Author's Notes:
Hey everyone! It's been a while. I originally had a much simpler ending when I first began this story with the prologue, but maybe because of my appreciation for dramas like Mad Men, Gilmore Girls and Crash Landing on You (great Korean drama, you guys should get on it), I wanted to really put more events and opportunities to establish and strengthen both the protagonists' individual arcs and their recovering relationship. Also, I didn't intend to put too much emphasis on Helga's story, but given how she's unavoidably integral to an Arnold character study, it wouldn't be right to just reduce her as anything less than possibly the 3rd most important character here.
Hope you guys won't find the direction as too stretched out, will do my absolute best to make sure the pay off at the end would be all worth it!
Chapter XVIII
In the restroom...
"Now Helga...you need to listen to me carefully...," Phoebe was appealing to her best friend's better judgment, desperately hoping that it wasn't too late. But she knew better, realizing that the probability of Helga still not being consumed by strong feelings of jealousy and betrayal was equivalent to zero.
"Phoebe...you lied to me...," Helga muttered, with the calm you expect before encountering a ferocious storm.
"I know, and I'm sorry! But please understand, I only kept it from you because I didn't want you doing anything rash or violent or...or anything motivated by your desires for Ice Cream!" Phoebe was kneeling before Helga, begging for both the latter's forgiveness and understanding.
Helga acknowledged the purity behind Phoebe's intentions. But she knew that her best friend was still hiding something. She realized just a while ago, thanks in no small part to Gerald, that her perceptive skills have stayed true and prove to be her best tool in distinguishing the truths from the non-truths. She needed to find out what Phoebe is still concealing from her. Helga knew that she needed to remain calm and use words to extract the information out of Phoebe. This way, she can save every ounce of envious rage for the person who has emerged as the new threat to her greatest desire - Rhonda Wellington Lloyd.
'You'll have your work cut out for you, doc...,' Helga thought.
"Phoebe...I understand why you did what you had to do. It was noble of you, it was empathetic, it was kind...," Helga observed her best friend's body and facial language, gauging how the fish was taking the bait.
"You-you do?" Phoebe, with tears building up, looked to her best friend.
"Of course. You did it out of concern for my well-being. How could I possibly stay mad at you for that?" Helga placed her hand on the little girl's shoulder.
"Helga..," Phoebe smiled, admiring the degree of sympathy she was receiving. "Thank you for understanding Helga. I never meant to hurt you by keeping things from you! Honest!"
It was time to reel the fish in.
"Honest..." Helga began to set up her trap. She then locked into her best friend's eyes. 'Forgive me...,' Her eyes told Phoebe's.
"What do you mean Helga?" Phoebe questioned, no longer feeling the comforting sensation which Helga's hand on her shoulder provided just a while ago.
"...What else are you keeping from me Phoebe?" Helga posed the simple question. She got no response. After the longest 10 seconds in Phoebe's life, Helga repeated her question.
"Maybe you didn't hear me Phoebe, so I'll simply repeat the question. What...else...are you...keeping...from...me?"
It's not the realization that the jig was up which frightened Phoebe. It wasn't the fact that Helga outsmarted her which made her so upset, as it does happen enough times that Phoebe grew used to such rare occurrences. It's the fact that even up to now, Helga was as calm as a psychopath simply and nonchalantly confessing the heinous crimes that she committed. She knew behind that serene aura of grace was a hellish storm about to be unleashed. She had such an intense focus directed to whosoever was perceived to have wronged her. And Phoebe felt terror for Rhonda...
...but again, the jig was up.
"I overheard Nadine and Rhonda the other day, near my locker...they thought they were alone..."
Helga, with the straightest of poker faces, simply nodded, indicating that she was indeed paying attention.
"Nadine teased Rhonda about an on-again, off-again crush on Arnold...Rhonda only rolled her eyes but she neither confirmed nor denied..."
Helga only gave the same nod.
"When Nadine asked if anything happened at the boarding house that sparked Rhonda's fascination in Arnold again..."
Again, Helga stood still, absorbing every detail with all her senses.
"...Rhonda only said that he, well, helped her get over herself...," Phoebe concluded, her face down on the floor, unable to look into Helga anymore. She felt shame that she kept such information a secret, and sadness that she felt coerced by her best friend to giving it up, in exchange for her forgiveness.
