Rescuing Arnold
Rating: PG-13 (Swearing, weaponry, and violence)
Chapter 06
"Saved By A Stranger"
~~~~~~~~~~
The cold water rushed past her bonded body, threatening to fill her lungs with their deadly compound. She needed oxygen, not water. Tiny bubbles slowly floated to the surface as she sank still deeper. Suddenly, her eyes fluttered open and began to cloud over. She moaned softly and struggled. She felt herself loosing consciousness again and finally welcomed the death sentence. Her eyes closed again and she encouraged the dream state. She felt nothing. Not the cold water. Not the urge to breathe. Not the bubbles around her face. And she especially didn't feel the strong arms wrap around her waist, carrying her back to the surface, kicking as fast as their partnering legs could go.
~~~~~~~~~~
Gerald gasped for air as he pulled both himself and Helga to the surface of the water, coughing and sputtering. He heaved her out onto the pier and quickly cut her loose of her captive bonds. He flipped her over onto her back and checked for breathing and a pulse; he found neither. "Oh shit!" He cried. "Helga, don't you dare give up on me! Don't you dare die!" He quickly placed his hands under her breast line and began the fifteen easy pumps. After the fifteen thrusts, he placed his mouth on hers and pinched her nose closed. Fifteen more, then blow. Fifteen more, blow. Fifteen, blow. Finally she coughed, and it wasn't a small cough either. A mixture of water, seaweed, and sand caught in her throat came pouring out, all over the pier. She groaned softly and looked up in Gerald's direction.
"I just had the weirdest dream you were kissing me." She muttered which caused Gerald to laugh.
"Yeah, if you consider CPR and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation a kiss." Helga laughed too and tried to sit up, but Gerald quickly caught her and forced her back down and put her head into his lap. He smiled at her. "Promise you won't tell Phoebe?"
Helga glanced up at him and nodded weakly. "As long as you don't tell Arnold."
"Arnold?" Helga nodded and he smirked. "I promise." He checked her over, making sure she would be okay. He sucked in a sharp breath as his chestnut brown eyes landed on a spreading red blotch in the side version of her dress. He quickly ran his fingers down her side, which caused her to inhale sharply. He pushed her upwards at the shoulder and pulled her arms out of their straps, gently pulling the top half of her dress down, exposing her wounded side. Helga felt a timid blush creep to her cheeks as Gerald caressed the deep cut flesh. It was bleeding freshly, since it was now exposed to the cold, crisp air. Determined, he scooped her in his arms and ran towards an old warehouse.
"Gerald?" Helga whispered softly as the pain overwhelmed her, causing her to whimper and moan. Gerald's arms clutched her tightly and he ran as fast as he could. Finally he stopped and set Helga down lightly, quickly pressing a button. A small keypad shot out of the wall and he typed in a quick seven-digit number. "Gerald," Helga moaned softly, "am I going to die?" Gerald looked at her and shook his head, grabbing her in his arms once more.
"Not if I can do something about it." He answered as a huge door swung open and the silhouette of a teenage girl walked out. Gerald smiled as he recognized the girl. "Bridget!" He cried. Bridget's smile faded when she saw Helga's condition.
"Get inside! Now!" She yelled, grabbing a walkie-talkie from off a table. "All doctors to the hospital wing, on the double!" She cried and flew past Gerald towards two white doors. Gerald immediately followed as Helga clutched her waist in pain. Everyone in the secret hideaway quickly scattered, making room for the trio. Finally she spotted the quite large white room on the other side of the doorway and moaned in pain as Gerald placed her on a cold table.
Suddenly, a crowd of doctors rushed around her, pushing Gerald out of the way. "Get the syringe!"
"Got it, doctor."
"Is she going to make it?"
"She should."
"She's lost a lot of blood."
"Someone check what type she is!"
"You!"
"Yes, ma'am!"
"Nurse, where's that syringe?"
"Right here, ma'am."
"Give it to her!"
"Yes, ma'am!"
"Type O, ma'am."
