A/N: Conichiwa! You may have noticed my love for greeting you all in different languages. Well... Then you also must have noticed my complete lack of caring that it's spelled wrong. XD
Anyhoo, here is my first song fic. The song fits Helga almost TOO perfectly, and this is one of my very favoritest songs EVER! :D *Giggles like a maniac*
So here we go...
Disclaimer: I don't own the song, or Hey Arnold! But I really wish I did!!!!!!!!!! *Sobs violently*
Complicated
Song-Fic
Ring Ring
"Hello?" A ten-year-old Helga answered rather violently, feeling highly irritated.
"Konichiwa, Helga."
Helga softened a little, and began massaging her temple rhythmically with her free hand as she sat on her bed. "Oh, heya, Pheebs. What's up?"
Phoebe was about to respond when Helga cut her off again.
"And not in Japanese, Pheebs. It's been a rough day."
Phoebe nodded, although she knew Helga couldn't see. "Well, I'm very sorry to say that I'm calling with bad news, Helga."
Helga slouched still, her expression tired. "Perfect." She said dryly, sighing. "Well... What is it?"
"Well... I'm sorry to say that I can't go with you to Dino Land tomorrow... I have other plans that I forgot about."
Helga sat up. "What kind of plans?" She asked, suddenly alert and annoyed, as her eyes were narrowed and her free hand was on her hip.
Phoebe became worried. She knew that tone of voice. "My father is taking me to the Museum of Natural History. They have a new exhibit that-"
"PHOEBE! YOU'RE DITCHING ME SO YOU CAN GO TO SOME BORING OLD MUSEUM?!?!" Helga raged.
~Chill out, Wha'cha yellin' for?~
Helga softened immediately. "Oh, you're right, Pheebs. I shouldn't have yelled at you just because you want to spend some quality time with your dad."
~Lay back, it's all been done before~
Helga became confused, and raised half her eyebrow through the phone. "Phoebe, it's only four PM. I'm not going to lay back. And what's been done before?"
"Helga, I'm afraid I haven't said a word since-"
~And if you could only let it be... You will see~
Helga tuned Phoebe out to listen to where that music was coming from. "Shh, shh, Pheebs. I've gotta go."
"So you're not mad, Helga?"
"No, no. Go do what you want. We'll go another time. Bye." She didn't even let Phoebe say goodbye before hanging up. She stood, straining her hearing.
~I like you the way you are, when we're driving in your car~
Helga stuck her head out the window, hearing the music coming from somewhere down the road. She leaned out further, trying to see if anyone was dancing or something, before falling out. "WAAAAAAA!"
~And you're talking to me... one on one, but you've become~
Helga got up out of the bush, spitting some leaves out of her mouth from falling in the bush. She had little leaves all up in her hair too, but she ignored that, and climbed out of the bush.
She ran down the sidewalk, listening for where the music could be coming from. She looked around, hitting people by accident in her rush and saying she was sorry, along with a few "Watch it, lady"'s and "One side"'s tossed in there, albeit not as venomously as usual.
~Somebody else, 'round everyone else~
Helga passed by Gerald Field, listening to see if the music was coming from anyone there. Everyone waved at her in a friendly manner, and Stinky asked, "Would'ja like to join us, Miss Helga?"
Helga instantly went into bully mode, and scowled venomously at them all. "No, Stinko! Why would I wanna play with a bunch of losers like you?!" She yelled back, causing everyone to shrug and go back to playing.
~You're watchin' your back, like you can't relax~
Helga began running back down the sidewalk, and crashed into a little old lady. She gasped in horror as the poor woman crumpled to the ground. Helga quickly checked her surroundings, in a rather paranoid manner, before helping the poor lady up.
"I'm sorry, lady. I should have watched where I was go-" She looked behind herself quick, to make sure no one was there, before smiling back at the little old lady. "-ing."