Helga took a deep breath when Phoebe made her final statement. A glimpse of the storm to come was all she gave.
"For the record Phoebe, I already forgave you completely, with or without your confession..."
Phoebe looked up in shock, slowly realizing that indeed, Helga never expressed that her forgiveness was conditional upon her admitting whatever secrets she had left.
Helga, before helping her friend up, said, "I just asked you to prove your honesty."
Helga then put her arm around her best friend, assuring her that she did nothing wrong. She motioned for them to step in front of the sinks to wash their hands.
They were by each other's sinks, when Phoebe asked "so what will you do now?"
Helga turned off the faucet.
"I'll just give her a bad day..."
10:30 AM...
Rhonda had just successfully convinced Arnold to put on a costume for their presentation. She showed him a picture of the traditional Welsh male garb, and that of the female's.
"Aww come on buddy, you asked me to come up with something to get everyone's attention, and here it is!" Rhonda continued her pitch as she put her arm around Arnold's shoulder.
Arnold needed more convincing, saying, "but Rhonda, I'm gonna look like a geek!"
"You already dressed up as a bug last year. This should NOT be an issue for you! Pweeeaaassee?" Rhonda did her best begging pout with puppy dog eyes.
Arnold, trying his best to hide how much he enjoyed the physical proximity, or lack thereof, between him and his geography buddy, still played some hardball. "I dunno...I don't think I can do it..."
Rhonda knew she needed to go back to what had previously worked on Arnold. And it was a simple matter of saying, "I'm sure Lilaaaaa will like it..."
Arnold was all ears.
'Man, what a sucker,' Rhonda thought to herself, her smirk once again on full display as she was well aware Arnold was moments away from giving in.
"Fine...as long as you dress up in the women's outfit too!" Arnold provided his only bargaining chip.
"Easy. Deal! Shake on it?" Rhonda offered her hand that smelled of coconut body butter, a fragrance that pleased Arnold so much. Arnold took her hand and sealed the deal.
"If this is just a fraction of how good your dad is with running his business, I can see why you guys are so well-off," Arnold complimented, not breaking eye contact.
Gone was the cocky smirk of Rhonda Wellington Lloyd - in place was a smile of bliss and gratitude, as she was reminded just how thoughtful and warm Arnold truly was, even when in a teasing mood.
Smack.
Some speeding projectile hit Rhonda straight at the bridge of her nose. Arnold, worried, came up to Rhonda asking what just happened. They both saw a spitball next to Rhonda's shoe, and looked around to see who launched it.
"Oops...sorry princess, it wasn't meant for you," Helga falsely admitted as she and Phoebe passed by.
Whatever good mood Rhonda was in was now gone. The word that made her feel condescended and beneath Helga was uttered in her presence, by no less than the unpredictable blonde herself. Rhonda pursed her lips to resolve her agitation, at least to some degree where she won't pretend they were in a football field and Helga was an opponent about to be on the wrong end of a blindsided tackle. This simple action, brief and calculated, did not go unnoticed by Helga.
Rhonda glared back at Helga, responding, "pretty good aim for an accident, huh Helga?"
'What can I say? Even when I miss, it turns out I don't," Helga boasted, not backing down.
Arnold stepped in to defuse the escalating situation, as he literally stepped in between the two alpha girls of the 4th grade.
"Ok girls, let it go. And Helga, next time...just spit your spitballs when no one else might get hit, ok?" Arnold had seen this behavior before from Helga. She was there to protect him from eventually getting his heart devastatingly broken by Summer during that beach trip, and was watching his back the entire time at the FTI building, which led to...THAT moment. But in all those instances, Helga was motivated by a desire to protect him, for what reasons he can't confirm until Helga becomes vulnerable enough to admit them. But why again? Why would Helga perceive that he was in danger? Did she see Rhonda as some threat?
Rhonda in the mean time, still furious, was bewildered by Arnold's seeming sympathy for Helga. "Oh come on Arnold, that was clearly intentional! You can't expect me to just let that slide can you?" So incensed Rhonda was by the situation developing that she only now noticed the commotion she was making and the subsequent attention they were attracting. It's a good thing that Mr. Simmons was too distracted at the Southeast Asian section of the museum...
