(Lincoln's POV)
"Ahh, this is the life," I thought as I soaked in one of the herbal baths (Tropical edition). I had some rough training this morning—since my sisters weren't there to butt in, I was finally able to test the limits of my body.
As I was getting out of the bath, I heard the doorbell ring.
"Hm? Who could that be?" I wondered. It was still early, and I doubted it was the ghouls from yesterday—they had school.
I threw on a new yukata, dark blue with an ocean design, and made my way out of the bathing area.
When I opened the front door, I was surprised to see the ghouls. But what really caught my eye was the short, middle-aged woman standing with them. She had black hair, wore a pink dress and a red cloak held together with skull buttons, and had a red headband.
"This must be Miss Grimwood," I thought.
"Hey, ghouls," I greeted with a smile. "I'm glad to see you all again."
"So are we," Winnie replied, while Tanis ran up and hugged my leg.
"Aww, did you miss me?" I said to the little mummy.
"I believe she did—as well as the rest of the girls," said Miss Grimwood, smiling kindly. "All through dinner, they couldn't stop talking about a nice boy they'd met."
"Oh, where are my manners? I'm Miss Grimwood. I run Grimwood's Finishing School for Ghouls. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"The pleasure is mine," I said, stepping aside. "Please, come on in. I was just about to brew some tea."
As I welcomed them in, I got a strange feeling—like I was being watched.
⸻
(No POV)
Lincoln led them into a large room with three couches, a coffee table, and an 87-inch flat screen.
"Please make yourselves at home. I'll be back with some tea in just a moment."
As he left, the Grimwood girls started chatting amongst themselves.
"Did you ghouls see this place when coming to the school?" Winnie asked. She hadn't, since her dad had dropped her off.
They all shook their heads.
"This place seems so peaceful—and did you see those pretty pink trees?" Tanis said in awe.
"Those are cherry blossoms," Miss Grimwood explained. "They usually grow in places around Japan."
"So this was the boy you were all talking about," Miss Grimwood said, observing the space. "He seems like a fine young man. I believe he might be around Sibella's age."
"He might be," Winnie said before smirking and turning toward Sibella. "You planning to ask him out on a date?"
Phantasma started to pout.
Sibella blushed but quickly composed herself. "He seems nice, but we've only met once before. I'd never date someone I barely know."
"Well, that's true. He might already be in a relationship," Elsa pointed out.
"Yeah," Winnie nodded as Phanty and Sibella frowned a little.
Miss Grimwood noticed and chuckled softly. "Oh, it seems to me that these two might have a small crush. Oh, to be young again."
"Sorry for the wait," Lincoln said, returning with a tray holding a porcelain tea set in blue and white, along with a tray of colorful macarons.
As he poured the tea, he motioned toward the sweets. "Please, help yourselves."
"Oh my, this is one of the best brews I've ever had," Miss Grimwood said, surprised by the unique taste.
"It's my own special brew," Lincoln explained. "Made from a rare flower I've been growing."
"I've never been a tea person, but I love this stuff!" Winnie said, sipping eagerly.
"And these cakes are delicious!" Tanis added, munching happily.
"I'm glad you like them," Lincoln smiled. "I baked them myself."
"Is baking a hobby of yours?" Elsa asked, curious.
"Only recently. Lately, I've been trying all kinds of things—cooking, crafting, martial arts, and a few others."
"That's quite a number of hobbies," Miss Grimwood noted. "I have a student who jumps from one hobby to the next almost weekly."
"You have more students?" Lincoln asked.
"Yes, three more. Sadly, they couldn't come—one's busy, one's too shy, and the last one…" Miss Grimwood trailed off, trying to find the right words.
"She's too stuck-up," Winnie cut in, arms crossed. "Thinks she's better than everyone because she's smart."
"Now, Winnie," Miss Grimwood scolded gently. "She just has trouble expressing her emotions. You shouldn't talk about her like that."
"She's right," Lincoln said, gaining their attention. "I have a little sister just like that. A genius who thinks she's above others but really struggles to understand her own emotions."
Looking down, Winnie mumbled, "I'm sorry."
Lincoln gently patted her head. "Just keep an open mind next time, okay?"
She nodded, leaning into his hand, her tail wagging softly before she blushed and pulled away, embarrassed. Everyone laughed, and Miss Grimwood smiled warmly at the scene.
"I've been trying to bridge the gap between humans and monsters… and looking at this group, maybe the future is already looking brighter."
"Oh, I just remembered," Miss Grimwood suddenly said, turning to Lincoln. "We actually came to thank you for helping Winnie and Tanis the other day."
"You don't have to thank me," Lincoln replied. "I was just glad I could help."
"My, you are such a kind young lad. You remind me of an old friend of mine," Miss Grimwood said wistfully.
"Do I?" Lincoln asked.
"Are you talking about Mister Albert?" Tanis asked, having heard of him from her father.
"Yes, Albert Chambers. A very close friend of mine and of some of their fathers. I haven't heard from him in a long time."
Lincoln's eyes widened. "Wait… did you say Albert Chambers?"
They nodded.
Lincoln laughed.
"What's so funny?" Phanty asked, confused.
"It's just… how small the world is," Lincoln said as he pulled out his wallet and showed them a photo. "You're all talking about my Pop-Pop."
