Hearts of Gold

26. Old Scars

"I just want to say, I'm very sorry about what happened. I hope Arnold is alright, the poor dear..."

Stella shrugged and half smiled, sitting across from Grace at Bigal's Cafe. It was a quiet day. Stella enjoyed a nice cappuccino while Grace stared down sadly at a plain black coffee, no cream or sugar. "He's okay, mostly just worried about Daisy. And please, there's nothing to apologize for. Not you, and certainly not Daisy."

Grace smiled and looked up from her coffee into her eyes. "Thank you. That's very sweet of him. You must be proud to have such a nice boy."

"Every day," Stella said proudly before taking a sip of her coffee. "Daisy's pretty sweet too. That was so thoughtful of her to try and help Helga when she was sick the other day."

Grace beamed at that. "That's our Daisy. You know she's planning on inviting her new friends over some time soon." She laughed a little and shook her head. "Of course, we still have a lot of unpacking to do, but we're working on it."

"Oh? You know, Miles and I would be glad to help out. If you guys don't mind, that is. I'm sure Arnold would like to help too, actually."

"Really? That's so kind of you!" Grace said with a hand over her heart. "I would love that. I'll talk to Daniel and we'll let you know when the timing's right."

"Excellent. Can't wait," Stella said quietly, giving her a warm smile.

There was a long pause afterward, as Grace took a sip from her coffee and stared down into the mug. Her smile dimmed and her eyes stayed low when she eventually spoke again. "Daisy wasn't always afraid of dogs, you know..." She sighed a little as Stella listened closely. "When she was much younger, I took her with me for a walk to a little grocery store by our house, and an older gentleman came by with his dog."

"Was it not leashed?" Stella asked in a soft, warm tone.

Grace took off her glasses, setting them on the table before rubbing her temple as if the memory was physically painful for her. "It was, but the leash must have been old, or the damn collar wasn't on all the way. I don't know. I can't remember, honestly... All I know is, it got away from him and it just...pounced on her. Took her down to the ground, scratched her up a bit. Then she kicked at it, and the dog clamped its jaw on her leg. It was...not good. We were lucky it didn't break any bones, but it tore her up pretty badly..."

Stella gasped, holding her hand over her mouth. "Oh my god, that poor girl..."

Grace nodded and shrugged, smiling sadly. "She needed surgery, wound up with quite a few stitches..." She swallowed hard and rubbed her eyes then. "The thing is, the actual physical scar is barely noticeable now. Not that she likes to show it. That was a whole other thing. We had problems with gym class, since she didn't want to wear shorts. She used to love swimming in the summer, now she's so self conscious she avoids it altogether. And she's basically scared of any dog that comes around her."

"Any dog at all?"

"Yep. The tiniest lap dog still scares her. The sleepiest, laziest old hound scares her. Big dogs? Forget about it. If we're watching TV in the other room and a dog barks on the show, sometimes she'll hear it and she'll check to make sure there's not a real dog in the house." Grace wipes her eyes a bit and takes another sip of coffee, holding the mug in both hands. "Thing is? I loved dogs when I was younger. And Daisy, she's got such a big heart, she cried when she found out the dog got put down. It's just... I hate knowing my baby is so scared like that. Not just of dogs, but of that little scar on her leg too."

Stella reached into her purse and pulled out a couple tissues, handing them over to her. "I'm so sorry. I wish there was something I could do."

"Thank you," Grace said quietly as she wiped her tears away and blew her nose. "You know what's really sad? She's actually scared to even tell anyone about this. When she finally went back to school, the other kids started barking at her. Can you believe that? Who the hell does that to a kid?"

Stella stared in shock. "That's... I can't even... Pardon my French but I would have laid down the fucking law at that school. Not just the kids either, I'm talking teachers, parents, the principal, the whole nine yards."

"Tell me about it. We tried, believe me, but they pulled that 'kids will be kids, she should learn to stand up for herself' nonsense, which they would have punished her for anyway. So we wound up having to change schools again. She always had problems with the other kids, but that place was the worst." Grace took another sip of her coffee before reaching over and touching Stella's hand. "I truly can't thank you enough for raising such a lovely young man as Arnold. These news friends are so good for her..."