"I do. This doesn't need to escalate any more than it already has, right, buddy?" Arnold expected Rhonda to accede to his request. Rhonda, knowing better than to upset Arnold and risk ruining all the small victories she's enjoyed to reconnecting with him, figured that flipping her lid over a spitball that was DELIBERATELY launched at her by Helga G. Pataki was not worth it.
"Fine, buddy..." Rhonda gritted her teeth, unamused and unhappy that she can't react beyond a fairly strong reprimand.
Arnold, satisfied that he secured Rhonda's word to play nice, was now intent to bring Helga to the side and discuss with her what just transpired. When he turned to face the pink-bowed girl, she had already gone several meters away to return to Sheena. Arnold had a bad feeling in his belly that this wouldn't be the end of it. He also felt quite hungry. He hoped that lunch time would come sooner. He turned again to Rhonda, who despite standing still had a face that was clearly still seething in anger.
"Sorry Rhonda. But it's best to not give Helga the satisfaction that you're really upset by her. If she does something fishy again, I'll talk to her, ok?" Arnold swore.
Rhonda, after settling herself from hearing the trigger word, simply replied with "ok."
11:00 AM...
About half an hour later, Rhonda and Arnold were now settled on a bench at the romantic Europe section. They had just finished ironing out some details regarding their presentation. Rhonda suggested that they do the introduction together, to which Arnold agreed, but with the additional idea of doing Welsh accents, which Arnold vehemently disapproved. Still, the football head was liking the consistent initiative Rhonda was displaying. On the other hand, Arnold proposed splitting the presentation into 2 main components: an objective portion discussing the geography, political history and folktales of Wales, and a subjective portion telling the traditions, experiences and culture of the Welsh people. Arnold made said proposal in the hopes that it would spark Rhonda to open up more about herself, and show that she's just as complex and multi-dimensional as everyone in class, despite popular opinion suggesting otherwise.
As they sat on the bench, content with the progress they've made for their report, Rhonda asked Arnold, "do you really think it's a good idea?"
"What do you mean, Rhonda?" Arnold answered, unsure of what troubled her.
"Of me sharing my heritage. I feel as if people will just be annoyed or bored if I were to discuss my Welsh roots and all...," Rhonda made it clear what was worrying her.
Arnold, figuring that humor has somehow been an excellent form of communication between them, joked, "Rhonda it's your roots, they'll love to hear about it! It's not like you'll be talking about your trip to England or your latest gift from Pablo..."
Rhonda couldn't help herself but laugh. "Yeah, I suppose I was being silly, huh?"
"Understatement of the day," Arnold cheekily said. This side of Arnold was something that, Rhonda noticed just now, she's never seen before.
"I never knew you could be such a jokester, Arnold," Rhonda commented as she crossed her arms, looking at him with a grin.
But Arnold simply paused and assessed what Rhonda pointed out.
"Arnold?" Rhonda called out.
"Hmm...I never thought about it before but I'm not normally this playful, unless maybe Gerald comes over, and even then it's not to this degree..."
Rhonda began to look away, as she interpreted Arnold's words to suggest that she brings a side out of him that no one else does. The thought of it simply excited her, and with the blush beginning to creep back on her cheeks, she needed to look away.
"Did I say something wrong?" Arnold perplexingly asked.
"Oh no, i think I just...err...forgot that I needed to talk to Nadine in the ladies' room...will be right back buddy!" Rhonda exclaimed as she stood up from the bench and proceeded to leave, intent on calming herself down and wishing there was some makeup item that could conceal the intense blush she was feeling on her face.
"Here she comes...what'll you do Helga?" Phoebe asked Helga, as they stood behind the bathroom door, glad that finally their intended target was approaching.
"Just leave it all to me Phoebe," Helga explained. "I need RhondaLloyd to look foolish for getting mad with what I'll do, and when she's finally had too much of my tender loving care today, she'll lose it, and this little act she's putting up for Arnold will stop..."
"Please Helga, why not just go up to Rhonda and hash things out? I know you two have never really seen things eye-to-eye, but given how she seems so different these days, perhaps there is a strong likelihood that..."
WHAM.
"UGH. My nose! Is it...bleeding?" Rhonda felt a sharp pain surround her entire nose. She felt the full weight of the door smash straight into it.
"Oh let me help you Rhonda! Oh dear, did you not see that door swing open? Maybe your contacts slipped again?" Sheena attempted to make educational guesses as to what she just saw. She was looking for Helga who ran off again, and figured to find her in the restroom.