"O? Damn it! We don't have any O left!"
"I'm a type O!" The voice belonged to Gerald. Helga immediately knew what was going on. Her mind swirled as the doctors pushed a needled into her forearm. She heard Gerald whimper in pain as she saw them hook up a tube to his arm and gave him a comfortable place to rest.
"We have them set up!"
"Good! Get her the medicine! I want her out!"
"Yes, ma'am!"
"Here it is!"
"Give it to her!" Helga felt a sharp prick in her left arm, and soon found her self falling into a deep sleep. The last thing she heard was Gerald's voice.
"Get better, Helga. For Arnold's sake. He needs you."
~~~~~~~~~~
Helga groaned in slight pain as she felt the doctors take out the needle from her arm. "She's a little weak, but I'm certain she'll make it through. She had a few blows to the head, a slightly torn tendon in her right arm, a swollen ankle, and about twelve bruises, but she'll make it. All we have to do is wait for her to wake up, then we can check on her properly, to see if she's suffered any brain damage." Helga's eyes fluttered open, slowly, as if her brain were telling her light was the devil.
"She's waking up!" An unfamiliar voice ran through her mind.
"Arnold." She groaned softly, the she shot up. "Arnold!" Her mind raced. Sheck had told her he had his parents in on his little plot. They would take him to FTI and Sheck would kill him! She reacted and leaped off the table, ignoring the slight wooziness that clouded her mind. She ran, out the double doors, out the hallway, and out the main entrance. She ignored the calls from behind and the throbbing headache she had just gotten. All she focused on was the rising sun, her feet pounding the wet cement and the neighborhood, not too far away.
~~~~~~~~~~
"Arnold, we're so sorry we had to leave you like that." Arnold stood in front of two people, one man and one woman, with a suitcase next to him. He kept glancing down the street, hoping she would show up and he could say his final goodbyes. He had stalled long enough, and with the two people standing in front of him, his grandparents behind, and the boarders to the side, there was only one thing he could do. Leave. Turn around and never look back on the old boarding house, the old neighborhood, and the old friends he would leave behind. He just wished she had been there to say good-bye.
"Arnold, are you ready?" The voice belonged to the man. Sure enough, the older man turned away from him, opening the door to the black Ferrari. Arnold lowered his head and began his slow walk towards the car. His heart was heavy. What would he do without...her? He made a promise, but it wasn't enough. He couldn't wait for her.
~~~~~~~~~~
Helga ran as fast as she could go, her legs pounding the gravel underneath. Finally she saw the old building not too far away. And there he was: standing in front of a woman and man like a child who had just been punished. The boarders and his grandparents around him had just left, and she saw the door shut behind them. 'Oh no! They can't be.' Her mind raced as the tears welled up in her throat. 'Are those.his parents?' She watched as he lowered his odd-shaped head and walked slowly towards the car door, not noticing the slight nod the man gave the woman. Helga felt her blood rage. There was no way these people were his parents. They wouldn't want Arnold to get killed. No mother would want her only child to die. Helga growled deeply in her chest and cried out. "Arnold!" She screamed.
~~~~~~~~~~
Arnold's head snapped from the inside of the car as he saw the girl bound down the street. Her pink bow flung around her head and she ran as if her life was in danger (to which he didn't know it was). He stepped out of the car and awaited her. Happiness took over when she flung herself in his arms. The man narrowed his hazel orbs and quickly shoved the two kids into the back of the car, to which they both grunted. "Alexander." The woman said as he slammed the door.
"Oh shut up, Rebecca." Sure enough, the two were not Arnold's real parents and were in fact imposters. Rebecca nodded and climbed in the front of the car. Alexander mirrored her and pushed himself into the driver's seat. In a matter of seconds, they were off, driving at a blinding speed towards the headquarters of Future Tech Industries.
~~~~~~~~~~
Helga felt her eyes well up with tears as she noticed their current surroundings: in the back of a speeding car, heading towards their own deaths. She sniffled and buried her face into her knees. Arnold noticed this and sat across from her, quietly placing his hand on hers. "I'm sorry I brought you into this. I don't know what's gotten into my mom and dad." She looked up at him, disbelief in her expression. How could he be so dense?