Stella tried not to wince from the shot of pain in her heart as she said that. She didn't want to admit that she hadn't actually raised him, but she had to be honest. "Actually, um... Miles and I were gone for a very long time, and not by design. It's a little complicated. Maybe one day we'll tell you that story, but... We're here now, and I am very proud of my Arnold. I promise you, Arnold won't let anyone bully her." A smirk came to her then as a thought came to her. "And Helga? She really won't let anyone bully her."

"Really?" Grace raised an eyebrow then, tilting her head. "She seems like a nice girl..."

"Oh, Helga has a reputation. She was top bully for a long time, apparently. Those days are behind her, but I still wouldn't cross her if I was in her class. With Helga in her corner, she'll have no problems. You can count on that."

"Are you sure...?" Grace gulped, sounding a little apprehensive.

Stella thought for a moment how to put this. She didn't want to share too much of Helga's personal business, but she had to reassure her somehow. "Helga is...a very sad, lonely girl deep down. She might even have a lot in common with Daisy. I know one thing, if Helga invited Daisy to come visit her with Arnold, that says a lot. She's extremely guarded, very selective when it comes to the people she gets close to. If she trusts Daisy that much, she's got nothing to worry about."

Grace relaxed then, letting out a sigh of relief. "You have no idea how happy that makes me. One less thing to worry about..."

It was then that Stella was able to put a few pieces together, get a clearer idea of just why they moved to Hillwood. She spoke in a very warm, comforting tone, "Daisy's going to be much happier here."

Grace smiled and nodded slowly. "That's all I ever wanted..."

Rhonda leaned up against her locker and sighed, staring at the photo she'd taken of the drawing with her phone. Occasionally she zoomed in to examine every line, every stroke, all the shadows and highlights. She'd done it many times since Christmas, and it always seemed she found something new.

The only thing she never found was a sign. A signature. An image within the image. She couldn't find any kind of clue who the artist was, and it was driving her crazy. At first she decided to wait, hoping her secret admirer would present himself to her and declare his undying love and adoration. But as the days went on, she grew impatient. She knew she'd have to find him on her own.

Shaking her head she closed out her gallery and opened a memo she'd written herself: a list of the names of every boy in her class. She looked over their names with narrow eyes, considering each and every boy in her mind before she decided to investigate them. A few times she rearranged them just to see if any kind of hidden pattern stood out to her, some kind of order she could rely on. Not satisfied with that, she decided to knock out some names right away.

Stinky was deleted from the list immediately. Frankly she wasn't sure why he was even on it. Their "relationship" had just ended and he was too angry at her to give her something so precious.

Eugene she felt comfortable in eliminating. He never seemed to show even the slightest interest in her, plus she had a feeling that girls may not be his thing anyway.

Arnold was an easy "no" as well. Sure, he used to jump from one crush to another, but considering the way he was with Helga, she suspected his wandering eye was closed. For now, anyway. After all, he has been spending a lot of time with the new girl too...

She deleted Gerald from her list right away. He was cute, of course, but Rhonda knew that he was also dating Phoebe. Heck, they'd been making eyes at each other and getting close for a long time even before they officially got together. She even remembered them holding hands at the Cheese Festival.

"Cheese Festival..." Rhonda whispered as her eyes widened. She glanced down at her list and a name jumped out at her: Harold.

Did he have any artistic skills to speak of? Rhonda had no idea, but she'd guess not. He was also dating Big Patty, wasn't he? Still, Rhonda's nasty scheming against Helga on Halloween was, on the surface, all about avenging Harold's beating. On top of that, there was the egg assignment. And of course, there was the secret they both kept, their ride together through the Tunnel of Love one day at the Cheese Festival.

Sure, he protested at the time, but she knew better. She'd caught him glancing at her with a funny look on his face. He was also older than her, and likely going through the kinds of weird hormonal changes that the other boys in her class are going through now.

She knew that if it was him, it couldn't have been a romantic gesture. If he doesn't hate her like everyone else, he probably considers her just a sort of friend at best. A friend who was feeling down and had no one to turn to. That's all. However, Rhonda didn't want it to be him. She just wanted to take him off her list as soon as possible, prove beyond a reasonable doubt that it wasn't him.

All she would have to do is get him alone, away from Sid and Patty...

"Hey," Helga said quietly as she sat down next to Daisy at their table, setting her bag lunch down without digging into it right away. Something Daisy normally would have noticed if not for her much gloomier mood. "I heard what happened."