"Oh there you are Sheena, what's going...oh no, I'm sorry again princess...," Helga mockingly apologized. She offered her hand in front of the fallen Rhonda, who this time bit her lip with closed eyes before sending another glare in retaliation.
Rhonda slapped Helga's hand away, got up on her own strength, and firmly said, "it was nothing Helga. Just watch where you're going...or else..."
Rhonda went straight for the restroom to check on her nose and to calm herself down, leaving a challenged Helga and confused Sheena.
'Well well, looks like RhondaLloyd's backbone's been growing a bit since her time at the boarding house...,' thought Helga, respecting the manner of Rhonda's response.
Rhonda saw no trickles of blood from her nostrils, nor any indications of a possible dislocation or fracture. From the corner of her eye, she was someone try to make a silent escape. She called her out.
"Phoebe, a minute?"
Phoebe could have sworn she implemented the appropriate amount of stealth to just avoid Rhonda's vision, even if aided with mirrors.
"Why I guess I can spare a minute Rhonda. What happened? You look like you got hit in the face?" Phoebe coyly remarked.
"As a matter of fact, I did. By your best friend, no less!" Rhonda yelled, needing to release a good amount of agitation that had built up inside.
"Have I done anything as of late to, let's say, be the target of Helga's ire today?" Rhonda wasn't in the mood to beat around the bush. She asked directly and firmly. She expected Phoebe to be courteous enough to give some satisfactory answer.
"Oh I haven't really talked to Helga much this week aside from lunch time and the bus rides. But you know how Helga is, sometimes she just chooses to pick on someone a little more depending on her mood."
Rhonda remained unconvinced. Given Phoebe's answer, she knew she wouldn't get any unequivocal answers from the class genius. But maybe, just maybe, she could get some clues...
Rhonda took a quick but good look of her own reflection. While the bruise on her cheek had faded by then, the cut on her lip was still a work in progress. She turned her attention to Phoebe, who was still standing before her, waiting to be properly dismissed.
"Guess I never noticed Phoebe. Normally, she only goes out of her way for Arnold for whatever reason, but that's two solid hits she got on me just before lunchtime..." she noticed a bit of tension behind Phoebe's lips.
"And I've known Helga long enough to know that she might be just as, if not even more cerebral, than any other girl in class when it comes to managing mischief."
She saw sweat beads beginning to form on Phoebe's forehead, with her prescription glasses starting to fog up.
"Phoebe, are you ok? You're starting to sweat. The AC's working fine, isn't it?" Rhonda kept pricking away at Phoebe's barriers.
"I need to...er...excuse me, Rho-"
The door opened, with both Nadine and Helga stepping into the restroom. Nadine came in to check on Rhonda, who she heard was hit on the nose and may have been trying to fix a potential nosebleed. Helga came in, wondering what was taking Phoebe so long, only to see that she'd been busy having to not give in to Rhonda's interrogation.
Phoebe, let's go! It's almost lunch time and I wanna check out what this dump has to serve in its diner!" Helga came up with a simple ruse to get RhondaLloyd off their backs. "See you Nadine, see you princess," Helga managed to sneak in the trigger word just as she and Phoebe stepped out of the door.
Nadine, a bit confused with what just took place, came to the aid of her best friend. "Rhonda, I heard you hit your nose...what happened?"
Rhonda, taking deep breaths from having to hear the condescending tone behind Helga's taunt, replied, "Helga happened."
Lunchtime...
"Rhonda, we don't have proof that Helga did that intentionally," Arnold vouched, as he and Rhonda waited for their orders at the museum diner. The diner's setup was very similar to the school cafeteria, but at least the selection of meals available distinguished the former well enough from the latter. Rhonda had ordered a salad, tofu steak and chocolate pudding, while Arnold opted for the baked potato, roast beef and tapioca pudding.
Rhonda had just informed Arnold of what happened just outside the women's restroom. Arnold knew that Helga deliberately swung the door open, as he was already painfully aware of what machinations Helga was capable of. But he had yet to decipher the motivations behind Helga's targeting of Rhonda Wellington Lloyd, leaving him with mere speculations. He wished to talk to Helga about it, but knew that he needed to assure his buddy first that it's not that big of a deal.
