Echoes of the Past

Chapter 6: «Whose is she?» or the Epilogue

The following and the last story in this series is about Luan Loud, a young comedian in the family who has made quite a mark in the field of stand-up and entertaining the public with top-notch jokes. To date, Luan's blog has gained nearly a million followers and she is already hard at work on new jokes. From time to time she recalls one of her most unpleasant stories. Unfortunately, it happened so that she and Benny, her boyfriend, with whom they went to middle school and then high school together in Royal Woods, had to break up.

It was toward the end of high school, when they were about to get ready for the prom. The preparation usually took a lot of time and therefore started towards the end of the year, continuing until, in fact, this very graduation party. One day, standing in the school restroom, two guys were talking to each other. These were the local bullies who regularly hurt children from the lower grades and caused them great trouble: the bullies would take away the kids' breakfasts that the parents prepared in the morning so that, God forbid, their children would not suddenly get hungry.

At that moment, the bullies were talking about something, and then one of them decided to take the other to task by proposing an idea of the following nature:

— Hey, you know that girl with the braces?

— Which one?

— The one who tells trashy jokes on stage. I'm sure you do.

— Got it, yeah, I do. Yeah, — he said, — I wish she'd tell some good jokes. You know, about other women, about booze and cigarettes, and a lot of swearing! So, what about her?

— Do you know that loser? — catching his somewhat puzzled look, he clarified, — Well, her boyfriend?

— I do. What about him?

— I bet I could steal her away from him faster than you?

— Uh-oh. You bet! What's the bet?

His companion, thinking for a while and muttering something unintelligible under his nose, gave out:

— How 'bout twenty bucks. And a picture of kissin' her and stuff, like, to prove it.

— Deal, — they shook hands, and then he asked for clarification, — How are you gonna take her away anyway? She's stupid!

— Well, I'll take her away, she won't even notice that. You just said she's stupid!

— That's right!

— That's right!

That was the decision, and from then on Luan knew no peace for herself. She and Benny still performed on stage very often, but soon some rather unpleasant rumors began to appear, which in the course of time began to reach more and more people. Those who knew them and had performed side by side with them could occasionally see conflicts between Luan and Benny, which could arise out of nowhere and in front of everyone's eyes. The situation reached its highest point, until one day on stage they quarreled in front of the entire audience, including the headmaster, and then "solemnly" parted and left the stage, leaving the play unfinished.

Things only got worse when it was revealed that Benny had decided to change schools to, in his words, "not to see Luan's nasty, smug face anymore." When this was announced to the public, the previously mentioned bullies prevailed and put their evil plan into action. All this did not happen at once, but rather as the days passed. As soon as the first bully approached Luan and, introducing himself to her, asked her out, she only accepted, being «disappointed in Benny, who had so treacherously broken her heart». After walking away from her, and then turning a corner, he smiled to himself.

Due to the limitations of his mind, the second bully decided to similarly approach her the next day and similarly ask her out, unable to think of anything better to do. He did not yet know that his friend had already pulled off this operation, and had succeeded. When he approached Luan, he did the same thing as his friend. She was suspicious, and she looked at him intently, ready to refuse him, she felt it in her gaze and his knees started to shake, but she sadly noted that someone had already asked her out. She'd be happy to have him help her carry her backpack after school today, though, and get to know him better. That flattered him, but he only showed his anger when he rounded the corner. Now he'd never see his «twenty bucks» and a cool girl like Luan ever again!

— Guys, don't swear! Please! — said Luan.

— Just tell me who you're gonna date. Me or that asshole?

— You're gonna pay for that! — said his «friend».

— All right, all right, I'll tell you. The thing is, there's a camera there, and the whole school and the principal can see you!

There was loud, resounding laughter from everywhere, and Benny came out from behind the bushes with the camera, along with the principal and Mrs. Bernardo. She said:

— Bravo, Luan, bravo! This will definitely go down in the school's history as the most original way to teach scoundrels a lesson!

— Did you really think I'd date any of you? Look at you, you're feared by all the minor students who you take food from and occasionally beat up! Nothing is sacred to you, and you started harassing me when you found out that...

— That's enough, Luan, — said the headmistress, gesturing to stop Luan's tirade, — we've heard everything. But I'm afraid that they will not learn any lesson from this at all. A student and an aggressor cannot coexist in our school, so I have decided to expel you two from the school. Call your parents, come with them to my office and tell them the news. Dismissed.

They stood petrified and looked at each other with shocked looks. After moving a decent distance away where no one could see them, they clashed with each other in a fight. Meanwhile, Luan and Benny returned to the school and, holding hands, explained to everyone how it had really happened.

Benny had overheard their conversation in the restroom that day, and after telling Luan about it, he had a plan to teach them a lesson. They decided to make a deal with the school principal and Mrs. Ramirez, and after getting approval from both of them, they started implementing it. But the most important thing was that they did not let themselves get hurt, and their relationship only grew stronger. They still loved and respected each other fervently, and even during the pandemic, it was not conflict, not contradictions, but miles that separated them, as in the case of Lincoln and Ronnie-Ann.

The onset of the pandemic ruined all of Luan's plans for that year, during which she had planned to do her first ever standup tour of Michigan. When everything closed down and the city promptly went bankrupt and the decision was made to move in search of a better life, Luan was very sad and not at all humorous and laughing. However, even in such moments Benny tried to support her from a distance, especially during the first months since the Louds moved away.

When the Louds' life settled down and everything returned to normal, Luan was able to realize her idea and conducted her tour within Toronto, without going outside the city, because the province of Ontario, which in addition to Toronto has the capital of Canada, Ottawa, was too big and it would be quite problematic to cover such a vast territory. Toronto, on the other hand, was densely populated and even outnumbered Ottawa, so the decision was made.

The announcement for the tour was made several months in advance, and when the time came, the hall was completely packed, which meant a lot to Luan, but first of all that her dream came true. After the performance, when people gradually began to leave, Benny approached her. They hadn't seen each other for almost a year or two because of the pandemic, but now they had met! She had mixed feelings, among them surprise and indescribable joy, happiness. Luan felt emotional, but when she calmed down, she received an offer she would never wish to refuse. Soon, after they were married, they began to perform a duet together, and it turned out very well.

As one can see, even one single event like a pandemic can change the usual life upside down. There is always a way out and any occasion can be used without consequences for oneself, or with a minimum number of them, if unavoidable. The Loud family, despite the separation of time and distance, are as united as ever and do not abandon each other. Together they strive for a brighter future, which from now on, and this has been proven by the experience they have all lived through, they must build by themselves, through their own efforts.