Torn
Harold arrived home to the quaint brownstone apartment he shared with his wife Patty, expecting her to be home waiting for him. However, when he arrived home his wife was nowhere to be found, her overnight bag was missing and many of the clothes from her side of the closet were gone too. Harold tried to run every scenario through his mind, but none of them made any sense.
Finally, two hours after he left the party, his phone vibrated on the nightstand.
"Hello?" Harold answered nervously.
"I'm so sorry to leave you at the party by yourself. My dad—he isn't doing well—I'm going to be at my parent's house for a few days." Patty spoke into the phone, trying to keep her voice from breaking. Harold sighed a breath of relief.
"Oh thank god! I was so worried about you hon." Harold responded, "Well, um—you know what I mean." Harold fumbled with his words.
"I will keep you posted with what is going on." Patty stated.
"Do you want me to come over there?" Harold questioned.
"No!" Patty sharply spat into the phone. "I mean, no, it will be okay. It is getting late hon, I'll call you in the morning."
"Okay, I love you." Harold spoke into the phone but Patty had already hung up her line.
Patty sat in her childhood bedroom alone, confused, and uncertain of the future. She was pregnant, her husband was cheating on her, and most of their money was tied up in the butcher shop Harold was attempting to purchase. Her mind was running wild with questions. How long had this been going on behind her back? Was Harold even still attracted to her? Was Harold really excited about having a baby or did her changing body drive him into her arms. She tried to clear her mind of all the negative thoughts and focused on getting a good night's sleep. She knew that from this day forward the only thing that she could think about was making a better life for her child.
It had been almost a week since Arnold arrived back in Hillwood and he was finally getting back into the swing of things around the old neighborhood. Part of what made him so comfortable so quickly was how much of the neighborhood was the same from when he left.
As Arnold walked downtown he passed many sights that were familiar to his childhood. Mrs. Vitello's flower shop was still up and running, although Mrs. Vitello had since hired more staff so that she could quietly retire. Slausen's Ice Cream Parlor still had the same old-time charm as he remembered. Nothing conjured up memories as much as passing by Gerald Field.
Arnold gazed longingly into the vacant lot that was still in use to this day. Arnold saw a group of children who couldn't be older than ten years old deep into a game of baseball. He was so consumed and in awe that children were still using this field nearly ten years after him and his friends transformed it, that he bumped directly into another piece of his past.
"Hey, watch where you're going football head." A familiar voice remarked, Arnold snapped out of his daze and looked up to see Helga dramatically wiping the front of her grey blazer.
"Sorry, I was just thinking about how many memories I have in just this one block. Remember how much time we all used to spend in this vacant lot when we were younger?" Arnold questioned.
"I know, I walk by this area almost every day on my way home from work and I'm always just so surprised at how great the neighborhood kids are at maintaining the place. It's really a vacant lot by the kids and for the kids." Helga chuckled, she looked at Arnold staring reminiscently at Gerald field, his blonde brows slightly furrowed and green eyes full of emotion.
"Hey, Helga." Arnold started to say as he shifted weight from one leg to another nervously, "I am really sorry about the other night."
"Don't worry about it Arnold." Helga reassured.
"No, seriously. Our friendship means so much to me—I don't want all of our interactions to end in one or both of us being upset. Please, let me buy you a cup of coffee." Arnold offered.
"You really don't have to do that." Helga responded.
"I want to." Arnold pleaded. Helga contemplated for a moment and looked down at her iphone for the time. It was 5:45 on a Tuesday afternoon, it's not like she had anywhere else to be.
"Lead the way football head." Helga responded enthusiastically.
Eugene and Lila had become friends when they were working closely together on a school musical in elementary school called Eugene, Eugene. However, they didn't become best friends until high school, when they both joined the High School Drama club and were paired together for many of the leading romantic roles together. Rumors began to circulate Hillwood High about the new "it" couple, but they never felt anything for each other in that manner. However, they did have many of the same interests so their friendship naturally evolved as they got older. It was no surprise to anyone that they ended up as roommates right after High School.