The woman smiled appreciatively and patted the girl on the head. "You're a good little girl." She said sweetly, before continuing her slow treck back down the sidewalk.
Helga looked ahead of herself again, straining to hear the music again before running back down the road.
~You're tryin' to be cool, ya look like a fool to me~
Helga ran passed Green Meats, Mrs. Vitello's Flower Shop, and many other old timey looking buildings, a determined gleam in her eye as she went.
She swerved, feeling panicked when she noticed Gerald running right at her down the opposite side of the sidewalk. He looked panicked too and swerved also, which only caused them both to crash into eachother.
They fell to the ground, and Helga scowled at Gerald.
He just rolled his eyes and got up, offering her a hand.
She ignored it and got up by herself, growling at him. "Watch where your going, Geraldo!"
He just looked at her with a blank look, his eyes half-lidded in boredom, having expected that response from her. He blinked, and then went walking away, not even caring that she was yelling after him.
"Anyone could've seen that I was running there! Yeah, you better go! No one crashes into Helga G. Pataki and gets away with it... YEAH, YOU BETTER RUN!"
~Tell me, why do you have to go and make things so complicated, I see the way you're acting like your somebody else gets me frustrated, Life's like this, you~
It was about now, as she neared the source of the music, that the lyrics began to get to her. Who was she? Someone who got people angry and frustrated. That's who. But that was who she pretended to be... Who was she really? She sighed as she stopped abruptly and put her face in her hands.
"I don't even think I know anymore..."
She heard the tune of the song again suddenly... and it sounded so close. She looked up, and suddenly realized... she was in front of Arnold's house, and the music was coming from the roof top.
She ran to the fire escape, and began climbing up the ladder, listening to the lyrics as she went.
~And you fall-~
As Helga was climbing, one of the bars on the ladder broke, and she lost her balance. She fell off, screaming in defiance as she waved her arms around. She landed right in a trash can, and a cat was heard yelping.
~-and you crawl-~
Helga pushed the trash can over, so she could crawl out, covered in garbage, and a banana peel resting on her head. She growled and picked it up off her head gracefully, before throwing it violently behind her. A cat was heard yelping again, but she didn't care.
~-and you break-~
Helga began climbing the ladder again, grumbling to herself angrily as she went. She came to the part where it had broke, and carefully reached her hand up, testing the next bar for safety. She smiled as she tugged it, and it didn't budge. She pulled herself up, and was about to pass said bar, as her foot settled on it... but it broke under the weight of her foot, and she yelped in surprise and held fast the bars she held now for dear life.
~And you take what you get, and you turn it into~
She let out a sigh of relief and climbed up further, before finally making it to the landing. She pulled herself up, and looked to see Arnold's window open, with the radio blaring that song. She smiled, knowing it was a song her beloved apparently liked and climbed the remainder of the ladder to get herself up on the actual roof. She crept over to his skylight to see what he was doing. She looked down at him, to see him laying on his bed, his eyes closed, seeming to be deep in thought as he listened to the lyrics of the song closely.
She watched in fascination as he opened his eyes slowly. She ducked down a bit, so he wouldn't notice her.
He didn't as he just stared up at a cloud, feeling highly confused.
She may have not caught him being naked, or in the process of bowing down to his "Helga shrine", but she'd take what she could get... which was gazing at him lovingly as he just laid there, still deeply in thought of... something.
~Honesty, promise me I'm never gonna find you fake it... no, no, no~
Just as the end of the line was blaring, he shook his head in time with it, before getting up and walking over to his desk. He picked up a little pink book and flipped through it quick, before shutting it and placing it back down gently. He let out a sigh and walked over to his closet, where he pulled out a little red pump. He looked at it, a irritated look on his face before he spoke, though Helga couldn't quite hear over the music, especially since his voice was so quiet.
"Why, Helga? What is it with you? You're so... confusing." He said, staring at the shoe, before throwing it back into his closet with some force.
