Chapter 8
"Why? I want to know why you did it! I loved you. I would have given you everything, everything! And you decided to just turn right around and throw it all away just so you can go and hop into bed with her?"
"Please you have to listen to me, I didn't mean to hurt you, I swear. It was a mistake! I'm sorry, I'm so sorry"
"Don't give me that bull-"
The television screen clicked off before Helga could hear the rest of the sentence.
"Criminy! Isn't there anything good on tv anymore?", Helga grumbled as she tossed the remote control away from her.
It was 4 PM in the afternoon and Helga had been flipping through the channels on the television screen in a desperate attempt to cure her boredom. Arnold was at work and there wasn't anybody else in the house. She felt a pang of emptiness as she realized that everyone else had something to do with their lives while she just sat at home watching cheesy soap operas.
She let out a big groan as her body slid down the couch. How had her twenty-five year old self dealt with being nothing but a housewife? Helga stared up at the ceiling above her, lost in thought. She had always thought that by the time she was twenty-five she would be successful, or at least have gotten her foot in the door. Anything but this. The sound of her sigh echoed throughout the large empty house as she realized she hadn't done anything with her life. What had happened to her dreams?
Get a grip, Helga thought, This is pathetic!
Helga bolted upright as a sudden thought crossed her mind. So 25 year old Helga didn't do the things she thought she would have. That just meant 15 year old Helga had to step in and do it for her. After all, she had said to Phoebe that she would make something of herself or her name wasn't Helga G. Pataki. She jumped off the couch with a sudden rush of vigor and grabbed the morning's newspaper from off the kitchen counter. Helga hurriedly flipped through the pages until she came to the classified ads section. Ten years might have gone by but at least newspapers still worked the same way, Helga thanked god for that. She began to scan down the list hoping for something suitable.
$10/hr Dog Walker. No.
Looking for a full time janitor. No.
Kid's party Clown for hire.
Propping her chin against the palm of her hand, Helga momentarily pictured herself in a clown suit with a giant plastic ball stuck to the tip of her nose. She imagined herself grumpily making balloon animals for those annoying little ankle biters. A shudder ran through her spine at the mere thought of it and Helga shook her head violently in protest.
NOT IN THIS LIFETIME, BUCKO!
Helga let out a sigh as she scanned through ad after ad of jobs. She started to think it was hopeless. Just as she was about to set aside the newspaper, a small ad at the corner of the page caught her eye.
Bingo, she thought to corners ofHelga's lips curled into a triumphant grin as she circled the ad with her red felt-tip marker.
...
"Cut!"
Arnold grimaced as he threw down the loudpspeaker and rose from the director's chair. It had been a terribly unproductive day and it looked like things were just getting worse. They had been through the same shot for what seemed the tenth time now and Arnold's patience was wearing especially thin.
"No, you're doing it all wrong", he snapped at the male actor, "You need to emote more."
Arnold shook his head and groaned as the actor struggled to make different facial expressions.
"You know what, everyone take five!", Arnold yelled out in exasperation, "Someone get me a coffee!"
He threw his arms up in surrender and stomped off the set in a bad mood. Stepping over a mess of cables and wires, Arnold headed over to one of the crew vans and sat down on the edge. From the distance he could spy Gerald jogging over to him.
"Arnold, you alright man?", Gerald said as he stopped next to Arnold. In his hands were two paper cups full of steaming coffee. Taking a seat next to Arnold, he passed him one of the cups.
Arnold let out a big sigh and took a sip of the beverage. His face contorted with disgust but he managed to swallow the drink and then held out the paper cup in front of him as if to inspect it.
"Is this decaf? I asked for regular", Arnold said, his voice tinged with annoyance.
Gerald cocked an eyebrow as he looked at his friend in surprise. Noticing Gerald's expression, Arnold softened a little and set the paper cup aside.
"Sorry Gerald, I'm just a little agitated today"
"A little? Arnold, you practically bit off that poor guy's head back there. I've never seen you like this before"
"Sorry", Arnold repeated.
