July 1943

"Helga, I said I was sorry!" Arnold followed his fuming girlfriend throughout the house. Her hands balled into fists, she stormed down the corridors, trying to reach her room.

"That doesn't change what happened!" she shouted, refusing to look back. She reached her door and was about to turn it when Arnold pulled on her arm and spun her around. "Don't touch me!" She jerked her arm back.

Arnold retracted his hand. "Sorry," he said meekly, fumbling with his hands. "I know what I did was wrong, and I know that even a thousand apologies won't make up for it, but Helga, I'm willing to do what it takes. Trust me."

"Trust you?" she barely whispered. "Trust you?!" Helga's eyes bugged out from their sockets. Her boiling red face scrunched up and started to shake while her veins popped out against her skin. "You lied to me! And this wasn't some little lie like saying you remembered to picked up something from the market when you didn't. You lied about why you left!"

"Helga, I swear I didn't mean to," Arnold pleaded to her.

"What else?" she asked him, crossing her arms.

"What are you talking about?" His face contorted into confusion.

"What else have you lied about? Did you ever really love me? Or was I just some convenience because of how I felt about you?"

"I told you how I felt about you before I even knew your feelings for me," he defended. "My love for you is real, and it always has been."

Helga stepped closer to Arnold. She grasped the collar of his shirt and pulled him in until there was barely any space between them. Her eyes bore into his pupils. Arnold's breathing began to stagger.

"Did you even really kill Wolfgang?" she seethed through her teeth. "Or was it Sid or Curly and you're just taking credit for it?"

Arnold looked at her in horror. "What would I gain in lying about something like that?" he challenged Helga.

"Simple," Helga began, "to once again look like the hero when you're nothing but a coward." She pushed him away and ran into her room. Helga locked and then slid down the door. The vibrations from Arnold's persistent knocking reverberated through Helga's bones. She punched the door with the back of her fist to get him to stop, but he continued to bang on the other side of the door.

Frustrated, Helga stood up and went to the windows that were located on the other side of the room. The knocking echoed through the entire space. Curse you Rhonda for having such spacious bedrooms! She looked out the window and saw a trellis directly below. How have I never notice that? She quietly opened her window, ignoring Arnold's calls from the door, and began to climb down.

Once she made it to the ground, Helga ran across the lawn to the furthest garden, which was a hedge maze. Rhonda's parents had a fascination with Henry VIII's maze at Hampton Court and were inspired to make their own mazes at each home. Helga had been in the maze many times and has successfully conquered it. This time, however, she was looking to get lost.

She walked through the entrance and began with the usual route. Right, right, left, right, left, left, left. The next turn was supposed to be another left, but this time she took the pathway to the right. Eventually, she wound up at a dead end with a bench. She sat down and curled up into a ball and began to sob. Never before had she felt so betrayed. Everything she knew now feels like a lie. Aside from Phoebe, Arnold was the only person Helga trusted completely. Now she wondered if anything he said was true.

Three weeks earlier

Harold came home after working at the synagogue. With the influx of Jewish people in Stockholm, Harold, Patty, and Eugene decided to create a support group. They helped immigrants find housing and work, and once a week they met up at the synagogue to talk to different groups about their journeys. Harold talked with the men, Patty with the women, and Eugene would watch the kids, keeping them entertained with swinging and dancing.

"Arnold, Helga. Just the two I was looking for," Harold said as he saw the two blondes sitting in the sunroom.

"Hey, Harold, what do you need?" Arnold asked.

"Not so much what I need, but rather something for you." Harold sat down next to them. "I spoke with our rabbi about having you two come in and talk about your heroic efforts of rescuing us, and he wants you to come to the synagogue to thank you for what you did."

"Wow, Pink Boy," Helga said, surprised by the whole situation. "I don't know what to say. We're both flattered, but I wouldn't say we're heroes."

"Madam Fortress Mommy, you are the ultimate hero," Harold disagreed. "You went against your father, got us out of Auschwitz, and almost lost your life to prevent the Nazis from knowing our escape to here. You have done so much for us, and the Jewish community would like to thank you two for showing everyone that not every Aryan German thinks that we're the devil."

