The Compromise

Chapter 25: We Think To Get Ahead

"I know, that she knows,
I'm not fond of asking.
True or false, it may be,
She's still out to get me.
I know, that she knows,
I'm not fond of asking.
True or false, it may be.
She's still out to get me,
She's still out to get me..."

Lily Allen "Naïve"

Helga was expertly avoiding the subject of Viola, although she wanted to tackle it more than anything else at the moment (actually part of her just wanted to tackle Viola, but that wasn't possible at present). She knew how her inquiries would make her look; like a scared, self-conscious, insecure, bitter girlfriend. At the same time, she couldn't help feeling like she deserved an explanation. Derek arrived to the game with his ex, sat next to her and then was talking to her long after the game was over. She surmised that she wasn't crazy for feeling the way she was, but she was bound to go crazy if she didn't get some answers. Soon.

"So, how was your game?" she asked, as Derek drove. He smiled before speaking.

"It was great. I scored three goals and we won by five." he replied.

"That's awesome." Helga said, trying to sound happy. In truth, she was proud of Derek. After he broke his thumb, there was a possibility that he would have been out for the entire season. The fact that he was playing so soon after the incident was remarkable in and of itself. "I'm glad you could make it tonight."

"Me too." he said, looking at her. Helga almost forgot about her ire and smiled back. She was still amazed that Derek could, without realizing it, annoy her to no end, and at the same time, charm her. "You guys did great, even though the sprinkler came on and everything. Was that part of the plan?"

Helga shook her head. "No way. I still don't understand how that happened."

"Either way, it was a great ending." Derek said, laughing.

"I just hope we had as big an impact as Rosso says." Helga responded, taking a moment to look out the window. She surveyed the highway and felt confused as Derek took an exit that wasn't familiar to her. "Derek, where are we going?"

His pregnant pause did not go unnoticed. "Viola invited us over her house. She's having some friends over, or something."

Helga cursed inwardly. She was hoping he'd drop her off at home, or something. She then imagined what would have happened if he did. Viola would, without a doubt, call to ask where he was. He'd reply that he dropped her, his girlfriend, off, and Viola would convince him to come over anyway. One thing would lead to another, and Derek would be hanging upside down in Viola's basement, as she beat him with a piece of bright red licorice.

Or something to that effect.

"We're going to Viola's?" Helga asked deadpanned.

"Yeah, we got to talking-"

"When? During the game? During my performance?"

Derek knew that Helga already knew the answer and replied in stride. "I met her after my game, and I told her that I had to leave to see your performance. I guess she followed me over, because when I parked, she was there too.

"Anyway, I started thinking about it, and I think it'd be best to just let bygones be bygones. Forgive and forget, you know?"

Helga looked straight ahead, using all of her willpower to keep the shock from her face. "Derek, you may be able to forgive and forget with Viola, but it's not that simple for me. Everything that I know about her comes from my own experiences with her and what you've told me about her. Neither of those include anything good." she explained.

"I think that maybe the two of you just haven't tried getting along." he answered.

"Derek, our schools are rivals." Helga said.

"So?"

"And she's my own personal rival."

"So?"

"And she's your ex-girlfriend."

"Oh."

"Yeah, 'Oh'." Helga said, looking away again. "Don't you get how weird that is?"

"It can't be any weirder than me having to see Arnold on a daily basis." Derek bit back.

"Arnold's not my ex!" Helga shouted.

"Might as well be! You two are certainly close enough…"

"So does that mean that you and Viola are 'close'?" Helga asked, turning back to glare at Derek. 'So much for the charm,' she told herself. "And why do all of our arguments always come back to Arnold?!"

"Because, you won't let go of him!"

"Oh yeah, and you're letting go of Viola Cooke by dragging me to her house!" Helga retorted. Sitting back as the car pulled into a long driveway, she resisted the urge to let her jaw fall slack. "Excuse me, her mansion."

"It's not a mansion." Derek replied. "It was her grandmother's house. She left it to Viola's dad after she passed."

"Gee, what's the history behind my little, old brownstone, oh wonderful boyfriend?" Helga asked, pushing the car door open just as the engine cut off. There were a dozen or so cars in the driveway, parked with reckless abandon and absolutely no organization. Even from the driveway, Helga could hear the raucous yells of teenagers and felt suddenly ill. House parties were not her thing, and house parties at the home of Derek's ex was definitely not.