"I really need you to do me a favor today Lila and I'm not going to take no for an answer." Eugene remarked as he walked into the living room. Lila was sitting on the couch in her pajamas, watching episodes of Golden Girls on Netflix with a box of Girl Scout cookies perched next to her.
"What's that?" Lila asked.
"Can you do something today that doesn't involve sitting on the couch and moping about a relationship that has been over for three months now?" Eugene pleaded.
"I'm ever so certain that I don't know what you're talking about." Lila insisted, "And it's been two months, one week, and three days if you want to be accurate."
Eugene rolled his eyes at his friend.
"Seriously. You used to jog every morning, you used to volunteer every Friday at the library and read to children. Now, look, it's 2:00 in the afternoon on a Friday and you're sitting on the couch watching Golden Girls—which I admit, is one of my favorite shows, but enough is enough!" Eugene exclaimed.
"Fine, fine—have it your way. I'll be back in an hour, I could use some fresh air anyway." Lila responded as she stormed into her room.
Lila quickly put her long brownish-red hair into a ponytail, threw on a pair of aerie leggings and a loose fitting plain white t-shirt, grabbed her headphones and headed out the door and towards the city park.
Eugene is right, Lila thought to herself, since her breakup with Lorenzo she really wasn't herself. After a few minutes she started to get tired. She used to be able to run the entire two mile circuit of the park, now she found herself sitting on a bench at the half mile mark trying to catch her breath.
"Lila Sawyer?" A deep voice questioned, Lila looked up to spot a man wearing a pair of grey sweatpants and white t-shirt. He was tall and slender but she could tell from the way that his white shirt draped over his body that he was quite muscular.
"Oh my goodness, Arnold is that you?" Lila asked through panted breaths. "I'm ever so surprised, I didn't think you were going to ever come back to Hillwood."
"Yeah, I'm back, still getting my bearings. I'm surprised I didn't see you at Rhonda's housewarming party last weekend." Arnold commented, causing Lila to blush slightly.
"Unfortunately, Rhonda and I aren't on the best terms right now." Lila admitted.
"I'm sorry to hear that." Arnold responded, "Forgive me, I'm still catching up with everyone and seeing how the past few years have treated everyone—I didn't mean to reopen an old wound so to speak."
"You don't have to apologize, it's okay." Lila responded.
"Alright, well, I guess I'll be heading out now. It was great to see you." Arnold commented as he looked down at his watch.
"Wait!" Lila said as she stood up from the park bench. "Would you like to go out for dinner sometime?"
"Sure—that sounds nice." Arnold responded. "Does Sunday night work for you?"
"Sunday night would be oh so perfect!" Lila smiled as she grabbed her phone out of the pocket of her leggings and exchanged phone numbers with him before he jogged off down the path. Lila headed home with a positive boost in mood and energy.
"See—I told you the fresh air would do wonders for you!" Eugene exclaimed when he saw Lila bounce happily into the living room.
"Okay, okay, I'm ever so certain you were finally right about something!" Lila joked, "Hey, what are you watching?"
"I may have been wrong to judge your Golden Girls binge." Eugene admitted.
"Is this really how we're going to spend our Friday night? Two single people and we're going to watch Golden Girls?" Lila questioned while chuckling to herself.
"You get the pajamas and blankets, I'll pop the popcorn." Eugene responded excitedly.
"Wait wait—that's not even the best part." Helga spurted out through her laughter, "Then, I had on that ridiculous dress—more like a brown sack as if now that I was blind, I was also now a peasant of some sort."
"After all these years, I still don't know how I fell for that." Arnold laughed, then lost himself in a memory for a moment that brought a mischievous smile to his face.
"Hold on Arnoldo, what was that look for?" Helga prodded.
"Oh no, I can't just tell you. It's a secret—If I tell you, you'd have to tell me a secret in return. You sure you can handle that?" Arnold grinned.
"Oh—trust me, I can handle it." Helga remarked boldly.
Arnold and Helga enjoyed themselves tremendously earlier in the week, so much that they had been to the coffee shop together at around the same time every day since then.
"Alright, you seem to remember that April Fool's Day Dance pretty well." Arnold remarked slyly, "Do you remember when we did the tango in front of the entire grade?"
