Disclaimer: I do not own Hey Arnold or any of the characters. Hey Arnold is the property of Nickelodeon and Craig Bartlett.
A Broken Heart
Chapter 25: Rhonda's Rumors
The Next Day
Drake Sanchez had arrived to PS 118, having gotten off the bus. He didn't see Pataki at the Bus Stop this morning and well, the bus was less noisy without her around.
It made the ride pretty boring without his daily attempts to outwit her verbally or the casual conversations they have been having lately.
"I wonder what happened? I hope she's okay after what happened last night...'Drake thought as he walked into the school and went to his locker.
Last night after the movie, which they didn't even finish by the way, he walked Helga to the bus stop where they usually met in the morning, she said nothing to her and Drake, for probably the first time ever, didn't know what to say to her.
They just arrived, she muttered a quick "thanks" and then continued to walk to wherever her house is suppose to be and Drake left back to his place. It sort of killed him a bit whenever he saw that loud mouth spitfire actually be all quite and vulnerable.
He only knew Helga for less than a month but...quiet just isn't natural for her.
"Pataki..."Drake whispered as he grabbed his items and closed the locker.
He was about to head to home room...only to notice that some of the students...the girls in particular, we looking at him and whispering to each other. They did that when he first transferred but that ended after the first week...
"What's up with them?..."Drake muttered as he entered the class room and saw the other students deep in a private conversation..only to stop when they saw him and then go back to it.
There is no mistake about it...they are talking about him...
"Hmmmm...'Drake let out suspiciously as he went to his desk, keeping an eye on the others as they continued to whisper to each other.
"What is going on here?
Drake thought things couldn't get weirded until the bell rang and everyone went to their respective desks...
Everyone but Pataki, who still hasn't arrived yet.
"Where is she?...'Drake thought.
With Helga
"Criminy! I still can't believe I overslept...thanks, Bob and Miriam...'Helga muttered sarcastically as she finally arrived to PS.118, the hallway was empty and she knew what that means.
She's late...
She woke up later than usual and her parents didn't even bother to try waking her up, too busy in their own stupidity. Helga rushed out, grabbed a handful of cheap bread and started running, knowing she had to kick it in high gear since she missed the bus and she was already running late.
She ran into the halls, being careful to avoid the hall monitor or whatever teacher that could still be lurking in this halls and made it to her homeroom and quickly ran to her seat.
Mr. Simmons noticed.
"You're late, Helga...'Mr. Simmons said and Helga sighed.
"Sorry about that Mr. Simmons...I missed the bus...'Helga said and the teacher sighed as he marked her up for tardy and said nothing else.
She suppose she could consider herself lucky, since Mr. Simmons likes giving his students a chance before giving them a chance to make up, and not one of those teachers who give detention over every minor thing.
She pulled out her notebook and pencil and tried to pretend that the world doesn't exit.
Until...
"Hey...'Drake whispered to her and Helga sighed, remembering the awkward time they had yesterday.
"Hey..."Helga said as she didn't look at him, just staring at her notebook.
"You okay?..."He asked, actually sounding concern.
It irked Helga a little but she just said this.
"Just peachy, thanks for asking...'Helga muttered sarcastically as she then proceeded to focus on the lesson.
Unaware that a pair of eyes had witnesses their silent conversation...with interest.
Later
Helga got out of class, it's recess time and due to Phoebe's insistence, she is trying to go back to the playground to interact more with the other kids...even if Arnold is there.
He invited her to play dodge ball with him and the others but she turned him down again and just opt to play some more double dutch with Phoebe and Katrinka...though she couldn't help but notice that some of the kids were looking at her and whispering.
'What's up with them?...'Helga thought suspiciously as she continued to play with her female friends.
They continued with their game of double dutch and afterwards, Helga went inside to get something to drink from the water fountain, she could still notice the looks and whispers and she is getting well passed annoyed right now.
"Are you alright, Helga?..."Phoebe asked in concern to her friend.
"No, they are talking about me..I can feel it..."Helga whispered to her best friend.
"Huh?..."Phoebe asked in confusion.
"I can tell...whenever I look, I see some kids looking at me and whispering and it's getting annoying..."Helga said and Phoebe blinked.
To be honest, she did notice some kids glancing at their way but didn't think much about it.
"Now that you mention it, I did see some kids looking at us during recess..."Phoebe admitted.
