Chapter 1
"Are you guys okay?!" Arnold Phillip Shortman tried to shake the dizziness out of his head to catch his barings.
He could see Gerald get up groggily out of the driver's seat in front of him." Thank God I was wearing my seatbelt!" Gerald exclaimed with a goofy laugh.
Arnold returned a smile at him before quickly diverting his attention to the blonde lying next to him. Helga Geraldine Pataki was currently making a groaning noise as she slid her palm down her face.
"Criminy Geraldo. You didn't have to wreck like that!" She exclaimed with her normal scowl on her face as she picked herself up off of the ground.
She quickly noticed her beloved was also getting up, safe and sound, and tried not to swoon in front of the pair, even though she had just done it in front of Arnold just a few moments ago.
"Yeah yeah yeah." Gerald replied sarcastically." I can't help that the bus was broken! Plus, Murray up here is still knocked out!"
That's when Arnold noticed that the one legged bus driver was still indeed passed out in the driver's seat.
"Is he okay?" Arnold asked, a bit of concern in his voice.
Gerald slowly stuck out a finger and poked Murray's cheek. No response came from the man.
"Well, he's still breathing." Gerald said with a sigh of relief as he noticed the man's chest still moving up and down.
"Good." Arnold said with a grunt as he also picked himself up off of the floor of the overturned bus. He carefully tried to avoid any cuts from broken glass that was lying ridden all over the bus.
"We can wake Murray up in a minute. For now, we gotta get the tape to the mayor, quick!" Arnold said as he looked around the overturned bus." Now, where is that tape?"
"It's over here." Helga exclaimed as she leaned over to pick up with a groan. Her head was still spinning from the wild wreck as well." Still in one piece too!"
"Great." Arnold replied with a huff." You guys ready to do this?"
"As ready as I'll ever be buddy." Gerald replied as he shot Arnold a knowing grin.
Helga also sent him a grin and a nod as Arnold looked up to see the bus door open, ready for him to climb through.
With a strong pull and hefty grunt, Arnold pulled himself out of the bus. He looked down at the crowd of people, looking at him dumbfounded.
He then shifted his attention to his grandfather and all the boarders, who were for some unknown reason, all wearing military helmets.
A smile then crept onto Arnold's face." I got the tape!" He announced to everyone.
"That's wonderful Arnold!" Grandpa Phil announced in his normal Jolly good voice with a huge smile on his face. Suddenly, he looked confused and scratched his chin." Wait, what tape?"
"This tape!" He announced, holding the VCR tape into the air." The tape that's gonna prove this neighborhood is a historic landmark, and can never be destroyed!"
The crowd of construction workers and civilians bursted into confused conversions and confused looks, all directed at Arnold.
"All I need is a VCR tape and I can prove it to you!" Arnold said, feeling triumphant inside.
Meanwhile, behind him, Gerald was having a bit of trouble lifting Helga out of the bus." Come on tall hair boy, you gotta be stronger than that!" She exclaimed as she felt Gerald's arms turn to jelly as he tried to lift her up.
"You know, you're heavier than you look!" Gerald replied through gritted teeth and grunt. However, he suddenly realized what he said and bit his tongue.
"I-I didn't mean it like that Helga! I-"
"Just shut up and pull me out."
Meanwhile, Arnold was still waiting to see if anyone had a VCR tape." Someone has to have one, right?!" Arnold asked with desperation in his voice.
"I got you, Arnold." He heard a familiar feminine voice call to him.
"Bridget?" He asked aloud, looking out into the crowd.
"Up here."
Arnold, Helga, and Gerald suddenly turned their attention to this building beyond them. There stood one Bridget, a VCR tape player in hand.
She then took the grappling hook gun out of her belt, pointed it towards the bus, and pulled this trigger.
The grappling hook wrapped around the fender of the bus, clinging to it tightly. Bridget then suddenly made her move and rolled down the homemade zip line she had just made.
"Hmph." Helga grunted, watching the brown haired lady roll towards them." Who does she think she is anyway, catwoman?"
About that time, Bridget finally made her way to Arnold, presenting the VCR player to him as if it was a trophy.
With a huge inhale of air to calm his nerves, Arnold placed the VCR tape inside the player. The huge Jumbotron that Scheck had conveniently placed on top of the building behind them, suddenly lit up into static.