Helga thought back, she remembered how aggressive Arnold had been. The looks that he gave, the forceful way that he threw her body around while whispering into her ear. It was oddly sensual and fueled her dreams and poetry for months. The memory sent slight chills down her spine and brought a playful smile to her face.
"I may, vaguely remember that." Helga responded.
"Okay, well the truth is—I was kind of flirting with you." Arnold chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck as he waited for Helga's reaction. Her eyes widened in amazement and she reached across the table and gave him a playful shove.
"Seriously?" Helga laughed, "I still think about that dance—on occasion."
"Me too." Arnold admitted. Neither one of them could wipe the smile off of their faces, Arnold broke the ice by clearing his throat a little. "You're up Pataki."
Helga racked her brain for a moment. There were a lot of secrets that she could bring up. Some more embarrassing than others. After a few minutes of thinking she finally decided on what secret she would tell.
"Okay, remember in fourth grade when we were doing the production of Romeo and Juliet?" Helga asked. Arnold smiled and shook his head yes. Helga took a deep breath and continued.
"Remember how there were four other girls who had the part before me?" Helga questioned and Arnold nodded his head, she took another deep breath, "I kinda convinced them all to drop out of the play so I could play Juliet."
"Wow, seriously?" Arnold chuckled to himself, "How did you do it?"
"It was pretty easy—except for Lila but I had to tell her a pretty big secret to convince her to drop out of the play." Helga admitted, she could feel her face feeling slightly flushed.
"Ahh, now you have to tell me what you told Lila to convince her to drop out of the play." Arnold teased.
"Oh no way football head, you know too much already." Helga playfully insisted.
"I'll just ask Lila tomorrow. I bet she'll tell me." Arnold chuckled. Helga could feel her face getting red again. She couldn't place what emotion was making her face flushed this time, anger, jealousy, perhaps a bit of both.
"What do you mean, 'You'll ask Lila tomorrow.'" Helga asked through gritted teeth.
"I mean that I'm going to dinner with Lila tomorrow night." Arnold responded with a confused tone, "Please don't tell me that you're upset about that."
"Oh no, I'm not upset. Don't let me stand in the way of your date with little miss perfect." Helga scoffed, folding her arms across her chest.
"You're seriously upset right now! I don't understand." Arnold stated, his eyebrows lowered. Helga felt his emerald green eyes staring daggers into her soul.
"There's nothing to understand Football Head. You go on your little date with Lila, your freaking dream girl. It's okay. You want to have coffee tomorrow before your date so I can help you pick out the perfect outfit or after so we can discuss marriage plans?" Helga snapped.
"Helga—are you kidding me? You're the one with the boyfriend, you think I really enjoy seeing a picture of Stinky of all people pop up on your phone every time we're hanging out. Oh no, but it's so inappropriate for me to have dinner with an old friend." Arnold defended himself. Helga gasped and looked down at her iPhone, 7:30. Three unread messages.
Stink-o: I hope you had a good day at work, can't wait to see you tonight darling. (5:45 pm)
Stink-o: I'll pick you up at 8:00 pm, hope you're ready for a fun time. (6:38 pm)
Stink-o: Leaving in 5 minutes! See you soon, I love you. (7:28 pm)
"Shit." Helga muttered under her breath. She grabbed her purse and threw ten dollars onto the table. "I've got to go—enjoy your date."
Helga rushed out the door and hailed the nearest cab, calling Stinky on the ride home. Hopefully he wouldn't be too upset at her being late.
Rhonda wasn't sure what to expect when Patty Berman called her out of the blue and invited her to coffee. If Rhonda was completely honest with herself, she didn't really care much about hooking up with Harold behind Patty's back. I mean, if you want to get technical, they were established before Patty and Harold even knew each other. However, seeing Patty in person, pregnant with Harold's child really began to make her feel a little guilty. Guilty enough to stop the affair? No.
Rhonda attempted to text Harold a few times since the party but he always had an excuse as to why he couldn't come over at the moment.