"Let's just try to be civil. We don't even have to stay long." he said, smiling apologetically, and taking her hand as they walked up to the house. For a second, Helga let her anger wash away and resolved herself to at least try to have a decent time.

2 minutes later, Derek and Helga entered the Cooke Estates.

4 minutes after that, they were approached by the hostess herself, who had enough time to change into a sparkly green number with matching shoes, and were escorted to the dining area.

11 minutes later, Derek and Helga were offered their first drinks of the night. Derek accepted, while Helga refused and grabbed a bottle of water from a nearby cooler.

6 minutes later, Derek finished off his drink. Helga barely touched her water.

8 minutes later, Derek was (re)introduced to every person that he and Viola knew when they were a couple. Helga tagged along because she thought it was the only appropriate thing to do. She was, after all, his girlfriend. She was swiftly ignored.

1 hour, and 45 minutes later, Helga stood up against the nearest wall, watching Derek, Viola and their slew of friends mingle and laugh, as she squeezed and twisted her bottle so hard that it cracked.

"Hey-o, girlie! What's up?"

Helga turned to the right, expecting to find some drunken teen horror approaching her. What she found was Lila, bubbly as ever, leaned up against the wall with her.

"What are you doing here?"

Lila gasped. "You won't believe it! Cameron Lightcaster asked me out! I mean, sure, he's got really, really, ridiculously hairy arms, but, I don't mind. He drove me, but he doesn't have a car, so..." Lila replied.

Helga eyes suspiciously the glass bottle dangling from Lila's hand. "How many have you had?"

"Only two, my dear friend." Lila said, digging in her tiny handbag and holding up her keys. "Take 'em away."

Helga shook her head and pocketed the keys. Lila was a lightweight, something almost everyone knew. "No more, understand?" she asked.

Lila brought her hand to her forehead and saluted Helga. "Ma'am, yes ma'am. I know my limits." she said, giggling. Despite her mood, Helga couldn't help but smile. Lila had that effect on people. "So, why are you standing on the wall? It's a party…"

"I can see that, Lila, but this is also Viola Cooke's party, and-"

"Wait, we're at Viola's house?" Lila asked, seriously. Helga nodded and she continued. "We should find something embarrassing and take a picture of it. Like a…collection of Wally dolls or something…"

"A fun as that sounds, I'm on a secret mission." Helga said, her eyes resting on Derek and Viola, who were standing suspiciously close together. Derek took another swig from his brown bottle. Helga admitted to herself that she lost count with how many drinks he already had.

Lila immediately beginning humming the theme song from Mission Impossible and dodging, as if stealthily watching someone. "A mission? That's awesome. What's the codename, Chief?"

Helga smiled again. She'd have to remember this for when Lila was sobered up. "Codename: Derek is a Straight Up Fool."

Lila looked confused before following Helga's gaze to the living room. Shock fell over her face as she watched Derek bend over to say something directly in Viola's ear. She could almost feel the heat radiating from Helga's body.

"What on earth are you doing over here?!" she asked, loudly.

"This mission is strictly observational-"

"Observational, my left toe! You need to get over there, and fight for your man." Lila said.

Helga shrugged. "You know I'm not one of those girls who 'fight for their men'. I'd rather sit back and watch him make a complete fool of himself, then laugh at his expense later."

Lila huffed and placed her hands at her hip. "That's such a lie, Helga. You fought me for Arnold."

"I never fought you." Helga said. 'I most certainly wanted to, sometimes…' she thought.

"Well, kind of. With that play back in elementary school." Lila reminded her. "You got every girl to drop out of the part and then you told me you'd strangle me with your bare hands if I told anyone why you really wanted that part."

"That's completely beside the point, Lila. I'm not going over there. It'd be embarrassing, and I'm sure Viola would just do everything in her power to make me look like an idiot." Helga said.

"But, he's-"

"End of story, Lila. I'm not going over there."

'I can't believe I'm coming over here.' Helga thought, plastering a small smile on her face (anything bigger was bound to become a scowl) and walking toward the circle of friends that happened to include her boyfriend and his ex. They were all chatting animatedly and she couldn't have felt more out of place. Instead of awkwardly tapping Derek's shoulder, Helga quietly slipped her hand around his waist and glided into the circle, between Derek and Viola. 'Killing two birds with one stone…' she told herself.