Daisy, who had been keeping her head down on the table with her own lunch sitting untouched as well, lifted her head up to look at Helga with worry in her tired eyes. "Arnold told you...?"

"It's not his fault, I kind of beat it out of him." Helga shrugged, taking a deep breath. "How long have you been...you know...afraid of...pffff...?"

Daisy sighed and closed her eyes, laying her head back down against her arms. "A while..."

Helga nodded and started pulling out the contents of her lunch bag, once again at war with herself. Not knowing the whole story, she didn't really understand why someone would react that way to a dog. Sure, they can be annoying, but scary? Like that? The old Helga would have mocked her mercilessly, but she tried to fight those urges. "I, um... I never knew anyone who hated dogs like that..."

"I don't hate dogs... They just...just..."

"It's okay," Helga said with a little nudge. "We don't have to talk about it." She took a bite of her sandwich and, when her mouth was a little less full, she added, "You know, I'm actually terrified of rats. And mice, I guess."

"Really?" Daisy couldn't help but lift her head up more at that. "But they're so small..."

Helga rolled her eyes. "Small enough to squeeze under doors. And they poop everywhere. And they carry disgusting diseases... You know the Black Death was all because of rats, right?"

"Actually it was the fleas the rats carried that spread it, but I guess I see what you mean."

Helga shivered. "One time we all got trapped on the subway. Me and Arnold of course, plus Gerald and Phoebe. And Harold. Felt like eternity down there in the dark. I could almost hear the rats scurrying around in the tunnels... For a minute there I actually thought I was going to die."

"Wow. Sounds pretty rough..."

"Well..." Helga shrugged. "I was just hysterical is all. Point is, rats freak me out."

Daisy smiled as she watched Helga casually dig into her lunch, letting the silence linger for a moment. "I get what you're doing, you know. And... Thank you..."

"Don't mention it," Helga said with a little smile. "Just hurry up and get your hands on the new Realms book."

"About that..." Daisy said as she finally sat up straight. "My dad got it for me. I haven't started it yet, but yeah. It was there when I got home, after...you know..."

"After what?" Phoebe asked as she sat down with her tray, followed by Gerald and a very quiet Arnold.

"Nothing," Helga said much to Daisy's relief. "Now that Daisy has the book too, we can start our little... Can we not call it a book club? It sounds so... I don't know, it sounds like we're a bunch of weird old ladies or something."

"Sure," Daisy said with a little smirk. She then glanced over at Arnold. "Hey... You okay?"

Arnold nodded and gave her a thumbs up. Gerald rolled his eyes at that. All day long, Arnold has kept his words at a minimum, speaking in short, quick sentences. It wouldn't be so annoying if he was only talking like that while answering Mr. Frank's questions or having brief exchanges with the other kids, but Arnold wouldn't even do much talking with him. Gerald knew something was wrong with him, but the fact that Arnold wouldn't tell him was getting on his nerves.

"Oh yeah, my man Arnold's doing just fine. Aren't you?"

Arnold gulped. He crossed his fingers that this wouldn't be it. "Never better!" He said with a goofy grin. Helga could tell he was trying to hide his little voice cracking problem and rolled her eyes with a big smile.

"You're adorable, you know that?"

Arnold shrugged and got to eating, really taking his time with his food. Gerald stifled a scowl and simply stared down at his food as he picked at it, occasionally browsing around on his phone.

Just then, Rhonda appeared at their table. "Hi!"

Everyone there looked at her a little suspiciously. Except for Daisy, who was mostly confused and sort of shrunk away while Helga, who was clearly the most suspicious, spoke for everyone. "What are you doing here, Rhonda?"

"Oh, you know, just...checking on you, of course! Are you feeling better? I heard you were very sick," Rhonda said as she tried not to lay it on too thick.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. Is that all?"

Rhonda swallowed hard. She should have known Helga wouldn't be so welcoming, all things considered. "Actually, I have a little question. You know that old lady whose cat Harold kidnapped? Does he still visit there on the weekends?"

"Mrs. Ryle? I think so," Arnold said without thinking. His eyes widened for a moment as he realized the risk he just took, but he was relieved that once again his voice had not cracked in front of anyone else.

"You'd be better off asking Sid, or Stinky," Helga chimed in. "They're his best friends, they'd know for sure."

