"Alright, everyone, settle down…before we get started with homeroom, I have a little announcement to make. Lyle, you can come on in."

"…right. Ok." Lyle took a quick breath. He didn't want to do the whole 'let's introduce the new student before class starts' thing, really. Honestly, he'd have preferred to make as little fuss as possible, just walk in, say hey, nice to meet you to a few classmates and ease into this new school on his terms. But Ms. Kelly had insisted, and more or less ignored his idea, so there wasn't much to do except shrug and put up with it. It would be over soon, anyway.

He walked through the door, quickly scanning the room to make sure that, yup, it was a class of normal middle schoolers, and not like robots or something. That might have thrown him off his game, he guessed. That hurdle successfully cleared, he walked next to Ms. Kelly, who was standing up in front of the room waiting for him. Once he was there, the teacher placed her hand on his shoulder and said, "We have a new student who just moved into town! He'll be joining us for the rest of the year. Go on and introduce yourself to your new classmates, honey."

"'kay…Hi guys, my name's Lyle James." Lyle put on a weak smile as he quickly introduced himself. "I just moved to Royal Woods with my mom, and…uh…I'm looking forward to working with you all...is there anything else I need to…?"

"Wait, wait…'Lyle'?" A brown-haired girl in the second row interrupted him. "You're telling me you're not a girl?"

"Hey! Gwen, that's no way to welcome a new classmate!" Ms. Kelly admonished the girl, as a little wave of chuckles swept over the classroom. Welp, Lyle thought. Only took…what, forty-three seconds, this time? Not even close to a new record.

"What? You can't really blame me, can you?" The girl, Gwen, smirked as she motioned towards Lyle. "I mean, take a look at him. The long hair and girly face don't exactly scream 'boy', do they?"

Lyle rolled his eyes. Yeah, he knew he was feminine-looking. He couldn't help it…he can't change his face, and his mom liked how he looked with long hair. Not that he really minded it…he personally liked the way he looked just fine…but the 'You're a BOY?' reactions and the grief he got from classmates were getting reeeeeaaal tiresome.

Still…he knew he probably shouldn't respond. No need to start shit on your first day, right?

…and yet.

"It's ok, Ms. Kelly…I'm used to it." Lyle shrugged as he looked back to the teacher. "I get that some girls get annoyed when someone prettier than them shows up. It's just something I've had to get used to."

Gwen's smirk faded just a bit, but before she could hit back, a kid in the back yelled, "Ooooooh!", sparking a new round of laughter from the class. The girl whipped her gaze to the back quickly before looking back to Lyle, but Ms. Kelly hurriedly stepped in and said, "W-well! That's enough for introductions, I think! Lyle, why don't you grab a seat…there's an open one by…Lemy, I think. The back corner, with the headband. Which reminds me, Mr. Loud, when are you going to start following the dress code and take that off?"

"Sometime between 'never' and 'the heat-death of the universe', teach." A voice called back, and Lyle, as he started walking towards the back, recognized it as the same voice that had backed up his response to Gwen. Lyle soon found the open seat, and glanced to the student next to him, a boy with a messy mop of light brown hair wrapped in a headband, who was offering Lyle his fist. "Good comeback up there, putting Gwen in her place early. Lemy Loud. Nice ta meet ya."

"Likewise." Lyle took up the invitation and gave Lemy a little fist-bump. "Not that I knew I needed to put her in her place, or anything. She has a reputation around here?"

"Oh yeah. Kind of a queen bee, but…well, you'll see." Lemy nodded. "Let's just say that if teach hadn't stopped it, you'd be trading insults with her all day."

"I'll keep that in mind." Lyle pulled the chair out and sat down. "If she's a queen bee, though, aren't you worried she'll turn the class on you too for what you did?"

"Uh, hello? Thought the back corner might have been a giveaway, but I'm already bottom rung on that totem pole." Lemy shrugged as he spun in his seat towards Lyle. "Besides, I've always been numero uno on her personal shit list even without that, so it won't make much of a difference to…"

"Ahem!" From the front of the room, Ms. Kelly loudly cleared her throat. "Well, I'm glad to see you boys hitting it off right away, but you'll have to save it for later."

...