"So what's going on with you and Helga now?", Gerald said smirking knowingly, "Helga not giving you any sugar is she?"
Arnold turned a dark shade of pink at the sentiment. He knew it was perfectly normal, but he still was a pretty shy guy at heart and definitely wasn't as open to talking about sex as Gerald was.
"N-no, it's not that!", Arnold stuttered.
Gerald raised his eyebrows at Arnold again as if to call him on his lie.
"Come on Arnold. It takes a lot to rile you up, you're as patient as they come. You're telling me it's not a physical thing that's bothering you?"
Arnold sighed again in defeat and turned to Gerald.
"Well okay, fine. You're right, she's not giving me any...", Arnold paused for a moment searching for the right word, "...sugar."
He felt his blush deepen for a moment at the innuendo but continued on.
"But that's not the problem right now"
"Arnold, you're married and not getting any. I'd say that should be the number one problem. You love her, she loves you. What other problem could there be?", Gerald said grinning.
"Well that's the thing Gerald. Do you remember when I told you Helga wanted to divorce?"
The cheeky grin on Gerald's face started to fade as soon as he heard the word 'divorce'.
"Helga got her memory back?", Gerald said in surprise.
"No, not yet", Arnold exhaled in relief, "But this morning I found her old diary on her laptop. I didn't mean to read it but..."
"Yeah, go on, what'd it say?", Gerald said.
"Well I finally figured out why Helga wanted that divorce. I mean, I never understood what happened between us. Everything was great and then suddenly it wasn't. We were arguing over small things everyday for months and then one day I get home and she slaps me and wants a divorce"
Gerald nodded in understanding, having heard this scenario once before.
"And I always thought that she had just been falling out of love with me for months and finally just wanted a divorce. A part of me even wondered if she had found someone else. Every time I tried to talk her out of it, she would start yelling hysterically and we'd just wind up back at square one. I really thought the reason for our divorce was because she didn't love me anymore"
Arnold paused for a second, deliberating whether he should tell Gerald what he had found out. He hesitated but finally decided to go through with it.
"And it turns out Helga wanted a divorce because she thought I was cheating on her with Lila"
Gerald's eyes bugged out as he spit out the coffee he was in the middle of drinking.
"Gerald! You okay?", Arnold said in alarm as he watched his friend double over and start coughing from having choked on his drink.
"You and Lila?!", Gerald yelled out as soon as he had recovered.
"Shhh!", Arnold hushed as he looked around at the crew members, hoping no one had heard them, "Could you be any louder?"
"Sorry, man", Gerald said regaining his composure, "It's just... you and Lila?! That's crazy"
"I know. How do you think I felt?", Arnold said throwing his hands up in the air in frustration.
"Why would Helga even think that? You did have that huge crush on her in elementary but no one takes that seriously"
"Well... actually something did happen between us", Arnold admitted. He rubbed his arm guiltily, looking up to see Gerald's stunned expression. Then he held up his hands in defense "B-but it's not what you think!"
He went on to explain the whole story of that night and what had happened when he took Lila home. Gerald didn't say a word, he just listened with wide-eyes.
"I swear, it wasn't anything like what Helga is thinking. I don't like Lila as anything more than a friend and I want to believe Lila feels the same way. She was just drunk..that was all", Arnold finished earnestly.
Finally, after a long moment of silence, Gerald finally said something.
"Mmm Mmm Mmm", he said shaking his head in disbelief, "You get yourself in the craziest situations Arnold"
"Well what do I do now Gerald?", Arnold said running his hand through his hair in frustration, "I've been thinking about this all day. I deleted her diary and I don't think that was the right thing to do"
"Arnold, what are you saying? Of course it was the right thing to do. You don't want her finding out do you? Besides it's not like you're hiding anything. You really didn't do it."
"Well yeah, but..", Arnold started.
"Look, Arnold", Gerald interrupted him, "Do you want to save your marriage or not?"
"Of course I do. I love Helga"
"Then you're doing the right thing. She doesn't have to know something that's just going to make the two of you miserable and that isn't even true!"