Rhonda pondered for a moment, trying to figure out just which of Harold's friends would hate her the least. After Halloween left him "cursed" and more than a little embarrassed, Rhonda was sure Sid despised her. Meanwhile Stinky was probably still angry at her for using him and mistreating him when he was her fake boyfriend. Not to mention Stinky hadn't been spending much time with Harold lately, from what she gathered.

"Hellooo, Earth to Rhondaloid!"

Rhonda snapped out of it and looked at Helga. "Oh, sorry. Um... Thanks. Glad you're feeling better. I mean it... Anyway, see you guys later!" She tried to sound as cool and casual as she could, which frustrated her as it always came to her so effortlessly before, but at least she had an idea where to go next.

Daisy watched her walk away and then looked at everyone else. "Is there a reason everyone is so tense and weird around her?"

"I'll tell you about it later," Helga snarled. "Just trust me, she's not someone you want to trust very much. She's burned her bridges too many times, if you ask me."

"Yeah," Gerald said quietly. "Once you burn your bridges that many times, you just can't stay friends anymore. Nope, don't want to burn those bridges, no sir..."

Phoebe looked at Gerald a little puzzled, hoping he was okay but knowing better than to talk about it right now. As she looked around the table she was glad no one else really caught the implication. Helga got back to the idea of "not a book club" and Daisy joined in, bringing up the idea of a special meeting place on the weekends. Phoebe made sure to get a word in here and there, but all the while she kept an eye on Gerald, who stared down at his phone since Arnold was too busy trying to keep up with Helga.

She managed to pull her phone out and shoot him a text message, thankful that he had his volume down.

Phoebe: Are you okay?

Gerald: Yup

Phoebe: Okay. If something is bothering you, you can talk to me.

Gerald: I know

Phoebe: You're sure you are all right? I've noticed that when something is on your mind, you tend to keep your messages very short.

Gerald: I guess that makes two of us then

Gerald: Me and Arnold

Phoebe: Surely there must be a logical explanation.

Gerald: It's just that it seemed like things were gonna be good again and now he's not hanging out or even talking to me

Gerald: I thought we were past all this you know?

Phoebe: He hasn't done much talking with anyone today, including Helga.

Gerald: I bet he still calls her after school

Gerald: Or texts her

Phoebe: Perhaps you should ask him about it. You're still his best friend. Arnold is still Arnold and if something is bothering you, I'm certain he will listen to you and he will understand.

Gerald: Whatever you say babe

Phoebe let out a gentle sigh and put her phone away, looking over at him without even trying to follow the discussion anymore. She swallowed hard as she saw him narrow his eyes in thought, and she hoped that she got through to him. However, instead of turning to Arnold and talking to him like she'd hoped, Gerald pulled out his earbuds and started listening to music, tuning everyone out completely.

She reached over and gently rubbed his shoulder, and while he didn't budge or glance in her direction, she felt some of the tension leave him. Finding herself unable to talk any sense into Gerald, Phoebe knew she would have to go to someone else.

The irony wasn't lost on her as she realized she had to talk to Helga.

Gerald stared down at his dinner as he ate, preferring not to pierce the awkward silence that hung over the dining room with his voice. He was busy anyway, lost in thought about the day's events. While he was initially bitter toward Arnold, such feelings gave way to confusion. Phoebe was right, Arnold didn't just clam up around him. He gave everyone the almost silent treatment. But why? And why wouldn't Arnold talk to him about it, at the very least?

"You glad to be back in school, son?" His father asked casually enough, though his stare was sharper than any weapon in She-Ninja's arsenal.

"I guess," Gerald said with a shrug. "Boring as usual..."

Martin Johannsen nodded slowly. "I noticed you haven't been spending as much time with Arnold lately. You two been hard at work with your studies?"

Gerald swallowed a sigh before it could escape. "Something like that. He fell behind a little, so he's been catching up after school."

Martin shrugged, finally ending his stare. "Just as well, I suppose. I must say, Phoebe's been a great influence."

"I'm sure they're still friends, Martin," Gerald's mother interjected. "Arnold's a nice boy, he just hit a little speed bump is all. But I do agree about Phoebe, she's really wonderful."

Martin smirked bitterly as he kept eating. "At least we agree on something, Susan..."

Gerald winced at that little remark, tensing up as he noticed his mother pause to process it. Hoping to prevent any major arguments from breaking out, Gerald decided to ask about something that had been on his mind lately. "Hey, so um... I got a question, if that's okay."