"Arnold, they are not your parents." This caused him to gasp aloud and pull back in surprise. "Arnold, no mother in her right mind would kidnap her son and bring him to the one man who more than anything wants him dead. He already tried to kill me."
"He? Who's 'he'?" Arnold asked, leaning forward curiously.
"Sheck!" Suddenly the world began to spin and Arnold soon found himself holding a terrified Helga. Her sobs traveled down her body, causing her to shake. "He's going to kill you and Gerald! He wants the three of us dead so that he can take over the entire city. He's going to kill us, Arnold! He already beat me and tried to drown me, but Gerald saved my life. He's going to kill us! I don't want you to die! I don't want Gerald to die! I don't want to die! Arnold, he's going to murder us, just so he can have our neighborhood."
Arnold found himself trying to shake Helga to snap her out of her hysterics. She rambled on and on, her sobs becoming louder and more heartfelt. He found himself shaking her harder, but she still cried. Finally, he snapped. He brought his arm back and swung. A loud crack engulfed the back of the dived car. Helga held her cheek tenderly and she looked up at him, fear in her expression. "Helga, get a hold of yourself!" He screamed. She rubbed her cheek and he embraced her. "Helga, I'm sorry. But I can't let you can't break down. You have to hold together, for the sake of the entire mission. You're the strong one, Helga. You know you are. Don't fall yet. We're going to get out of this, and we're going to live, and that's all there is to it. Sheck is a bad guy and you know that bad guys don't win."
"Why do you always do that, Arnold? Why do you always look on the bright side of things?"
Arnold smiled at the all too familiar question. "Because somebody has to, Helga. And I was born to be that somebody. I'll admit that the whole thing is going to be difficult, but we've been in tight situations before, but this is why we're going to win." Helga lowered her eyes to the carpet of the car.
"Arnold, I'm scared." She whispered.
"I am too, but you have to keep up hope."
~~~~~~~~~~
The cold water rushed past her bonded body, threatening to fill her lungs with their deadly compound. She needed oxygen, not water. Tiny bubbles slowly floated to the surface as she sank still deeper. Suddenly, her eyes fluttered open and began to cloud over. She moaned softly and struggled. She felt herself loosing consciousness again and finally welcomed the death sentence. Her eyes closed again and she encouraged the dream state. She felt nothing. Not the cold water. Not the urge to breathe. Not the bubbles around her face. And she especially didn't feel the strong arms wrap around her waist, carrying her back to the surface, kicking as fast as their partnering legs could go.
~~~~~~~~~~
Gerald gasped for air as he pulled both himself and Helga to the surface of the water, coughing and sputtering. He heaved her out onto the pier and quickly cut her loose of her captive bonds. He flipped her over onto her back and checked for breathing and a pulse; he found neither. "Oh shit!" He cried. "Helga, don't you dare give up on me! Don't you dare die!" He quickly placed his hands under her breast line and began the fifteen easy pumps. After the fifteen thrusts, he placed his mouth on hers and pinched her nose closed. Fifteen more, then blow. Fifteen more, blow. Fifteen, blow. Finally she coughed, and it wasn't a small cough either. A mixture of water, seaweed, and sand caught in her throat came pouring out, all over the pier. She groaned softly and looked up in Gerald's direction.
"I just had the weirdest dream you were kissing me." She muttered which caused Gerald to laugh.
"Yeah, if you consider CPR and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation a kiss." Helga laughed too and tried to sit up, but Gerald quickly caught her and forced her back down and put her head into his lap. He smiled at her. "Promise you won't tell Phoebe?"
Helga glanced up at him and nodded weakly. "As long as you don't tell Arnold."
