47. Ch 47- Playing Hookie?

Monday morning came, and as was typical, the school began to fill with students, many of them not willing to be there and wishing they were at home instead. Still, they didn't make too much fuss about it, putting their things in their lockers and taking their seats in their classrooms. As the children in the fifth grade classroom chatted with each other while waiting for their teacher to arrive, Mollie looked away from her friends in time to see Jordan walk in, clutching tightly on the straps of her backpack while she made her way to her seat next to the brunette. "Hey, girl," Mollie greeted. "You're normally here before I get here. What, did your alarm not go off or something?" When she didn't get a response, she looked at the girl's face and noticed that she seemed a bit spaced out. "Jordan!"

Hearing her friend speak a bit louder snapped her out of her trance, turning to her friend. "What did you say?" She asked, concerning her friend.

"Did you not sleep or something, Jordan? You seem kind of out of it."

"Y-yeah, I'm fine. Just… didn't wake up great."

"You sure? Because you seem pretty-" She paused as a grin took over her face. "Oh, I get it. Is this because of what happened yesterday?"

The girl's cheeks turned pink, her hands raised to cover her face. "Oh my God, please stop!"

"What's up with Jordan?" they heard Joy ask from the seat behind Mollie.

"Oh, she's still embarrassed after her kiss yesterday."

Jordan gave her friend a rough push on the shoulder, glaring at her while her cheeks grew even more flush. "Shut up! I don't want everyone hearing about this!"

"Relax, no one's paying attention. Besides, you've kind of just proven me right."

A groan escaped the girl, who put a hand on her forehead as she held her head low. "Honestly, I just want to forget about it." But even as she said that, her brain chose to mess with her, as the memory of what happened reappeared in her mind.

"Okay, everyone!" Chris announced, bringing the water break to an end. "Now, we're gonna work on lifting. Gather round on the floor." They all walked over the floor, standing in a messy line in front of their coach. "Now, for some of you, this will be your first time doing a lift like this, so we're going to walk through it slowly. The key to a successful lift comes down to precision, balance and trust, both from the person being lifted and the person or people holding them up. You need to place your feet in the exact right positions to keep balanced as a group, so that the person being lifted doesn't fall. As for trust, the person being lifted has to trust that they won't be dropped, and the people lifting them up have to trust that person to trust them back. It can seem a bit daunting, but as long as you trust each other, then you can make it work. So, let's start with a simple two person lift. Pair up with someone of similar size.'

As the kids began to decide who to pair up with, Jordan saw that her friends were already pairing up, until she saw Lincoln approach. "Hey, uh, mind if I pair with you?"

She smiled and told him, "sure!"

"Alright, is everyone paired up?" Looking round and seeing all eyes were on him once more, Chris nodded. "Okay, good. So, between you, pick a 'lifter' and a 'liftee'. The lifter should get down to one knee, and hold their hands up. The liftee should use their thigh like a step, place their other foot on the other person's shoulder, take their hands and lift their foot up from their knee until it's straight. Let's see what you can do."

Lincoln turned to Jordan. "So… should I lift you?"

"Sure. We'll probably end switching after, so I can show you how to do it right after."

"Har, har."

Though he was mildly annoyed by the joke, the giggle she gave made him smile anyway. He got down onto his knee and held his hands up. After placing her foot on his thigh, she stepped up to put her other foot on his shoulder, grabbing his hands before extending her left leg up and out. Their arms shook a bit as they held the lift, though they were able to hold it for a few seconds before Jordan stepped back down. "Not bad, Lincoln."

"Thanks."

"Alright, nice work, everyone. Let's try it the other way round now, so if you were lifted just now, you're gonna lift your partner in the same way, okay? Give it a go."

So, Jordan got down onto her knee and held up her hands for Lincoln to grab. Like she had before, he placed his foot on her thigh, placed his other on her shoulder, took hold of her hands and lifted his leg up from her thigh, shaking a little as he tried to hold the position but managing to do so for a good amount of seconds before stepping back down. "Okay, good work. Everyone feel okay with that one?" When no one said otherwise, he continued. "Alright, let's try something different. One of you will sit down with your hands and legs out in front of you. The other will take their hands, then the first person will lean back and use their legs to lift you up. Your feet should be pressing against their waist. Understand? Alright, let's try that."

So, everyone got started on that. Jordan decided to lift Lincoln first this time, so once she was sat down, he took hold of her hands and allowed her to lift him up, her feet carefully holding him up by the waist. Though he still felt shaky, he felt like he trusted Jordan enough to not drop him, and they held it for long enough before she put him back down. Once again, they switched places, with Lincoln on the ground this time. He took her hands, positioned his feet and leaned back. When she was in the air, however, one of his feet slipped, and before either of them realised it, she crashed down on top of him, taking the wind out of both of them. The others had seen and gathered round to see if they were alright, but they didn't hear them, even when they gasped at what they saw. They were both a bit disoriented at first, but they eventually felt something against their… lips?

