasn't convinced. "Ok, I kinda do, but I bring Lincoln into it so I can try to toughen him up." She frowned at the dark-haired girl. "I didn't wail on him just because. I wanted him to fight back. I just want him to show me that he can take care of himself. I've had to chase bullies away from him many times while growing up, including you. But there's going to come a time where I won't be there to protect him. So when someone is getting up in his face, I want him to be ready to lay the smackdown on them."

"That doesn't explain why you always want him to help you with sports." The 11 year old countered.

Lynn got up from the couch and grabbed a book off the mantle. She flipped through the pages, stopping when she found what she was looking for. The jock sat down next to Ronnie Anne, who looked at the book. It was one of the family's photo albums, and on the pages it showed a young Lincoln and Lynn playing together. One depicted them passing a beach ball around, another with the two toddlers sharing an ice cream cone, and another set had them palling around on a park playground. "...Me and Linc used to be very close when we were babies. Over time, we grew apart when I started getting more into sports. I thought Linc would become interested since he was a boy, but it didn't work like I thought it would. So, I kept asking him to help me practice, hoping he would eventually get into the mix and we'd be like we used to years ago. My therapist told me I had to be patient and let him come into his own. I also had to let him come willingly instead of just throwing the whole package at him without his approval..." She closed the book.

"Wait, a therapist? Why would someone like you need to see a shrink?"

Lynn gave a soft glare at Ronnie Anne. "What? You don't think the person who broke her bro's arm out of anger doesn't need to find out what's wrong with them?"

Seeing she worded that wrong, the tomboy was quick to form a reply. "N-No, I mean...it's just surprising to hear that."

The sporty-loving sister scanned Ronalda's face for any sign of falsehood. The Santiago girl kept her cool, only giving her nose a small rub. "Well, FYI...aside from Lily, all of us spoke with her. Even my parents..." She tossed the book onto the coffee table. "Turns out all of us had issues we didn't know how to fix or were unaware of until last weekend, and I mean these problems were going on long before this mess started. Lincoln is due to see Dr. Lopez at some point, but I don't know when."

"Friday."

Lynn glanced at Ronalda. "Wha?"

"Lincoln is supposed to see her on Friday. That's what I heard Mrs. Loud say while she was on the phone."

Lynn rest her head back against the sofa. "Well that's good news..." The two didn't say much of anything for a few moments. They watch as Lily stood up to try and open the photo book, growing a little frustrated with how hard it was for her to separate the pages. "It hurts you know..."

Ronnie Anne raised an eyebrow, shifting her attention to the older girl. "What does?"

"Having your own sibling being so afraid of you that you can't even be in the same room as them...that day we had our fight, mom took to the same hospital he was in to get my teeth looked at." The jock stared Ronnie Anne in the eyes. "I had to wait until you were finished before I could go see him." Ronnie Anne opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out. She realized that whatever she was going to say might result in a snarky comment, which would piss Lynn off. For once, she decided to hear her out. Seeing that she wasn't going to voice her opinion, Lynn continued. "Once you left, I saw all the damage we had done to him...Linc couldn't even walk at the time because his pelvis still hurt. Aside from Lily, I was the only other sister to see him like that...and it made me want to cry like Leni did." The jock wiped away a small tear forming. "I told Lincoln how sorry I was and that if he hated me, I deserved it. You wanna know what he did next?"

"What?" Ronalda asked. The two heard a small whine and saw Lily imitating what happened that day. She took one of her toys and pretended to look away from it. When she looked back in its general direction, she lightly slapped herself with the toy, giving off crocodile tears. Ronalda just sat there confused whilst Lynn understood what she meant.

Lynn picked up her baby sister, petting her head. The infant responded happily. "Yes Lily, he did."

"Um...what did she say?"

"Lincoln smacked me with his food tray when I was right next to his bed. I was so sad that I ran out of the room in tears..." Lynn stroked Lily's little hairs. "I thought he really did hate me, but now I don't know what's worse: him hating me, or being afraid of me...either way, both sides suck..." She looked back at Ronnie Anne. "Let me ask you something. How would you feel if you did what I did, feel like crap, and had someone berating you for it every day?"

The Hispanic girl looked down in thought. She didn't think she'd ever do anything like that to Lincoln, or even Roberto. Lord knows her mother would tan her hide and send her off to boarding school or some other place that's supposed to re-educate delinquents. Sure, she had hit Lincoln a few times, but it was only in a teasing or friendly way. Ronnie Anne bit her lower lip, shifting her weight a little. Lincoln was in pretty bad shape on her first visit, but if she was the cause of all of that? Not only would her mother end her, she'd unleash the ten-headed beast that was Lincoln's sisters. And given how easily Lynn cleaned her clock, she might as well call the funeral home and have them prep for a child burial.

"...I'd hate myself for the rest of my life, and...and I wouldn't want to be reminded of my mistake when I already have enough on my plate as is."

Lynn nodded. "That's how I felt at the way you were talking earlier. I already have a hard time trying to convince myself I'm not a bully, and you barking at me isn't helping, especially when myself and 4 other sisters have to stay out of Lincoln's sight at school for who knows how long." Lily patted Lynn's arm, wanting to be let down. The 13 year old gently placed her sister on the floor, who walked towards her little shopping cart. "I'll be honest, sometimes I don't know what Lincoln saw in you that allowed him to pick you up as a girlfriend."

Ronnie Anne grew rather irate at that remark. "What do you mean by that?"

