DISCLAIMER: ALL CHARACTERS BELONG TO CRAIG BARTLETT AND NICKELODEON!

OBVIOUSLY if a character appears in this story that is not from the show it's my own filler character or whatever.

Chapter 3:

"Olga! Where's my damn breakfast! What did I tell you about being late?!" Bob yelled out from the kitchen, but it felt like the whole house had rumbled. Helga slumped out of her bed, rubbing her eyes and sighing. It was a few days after her and Phoebe picked out dresses and she had recovered for the most part from her traumatic week, bumping into Wolfgang wasn't all that great either. So now that it was Saturday, of course Bob needed to bitch.

"I'm coming… I didn't think you needed me to cook on Saturdays… Don't you go out with your Fantasy Football friends for pizza and steaks?" Helga had quickly donned her slippers after putting on the sweatpants bottoms to her zombie Mickey Mouse PJs. When she got to the bottom step Bob was there and he gripped her by her collar, yanking her down the last step. She yelped, still half asleep, so everything was a bit hard to take in at first. When she went to tell him off for startling her, his hand went clean across her face, silencing her before she even spoke.

"When you pay the bills in this dump is the day you can clock my actions or question when I tell you to do something, now get in there, I have an appointment and I'll be damned if I work and have to cook for myself!" He bellowed in her face, spitting splattering her face as he yelled. When he let her go she snatched herself away from him the last bit and moved toward the kitchen. As soon as he grunted and headed for the couch, she bolted out the door. "Helga!" He screamed out as she ran as fast as she could, far from him, far from that house, far from her pains and troubles. Or so she thought.

When she finally stopped running and slowed to a walk and stopped. Catching her breath on some steps she sighed and rested her face in her knees. "Helga..?" The concerned voice melted over her like the most bittersweet melody in the entire universe. Her tears began to fall then.

It was Arnold.

"Helga?" The voice became more urgent as he watched her body tremble. Pushing her shoulders back so she was forced to face him, he saw the tears streaming down her face he felt his stomach flip and a lump form in his throat, like nothing he'd ever felt. Protect. Is what his mind screamed to him as he saw her pitiful expression, heard her softly sobbing and trying to hide her face. He was just about to pull her close, embrace her and take away all her pain if he could, but at that very moment he was yanked back.

"Whoa there, Pataki, what happened?" It was Wolfgang, he pulled Arnold off Helga so fast he hadn't time to react. Wolfgang then scooped the small female in his arms holding her head against his shoulders. Helga was too mentally worn at the moment and just let him do so. Arnold had been ready to snap, his fists balled. He didn't take into account how much bigger Wolf was or the fact that he was back in Hilwood after so many years, it was the look he was giving Helga as he caressed her and comforted her that had Arnold so peeved. What made it worse was she actually began to calm down, her trembling stopped and she relaxed into Wolfgang's body sniffling softly. "What happened to her?"

"How should I know, she just showed up sitting on my steps and when I spoke to her she started to cry." Arnold watched annoyed as Wolfgang patted her yellow hair soothing her further…wait…why was this bothering him? He should be glad someone at least calmed her down; it didn't have to be Arnold himself.

Wolfgang had noticed Arnold's reaction to him grabbing Helga from him. He scoffed, the dweeb cared for her, huh? Interesting. When Helga stopped trembling, He placed her back on her feet, she swayed a bit and Arnold had jolted to steady her but Wolf was already there, laying a steadying hand on her waist. She thanked him lightly and Arnold could feel a pang of irritation. "So what happened Pataki? I've seen you take a punch to the eye and not even sniffle." Wolfgang commented.

"You would know you're the one who punched her in the eye." A very irate Arnold growled as he walked past them toward his steps. Wolfgang only shrugged.

"It's nothing, sorry to bother anyone." Helga muttered, her attitude deflated, leaving only a docile little girl who just wanted to escape her shitty life. Arnold and Wolfgang both went to push further but she raised up her hands silencing them and turned to Arnold. He smiled reassuringly and she averted her gaze. "Do… Do you have your cell on you, Arnold? I want to call Phoebe…" She spoke low, but audible.

"One sec it's in the hou-" Arnold was cut off as Wolfgang handed her his, another spark of irritation surged in him.

"Here, you can just use mine." Helga took it from him, dialing Phoebe quickly.

"I'll just be over there for a moment." She said as she moved out of ear-shot of the two men. It didn't take particularly long till her friend answered the phone "Pheebs, it's me, Helga, never mind who's number this is, I… I ran out the house."

