Chapter 3:"Explanations."
Disclaimer: Don't own Hey Arnold!
"Please Gerald, I told you repeatedly, despite all my explanations; I apparently have no such clue if Arnold followed Helga or not? Why won't you listen?"
"But Phoebe? Something happened back there with Arnold and Helga. Didn't you see it?" Gerald beckoned his heads with utter pleading and knowing. He just couldn't push away the fact that if Arnold is keeping something serious to Gerald.
She finally looked at his chocolate colored eyes, "What exactly did you see?"
He smirked with victory. "Maybe I shouldn't say, Phoebes."
"W-why? Tell me!"
"Why should I? You can't tell me what happened to Arnold and well, what makes you think I should tell you what I saw back there?"
Phoebe slightly squirmed in her seat, trying her hardest to ignore Gerald. Okay, okay calm down Phoebe, think of the trigonometric equations- sin=opp/hyp, cos=adj/hyp, and tan---
"You know I care bout my best friend?" He began coolly. "Look, I saw him looking at whatever Helga ripped, and that isn't him. You know? Arnold isn't one of those nosy types unless he's desperate to know something important. Tell me, what can be so important that involves Helga? I have this strange feeling that he even followed her," he explained. Hearing this caught her attention, Gerald shouldn't know but deep inside, he deserves to know since he is Arnold's best friend.
"I can see you know Arnold inside and out. But that doesn't explain much, and I'm sorry that I can't fully add on to that either."
He sighed, "Maybe, I'll be bound to know sooner or later. Arnold can't keep a secret from me, its just gonna be hard holding inside."
"What makes you believe he's keeping a secret?"
"He hasn't been acting himself lately Phoebe. You remember yesterday in Gerald field, we won our game with the 5th graders?"
"Of course, I was there with Helga."
Gerald bit his lip to regain his memory. "Everyone was glad we won except Arnold. He didn't seem to be so interested yesterday. You know, he told me he wasn't in the mood to play. What makes him say that a day after he saved the neighborhood?"
"I-I don't know," Phoebe stuttered. He did have a point there.
He continued on, "Arnold usually gives all of us the one on one strategy of the game but no, once he finished his up-to-bat routine, he'll go to the bench and start daydreaming. And once we won, d' ya know what he did?"
With her sad face she spoke. "No, I was too busy cheering the team."
"Exactly what every 4th grader would do- cheer. But Arnold was the only one sitting on the bench not knowing what has happened. The whole time he wasn't paying attention one bit! It was as if he didn't care, and he had other important things to think of other than baseball- his favorite game ever!" he practically yelled in confusion. "But look at today; he had to follow Helga as if it's the most important thing in the world. If you put two and two together, you get the picture something has happened between the two of em'," he explained.
Of a reflex, she gasped. Never has she thought Gerald would even theorize this so precisely. Suddenly, her mouth had gotten dry, having the urge of some water. Hopefully, to regain some other excuse while she's gone. "Mr. Simmons! May I go to the bathroom?"
"Sure Phoebe, be back in time for your presentation!"
"Great! I haven't even started it yet," she muttered once she left the room.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
"Helga, are you okay?" Arnold asked while wiping Helga's forehead with a damp cloth. They were both in Helga's house at her deserted living room. The room was filled with Olga's trophies of excellence, intelligence, attendance, talents and whatever you can think of. Her recognition was the only brilliance of that room. Shined and spotless in every certificate, ribbon or trophy...
None of the furniture or decorations had anything that appeared oh-so welcome. Everything was battered and used too often like for a bargaining use. There was dust in every corner as if nobody has even tried to clean it up in ages. The small kitchen seemed empty for the cabinets weren't found with spare cans, chips, etc.
"I wonder how it's like to live in the Pataki house," he whispered.
"Not what you ever dreamed of bub," someone weakly said.
A slow smile formed once he heard that voice. The air conditioner directly cooled their bodies, and he easily shifted himself, "Welcome back, Helga."
"Where am I?" Helga said weakly as she began massaging her forehead. "Whoa, I feel like I've been hit by a truck."
Still having that friendly smile, he repeated swiping her forehead until---
"Hey! Who said you can touch me! Gees!" She pouted with anger. The damp cloth was thrown across the room and shattered a picture of an oh-so bonding Olga and Helga. It wasn't a lovely capture. Helga stood apart from her sister with a gnarled face, while Olga shown her wide, appreciative smile.
"Well then, if you didn't know- you fainted," told Arnold who seemed somewhat angry. "I'm only trying to help."
She snickered evilly, "Help? What a moron you are! Invading through my business is what you call 'help'? Ha, I don't think so football head."
It suddenly hit him like a sack of potatoes, for a minute there; he didn't know why he even came here.
"Helga, I had no other choice. You've been avoiding me ever since the heat of the moment issue, and that doesn't seem like the Helga I know. I-I just can't stop thinking about you--"
"Wa-wa-wait! Back up there, did you just say 'you can't stop thinking about me'?"
He shook his head slowly, but in respect, "Actually, if you would've let me continue, I would have said I couldn't stop thinking about you up there saying you, l-l-like? Like-like, uh, um...
Stuttering lowly, Helga said, "love?"
"Love?"
"Love."
No... I must be dreaming! He thought. Then, out of the blue, he started pinching his arm, "Okay then, I'm not dreaming."
Helga, who was busy looking at her shoes, finally faced him with a blithe smile, "It goes to show you, how much complication may come out of me, Arnold. It isn't that easy for you to grip onto my excuse that I've kept for so long. Nobody could ever understand," She ended with a melancholy frown. Oh, how much I can tell you my dear! If only...if only...
"I'm ready when you're ready. But first Helga, tell me the truth, do you really, really, really, love me just as what you said two days ago?"
Gulping all the air she can hold, she whispered slowly while staring deeply into his spell-bounding eyes, "Love is true...love is kind...love is the world that makes me...I cannot live without it, Arnold. Nobody can, it would just seem lonely...very lonely. My life could have been much more depressing but miraculously, love keeps me alive and live to my fullest; just loving you."
He breathed deeply, hoping to have this seep easily in his brain... But, it couldn't.
"You don't understand, do you?"
To be continued...