~You come over unnanounced~
The window suddenly fell open, causing Helga to fall through, and land right on top of Arnold.
He looked up at her, alarmed as she laid on top him, her eyes wide also.
"Uhhhhh..." Was what came from her mouth, as she wasn't sure what to do, and feeling completely numb with panic.
He blinked at her, seeing her so close. It made him a little uncomfortable, and he shifted, trying to give her the sign to get off. He had never seen her eyes so close, though... never noticed how amazingly blue they were... which only made him more uncomfortable... uncomfortable with how comfortable he was.
She laughed nervously, and got off of him, her eyes still wide as she now stood there, stiffly.
~Dressed up like you're something else~
Arnold got up after, and observed how she looked, not quite sure what to make of it.
He cleared his throat. "Why are you-..." He said, gesturing at her clothing, and looking away awkwardly.
She blinked, and looked down at herself, seeing that her dress was ripped, and one of the straps of her jumper was also broken. She was covered in trash, and one of her pigtails was dead, and hanging lifelessly on her shoulder. Her bow was askew too, and her hair had leaves all up in it.
She looked at herself in horror, and looked back at him, then back down at herself. "Um.. long story." She laughed nervously, before making a beeline for the indented stairs leading back up to the roof, to escape from this nightmare.
Arnold grabbed her arm though, refusing to let her leave. "You were watching me, weren't you?" He asked, looking at her.
She looked back at him, and then looked away. "I'll stop... I was just curious where the music was coming from." She said, the ending a little rushed.
Arnold nodded, and looked at his radio.
~Where you are and where you sat, you see... you're making me~
He walked over to it, not letting go of her as she simply followed, feeling a little helpless.
He turned the music down, so it wasn't blaring now. It was rather soft now, but you could still hear the lyrics pretty clearly.
She had to ask, "I thought you only liked jazz..."
He looked back at her, and nodded. "I do... But I just couldn't stop thinking... so I hoped some new music might get my mind off of... what happened." He said awkwardly, looking away uncomfortably, still holding her arm so she wouldn't try to escape.
"Oh..." She knew what he was talking about. But why wouldn't he let her go? He didn't want to talk about it now, did he?!?!
She cleared her throat, and managed to swiftly pull her arm out of his grip. "Well... did it work?" She asked, laughing a little nervously, and smiling like an idiot. Well... she certainly felt like one.
He began rubbing the back of his neck, avoiding her eyes. "Made it worse, actually." He finally made eye contact with her, and stopped rubbing his neck.
Her eyes were so nervous and scared... He had never seen her eyes look so open. Not since the incident... on top of that building. Her eyes were awfully open and blue then too, but he hadn't really thought about it...
He began getting nervous again, and looked away. "It reminded me a lot about..." He groaned and looked back at her, pursing his lips together in a straight line in aggravation. "Why do you always have to... be so confusing?" He asked, his eyes wide with utter confusion as he looked at her.
~Laugh out, when you strike your pose, take off all your preppy clothes~
She was alarmed by his reaction. Was she really that hard to figure out? She mentally snorted at that. Well, duh. She confused even herself sometimes.
She felt a little awkward standing there, talking about such a delicate subject with THE subject. She avoided eye contact as she began picking all the leaves out of her hair and letting them fall to the ground carelessly, then began dusting herself off of all the debris and dirt from the garbage can. She groaned quietly when she came back to her hair. She'd have to take it all the way down to put it back up decently. She took down her other pigtail, and ran her fingers through her hair absentmindedly.
Arnold eyes widened when she had her hair down. She looked kinda... nice. Well, really nice. How the light kind of glimmered across her golden hair and-
He shook his head, feeling odd about the situation.
She began putting her hair back up neatly, and smiled a little at her accomplishment before finally looking back at Arnold. He seemed disturbed by something... She blinked, and took a deep breath before replying. "It's... complicated."
~You know, you're not fooling anyone, when you become~
He scowled lightly at her, putting his hands on his hips as he looked at her. "Helga..."
