Disclaimer: I do not own Hey Arnold!
Still wish the second movie came out... the world is unfair. :'(
After Gerald leaves, Arnold still couldn't think of what to tell Helga. He walks into the kitchen and sees Grandpa sitting at the table, eating. Grandma is at the stove frying bacon. 'Uhh, Grandma?" Arnold says, eyeing her from the doorway. "Are you making breakfast?"
"Well of course, silly. Young men heading off to battle need their strength," she says as she swings the spatula up in the air. "You need to kick those Red Coats in the butt and live to tell the tale!"
Arnold sighs and shakes his head. "Grandma, it's almost dinner." She pays no attention and keeps frying. Suddenly she starts humming the national anthem and marches back and forth, waving the spatula in the air. Arnold looks to Grandpa for help.
"Just let it go, Shortman. Pookie, stop that the bacon is getting burnt! I'm not gonna put that stuff in my mouth!" he says and puts his fork down. "Why the long face, Arnold?" he turns his attention back. "Did ya ask Helga to go to that show with ya?"
"Uh, no," he replies shortly and sits at the table. He buries is face in his hands and grumbles.
"Chickened out, didya? When I was your age and I wanted to ask out a girl, I just did it! Look at Pookie for example," he says and points at Grandma. "When I tried to ask her out on a date I went for it without thinking twice."
"Of course I said no at first. But then he kept begging—"
"That's not important right now," Grandpa cuts in and Arnold tries his best to hide a smile. "The point is, you don't hold back. Just go for it and things will work out for the best."
"I tried, but she's already going with Phoebe," Arnold says.
"Why don't ya go with them? You already have the tickets."
"Nah, I don't think I want to." I can't go, what would be weird. She knows I'm not that interested in poetry. Who would I go with? Gerald doesn't like it either. Gerald...
Arnold's head snaps up as an idea forms in his head. He smiles as he gets up to leave the kitchen. "Thanks, Grandpa!" he yells over his back.
"You're welcome!" he says cheerily. "What did I do?" he asks Grandma with a confused look on his face.
"Beats me," she says and drops some more bacon on his plate. "Now, time to make some omelets!"
"Hello?" Gerald answers his house phone a few minutes later.
"Gerald, I've got it! We could go to the show too!" Arnold says excitedly, almost jumping up and down in the hallway.
"What? Why would I wanna go to some stupid poetry recital? They're probably gonna be all dressed in black and talk about how life is depressing or something. That's not how I roll, man."
"Come on, please? I can't go by myself, that would be awkward." Arnold could feel his optimism deflating.
"And you think me being there is gonna help? Dude, we're gonna stick out like sore thumbs!" Gerald reasons, rubbing his forehead. What is this guy thinking?
"But Phoebe's gonna be there too," Arnold says, hoping to catch Gerald's interest.
"Phoebe?" Gerald's voice goes up an octave. Arnold smiles at the other end of the line. Yes! I knew he would take the bait. "Well, maybe I'd consider, but if we go, we'd still look out of place. What reason could we possibly give to explain why we're there?"
"You could say your mom got the tickets but didn't wanna go because she has to go to work or something. So she made you go and you had to drag me along too," Arnold says smoothly, imagining how things would play out. "Then we would all sit together at the same table." Arnold's speech increases in speed. "Then you get to spend time with Phoebe while I get to spend more time with Helga. It's the perfect plan!"
"Okay, okay, calm down already. Don't hurt yourself." A short pause ensues as Gerald thinks it over. "Fine," he sighs in defeat. "I'll go with it. You owe me one."
"Definitely," Arnold says with a huge smile on his face. "Thanks Gerald, I'll see you tomorrow," he says and hangs up.
Gerald looks at the receiver when the phone clicks. He shakes his head and puts it down. Poor guy has gone nuts. Hey, at least I get something out of it too. Gerald smiles as images and memories of Phoebe cloud his mind.
"What was it that he wanted to talk about?" Phoebe asked over the phone later that night. "From the looks of it, it must've been pretty important."
"Why would you say that?" Helga asks while twirling the phone's cord around her fingers.
"Well, he looked really flustered, like he was trying really hard to say something," Phoebe says and pauses for a moment. "Did he actually get to mention what it was? Even a tiny hint?"
"Nope," Helga replies, putting emphasis on the 'p'. "He did say he'll tell me tomorrow, and I'll take his word on that. But if he doesn't…" Helga leaves the threat hanging in the air.
Phoebe, knowing it's an empty threat, says nothing. The two are such good terms now; she wouldn't risk anything like that. "Aren't you even the least bit curious, though?" she prompted. "I mean, from what you've told me, he tried telling you a few times. You guys just got interrupted a lot."
Of course I'm curious, whaddya think I've been thinking about all day long? "Why are you digging into this so much, Pheebs? It's not a big deal or anything. I mean, it's not as if he was gonna propose to me or something," Helga scoffed loudly. Or was he? Pfft, snap out of it Helga, of course he wasn't trying to! If he did, though… That would've been so… Helga sighs, in that love-sick way. Then she hears someone clearing their throat. "Oh, right. Sorry about that Pheebs."
"It's okay," Phoebe says, already used to Helga's crazy love-struck antics. I wonder…no, I better not tell her. "Hey, it's getting late, maybe we should go to sleep. Big day tomorrow!" she says cheerfully, trying to get Helga's mind off of Arnold. "The once in a lifetime opportunity awaits us!"
"Got that right," Helga says on the other end, and Phoebe could hear the slight change in her voice. "Well, I guess it is time to hit the hay. See ya," she says and hangs up.
Phoebe puts down the receiver slowly. "Bye, Helga. Sweet dreams," she whispers.
Does it not make much sense? Sorry about that.
Thanks again to all of you who have reviewed, favourited, (is that a word? Haha) and just plain read this story! :)
Oh, and I'm sorry this one's short plus the fact it was posted a day later than intended. Sorry~!