The crowd behind them all watched, waiting to see what Arnold had brought them. The golden boy who had always been there for all of them. Through their small family troubles. Through their midlife crises. Through their petty little falsehoods. He had always been there for them. And now, they needed him more than ever.
The screen stayed on static." Hey!" Helga exclaimed, jerking the player from Arnold's hands." Is this thing broken?"
"Of course not!" Bridget exclaimed." I just got it from the lair! There's no way it's busted!"
Arnold looked back to see the crowd of people behind him getting impatient. Several of them had their arms crossed and were giving him rude looks.
He turned back around and swallowed the lump in his throat." Well hurry up guys." He said in a nervous tone." We gotta get it fixed before-"
VROOM VROOM
Arnold's heart dropped as soon as he heard the car engine behind him. He turned around to see the giant sinister man that was currently trying to destroy his neighborhood, stepping out of his car.
"You throw a little party without me Arnold?" He asked, a sinister smile creeping onto his face.
Arnold swallowed yet another lump in his throat as he watched the man take a step towards him." Looks like your little plan didn't work now did it? You just had to try and prove to everyone that I am an evil man?"
Arnold couldn't find the words to explain what was going on. His mouth was dry. He had no spit. He just sat there, on top of an overturned bus, dumbfounded.
"Ah, no cocky words this time?" He asked Arnold, as he took a step towards him.
"We have the tape that'll prove it!" Arnold said, desperation in his voice, as he pointed up to the Jumbotron that was still currently only playing static.
Scheck laughed to himself and looked up at the screen as well." I see no evidence of any crimes committed."
"It was the right tape, I swear. Isn't that eight Bridget?" He then turned around to see Helga and Gerald just giving each other confused looks.
"Hey, where'd Bridget go?" Gerald asked, very confused,
"Great." Helga replied with an aggravated huff." She left us in the lion's den."
"Face it you little football headed freak!" Scheck whispered to Arnold through his teeth. He was now just a few inches away from his face." You lost. And there is nothing you can do about it."
Scheck chuckled to himself." Well." He announced to his crew of construction works that were standing around him." You guys gonna get to work on this dump or what? It's time to make a new future!"
"No…" Arnold said weakly. However, it was like no one could hear him. All that could be heard was the sound of construction equipment cranking back up. Getting ready to tear down every building in the neighborhood.
"Come on Arnold." He heard his grandfather exclaim from below the bus." I've already got everything loaded into the packard. We can just go.
"To where?" Arnold asked, looking off into space, tears forming in his eyes." We have nowhere else to go."
"We'll find somewhere Arnold." Phil said with a sigh as he reached his arm out to help his grandson down the bus.
Meanwhile, Helga saw the pain and tears in her eyes and felt hopeless. She wanted to reach out and grab him by the arm. Tell him that everything was gonna be okay. That she was here for him. Just like she had on top of that FTI building just a few short minutes ago.
However, it seemed by now that Arnold had forgotten everything that had happened on top of that building. And there was absolutely nothing she could do about it.
Unless…
"OLGA! WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU DOING ON THAT BUS?!"
"Dad?!" Helga said as she whipped her head around in shock." What are you doing here?"
She then noticed all of the cuts and bruises on her fathers face.
"Uh, what happened to you?" She asked as her father's angry glare turned into a sly grin.
"I gave that no good Vermicelli a good knock on the head, and I got our deal back. We're gonna be rich Olga!" Bob replied, throwing his hands into the air dramatically.
Helga looked at her father dumbfounded. She was very intrigued with the fact she would be rich, however, money was the last thing on her mind right now.
She looked behind her and saw her beloved climbing down the bus behind her. She needed to go talk to him. She knew it wasn't a good time, but she needed to. One last time before he moved away. Would this be the last time she would ever see him again? No, it couldn't be. She had to see him again one day? Right?!
"Come on Helga." Bob said with a grunt as he reached out a strong right hand." Get down from that bus before it catches on fire or something."
…
"You know, we could go stay at your great aunt Mitzie's house. Before she passed, she did tell us that if we ever needed another home, that her place was available." Phil said with a chuckle as he walked Arnold to the packard that was waiting patiently for them in front of the boarding house.
Instead of laughing and replying to his grandfather like he normally would, Arnold continued to stare at the ground in front of him. He was tired, dirty, and most of all humiliated. He was so sure that he had everything to save the neighborhood.
