Hey guys! Time for Chapter 3 yay! Admittedly, I started working on this pretty much right before editing the last one and the writer's block was real. This was rewritten like 3 times lol. Hope you are enjoying the story so far. Party didn't go as planned, go figure right?! I wanted to highlight the antics of the characters by bringing some alcohol on board. Anyway, things will continue right from where we left off. Trigger warning for questionable sexual activity. Happy reading! All cast and characters of Hey Arnold! belong to creator Craig Bartlett.

Chapter 3: Here come the waterworks

Tears were streaming down Helga's face as she walked down the dark street. Her phone started ringing and she answered when she saw the name on her screen.

"Hey Pheebs."

"Helga are you alright? Where did you go? Gerald said you left the party by yourself, where are you?" Normally Helga appreciated her friend's concerned demeanor but was quite over all the attention she had received through the night.

"Listen Phoebe I'm fine. I need to be alone for a bit okay? I'm serious, I need you and Gerald to leave me alone right now. I've got GPS on my phone and I know my house isn't too far from here. Talk to you tomorrow." She pressed "end" on her phone before Phoebe could protest. The gravel of the long driveway against her bare feet made her wince, but she couldn't handle another minute in her high-heeled death traps. She gasped in surprise when she saw a blonde boy to the right of her, sitting on the curb at the end of the driveway.

"Criminy Football Head you about gave me a fucking heart attack!" She held her hand over her heart as she spoke. She caught her breath and sat down on the curb next to Arnold. He looked up at her and his green eyes were brimming with tears. A painful jab reverberated in her chest when she saw his face.

"You okay, Arnold?" She asked gently, he just chuckled softly and shook his head.

"I should be the one asking you that. Sorry about Sid, I dunno what his problem is," Arnold squeezed and relaxed his fist a few times, his knuckles red from the contact. Helga took his hand, and pressed her mouth to the back of it tenderly. He watched her carefully as she did so, and she gently set his hand back in his lap.

"Sid is a slimeball and an idiot. You hang out with him a lot?" Arnold shrugged and nodded in response. "Why?"

Arnold looked down and was silent for a moment before answering, "I...I guess I don't really know. Sid and I have always had a connection I suppose. He doesn't make me feel so guilty about stuff, like Gerald does sometimes."

"Guilty about what, Arnold?"

He exhaled sharply and put his head in his hands, "Helga, it's been a long time since you've been around. A lot has changed. I'm not exactly the same kid from five years ago," Helga chuckled quietly.

"Uh yeah, I kinda already figured that one out, bucko." She smiled, taking his red tie in her hands and loosening it. She unbuttoned his top button and instantly he breathed easier.

"Thanks, I kinda forgot I was wearing this get up," he murmured and shook his head. The air around them seemed to thicken with tension and made them both feel awkward. Helga was watching him out of her peripheral, he had his phone out and was tapping out words on the screen. "Figure I better let Gerald know you're with me. Phoebe is probably freaking out." Helga laughed at that.

"Yeah I'm sure she'll be so relieved knowing I'm with your drunk ass."

"I'm not that drunk anymore! That dance really got my blood pumping, I think I was stone cold sober by the end." She could see his eyes glaze over and a lop-sided smile emerge onto his face. She smirked and gave him a swift flick on his forehead. He grabbed her wrist and stared deeply into her blue eyes, his eyebrows slightly furrowed. She felt a blush spread over her cheeks before she ripped her hand back.

"Why do you keep doing that? It's creeping me out," she asked. He looked away and answered with a question.

"So when are you going back to California?"

She looked up into the night sky before answering, "I'm not going back. I start school on Monday."

"N-no shit. Why?" he asked, disbelief painting his face.

Helga shook her head and looked at him, "What d'you mean 'why?' Is there a problem?"

Arnold scoffed and looked at her with cold eyes. "I dunno Helga. Should there be a problem? Should the fact you left me here a fucking mess be a problem?"

She looked at him and her eyes narrowed, she stood up and started walking down the street. He groaned and started following her.

"Stop following me, Shortman," she said coolly.

"Helga I didn't mean it like that. But I think we have some stuff we need to talk about."

