Arnold reluctantly opened his eyes with a big smile on his face. Stretching, he yawned, pushed the covers to the side and slid on his boxers.
Man he ached.
Between his head pounding and his stomach on shaky ground (riding the porcelain bus for a few hours as a direct result of pounding back a half dozen drinks will do that to you), today had all the makings of being horrible. Looking down at his ring, though, he knew today was going to be one of the best days of his life.
Married. To Helga G Pataki. Could anything be better?
The goofy smile returned and he let out a sigh. Helga was his wife. The dream, which was deferred and dead at first was finally fulfilled and Arnold couldn't be happier. Just as he did each morning, Arnold ran his fingers across Helga's words along his ribcage, reverently mouthing the letters that were inked there. His mind traveled back to last night and how Helga kissed those words after she took off his shirt. She cemented them to his body in a way the needles never could.
Arnold turned around in the bed and knew Helga wasn't there. He expected to wake up alone. He knew his Helga was going to need some time to process what happened. She'd probably run off to find Lila or Patty and figure out a game plan, when really there was no need.
Because despite yesterday's haze, he was completely lucid by the time he vowed 'I do' and he knew Helga meant every word in the vows she decided to say.
Yesterday confirmed what Arnold knew to be true most of his life-he and Helga were supposed to be together. He knew this was true even back high school when he had to watch his girl wearing Sid's ring on her finger. He thought Helga was lost to him forever. It was torture, but somehow here they were. Married.
He stood to grab his tee, which was crumpled and thrown over the closet door, and heard the unmistakable crunch of a condom wrapper.
Last night was amazing.
Pretending he didn't feel like he got hit by a bus, he went to the bathroom to wash his face and brush his teeth. Hell, he might even run a comb through his tangled hair. Looking at himself in the mirror, he realized a quick freshen up wouldn't do and decided to take a shower.
Under the warm water, Arnold's thoughts shifted back to his wife (as if they ever strayed). He could picture her pacing the floor and running a hand through her fruit scented hair. That scent drove him crazy. He'd never admit this, but in school if he had the fortune to sit behind her, he would occasionally lean forward and sniff her.
Arnold sounded crazy. He shook his head and winced slightly when his headache worsened.
Aspirin. He needed lots and lots of aspirin if he was expected to make it through tonight's final rehearsal.
But first he needed to find his wife.
Opening the front door, he realized he needed to go to Helga before she made her way to the airport. He needed her to know that no matter how scared she was now, he and Helga would stay married. They'd hammer out the pesky details of distance and work demands. She didn't need to worry about how they'd jumped into marriage after not seeing each other for 7 years. Or the fact that their last conversation before seeing each other in Vegas was scathing, hurtful and irrevocable.
As for Arnold, he wasn't worried at all, because after all this time he and Helga were together. All the miscues and miscommunications and heartache were worth it just to get to this point. He had Helga and he wasn't planning on ever letting her go.
Now he just had to convince her of that. But he knew he would.
Everything always works out in the end.