Suddenly Katrinka came to rejoin them, with a confused look on her face.
"Helga, is it true?...'Katrinka asked, looking almost excited about something.
"Is what true?..."Helga asked in confusion.
"I heard some of the other kids talking just now...is it true that you were out on a date with Drake yesterday?...'Katrinka asked.
Time seemed to stand still, as Helga tried to register what Katrinka just asked.
Did...did she really just asked if-
"I'm sorry...WHAT?!..."Helga suddenly yelled at the brunette girl ,who then proceeded to explain everything she has heard on her way here.
Once she was done, Helga's bad mood got worse.
With Drake
Drake had just finished a few minutes of soccer practice and went to the playground to join the other boys in whatever game they had planned.
However, once he got there, the boys looked at him funnily.
"Hey guys, so what game are we playing today?...'Drake asked and the boys still looked at him funny and Harold, Stinky and Sid were even snickering about something.
"Uh...do I have something on my face or something...what's going on here?..."Drake asked, totally lost.
That's when Arnold and Gerald had arrived to join in the game as well.
"Hey guys...what are we playing?...'Arnold asked, only to see Harold, Stinky and Sid laughing at Drake and he looked mad.
"What's wrong with you guys?!..."Drake demanded, having gotten well passed annoyed right now.
"What's going on here?...'Gerald asked, totally lost.
"Heck if I know, I just came here and these guys are acting crazy..."Drake said.
"Not as crazy as you are, my friend..I never knew you had it in you..."Sid said, as he continued to laugh, as did his friends.
'What are you guys talking about?..."Drake asked.
"Guys...what's going on here?..."Arnold asked.
"Ask Drake, he knows what we are talking about?...'Curly said as he appeared, creeping Drake out by how random he showed up.
"Actually, I don't...will someone please enlighten me on the reason why you all are laughing at me..."Drake said with his arms crossed.
"Willikers, seems he really doesn't know...'Stinky said, once he calmed down.
"Okay everyone, what is this all about?..."Arnold asked.
"A little birdie told us that the Drakester over here was on a date yesterday..."Sid said and Drake's eyes widened at that.
'A date?...'Arnold asked in confusion.
'I was not...'Drake said.
"Now here is the funny part...you'll never believe with who...' Sid said in between his laughter and Drake's eyes widened when he realized what this was all about.
10 minutes later
There was only 10 minutes left of recess Helga was in no mood to play right now, she was mad and she was on a mission.
She was going to find Drake and knock his teeth out for what he did.
"That big, fat jerk...where does he go off?...'Helga grumbled as she marched angrily, trying to find her target.
Her best friend and Katrinka were behind her, trying to calm herself.
'Now calm down Helga, we don't know yet that Drake was the one who said anything...'Phoebe said.
"Yeah, Drake's not the kind of guy that would do that...there has to be a misunderstanding...'Katrinka said, now calm after hearing the story from Helga and understanding how it could have lead to that confusion.
But Helga is still mad...
"And yet, somehow, everyone at school knows we were at the theater together and the only one who could know that is him...'Helga said angrily as she tried to find Drake and give him a piece of her mind...
Among other things.
Her target was outside, still trying to explain to the guys that he wasn't out on a date with Helga yesterday, that it's a misunderstanding.
"I already told you guys, me and Helga just saw the movie to settle a bet, nothing else..."Drake said.
"HAHA! Drake and Madam Fortress Mommy, sitting in a tree! K-I-S-S-I-N-G-!...'Harold laughed and Drake rolled his eyes at his immaturity, along with the others.
"Geez, immature much, aren't you suppose to be 14 or whatever...'Drake shot back and Harold looked angry at that remark.
"I'm out of here..."Drake said as he walked away and went inside the school, since there was ten minutes left to his recess and he didn't want to deal with those morons anymore.
That's when Helga caught him, along with her friends.
There was a moment silence between the two, angry look eyes glared at impatient green eyes, before the blonde spitfire spoke up again.
'Phoebe...Katrinka..."Helga started.
"Yes, Helga?..."Phoebe asked in concern and Katrinka looked worried.
"Give us a moment, I need to talk to him alone right now...'Helga said in anger and the two girls knew better than to talk her out of it.
"Okay, we'll be outside if you need us..."Katrinka said, still a little intimidated by Helga's temper.
"Helga..please don't do anything rash..."Phoebe whispered to her.