"Maybe you're right...", Arnold said hesistantly.
"Just trust me on this. They didn't call me the lovemaster in highschool for nothing", Gerald said smirking as he folded his arms across his chest, "Just forget about all this. All you gotta do now is make her fall back in love with you. Put the ol' moves on her"
"The ol' moves?", Arnold said smiling.
"Yeah you know, like when you guys were first dating. Candlelit dinners, roses, jewelry—the whole shebang", Gerald explained.
Arnold mulled the idea over in his head. Reading through Helga's diary he recalled how she had felt neglected and underappreciated. Maybe Helga's amnesia was a blessing in disguise. It was a second chance to make things right, and if it meant putting the spark back in his marriage, he would do anything.
"Yeah, you're right Gerald! That's a really good idea", Arnold said as a wide smile spread over his face.
...
Helga checked herself in the side mirrors of one the parked cars in the lot. She picked at her teeth to make sure it was clean and flattened a strand of hair that had sprung up in her hastily tied bun.
"Well, this is about as good as it's going to get", Helga shrugged as she turned away from the mirror.
She found herself standing right in the middle of downtown-Hillwood, where all the business took place. Helga let out an exhale as she stared up at the intimidating skyscraper in front of her. It stretched out so tall that Helga had to crane her neck to look up. It looked like it probably went up eighty-something floors. It was an enormous modern-styled building with reflective glass windows that made it appear blue when reflected by the sun. At the entrance was a large marble plaque with black stone lettering that read: Dewey-Malcom Center.
Helga's stomach was a jumble of nerves and she felt her palms grow clammy at the mere sight of the imposing building but it was now or never. She clasped her briefcase (which she had found at the back of her closet) and hurried into one of the glass revolving doors. She cursed under her breath as she practically tripped on her conservative black heels and tugged uncomfortably at her panty-hose which was bunching.
Note to self, Helga thought, Buy a pantsuit!
Helga scowled at the discomfortbut the skirt and blazer combination was the only semblance of a suit she had found in her closet so she would just have to make do. Looking around the large lobby she realized she had no idea where to go. All around her, tons of people in suave business attire moved around in a frantic fashion. They pushed and shoved her past her, all of them so lost in their own little business worlds to even notice her.
"Criminy, I'm at a watering hole for yuppies", Helga said to herself, sneering.
She unzipped her briefcase and took out a the newspaper clipping that she was thankful to have brought along. It read, "Wanted: File Clerk for the offices of Akerman & Byrd. Located in the Dewey-Malcom Center-59th Fl"
"59th floor", Helga repeated to herself.
Making her way to the elevators, she managed to shove her way into an overly crowded elevator going up. Helga felt like a sardine in a tin can, wedged in with what seemed like twenty people all yammering away on their cell phones.
She couldn't have been more relieved when the bell finally dinged to signal the 59th floor. Helga managed to wedge herself out of the crowded elevator.
"Is it going to be like that all the time?", She grumbled as she tried to smooth the wrinkles in her skirt.
Helga looked around the floor and found herself in a large space with several chairs. To her right was a counter at which the receptionist stood. The woman had dark brown hair, twisted into a french twist and pulled back neatly. He suit was clean and presentable and she had angular sharp features. Pinned on her blouse was a silver name tag which read Bernice Wilder.
"May I help you?", she said to Helga, peering down at her over her long nose.
Helga was quick to notice the condescending tone dripping from the receptionists voice but chose to ignore it as she dropped her briefcase over the counter.
"Yeah, I'm here to interview for the position of file clerk", Helga said matter-of-factly.
The receptionist looked her up and down as though she were an object to be inspected. She curled her lip up at the wrinkled state of Helga's suit from having been jostled around in a cramped elevator. She eyed Helga's makeup-less bare face and her messy bun.
"I'm afraid that position has been filled", the receptionist said snootily.
"But the interview is at five-thirty. It says right here on the ad", Helga said pulling out the ad-clipping.
The receptionist didn't even look at the ad, she simply stated again, "I'm sorry but there just isn't an availability here."