Maybe the tape got damaged during the crash? Maybe it was the VCR tape? Was it busted? There were so many possibilities to what when wrong. But Arnold had no time to think about it. By now, the wrecking machines had already started knocking down one building. Mr. Green's store to be exact.
Noticing his grandson's silence, Phil decided to leave him alone." Well, I'll be waiting for you in the packard when you're ready." He said, giving Arnold a confident, yet mournful pat on the shoulder.
After his grandfather had got into the car and closed the door, Arnold looked up at the boarding house. The only home he had ever known. Filled with weird and strange people that were now all going their own ways. Would he ever see them again?
In fact, would he ever see any of the old gang again? Harold, Stinky, Sid, and heck, what about Gerald?!
Coming back into reality, Arnold looked down to be met with the eyes of his best friend since day one.
"You leaving without saying goodbye?" Gerald asked in a tone that sounded cheerful, but Arnold could tell he was not cheerful at all.
"Sorry Gerald." Arnold replied in a sorrowful tone." I just got caught up in…" He then looked back out into the streets." Whatever all of this is."
"I know man." Gerald replied with a sigh." We gave it our best shot man."
"Yes." Arnold replied with a huff." Yes we did."
The pair then stood in silence for the next few moments. Looking out into the neighborhood they once knew. All of the memories suddenly started to wash over them at once. Playing ball in the streets. Getting tired of playing ball on the streets and building Gerald field. The countless number of times they and all their friends beat Wolfgang and his goons at football. Getting ice cream from the very angry and short tempered Jolly Olly man. All the urban legends they found over the years. Running a flower shop together. Ruining Mr. Green's birthday surprise.
The list could go on and on. Before the best friends knew it they were embraced in a hug.
"Where are you and your folks gonna go?" Gerald asked as he pulled away from the hug, wiping a stray tear from his eye.
"Don't know yet." Arnold replied with a shrug and shaky sigh." My grandpa said something about my great aunt Mitzie's old place across town, but we really don't know."
"Okay buddy." Gerald replied with a nod." Well, give me a call as soon as you can. I'll be at my house if I'm not in school."
Arnold just nodded." Sure thing man." Because Gerald didn't live in the same neighborhood as Arnold, he didn't have to move. He and his parents were still going to stay exactly where they were now.
"I'll still come visit you." Arnold replied with a short laugh as he stuck out his hand.
"I know you will buddy." Gerald replied with a small grin as he also stuck out his hand to do their signature hand shake for what could be the last time.
At this time, Gerald suddenly noticed his parents across the street, looking at him with very worried looks.
"I gotta go man." Gerald said with a short huff.
"Okay." Arnold replied shortly." Well I'll call you as soon I can man."
"Good." Gerald said with a nod as he slowly started to walk across the street. He walked a few more paces before he suddenly stopped in his tracks. He looked back to see Arnold giving him a smile that was full of hurt and sorrow. But, it still was a smile. And that smile was enough to make him smile as well.
"I'll see you later buddy." Gerald said one last time as he finally started to make his way across the street.
"See you man." Arnold replied, trying to fight the tears that were threatening to flow down his face.
As Gerald started to fade away from his view, Arnold turned back around to be faced with a very familiar face.
"Hey football he- I mean Arnold."
"Hey Helga." Arnold replied with a small smile on his lips. He still hadn't forgotten what had just gone on just a little over an hour ago. Her crazy love filled confession. Full of fire and passion. And that kiss. It had crossed his mind that maybe Helga had a crush on him before, but now that he knew. Everything had started to click in place. How she was always there when he turned around. How they had always somehow been partners for almost every single school project they had. There was still one question that plagued his mind however. If Helga had feelings for him all this time, then how come she always hide it? Why did she always torture him and never let him in?
"This really sucks you know." Helga replied in a tone full of sorrow as she crossed her arms and looked back out to the street.
Arnold, being broken from his thoughts, took a minute to respond." Yes it does Helga. Yes it does."
That's when Helga noticed how close she was standing to her beloved. She picked up a hand to place it on Arnold's shoulder. To try and comfort him. However, her hand was shaking uncontrollably as she tried to lift it to his shoulder. He was much shorter than her, but still. She couldn't even get her hand up chest high.
'Criminy!' She thought to herself.' Why am I like this? Why can't I just comfort him?! Is it because I'm still nervous about what he might say to me? What if he brings up that sweet sweet kiss we shared back on top of that FTI building. What if he-'
As on if one cue, Arnold took a deep breath in." Helga, there's something we need to talk about."
