Disclaimer: I do not own Hey Arnold or any of the characters. Hey Arnold is the property of Nickelodeon and Craig Bartlett.

Overprotective

Hillwood

2025

It was a sunny Saturday afternoon in the town of Hillwood, and many children were outside playing, laughing and just having a good time either skate boarding, playing on their electronic devices or just chilling out.

In a nice, two story house in this town, a certain young boy was planning on doing all of the above.

"SATURDAY ROCKS!...'Andy shouted in glee as he grabbed his bike helmet and started running down the hall.

Today he had planned to go over to Kiara's house so they could ride their bikes, play at the park, get some ice cream later and just have a good time today and nothing is going to spoil his perfect Saturday with his best friend.

"Andy! Stop that..." A strict voice shouted.

Andy sighed as he turned around to see his mother, Helga Shortman, crossing her arms and looking at him strictly.

"What mom?...'Andy asked.

"You know not to run inside the house, especially near the stairs...you could trip and break a bone...'She said.

Andy sighed as he slowly walked down the stairs as his mother watched him carefully.

Once he was at the ground, his mother approached him.

"So what's got you all so full of energy?...'His mother asked.

"I want to ride my bike over to Kiara's and then go to the park with her..." Andy said to his mother.

"Andy, the park is in the center of town, over 10 miles from here...'His mother said.

"So?...'Andy asked in a clueless tone.

"It's too far away for you two to go by yourselves...If you want, I'll drive you both there and you can ride your bikes through the park..."Helga said.

"Mom!I thought you had to finish your short stories...'Andy said.

"I managed to finish it last night, so my day is free...not to mention I think your brother and sister could enjoy the park today...'Helga said and her son looked dismay.

He wanted to just hang out with Kiara, not have his mother hover over him, and have him deal with his little sister and baby brother's whining too!

I'm 9 years old...I don't need to be hovered over..." Andy whined.

"Andy, according to both the law and me, 9 years is too young to go places unsupervised, young man..." Helga said strictly.

"What's going on here?..." Andy's father, Arnold suddenly appeared with baby Henry in his arms.

"Our son wants to go to the park with Kiara and I am just telling him that I will drive him there...'Helga said, while Andy pouted.

"Dad, tell mom that I can go there by myself..."Andy said in a pleading way to his dad.

He's the only one that can ever seem to reason with his mom and she'd actually LISTEN.

"Sorry champ, but you are too young...And besides, it's a gorgeous day, I think a trip to the park would be nice..."Arnold said, while Henry giggled in his arms.

Andy frowned in frustration when his father said that. So much for men having each other's backs...

"Mommy! Daddy! Where's Mimi?...'His little sister Megan came in running.

"I think you left her in your toy chest, angel..." Helga said as she pointed to the box.

The little 5 year old girl when there and was happy to see her favorite dolly sticking out.

'There you are!...'She said cheerfully as she hugged her dolly tightly.

"Now come along baby, we are going to the park..."Helga sad, though to Andy, it sounded more like an order.

"YAY!...'She cheered happily.

"Darn it..."Andy muttered as he sighed as he realized now that this is going to be a family outing and not just hanging with Kiara alone like he wants too.

"Now what else could happen?...'The boy thought.

"Almost forgot, it's pretty hot outside..." He heard his mother say and the boy flinched when he saw her rummaging through a drawer.

"No..."Andy whined as he saw his mother pull out a bottle of sunscreen, along with some mosquito repellent and approached him.

"Hold still, Andy..." His mother ordered.

"But Mom! I don't need that junk..." Andy said as he tried to back away, only to get corner to a wall.

"No "buts" mister...It's hot today and I don't want to risk you absorbing those awful UV rays..." Helga said as she squirted the sunblock on her hand and soon rubbed it all over her oldest child's face, neck and arms, any part that had visible skin showing. Once done, Andy held his breath when she blasted the bug spray all over him.

"Oh, I smell like a dweeb...'Andy said as he referred to his current state.

"No you don't...You look like you are gonna be well protected..."Arnold said as he rubbed the sunscreen on Megan, who didn't put up much of a fuss.

