Disclaimer: I do not own Hey Arnold!

You're So Reckless

By Moonlight

The hot, humid air filling her lungs was enough to make her feel faint, as her feet trudged weakly over broken branches and mud. Her arms were exhausted from pushing hanging vines and tall grass out of the way while she hiked the empty trails of the San Lorenzo jungle. It felt as if she were walking through her own personal hell of creepy bugs, spiders, and heat. The sounds of wildlife coming from nowhere, and HEAT. Having to accept being covered in mud in THIS HEAT.

What she wouldn't KILL for the Jolly Olly man to magically appear with his truck full of delicious, heat-combating ice-cream.

Pulling her water-bottle out of her backpack, she noticed it was begging to get dark. "I guess I need to set up camp soon…" she said as she poured some of the water over her head in an effort to cool herself off, which turned out to be a waste of good water when she felt a few drops of rain hit her shoulder. "Seriously?!" she exclaimed, shoving her bottle back into the bag and running as fast as she could, hoping to find shelter from the rain which began to pour down violently almost instantly.

"Come on...come on! Give me something to work with here! A decent tree! A giant LEAF, even!" Her eyes darted around the empty jungle, looking for something to use as an umbrella, when she spotted something triangular peaking out from behind the tall grass. As she grew closer, she identified it as a small hut, sitting solitarily in a small clearing.

How long had it been since she left the nearest town? Three days? Four? 'These people must be CRAZY living days away from civilization!' she thought to herself as she approached the doorstep. A huge sigh of relief came over her when she finally made it to the covered stoop. The mud she had accumulated since the last rainfall had been washed away, which delighted her greatly. Wringing out her hair and shirt, she looked for a window to see if anyone was home. She didn't want to intrude if the owner happened to be an axe murderer, or something.

When she didn't find one, fear set in, and she swallowed hard as she readied herself to knock on the door. Closing her eyes for a moment, she wondered if it would even be a bad thing to run into someone like that. After all, she already felt as if she had nothing to live for. Her life had spiraled out of control and now she was alone, in a jungle, on a mission that was next to impossible. 'It might not be that bad after all…' she thought to herself and knocked on the door.

"Hello?" she called out, trying to be heard over the noisy rain falling around the hut. "Is anyone home?" Knocking once more, she attempted to jiggle the handle in hopes that it was open, but a force from the other side beat her to it. The door finally opened, revealing a very familiar face to the girl outside.

"Helga?!" the man exclaimed in surprise when he saw her, "What are you doing here?!"

Her eyes widened in a mixture of surprise, happiness...and pain. Biting her tongue to stop the tears from escaping, Helga managed to compose herself. "H-hey, football-head! Long time, no see." she laughed nervously, "Just thought I'd drop by and see how you were doing." she very obviously lied as she put on her classic, don't-mess-with-me smile.

Arnold watched her in disbelief as he moved out of the doorway to let her in, "You just thought you'd 'drop by'? Helga, this is San Lorenzo. And as much as I'm happy to see you," he rubbed at the back of his neck, blushing, as he said this. His eyes taking in the sight of his childhood bully… his friend. He cleared his throat before continuing, "thi-this is VERY much out of the way from Hillwood." he said, as he took a seat across from her. "So what made you come out here?"

Unable to respond to his obvious combat to her words, Helga couldn't help but look him up and down. Her eyes examined every feature of his matured face. His eyes still contained the kindness she remembered, but his body had changed dramatically. Broad shoulders and semi-muscular arms replaced the thin ones she remembered. And Helga could clearly make out his defined chest and stomach through his shirt, even in the dim lighting. 'I guess living in the jungle for years can do wonders to a body…' she thought.

Unsatisfied with the silence between them, Arnold got up and poured the girl a cup of warm coffee. The hut was small, enough for one person. And Helga was surprised that even in the middle of the rainforest, Arnold had managed to keep some of the commodities from back home. She accepted the coffee happily, shaking at the feeling of her fingers brushing his as she took the warm mug in her hands.

Arnold's blush deepened when his eyes unconsciously traveled to her chest. Helga had definitely… filled in since he last saw her, and her wet shirt wasn't helping him avert his gaze.

He walked over to grab his jacket and placed it around Helga's shoulders. "How long has it been since that day…?" he asked, more to himself than her, as he sat down once more.

Almost as if she had been waiting for this question, Helga responded instantly, "Fourteen years."

Surprised, he looked up at her. Her head drooped down to watch her reflection in the dark liquid. Taking another sip, she ran a hand through her damp hair. Her heart was pounding in her chest. It was so loud, she worried he could hear it, and inhaled deeply in order to calm herself. "It's been fourteen years since-...since you decided to stay here…in San Lorenzo."

"Helga," he eyed her, "I'm surprised you remem-"

Helga could feel herself slipping out of her composure with every word, "Of COURSE I would remember the day you decided to KISS me and walk out of my life!" she yelled out of nowhere, dropping the cup as she stood up in anger. It shattered into pieces as soon as it hit the wood floor. "Of course I would remember the school trip where the feelings I had kept for all of my childhood were finally reciprocated… And then you decided to STAY here. So I went back home… I went back to Hillwood with the memory of the only love of my miserable existence."