"Nope," she replied. Arnold grabbed her by the shoulders, examining her expressionless face.

"I said, we have some stuff we need to talk about. You're not gonna leave me high and dry. Not again." She saw his misty green eyes and felt her face soften.

She didn't know what to say, she knew she had done a pretty shitty thing all those years ago but she was finding herself getting irritated at his words. He acted like what happened didn't affect her, didn't he know her better than that?

"I'm sorry okay? Is that what you want to hear? I'm really, truly, deeply fucking sorry. I shouldn't have done what I did. I should have just talked to you and told you I didn't want to be together anymore. But I screwed up and I didn't do that. But let's talk about you for a minute, pretty convenient for you to try and cuddle up to me when you thought you could make me a one night stand. Fuck you, Arnold," her words started off lowly and but had risen significantly by the end. She was panting now and tears were rolling down her cheeks. She dropped to the ground and sobbed for a minute. She wiped her face on her arm, audibly exhaling and waving her hand in front of her face.

The sight of her broken down like that made Arnold's heart shatter with guilt. He always imagined this day playing out, and that he would finally get to express to her all of his anger and resentment. Those emotions left him as she crouched before him now, and all he could feel was sadness seeing her so vulnerable and melancholic. He realized how bad his actions at the party looked now, and he couldn't deny that he may have been chasing a fleeting romance, where he had one night to do to her all the things his brain ever imagined. But that was because he didn't know, and standing there now he was fairly confident that if he did, he still would have wanted her wrapped around him at the end of the night.

"I was scared Arnold," his eyes never left her but he still jumped in surprise when she spoke again. "You were too good for me, ya know? I was some angry little shit of a kid and you were so kind and thoughtful and fucking perfect. I didn't deserve you. I didn't deserve any of it."

Arnold was about to open his mouth to speak when he saw headlights coming out of the driveway that stopped abruptly next to Helga. Phoebe rushed out of the car and immediately flew to her, her eyes were daggers when she looked up at Arnold.

"Helga are you alright? Arnold what did you do to her?"

"I-I didn't do anything Phoebe, I swear to god. I just wanted to talk," he pleaded.

Phoebe stood Helga up, grabbed her belongings and ushered her into the back seat. Gerald got out of the car, his hand rubbing the back of his head awkwardly before clapping a hand on his friend.

"Look man, I dunno what happened tonight but I think it's best if I take Pataki home. You gonna be okay getting home?" Gerald asked. Arnold felt tears stinging his eyes.

"Gerald I just wanted to talk to her, I swear."

"Man I get it but look, the girl's a wreck right now and Phoebe's pretty pissed, by the looks of it. I think you guys both need to cool off for a bit. I'm taking her home. Now answer me Arnold, you gonna be okay getting home?" Arnold shoved his friend's arm off of him before backing away coldly.

"I'm fine Gerald."

Gerald shot him a sympathetic look, but just nodded silently before getting into the driver's seat and speeding off down the dark road.

Helga's eyes opened and a splitting headache greeted her. She hissed as she crossed the floor to block the daylight from her room, the light of morning taunting her. She laid back in bed, and regret washed over her as she recounted the events of the night before. You really fucked this one up, Pataki.

She reached over to her bedside table and felt around for her phone to check the time, 9:57 a.m. She also saw four new messages on her phone and groaned in frustration. Two of them were from Rhonda, and she rolled her eyes as she opened them.

"Helga Gerald told me everything. I promise Sid won't be attending anymore parties here. I'm so sorry."

Followed by:

"Hey are you ok? Just wanted to check in."

Her fingers tapped her screen furiously.

"I'm fine princess. Trying not to die from this hangover"

The next message was from Phoebe.

"Hello Helga. I wanted to see how everything was going. Call me when you get a chance."

She didn't bother typing out a reply, and told herself she would call Phoebe later after some water and Advil were in her system. The last message was from a name that made her eyes grow wide in surprise, "Football Head 3". It wasn't that she was completely shocked that Arnold was texting her, but she figured after last night he might be hesitant to contact her so soon. Jesus I really need to change his contact name. She edited it to simply read "Arnold" before opening his message.