"This stuff smells funny, daddy..." Megan commented.

"It's just going to make sure your skin doesn't get burn by the harsh sun rays today...mommy and daddy don't want you to risk getting sun burned, after all...'Arnold said to his daughter while Helga put the repellent on her.

"Or for those icky, nasty, yucky bugs to try biting you three..."Helga said to her daughter.

"Andy, don't forget your helmet, knee pads, elbow pads and the works..."His mother said as she turned to work on Henry.

"Yes, mom...'Andy sighed as he resigned to the fact that he was gonna be stuck with his folks and siblings all day all the park.

Whether he likes it or not...

Later

The Shortman Family were inside his mothers SUV, which she purchased around the time Henry was born. Andy was in the middle, his arms crossed, while Henry was in his car seat on his left, playing with his toy keys and Megan was on his right, looking out of the window to distract herself.

They soon arrived to the Johanssen residence, where Kiara was waiting for him with her bike all prepared.

As his parents talked to her parents about the upcoming plans, Andy talked to Kiara.

"I thought it was just going to be the two of us..."Kiara said.

"Turns on mom had free time today...and got into her protectiveness fits again...'Andy sighed, while Kiara sent him a smile.

"Well, at the very least we can ride our bikes through the park, so there's that..."Kiara said,trying to look on the bright side.

Soon Andy's parents came, but with the addition of Kiki, who is giggling with Megan.

"Kiki is coming too?..."Andy asked out loud.

"You get to bring a friend...I get to do that too...'Megan said with her arms crossed, while Kiki giggled.

Andy resisted the urge to roll his eyes. What he hoped would have been a simple afternoon with his best friend turned into a duel family outing with their families.

"Let's just go..."Andy said as he got inside the SUV, with Kiara following him. Since Helga's SUV is pretty big, they were able to fit everyone inside and were soon off to the park for an afternoon of "family fun".

Yeah, right...

At the park

The group soon arrived to the park and Arnold and Helga sat at a bench, they placed Henry in the nearby sandbox to play in, Megan and Kiki were to the jungle gym to play and Andy and Kiara mounted their bikes, with their safety gear on.

"Sorry my folks insisted on turning this into this..."Andy sighed as he put his helmet on.

"Hey, don't worry...You know I love your parents and I don't really mind...besides, at the very least, we can still ride through the park..."Kiara said to her best friend who nodded.

The two kids mounted on their bikes and began riding on on the bike path, enjoying the activity...or they would have, had Helga not appeared and block them a bit.

"Not so fast..."Helga said in a sing-song voice.

"Mom, what is it?..."Andy asked.

"Did you strap yourself tight well...tight enough to stay on but not too tight as to cut off circulation..."Helga asked as she examined him, much to Andy's embarrassment.

"Yes, mom...I'm not five years old, I can put my helmet and knee pads on right...'Andy said, not daring to look at Kiara right now.

"Just wanted to be sure, angel...what about you Kiara?...'Helga asked her Goddaughter, who smiled at her.

"Everything is alright, auntie Helga..."Kiara said as she showed herself.

They might not be blood related, but Helga is Kiara's godmother and she has known her all her life. She's practically a second mother to her.

"That's good, well...you two have fun...and no riding out of the park..."Helga said as she went back to the bench where she came from.

All the while, Andy felt his face flushed.

"Sorry about that...you know how mom can be..."Andy sighed.

"Please, compared to my mom, yours is tame...remember the time my mom made us camp in the living room because she thought the backyard would have been too cold for us..."Kiara said to her best friend who nodded.

"Is it just me, or are all moms programed to go crazy every time a kid tries to do something out of the house?...'Andy asked sarcastically.

"Outside the house?..."Kiara asked with a raised eyebrow and Andy realized her point there.

"Let's forget about it and ride..."Andy said.

The two kids soon began to ride their bikes, finally getting to enjoy the activity, while Andy's parents watched them at a distance.

With Helga and Arnold

"No, no...Henry-kins...no...we don't put that icky, dirty shovel in our mouths...'Helga said as she took the shovel from her baby, who looked like he was about to cry.

