Chapter 4: The Morning After

Helga awoke the next morning in a daze. Her head was pounding as if there were a little drummer boy playing in her brain. She held her hand over her head hoping it would ease the pain. What happened last night? She first noticed that she was lying in a bed. BY the looks of the elegant room she knew she still had to have been at Rhonda's. Hmm...must be a guest room or something. That was nice of her to let me crash here. Helga rolled over in bed and shocking found herself face to face with Arnold. She wanted to scream, but quickly covered her mouth fearing that she would wake him up. Okay, don't freak out. Just because you're in here with Arnold doesn't necessarily mean anything happened, right? Helga nervously lifted the bedsheets from her body and looked under the covers to find herself bare naked. She then glanced at Arnold and slowly lifted the bedspread off of him as well trying not to disturb him. He didn't have clothes on either. "Okay, maybe not", Helga whispered under her breath

Helga didn't quite know how to feel about the situation she found herself in. On one hand she had slept with Arnold, the man she'd been pinning after since pre-school. On the other hand she couldn't even remember the experience. Besides, Arnold already had a girlfriend. As Helga sat there she debated whether or not she should just leave the room without even saying anything to Arnold. It would be like it never happened and Arnold and Helga could just go back to being friends in their normal lives. However, maybe, just maybe, if Arnold did find out about it he would realize he loved Helga and kick Lila to the curb. Helga understood how little possibility that outcome had, but she thought, "Hey, it could happen." However, Helga had run out of time to decided on her escape plan when she soon noticed Arnold beginning to slowly open his eyes. Helga's body began to tense up awaiting for Arnold to reach a full state of consciousness. She just wanted to leap out of bed and run as fast as she could, but she was frozen with fear.

Arnold blinked a few times then groaned placing his hand on his head just as Helga had done a few moments earlier. He sat up in bed and buried his face in his hands. "What happened last night?" he grumbled before lifting his heavy hand up only to be thrown off by his surroundings. He was even more surprised when he turned and saw the woman who was sitting next to him. His mouth gaped open and his droopy eyes went wide. He was speechless.

"H-hey football head, how's it going?" Helga said as she nervously looked down and scratched the back of her neck.

"Helga, please tell me what I think happened last night didn't happen last night", Arnold begged.

"I'm afraid I can't tell you that, Arnold, because based on our clothing situation I'm pretty sure it did." Helga's face sunk when Arnold didn't have the reaction she'd imagined in her fantasies, but after all, this was real life.

"Helga! How could you let this happen?!" Arnold yelled in frustration.

"Arnold, I didn't know, I'm just as surprised and confused as you are", Helga defended.

"What? I thought you said you never drank"

"Well I obviously changed my mind about that last night, didn't I?" Helga snapped. Is Arnold trying to blame me? He drank just as much, if not more, than I did!

"Well, why'd you have to pick last night of all nights to start? If you didn't we wouldn't be in this mess!"

"You did not just put all the blame on me! You were there too, buck-o, and you drink all the time! Just because I made the mistake of doing it once does not mean it's my fault!"

"I-I know, Helga. I'm sorry", Arnold apologized as he returned to his usual manner. He was mad, sure, but not at Helga. He was more upset with himself. He'd finally caught the girl of his dreams and then cheated on her. "So, now what?" he asked.

Helga sighed, "We get up, we get dressed, and we pretend this all never happened. I-I mean, if that's what you want..."

Arnold thought for a moment before answering. Is it what he wanted? His honest nature was telling him to do the right thing, but at what cost? He reluctantly replied, "Yeah, I think that's whats best."

So they did just that. They put on their clothes, parted ways at Rhonda's doorstep, and drove home. Helga couldn't help but feel disappointed. She knew things between her and Arnold would change. She doubted that they'd even so much as make eye contact anymore. The concept of her being with Arnold made her heart flutter, but she couldn't even remember a single thing about it and it appeared as if it would have some unappealing consequences.

Arnold looked at the digital clock in his car and the time read 7:00 AM. He still had an hour to get home, change, and get to school. His head was still pounding from the hangover. Maybe having a party on a Tuesday night wasn't the best idea, he thought as he parked his grandfather's Packard in front of the boarding house. He managed to get himself upstairs and ready as fast as his body would allow him. The whole time he'd been thinking of Lila. How was he going to tell, that is if he was going to tell her? Even if he decided not to the guilt would probably eat him alive from the inside out. He ran to the kitchen, grabbed a bagel, and headed right back out the door as he prepared himself for the most difficult school day he's ever had...so far.

Arnold wanted to keep his little mishap with Helga a secret, but he was so on edge that he needed to get it out and talk to someone. Arnold found Gerald and pulled him away from the crowd.

"You okay, buddy? I bet your head is spinning right now. That was some crazy party, man", Gerald said not sensing Arnold's anxiety level practically hitting the roof.

"That's sorta what I needed to ask you about, Gerald. Do you know what happened yesterday?"

"Uhm, well, obviously you were drunk and attempting to do some pretty stupid things. Me and Phoebe practically had to follow you around all night to keep an eye on you. Eventually we lost track of you, but once we found you again you were sitting with Helga looking like you were having a pretty good time. We figured you were in good hands and bailed", Gerald explained as he heard his best friend let out a sigh and drop his head down. "Was that not a good idea? What happened? Was Helga being a pain in the ass?"

"No, it wasn't that. It's just that Helga and I...well... we kind of woke up in the same bed this morning."

"You mean you and Helga G. Pataki?-"

"I'm afraid so, Gerald. I can't stop thinking about Lila. This guilt is destroying me. I need to go tell her", Arnold decided as he began to walk away when Gerald grabbed his arm and pulled him back.

"Whoa, hold it there. I get that you typically like to the right thing, but can you please put your do-gooder nature behind you just this once?" Gerald pleaded.

"If anything this should be the one time I shouldn't put it passed me, Gerald. This was a royal screw up that I can't just leave alone", Arnold argued.

"Yes you can. Look, I know it isn't the noble thing to do, but you just got Lila less than a year ago, the girl you've been crazy about since the fourth grade. Do you really wanna give all that up over this crazy nonsense with Helga that if you really think about wasn't your fault. I don't know if I even count it as cheating since you weren't in your right mind. The Arnold I know would never cheat on Lila in a million years."

"The Arnold I know would never lie either", Arnold said with shame.

"Don't think of it as lying. Think of it as choosing not to tell the truth", Gerald suggested.

"I guess. It's not like I have any other options. But what am I supposed to do about Helga? I don't think I'll ever be about to face her again."

"Then don't."

"Gerald! I can't just stop talking to Helga. We're friends. We have too much history. I mean, come on, we've known each other since we were toddlers! I can't just give all the up."

"Yes you can. Think about it, most of your history involves her picking on you and making your life a living hell. It wasn't until high school that she started to actually treat you with any shred of respect. As far as I'm concerned, you owe her nothing."

Arnold just sighed.

"Look, I promise you, Arnold, everything's gonna be okay", and for a second Arnold though he believed it.

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