"Hey Helga it's Arnold. I made Gerald give me your number if you were wondering. I was really hoping we could talk today. Let me know?"

She groaned and set her phone down next to her. "Why can't you people just let me suffer in silence, for crying out loud?" She then reread Arnold's message curiously. That asshole, did he delete my number?!

She slowly forced herself out of bed and into the bathroom across the hall. She filled the glass by the sink with water several times over, relieving her dehydration. She pulled some Advil from the medicine cabinet, popped three in her mouth and chased them down. She set the glass down, looking at herself in the mirror. Cripes I look like shit. She pulled off her t-shirt and shorts and stepped into the shower. For a while she just let the hot water pour over her. She finally made the effort of shampooing and conditioning her hair, then grabbed her mesh pouf, slathering it with body wash and running it over her body. It felt good to wash off the grime of the night before, but as some of her hangover melted away, shame replaced it and she recalled the events that preceded the morning.

She felt pretty shitty for yelling at Arnold after he defended her to Sid. She also wasn't too proud of breaking down and sobbing in the middle of the road like a giant baby. She even felt a little bad for slapping Sid, despite the fact that he definitely deserved it. She felt her cheeks redden thinking about her suggestive dancing with Arnold and groaned with embarrassment recalling some of the things she said and did to him during the party. She washed her face and gave herself once last rinse before stepping out of the shower and wrapping herself in a towel.

She entered her bedroom and locked the door behind her, shifting the towel to wrap around her long blonde hair as she dug through her drawers. She grabbed a bra and some panties, slipping them on before pulling out a black pair of skinny jeans and an oversized pink t-shirt. Once she was dressed, she removed the towel from her head, and brushed her wet hair before parting it down the middle. She worked her hair into two dutch braids and secured the ends with elastic.

Helga finally grabbed her phone and called Phoebe. The line trilled shortly before her friend's voice came through the other line.

"Helga! I'm so glad to hear from you, how -"

"Quieter Pheebs," Helga commanded the shrill voice.

"Oh, my apologies Helga," her volume lowered significantly. "I wanted to talk about last night, how are you feeling this morning?"

"I feel like dog shit and frankly the last thing I wanna do is talk about last night. But you're my best friend and I love you so I'll just give you the short and sweet." Helga took a deep breath before rapidly spitting the details of the party to Phoebe. " So Arnold and I were at the party, we had finished dancing, which I'm going to kill Rhonda for later by the way, and then we were just hanging out, talking. All of a sudden Sid stumbles over and starts telling me how hot I am and tells Arnold to fuck me good for him. I'm about to sock him, but freaking Football Head of all people beats me to it. He has this crazy look in his eye and next thing I know Rhonda's kicking him out and Gerald's shaking me trying to figure out what happened. Then I walk up to Sid and slap him one real good before getting the fuck outta there. I start walking home pissed, and see Arnold sitting on the curb crying. We talked for a minute and it was fine and then I dunno what happened but he got all mad at me when I told him I moved back. Next thing I know I'm yelling at him about how sorry I am for everything and how he only wanted to fuck me and completely lost my shit. That's about when you and Gerald pulled up and took me home." Helga finished her story breathlessly and was almost panting after her rapidfire retelling.

"Hm. Well what do you plan on doing now?" Phoebe asked simply.

"I dunno what to do. I woke up to a message from him saying he wants to talk, and I have no idea what the hell I'm supposed to say to him," Helga whined and pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Perhaps it would be a good idea to talk to him. It would probably be best to clear the air before school starts tomorrow. It sounds like he is ready and willing to have a conversation with you, and while it may not be the most pleasant conversation, now might be your only chance to be open and honest with him. He may not be interested in having a conversation later," Phoebe answered and Helga sighed at her friend's words.

She knew Phoebe was right but how could she even begin to talk to him about this? Not only that but there was so much that happened while she was in California, so much that he didn't know.

She thought to herself about all of the significant events that preceded this day over the last five years. There were so many things she wanted to tell him, but her heart was wrenching at the thought of him knowing all the fucked up shit that had happened to her during her absence. There was something still so pure about Arnold, despite his actions the night before, and she didn't want to taint that with her muddied past. She didn't have to tell him everything right then and there, and she certainly didn't intend to.