Rhonda however was having none of it. She was the one being targeted, yet Helga was getting Arnold's sympathies. Even she, for all the admiration she's been developing for the football head, was becoming really annoyed with the lengths Arnold would go to just to save face for Helga.
"Arnold, you're talking about Helga G. Pataki, the girl who tormented me out of wearing pigtails in the first grade...," Rhonda reminded him of Helga's inclinations.
"Rhonda, I of all people should know how awful Helga can be. But...let's just say...," Arnold paused, not quite sure how to explain the moments where Arnold realized just how complex Helga was. Their thanksgiving odyssey with Mr. Simmons, the Biosquare project, the retrieval of his hat, her comforting words when he first experienced Lila's rejection, the near mishap with Summer, washing dishes at Chez Paris, and...of course...the kiss at the FTI building just a few months ago.
So caught up was Arnold reminiscing, that he didn't notice Rhonda's growing tension, only made evident by the narrowing of her eyes and clenching of her fists.
"Let's just say, what, Arnold?" Rhonda snapped Arnold out of his trance.
"...let's just say that Helga's not all bad. In fact she's really an amazing person...just that sometimes, she can fall back on old habits...like someone I know...," Arnold delivered a message, and Rhonda received it loud and clear. But she also wanted to know if Arnold just implied anything else.
"...are you saying that Helga and I are alike?"
Arnold realized he needed to proceed with caution.
"Not a lot...but in some ways, you two like to operate similarly..."
Rhonda could feel her blood boiling. She couldn't believe that Arnold would ever compare her to Helga of all people. As rude, materialistic and haughty as she was, how could she possibly be anything like the demon in little girl's clothing?
"I don't know if I should feel insulted," she quipped.
"Think about it Rhonda! You two are without a doubt the strongest personalities in the class, including the boys. You two have such strong fronts, and sometimes you two get into more trouble than either of you bargain for...but when it comes down to it, I know that the both of you can really be good people, and will do what it takes to make amends..."
On one hand, Rhonda felt as if Arnold was finally acknowledging all the effort she had put in to prove to him that she had changed for good. On the other hand, did it need to be in the form of being a Helga G. Pataki apologist?
"So what? That doesn't prove much, you know that!" Rhonda's ego was getting the better of her. She would not allow any boy, even Arnold, say that she was in any way, shape or form similar to Helga.
"Maybe you just never realized it before Rhonda, and I can see why," Arnold continued. "You two always had different interests, and you two never had real opportunities to really get to know each other. But I know both of you so well, and I'm telling you, when it comes to the things about you that really matter, you and Helga could not be more alike."
Rhonda sat still, now realizing how much food for thought her buddy just provided her. Sure, she always knew that Helga matched and possibly at times surpassed her as the most dominant girl of the class. And true, the only times when she felt as if she got to know Helga were the extremely rare times that they actually bonded as girls. She learned of how rebelliously authentic Helga's spirit truly was during their slumber party, how cerebral her mind was when they conspired to haze Lila during her first week in school, and how she had a way with words when she spoke ill of Patty behind the latter's back.
As much as she hated to admit it, there was merit in Arnold's argument. If they were more alike than she had known, then maybe...it would be best to just approach Helga herself and talk it out...
"I'm guessing this is the part where I say you're right, and you tell me that I should go up and apologize to her, huh?" Rhonda quipped, getting a sense of deja vu.
"Uh, actually Rhonda...this time, let me talk to Helga," Arnold clarified. "I happen to know that if, and I do mean if, she's actually targeting you, then maybe I should be the one to speak on your behalf."
Rhonda trusted Arnold's judgment, despite her basic instincts telling her to forego the high road and strangle Helga on the spot after lunch. Speaking of which, where has she been all lunch break?
"Alright buddy. I hope she'll be in a listening mood," Rhonda expressed her uncertainty. But, if anyone could pull off a miracle, it would be the miracle kid himself.
Rhonda wished to steer the conversation elsewhere. Something between them to lighten her mood, and brighten her day again. Perhaps Arnold wanted to talk about their project a bit more? Or maybe he'd enjoy some friendly banter again? Or perhaps he'd appreciate it if Rhonda got him some more tapioca pudding, as he did seem quite fond of it.
Rhonda was too caught up to notice the disaster that would soon fall upon her...until it landed all over her from behind.
SPLAT.