Only to stop when Helga handed him his favorite toy keys, his favorite toy of them all.

"Here baby, do you wants to play with your keys...do you? do you?...'Helga cooed to him and Henry immediately smile.

"Ba...ga...ga...ba...goo...."Henry babbled in excitement as Helga handed him his favorite toy and didn't even notice that his mother took the shovel away and started cleaning it.

She then heard her husband's frantic voice.

"No Megan, get down from there!..."Was heard.

Helga immediately picked up Henry, rushed to the jungle gym and nearly had a panic attack at what she was seeing.

"Megan Gertrude Shortman! Get down from there immediately!..."Helga shouted.

It seems her daughter wasn't satisfy with just sliding down the jungle gyms slide or playing with it's features. She is now standing on the top of the monkey bars and how she got up there, she will never know.

Arnold climbed up the bars, grabbed his their daughter and placed her on the ground, with a worried Helga about to scold her.

"Megan, that was very dangerous, you're too little for the monkey bars, much less standing on them... what were you thinking, young lady?...'Helga demanded.

"I'm sorry mommy...me and Kiki were playing hide and seek, and...well...I thought if I was up there...she couldn't get me..."Megan said, looking down, due to her mother's eyes.

"Megan, I don't want you to ever do anything like that again...that was very dangerous...promise me that you will never do anything like that again...'Helga said.

"Yes, mommy..."Megan said.

"Where is Kiki?..."Arnold asked as he looked around and Helga almost panicked again.

"Oh my! Kiki?!..."Helga shouted.

To her immense relief, she saw her other goddaughter, appear from behind the jungle gym, which means that she is safe.

"Are you okay, Megan?...'Kiki asked her best friend.

"Yes, I'm okay..."Megan said softly.

"That's a relief...'Arnold said, glad that neither of them are hurt.

"I am glad that neither of you got hurt, but remember, I don't want that kind of horseplay anymore...got it?..."Helga asked.

"Yes..."Megan and Kiki said in union.

"That's more like it, now come along, it's almost lunch time anyway...Arnold, can you help me set up the picnic table?...'Helga asked her husband.

"Yes, dear..."Arnold said as he and his family went to do just that.

With Andy and Megan

The two kids came riding back after circling the park a few times and saw that Andy's parents were setting up for lunch, since his mother decided to bring some food, turning this into a picnic too, among other things.

"You both just made it in time...it's lunch time...'Arnold said after he placed a table cloth on the park

"Alright...'Andy said, pleased.

As overprotective as his mom can get, she is a great cook and he saw that she made some grilled cheese sandwiches.

His favorite...

"Awesome, I'm starving...'Kiara said as she took off her helmet and pads and sat at the table.

"Did you wash your hands and use the hand sanitizer?...'Helga asked before any of them could eat.

Andy blinked, having forgot about that.

"I did mommy, see...see..."Megan said as she proudly displayed her clean hands, while she sent a smug look to her brother, who eye rolled.

"Mom...'Andy said.

"Wash your hands...you too Kiara..."Helga ordered.

"Yes, auntie..."Kiara said.

About 2 minutes later, Andy and Kiara came back, hand's washed and they put on the sanitizer Helga insist that they use at every chance

"Washing hands I can live with, but the hand sanitizer...'Andy thought as he finally took a big bite out of his sandwich and then took a sip of the ice tea his mom also packed.

He just continued to ate, while his mom was thankful too busy feeling Henry to fuss over him right now.

He loves her...he really does...but she can get a little too protective at times...

Later

After lunch, Andy and Kiara weren't allowed to keep riding their bikes, because of what Andy's mother just said.

"You guys just ate too much...wait a while or you guys will get a cramp..."Helga said to them.

Andy sighed and decided to just go and sit under a shady tree since Kiara went to go check on her little sister who was having trouble reading the drinking fountain.

Leaving Andy all alone.

Sure, maybe this wasn't a bad day...he at least got to ride his bike a bit and got to eat a grilled cheese sandwich, but it's kind of hard to have fun with your best friend when your parents, especially your mother, has to pop in every five minutes just to check and see you didn't break something while walking on the grass or whatever.