Helga thanked Phoebe for providing her with a ride to and from the party and for checking up on her. She promised to update her as soon as possible. They said their goodbyes and Helga stared down at her phone, pulling Arnold from her contacts.

Now or never, I guess.

Standing outside the Sunset Arm boarding house was both surreal and grounding for Helga. Never in a million years did she expect to be back here, and was surprised at how it very much looked the same as how she had remembered it. It was a weird feeling, being so familiar with a place but having the comfortability so faded. Like looking back at a photograph from childhood, the faint memories come spilling back, but they're so fuzzy it's like they're from another time, another place.

She continued to stand there staring, not wanting to face whatever lie beyond the front door. She kept telling herself that there was still time to get out, still time to walk away, however she remained frozen there. Arnold had instructed her to call as soon as she arrived, but she couldn't even bring herself to take her phone from her pocket. It would have been so much simpler to just walk away. She had loved Arnold from afar for so long it was like her second nature, right? She didn't have to do anything, especially answer to his football-headed ass.

As soon as Helga made up her mind to turn back, the front door burst open. Fuck, this is really happening, she thought, knowing she had been caught and that the time for atonement was upon her. She looked up to see Gertie, Arnold's grandmother. She was impressed at how good she looked for her age. This was only proven further by her clear, albeit grossly inaccurate, recollection of the blonde girl in front of her.

"Why, Helen of Troy! It's been ages since you've graced us with your presence. I assume the expedition didn't go so well?" She asked and Helga laughed very awkwardly at the question.

"Uh, no. No it really didn't. Arnold home, Gertie?"

"Kimba? Well of course, dear. Come on in and make yourself at home. I'll fetch him for you," Gertie held the door open for her and Helga took a deep breath, encouraging herself to cross the threshold. Christ I guess this is it, she thought and ascended the front steps before awkwardly standing in the front entryway.

Gertie shrieked for Arnold, her cupped her hand around the side of her mouth, intensifying the volume and making Helga jump. Get a hold of yourself, she thought and Arnold came flying down the stairs, almost in a panic.

"Grandma, are you oka- OH, hi Helga. I didn't realize you were here, I didn't get a call from you," Arnold pulled out his phone to confirm that Helga didn't call him at all and, unbeknownst to him, hadn't planned to.

"Probably because I didn't call you, Football Head," she muttered. "Granny here found me outside before I had the chance," she motioned to Gertie who gave a small laugh.

"Oh, well I'm glad you found the place alright."

"Yeah only took like two stupid buses to get me here," Helga replied.

She was trying to demonstrate just how little she wanted to be there but wasn't sure if Arnold might be too dense to pick up on it. After the events of the night before she knew her and Arnold did need to clear the air one way or another, but her hangover intermingled with intense guilt was making it difficult to want to do that right now.

Neither were very keen on meeting publicly as the chances of running into another one of their classmates was fairly likely on a late Sunday morning. Helga refused to have Arnold at her house, not only did she not want to explain to Bob why she was hosting a boy in her room, but the entire livelihood of both of her parents was embarrassing to say the least. Arnold suggested meeting at his place, his grandparents always liked Helga and knew well enough to leave them alone and were even quite happy to do so. He offered to meet her at her place and ride over on the bus together but Helga declined his suggestion.

Helga heard footsteps and Arnold's grandfather Phil came through the doorway.

"And now who is this pretty girl you've got visiting you, Short man?"

"Grandpa don't you recognize her? It's Helga. From elementary school," Arnold explained.

Phil looked surprised by the answer and knelt down getting extremely close to Helga, examining her face. "You mean the nasty little thing with the blonde hair and the one eyebrow? This is that girl?"

Arnold nodded and Phil inspected her closely, "You sure?"

"Grandpa."

"C'mon Arnold, I'm just pulling your leg! But jumpin' jehosephat, little lady. We haven't seen you in ages! You certainly look...different than the last time you were here. How ya been? How's that blowhard father of yours?" Arnold slapped his hand to head forehead in embarrassment, while Helga just chuckled before answering him.

