A/N: Let's all rejoice!! I finally finished chapter 4!! Woo! Thanks for the patience, people. I really do appreciate it. School's been up my butt all month with homework, projects, and all that other crap, so that's one reason this took so long. The other reason is my last fanfic (and by the way, thanks a lot for the reviews!). Plus I got grounded off the computer for a week. Well anyway, here's chappie #4!!

Chapter 4 – Arnold's Birthday

Helga woke with a groan the next morning with the sunlight beaming through her window.

It was Saturday. Just an ordinary Saturday where nothing abnormal would happen. She looked over at her digital clock: 10:00 am. With a tired yawn, she stretched out her arms and sat up. She looked down to see Arnold's journal lying on her lap as it had the night before, opened to the last page.

Must've fallen asleep reading it," she concluded.

Picking it up, she flipped through what she had read. The wedding, making the medicine, Arnold's birth, (which Helga enjoyed so much that she had read it three times) moving to Hillwood, and Arnold's first birthday.

Back to the last page, she decided to take a few extra minutes and read the last of it.

A few minutes later, Helga was on the last paragraph.

For a second Helga almost thought that a tear had escaped her eye, but when she checked, her skin was dry. But nonetheless, it was sill very sad. He had made it sound as if he knew for sure that they were coming back. He never even thought that they wouldn't come back.

She closed the book and snapped the latch back into place. Now all she had to do was think of a way to give it back to Arnold without actually giving it back in person.

She looked over on her bedside table and saw that the red light was blinking on her phone, telling her she had a message on it. She pushed the button under the light and heard Arnold's voice come over the speaker.

"Hey, Helga. I guess you're not there. Listen, my birthday's tomorrow and this is your invite to the party. I've been caught up in a lot things lately, so that's why I didn't tell you at school. Anyway, the party's at 3:00, so I hope I'll see ya there. Bye."

There was a little beep and Helga smiled to herself.

"Oh, how could I have forgotten such an important day as this one? My beloved Arnold turns ten!" she exclaimed. Then suddenly, she froze.

"And this is the perfect way to give Arnold back this journal," she said. She got up off her bed and ran over to her closet. She dug around until she found what she was looking for.

When she came back out of the closet, she carried a small brown shoebox. Helga placed the journal in the box and put the lid back on it. From under her bed, she pulled out a roll of shiny wrapping paper that she used for presents.

She wrapped up the shoebox and placed a blue ribbon on top of it. And on a stick-on label, she wrote who it was from by putting three question marks.

Then, she brushed out her hair, which was a mess from sleeping on it all night, and put her usual big pink bow in.

Looking at her clock again, she saw it was 11:00. Still having plenty of time, she walked outside with the gift under her arm and down the street.

"How much are you willing to pay?"

"Look. All I have is ten-fifty. Is that enough?"

Helga looked at the short boy in exasperation. He scratched his chin and smiled.

"Yeah. So where do you want it delivered again?" he asked

Helga let out an annoyed sigh. "I told you five times already, Mickey. That red boardinghouse on Vine Street."

"Fine. And when?"

"At 3:50 today." She told him in a serious voice. He nodded and walked away with the shiny parcel in his hands.

Helga turned and walked in the opposite direction. She wasn't sure if hiring Mickey was the best way to get the journal back to Arnold, but it was the only way she could think of. She wanted to be at the party, but how could she be at the party and be at the door to give it him at the same time. It would be too risky.

Helga was soon back at her house at 12:00.

Arnold stood on a stool hanging streamers for the party. Phil was behind him, on the floor, helping him.

"A little more to the right…no your other right. Okay, now a little lower and…perfect!" he exclaimed, making Arnold jump and almost fall off of the stool.

He climbed down and looked around at the room, which he had been setting up since 9:30 that morning. There were balloons floating around the ceiling and brightly colored streamers also hung everywhere (that had taken the most time since his grandpa was so critical about them being straight).

The stream of balloons and streamers flowed out into the hallway too.

The dining room table and been folded in half so it wasn't as big, and for snacks and party favors to lie on. Arnold had brought down his CD player and hooked it into the speakers so there would be music.

Arnold suddenly jumped when he heard a loud 'bang' from inside the kitchen. Ernie, Oskar, and Mr. Hyunh came running into the hallway from the card game they were playing in the kitchen. Soon, smoke filled most of the hallway and he saw his grandmother's head poke out from the behind the kitchen door.

"Oops. Sorry! That was Arnold's cake. Guess I added just a bit too much baking soda!" she said to everyone who was staring at her. Even Suzie had come down to see what had happened.

Phil walked into the kitchen, coughing and Arnold heard him say, "Geese, Pookie! No wonder it blew up! You put my pants in there!"

Arnold rolled his eyes and went into the kitchen to help clean up the mess.