Skipping to later, then, because who needs to hear about the excitement of math class?

"So, Lemy…is that like from Lemmy Kilmister?" Lyle took a quick bite from his almost-half-way decent mashed potatoes. "The lead from Motörhead?"

"Yep, that's the one…though just one 'm' in my name." Lemy nodded as he scarfed down his own lunch. Lemy had apparently been impressed enough by Lyle's introductory put-down of Gwen that he offered to help Lyle out on his first day. Directions, good seats in the cafeteria, which classes you can and can't sleep through…if Lemy thought Lyle needed to know, he told him. They were sharing a seat at lunch after Lemy found them a couple good seats and were continuing to chat as they worked through their questionable school lunches. "Kinda surprised you know him…not a lot of people remember the old metal legends anymore, 'specially at school."

"I've listened to a few of their songs…and I've got a bad habit of Wiki-ing anything that catches my interest for, like, three seconds." Lyle paused for a moment as he chewed through what he assumed passed for chicken tenders here. "I'm guessing your parents are pretty big fans?"

"Man, my mom is a fan of all rockers – you name 'em, she loves 'em." A smirk curled on Lemy's face. "Of course, by now she's one of 'em…her band's been going strong for years."

"Really?" Lyle cocked his eyebrow. "She's in a band?"

"Sure is. They play the Detroit scene, and they tour a bunch…usually around the Midwest, though they've gone on a national tour a couple times." Lemy's smile widened further. "And it's thanks to her I've been schooled in the musical tradition and started my own band. Though our style is in my love, heavy metal, rather than old rock. Pretty soon, we'll be up there with her, you just watch."

"Really." Lyle's voice betrayed significantly more sarcasm than the last time he responded to Lemy's claims. "Pretty soon, huh."

"You bet. We just need, y'know, some time to get ready. Prep ourselves. Learn…gak!" Lemy's voice screeched to a halt as an arm wrapped around his neck.

"Learn how to play', right? That what you were about to say?" A boy with dark skin leaned in, a smirk on his face as he ruffled Lemy's hair. "Because that's the level we're actually at, bro. Don't go giving new kids any ideas about how good we aren't."

"Koff, kof…I was…I was getting there, Gord…" Lemy coughed as he squirmed out of the other boy's hold. "Ergh…uh, Lyle, this is Gordon…my bandmate and, geh, sometimes friend. Gord, this is…"

"Lyle James." On cue, Lyle got up and offered Gordon his hand. "Nice to meet you, Gordon."

"Same here." Gordon shook Lyle's hand quickly, which allowed Lemy the opportunity to slip out from his grip. Bemused, Gordon let his friend go as he looked Lyle over quickly. "And, you are…"

"A boy, since you're wondering." Lyle smirked as he took his seat again. "Yes, I know what you're thinking, and yes, it's mostly due to how I get it a lot. Mostly."

"Ah. K. Number one, that's spooky mind-reading. I dig it, but still, spooky." Gordon chuckled as he took his seat. "And, number two, I kinda had a feeling you'd say that. Word of your first act since transferring here's gotten around. Specifically, the word of how the girly-looking new kid told Gwen Richards he was prettier than her."

"Really? That's made it to your end of the hall already?" Lemy gave Gordon a surprised look.

"You know it. A couple of her buddies in the bad bitches club were talking about it before science class." Gordon pulled a water bottle out of his jacket pocket and took a sip. "So, what I'm getting from you guys is that this story is true? That sound right?"

"Yeah, it's not too far off." Lyle shrugged. "In my defense, though, she's the one who started it by calling me girly."

"I guess that must really set you off, huh?" Gordon leaned back, taking another swig of water.

"Something like that…I've heard it all, and it starts grating after a while. Like, in sixth grade, one of the girls in class just would not stop bringing it up, all the time. Like, telling the teachers a girl was going in the boys' bathroom, or insisting I should play on the girls' team in gym…and so on." Lyle pawed at his potatoes absent-mindedly as he spoke. "So, one day, I decided I had enough, and I figured out the perfect way to get her to stop it."

"Yeah?" Lemy perked up. "What'd you do?"

Lyle smirked again, picking up a spoonful of potatoes as he answered. "I dropped trow in the middle of class and waved my little guy in her face."