Helga felt her fists ball up, feeling rage fire up inside of her. She knew the receptionist was doing this on purpose. Helga could see right through her pretentious act. Bob had never been an ideal parent—Ha! Understatement of the year—but if there was anything Bob had taught her, it was about being savvy and shrewd especially when it came to business and the people associated with it. He had taught her to know when people were bullshitting you and Helga could smell it from a mile away with Bernice.
"I see", Helga said through gritted teeth, trying hard to keep her patience.
Keep calm Helga ol' girl, don't let her get to you.
"Yes, perhaps you can try Walmart. I hear they always have openings", Bernice said.
That did it. Bernice had just tapped the last nail in her coffin. Helga felt herself about to bubble over like a pot over an angry stove. Before she knew it, she slammed her hands down on the counter and started going into a tirade.
"Listen, sister! I did not take a two hour long bus-ride here to listen to some pompous, holier-than-thou, too much rouge-wearing, airhead bimbo look me up and down with those arrogant eyes and tell me I should be working at Walmart. Now you let me interview or I'll sue this place for discrimination. How do you feel about that? "
...
"Alright, alright, get your hands off of me buster! I can leave on my own two feet thank you very much!", Helga yelled as she pulled her arm away from the muscly security guard who had escorted her out to the lobby.
"Criminy, that didn't go as planned", Helga muttered to herself as she dusted herself off.
Who knew she would've gotten thrown out of the office? Helga felt herself boiling recalling the smirk on Bernice's face when the security had come up to get her. Her fists tightened over the handle of her briefcase as she kept replaying the embarrassing incident over and over in her head. She was so lost in her own anger in fact that she didn't realize she had just run head first into someone's chest.
"Oomph!", Helga cried out as she fell backwards onto her behind.
She looked up to see a tall blonde man in a finely tailored suit staring down at her.
Great as if I weren't already having the worst day ever, these schmucks have to keep pushing and shoving me around like I'm some kind of ragdoll. Well I'll give them a piece of my mind!, Helga thought.
"Hey! Watch where you're going pal!", Helga yelled out to the blonde as she picked herself up.
The blonde man didn't say anything however. He just looked as if he had seen a ghost. His eyes were wide and his mouth was hanging open in surprise.
"Why don't you just take a picture, it lasts longer", Helga snapped sarcastically. She had had enough of this toxic environment, she just wanted to get home and hide under the covers. Helga bent over to pick up her fallen briefcase and was just about to stomp off when the blonde man called her name.
"Helga?"
Now it was Helga's turn to be surprised. She cocked an eyebrow at him as she scanned his face, wondering who he was and how he knew her.
"Yeah?", Helga replied curiously.
"Oh wow, it is you!", the man's eyes lit up and his lips spread into a jovial smile, "It's me Brian. Brian Krause"
Brian Krause. Helga ran the name over in her head. Where had she heard that name before? It sounded familiar enough but she couldn't quite place it. Who was Brian Krause? Then all at once, it hit her like a ton of bricks.
"...Brainy?!", Helga called out incredulously.
...
Arnold whistled a tune as he got out of the car holding a bouquet of light blue Hydrangeas and white roses. The talk he had had with Gerald had really lifted his mood and maybe he was right, maybe this was just an incident they should all just forget about and move on from. Now all Arnold wanted to do was focus on being a better husband to Helga and put the past in the past.
"Helga, I'm home!", Arnold called out with a huge smile on his face as he pushed open the front door.
But there was no response. Scanning the living room, Arnold found that there was no one at home. For a second Arnold's heart seemed to stop. A strong sense of dejavu lingered over him.
"Helga?", he called out again with a slight edge in his voice. Yet there was no response. He looked into the bedroom and into the office but his wife was nowhere to be found.
Arnold started to panic when he found no sign of Helga anywhere in the house. Had Helga regained her memory? Had she decided to leave him? He felt his heart sinking into his stomach at the thought of losing her again. Just when he thought he had lost for her good this time, he spotted a yellow post-it note stuck to the front of the refrigerator. In Helga's neat cursive writing, it read:
Went out. Be back in a few hours.
