Disc-laim-er... hey, it's spelled just like "disclaimer"!: Yes, it's lame, I
know! I'm running out of ideas for this thing!!! I still don't own HA (or
Finding Nemo, for that matter), and things are going to cheer up a little...
but not for long. Dr. Reed is supposed to be a tribute to my friend Jeff.
(Hi Princess! ...long story.)
So many reviews! Thank you to QA, harpiebird, Gwynn, cici, dreamin_blue_majic, Estel fuga, RuffMaster (sorry for not getting your name right last time!), and Starship Gazer- I think that's everyone who's reviewed since last check. If not, review more often! *Lock, Shock, and Barrel hand out HUGE lollipops to all the recognized reviewers.* On with the show!
Chapter Fifteen: Mistakes
Helga hadn't wanted to be in this hospital again any time soon, yet here she was... for clobbering Arnold. The nurse attending him had smirked at first, but a couple of dark looks from Helga had solved that little grin. Now she sat on the lower half of his bed, willing him to open his eyes.
'I'm sorry, Arnold,' she thought. 'I'm sorry that I hit you because you woke me up in the middle of a nightmare. I'm sorry for all the times I was mean to you when I really wanted to say "I love you." I'm sorry for ignoring you because you were the one to hold me and hide my eyes while they took Miriam out of the car.' Her mind suddenly wandered back to her mother's funeral...
Everyone was proceeding by the open grave, tossing pink roses in on top of the casket, each flower accompanied by a faint "thud" as it hit her mother's final bed. Helga stood with her father, Olga, and Tim, numb and heartbroken, when she felt a hand take hers. She looked down, then up to Arnold's face. "She loved you, Helga," he whispered, pressing his rose into her free hand. "Don't forget her." She stared into his eyes, all the while tearing up, and nodded. He gave her one of his trademark half-grins, though the light behind the green eyes she adored seemed to be somewhat dimmed, and nodded to Bob, Tim, and Olga, then departed with his family. She looked at the pink rose in her hand and burst into tears...
She came back to the present with tears streaming down her face, remembering the last thing Miriam had said to her: "Take care of yourself- I DO worry about you."
"All those times I just resented her for drinking, and didn't try to help her fight it," she sobbed. "I could have stopped her that day, Arnold. I could have saved her life, but I just hid in my room and wished she and Daddy would stop fighting."
"Miss Pataki?" Dr. Reed, the physician who'd been on duty when she'd been brought into the ER the night of her rape, now stood in her doorway. "Helga, is that you?"
"Yes, sir." She sniffled. "Are visiting hours over?"
"I'll make an exception. Do you know him?" He gestured towards Arnold.
"Yes, he's my boyfriend."
"Is he the one who-"
"No." Her firm response made Dr. Reed believe her instantly. "He's here because I attacked him."
He tried to fight back a snicker. "Why?"
"He woke me up in the middle of a nightmare about... that... and I thought he was Tyler. So I swung my desk lamp into his head." She smiled faintly. "It's funny, now. –Will he be all right?"
"Yes, he ought to be waking up on his own any time now. He may have amnesia, though, from the force of the blow." Seeing the horrified look, he quickly added, "Temporary, mind you- only temporary. If you have something he'll recognize- a perfume or an article of clothing you wear fairly regularly- I would go get that if I were you. The more he remembers on his own, the faster he'll recover."
She grinned. "OK- thank you, Doctor!" She rushed out the door for the parking lot, knowing exactly what Arnold would remember.
***
A/N: Poor Helga... I'm spreading the angst thick on with her, aren't I? I'm so mean. :0) Oh well, it gets better- cookies to whoever guesses correctly what Helga uses to make Arnold remember her! I hope the monkey is appeased! (QA's going to give me a Chris Griffin complex with that muse of hers!!)
Luvs! -PopStarOE
So many reviews! Thank you to QA, harpiebird, Gwynn, cici, dreamin_blue_majic, Estel fuga, RuffMaster (sorry for not getting your name right last time!), and Starship Gazer- I think that's everyone who's reviewed since last check. If not, review more often! *Lock, Shock, and Barrel hand out HUGE lollipops to all the recognized reviewers.* On with the show!
Chapter Fifteen: Mistakes
Helga hadn't wanted to be in this hospital again any time soon, yet here she was... for clobbering Arnold. The nurse attending him had smirked at first, but a couple of dark looks from Helga had solved that little grin. Now she sat on the lower half of his bed, willing him to open his eyes.
'I'm sorry, Arnold,' she thought. 'I'm sorry that I hit you because you woke me up in the middle of a nightmare. I'm sorry for all the times I was mean to you when I really wanted to say "I love you." I'm sorry for ignoring you because you were the one to hold me and hide my eyes while they took Miriam out of the car.' Her mind suddenly wandered back to her mother's funeral...
Everyone was proceeding by the open grave, tossing pink roses in on top of the casket, each flower accompanied by a faint "thud" as it hit her mother's final bed. Helga stood with her father, Olga, and Tim, numb and heartbroken, when she felt a hand take hers. She looked down, then up to Arnold's face. "She loved you, Helga," he whispered, pressing his rose into her free hand. "Don't forget her." She stared into his eyes, all the while tearing up, and nodded. He gave her one of his trademark half-grins, though the light behind the green eyes she adored seemed to be somewhat dimmed, and nodded to Bob, Tim, and Olga, then departed with his family. She looked at the pink rose in her hand and burst into tears...
She came back to the present with tears streaming down her face, remembering the last thing Miriam had said to her: "Take care of yourself- I DO worry about you."
"All those times I just resented her for drinking, and didn't try to help her fight it," she sobbed. "I could have stopped her that day, Arnold. I could have saved her life, but I just hid in my room and wished she and Daddy would stop fighting."
"Miss Pataki?" Dr. Reed, the physician who'd been on duty when she'd been brought into the ER the night of her rape, now stood in her doorway. "Helga, is that you?"
"Yes, sir." She sniffled. "Are visiting hours over?"
"I'll make an exception. Do you know him?" He gestured towards Arnold.
"Yes, he's my boyfriend."
"Is he the one who-"
"No." Her firm response made Dr. Reed believe her instantly. "He's here because I attacked him."
He tried to fight back a snicker. "Why?"
"He woke me up in the middle of a nightmare about... that... and I thought he was Tyler. So I swung my desk lamp into his head." She smiled faintly. "It's funny, now. –Will he be all right?"
"Yes, he ought to be waking up on his own any time now. He may have amnesia, though, from the force of the blow." Seeing the horrified look, he quickly added, "Temporary, mind you- only temporary. If you have something he'll recognize- a perfume or an article of clothing you wear fairly regularly- I would go get that if I were you. The more he remembers on his own, the faster he'll recover."
She grinned. "OK- thank you, Doctor!" She rushed out the door for the parking lot, knowing exactly what Arnold would remember.
***
A/N: Poor Helga... I'm spreading the angst thick on with her, aren't I? I'm so mean. :0) Oh well, it gets better- cookies to whoever guesses correctly what Helga uses to make Arnold remember her! I hope the monkey is appeased! (QA's going to give me a Chris Griffin complex with that muse of hers!!)
Luvs! -PopStarOE