"Can't complain, I guess. And he's still a blowhard, just older and fatter. We actually just moved back here the day before yesterday," she answered.

She noticed something about the way he was looking at her that she couldn't quite read. Something like recognition and enthusiasm, maybe? She couldn't put her finger on what it was.

"Well now, how about that. Welcome back to Hillwood, Helga. Make yourself at home here of course. Pookie and I will be in our room if you need anything, have fun," he grabbed his wife by the arm and Helga noticed him move at a speed most impressive for someone of his age. The old couple giggled wildly as they ran up the stairs and into their room. She also saw the very exaggerated and obvious wink Phil gave Arnold as they left.

Arnold rolled his eyes to himself and was hoping like hell that Helga didn't catch his grandfather's words of encouragement, for lack of a better word. She didn't seem to react to his words however, and was just inspecting the room casually, much to his relief.

"Come up, let's go up to my room," he said, and she followed him down the hallway, hesitantly.

She was extremely nervous, and if she was being honest with herself, a little scared. Being in someone's room is such a personal gesture, now that she thought about it. Not only that, but it yielded a sort of upper hand of control to Arnold she wasn't exactly comfortable with. Crap, maybe we should have just met at the stupid park, she thought, and delayed her steps behind him.

She followed him in slowly, an anxious blush on her face, "Listen Arnold I dunno if -"

"Helga, come on! I'll hold the window for you," he called to her, climbing up the ladder through his skylight. She always loved spending time on the rooftop with Arnold when they were younger and the smile he was flashing her now was convincing enough. He held his hand down to her and she ascended the ladder, nostalgia slapping her as she took his hand.

They came up through the skylight and Helga saw that everything on Arnold's rooftop sanctuary was almost exactly the same. The old piano Gertie always played was even in the same spot, though its age was showing after years of exposure to the elements. Arnold sat near the edge and turned to give her a weak but nonetheless encouraging smile, wordlessly beckoning her to join him.

Helga crossed the rooftop to join him and sat down with a sigh, "So, Football Head, you got me here. What did you wanna talk about?"

"Well we should probably start with last night," Arnold looked down and exhaled audibly before continuing. "I'm really sorry, okay? For everything. I'm sorry I drank so much, I'm sorry I punched Sid in the face and got us kicked out, I'm sorry I yelled at you and made you cry. I'm sorry we danced like that and you thought I was trying to take you home with me. I'm fucking sorry. Really."

Arnold was looking at her now with a very somber expression, biting his bottom lip. Helga let his words hang in the air for a moment in confusion. She was expecting him to call her out, not apologize. She realized that despite how different he might be now, there were so many things that were still the same. There was so much more passion in him now than there ever was previously. It wasn't always so apparent to her, but she could feel it in his words now and see it in his actions the night previous. However, the fact that he was so quick to shoulder the blame certainly harkened back to a very familiar football-headed ten year old.

"Okay first of all, don't apologize for laying one into Sid because he's freaking disgusting. He got it from me too, after Rhonda made you leave. And I didn't get kicked out, I left on my own," she could still feel where her palm had made contact with Sid's face, and the sound replayed in her head.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you too, by the way," she added. "I-I really am sorry for before. I meant everything I said though. I thought I was doing you a favor by pushing you away, but it was honestly just really fucking selfish. I was so scared of seeing you, Phoebe had told me some stuff about you on Friday. She told me about Lila," she looked over and he cringed a little at the name.

"Oh yeah, Lila. I'm guessing she gave you the whole story with that one, huh?" Helga nodded her affirmation and Arnold continued, "Yeah I should have figured. I feel kinda bad now, I treated her like shit, honestly. I didn't mean to hurt her, I shouldn't have even dated her to begin with. I was going through a lot back then, it wasn't fair to her."

"What do you mean?"

"Eh that's around when my parents got...weird. They were fine for the first year or so when they came back. I mean you know, you saw them. But things were pretty confusing for them, so much had changed in the modern world. I think it overwhelmed them after a while. It was like, I dunno, culture shock or something. They were seeing a therapist for a while but it was recommended they seek some in-patient psychiatric care. They've done a few different stints of that now. As we speak they're at some wilderness retreat thing. I don't really see them much," Arnold's eyes seemed distant as he looked out over the city, but he talked about the situation so nonchalantly.