She scowled back, her eyes glowing with false hatred and venom. "Oh, just come off of it, Football Head! What is it with you and wanting to help people all the time? Well, news flash, bucko, I'm not some stupid little project. I just came here to tell you to turn down the stupid music. So my job is done." She turned around, but suddenly turned back around and scowled even darker. "And I HATE your STUPID Football head!" She finished. Feeling satisfied, she turned back around, about to climb out through his skylight and get out of there.
He grabbed her arm and whirled her back around. She was unprepared for this, so her eyes just widened and her scowl dropped in surprise.
Arnold rolled his eyes at her. "You can't fool me anymore, Helga. I know your not some mean, old bully. So why don't you just drop it?"
~Sombody else, 'round everyone else, you're watchin' your back, like you can't relax~
She was shocked by his response to her usual ways. She blinked a couple times, before finally being able to get a little of her composure back.
She narrowed her eyes back, and rolled her own eyes. "Who says I'm not a mean, old bully, eh, Hairboy? Hmmm?" She asked back angrily, sounding really obnoxious.
He had to roll his eyes again at the predicable response.
~Tryin' to be cool, you look like a fool to me~
"You're acting ridiculous, Helga. Just drop it...! What's with the bully act anyway? Why are you always acting like that?" He asked, suddenly feeling even more confused and curious.
She was caught off guard... once again. She didn't like that he was able to see through her so well... She didn't like it at all... because...
She liked it.
She slumped, feeling completely defeated. Her eyes held no venom, no hate, no defiance, and that was something that caught Arnold off guard. Had he been right?
"Okay, fine, Arnold." She began in a soft voice, much like when she had to admit to being jealous of Lila to Olga. Or when she had to tell her mom she wanted her to come back home from working all the time. Or when she told her dad that she missed him being a big old blowhard, because that was who he was and she loved him for that.
Only now it was with Arnold.
She began rubbing her arm, and looking away slightly from him. "I guess I'm just... scared." She answered quietly, softly; Which only caught Arnold even more off guard. Had he actually broken down the barrier? Was he talking to the real Helga... or was she just acting again to humor him?
He wasn't quite sure.
~Tell me, why do you have to go and make thing so complicated? I see the way you're acting like your somebody else gets me frustrated, life's like this, you~
She looked so vulnerable, and soft... and innocent. Words that he never could have used to describe Helga before. Not the Helga he knew... But then again, he didn't really know Helga, did he?
He blinked at her. "Scared? Of what?"
She answered him, still looking away. "People... I'm afraid they'll laugh at me... I'm afraid they'll make a mockery of me... for... f-for feeling."
"Feeling?" He asked incredulously. He walked over to her, and gestured for her to sit on the red couch behind her. She obeyed, not really seeming to care much, and he sat right next to her, putting a hand on her shoulder gently. "You think they'll laugh because you have feelings?"
She nodded, finally managing to look at him.
There it was again. That clear, crystal blue. So open. It assured him that she was indeed telling the truth. But really? Afraid of being laughed at for feeling? That was just silly.
"Helga, that's just silly. No one's going to think you're bad for smiling every once in a while. Or laughing... And I mean a genuine laugh. Not the cruel kind."
She snickered at the last part, but quickly pushed it down, much like she always did.
He frowned. "See? Don't hold it down. Laugh..." He urged.
She gave him a blank look, and shook her head. "The moment passed. But really, Arnold, I'm not being silly. Which I know is just Arnold talk for stupid." She rolled her eyes.
He sighed. "I don't think your stupid. But I don't understand you." He looked up at the clouds through his skylight, seeing how the sun reflected off of them, and the bright blue sky's framed them as they floated by leisurely.
She looked up also, and spoke thoughtfully, "I don't either sometimes. But I'm afraid of letting them know I feel, and showing my true self because my greatest fear is..." She caught herself before the word left her lips, and she scooted away from him abruptly, feeling panicked. She was getting entirely too comfortable... but was that really a bad thing?