"No promises..."Helga said as she continued to glare at that.
Since it's recess time, everyone was out on the playground, leaving the two of them alone in the hallway.
With enough privacy to argue now.
"WHERE DO YOU GO OFF?!..."Helga yelled at him.
"Nice to see you too, Pataki...'Drake said in annoyance.
"Don't act all funny with me! What's with you? Yesterday was just to settle a bet, that wasn't a date!...'Helga yelled at him.
"I know, that's what I have been trying to tell those yahoo's outside for the last 10 minutes but they won't listen...'Drake said seriously to the angry blonde girl
Helga was about to yell again...only to register what he just said and then blinked in confusion.
"Wait...you mean...you really didn't say anything about what happened yesterday?..."Helga asked and Drake shook his head.
"No, I didn't..."Drake said and Helga realized that he is actually telling the truth.
"I didn't say anything about yesterday either...'Helga said and Drake had a curious look on his face.
"Well, if you didn't say anything and I didn't say anything...how does anyone know we were at the movie theater, yesterday?...'Drake asked, totally confused.
Not a lot of kids were there yesterday to see the Evil Twin movie, since it's already been out for a while and he didn't remember seeing any of this classmates there.
Helga was confused too...the only person she knew from their class that was there was Arnold, but he didn't see them and even if he did, he's not the type to go spreading rumors around...No, not him, Helga wondered who would...until an idea came to her and got her mad.
Who is the one person in this entire school who would make a rumor about them over something so circumstantial, without bothering to dig in more to it?
"Rhonda!...'Helga said in anger and Drake blinked.
"What makes you think it was her?..."Drake asked.
"Because it's obvious, that girl is addicted to gossip and making things up out of boredom...she must have seen us at the movies and made assumptions...and started spreading it around school like a virus..."Helga said in anger and Drake realize she did make a point.
This is something that dark haired girl would do, and he's only known her for less than a month...
"When I get my hands on her, she's toast..."Helga said in anger, hating any and all rumors made at her, even if her life is pretty much sucking as it is.
"I'm coming with you...I want a piece of this...'Drake said in anger, hating being part of a rumor too.
Helga ignored him as she went to find Rhonda to deal with her, and Drake followed her , not exactly helping their situation but Helga wasn't thinking about that.
She wants to find Rhonda and button her lip...LITERALLY!
With Rhonda
The gossip queen of PS 118 just walked out of the girl's bathroom after her tri-daily hair brushing, wanting to make sure her hair was up to her standards.
And as always, it is.
Once she was out, she pulled out her smartphone and took yet another (hundred) pictures of herself for her blog.
'Perfect, as always.." Rhonda said as she immediately started texting to her followers.
However, two people approached her and Rhonda smirked.
'Aw, is it isn't the school's newest couple...'Rhonda said in a mockingly sweet voice and Helga seethed.
'So, it was you!..."Helga said accusingly to the dark haired girl.
"Me? What ever are you talking about?...'Rhonda said in a faux innocent voice.
"Cut the crud, Llyod, me and Helga know you were the one you spread that stupid rumor about us..."Drake said with his arms crossed.
"Now really...why would you think that?...'Rhonda said in a coy way as she even filed her nails, only for Helga to snatch it away and snap it in anger.
"Because it's just like you to spread whatever stupid stuff you can make up just for giggles Rhondaloid..."Helga said angrily, wanting to thrash her, but Drake however, held her back before she could.
He spoke to Rhonda, with an angry look in his green eyes.
"Listen here, Ms. Priss, I am making this clear right now, my life, is my business...I do not like being used as gossip fodder okay...especially when it's all fake junk you made up...'Drake said.
"I didn't make up the fact that you both were at the movies together and left together too..."Rhonda said smugly.
'Drake and I just went to the movie together to settle a bet and we only left together because we will close by but that's all...now listen Princess, here is what is going to happen...you are going to go to your little sheep and tell them the truth, that you were wrong...or else...'Helga said threateningly.
Rhonda however, didn't feel the need to be afraid of Helga's threats anymore since they are older now and now just saw Helga as all talk.
"Or else, what?..."Rhonda dared to say.
If Helga tries to hit her, her family's lawyer will be all over her. However, it was Drake who answered next, before Helga got a chance to.