"Pfft!" Gordon spat out some of the water he had been drinking. "Kof, koff…you did not!"

"Sure did." Lyle's smirk widened as he finished his lunch. "And hey, lo and behold, nobody in that class called me girly the rest of the year. So that worked out for me."

"Hahaha…oh man!" Lemy just barely managed to rein in his laughter. "Ohhh, boy…please, Lyle, tell me you play an instrument. You've gotta join our band."

"What? Where'd that come from?" Lyle snickered, sucked in a bit by Lemy's laughter. "What makes you think I can play in a band?"

"Who cares if you CAN play? That was metal, and if you can do that, you're already walking down our path." Lemy smiled widely as he pointed at Lyle. "So, c'mon, have you ever tried anything? C'mon!"

"All right, all right…easy there." Lyle calmed Lemy, who was basically leaning halfway across the table in his excited recruitment. "I mean, I guess I learned how to play piano a little bit, but I'm not sure that would really fit with a metal band."

"Maybe not, but a keyboard sure would." Gordon pulled Lemy back and got him to sit in his seat. "And we don't have a keyboardist, so you'd fit in there."

"Huh…well, I guess I could try. But I reserve the right to back out, ok?" Lyle hastily added that last bit. "If I start to play and decide I suck at it, I get to bail, and you guys can't complain."

"Alright, yeah! Got a keyboardist!" Lemy victoriously pumped his fist in the air. "Oh, man, I need to find Lina and let her know. We're gonna be practicing this weekend, guys. I'll let you know when!"

And with that, the headbanded kid practically jumped out of his seat and dashed out of the cafeteria. Lyle watched him go, then flicked his gaze to Gordon and asked, "He always get that excited?"

"When it comes to music, he does." Gordon chuckled as he glanced back at the door, which hadn't even closed yet from Lemy shoving it open. "You get used to it."

"I'll make a note of that." Lyle took a sip of the water cup he had with his lunch. "So, 'Lina' would be another band member?"

"THE other band member. It's just been the three of us up 'till now." Gordon corrected Lyle. "She's in my class, and Lemy ran out to find her because she usually heads outside to skateboard during lunch."

"Did Lemy get you guys to join the same way?" Lyle asked, adding, "Just jump on you and ask if you play anything?"

"Nah…forming the band was an idea we all had while hanging out. We go back way before that." Gordon chuckled. "I met him cause our older sisters hung out, and Lina's his family."

"Are they? Like, cousins? Brother and sister?"

"Well…" Gordon thought about if for a second, before answering, "Actually, come to think of it, I probably shouldn't say."

That caught Lyle's attention. "Oh…should I not have brought it up?"

"No, it's just…kinda hard to explain? And it's Lemy's family, not mine, so I don't think it's my place to talk about it without him here." Gordon finished off his water bottle.

Lyle thought about Gordon's words for another moment, before saying, "Well…I kinda get that. Complicated family stuff. My mom's single, and I've never even met my dad. I'm fine talking about that, but I probably wouldn't want my friends discussing it behind my back."

"Right? Same kinda feeling." Gordon tossed the water bottle in his hand towards the trash, which went in after hitting the rim of the barrel. "Anyway, you wanna know, you can ask Lemy, and if he feels like talking about it, he can tell you himself."

Before Lyle could respond, a bell sound went out over the loudspeaker. Lunch was over, and the students in the cafeteria got up almost in unison and started heading out the door.

"Welp, break's over, then." Gordon got up and offered Lyle his fist. "Nice to meet you, dude. Looking forward to playing together, even if it's only once."

"Likewise." Lyle completed the fist bump, then got out of his seat and returned his lunch tray. Gordon headed straight out, so Lyle returned to his classroom, finding a brightly smiling Lemy already in his seat. Guess he hadn't worked off the excitement yet, Lyle thought, as he walked towards his seat just before the teacher got history class started.

...

Skipping over classes again, the day was nearly over, as the last bell had rung, and students were rushing out of the school.

"Okay, so, I'm on lead vocals and guitar, Lina switches between guitar and bass, depending on the song, and Gordon's on drums. So far, our practices have just been showing up and jamming, so don't feel like you have to practice…"

"Okay, Lemy, I get it." Lyle rolled his eyes. "I got it the last five times you told me, too."