"Arnold?" Helga nodded and he smirked. "I promise." He checked her over, making sure she would be okay. He sucked in a sharp breath as his chestnut brown eyes landed on a spreading red blotch in the side version of her dress. He quickly ran his fingers down her side, which caused her to inhale sharply. He pushed her upwards at the shoulder and pulled her arms out of their straps, gently pulling the top half of her dress down, exposing her wounded side. Helga felt a timid blush creep to her cheeks as Gerald caressed the deep cut flesh. It was bleeding freshly, since it was now exposed to the cold, crisp air. Determined, he scooped her in his arms and ran towards an old warehouse.
"Gerald?" Helga whispered softly as the pain overwhelmed her, causing her to whimper and moan. Gerald's arms clutched her tightly and he ran as fast as he could. Finally he stopped and set Helga down lightly, quickly pressing a button. A small keypad shot out of the wall and he typed in a quick seven-digit number. "Gerald," Helga moaned softly, "am I going to die?" Gerald looked at her and shook his head, grabbing her in his arms once more.
"Not if I can do something about it." He answered as a huge door swung open and the silhouette of a teenage girl walked out. Gerald smiled as he recognized the girl. "Bridget!" He cried. Bridget's smile faded when she saw Helga's condition.
"Get inside! Now!" She yelled, grabbing a walkie-talkie from off a table. "All doctors to the hospital wing, on the double!" She cried and flew past Gerald towards two white doors. Gerald immediately followed as Helga clutched her waist in pain. Everyone in the secret hideaway quickly scattered, making room for the trio. Finally she spotted the quite large white room on the other side of the doorway and moaned in pain as Gerald placed her on a cold table.
Suddenly, a crowd of doctors rushed around her, pushing Gerald out of the way. "Get the syringe!"
"Got it, doctor."
"Is she going to make it?"
"She should."
"She's lost a lot of blood."
"Someone check what type she is!"
"You!"
"Yes, ma'am!"
"Nurse, where's that syringe?"
"Right here, ma'am."
"Give it to her!"
"Yes, ma'am!"
"Type O, ma'am."
"O? Damn it! We don't have any O left!"
"I'm a type O!" The voice belonged to Gerald. Helga immediately knew what was going on. Her mind swirled as the doctors pushed a needled into her forearm. She heard Gerald whimper in pain as she saw them hook up a tube to his arm and gave him a comfortable place to rest.
"We have them set up!"
"Good! Get her the medicine! I want her out!"
"Yes, ma'am!"
"Here it is!"
"Give it to her!" Helga felt a sharp prick in her left arm, and soon found her self falling into a deep sleep. The last thing she heard was Gerald's voice.
"Get better, Helga. For Arnold's sake. He needs you."
~~~~~~~~~~
Helga groaned in slight pain as she felt the doctors take out the needle from her arm. "She's a little weak, but I'm certain she'll make it through. She had a few blows to the head, a slightly torn tendon in her right arm, a swollen ankle, and about twelve bruises, but she'll make it. All we have to do is wait for her to wake up, then we can check on her properly, to see if she's suffered any brain damage." Helga's eyes fluttered open, slowly, as if her brain were telling her light was the devil.
"She's waking up!" An unfamiliar voice ran through her mind.
"Arnold." She groaned softly, the she shot up. "Arnold!" Her mind raced. Sheck had told her he had his parents in on his little plot. They would take him to FTI and Sheck would kill him! She reacted and leaped off the table, ignoring the slight wooziness that clouded her mind. She ran, out the double doors, out the hallway, and out the main entrance. She ignored the calls from behind and the throbbing headache she had just gotten. All she focused on was the rising sun, her feet pounding the wet cement and the neighborhood, not too far away.
~~~~~~~~~~
"Arnold, we're so sorry we had to leave you like that." Arnold stood in front of two people, one man and one woman, with a suitcase next to him. He kept glancing down the street, hoping she would show up and he could say his final goodbyes. He had stalled long enough, and with the two people standing in front of him, his grandparents behind, and the boarders to the side, there was only one thing he could do. Leave. Turn around and never look back on the old boarding house, the old neighborhood, and the old friends he would leave behind. He just wished she had been there to say good-bye.