"Some Saturday..."Andy sighed.

Suddenly, he noticed a shadow casting on him. He looked up and saw that it's his mother Helga, who looked at him with a curious expression on her face.

"Okay, what's wrong?...'Helga asked as she sat down next to him.

"What are you talking about?...'Andy asked and Helga gave him a look.

"Andy, I am your mother...I know everything about you and I know you aren't having fun...so what's wrong?...'Helga asked.

"I thought you knew everything about me...'Andy said sarcastically and his mother sent him an annoyed look.

"Andrew...'Helga said in a serious tone and Andy sighed.

"Mom...don't take this the wrong way...but I kind of just wanted to spend the day with Kiara...just the two of us...not making this a family thing...'Andy sighed.

Helga looked surprised, until an interested look came on to her face.

"You and Kiara?...you mean like on a date?...'Helga asked and her son had a startled look on his face and his cheeks turned red.

'NO WAY!...'He shouted, only to retract when he realized his outburst.

"No...no way...me and Kiara are just friends...why would you think that?...'Andy said insistently while Helga tried not to giggle.

"My poor little boy...still unaware of his own heart..."Helga thought in amusement, while she decided to let him save his face.

"My mistake..."Helga said as she held her hands up, and Andy's blush soon faded away, though he still looked a bit flustered.

"So, what's the matter?..."Helga asked again in a more serious tone.

"I love hanging out with you and dad...but a kid has got to spend time with his friends...alone...and well...it's kind of hard to do that when you pop in on us every five minutes...'Andy said.

"I love you mom, but I'm almost 10 and I don't need you to check and see if I strapped my helmet on right, used my hand sanitizer or whatever... I think I'm old enough to do that by myself...you hear me...'Andy said in a fragile voice, hoping she wouldn't get mad, or worse, get sad over what he just said.

However, to his surprise, his mom didn't look upset...if anything, she still has that smile on her face.

'Oh, so that's what this was all about..."Helga said as she understood now.

"What?...'Andy asked.

"Andy, if you wanted a little space, why didn't you say something earlier?..'Helga asked her oldest son, who looked away.

"I try, but sometimes when you get too into what you do...I wasn't sure how to say it..."Andy said as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Well, you could have said what you said just now..."The mother said to her oldest child, before looking away, with a sheepish look on her face as well.

"Look Andy, I know that maybe sometimes I can get a little carried away with you, your brother and your sister but I only do it because I love you three and I just want to help and make sure that you guys are well..."Helga said to her oldest child who sent her a smile at that.

"I know mom...I know...I just want a little... breathing room is all..."Andy admitted to his mom, who giggled.

"Look Andy, I know that you are a smart kid and you aren't weak..but I am serious when I say that I don't want you being too far from the house by yourself...there are a lot of bad people out there and I don't want to leave you alone...at least until you're older and I know you can protect yourself...but maybe I did act a little fussy today...'Helga admitted.

"A little?..."Andy thought but wisely kept quiet, while his mother continued talking.

"Look, how's this? if you promise to stay close by for me or your dad to see while you guys play, I guess I can let you handle yourself...how's that?...'Helga asked her son who smiled widely at that.

"I can totally live with that...thanks mom..."Andy said as he hugged his mother, who smiled and hugged him back.

Suddenly they heard some music and saw the Jolly Ollie man driving nearby in his truck.

"Why don't we go get some ice cream for us and the others?..."Helga offered and Andy smiled widely and nodded.

The mother and soon soon got the ice cream, went back to their family and friends and soon the Shortmans and the Johanssen girls were enjoying some nice, tasty, cold ice cream on this nice Saturday afternoon.

Andy was enjoying it the most. While at times, he does complain that his parents can get too involved in his life at times, deep down, he doesn't hate spending time with his family. Quite the opposite really.

He loves his family and he loves spending time with them...to a point, that is.

But right now, during times like this one, he is happy that they are here...

The End

:) Till next time beautiful people, remember to read and review :)