~And you fall and you crawl and you break, and you take what you get, and you turn it into~
In the process of scooting away from him, she ended up falling off the couch. She saw him come towards her quick to try and help her, but she just scooted backwards away from him, but ended up hitting a wall. There was a shelf way up, and when she hit the wall, the sudden vibrations caused the books on the shelf to fall on top of her head one by one. She groaned, feeling dizzy.
Arnold gasped, putting a hand to his mouth, before rushing over to her and lifting up her thin frame. "Helga! Helga, are you okay?!"
She opened her eyes, and smiled a shaky smile at him. She reached over and touched his face, and giggled girlishly. "Why, look at you! What a little angel you are. So kind and caring and compassionate." She giggled again and continued to touch around his face.
His eyes widened. Those books must have been heavier than he thought. He gently took her hand off his cheek, and played absentmindedly with her soft fingers. "Helga, snap out of it."
Her loopy expression suddenly lifted, and she shook her head vigorously. She looked at him, and blinked. "What did I say?" She asked slowly, inwardly panicked.
His whole body became stiff, the only thing that moved were his eyes, which were now suddenly fascinated with the wall. "Well..."
She slapped a hand on her forehead, and it was then that she realized he was holding her up, and playing with her fingers. She looked at him, not sure what to make of it.
He didn't seem to notice, as he continued to mess around with her fingers. His grip on it suddenly became firm, and his gaze came back to her's, determination set across his features.
He was struck again with how blue her eyes were... and how they seemed to sparkle. He didn't know what to make of it, but it erased whatever he had had his mind set on before.
He was just staring at her... was there something on her face? Did she have something in her teeth? Why was he just looking at her like that?!
~Honesty, promise me I'm never gonna find you fake it~
He just stared at her curiously, his mind void of thoughts.
She narrowed her eyes and gently, hesitantly lifted her hand out of his. It seemed to do the trick as he suddenly blinked, looking a little dazed.
"What happened?" He asked, removing his arm from around her as she sat up.
She pulled her knees to her chest and stared at him. "You don't know?"
He shook his head, and sat down all the way, giving her a questioning gaze.
She raised one half of her eyebrow at him. "You were just staring at me."
His eyes widened, and he blinked quickly. "Oh, sorry." He said, then cleared his throat. "Um... what were you going to say you were afraid of?"
Rejection. She wanted to tell him... but then again, she didn't. It would be too awkward with the situation they were in at the moment.
~No, no, no... no... no... no... no... no... no... no... no... no... no... no... no~
She shook her head. "Nothing..." She answered quietly.
"You were going to say something."
"Yeah... but it doesn't matter... was there some reason you wanted me to stay? Or can I just go?" She asked softly, looking at him sadly.
He returned her look, and then looked down, not sure how to answer that question. He knew they had to talk about what happened... but was he ready?
He looked into her eyes again. So blue... His breaths became a little more shallow, and his heart began to beat harder. He didn't understand it, and wasn't sure if he wanted to. All he knew was that he didn't want her to go just yet.
~Chill out, what'cha yellin' for? Lay back, it's all been done before, and if you could only let it be, you will see~
He got up and offered her a hand. She took it and lifted herself up, looking at him confused.
He felt weird... he couldn't describe it. He didn't want to... because he wanted to. He didn't feel ready. It was all happening too fast, and that steady beam of blue directed at him wasn't helping...
"Helga..." He spoke so softly that he could hardly hear himself. "I... don't want you to go just yet."
She blinked, and noticed their hands still connected. She wanted to say something, anything... but his tone had caused her to lose her voice it seemed.
He smiled at her loopily, clearly not himself, and he suddenly felt very weak.
She felt weak too, but she was good at hiding it. She didn't know what to do. "I... don't want to go either..." She managed to croak out quietly, softly.