"Ronalda, face it. You're brutish, a bit of a punk, have an ego problem, and think she's the toughest person around. Most of the times I see you, you have this weird thing going on like you don't feel at ease or whatever in public. You always gotta act like you're the apex predator or something. Maybe Linc is into domineering girls or whatever, I don't know."

"That's only because you don't know me like Lincoln does..." Ronnie Anne thought to herself as she propped her arm on the back cushion, resting her head on her hand. "That's quite hypocritical coming from someone who always boasts about how great she is at sports and isn't afraid to punch someone's lights out."

"At least I have the skills to prove it. I'm even a black belt in martial arts."

Ronalda gave a small smirk. "Well, all that meant nothing considering how I kicked your butt in the lunch room."

Lynn gave a smirk of her own. "Hate to burst your bubble Ronalda, but I let you win."

"Pfft. No you didn't."

"Oh really. How else could you take down a star athlete who takes Tae Kwon Do? How else could I have the strength to literally send you off your feet in one punch? I even knew where to hit you and how much force I had to apply to knock you out. Plus, I doubt you could solve this: if there's 50ft between a pitcher mound and the batter and the baseball is going at 90mph, how much force would I need to exert in order to score a homerun?"

Ronalda sat dumbfounded, shoulder slumped as her mind processed what her ears heard. She wasn't even gonna try to figure that one out. But now, it all made sense. She got her ass kicked when Lynn pulled her to the side of the school and held her hostage, and the sports junky literally stopped a fight from even occurring by being the first to send her to the ground. Hell, she barely registered the punch coming before she got slammed by it. The tomboy relished in the spotlight at having beaten Lynn, even further cementing her reputation as the school's resident tough girl. But now, it felt meaningless knowing her adversary had been holding back. Ronnie Anne was prideful of her fighting skills, thinking they were second to none, and it stung her deeply knowing that she didn't hold a candle to the amount of prowess Lynn possessed.

"Why?..." She asked in a low whisper. "You could've easily stomped me back then...but why didn't you?"

"Like I told my therapist, I wanted someone to punish me for what I did to my brother...I mean, I'm already grounded, can't play sports, or even wear my usual jersey; but it didn't feel enough for breaking his arm. Also, dad did say he would belt us if we tried to dodge our grounding, but I'd rather take getting my face smashed into the floor than getting butt welts, so thanks for that." Lynn dabbed Ronnie Anne in the shoulder.

Ronalda winced a little before soothing the stricken body part. "Thanks...I guess?"

Lynn frowned at the girl's uncertain tone. "Hey, you knocked some of my pearly whites loose, and you almost broke my arm. That has to count for something."

"Coming from you..." Ronnie Anne shrugged. "I guess it does." She lifted the ice pack off her head a little, giving an inaudible sigh as the cold spot started to warm. "You should teach me how to punch like that."

Lynn stifled a laugh. "You?"

"Hey, if I gotta protect Lincoln from the likes of you or anyone else, I want every edge I can get. Can't do that if I'm getting slaughtered on the first punch." Ronalda lightly prodded the bruise, giving a small wince. "Yep...still hurts..."

"Look, I'm never going to hurt my brother like that again, and..." Lynn sighed. "And I'm sorry for hitting you, but just don't say stuff like that again, ok? Not only were you insulting me, but you also offended my sisters."

"Noted..." The Hispanic girl nervously shifted her gaze away from Lynn. "S-Sorry for ticking you off..."

"And one last thing. If you want me to train you, then you better bring your A game, cause I won't be holding back."

Ronnie Anne appeared to be a little hesitant to answer. Not wanting her to back down, Lynn pressed a finger against the tomboy's bruise. The 11 year old shrieked out in pain before slapping Lynn's hand away. "Ok ok I will!" She glared, rubbing her forehead to numb the pain. "So...if you know that Lincoln is afraid of you, what are you guys doing about it?"

"So far, we're just keeping out of his sight. Might be kinda hard though, seeing as Lola must've made him scared while she went to the bathroom today."

"That's funny, cause myself and Lincoln's other friends were doing the same thing."

Lynn raised an eyebrow. "What's that?"

"Making sure he doesn't see or hear you."

"Hmm..." Lynn tapped her chin. "Well, since both of us are doing the same thing, why don't we make this a team effort?"

Ronnie Anne raised her hands up. "Look Loud, you aren't exactly on my list of people I'd like to work with."

"Not that I really care. We're doing this for Lincoln's sake. All you guys need to do is let us know where he is or where he's heading, and we'll just not go in that direction. I don't wanna have any more fights between us..." Lynn raised one of her hands before spitting into it. "For Lincoln?"

Ronalda stared at the outstretched appendage, slightly disgusted by the fact it was covered in Lynn's spit. But, she couldn't deny that the jock raised a fair point. If all of them kept in contact, it would make this week go by a lot easier. The 11 year old spat into her own hand and grasped Lynn's in a firm grip. "For Lincoln."

"Fo wincon!" Lily copied them, spitting into her own hands before touching theirs. Unfortunately, both older girls had to bear witness to the distinct sound of the infant making a mess in her diaper. Ronnie Anne's eyes watered before covering her mouth and nose, trying to fight the urge to puke. Lynn covered her nose, giving a light glare at the baby. "Ugh! Lily!"

The 15 month let out a series of giggles before crawling away to find her mother.

A/N: In a way, Ronnie Anne and Lynn have finally made up. Hopefully the newly established line of communication should be enough to prevent any more mishaps occurring at school. Not only that, Lincoln now has a set date for when his session will occur. But, no one ever said this was going to be easy, especially when you have so many factors that could screw it up.