"Right, right…anyway, I know a place we can practice, I just have to check when will work, and…" Lemy continued talking about the band, repeating everything he had said multiple times already. Lyle rolled his eyes as he let the kid ramble, figuring it was the last time. As they walked through the main doors, Lyle scanned the parking lot, looking for his mom's car, since she was supposed to pick him up…

"What the…oh man, why is he…?"

It took him a moment to realize that Lemy had stopped talking about the practice, so he only half heard Lemy's angry mumbling. "What's wrong?"

"Huh? Oh…nothing, just…" Lemy's face scrunched as he tried to find the right word. "Some family biz, I guess…"

As he heard that, Lyle recalled Gordon's words at lunch about how he didn't want to discuss Lemy's family behind his back. He hadn't asked him during the breaks between classes…not that he hadn't thought about it, but he could barely get a word about non-band subjects in.

Before he could decide whether to ask, Lemy started walking a bit faster, heading towards the parking lot. Lyle followed after him, curious about what was up, and also, that's where his mom would be, anyway. After a bit of walking, Lemy called out, "Hey…what are you doing here?"

Lyle looked in the same direction Lemy was looking. There was a man standing there…looked to be 30s-ish? White hair, though, which was weird for a not-terribly old guy. And he was leaning on a big blue van, which…man, how old was THAT thing? It was impossibly rickety-looking, like it was being held together by string and chewing gum.

"Oh…hey, Lem." The man waved at Lemy. "Lacy had a dentist's appointment today after practice, so I was gonna pick her up and take her there. I can swing by the house if you want me to drop you…"

"No." Lemy curtly cut him off. "I'm fine walking."

"Oh…kay." The man glance around, as if unsure what to say next, when Lyle caught his eye, standing next to Lemy. "Uh, hi there. You're…"

"This is Lyle. He's a new kid at school. I helped show him around today." Lemy answered before Lyle could. "Lyle, this is…my uncle Lincoln."

"Oh…nice to meet you." Lyle nodded politely, but he could tell from Lemy's tone of voice this had to do with the 'hard to explain' stuff Gordon had alluded to earlier and figured now wasn't the time to bring it up. Instead, Lyle turned to Lemy and waved, saying, "Well, Lemy, I'll…see you tomorrow. Take it easy."

"Yeah. See ya." Lemy smiled and waved back, but Lyle felt it was a bit pained, not like the smile he saw earlier after getting back from lunch. But, again…not the time to pry.

Instead, Lyle turned, and looked for his mom's car…which took all off three seconds, because as luck would have it, it was just three cars away from Lincoln's van. And there was mom, sitting in the front seat. She saw him coming and got out, saying, "Hey, honey! How'd it go? Make any new friends?"

"Eh…kinda." Lyle smirked as he walked up to her. "I mean, they sorta press-ganged me into joining their band, but I guess I'd call them friends."

"Really? You, in a band?" Lyle's mom smirked back at him. "Well, I'd be glad to see you use those piano lessons you got in elementary school, but I don't exactly remember you practicing since then."

"No, but from what I was getting, not being able to play will not be a problem, since that's where everyone else about is, too." Lyle glanced back to where Lemy had been, a bit surprised that the metalhead was still there with his uncle…

"Oh, is that one of your new bandmates?" His mom noticed where he was looking. "The boy with the headband?"

"The press-ganger in chief, more like." Lyle rolled his eyes. "Yeah, he helped me out today, and…uh…"

Lyle trailed off when he noticed his mom was no longer looking at Lemy, but at his uncle, who was still talking to the kid outside the van. She stared at him intensely for a few seconds, then looked back at Lyle and asked, "Hey, honey…what's that boy's name?"

"Uh…It's Lemy…Lemy Loud." He added the last name when he noticed she was still curious.

And he guessed that was what she was looking for, because he noticed her eyes get wider when he said it. She spun her gaze back to Lemy, then to his uncle, before Lyle could hear her mutter, "Well, if that don't beat all…"

"Uh…mom…?"

Before Lyle could finish asking a question, his mom put her hand on his shoulder and said, "Honey, come with me for a sec, okay?"