At 3:30 that afternoon, people started arriving at the boardinghouse. Helga and Phoebe came together and were the last to show up. Helga checked her watch once they were inside and saw that it she still had another ten minutes before Arnold's present would get there.

Helga looked around and noticed that people had already gotten cake and were standing around with plates eating it.

"Arnold always does his presents after he serves the cake. He always has. I just hope he gets done with the in time. I want him to open mine last," she thought.

Arnold looked over at Helga still standing in the hallway while Phoebe stood talking with Gerald.

"Uh, Helga? You know there's cake on the table. You don't have to stand here," he told her.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, football-head. I'm goin. I can't stand here for a little while?" she answered and walked into where the party was.

Helga checked here watch. Eight minutes.

She looked up when she saw Arnold's grandpa walk into the room, pushing the other half of the dining room table, holding at least fifteen gifts. He pushed the table (which was pushed on wheels for obvious reasons) into the center of the room and stepped away from it.

Helga envied the decorated papers and shiny bows atop of the table. She was lucky if she got five presents for her birthday, and that was including Phoebe and Arnold, who were the only ones from school who got her gifts.

Everyone crowded around the table and Arnold stood right front and center. With an almost anxious look that Helga could tell he was trying to hide. She smiled at this.

After only six minutes, (Helga constantly checked her watch) Arnold had opened all of his presents and there was a garbage bag bulging with wrapping paper and ribbons and bows leaning against the wall.

"Two minutes. And Mickey's known for his accuracy so, there isn't going to be any extra time," she thought.

Arnold had gotten a new football from Stinky, a romance novel from Lila, (Arnold hadn't looked too enthusiastic when he had opened that one) a gift certificate to Mr. Chicken's house of Halibut and pancakes form Sid, "Vampire Hunter" video game from Gerald, a new CD walkman from his grandma and grandpa, a watch from Phoebe, and everyone else just gave him cards and/or money.

Helga looked at her watch again and saw that Mickey should be there any second. And as if almost on cue, Arnold's doorbell rang. Helga looked up so fast that she thought she could've gotten whiplash.

Arnold looked behind him at the hallway, a look of surprise on his face.

"Who could that be?" he thought "Everyone's already here."

He walked out of the room and opened to door and there, the fifth grader, Mickey, greeted him.

"Mickey? What are you doing here?" he asked.

"I'm here on a business run. I was hired to deliver this to you," he told him, handing Arnold the package.

Arnold took it uncertainly. "Uh…thanks, I guess." He said and watched him leave.

Arnold walked back into the room with the shining box and Helga felt her stomach give out. She felt nervous and almost thought her sweating would give her away as the mystery sender.

She had no clue why she had gotten so uneasy all of a sudden, but she watched as everyone turned to look at Arnold with the parcel in his hands. They followed him back over to the present table and put it down.

"Who's it from, Arnold?" Gerald asked form beside him.

Arnold shook his head. "Dunno yet. That fifth grader, Mickey, just delivered it saying he was hired to give it to me," he told Gerald, though everyone heard him.

Helga stood in front of the side of the table and watched tensely as Arnold picked up a little card that he hadn't noticed before.

It read,

To: Arnold Vedro

From: ???

He looked around and saw everyone staring at him and the box, telling him to open it.

Arnold started to rip at the paper and soon it was just the shoebox again. Helga stiffened as she watched him lift the lid off the top and star, wide-eyed at what was inside.

Arnold couldn't believe it when he saw his father's old journal lying in the box. He wasn't sure how long he sat there just staring at it, overwhelmed with happiness that he had gotten it back. It was all he had not to jump for joy and dance around (A/N: You know, now that I'm writing that, that seems as if it would be pretty funny. Lol :]).

Everyone except for Gerald and Helga were all asking Arnold what it was and why he looked so shocked at it.

Arnold didn't answer them, of course, but he just let them all go by saying that he hadn't expected it and a very special and personal thank you to whoever sent it.

"I'd also would really like to know who did send this to me. It really does mean a lot to me, as you probably already know, and I'd rather say thank you to you, instead of saying it like this," he said solemnly.

And that was the end of the matter.

Arnold put the lid back on and placed it with the rest of the presents on the table and everyone returned to the party as if nothing happened.

Helga let out a sigh of relief from the tension and too, went back to the party.

A/N: sooooooo? What do you think?!? I must know!! And what about Arnold's last name? Do you think it was stupid? I think it sounds a bit Latin to me, but I didn't want to come up with something common like Smith, or Williams, or Richardson, or something like. But it also wasn't long or hard to pronounce. And if anyone DID pronounce wrong, it pronounced Vee-jrow. Ok? So please review telling me how I did on this one. And again, sorry it took so long to finally get this up.