Helga's heart instantly dropped. Her blood rushed straight to her face, causing her cheeks to form a deep dark red blush." Uh-uh what a-are you talking about A-Arnold." She replied with a nervous laugh as she scratched the back of her head.
"What you said, back on that building." He said, trying to avoid the nervous tone in his voice." Did you mean it? Like, all of it? Do you really, you know, love me?"
He waited silently for a reply, only to not get one. He turned around to see Helga looking away from him. Confused, he responded to this weird action.
"Helga, are you okay?"
No response.
"Helga, what are you doing?"
No response.
Now he was getting impatient." Helga look at me!" He said, an impatient tone now rising in his voice.
Still no response.
BEEP BEEP BEEP
"Hurry it up back there Arnold! "I just saw a cop car pass by and your grandma was sitting in the back!"
"Okay grandpa!" Arnold yelled back as he looked back, Helga still looking away from.
She was still trying to find the words. The words to say to him for what could possibly be the last time.
"Fine." Arnold said with a huff." You don't have to talk. But I need to go now."
He started to walk away." Goodbye Helga." He replied, his tone starting to fill with sorrow again.
"Wait." Helga said suddenly. Arnold froze as he was just about to reach the front passenger door.
Helga then turned around to face Arnold. Her cheeks were still full of red blush. Tears threatening to run down her face. However, she choked them down. She stayed strong. For now.
"Arnold I-'' She choked on her own words. Her heart was practically beating out of her chest.
"I just wanna s-say." He continued to stare at her. His angel green eyes staring holes right into her soul.
"I just wanna s-say that." She looked into his eyes now. It was now or never. She had to make her move now!
"T-that your a stupid football head! And I never meant anything I said on top of that building. It was just in the heat of the moment! And also, I never want to kiss you ever again! I mean, criminy! What on earth was I thinking!" And with that she stomped off, back towards her father who was still talking to Scheck with chaos going on behind them.
Arnold just stood there, looking dumbfounded at Helga. What in the world, did he just witness? At one moment, it was like she was being all sweet. And then next she was normal old Helga again.
Arnold knew that Helga wasn't a bad person, but that was just… weird. Very weird indeed. He wanted to go and talk to her.
And tell her that he had feelings for her too.
Because it was true. Arnold Phillip Shortman had feelings for Helga G Pataki.
But, she obviously didn't have feelings for him. What did she call it? Heat of the moment? What does that even mean?
It was too much for his football headed brain to process. So, instead he just climbed in the packard, latched his seatbelt, and took a deep breath.
"Ready to go?" Phil asked him, his face full of stress.
Arnold took one more look back at the neighborhood. The neighborhood that built him. Made him who he was today. All the memories he had planned on making, he would never make.
He turned back around to face the road in front of him. Scared of what his near future had in store for him, but he was willing to face the challenge.
New school, new friends, new life. It was all in store for Arnold Phillip Shortman?
Was he ready for it?
Most likely no.
"Let's go grandpa."
…
Helga watched from around the corner of an alleyway as the packard slowly drove away through dust and debris of the wreckage that was going on throughout the street.
She reached in the front pocket of her pink dress and pulled out her locket.
Tears practically flew down her face now as she stared at the golden boy who was now leaving her, maybe for good this time.
She had a chance to make everything right. To tell Arnold that she truly did love him. This time, under better circumstances.
But she didn't. She blew it. Just like she does every other time.
"Why?!" She cried aloud, not caring if anyone heard her." Why must I be like this?!"
Author's note: Okay! This is gonna be a pretty lengthy one, but it's an update on life. I've had this idea for a story for a very long time! I just never got around to doing it. However, I am very very very excited for it! The two other stories I had in progress, have now been placed on hiatus! This is the only idea I've had on my mind for a very long time, so I had to get it on paper! This will be the only story I'll be working on for the next few weeks! I really hole you guys like it. Also, I've never seen this actual movie but like twice, so I may have been a bit off before I put the big spin into effect at the beginning of that chapter!
Now, onto other important matters, where have I been?! Well, I had a very big bump in the road in life a few weeks ago. I took a huge break from everything. I just wasn't motivated to do anything anymore. Now, I feel like a very refreshed person! I'm ready to get back out into the universe and write a little bit! So, don't forget to review, and I'll see you guys next time!