There wasn't any time for Lyle to either agree or question, because his mom was pushing him ahead. The two of them were walking back to where Lemy and his uncle were still standing, talking about something. Lyle tried listening in, but before he could, his mother walked up to Lincoln and smacked him hard on the back, cheerfully yelling, "Hey there, you old rascal!"

"Gwah! Ow…what was…?" Lincoln began protesting, rubbing his shoulder, but once he turned to Lyle's mom, he froze. He didn't say anything for a beat, during which time Lemy and Lyle exchanged surprised, do-you-know-what's-happening-here expressions, before finally muttering, "You're…Girl Jordan?"

"Ding! And here I was worried you'd forget this gal's face." Lyle's mom crossed her arms, her smile positively beaming. "Well, though I'm a bit old for 'Girl Jordan', I guess. Maybe Mom Jordan instead?"

"Or, I…can just call you Jordan…besides, Boy Jordan moved to California six years ago." Lincoln scratched the back of his head sheepishly as he spoke. "But…boy, this is a surprise…what are you doing in town?"

"What, I'm not allowed back in the old stomping grounds?" Jordan shot Lincoln a sly smile. "Well, I'll have you know that I'm back here full time. Got a job in the next town over, and we just got a place in town a few…"

"Whoa, whoa…hang on a second." Lyle stopped his mother before she got off on a tangent. "Mom, you two know each other?"

"Oh, you could say that…" His mom's smirk only grew wider. "Hmmm…where to start…"

As his mom trailed off, Lyle glanced at the Louds and took in their expressions. Lincoln had a look of surprise and embarrassment…Lemy, on the other hand, was mostly shock, along with some…disbelief? Maybe anger…?

"Well, to start, we were classmates for years." Jordan started answering her son. "We hung out all the time, back when we were you guys' age. We went to grade school together, and middle school, and high school too. And we were…good friends back then…and…hmmm…"

It was at this moment that Lyle noticed that the shock on Lemy's face was turning more into anger.

This observation was followed, about half-a second later, by Lemy swinging his gaze to his uncle and shouting, "ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!"

"Lemy! Language! And not so loud!" Lincoln tried to quiet his nephew.

"No! Fuck it, I am out!" Lemy turned on his heels and angrily stomped down the road. "I'm going home! I'm NOT dealing with this BULLSHIT right now!"

"Lemy…" Lincoln called after the boy again, but Lemy was keeping up a fast pace, and did not turn his head for a moment. Unsure of what to do, Lincoln ran his hand through his hair, before glancing back at Jordan and saying, "I'm sorry…about…"

"Oh, no no…it's probably my fault anyway, so I should be apologizing to you if I pissed him off." Jordan shrugged sheepishly. "Well…we can probably catch up later, but before I go…"

With that, she put her hands on Lyle's shoulders and stood behind him, as if presenting the boy to Lincoln. "Lincoln…this is Lyle."

Here, the confusion that had gripped Lyle since his mother had smacked Lincoln began to clear, and his mind raced as a few pieces started to fall into place.

Specifically, his mind had become fixated on what his mother had said just before Lemy blew up.

…and we were…good friends back then…and…

…and?

…the answer to 'and what' was suddenly very obvious.

"Lyle…" Jordan continued, though she didn't even need to. Lyle already knew what she was about to say. "This is your dad."

...

The remainder of the day was…rather blurry.

Lincoln…his dad…was unsure of what to say next. At some point, though, a girl came over asking for him. That was probably the one that he had to take…somewhere. Lyle didn't remember much of the end of that conversation. Eventually, Lincoln and Jordan made plans to catch up, and they said good-bye. And then Lyle and his mom were in the car. And then they were home. And then he remembered her asking if there was anything he wanted to ask her.

That was a stupid question. He had loads.

So, what, were they dating in high school?

"Hmmm…Towards the end of high school and the start of college. But it wasn't anything as serious as dating, really. We would just get together every now and then when we were in the mood for a fling."

Wow, that was a pretty blatant way of saying that.

"Pfft, as if that's not the way you were thinking it. I might not have made the right decision of how to talk around that boy Lemy, but I know what I can say to my own son."

Fair enough. He was just a booty call, then?