Arnold breathed a sigh of relief and then chuckled as he slapped his palm to his forehead. It was silly how paranoid he had been being.
"Relax", he thought to himself, "Just forget about the past. Focus on the present"
Nodding to himself, Arnold grabbed the bouquet off the table and placed them into a vase atop the dinner table. Maybe Helga's absence was the perfect opportunity to turn things around. He recalled Gerald's advice about a romantic candlelit dinner and suddenly a light bulb went off in his head as he realized he could whip up a quick surprise dinner.
Arnold smiled gleefully to himself as he lit the candles around the dining room. He had a feeling that this night could be the night Helga fell back in love with him. After all, what could go wrong this time around?
...
"Gee Brainy, you really didn't have to do all this"
Helga scanned the lavish surroundings of the upscale restaurant she sat in. After their chance encounter at the Dewey-Malcom Center, Brainy had asked Helga to dinner to catch up. Though she had been hesitant at first, she had eventually given in after realizing she really had nothing better to do. After all, Arnold would probably still be at work and seeing as she had just bombed all chances of her landing a job of her own, she would probably just end up sitting back on the couch at home sulking. Then there was the part of her that was genuinely curious to see what Brainy had been up to. The last memory of Brainy fifteen year old Helga recalled was the geeky kid with a bad case of acne that had moved away from Hillwood at the end of their eighth grade year. Looking up at the Blonde man sitting across of the table from her, Helga realized that "geeky" wasn't exactly a word she could use to describe him now.
Jeez did everyone change drastically when they got older? No wonder she hadn't recognized him right away, Brainy looked totally different now. He still had glasses but they were black rimmed frames that looked smart against his suit. His blonde hair was cut short and he was clean shaven and Helga guessed Brainy had eventually learned to breathe through his nose instead of mouth because he no longer did that heavy creepy breathing thing he used to do.
"It's really no problem Helga. I haven't seen you in so long, I thought it'd be nice to catch up over a great dinner", Brainy smiled her as he cut into his filet mignon.
"Well thanks I guess Brain-uh I mean, Brian", Helga caught herself at the last moment, awkwardly pronouncing the unfamiliar name. She had always called him Brainy for as long as she could remember, it was weird having to change the habit now.
Brainy laughed lightheartedly at the mistake, "I haven't heard that nickname since middle school, but it's fine if you still want to call me that"
"Yeah that's right, you moved away after the eighth grade. So what have you been up to since then?"
"Well, I graduated from Darmouth a couple years back and I've been working for as a lawyer since then"
"Guess they didn't call ya Brainy for nothing huh?", Helga said as she took a mouthful of her steak.
"How are you Helga? What are you doing now?"
"Um...", Helga paused for a second and thought to herself. What exactly had she done after highschool? Had she gone to college? She hadn't even finished highschool with her memory! She made a mental note to ask Arnold later.
"I've just been trying to find a job", Helga said shrugging, "That's why I was at the Dewey-Malcom center. They had a position at the law office but uh...I guess it was already taken"
"By any chance are you talking about the offices of Akerman & Byrd?", Brainy asked setting down his fork at the edge of his plate.
"Yeah", Helga said cocking an eyebrow at him wondering where he was going with this.
"I work there! Well listen, I'm sure you must be overqualified for this but I've been looking for an assistant...", Brainy trailed off and then shook his head, "No sorry, forget I mentioned it. You probably deserve a higher position"
"N-no!", Helga stammered, her eyes widening at the prospect of a job, "Uh, I mean, I don't mind doing it I guess, just to you know..get my foot in the door and all"
"Really?", Brainy grinned, "Well that'd be great working with you Helga! I always thought you were the smartest girl in class, even if it was...well in middle school"
Brainy laughed at the sentiment and Helga couldn't help but to smile herself at the thought of having actually gotten a job.
"So..", Brainy changed the subject as he eyed Helga's wedding ring, "Are you seeing anybody?"