He gave her that half-lidded gaze that made her knees go weak. She had to get out of here. Nothing was making sense right now. His look, his tone, his touch. It was all happening too fast! She let out a shaky breath and stepped back from him, but he only stepped forward, seeming to be in some sort of trance.
~Sombody else, 'round everyone else, you're watchin' your back, like you can't relax, you're tryin' to be cool, you look like a fool, to me, to me~
This seemed to continue on as she took step after step away from him, in any direction, as long as it was away from him, and he continued to follow her like some kind of zombie.
~Why do you have to go and make things so complicated? I see the way you're actin' like you're somebody else get's me frustrated, life's like this, you~
He wasn't sure what he was doing, or why he was doing it. His heart was pounding in his ears and he couldn't seem to see straight.
~And you fall and you crawl and you break and you take what you get, and you turn in into~
She tripped over his remote and fell down backwards. He quickly caught her, though, and held her up. He tilted his head at her curiously, and began to run his fingers over the features of her face gently.
She shuddered at his touch and her entire expression became panicked. Too fast. Too fast. Too fast. TOO FAST! WHAT THE HECK WAS EVEN HAPPENING?!?!?!
He leaned up, and his eyes began to close. Her eyes widened at his actions, but she soon closed her own eyes quick.
~Honesty, promise me I'm never gonna find you fake it~
She put her foot behind herself to keep from falling straight to the ground. But her foot landed right on top of his remote, and the volume to the radio was suddenly blaring again.
~No, no, Why do you have to make things so complicated? I see the way you're actin' like you're somebody else get's me frustrated, life's like this, you~
They both jumped, and Arnold backed away abruptly, his eyes wide as he quickly went to turn the radio down again stiffly. He looked at Helga, panicked and majorly confused.
What just happened?! What was he thinking?! What was he even about to do!?
His head was whirling and his heart was beating fast in panic and... and something else that he wasn't sure about.
~And you fall and you crawl and you break and you take what you get, and you turn it into~
They just stood there stiffly, staring at eachother with wide eyes.
~Honesty, promise me I'm never gonna find you fake it, no, no, no~
Arnold bit his lip as the song faded out. He turned it off quick and looked around awkwardly, the familiar feeling of discomfort returning and settling into the atmosphere.
"I'd better get going." Helga spoke up suddenly.
Arnold just nodded. "Yeah... I guess you should."
She nodded back, and began in the direction of the skylight, proceeding to climb out. She stopped halfway, and turned slightly to look at him.
He smiled at her.
She gave him a slight smile back, and then turned back around, continuing her ascent.
Once she was gone, Arnold ran a hand through his unruly blonde locks. What was with him?
As she was gone now, he suddenly felt... empty.
He climbed up through the skylight and ran over to Helga before she could take another step.
She turned, surprised to hear him following her, and as soon as she turned her head, he placed a chaste kiss on her lips. It was so soft, and caring, and... loving.
He pulled back after a few seconds and smiled at her. He turned back around and went back into his room, leaving a dazed Helga to faint blissfully on his rooftop.
He laid back on his bed. He still had a lot to think about. The FTi incident had only been about a week ago, and he knew he'd have to give her an answer of some kind. But after everything that had just happened, he was only more confused.
How did he feel about Helga? How did he feel about Helga?
He sighed, gazing up at the clouds.
"Why does this have to be so complicated?"
A/N: HAHAHA! I simply adore music. Just in case anyone doesn't know, the song I used was "Complicated" by Avril Lavigne. I love that song. *Grins so wide it hurts*
Now for an update:
The fifteenth chapter to "Hypnotizing Helga" is coming along just fine... albeit slowly... but it's gettin' there. *Grins*
The second chapter to "Match Maker" is almost done also, although I won't be able to work on that for a little while. Sorry...
But things are going okay anyway.
I hope you enjoyed my first song-fic, and hopefully not my last, since I love music so much. :D
Review, Peeps!!!!!!!