The Loud House was rarely quiet, but on this particular Friday evening, the noise hit new levels. Rita had agreed to let Dante spend the night — his very first Loud House sleepover.
The announcement set off a war.
"Dibs! He's staying in my room!" Lynn shouted, bouncing a basketball in one hand. "We can stay up all night training!"
"Wrong!" Luna strummed her guitar with dramatic flair. "He's jamming with me. Sleepover concert, baby!"
"Excuse you," Lola snapped, flipping her hair. "He deserves a royal guest suite. Aka my pink palace."
"Why would he want that?" Lana retorted, holding up a wrench. "He should be in my room. We can fix my go-kart engine!"
Lincoln stood in the middle of the chaos, looking exasperated. "Guys, it's just a sleepover!"
"Correction," Lisa said, tugging at her lab coat. "It is a social integration experiment, wherein Dante is the subject and the variables are eleven overbearing siblings."
"Translation," Dante muttered with a grin, "I'm in trouble."
The battle raged until Rita finally stepped in, clapping her hands. "Enough! Dante can sleep in Lincoln's room. Problem solved."
The sisters groaned, but Lincoln looked relieved. "Finally! My room isn't a hotel."
When bedtime rolled around, Lincoln pulled out a sleeping bag for Dante. The room was cluttered as usual: comic books stacked on the dresser, action figures crowding the shelves, Clyde's emergency walkie-talkie sitting on the nightstand.
"You sure you're okay on the floor?" Lincoln asked.
"Dude," Dante said, unfolding the sleeping bag, "I've slept on worse. My cousin's couch springs are basically torture devices."
They both laughed — until the door creaked open.
One by one, the sisters invaded.
Luan with a stack of joke books.
Luna carrying her guitar, already strumming softly.
Lola with a full tea set balanced precariously.
Even Lucy, who simply whispered, "I brought candles."
Lincoln groaned. "Seriously? Can we have one night of peace?"
But Dante didn't seem to mind. He sat cross-legged on the sleeping bag, smiling as the chaos unfolded. When Lola shoved a tiara on his head mid-tea party, he laughed. When Luna asked him to play a few chords, he gave it a try, even if his hands were too big for the strings.
By midnight, the room looked like a carnival. Lincoln buried his face under a pillow. "I regret everything."
But as the sisters finally trickled back to their own rooms, Dante stretched out on the floor, yawning. "You know… this place is crazy. But in a good way."
Lincoln peeked at him. "Crazy is kind of our brand."
"Guess that means I fit right in," Dante said with a sleepy grin.
And for the first time, Lincoln realized Dante wasn't just a friend anymore. He was becoming part of the family.