You Left Me Standing In the Doorway
"You look amazing! How far along are you?" Sheena questioned. Patty and Sheena found themselves chatting away in a conversation as though they were old friends, even though they actually didn't talk much throughout their school careers. Patty had grown to realize that certain life events prompted people to ask a lot of questions, even if you hadn't been very close in the past. Pregnancy was one of these life events.
"I'm 35 weeks, so it's official—Baby Berman could come at any moment now." Patty responded, rubbing her baby bump lovingly.
"What is it like? Are you excited? Do you know what you're having?" Sheena asked wide-eyed and excitedly.
"Harold and I decided that we didn't want to know the sex of the baby until he or she arrives, but between the two of us—I'm thinking it's going to be a girl." Patty responded, "Pregnancy is obviously a very new experience to me. It's extremely exciting, however it does have its downsides. Like now for example, baby has decided to use mommy's bladder as a pillow. Will you excuse me for a moment?"
Great timing. Patty sarcastically thought to herself as she got up in search of a restroom. As she got further away from the living room the boisterous music of the party began to fade away. One of these doors has to be the bathroom. She gave a light knock at the first door and jiggled the handle a bit and slowly opened the door. The room was dark but she knew she was in the right place, Just in time she thought to herself.
Helga wandered back into the party with her shoes in one hand searching for her boyfriend. She looked across the room to see if she could spot him in the crowd and she immediately found him. It wasn't a difficult task when your boyfriend was 6'3".
"Stink-o, I know you're having a great time—but do you mind if we head out a little early?" Helga asked.
"Are you feeling okay darling?" Stinky questioned with his quaint southern drawl, which was laughed at when he was younger—but had become quite the hit with the ladies as he matured. He looked down into his girlfriend's beautiful eyes and saw that they were filled with an emotion he couldn't quite put his finger on—but he knew it wasn't anything pleasant. "I have something that might cheer you up—let's head out."
Patty washed her hands and caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror. She thought to herself about how much her life had changed in just two short years. She shut off the water and walked out of the bathroom and made her way back to the party. When she was nearly at the end of the hallway she was taken aback by the slight familiar sounds of lovemaking. She didn't pay the noises any mind until she heard a faint male voice. For a split second she thought that it sounded very similar to her husband.
She got closer to the door to investigate further and while she still heard the moans of a woman, she didn't hear the male voice again. She paced back and forth outside of the door, waiting to see if she heard the voice again, when she didn't, she decided to check the doorknob to see if the door was locked or not. It wasn't.
Patty cautiously opened the door just a crack, just enough to peek inside. What she saw made her take a step back, it was a sight she would never be able to get out of her mind. Rhonda Wellington Lloyd, one of her closest friends, was naked wearing nothing but a pair of Jimmy Choo heels that were resting on top of her husband's shoulders as he fucked her.
Patty quickly shut the door and could feel herself holding back tears. She rubbed her baby bump lovingly and rushed towards the door.
"Patty—is everything okay?" Sheena questioned as she was heading out the door.
"Yes—um, I have to head out, I'm not feeling well." Patty managed to blurt out before opening the front doors and heading outside. She walked to the end of the block and let the cool breeze hit her face before she let the tears fall. Through watery eyes she hailed a cab and although the drive home was only ten minutes in duration, it was the longest cab ride of her life.
Harold got dressed, readjusted himself and wandered out of the library cautiously, not wanting to be spotted by anyone. He opened the door and looked both ways down the hallway before exiting the room. He headed straight for the bar and ordered a shot of jack and a vodka and coke. He slammed the shot of jack down, grabbed his drink and headed towards the stage where he was certain his wife would be there waiting for him.
He made several laps around the party and there was no sight of his wife anywhere. He grabbed his phone out of his pocket and dialed her number, but it went straight to voicemail.
"Everything okay man?" Lorenzo questioned, after Harold had passed him and his group for the third time.
"Yeah, just—you know how women are. I'm not sure where Patty went off to." Harold confessed.
"I think I saw her leave about ten, maybe twenty minutes ago." Lorenzo remarked.
"This—this just isn't like her." Harold stuttered, "I think I'm going to head out. I'll uh… I'll talk to you guys later."
Harold headed outside, northbound towards the subway station—a ride he had taken many times, but this time he didn't know exactly what it would lead to.
As the party began to wind down, Arnold continued to catch up with old friends, acquaintances, and even old crushes. However, he just couldn't get Helga G. Pataki off of his brain.
"Arnold, man, what is going on with you?" Gerald questioned as they climbed into the taxi together. Arnold sighed and shifted in his seat a little before answering.
"It's just a little overwhelming. I'm so used to life in San Lorenzo. It's taking a little time for me to get readjusted to life back here." Arnold responded with a half-truth. He wasn't exactly ready to admit everything that was going on with Helga—especially not in front of her best friend.
"You'll feel comfortable here again before you know it. Once you have a daily routine set up here, it will be almost as though you never left." Phoebe reassured.
"Yeah man, everything will work itself out soon enough." Gerald added on, giving his friend a knowing glance.
"I hope you're right Gerald." Arnold responded, staring out the window getting lost in his thoughts.
"We're here!" Stinky exclaimed, looking over at his girlfriend eagerly.
"We're where exactly?" Helga questioned, wanting to match his enthusiasm but failing miserably. She was trying to look out of the window during the drive but it was dark, she was unfamiliar with the area, and her mind was clouded with thoughts of Arnold.
"Wait right here, I have to set something up—it will only take a second." Stinky stated before giving his girlfriend a kiss on the forehead and getting out of the pickup truck. Helga looked out of the window, the area was nearly pitch black—she was wondering what the hell Stinky was doing. She loved him but sometimes he didn't make any sense at all.
After a few minutes, Stinky opened Helga's door and offered her a hand to step down. He took her hand and led her to the cab of his pickup truck.
"What's all this?" Helga questioned with a cross between a laugh and a giggle. She looked at the cab of his truck, which was previously empty—but was now adorned with pillows and blankets.
"Well, I reckon this is the most beautiful view of the stars in all of Hillwood and if you don't mind, I'd like to view them with the most beautiful girl in the world." Stinky responded, bringing a smile to Helga's face. Stinky helped her into the cab of the truck and they both got comfortable. Helga rested her head on Stinky's chest as they both looked up at the beautiful black sky, illuminated only by the brightness of the full moon and the sparkling stars. You could see the Hillwood city outline in the background. Helga found herself at a loss for words for a moment.
"This is amazing." Helga was finally able to say. Stinky readjusted himself and looked over at Helga.
"My sweet darling, I'm not sure what got you down earlier tonight—but I just want you to know that I would do anything to make you happy." Stinky smiled, looking into Helga's eyes. Helga smiled back and saw the sincerity and love in Stinky's eyes. She grabbed the base of his neck and pulled him in for a soft kiss which quickly turned passionate and for the first time in a while, thoughts of Arnold were nowhere to be found.