Helga didn't like how almost hardened the years seemed to have made him. He could be very soft and sweet-spoken like the Arnold of the past, but seeing this side of him concerned her. It made sense if he was partying as much as Phoebe had indicated, the kid was trying to numb out the world around him. In many ways it seemed to be working, but Helga recalled Phoebe telling her about Arnold's blackout. He couldn't hide his pain all the time.

"What about your parents?" he asked suddenly.

"Bob and Miriam? Well dad's a dick as always, as I'm sure you could have guessed. That's basically the reason for the move, actually. After the Elexus merger there was someone he was forced to view as his equal. And god forbid that ever happen. He sold his shares and got out of his contract. Bought some shitty furniture store here in town. Although, sofas aren't exactly as sexy as electronics so maybe he won't sleep with half the staff now."

Arnold was a little flabbergasted at that revelation. Bob's been having affairs? he thought, but decided against asking for details. He couldn't imagine that Helga loved his infidelities and it wasn't any of his business anyway.

She continued, "He was really treating my mom like shit back in Cali. Me too for that matter but I guess I'm cut from a different cloth than she is. She pretty much spiraled. Maybe she figured drinking herself to death might be her only way out. Who knows. She refused to talk to me about it or even acknowledge that a problem exists."

"What about your sister?"

"Olga? She's clueless, or at least pretends to be. I tried talking to her about it once but she's in even more denial than Miriam. I really only see her during the holidays. She's backpacking across Europe or something right now," Helga chuckled softly. "I guess we get along better now that we're older but it's all so…superficial ya know? It is what it is. It used to piss me off when we were kids, but I'm pretty much used to everything at this point." She fell silent after explaining her family dynamics, watching large clouds pass through the sky, forcing the sun away.

"You want a beer?" Arnold asked suddenly, walking towards the skylight.

"We have school tomorrow, bucko. And it's the middle of the afternoon," she responded with an eyebrow cocked.

"Yeah but, you look like you could really use a beer. I could too, I'll be right back," he said before descending into his room.

Helga sat there and overlooked all of Hillwood. She was amazed at how much had changed but how much was still the same. She could see Mr. Green's butcher shop nearby, as well as Gerald Field and even Mighty Pete still standing proudly. Several new businesses had cropped up, unsurprisingly. Trendy restaurants and cafes dotted the city streets. Amazing how much can change in five years time.

Arnold returned, six pack in hand. Helga eyed him suspiciously, "I thought you said one beer Football Head?"

He didn't answer her and simply popped the caps on two of the bottles and handed her one. She took a long drink, happy the tension had dissipated since her arrival. When she turned her head she caught Arnold staring at her.

"Why are you staring at me like that?"

"You really are beautiful, you know," he answered before taking a drink from the bottle in his hand. Helga felt a deep blush creeping onto her cheeks. Where the hell did that even come from? she asked herself.

"Yeah, whatever," she muttered and he chuckled. She doesn't even realize it, does she? he asked himself. He watched her brows furrow before she spoke again.

"By the way, Arnold. I'm sorry for saying you were just trying to hookup with me last night. That was...kind of shitty of me. I mean, we were dancing together, it wasn't just you," she stared out over the city and her brows stayed knitted together. Arnold chuckled.

"Nah I get it. I mean I would have, but I would have regardless of if I knew you were moving back or not," he was giving her a mischievous crooked smirk as he spoke.

She whipped her head at him, her mouth slightly agape at his answer. His face didn't break it's expression and he leaned his face towards her.

"You know, I never answered your question," he started. She was confused by that, but much more concerned with his close proximity, What question, what the fuck is he talking about?

"Much better than the tango. Dangerously so," he finished and gave her a wink.

Her heart was pounding into her chest. What was I thinking, why did I say that to him? she hissed to herself and tried to create some distance. She didn't like what his words were doing to her, there was something so thrilling about this side of Arnold. But it was also strange and foreign to her. Not a lot of guys had the balls to talk to her like that, especially this one (or so she had thought). She had so many thoughts swirling around her head at this point.