"H-Helga I-"

"You want to know why I came here?" she said softly, a tear threatening to run down her cheek. "I came here, because… I couldn't live without you, Arnold. But it seems you don't feel the same."

Unable to find the words, all Arnold could do was watch as she picked up the broken shards of ceramic. Her movements were so quick as she disregarded the sharpness of the shards. He wanted to stop her, knowing she would only hurt herself. Hearing her wince in pain, he quickly knelt down before her and took her hand. The shards falling to the floor once more.

Blood trickled from her index finger and Arnold grabbed a small cloth from his desk to wrap it around the wound. "You're so reckless…" he whispered sweetly, and ran his thumb across her thumb. Hid gaze causing her heart to ram against her chest. Her cheeks burning in a hot blush.

Taking her hand back in embarrassment, Helga stood back up and walked out of the hut. Arnold's eyes followed her as she disappeared out the door.

"Way to go, Pataki." she said to herself as she sat alone on the stoop. The rain seemed to be clearing up, trickling quietly overhead. "You came ALL this way…and then you yell at him..?"

Arnold silently stepped out behind her as she was lost in self-conversation.

"You walk for DAYS just to blow-up at him?!" her hands instinctively wiped away her tears which now streamed violently. Lost in the tears, Helga didn't even notice Arnold take a seat next to her, taking her by surprise as he set a his hand on her shoulder.

She looked up to meet his eyes, which showed a concern she had often seen him show for his friends as a child. The familiar look sent her heart into a spiral. The pounding clouded her mind and she felt herself melt in his gaze.

His voice, a much deeper version of what she could remember, seemed to melt her. "Helga… you walked all the way here?"

"N-no!" she retorted nervously, "of course I didn't, football-head! I flew here, you moron, and then I walked...here." pointing to the ground before them.

"Why didn't you ask one of the villagers for a ride?"

"Because I wanted to get here on my own!" Of course, she didn't want to tell him that she was unaware that getting a ride was even an option. "...as soon as I got off of the plane, all I wanted to do was see you."

Arnold cleared his throat, "So… what made you decided to suddenly come see me? And… why so urgent?"

She looked up at the tall trees ahead of her and spoke softly, "It wasn't suddenly, Arnold…I had been wanting to see you every day. Arnold I would wake up in the morning and worry about how you. I would tell myself that you would decide to come home 'any day now'... and…you never did."

"I'm sorry…"

"Eventually I gave up on waiting for you, Arnold." she said with a little more confidence, "I decided to start dating, but… that never worked out."

He looked at her, curious as to why, "What do you mean?"

"I couldn't… feel… anything… with anyone. I always wound up alone, because I couldn't even let them touch me. I-I-I would REVERT back to mean-old Helga and cause them to hate me. I would say no, and push them all away. I wouldn't even let them hold my HAND! And then one wouldn't take no for an answer and he-!" She gasped as she realized she had said more than she wanted to. Her head felt as if it were about to explode.

Noticing the hurt in her eyes, Arnold put an arm around her, hoping to comfort her in some way. He could tell she wanted to spill all of her pain, but was afraid to. "Helga, it's okay… you can talk to me…"

Helga shook her head violently, recalling her past, "Arnold, this guy… I told him no… I didn't want him to, but he forced himself on me…" she let her head hang in shame, "I would have beaten the crap out of the guy, but… in that moment, I… I was scared, Arnold. My brain was shut down in that moment and…"

Embracing her tightly, Arnold let her sob into his shoulder. His mind wandered to the horrors that she must have endured and let her pain overcome him. "It's alright now, Helga…" he said softly, "I'm so sorry that happened…" he could feel his heart being ripped in two.

"My parents…" she continued between the sobs, "...they fought over what happened… Bob thought I was a slut… and Miriam, she- Arnold, I couldn't take it anymore!"

He tried to hush her gently, but she continued.

"I put all of my savings into a flight to San Lorenzo, and left, because I knew the ONE thing that could POSSIBLY keep me from taking my own life…!" she looked up at him, her eyes now red and puffy from her tears, "...was you, Arnold." she breathed in deeply as their eyes met.

Arnold's hand traveled up to cradle the back of her head gently and rested his forehead on hers, "Helga… I-"

"I missed you, Arnold."

"...I missed you too, Helga. I spent so long thinking over my feelings for you, realizing just how much you meant to me. I was an idiot to abandon you after all of that. After telling you how I felt. Fourteen years, Helga… for fourteen years I wanted to write you a letter, or go see you, but when I finally decided to do so, I felt it was too late. I told myself you had probably already moved on. That you were upset with me and hated me for staying here… I was such an idiot...I'm sorry…I'm sorry tha-"

She reached up to cup his face in her hands, "I love you, Arnold."

"...I love you too, Helga." he said before kissing her sweetly, "I won't leave you anymore…"

The rain finally cleared up, and the sun began to peek out from behind the clouds. The two sat in a silent embrace, Helga's heart finally at peace in the arms of the boy she's loved for so long.

Moonlight: I don't think I've ever written a one-shot fic before, but I gave it a go! This scenario was a reoccurring thought and I finally decided to put it on paper-errr-text. :)