4
Helga dragged her feet down the stairs. Grandpa greeted her at the bottom. "Well, well, how are you doing as Arnold's replacement?"
"HOW am I am doing? HOW I am doing?" Helga seethed. "I nearly got killed by that crazy Polish guy and his wife, that Ernie Potts tried to get me into the construction business, Mr. Hyunh made me clean his toilets so now I smell like Tidy Bowl, and all I got out of the whole thing was one lousy DIME!" The girl's shoulders heaved up and down in rage. "No wonder Arnold's so patient all the time! He's used to putting up with lunatics!"
"So you've learned to live in Arnold's shoes, have you?" Grandpa chuckled. "Pretty good for a first day, huh, Short Gal?"
Helga huffed, "This has been the worst day of my life!"
"Don't worry, Helga, things will improve!" Grandpa grinned, showing his two last teeth. "Dinner's next, and then it's game night!"
"Game night?" Helga smiled. "Now you're talking! What kind of games? Poker? Rummy? Craps?"
Grandpa scratched the top of his bald head. "Well, I don't know about that, but I know one of Arnold's favorites! Chutes and Ladders!" Helga grimaced. "Oh we all have lots of fun playing that one!"
"Chutes and Ladders?" Helga repeated. "You gotta be kidding! That's for babies!"
"Chutes and Ladders?" Mr. Hyunh said, coming down the stairs. "I love Chutes and Ladders!" Oskar and Suzie, their fight apparently on hold, were behind him.
"Are we playing tonight?"
"Please say yes, Grandpa!"
Helga groaned. "Oh man!"
He looks like that wolf on the predator video Mr. Simmons showed us in class, Arnold thought as the Beeper King greedily devoured his pizza slice. In five seconds it was gone. Tomato sauce and cheese hung around his mouth. Arnold shuttered.
"So, how are things going?" The two adults at the table stared at Arnold as if he had sprouted an antenna out of his head. "You know, in your lives?"
"Why do want you want to know?" Bob said aggressively.
Arnold was taken aback by this gruff manner, but he was undeterred. "I just thought that since we're spending the week together…"
"Look Ambrosia," Bob took a new slice of pizza out of the box and pointed it at the boy. "Around here, we keep to ourselves! No touchy-feely, got it kid?"
"I understand, but…"
"Hey, hey!" Bob frowned and shook his head. "You don't interfere in our lives, and we don't interfere in yours! We feed ya, we clothe ya, we give ya a satellite dish, what more could you want?" The big man stuffed his pizza in his mouth.
Arnold sighed and played with his food. No wonder Helga's so cranky all the time, He thought sadly. No one cares about what happens to her here. Maybe if someone gave her some attention…
With that thought, he finished his pizza and excused himself to bed.