"Oh, yeah", Helga replied suddenly becoming extra conscious of her ring, which she had somehow forgotten all about since the accident, "Well apparently I'm married to Football—I mean, Arnold"
Helga felt herself blush a little at the mere mention of Arnold's name. Sometimes she still couldn't really believe she was actually married to Arnold. That seemed like something that would happen in a distant dream. At times she was even still afraid that she'd wake up back in her dingy pink bedroom and find that the whole thing had been a dream. For a split second Helga couldn't quite read the strange expression that crossed over Brainy's face but she shook the feeling off when he grinned warmly back at her.
"You always did love him. I remember you used to go off on these elaborate soliloquys about him when you thought no one was looking", Brainy chuckled and took a sip of his wine.
"What? I did not!", Helga practically jumped out of her seat. She was almost certain her face was beet-red by now.
"Woah", Brainy said holding up his hands in mock-defense, "Calm down Helga, it was just a joke."
Raising one of his eyebrows, Brainy smiled at her, "Besides, you do love him don't you? You married him after all"
Helga wondered why it was still so difficult to say out loud that she loved Arnold. In highschool it was obviously because she was afraid of Arnold's reaction when he found out her deepest feelings for him. She also feared that people would think she had gone soft. For her tough exterior, she actually cared a great deal about what people thought about her. At least in highschool that was. Now that she found herself in the body and world of a 25 year old, she wasn't quite sure how she felt anymore. All she knew was that she still felt incredibly embarrassed to admit that she loved Arnold. A part of her also felt that when she did say the words for the first time, she wanted Arnold to be the first one to hear them.
Helga felt herself start to perspire under Brainy's intense gaze as if he were expecting her to admit it. Criminy what was his deal anyway? She wished this was back in highschool so she could just sock him one more time and avoid this whole situation. But as it was, this wasn't 2004 so she had to find some other way to slip out of the conversation.
"Well, would you look at the time!", Helga said as she glanced at her watch, "I should get going"
It had just been an excuse but the clock read 9:26 PM. How had time slipped by so fast? She swore she thought it was only 7 PM at the latest.
Oh no, Helga thought, Arnold...
...
Arnold watched the wisps of smoke curl around him as the flame to the last candle burnt itself out. With all the candles having been melted to a stump, he was now sitting all alone in the dark of the dining room. Cradling his face in his palm, Arnold let out a sigh as he looked at all the food he had prepared still laying out on the table, cold and untouched.
How stupid he had been to believe that he could turn everything around. It was almost as if the universe itself was working to ruin all chances he had to keep his marriage with Helga. Arnold let out a laugh which sounded small and pitiful as it echoed against the walls of the empty room. Maybe this was his karmic punishment. Now he understood how Helga had felt when he came home late on Valentines Day. He felt stupid and pathetic. Moreover, he felt incredibly remorseful of how much he had neglected Helga all this time. He hadn't even realized he had been doing it. Back then when Helga complained about he always came home late he had always thought of it as nagging. Afer all, in his mind he had just been busy with work trying to provide for the both of them, but now that he was in her position he understood how wrong he had been.
Just as Arnold was about to get up from his seat to clear the plates, he heard the clicking sound of a key turning in the front door.
"Where have you been?", he called out as he watched Helga enter the darkened house.
Helga let out a small yelp as she jumped from surprise.
"Criminy Arnold!", Helga yelled placing a hand over her chest, "What are you trying to do, give me a heart attack?"
She groped around the wall for the light switch and shaded her eyes from the sudden brightness as the yellow light bathed the room.
"I asked you a question Helga", Arnold rose from his chair and crossed over to the living room, "Where have you been?"
"What's it to you Football head?", Helga said nonchalantly as she slid off her blazer jacket and hung it over the coat rack.
"What's it to me? Helga, I'm your husband" Arnold's voice sounded even and calm but Helga noticed the slight edge to it that she could tell Arnold was trying hard to conceal. Somehow, Helga knew she shouldn't press him any further but her words were out before she could stop herself.
"Not by choice", Helga spat sarcastically, rolling her eyes at him.