"Well, closer than that…we WERE good friends, even before we started getting down. But we were both pretty comfortable with the friends with benefits relationship."

Guess he wasn't expecting a kid to be one of those benefits, was he.

"Oh, no. I always knew there was a chance I was getting knocked up."

What.

"Letting you in on a little secret, honey…you may not have been expected, but you weren't a surprise."

…he'd had other kids. Presumably with other women.

"A few. Monogamy was not his thing. Or protection, for that matter."

The man you're describing sounds like an irresponsible manwhore.

"That's not particularly far from the truth."

So…even with all that, you kept seeing him?

"We were friends. I liked him as a person. And, even with his faults, he was always a pretty okay dude."

That's it?

"I mean, sure, and he was a goddamn monster in the sack. I'm only flesh and blood, Lyle."

…why'd you stop getting in touch?

"My college was in Texas, he stayed in Michigan. We didn't have as many chances to see each other, and slowly drifted apart."

Even though you had a kid together?

"Sadly, yeah. Life took us in separate directions. It happens. Sorry it's not that romantic."

You didn't care that he never helped you with me?

"He helped. He always payed child support, even though we stopped getting in touch."

Really?

"Mmhmm. Every first of the month. And no, before you ask, we never went to court or anything. We agreed on it before you were even born."

He willingly agreed to pay child support to a woman he barely even spoke with?

"I did say he was always a pretty okay dude. And I wasn't the only one…all the girls I knew who he'd had kids with said he took care of them with child support payments, too."

What, is he loaded?

"No, his family wasn't rich or anything…come to think of it, I never asked where he got the money from. All I know is, those checks never bounced. Maybe I'll ask next time we see each other."

…did you move us up here for him?

"What? No way. I moved back up here because Grandpa threw out his hip, and I was on the other side of the country. Next time he or Grandma need help, I wanted to be around to give it."

Him being in town had nothing to do with it?

"I honestly didn't even know he was still around Royal Woods. Like I said, we haven't gotten in touch in years."

So you're not interested in him anymore?

"…I mean, if we just happen to hit it off again next time we see each other…"

Mom.

"What? I haven't had so much as a date in four years, Lyle! I told you, flesh and blood!"

Right…what do you think of him, then?

"One, thirty's been very kind to him. Rawr. Two…I'm happy you got to meet him. He might not exactly be the dad you wanted to meet, but…he is your dad."

…why do you think Lemy was so mad when he figured out what was going on?

"That…is something you'll have to ask Lemy yourself, I think."

...

Dawn of the Second Day.

Lyle was again standing outside the door to his class, trying to collect himself before he walked in. Though the reasons for any butterflies in his stomach were vastly different from what they were yesterday.

After a minute or two of waiting, he took a breath and walked in the door. The class looked the same as it had yesterday, mostly. The kids glanced his way when they heard the door open, but most simply took note of him and went back to whatever they had been doing…chatting, reading, prepping for class, etc. Gwen, near the front of the class, let her gaze linger on him for a moment longer, before she smirked and leaned in to whisper something to the girl sitting next to her, a girl with dark skin and glasses, who listened while wearing a bored-looking expression. Lyle figured he'd keep clear of that area today. He had enough on his plate.

Instead, he looked to the back of the room. There was his new seat, unaltered from yesterday. And next to his seat, was, indeed, a kid with messy brown hair wrapped in a headband…slightly changed from yesterday. His face was down on the desk, as though he were asleep. Or trying to ignore something.

With another breath, Lyle made his way to the back. He put down his bag before glancing to the boy next to him and asking, "Hey, Lemy. You doing okay?"

"…mmf fffnnn…" came the muffled voice in response. Lemy turned his head to Lyle and continued. "Fine. Just a little tired…long night of cussing and rage, is all."

"Uh huh…" Lyle nodded as he took his seat. "So…are we cool?"

"Why wouldn't we be?" Lemy picked his head up, throwing it straight back as he looked to the ceiling. "I'm not mad at you."

"That's good to hear." Lyle allowed himself to smile. "So…I guess we're cousins, huh…?"

"…oh. Right…bout that." Lemy turned his head towards Lyle. "After school…meet me in room 115. I'll give you the rundown then."