Is he always like this to girls? Does he like, get around? Cause the way he talks makes it seem like he, I dunno, thinks he's smooth or something.

Arnold could feel Helga examining him and chuckled. He grabbed her arm and pulled her close to him. She inhaled sharply in surprise.

"J-just what the fuck, do you think you're doing, Hair Boy?" she tried to hold back her stammer and appear confident.

She couldn't let him know what his words were doing to her. His mossy eyes however, drew her body into him. She was as mesmerized by him as she was suspicious.

"I know what I want to be doing," he said quietly, his grin widening.

She couldn't guess what her face looked like right then, but much to her relief he simply dropped her arm and lifted his bottle to his mouth. She sat where she was unmoving, trying desperately to coax her heart rate down to an acceptable level. It was certainly bizarre to her to say the least when he'd act like that just to drop it so abruptly.

"Do you like, sleep around?" She asked, his eyes widened and he choked on his drink. "Because, what the fuck? You act like you're some kinda Casanova or something all of a sudden."

Arnold frowned and felt his face redden, "N-no. I-I've never slept with anyone, actually."

Helga shot him a look, "Really?! Dang that's...actually surprising."

"W-why?"

"I mean look at you you're ho -" she edited herself, seeing how nervous he looked right then. "You're really uh, good looking. I mean sheesh, even I'm not technically a virgin."

Helga immediately regretted the words after they left her mouth. Arnold's face fell and he immediately broke eye contact with her.

"Oh. I mean, of course not. Why would you be?," he muttered. "Wait, what do you mean technically?"

"I'd rather not talk about it, Arnold," she answered.

"Well why not? You gotta ask me!" he pleaded.

"I said no."

"Why though?!" he asked indignantly.

"Because I didn't want to do it with him, Football Head!" Helga could feel the fury in her eyes but quickly softened her face at his reaction. A mixture of realization, shock and then guilt washed over him.

"Helga I'm so sorry, I had no idea," he said quietly. He forced his eyes shut, wishing he could take it back.

She groaned, "It's fine Arnold," she sighed heavily before continuing, not daring to make eye contact with him. "It happened two years ago at a party. It was the first one I had been invited to before moving so I was really excited about it. I had drank a lot, and it was a highschool party at someone's house, so I shouldn't have been there to begin with. I remember dancing with my friends, and some idiot football player trying to hit on me. Then I blacked out. I woke up in the house the next morning in a bed next to him. I just got dressed and left. I don't even remember it," Arnold had reached over and grabbed her hand, she smiled weakly and he gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

"When I went back to school, somehow everyone had found out. The people there...they were fucking relentless. I remember calling Phoebe because some bitch wrote 'slut' all over my locker. When I found out who it was, I knocked a few of her teeth out. Got suspended, she was some prissy little thing so the whole school hated me at that point. I begged my parents to start me at a different highschool than everyone else for my freshman year. And they did. Probably the nicest thing they ever did for me, to be honest."

Arnold's heart was in his throat. He was trying to find the words to express how awful that was and how sorry he was that she had to go through that alone, but they eluded him. He wished he could have been there to protect her. From everything. He looked over and she had pulled her knees up to her chest. He noticed her beer was empty, he popped the top to another bottle and handed it to her. She smiled weakly at him and accepted it without a word. She hadn't intended on telling him this today, but she figured at least he only knew part of what made California so terrible for her. She still had stuff she could keep close to the vest.

He moved himself closer to her, and put his arm around her shoulders. She leaned her head on him, and he pulled her close before resting his head on hers, hoping his silent affection might reach her when his words couldn't.

They stayed like that for a while, putting their drinks to their lips and silently watched as clouds continued to roll in. The rain started as a light drizzle, but thunderclaps in the distance gave indication to the impending weather and it was quickly pouring. Helga finally broke their closeness, and stood herself up. Arnold ran to her and grabbed her by the waist, picking her up and spinning her around, something he did often in the days of their romantic youth. She laughed in a way she hadn't in she couldn't even remember how long.

He finally set her down, a wide grin on his face, "Let's get inside, you look like you're freezing."