Arnold's brows furrowed into those of anger but who was he really angry at? It wasn't Helga's fault for being late. She hadn't known he was planning something for her and she was right, it wasn't her choice that she was in this marriage with him. This was fifteen year old Helga after all not twenty-five year old Helga, somehow he had forgotten that. He had put these false hopes into his own mind. He was stupid for having done all this, it was pathetic really. If there was anyone he should be angry with it was himself and not Helga.
Arnold relaxed his expression and he closed his eyes as though he were exhausted. Sighing he walked over to the door of the study and opened it.
"Just forget it", he mumbled as he walked in, closing the door behind him.
...
"Arnold?", Helga whispered, knowing that he wouldn't be able to hear her calling him from in the study.
Was it something she had said? Of course it was. She knew she shouldn't have said what she had. Stupid, stupid, stupid! Helga slapped her forehead repeatedly. Why did she always have to say the most inane things she didn't even mean at the worst possible times? Arnold had clearly been in a bad mood and she had just gone and made him more upset. Great going Pataki.
Staring at the door to the study, Helga still wondered what she had done wrong. This was so uncharacteristic of Arnold. He wouldn't have been that upset just because she was a little late right? And she had left a note. Helga peered into the dining room and looked at the untouched food on the table.
Oh no..., Helga thought.
She set her briefcase down in the doorway and turned on the light to the dining room. She looked around at the decorations, the melted candle stubs and the vase of flowers which incidentally were her favorite. Had Arnold done all this just for her? Her heart swelled with love and sank with the realization of what she had done all at the same time. Arnold had gone out of his way to prepare a lovely meal for her and she had not only stood him up, but she had even insulted him on top of that.
"Oh criminy, I'm a Class A Jerk", Helga muttered to herself as she felt the guilt weigh down on her.
She peeked her head out of the dining room and stared at the door to the study again. Helga sighed and pressed herself against the wall of the dining room.
"Oh my dear beloved Arnold, what have I done? Why do I hurt the one person I love the most just to keep up this endless facade?"
Helga knew she had screwed up major and she had to find a way to apologize and make things right.
...
"Arnold?", Helga said as softly as she could as she opened the door to the study. She carried two mugs of hot cocoa in her hands—a peace offering.
He was lying on the couch, one arm folded back behind his head and he continued to stare up at the ceiling instead of glancing at her.
"I don't want to talk right now", Arnold said coldly.
"Well..too bad, you're just going to have to listen Football Head", Helga said brashly as she strode into the room. She set the mugs of hot cocoa on the desk and grabbed the chair, parking it in front of Arnold. Sitting backwards on the chair, she rubbed her arm sheepishly, not knowing where to begin. She was always terrible with apologies, especially when it came to Arnold. It always made her feel so vulnerable.
"Look Arnold, I uh...I guess I went a little too far just now", Helga started casting her eyes downwards, "I mean what I want to say is uh...maybe if you hadn't scared the bejeezus out of me I wouldn't have-"
Helga cut herself off when she noticed the annoyance return toArnold's face. She mentally face-palmed herself. Okay, so this wasn't going as smoothy as she thought it would. Helga let out of a big sigh and rolled her eyes up to the ceiling. She was just going to have to tell the truth this time.
"Okay fine, I guess what I'm trying to say is...I'm...I'm sorry if I'm difficult sometimes", Helga said softly, "You don't know what it's like Arnold. To wake up one day ten years older and realize that you haven't done anything with your life. You and Phoebe and everyone are so successful and I have nothing. I wanted something of my own too"
Arnold sat up and looked at her, his anger fading away quickly from his face. He looked at her with compassion and touched her arm as if to reassure her.
"Helga, I didn't know you felt that way..."
"Well...I uh..guess now you do", Helga replied awkwardly, trying not to look at Arnold.
"Helga...", Arnold said lifting up Helga's chin, "I'm glad you told me this. All I really want is to be there for you. Sometimes it just hurts when I feel like you're pushing me away. Because I want to know what you're feeling and I want to share your burdens."