She walked into Chez Paris and saw her friend Patty nestled in a booth next to the bar, already settled in with a club soda and lime.
"Patty—so great to see you!" Rhonda exclaimed with her hands outreached for a hug but Patty stayed put.
"Please have a seat." Patty stated, emotionless, motioning for Rhonda to take the seat across from her. Before Patty could say anything, the bartender appeared at the booth.
"Anything to drink for you miss?" The bartender asked.
"Yes, I'll take a belvedere martini, straight up, slightly dirty—three olives, please and thank you." Rhonda quickly rattled off.
"Certainly, do you have your ID?" The bartender questioned, Rhonda smiled and looked up at the bartender.
"You know what- be a dear and make that extra dirty, if you catch my drift." Rhonda remarked, looking at the waiter sensually while biting her lip slightly. The bartender looked a little flustered.
"Um—right away miss." The bartender stammered before scurrying away.
"These boys—they're all the same. Pathetic really." Rhonda commented, before the bartender dropped off her drink with his number written on a beverage napkin tucked underneath the stem of the glass.
"Amateur." Rhonda scoffed. Patty rolled her eyes with anger.
"I really need to ask you something and I need you to be honest with me." Patty stated, trying to keep her face void of any emotion. Rhonda took a sip of her drink and looked across the table at Patty.
"Of course, I'm your best friend aren't I?" Rhonda responded lowering her eyes slightly. The words sent daggers through Patty's heart and her mind replayed the night she walked in on her with her husband. She tried to shake the thoughts out of her mind.
Stay calm, just ask her so she can be honest with you and you can move on. Patty thought to herself. Don't be rude… just ask calmly.
"You really have some nerve coming in here pretending that you're my best friend, when I know you had sex with my husband." Patty blurted out. Rhonda's face turned bright red.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Rhonda stammered, shaking her head no.
"You know exactly what I'm talking about. Don't play dumb Rhonda, I swear—this is not the time. How could you, I've done so much for you. You were at our wedding. I've see you do this many times to many other women but I never thought you would do this to me." Patty angrily yelled, she could feel the warm tears flowing down her face.
"Okay fine, yes it happened. I'm sorry. I'll stop." Rhonda responded. She seemed slightly shaken but otherwise unaffected by the revelation, her lack of concern regarding the situation fueled Patty's anger.
"You'll stop?" Patty questioned, "How long has this been going on?" Patty tried to brace herself for the answer.
"You really want to know?" Rhonda asked, before taking a large gulp of her martini.
"Yes Rhonda, I really want to fucking know." Patty responded. "How did this whole thing begin Rhonda, I really want to know."
"You went off to Washington State. It was our senior year and I really could have used you around to keep me grounded. Well, Thomas broke up with me right before the homecoming dance. I tried to call Nadine, she was busy. I tried to call you, you were busy. So Harold and I got to talking. Apparently, you weren't paying much attention to him and he was reassuring me that any guy would be lucky to have me, and we kissed." Rhonda responded. Patty breathed a heavy sigh.
"Harold told me about that kiss—he said it was a mistake. It would never happen again." Patty responded, her voice was tense and harsh.
"Well, then a few weeks later we went to a party and we ended up hooking up. He told me it was never going to happen again and it was an accident—then he dropped out and said he was going to get his GED." Rhonda continued to tell her story. "Listen, if you want me to be honest the whole thing just got completely out of hand. I never meant for this to go as far as it did."
Patty was silent, taking in the information she had just received.
"I really am sorry—Patty you're my friend, it's over, you have my word." Rhonda responded, finishing the rest of her drink. Patty debated on what she should do in this situation. In middle school, she would've just punched her in the face and kept it moving. In high school, she would've punched her in the face and then reflected on what she could do better in the future. When she lived on campus, she would have calmly talked things out.
Patty grabbed her club soda and calmly threw it in Rhonda's face.
"What the hell was that!?" Rhonda exclaimed, grabbing linens off the table to dry herself off. Patty started to head towards the door, when she doubled over in pain. Rhonda debated for a moment before deciding to run over to the woman she once called a friend.
"I think my water just broke." Patty admitted.