The Thing about the Loud House

Chapter 2, Things Change part 1

" We are part of this universe; we are in this universe, but perhaps more important than both of those facts, is that the universe is in us" – Neil deGasse Tyson

Lincoln's room was little more than a linen closet, converted to a bedroom. It wasn't much, but it was his. For the most part he was grateful for it. His room being so small, and at the farthest end of the house, it felt secluded from the normal chaos of the Loud House. But that night was different. The small room amplified the sounds of the wintery winds outside. That plus the events of earlier that evening had him on edge. He couldn't sleep at all; he just sat up in his bed, hugging his knees, shaking, and eyes wide open. He hadn't been this scared since he saw "The Harvester". That Thing had violently murdered all the family pets, he saw Lisa kill it with a flame thrower, and he knew it was dead. Eventually Lisa would find out, exactly what it is, or was. She'd probably get a Nobel Prize for her discovery. The family would all be there to congratulate her, and Lincoln would feel nothing but pride for his little sister.

Then why couldn't he shake the feeling it wasn't over. Maybe it was the adrenaline, or maybe what Lucy had said about it being a sign of Armageddon.

Whatever it was, the man with a plan was now just a scared 11 year old boy.

He stared at the various shapes in his room. In the dark everything looked more frightening, the shadows on his walls were stretched out and twisted.

Finally Lincoln started to doze off. As he closed his eyes, he felt a presence in the room. He opened his eyes, and nearly had a heart attack.

When he opened eyes he could see a tall dark figure staring right back at him. He lay there for a few seconds paralyzed with fear.

He blinked a couple of seconds, and a feeling of relief washed over him, as he realized... it was literally nothing. Actually it was his door. In the darkness it appeared to be the silhouette of a man, but it was simply a two inch thick, plank of wood, separating him from the hallway.

He relaxed, and laid back into his bed. He turned his head.

His fear returned as his gaze reached his air vent. He could swear he could make out something hiding in the vent, watching him. He could even see two little eyes peering through the bars. As he continued to stare at his vent, he started to whimper a bit, he curled up in a ball, closed his eyes. He prayed for it to just be in his imagination, as tears started to roll down his face.

He heard a knock on his door. He opens his eyes, startled he looked at the vent again. Whatever was in there, was gone now, if it was even there in the first place. Somewhat relieved Lincoln got up and went over to his door. He opened it to find Lynn and Lucy on the other side.

"Hey guys what's up?" Lincoln asked, acting cool.

"Hey" Said Lynn, shyly with her hands behind her back, her feet fidgeting on the floor "after what happened we..."

"We didn't feel right leaving you alone" Lucy finished Lynn's sentence.

"Think maybe..." Lynn continued, "We could bunk with you?"

Lincoln smiled; he quickly grabbed both of his sisters and embraced them in a warm hug, tears once again falling down his face. "Sure that sounds fine."

What Lisa and her siblings had discovered was indeed the scientific find of the century. She couldn't take all the credit though, after all, it was Lana who found the creature in the first place. Lisa just killed it, and studied it.

With great excitement she walked over to the twins' room. She quietly opened the door.

"psst, Lana" She whispered.