They both opened their eyes, and saw that their faces were right against each other's, with their lips touching together. This made their eyes shoot wide open and their faces turn pure red, so Jordan immediately rolled off and got up, allowing him to do the same, neither looking at each other.

'I can't believe that just happened!'

"It was so awkward!" Jordan sighed, her forehead meeting her desk. "He wouldn't talk to me the whole ride home, but we had to act like everything was okay as his mom dropped me off."

"Come on, it wasn't that bad," Joy assured him.

"Yeah, I bet he's already forgotten all about it," Mollie added. "You know what guys are like, and he has ten sisters to keep up with. He's probably not even gonna bring it up."

'That's what worries me,' Jordan thought to herself, her eyes casting over to where the boy in question usually sat, noticing the empty chair. 'Where is he?'

"Alright, class," they heard their teacher announce as she walked in, silencing all chatter. "I'm not in a great mood today, so let's get things done without playing around." She pulled the register out of her desk and read out the names one by one, waiting for them to say something along the lines of "here" or "present". When she read Lincoln's name out and heard nothing, she looked up and saw the unoccupied desk. "McBride, is Loud supposed to be away today?"

"Uh, I don't think so," Clyde told the teacher. "Though, I haven't spoken to him much this weekend."

"I see. Well, I'll speak to Sheryl in a moment to clarify. Anyway…"

As she continued with the register, Jordan couldn't help but feel a small pit in his stomach. 'He's not here… it's not… because of me, is it?'

That thought proved to stick around with her throughout the day, as during her classes, when she was doing work or trying to listen to her teachers, it would pop up at different moments, distracting her from what she was doing, saying or thinking. She got called out on it once by Mrs Johnson, but the teacher let it go without too much discussion, allowing the thought to distract her once again. Even as she sat in the cafeteria, her friends chatting across the table with each other, she simply sat and looked at the plate of pasta on her tray, twiddling it a little with her fork.

It wasn't long before Mollie noticed. "Hello! Earth to Jordan!" She said somewhat loudly, snapping the girl from her thoughts. "What is up with you?"

"It's nothing," the girl replied, somewhat quietly.

"Come on, you've been quiet all day," Kat pointed out.

"Yeah, what's the matter, girl?" Joy asked.

"You can tell us," Sadie insisted.

"Yeah, come on, what is it?" Artie also asked.

"Well…"

When she saw her friend reach to the top of her braided ponytail, Mollie seemed to figure it out. "Is this because of the whole accidental kiss thing?"

"S-sort of…"

"Honestly, Jordan, it wasn't that bad," Artie spoke up. "First time I tried a lift like that, my foot slipped and her foot landed right between my legs, if you catch my drift."

"Yeah, we all make mistakes at gymnastics from time to time," Joy agreed. "That's how we get better at it."

"It's not so much about that, it's… more about Lincoln." She could see Kat and Joy share a grinning glance, so she quickly clarified, "NOT like that. I'm just… okay, this is gonna sound stupid, but… I'm worried that he's… playing hookie because of what happened."

"Hookie? You think he's skipping school because you landed on him like that?" The nod Jordan gave Mollie confirmed her theory. "You're right, that does sound stupid, and he'd have to be stupid to do that."

"You think so? Because… honestly, I wouldn't blame him." Her eyes looked down sadly at her now lukewarm pasta. "I didn't exactly make things easy for him after that. Maybe… I dunno."

"Jordan, he's your friend," Sadie reminded her. "He wouldn't let something like that get to him, and he wouldn't skip school over it."

"You think?"

"Yeah, he probably had an appointment or something," Kat suggested. "Plus, I doubt his parents would let him play Hookie."

"But, hey. If you're not sure, why don't you go ask him after school?"

"Artie, I can't just show up at his house unannounced."

"We do that all the time at your house, how is this any different?"

Jordan had to give him that one. "I guess… still, I'd feel awkward if I did that."

"Jordan, trust me," Mollie told her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I might not like Loud as much as you do, but he's a cool guy. I doubt he'd mind you dropping by to say hi, and I know he's not trying to avoid you."

Jordan saw that her other friends were smiling, telling her that they agreed, so she smiled back. "Thanks, guys. I appreciate you getting through to me." Just then, an idea came to her. "I'll be right back."