Derek immediately turned and planted a kiss on Helga's forehead, subsequently staking his claim and causing a smile to erupt on Helga's face. She briefly ignored the smell of alcohol on his breath and concentrated on getting the both of them out of there. His arm was around her waist as well and if she could get him and Lila to the car, she might be able to get them out soon. Viola noticed, soon after, that she was no longer within groping distance of Derek, and addressed the group.

"Hey, everybody, this is Helga. She's Derek's girlfriend." she said, smiling that same smile that never quite reached her eyes. Helga didn't miss her tone at the word "girlfriend", and tucked it away for future reference. "Helga, these are my friends, Cici, Kiki, and Gigi." she said, gesturing to a trio of tall, model-esque girls of varying skin colors and features, but who all wore the same smug look of self-satisfaction. They also wore the same fake smile that Viola did.

In her mind Helga joked that locked away somewhere was another tall, lanky girl named 'LMNOPipi", who's name didn't quite make the cut.

Viola continued with her introduction. "And their boyfriends, Jake, Christian and Marcus." she said, Helga politely smiled at the boys, who, despite looking upper-crust and arrogant, were completely gorgeous. She briefly wondered if PIMP was full of models, but then disregarded the thought, remembering that Viola was a student there. Helga was slowly developing a migraine from being so close to her.

Gigi, the tallest of the girls with dark skin and tight curls of hair, spoke up. "So…you're Helga. We heard about the riot you started at your school tonight." she said, excitedly.

"It wasn't a riot." Helga said, still smiling. 'What have I walked into?' she asked herself.

"But, Viola said-" began the dark-haired, porcelain skinned beauty next to Gigi. Helga had forgotten her name already.

"What I said, was that Helga staged a…revolt, as it were, to raise money for her school, so that they don't terminate their clubs and extracurriculars. It was quite impressive, if I do say so myself." she replied.

"The Terminator!" one of the guys said, loudly, pumping his fist into the air. All of the guys around them high fived, and with his arm around her, Helga was jostled by the gesture. Helga looked at Derek and felt instantly saddened. 'What happened to the smart, funny, intellectual and occasionally goofy guy I was dating?' she asked herself.

"Helga," Viola said, looking at her straight on. "Can I speak with you in the kitchen for a moment?" she asked simply.

Glancing around at Viola's friends, Helga anticipated the worst, seeing as none of them looked too excited either. She nodded to Viola and turned to Derek, granting his attention. "Derek, do you think we could leave soon? I'm feeling kind of tired." she said.

"Of course, babe. Just let me know when you're ready." he said, turning his back on her and continuing with his conversation. Helga slipped her hand from around his waist and followed Viola into the kitchen.

Once there, Viola sifted around in the cooler of ice and pulled out another beer. She held one out to Helga, who held her hand up and denied it. "I'm driving." she said, pointing her thumb at Derek, who was clearly inebriated.

Viola shrugged and began to speak. "You know, I think it'd be really great if we could all be friends. You know, the three of us?"

Helga nodded and smiled. "Well, not all of us. I mean, Derek is my boyfriend. We're kind of more than friends, if you know what I mean." she said, laughingly. She was, under any circumstance necessary, making sure to remind Viola that Derek was her boyfriend, and no one else's.

Viola blinked a few times, but resumed her painted-on smile. "Right. Of course." she said, taking a long swig from her can. "I mean, I think you're an amazing dancer, and I have nothing but respect for you. I don't see why we can't at least be…civil, with one another." she cooed.

Helga, on the outside looked compliant. She smiled and nodded and went along with everything that Viola said. Her palaver was not getting far with Helga. On the inside, however, she wasn't buying a word of it. She wasn't sure if it was Derek, or anything else, but she was sure that Viola was out to get something. The girl was too competitive to let something like an ex-boyfriend escape her grasp. Helga was sure of it.

This was war, and the battle lines were being drawn.

"Of course." she said, mimicking Viola.

"Besides, I'm sure Caroline Henrietta will do something to work out that whole money situation. I've known her for a very long time, and she's always been such a generous woman." Viola said, taking another sip, but looking at Helga from over the lip of her can.

"You have?"

Viola set her drink down and looked at Helga like she was a small child. "You didn't know? The family obligation she spoke about at the game…" Viola began. Helga stared at her, waiting for her to explain.