"Or else, me and Pataki over here will say that we saw you at the movies on a date with that creepy kid, Curly, you know...the one who always tries sniffing your hair during lunch time and recess...we will tell them that we saw you making out with him!..."Drake said, having gotten to know his classmates and their quirks quite well since he transferred here.
Helga eyes widened at the threat and was actually sort of impressed. She immediately nodded her head in agreement and Rhonda looked angry and horrified.
"That's a lie!..."Rhonda yelled.
"They don't know what...and believe me, Curly would NOT need any convincing to say it's true...'Helga said in a threatening sort of way.
Rhonda lost her arrogant look and gulped, knowing that they had a point and if they spread a rumor about her and her stalker, her reputation would be affected.
"So..Uh...you guys really weren't on a date, yesterday?..."Rhonda asked in a nervous tone, knowing they got her where it hurts her.
Her reputation.
"No, we weren't and you better have this whole thing cleaned up before the final bell rings, or else..."Helga said and Rhonda immediately pulled out her phone again/
"I...I see...Oh, silly me...'Rhonda said nervously and Helga smirked.
This was easier than she expected.
Later
For once, Rhonda's yapping was put to good use, as she told everyone that she was wrong about yesterday, basically retracting her rumor by the end of the day, but still, some kids did look at them ever so often...
Helga was just glad that Arnold didn't say anything to her about it, hopefully he didn't hear the rumor...his head usually always is in the clouds, especially towards stuff like that.
Anyway, school was over and soccer practice just ended, Helga was about to leave, when Drake came to her, after the others had left.
"Hey Pataki...good news, seems Ms. Priss kept her word...'Drake said.
"Yea, quick thinking about that Curly bluff..."Helga said.
"Please, with how obsessed that creep is, like you said, he would tell everyone that it was true..."Drake laughed and Helga laughed a little too.
It was the first time all day...
"Seriously, people are such sheep...they see two people together at a movie and automatically come to the most insane conclusions...I mean, you and me...on a date...impossible..."Helga said, in between her laughs.
Drake however, wasn't laughing, but he did have a playful look on his face.
"Well, I wouldn't say that it would be impossible..."Drake said and Helga paused and looked at him like he was a mad man.
"What's that suppose to mean?..."Helga demanded with her arms crossed.
"Rhonda might have spread the rumors, but...everyone believed them rather fast...don't you think..."Drake pointed out.
"So? That just means they are a bunch of morons who will believe the first thing they hear...'Helga said, wondering what's going on with Drake.
"Come on, is it really so hard to accept that someone might see us and think we might have a thing...even a small one...'Drake said and Helga's eyes widened when he said that.
"What the heck are you talking about? You've been nothing but a pain in my butt since I met you!..."Helga shouted at him
A thing? WHAT THING?! They didn't have a thing!
To her shock, Drake just playfully rolled his eyes and had the "Oh, please" on his face, like he knew something that she didn't know.
"Please, Pataki...I know that you like me...'Drake said with his arms crossed, with that smirk of his.
"Excuse me?..."Helga demanded.
"Please, if you hated me as much as you claim you do, you wouldn't bother being around me so much outside of practice..."Drake said and Helga's jaw dropped.
What, is that what he thinks? Oh, the ego on this guy!
Did he really honestly think that despite all the yelling, fighting and jabs between them, that she might actually like a guy like him?!
HARDLY!
This has to be correct and now!
"Now listen here bub, I don't know how hard that soccer ball hit your head during practice today, but let's get this straight...I do not like you...We only spend time around each other during practice and yesterday was just to prove a point to you...I do not like you!..." Helga said furiously to him.
She expected all sorts of things, she expected mocking, yelling, teasing and all sorts of harassment from this boy right now but to her surprise, he lost his arrogant look and...looked down...and he actually had an...earnest look on his face
"Well, I like you...a lot..."Drake said sincerely and Helga momentarily lost her angry expression.
Wait...what?
-To be continued-
Next time on A Broken Heart
I Like You
REPLIES to my loyal and totally awesome reviewers:
Invader Johnny: You can say that again...
Call Me Nettie: How was this?
Human Dictionary: Would you like a large soda with that?
61394: Yeah, she was...
Kryten: You could say that again...
DeepVoice'06: I don't think so...
WONDERBABE: Ship away, my friend...
TXToonGuy1037: How's this progress here?
Alomoria: Thank you :)
Guest: I hope this chapter makes up for it...
:) Till next time beautiful people, remember to read and review :)