She nodded and followed his lead into his room. Like clockwork, Gertie suddenly opened the door making them both jump, Helga almost surrendering her grip on the ladder.

"Hot chocolate for the hero and her companion!" She said with a smile and a tray of hot drinks in her hands. "They're calling for flash floods you know," Helga's eyes widened at the information as Gertie continued her tirade out the door, "Hoist the sails, boys! It's gonna be a crazy one!"

"Floods? Please tell me your grandma was just exaggerating, Arnold," Helga pleaded.

"Let me check my phone," he said and started scrolling. "Uh, nope, afraid not. Public transit is closed and they have roads closed off to traffic."

Helga groaned, "Fuck fuck fuck. This is gonna suck to walk in."

"Helga you can't walk home in a flood. They're calling for…'damaging winds and significant water accumulation,'" he read to her. "You're gonna have to call your parents and stay here."

"I can't stay here, Football Head. Tomorrow is the first day of school. All of my stuff is at home!" she cried.

"Helga, it's flooding, they're not gonna open school tomorrow they already announced closures."

"Great, juuust great. So I'm stuck here of all places with you. This is a goddamn nightmare," she whined. Arnold glared at her. Grateful as ever, I see, he thought.

Helga stood up and made her way to the door, she barely had her hand on the knob before Arnold grabbed her. She whipped her head at him incredulously.

"Let me go, Arnold. I'm walking home."

"No," he said firmly, not allowing her to snake herself out of his grasp.

"Sit," he commanded as she continued glaring at him, refusing his words.

"Now," he told her. With that she ripped her arm forcefully from him and sat cross-armed on his couch, refusing to meet his gaze. Arnold groaned at her.

"Call your parents and let them know you're staying here. It's only one o'clock so just enjoy your hot chocolate and try to relax. I'll go and make us some sandwiches," he instucted and he made his way to the door.

Helga took out her phone and called Bob. After a few trills he answered.

"This is Big Bob," he answered.

"I know who you are dad. Listen, they're calling for some stupid flash flood and the school's closed tomorrow. The buses and the subway aren't running so I'm staying at...Phoebe's. I'll be home tomorrow."

"Yeah, yeah whatever. I'll let your mother know you'll be gone," he said and hung up. God what a bastard, she thought.

Suddenly it really dawned on her what was happening. She was staying at Arnold's house for the night. Arnold's. House. She quickly started panicking to herself, pacing back and forth.

Oh no what do I do? It's obvious I'm not getting out of here if Mr. Noble has anything to say about it. Where will I sleep? What am I supposed to sleep in, his clothes?! Oh god oh god.

She pulled her phone out and found Phoebe's name in her contacts. She hastily called her, her friend answered after a few trills of the line, much to her relief.

"Hello Hel -"

"PHOEBE. Ugh thank god. Listen, everything has backfired on me, I'm stranded at Arnold's riding out this stupid flood. What do I do? Help me Pheebs!" She said to her friend desperately.

"Quite honestly Helga I'm not quite sure how to assist you. The only thing that you can do is wait out the flood and hope to keep things uh, amicable with Arnold," her voice suddenly shot down to a near whisper. "And maybe sleep in separate beds. It wouldn't be advisable to give into... temptation given the nature of your current relationship."

Helga pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. She heard footsteps coming down the hallway.

"Christ, thanks for nothing Pheebs," she hissed before quickly hanging up and shoving her phone into the pocket of her damp jeans. Arnold came through the door with two plates and she was pretending to drink the luke-warm beverage. He handed her a sandwich, she stared at it for a bit before giving into hunger.

They ate in silence. Helga watched Arnold suspiciously as he cracked open another beer. He either refused her glance or didn't notice it as he finished his lunch. She finished shortly after he did.

"You always drink like that?" She asked. He rolled his eyes and set it down.

"Want me to pour it out? We don't have school tomorrow, I figured it didn't matter," he answered. Helga didn't appreciate the tone he took with her.

"Christ it was just a question Arnoldo. You don't have to get so fucking defensive," she muttered back. He chose to ignore her and offered the last bottle to her. She took the bottle and the opener and popped off the cap. She sighed in defeat and took a drink.

This is gonna be a long night.