Hey, there. Characters belong to Craig Bartlett of the Hey, Arnold! Franchise. I love Shortaki, but in the process, pairings may shift behind the scenes. In this AU, it is Arnold's first year at his new school. He's a junior who's spent most of his life in a jungle. He's been at the school for the past three months, and now the Future Academics of America club is having a field trip.

"Now, we're going to need to pair off. On the second floor, Sid and Stinky; Nadine and Rhonda; Sheena and Patty. On the third floor, Harold and Brainy; Eugene and Curly; Lila and Ruth. On the fourth floor, Phoebe and Helga; Lorenzo and Iggy; Gerald and Arnold. I'll be on the ground floor in a cot room. Now, let's everyone go to your rooms, and tomorrow we can start an exciting new day!"

Not two hours into sharing a room with his new best friend Gerald, Phoebe had walked in. Gerald had slipped her his key card while they rode in the elevator. Phoebe makes a futile smile and wave in Arnold's direction before dancing around Gerald. The tall boy could hardly contain his excitement, and his pants pitching a tent certainly proved it. He'd grabbed the pillow from Arnold's bed and chucked it at the blonde boy.

"Get!"

"What am I supposed to"

"Don't care." Gerald hissed, grabbing a key card Phoebe hands over. "Phoebe's bed's open. Go bunk with Pataki."

Arnold is quickly ushered out of his room holding his blanket, pillow and key card. He blinks at the closed door and finally heaves a sigh when he hears muffled box springs through the wall. Cautiously, Arnold moves down the hall to Pataki's room. They haven't had much interaction, aside from her calling him by his last name. Evidently, this is something she does with everyone minus Phoebe and adults. Upon reaching her door, he decides against using the key. Arnold raises a fist to knock, but then he lowers it. He raises his fist again, and he lowers it once more. He wonders silently to himself whether he should just sleep in the hall until morning. Lost in his thoughts, he doesn't notice when the door opens. A blonde girl wearing a hot pink tank top and blue cutoff shorts leans on the doorframe.

"Get kicked out?"

Arnold's face flushes and he awkwardly rubs the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Yeah… do you mind if I?"

"Sleep in here tonight?" She finishes his thought. "Go for it, Shortman."

He grins and moves forward. Pataki leaves for the bathroom, leaving Arnold to gape at the bedroom. It looks the same as his and Gerald's – with one very big difference.

"Uh, Pataki?"

"Yeah?" She shouts over the running water.

"There's only one bed!"

"Duh-doi!" There's an awkward pause and she continues. "Just set your crap on one side of my bed. We're both sixteen, yeah?"

"Uh… yeah!"

"Then quit being a wuss and put your shit on my bed!"

Arnold winces at her bluntness. Not wanting to make the rebellious class bully mad, he sets his pillow on the bed. He moves her blanket down, adding his as well. He starts patting himself down, and he realizes he doesn't have any pajamas. He begins to pace, debating whether he should return to Gerald's room or even ask the blonde for clothes. She catches him doing this, wearing a pink robe that cuts off at the knees and wringing out her hair.

"What? Don't got nothing to sleep in?"

He blushes for the second time that night. "Err… no."

She shrugs, reaching into her suitcase and tossing out a pair of boxers. Arnold catches them awkwardly. "You want me to wear these?"

She rolls her eyes. "No, eat the damn things. Yes, wear them. Bathroom's free."

He scrambles to the bathroom and locks the door. Arnold isn't used to this, at all. Nervous, he strips to his underwear, awkwardly looking himself over in the full mirror. He adjusts his hat and pulls on the boxer shorts, slightly shocked they fit his skinny frame. Taking a few deep breaths, he walks out. The blonde is sat on their bed, wearing only a white bra and graphic boxer shorts. She's typing on her laptop.

"Uh, when do you want to go to bed, Pataki?"

"Don't care." She shrugs, shutting the laptop and placing it back in her suitcase. "You?"

"I'm, uh, I'm kinda tired."

"Hop in."

Arnold climbs into the bed, getting settled beneath his cover. Pataki climbs under the covers as well. She reaches for the light but then turns back to the blonde she doesn't trust well.

"Don't roll over and don't get up unless you think you're going to piss your pants. If you touch me or sleep on me, you're going to lose a body part. We clear?"

Arnold blushes yet again. "G-Got it, Pataki."

"Good." She shuts off the light and settles into the bed. "Night, Shortman."

Helga Pataki wakes up from a shift in the bed. She looks over for her phone to check the time. When she finds it with her hand, she notices there is a pressure on her chest. Three am. Looking down and expecting the worst, she instead finds quite an innocent view. The blonde boy is fast asleep on her chest, arm draped across the bed. Not finding anything more pressing, Helga smiles to herself and allows herself to fall back asleep.

At seven am, Arnold wakes up. He's confused at first where he is. Once he remembers the previous night, he also realizes his pillow is breathing. Carefully, he withdraws his arm. So far; so good. Hesitantly, Arnold sits up in bed. When he looks back at his 'pillow', he sees bright blue eyes boring a hole into his green eyes. Biting his lip, he meets her gaze. Arnold blushes again.

"I'm, I'm sorry." He stammers.

He moves to get up, but Helga snatches his wrist. "Tell anyone about last night, and you die, Arnoldo."

The boy gulp but he also notices what she calls him. He doesn't say anything about it, and instead agrees to her terms. She lets him go, and he redresses himself in yesterday's clothes. When he comes out of the bathroom looking disheveled, Helga is sat in bed sans a bra, and Arnold shrieks. He runs out the door, hitting Phoebe. She also looks disheveled, though for a different reason. She waves before running inside the room and slamming the door shut. Arnold sighs and walks down to his and Gerald's door. With no key card, he knocks on the door. Gerald opens with a shit-eating grin.

"Get lucky?"

What are the accurate feelings and emotions behind that night?