Both parents glanced at each other, then at him. "Sure. What's on your mind, honey?" his mother said curiously.

"Well, Jamie-O has been out on his own for a little while, and... His room is just sitting there, not being used, so..." He paused for a moment, trying to feel the atmosphere of the room before he kept going. "I was just wondering if, like... I could have his room now? Since he's gone and everything?"

It surprised him how quickly his father responded. "I don't see why not. I'll tell him to stop by and move the rest of his things out of there, then he can help you move in."

Susan glared at her husband. "And just where is he going to put his things, Martin?"

"He has an apartment, Susan. He's not paying us for storage, and a growing boy like Gerald could probably use a bigger room. Then Timberly can have his old room."

Gerald and Timberly looked at each other and sighed, eating their food as the two kept going. "What if he comes back, hm? The boy's only nineteen years old. What if he has to come back?"

"First of all, he's a man now, and a man needs to learn how to take care of himself. If he loses his apartment, it's his own fault."

Susan gasped. "So what, we're supposed to kick him out on the street if he comes back?"

"Is that what I said?"

"That's basically what you're saying."

"Funny, I don't remember saying that."

Gerald was about ready to ditch his food and go to his room, whichever room that was. He knew it was tough to stop them once they got into this back-and-forth. Thankfully his sister was there to save the day. "Gerald's been helping me with my homework, Daddy! He's the best brother ever," she said in a tone almost sickeningly sweet.

Both parents stopped and looked at her, pausing to regain his composure. "That so?" Martin said with a tilt of his head, looking back and forth between them. "Well, that is awfully nice of him..."

"Indeed it is. I'm...very proud of you, honey." Susan managed as much of a smile as she could, and as much as he wanted to snap back at her, Martin held his tongue.

"Alright, son... Your mother and I are going to have to table the room issue for now, but... We'll work something out, okay?"

Gerald nodded before looking at Timberly in disbelief. As she smiled up at him, he started to wonder if perhaps he'd been too hard on her. It seemed she was growing up faster than he realized. "Anything for my little sis." He held his fist out to her, which caught her by surprise. "Go ahead, pound it."

Timberly grinned and pounded his fist with hers. "You mean it, Gerald? Anything?"

"Sure," he said with a shrug. "You name it."

Timberly thought for a moment. "Can we hang out this weekend? Just you and me?"

Gerald had a feeling something like that was coming. He didn't want to sour the mood any further than it had been already, so he knew he had to agree. But he couldn't help but ask for one thing: "What about you, me, and Phoebe? You don't mind if she comes along, do you?"

As much as Timberly would prefer hanging out with her brother alone, she had to admit she did like Phoebe. Unlike most of Gerald's other friends, Phoebe seemed to like her too. "I guess not. Phoebe can come. But some day we should do something just the two of us."

"You got it, Sis." Gerald smiled and winked at her, and for the rest of dinner things were quiet. Even peaceful.

After dinner, Gerald took his evening shower, brushed his teeth, and went off to bed. Of course, he wasn't ready for sleep by a long shot. He had a decent conversation with Phoebe, thankful that the subject of his favorite part-time mime never came up. He was particularly happy to report that a potential dinner disaster had been avoided, and that if his parents could come to an agreement, he would probably be taking Jamie-O's old room.

He couldn't help but feel victorious about it, even though his parents hadn't decided yet. For years, Jamie-O kept taking his stuff and claiming it as his own, and now Gerald was about to get sweet, sweet vengeance. Not that it was particularly brilliant or anything, but he wanted to enjoy it so Phoebe let him have his fun.

After their chat, he decided to watch some Pop Daddy on his phone. It was in the middle of a particularly tense episode that he got the text notification from Arnold.

Arnold: Hey man. You still awake? Usually you're watching Pop Daddy by now

Gerald: Yeah

Gerald: Fancy hearing from you again

Arnold: About that. I meant to talk sooner. I wanted to say I'm sorry about today.

Gerald: What about today

Arnold: You know what I mean. I was afraid to talk too much all day

Gerald: How come

Arnold: Something weird happened yesterday and it freaked me out. If I tell you what happened can you promise not to tell anyone about it?

Arnold: Hello? You still there?

Arnold: Gerald?

Gerald: Fine. Spill it.