"Harold's right, Helga," Arnold chimed in, wrapping his arm around Helga for comfort. "I think it's important that you are recognized for what you did."

"For what you both did," Harold corrected. Helga shifted in her seat uncomfortably.

"Will I have to give a speech?" Helga feared having to tell her story. She knows she will have to speak about it one day, but right now she felt more comfortable writing it down instead.

"Just a thank you to everyone. It doesn't need to be anything extravagant. I'll be doing most of the talking and it'll be about my story. If it makes you feel better, I'll talk about you first before Arnold that way you can speak first and get it out of the way."

Helga pondered the proposal Harold offered. It was a nice offer, and it was important for the Jews to know that not every German is the same. This was especially true for a daughter of a man who's in charge of mass killings of this race. Helga sighed in surrender.

"All right, Pink Boy. I'll do it."

"I can't believe I'm doing this," Helga muttered as she messed with the hem of her dress. It was the morning Arnold and Helga were to go to the synagogue and meet Harold there since he had to help set up. The nerves started to get to Helga as they were making their way over.

"You'll be fine," Arnold assured her. He held onto her hand tightly, rubbing circles on the back of her hand with his thumb. "Just remember this is more for them as a sign of hope. It's not really to stroke your ego."

Helga looked up at Arnold. "You sure know how to make a girl feel special," Helga responded sarcastically.

"I do my best," Arnold replied, smiling goofy at her.

"Not well enough, obviously," Helga smirked.

"Is that right?" Arnold questioned her challenge. He let go of her hand and walked behind her. He wrapped his arms around her chest and began to kiss her cheek repeatedly.

"Ahh!" Helga squealed. "Must you be this way?"

"Would you have me any other way?" Arnold whispered in her ear before kissing her cheek again.

"Not at all," she smiled.

They made it to the synagogue and met up with Harold. He led them to their seats, which were in the front. They met the rabbi before the congregation came in.

"Thank you to the both of you for coming. We are pleased to have both of you show there are good people from Germany."

"It's our pleasure," Arnold said. "We're happy to be here."

Soon the seats were filled and Helga began to feel the nerves once again. She can feel the eyes staring at her. Her gaze remained focused on the floor as Harold took the stage.

"Thank you everyone for coming. For those who don't know, my name is Harold Berman. I am originally from Berlin along with Patty Smith and Eugene Horowitz. We have had quite the journey getting to Stockholm that included stops in Paris, Krakow, and the concentration camp, Auschwitz."

Harold paused a moment while the crowd murmured at the last place mentioned. "I know that is a shock, and I'm sure you're all curious as to how we got out of there alive. Well, one of the main architects of that escape plan came from this beautiful lady to my left. Her name is Helga Pataki. We went to the same school when we were younger, and her father was a big supporter of the Nazi party. A little over a year ago, her father was transferred to work in Auschwitz. By that time, Eugene, Patty, and I were in Auschwitz, along with our friend, Arnold, who is also here with us today. Shortly after coming to Oswiecim, Helga toured Auschwitz and saw how we were leaving. She met up with Arnold, who was helping keep records of all the prisoners. He told her that we were there and she agreed to help. With the help of her best friend, some members of the black market, and a medical school dropout, they were able to get us out. We were able to hide out in Krakow for none months before we were discovered and had to flee. As we were making it to a safe house outside the city, Helga was caught by the Gestapo. She was sentenced to death for hiding us and refusing to tell where we were. Luckily, several members of our group rescued her, killing some of the Gestapo in the process. We all met up in Police, where we boarded a cargo ship bound to Stockholm. We chose here because Helga and her friend, Phoebe, have a friend from Wales who has a house here. I must say, if it wasn't for her, we may not be alive right now. She has seen the evil that is the Nazi regime, and risked her life and livelihood to save us on more than one occasion. So I ask that you help me welcome my personal hero, Helga Pataki!"