She got up from the table and walked across the cafeteria, eventually reaching the table where Lincoln's friends were sat, chatting and exchanging lunchables. "Hey, Clyde?"

They all looked at her, the McBride child putting down his juice box. "Oh! Hey, Jordan."

"Could you do me a favour?"

"I guess? What is it?"

"Well, I was wondering if you wouldn't mind letting me take Lincoln his homework after school?"

He raised an eyebrow, surprised by the request. "Really? How come?"

"I was… kind of hoping to speak to him about something, and I'd feel too awkward going there otherwise, so I thought maybe if I took his homework, I'd have a reason to go there."

"Oh… well, I don't know…"

"Please, Clyde? You'd be doing me a big favour."

"Well…" As he considered what his fathers would say to him in this situation, he decided to allow it. "Okay. I'll get them out of my locker after school and give them to you then."

Her face lit up. "Thanks, Clyde. I owe you one."

So, the girl found herself once more at Franklin Avenue, stood on the front porch of the house that her friend was currently in, presumably sick. Now that she was actually there, she felt some of her reserve had seeped away, making her wonder if this was such a good idea. 'Well… you're here now, Jordan,' she reasoned with herself. 'Might as well get it over with.'

So, though she was nervous, she raised her hand and knocked on the door. It didn't take long for it to be answered, the door opening to reveal the third eldest child, the sounds of the rest of the family pouring out, though a bit quieter than usual. When Luna saw the girl, she smiled. "Hey, Jordan!" She greeted. "What brings you here, dudette?"

"Hey… Luna, right?" When the brunette nodded, she cleared her throat before continuing. "I heard at school that Lincoln was sick, so Mrs Johnson asked me to bring him his homework." She knew it wasn't the truth, but she considered it a half lie, which it was in a sense. Plus, it wasn't like the older girl knew otherwise.

"Aww, aren't you a little kindhearted lady? Come on in."

"Thank you." She entered the house, allowing Luna to shut the door behind her. "So, uh, how is he?"

"Well, from what mom's told me, not great, but it should clear in a couple of days."

"Okay, that's good to hear." She took her backpack off her bag and fished her hand into it, pulling out a set of papers kept together with a paperclip. "Here."

"Thanks, bruh." She reached out to grab them, but stopped and pulled her hand back, a bit of a grin appearing on her face. "Actually… I don't suppose you want to see him, do ya?"

Jordan's cheeks turned a bit pink at the tone of her question, her hand reaching to rub the back of her other arm. "Well… I mean, I don't want to disturb him if he's resting or anything."

"Nah, little dude was awake when we got back, and even with everyone keeping things down for him, we'd probably keep him awake anyway."

"Oh. Well… I guess if it's okay. I mean, I know Clyde's probably going to ask me at school tomorrow."

"Sure, it's all good. Head upstairs, then go to the far door on the right."

"Thank you." With that, she put her backpack back on her back and headed up the staircase, heading to the far door on the right of the landing. She saw that it was shut, so she was about to knock, when she heard a throat being cleared, turning her head and looking down to see the resident scientist of the Louds. "Oh, uh, hi?"

"Greetings," the toddler spoke. "I believe you are Jordan, correct?"

"Yeah, that's me. I'm sorry, I can't remember your name, though."

"That's understandable. We haven't formally met, so allow me to introduce myself. My name is Lisa Loud, Lincoln Loud's second youngest female sibling."

"Oh, of course! You're the scientist, right?"

"A crude description, but nonetheless, that is correct. Pleased to make your acquaintance."

She was surprised when the younger girl extended a hand to her, but decided to shake it anyway. "It's nice to meet you."

"I take it, by your previously raised fist and your current position, that you are here to visit him. If that is so, I would advise you to take this." She then held out a face mask like the kind a doctor would wear, which Jordan tentatively took, a bit confused by the offer. "Though my male sibling unit's ailment should not cause you to contract any of his symptoms, it should prevent you from olfacting the redolence of his ejecta." When she saw the blank stare she got in response, she pinched the bridge her nose tightly and muttered something to herself before looking back to her and clarifying. "It should help you to avoid any unpleasant smells."

"Oh! Oh, okay. Thank you, Lisa."

The little girl simply nodded before returning to her room, leaving Jordan to put the mask on over her face and knock on the door to the sole boy in the house. "Who is it?" She heard a somewhat groggy voice call from inside.

"It's me," Jordan called in. "Can I come in?"

"Um… sure?"

Jordan didn't hesitate to enter, opening the door and allowing herself to see the boy prop himself up, having been laid under his covers. His face was noticeably a bit green in the cheeks, while his eyes were a bit tired. The bin next to his bed had quite a few scrunched up and used tissues in it, and the bowl next to it had a bit of staining on it, showing that it had been used to throw up in. Though it made Jordan gag a little, the mask covered her nose enough so that she couldn't smell it.