"I can't believe you didn't know. Caroline Henrietta," Viola began. "She's my great aunt."

Helga stood by the door, angry at herself, at Derek, at Viola, and quickly found Lila's number in her contact list. She listening to the dial tone and waited for her to pick up.

"Hey-Looo…?" came the voice on the other end.

"Lila, it's me. Helga."

"Oh, hey! I'm so glad you called! I found it!" she said excitedly into the phone.

"Found what?"

"Her Wally doll collection! It's massive. She should really learn to lock her doors when she had a house party-"

"That's great, Lye." Helga said, cutting her off. "Are you ready to go?"

"Yeah, I just need to get a few more shots. Did you know that they made Wally sheets and pillowcases?"

"Yup. They make ribbons for your hair, and even fuzzy underwear." she said, reciting the catchy, yet consumer-driven jingle. "Hurry up and get down here. I'm trying to find Derek now, so we can leave."

"I thought Derek left already." Lila said.

"What?!"

"Yeah, I was heading up the stairs and I saw him go outside. I figured you were leaving with him." Lila said.

Helga ran a hand over her face and through her hair, clearly frustrated. 'Where are you, you moron?!' she asked herself.

"It's fine, just get down here and we'll find him together, okay?" she said, before hanging up.

Aside from saving her dance company, Helga surmised that the night was turning out to be pretty terrible.

"Rise and shine, Miss Perfect!" Helga said, loudly opening the door to her bedroom and holding out a glass of orange juice to the recovering person in her bed.

"My head…" Lila whined, her hand lost in the mass of red-brown hair that fell over her face and back. She was dressed in one of Olga's old nightgowns and tangled in Helga's sheets. She swatted at the pink pig who was desperately trying to lick her face and wake her up. "Back pig, back."

"Hey, don't swing at Strudel. She's not the one who got wasted last night." Helga said, hoisting up the animal and placing her on the floor. She rolled onto her back and snorted up at Helga.

"I wasn't wasted." Lila said, taking a careful sip of the orange juice. She blanched at the taste, but continued drinking. "I just don't remember most of the things I said."

"You are such a lightweight." Helga said, shaking her head.

"I do remember something about a super secret mission. How'd that go?" she asked, smiling, even though she was in complete disarray.

"Mission…failed. Derek got wasted-more wasted than you- and left me at the party." Helga said, kneeling on the floor to rub Strudel's belly. The pig grew ecstatic at the attention and oinked whenever Helga drew her hand away.

"Shut up!" Lila said, in disbelief. "He left you? That's…that's just wrong."

"Well, I'm not sure if he left me. He wasn't there after I dragged you out of Viola's room-"

"Why was I in Viola's room?" Lila asked.

"You were taking photos of her Wally paraphernalia."

"Wally? Really?"

"Yup, you have about forty pictures of it on your phone." Helga explained.

"Oh. Okay." Lila said, taking a sip of orange juice. "Continue…"

"Anyway, his car wasn't outside, and I couldn't find him anywhere. He ditched me, end of story." Helga said, distracting herself again. She couldn't imagine where Derek would go, especially in his state.

"Maybe he got a ride home from someone. You did say he was pretty smashed." Lila said, trying to defend him.

"Yeah, yeah…or maybe he's a fool and a half." Helga said, in tune with the vibration of her phone. It was midday on a Saturday and Helga was looking forward to having the day free and maybe avoiding Derek for a little while. She hadn't thought of it until then, but she didn't get an opportunity to speak to Arnold after the game.

'I wonder what he'd think about all of this…' she though as she opened her phone to survey the message sent to her. She immediately rolled her eyes when she read the message and snapped her phone shut. "Just when I thought I'd have the day off…"

"Who was it?' Lila asked, downing the rest of her orange-concoction. Helga's mother taught her how to make it when she turned 16, and even though she never used the recipe, she was glad that it came in handy.

"My fool and a half. He wants to meet for lunch."

Ohh, Derek. You gots some 'splainin' to do…I decided to update, because…I've been writing a lot. And the next chapter is already done, so, I figured why not. Plus, I've got the Wally theme song stuck in my head."...and he loves it when you buy his toys.."

These next few chapters are going to be so much fun! I'm excited. You should be too.

-Pointy_Objects