The crowd roared with applause, standing to their feet as Helga walked to Harold. She was blushing during the entire heartfelt speech about her, and she could feel tears starting to form. Harold hugged her tightly. "Thank you," Harold whispered. Helga hugged him back.

"You're welcome," she whispered back. They broke their embrace, and Helga faced the crowd. "Thank you, Harold, for those kind words. And thank you everyone for your warm welcome. I'm really happy to be here and see so many people who were able to escape before being sent to the camps. From what I saw of Auschwitz, I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy. There is cruel, and then there is heartless, and what they did was heartless. I'm so happy to have saved them in time, and if I had to go back, I would do the same thing. Not for the fame, but because it's the right thing to do. Thank you."

The crowd applauded once again as Helga took her seat. Arnold kissed her cheek. "You did great," he told her.

"Thanks," she whispered back as the crowd died down and Harold began to speak once again. "Thank you, Helga. And now for the guy who first saved us. Arnold also grew up with us in Berlin. When the Jews were removed from the schools, Arnold made sure to keep in touch with us and provide us with hope that things will get better. When Arnold received his draft papers, he knew it was time to get out of Germany, and he took the three of us with him."

Helga stopped listening after that. She couldn't comprehend what she just heard. Arnold was drafted? Why didn't he tell me? He told me that he wanted to save them, not that he was skipping out on the draft… Oh, my God. He skipped out on the draft. Was that really why he left? Was the whole hiding Jews just a cover up? I cannot believe this…

The longer Helga sat there, the angrier she became. She didn't realize the meeting was over until Arnold nudged her on the shoulder. "Helga? It's over. We can go home now."

Without a single word, Helga stood up and walked out of the synagogue. She walked briskly as Arnold tried to catch up.

"Helga, wait up!" he shouted as he finally reached her. "What's wrong? You were fine while we were there."

Helga stopped dead in her tracks and stared straight at him. "Were you drafted?" she asked bluntly. Arnold's face turned red as he uncomfortably shifted his weight.

"Yes," he answered.

"You were drafted and didn't tell me."

"I know, and I'm sorry," he said sincerely. "I don't know why I didn't tell you before, and it was wrong of me to not tell you."

"Just answer me this one thing." She walked up closer to him. "Was the main reason you left because you were drafted?"

Arnold's gaze moved towards the ground, which answered Helga's question. She shook her head in disgust. He lied to her. He kept something hidden from her, and that was the real reason he left Germany. It wasn't because he wanted to save lives; he only wanted to save his life.

"You coward," she whispered as she slapped him across the face and ran back to the house, with Arnold yelling after her.

She didn't look back.

Helga could feel some pressure on her arm. She opened her puffy eyes and rubbed them, not realizing she had fallen asleep. "Helga?" a soft voice spoke. Helga looked over to see her best friend standing there.

"Hey, Pheebs," she mumbled as she stood up and stretched. "What's up?"

"We've been looking all over for you. What happened?"

"Arnold didn't tell you?" Phoebe shook her head. "Of course he didn't." Helga went on to tell Phoebe Arnold's secret. When she finished, Phoebe was aghast.

"I can't believe he would do that," Phoebe said. "It's so unlike him."

"Tell me about it." Helga said from her seat on the ground. "I don't know what I'm going to do about this."

"Do you still love him?" Phoebe asked.

Reluctantly, Helga nodded. "Despite everything, I still do. But he lied, Phoebe. And this isn't a small thing."

Phoebe adjusted her glasses. "I don't know what I would do if I were in that position, but I think you two need some space. I think some time apart will help to clear your minds and then you can talk about this."

"I think you're right, Pheebs," she sighed. "I need some time to think because right now, there's no way I would be able to forgive him. And I don't know if I will ever."

A/N: I know this was so mean, especially after their special moment last chapter, but I felt it was important to show that Arnold isn't perfect and he and Helga don't have a perfect relationship. I'm not going to give away the ending of what happens between them, but I will say that they are only on a break right now. They are not broken up.