He showed them a picture of himself—white-haired and smiling—standing next to an older man.
"That is Albert," Miss Grimwood gasped. "I'd recognize that free-spirited look anywhere!"
The ghouls looked at the boy in the photo.
"Is that you when you were younger?" Sibella asked, blushing slightly. "You look cute."
"That was from a little over a month ago."
"What?" Elsa asked, clearly confused.
"How old do you think I am?" Lincoln said, raising an eyebrow.
"You look like Sibella's age," Winnie said.
"I don't know her or any of your ages," Lincoln pointed out.
"I'm 15," Sibella said. "Phanty and Elsa are 14. Winnie's 10. Tanis is 6."
"Well, I'm 11," Lincoln told them.
They stared at him.
"I don't believe you," Winnie said flatly.
"What? I just had a growth spurt!" Lincoln exclaimed. He told them the story, carefully leaving out the pain. Miss Grimwood and Elsa seemed to catch on but stayed quiet at his pleading look.
"Wow," Phanty said. "With how you look and act, I thought you were Sibella's age."
"Let's not go there," Winnie grumbled. "Guys her age are the worst—either scared of her or trying to hit on her."
"It does get tiring," Sibella sighed.
"The scared part is stupid, yeah," Lincoln said. "And there will always be shallow guys who only want to date someone because they're beautiful."
Sibella smirked and leaned in slightly. "Oh, so you do think I'm beautiful?"
Lincoln blushed. "I mean… who wouldn't?"
"So just her?" Phanty teased. "Don't you think I'm beautiful too?"
"Of course!" Lincoln panicked. "Only a fool would think otherwise!"
The girls laughed, and Lincoln could only pout in mock frustration.
Miss Grimwood chuckled. "I wish we could stay longer, but it's time to go."
"Aww…" the girls groaned.
"Would it be alright if I visited after your classes?" Lincoln asked.
"Of course," Miss Grimwood said warmly. "It would be a pleasure."
"Thank you." Lincoln smiled, escorting them out, but paused. "One moment."
He ran to the kitchen and returned with nine small boxes and a sealed brown bag.
"Please take some of the macarons and a bag of tea," he said. "I packed some for the students who couldn't come too."
"That's very kind of you," Miss Grimwood said with a smile. "I'm sure they'll appreciate it."
⸻
(Lincoln's POV)
After they left, I returned inside. I considered resuming my training but realized I missed some parts of life back in Royal Woods. So, I decided to start a group chat with Clyde and Ronnie Anne.
I opened my new laptop and started the call—camera off for now.
Ring ring
"Lincoln? Are you there?" Ronnie Anne asked.
"Yeah, I'm here," I said.
"Dude, we've been trying to reach you," Clyde said. "I even tried the walkie-talkies when we got back to Royal Woods."
"Sorry, guys. I've been busy," I explained.
"Why's your camera off? Everything okay?" Ronnie Anne asked, a little worried.
"It's fine. I just need to explain a few things first." I told them about my growth spurt and the Sister Fight Protocol—leaving out the pain and the fact that I'd left Royal Woods.
"That's the stupidest, most idiotic thing I've ever heard," Ronnie Anne snapped. "And your parents let this happen?!"
"Yep," I said. "Too afraid and too delusional to do real parenting."
"Hey, Lincoln, can you turn on your camera now?" Clyde asked. "It feels weird not seeing you."
"Alright," I said, hand hovering over the button. "Just… remember what I told you."
"It's fine, Lame-o," Ronnie Anne said. "We can handle it."
"Yeah," Clyde added. "I've been taking Dr. Lopez's classes on managing change. I got this."
I took a deep breath and turned on the camera, closing my eyes… and then I heard a thud.
Opening my eyes, I saw Ronnie Anne just staring at me. I guess Clyde fell.
"Guys?" I asked. "You okay?"
Clyde slowly got up and adjusted his glasses.
"Buddy," he said. "You said you had a growth spurt?"
"Yeah, I did."
After a few deep breaths, he calmed down.
"He's handling this a lot better than I thought," I thought. "No paper bag—he must've really improved."
Clyde asked me to catch them up, so I did. I told them about the Hex Girls, the mall, the concert—everything.
"Whoa," Clyde said. "You played on stage with the Hex Girls?!"
"Yeah, it was wild."
I checked the time. "Sorry to cut this short, but I've got training in ten minutes."
"No problem," Clyde said. "Still unpacking anyway. Great talking to you, buddy."
"You too. I'll call again soon."
As I was about to hang up, I noticed Ronnie Anne was quiet—still staring at me, cheeks a deep red.
"Ronnie Anne?" I asked. "You okay?"
She snapped out of it. "Yeah! I'm great. Oh look at the time—I gotta help my mom—bye!" she said super fast and hung up.
Confused, I ended the call and headed to the training room.
⸻
(No POV – Great Lakes City)
Ronnie Anne was on her bed, staring at the ceiling. After a long breath, she buried her face in a pillow and screamed into it for a full minute.
"Stupid Lame-o jerk," she muttered, face still red. "You can't just look like that without warning people…"
Even though he did warn her.
She tried to forget the image of Lincoln, but it just kept replaying in her mind—clearer each time.