"Jordan?" He somewhat weakly spoke. "What are you doing here?"

"Hey, Lincoln," she softly greeted, closing the door. "I, uh, heard you were sick, so I came to bring your homework from school."

"Oh, uh, thanks. Could you put it on my desk for me?"

"Sure." She put the pile of papers on his desk, then pulled out his desk chair and sat on it, facing the unwell boy. "You don't mind me sitting here, do you?"

"No, not at all. So… how was school?"

"Honestly, it was pretty boring. Nothing much happened, and there weren't any interesting lessons. How was… staying at home all day?"

"Eh, would've been fun, if it weren't for the reason I'm staying home all day."

"Which is?" The second their eyes met again, she regretted saying that. "I'm sorry, I probably shouldn't have-"

"No, it's fine, I don't mind. Basically, last night, I couldn't sleep, so I went to get something to drink. I had some milk which didn't taste right, but I figured that it was just some weird milk dad bought for cooking with. Turns out it wasn't."

The alarm ringing in his room caused Lincoln's eyes to groggily open, the boy turning over in his bed. As he threw off the cover, swung his legs over and stood up, he felt dizzy. His head was throbbing, his muscles felt weak, his face was sweaty, and his stomach felt… weird. He wasn't certain what that feeling was at first, but when it felt a bit stronger and it started to rise, he knew what it was, and he knew that he needed to get to the bathroom quickly. As he opened his door and started to stagger out of it, the door on the right opened. Lola stepped out of it, but one look at her brother made her smile drop, so she went back in. The feeling inside him got stronger, so he began to hurry down the landing, ignoring that his legs felt like jello and that he was swaying a bit with each step. When he got nearer to the bathroom, the door to it opened, and as Luan stepped out, Lori tried to step in but was pushed aside by Lincoln, who went in and slammed the door behind him.

"LINCOLN!" She yelled, banging on the door. "Open this door, RIGHT now, or I am literally going to-"

She stopped her tirade when the unmistakable sound of vomiting was heard, making her and the other girls in the queue cringe. They heard it a couple more times, followed by a bit of dry retching, and eventually the flush of the toilet. When the door eventually opened, Lincoln stepped out and said, "all yours," before collapsing on the floor.

"Oh, boy," Jordan sighed behind her face mask, her eyes visibly cringing. "So, you got food poisoning?"

"Yeah. Mom got a doctor to come round since she had a day off from work today, and he said it was only mild, so I should be better in a couple of days, but it still sucks."

'And here I was thinking he was just trying to avoid me…'

Though he couldn't see her frown, he couldn't help but notice that her eyes seemed… saddened. "Jordan?" She looked up, meeting his concerned gaze. "Are you okay?"

"Oh, uh… yeah, I-I'm…" Finding that she couldn't lie to him while he was like this, she sighed. "I'm sorry, Lincoln."

"For what?"

"For thinking that… that you were just cutting school to avoid me."

He couldn't deny that hearing that didn't suck, but he was more confused than hurt. "Why would I avoid you?"

"Well… I was worried that, after… what happened yesterday… you wouldn't really want to see me."

"Wait, you… you thought I wouldn't want to see you?" She nodded, and neither said anything before he started to chuckle. "I was worried you wouldn't want to see me."

Her eyes blinked, disbelieving what she had heard. "You were?"

"Yeah. I mean, it wasn't your fault I dropped you, it was mine."

"Yeah, but I was the one that made things awkward between us." This led to the two starting to talk over each other, neither really registering what was being said until they both stopped talking at the same time. When they realised what had happened, they both just laughed about it. "So… I guess things are cool between us?"

"Yeah. We're cool."

"Cool!" She felt that she sounded a bit too eager there, so she pretended to cough before calmly adding, "I mean, yeah, cool." As she thought of what to say next, she looked over at his desk and saw that his laptop was open on a video site. "No way! You watch Wingmen too?"

His smile seemed to perk up a little when she said this. "Yeah, I love watching their videos!"

"Me too!"

"Do you want to watch some with me? I mean, I understand if you have to head back home. And I promise, my room doesn't normally smell this bad."

She couldn't help but laugh at his joke, even in this kind of situation. "I think I can stay for a bit, so sure. Do you want me to load it up?"

"Nah, that's okay. Lisa set it up a while back for me, so I can use a remote to it."

"What would you do without a PhD for a four-year-old sister?" They both laughed a bit, before she moved her chair against his bed so that they were both facing the laptop, and as he started the video, she couldn't help but feel glad that she had come to see him.