"I'd like to tell you, but I have my dying friend bleeding to death on my parents couch." Clyde went to the medical supply cabinet in his house and pulled out a first aid kit and a monitor attached to a machine with a shovel in it.
"Dude, what is this thing?" Andy asked.
"A portable X-ray machine. My parents are overprotective of me and thought it would be nice to have one."
"Come on, man, who the hell lives with one of these in their house?"
"My sister Lisa... has one of these too... and it's bigger than this."
"I'm hanging out with a couple of weirdos."
"Okay, bro, let's see what happened to you." Clyde starts checking Lincoln's arms, legs, chest, back, and head for fractures.
"So...you have something with Emma and Chloe." Lincoln was trying to stay awake by talking to his friend so he wouldn't succumb to the drug.
"Yes, and with Penelope. We have a relationship of four."
"I always knew you were a hunk, bro. What about Haiku? She and you look good together."
"No, she and I are just friends. Well, not even that, because we haven't spoken to each other since the dance. I guess my life was too optimistic for her liking."
"Typical of her"
"Hehe, yeah." Clyde finishes scanning Lincoln's body with the machine. "Good. Except for the bruising and bleeding, you look fine. Your muscles should have absorbed most of the damage. So let's heal you. Let's take your clothes off first." As the backpack was removed, a bottle fell out from inside; this was the Venom Industries logo. Clyde picked up the bottle and read the label. "Accelerated Healing Ointment—I did not know about this product from Venom Industries."
Andy approaches to see the container. "Professor Venomous must have given it to him in case of emergency."
"Professor Venom? Head of Venom Industries? How did Lincoln get a product that hasn't hit the market yet?"
"Uh... he... works for the professor."
"I'm his assistant."
"Well, I see. No wonder you have access to products before they go on sale. Well, the professor was very generous in giving you something like this, and it turned out to be very useful in this situation". Clyde starts spreading the medicine over Lincoln's cuts and bruises, which start to steam. Within five minutes, the cuts were jagged and the bruises had faded.
Boys and girls were amazed to see this miracle.
Lincoln, at some point, shook, stood up, and stretched his muscles.
"Wow, this ointment is amazing. I even got rid of the paralysis." Lincoln does some punches in the air, a few seconds of kicks, and a backflip. "Oh yeah. Completely renovated, Daddy. Now we go for that bastard Chandler."
"Normally, I'm all for the idea of a spanking, but you're just recovering. It's best to play it safe and comfortable."
"I don't need a break, Andy. I want to punch this wretch in the face."
"Tempting. Let's do it."
"Guys, it's better not to do anything you might regret."
"The only thing the damned redhead will regret is messing with me, Clyde."
Suddenly, the house phone rings. Clyde puts it on speaker before answering.
"McBride Residence, Who's Talking?"
"Hi Clyde. This is Albert, Lincoln's grandfather."
"Hello, Mr. Albert. What can I do for you?"
"Is Lincoln with you?"
"Yes, sir, he is here at my house."
"Oh, that's good. Someone deflated my tires, so I couldn't come to him."
Lincoln approaches the phone, guided by his grandfather's voice. "Hello Pop Pop"
"Son? Sorry, I didn't pick you up; some idiot thought it would be funny to flatten my tires."
"Oh. I see. Don't worry, Pop Pop, I'll be home soon."
"Thank God you're okay, son. I was worried something might happen to you if you were alone."
"Don't worry, Pop Pop. I can take care of myself. I'm going home now. Bye" The call ends, and Lincoln pumps his fists until his knuckles turn white. "Chandler knows where my grandparents live. I'm sure he deflated his tires."
"Man. If this bastard can do this to you, I'm sure he won't hesitate to involve your grandparents."
Lincoln clenched his fists tighter to the point of digging his nails into his palms. "If this wretch touches the hair of any of my family, I'll rip his fucking spine off!"
Clyde put his hand on Lincoln's shoulder. "Brother, calm down. You are the man with the plan, remember? Thinking through things has always been your forte. Not violence. Now that you have this body, surely with your mind you will be unstoppable."
"You're right; since I came back, I've only been involved in one fight after another, and I've forgotten what it was like before. Thank you for being the voice of reason, bro."
"This is what I'm here for."
Both boys embrace as Clyde's girlfriends catch up on the tenderness of the moment.
"You are so boring."
Lincoln and Andy left Clyde's house, leaving him alone with his "business."
"Okay girls. How about we keep going?" Clyde walks upstairs with Emma and Chloe hugging each arm while Penelope hugs him to his chest.
Meanwhile, Lincoln and Andy were walking towards their house while talking.
"Hey man, what are you going to do with that idiot Chandler?"
"In time, he will pay me all the debts he owed me when I was a kid, and I will collect these last debts with interest."
The boys separated and each went their own way.
-At Myrtle and Albert's house-
After returning from Clyde's house, Lincoln went up to his room. After completing the task they sent him, he lay down on his bed to get some sleep; he didn't even eat. He had a lot to think about after a day like the one he had.
An hour later, his grandfather knocked on his door.
"Lincoln? Can I come in?"
"Come on, grandpa."
Albert enters Lincoln's room with an envelope in his hand. "I received this letter, son. It has the logo of the company you work for. It might be something important."
"Oh, thank you, Pop Pop." Lincoln takes the envelope, opens it, and proceeds to read the letter. This was accompanied by fifteen tickets. "Oh, wow"
"What's going on? What are those tickets?"
"Pop Pop, call my parents and sisters. They will love this."