"Arnold, are you ready?" The voice belonged to the man. Sure enough, the older man turned away from him, opening the door to the black Ferrari. Arnold lowered his head and began his slow walk towards the car. His heart was heavy. What would he do without...her? He made a promise, but it wasn't enough. He couldn't wait for her.
~~~~~~~~~~
Helga ran as fast as she could go, her legs pounding the gravel underneath. Finally she saw the old building not too far away. And there he was: standing in front of a woman and man like a child who had just been punished. The boarders and his grandparents around him had just left, and she saw the door shut behind them. 'Oh no! They can't be.' Her mind raced as the tears welled up in her throat. 'Are those.his parents?' She watched as he lowered his odd-shaped head and walked slowly towards the car door, not noticing the slight nod the man gave the woman. Helga felt her blood rage. There was no way these people were his parents. They wouldn't want Arnold to get killed. No mother would want her only child to die. Helga growled deeply in her chest and cried out. "Arnold!" She screamed.
~~~~~~~~~~
Arnold's head snapped from the inside of the car as he saw the girl bound down the street. Her pink bow flung around her head and she ran as if her life was in danger (to which he didn't know it was). He stepped out of the car and awaited her. Happiness took over when she flung herself in his arms. The man narrowed his hazel orbs and quickly shoved the two kids into the back of the car, to which they both grunted. "Alexander." The woman said as he slammed the door.
"Oh shut up, Rebecca." Sure enough, the two were not Arnold's real parents and were in fact imposters. Rebecca nodded and climbed in the front of the car. Alexander mirrored her and pushed himself into the driver's seat. In a matter of seconds, they were off, driving at a blinding speed towards the headquarters of Future Tech Industries.
~~~~~~~~~~
Helga felt her eyes well up with tears as she noticed their current surroundings: in the back of a speeding car, heading towards their own deaths. She sniffled and buried her face into her knees. Arnold noticed this and sat across from her, quietly placing his hand on hers. "I'm sorry I brought you into this. I don't know what's gotten into my mom and dad." She looked up at him, disbelief in her expression. How could he be so dense?
"Arnold, they are not your parents." This caused him to gasp aloud and pull back in surprise. "Arnold, no mother in her right mind would kidnap her son and bring him to the one man who more than anything wants him dead. He already tried to kill me."
"He? Who's 'he'?" Arnold asked, leaning forward curiously.
"Sheck!" Suddenly the world began to spin and Arnold soon found himself holding a terrified Helga. Her sobs traveled down her body, causing her to shake. "He's going to kill you and Gerald! He wants the three of us dead so that he can take over the entire city. He's going to kill us, Arnold! He already beat me and tried to drown me, but Gerald saved my life. He's going to kill us! I don't want you to die! I don't want Gerald to die! I don't want to die! Arnold, he's going to murder us, just so he can have our neighborhood."
Arnold found himself trying to shake Helga to snap her out of her hysterics. She rambled on and on, her sobs becoming louder and more heartfelt. He found himself shaking her harder, but she still cried. Finally, he snapped. He brought his arm back and swung. A loud crack engulfed the back of the dived car. Helga held her cheek tenderly and she looked up at him, fear in her expression. "Helga, get a hold of yourself!" He screamed. She rubbed her cheek and he embraced her. "Helga, I'm sorry. But I can't let you can't break down. You have to hold together, for the sake of the entire mission. You're the strong one, Helga. You know you are. Don't fall yet. We're going to get out of this, and we're going to live, and that's all there is to it. Sheck is a bad guy and you know that bad guys don't win."
"Why do you always do that, Arnold? Why do you always look on the bright side of things?"
Arnold smiled at the all too familiar question. "Because somebody has to, Helga. And I was born to be that somebody. I'll admit that the whole thing is going to be difficult, but we've been in tight situations before, but this is why we're going to win." Helga lowered her eyes to the carpet of the car.
"Arnold, I'm scared." She whispered.
"I am too, but you have to keep up hope."