The Loud House: Afterlife

Afterlife Chapter 4

Lincoln felt a sense of dread as he stared down the bratty kid and his friends. Lio stood right beside him, the fear visible in his eyes. Both brothers knew that they were in for a beating at best and at worst- well, who knew? Lincoln has tried pleading with the kid to let Lio go, but it quickly became clear that that wasn't going to happen. Damnit Lio, why did he have to come to Lincoln's defense at the worst possible time? Lincoln looked around for a possible way out of this predicament, blocking out the bratty kid's threats. Lincoln looked behind them towards the big kid at the opposite end of the alleyway. The one who was blocking their escape. Perhaps if he and Lio both rushed him at the same time, they'd be able to knock him off his feet and escape. Lincoln leaned toward Lio to whisper his plan, when he heard one of the kids yell "Jeff, what the fuck?!"

Lincoln didn't notice what bratty kid was pulling from behind his back, but Lio did and before Lincoln knew what was happening, Lio had pushed him aside. The next thing Lincoln knew, there was a bright flash accompanied by a loud BOOM.

"Jeff, what did you just do?" The second kid asked frantically as Bratty Kid started to run.

"Just shut up and run!" Jeff replied, yelling at the third kid, "Come on, man, let's go!"

As the third kid ran past them, Lincoln still didn't know what had happened. "Are you okay, Lio?"

It was only then that Lincoln turned his head and saw something truly horrifying. Lying on the ground in a pool of his own blood was his own twin brother. There was a grotesque hole in his torso that Lincoln could see right through, causing him to almost lose his lunch.

"Oh my god, Lio!" Lincoln exclaimed, dropping to his knees to futilely try and help his brother.

Lio was completely unresponsive, not moving an inch as he bled out into the asphalt. Blood trailed out of the side of his mouth and there was absolutely no sign that he was breathing anymore. Despite knowing that Lio was likely beyond saving, Lincoln still had to try and get some help.

"SOMEBODY! ANYBODY!" He cried, "HELP US PLEASE!" Lincoln looked at Lio and exclaimed "Oh my god, Lio, please wake up!"

Lio's blood quickly stained Lincoln's clothes as he desperately pleaded with Lio to wake up. It couldn't end like this, it couldn't. What kind of nightmare was this? This sort of thing only happened in TV shows and movies, not in real life. This couldn't be happening.

Lincoln bolted out of bed in a cold sweat, absolutely terrified. The boy took a moment to catch his breath before looking over to the bed on the opposite side of the room. Even though it had been two weeks since Lio had passed, Lincoln held out hope that when he turned his head, he'd see his brother sleeping peacefully in bed. Lincoln held out hope that this whole ordeal had been nothing more than a dream. Alas, no such luck as the bed on the other side of the room remained empty. To say that Lincoln was traumatized by witnessing his brother's murder up close and personal would be an understatement to say the least. Ever since the incident with bratty kid, Lincoln relived the events of that day in his head on a constant loop. Whether that be during his waking moments or in his dreams, Lincoln couldn't escape it.

He still blamed himself for Lio's death, even if his sisters and parents didn't. In Lincoln's mind, Lio's death was all his fault and no matter how many people said that it wasn't, Lincoln couldn't be convinced otherwise. Truthfully, Lincoln couldn't believe just how sudden Lio's death was. One second, he was alive and well, standing side by side with Lincoln, the next he was lying lifeless on the pavement. Lincoln didn't even have a chance to say goodbye to him before he died. Unlike movies and TV shows, Lio didn't give any parting words. There was no rousing speech or consolation, no asking for someone to hold his hand and stay with him in his last moments, no statements about being cold or how the light was calling to him, and certainly no profound words of wisdom before taking his dying breath. Lio was yanked away with the suddenness of a bolt of lightning and he was never coming back.