"Did he hit you again?" Phoebe suddenly demanded.

"Yeah, again. I don't think I can go back there."

"Look, meet me at Rhonda's please, me and her have been thinking of ways to help you out."

"Rhonda? You told her?" Helga groaned.

"Yes silly, she is our friend you know… I know it wasn't my place to do so but her and the other girls have been seeing the changes in you and they were worried, they cornered me and Rhonda said she'd do whatever to help you out. She said no one messes with the Hilwood Clique." Phoebe insisted.

Helga laughed a bit, "She said that?"

While Helga spoke on the cell, Arnold kept looking over her, his tension eased when she laughed and he slumped onto his steps. "At least she's laughing." He muttered to himself.

"You're awfully worried for her, Dweeb." Wolfgang chuckled, raising his brow.

"Look, I'm so-not in the mood Wolfgang. Helga's my friend of course I'd be worried if she landed on my doorstep crying her eyes out. I've known her since I was 4 year's old, even soaked to the bone and alone walking herself to Preschool she toughed it out. Her tenacity and strength is admirable…" He looked over at the other man giving him an incredulous look. "What's with the look…?"

"You like her don't you?" A smirk touched Wolf's lips. Arnold only looked upset, like a nerve was struck.

"Of course I don't like Helga, she's been nothing but horrible to me my whole life, in fact I'm in a relationship with the girl of my dreams, I don't have the need to even look at other wom-" He stopped himself as Helga moved into view, she gave him an empty look as she handed Wolfgang back his phone. Arnold's words froze in his throat. But why, it's not like he did like her, right?

"Uhm, thanks Wolfgang, I'll see you guys around." She turned to Arnold and he almost flinched at her expression. "Heading to Rhonda's for now, Phoebe said let Gerald know she'd be staying over there tonight, she couldn't reach his cell and his mail-box was full." As she started off on foot Wolfgang stopped her.

"Pataki hold on, my car is parked back that way, I'll give you a lift, and you are in slippers after all." All three looked down at her feet and she scoffed.

"Ha, would you look at that, I must have been in a rush," she looked at Arnold's concerned face and her heart yearned for him. "You know what I'll take you up on that ride." She turned and started off with Wolf to his car, turning back to say bye to Arnold she caught him staring at the ground, fists balled tight, teeth gritted. The look of rage on him left her speechless and she turned away, hurrying along, unable to speak to him.

Arnold looked at Helga's and Wolfgang's backs as they grew farther and farther and he stormed back into the house, slamming the door. What was wrong with him?

X-X-X-X-X

"He cares for you, ya know?" Wolfgang finally said about halfway to Rhonda's. Helga just scoffed and didn't say anything else for the rest of the drive, aside from directions of course.

"This is the place, thanks for the lift." She tried to shimmy out of the car but he grabbed her hand.

"You could get him, if you really tried." Wolfgang chuckled. She just pulled out his grasp and slammed the door, getting a mocked complaint at her hurting his baby, it was silver and wasn't anything too special, an affordable, decent sized SUV, meaning it was big and bulky, like its owner. She watched him as he chuckled and pulled off leaving her in front of the Lloyd home.

The townhouse was still as outstanding as always. She shook her head and walked up the steps to knock on the door, but before she could it opened and she was suddenly pulled inside by none other than "Big" Patty. "P-Patty?" Helga stammered.

"Hey, Pataki, Phoebe and Rhonda told me to come down in case your Old Man needed a pounding." Patty growled and cracked her knuckles. She was hardly, "Big" anymore at only 5'5'' and much slimmer than she was in Elementary School, but now she was toned and still a force to be reckoned with from her time training at a youth boxing club with Harold.

"Helga!" Rhonda seemed to squeal overly dramatically as she ran into the room, her robe flowing behind her. She was about 5'9'' and still as fashionable and snobby as ever, only curvier and far too elegant for someone from Hilwood. She suddenly clutched onto Helga like a baby koala and sobbed, okay scratch the elegant part for now. "Oh my poor, poor, 'poor' friend! Helga just say the words and I'll send your dear old Dad's beeper store into horrid bankruptcy, I mean, who even uses beepers anymore!" She exclaimed.

"Let's get her settled before we fawn all over her, shall we?" Phoebe smiled making her way down the steps with Nadine not far behind. "Sheena sends her love, she's at a must-not-miss rehearsal with Eugene."

"Have I ever told you guys, you're a bunch of dorks." Helga smiled her eyes glazed over with emotion as she was surrounded by her friends. Maybe she could stiff-lip life still, as long as she had them.