"Why do you care so much?", Helga looked up at him, her voice quivered.
"Because I love you", Arnold said without hesitation looking gently into her eyes.
This was it. This was the moment Helga had been waiting for her entire life. Helga found herself staring into the irises of Arnold's kind green eyes and she felt her heart racing so fast she was afraid it would stop altogether. Any moment now she was waiting for the alarm clock to wake her up into reality. She knew this was the moment she had to confess to him that she loved him back. Three words. Just say it Helga Old Girl! Instead, what she actually said next made her want to slap herself.
"H-hey F-f-football Head, we should drink those hot chocolates before they get cold", Helga stuttered, breaking herself away from Arnold.
Helga imagined a mini Helga appearing on her shoulder, slapping her incessantly.
"Criminy you moron!", mini-Helga screamed at her, "You had this in the bag, how could you screw this up?"
"I know, shut up, leave me alone!", Helga hissed to her mini-me.
"Um, Helga? Are you okay?", Arnold touched her shoulder with concern.
"Y-yeah, fine", The mini-Helga disappeared with a poof as Helga snapped herself back into reality.
"Here", Helga said passing one of the mugs over to Arnold.
"Oh, thanks", Arnold said somewhat disappointedly as he took the hot chocolate from her.
For the next five minutes, the two sat there in awkward silence. Helga was still recovering from what had just happened and she sat there on the couch next to Arnold, sipping away at her hot chocolate, trying desperately to calm her frazzled nerves.
"Hey Helga?", Arnold said breaking the silence.
"W-what is it Football Head?", Helga stuttered nervously.
"You have a little...", Arnold motioned to his lips.
"Oh" Helga said as she tried to wipe the whipped cream from her lips.
"No it's still there"
"Here?"
"Here, I got it", Arnold said as he leaned over to Helga. He wiped away the cream residue with his finger but didn't move away. Instead he continued to lean over her, staring intensely into her eyes.
"A-arnold?", Helga gasped as she realized how close he was. She felt like a little lamb cornered by a very sexy wolf, pinned to the couch.
Arnold's could feel his heart racing and he felt a little lightheaded. He leaned towards her, his face just inches from Helga's. He could see the irises of her deep blue eyes widen and her cheeks tinged with a deep scarlet blush but she didn't pull away. Tingles ran down his spine and he heard the rush of blood in his ears as Arnold slowly tilted his head and drew his lips closer to hers. Arnold closed his eyes; he could feel the heat of her lulled breath against his skin and then finally, the gentle brush of her lips on his.
He felt like fireworks were going off inside of his chest, the way his heart was pounding at what seemed like 300 beats per second. After having been married for four years and having dated for far longer, Arnold was pleasantly surprised that Helga could still invoke such strong feelings of desire in him. He was drawn back to a far more innocent time, it brought back memories of their first kiss.
The feeling of her soft plush lips on his, the way she whimpered so vulnerably, so adorably, the scent of her floral shampoo...It was more than he could handle. Arnold felt an inexplicable explosion of feelings of love and lust arise in him. A faint blush rose to his cheeks as he felt a familiar tightening in his pants, and he thanked God that he had more self control than he did as a teenager, because it was all he could do not to take Helga right then and there. He gripped the fabric of Helga's shirt tightly in silent frustration but forced himself to pull away from Helga before his carnal instincts took over him.
Helga's eyebrows were upturned in vulnerability. A slight smile graced her rosy lips and her lashes brushed across the tops of her pink cheeks as she shyly looked away from Arnold. A feeling of warmth washed over Arnold as he realized again how much he loved the woman sitting before him. Ten more years could pass, or twenty, or the rest of his life, but he knew he'd always love her.
A/N: Hi guys! Hope you liked this chapter. Sorry if there are a lot of grammatical errors. It's super late here and I'm really tired to proofread right now. I just wanted to get this chapter up ASAP because I'm going to be super busy with school and won't get another chance to update for the next several months. Anyways, after eight chapters H&A FINALLY kiss! Please leave a review and tell me what you thought :)
