So here is the next chapter as promised, everything is coming together again. There is more to come...maybe more drama?...haha...who knows. This was written kind of quickly so my apologies.
Disclaimer: I do not own Hey Arnold!
To Helga's surprise she was being released by the next day, about 8 p.m. to be exact. Due to the fact that she had no actual family there to sign her out somehow Phoebe's parents were given that right, probably after having a lengthy conversation on the phone with Bob. Outside the hospital she saw Phoebe's parents make their way to their car, while Phoebe went over to where Gerald was waving. Phoebe signaled for Helga to follow, Gerald opening the back door for her to get in.
She gave him a strange look as he stood waiting for her, wow he is actually being a gentleman….to me? She thought as she carefully leaned down to get in the car, wincing in pain as she bent down. She gripped the door tightly waiting for the pain to subside before she tried to move again, this making Phoebe run over to her.
"Oh my gosh, Helga are you ok?" Phoebe asked placing a hand on Helga's shoulder. Helga just nodded, focusing her strength on fighting the pain instead of fighting for words. She let out a long sigh as it slowly dissipated, making another attempt to getting in the car. This time she shot Gerald a grateful smile for holding the door.
"So, Helga, you are more than welcome to stay at my house since your parents are still out of town." Phoebe started, looking back at Helga, "Plus I wasn't sure if you wanted to, you know, stay alone there after…."
"It's ok Phoebe," Helga gave her friend a sincere smile, "I will be fine. Plus they will be back soon, and Bob apparently had some heavy duty locks put on the doors along with a state of the art alarm system." He should have thought of that shit before, whatever. She thought as she directed her attention out the window. Watching the buildings pass by in a blur.
"Are you sure?" Phoebe now had a very concerned look on her face. She did not know if leaving her friend in the house she was attacked in just a day ago, alone again, was such a good idea.
"It's ok Phoebe really." Helga said facing Phoebe, noting the worried expression on her best friends face, "I'll tell you what, I will call you if I need anything. Ok?" The look on Phoebe's face didn't change much but she nodded, not wanting to argue with Helga still being injured.
"I'll see you guys later," Helga said as she slowly got out of the car, Gerald holding the door for her again, "Thanks hairboy." She said passing a weak joking grin, which normally he would just roll his eyes at her comment, but this time he just smiled.
"Are you absolutely sure?" Phoebe asked through the passenger window.
"I will be fine Phoebe, don't worry. I will call you later ok?" she said as she waved goodbye to her friend and made her way into the house.
She closed the door softly and locked it, turning around hitting her back against the door and sliding down. Her hands lay limp by her side as she stared down the hall, emptiness filling her eyes. She continued to play the events over and over in her head, tears now welling up in her eyes. She had heard about stuff like this happening to people on the news before, some were not as fortunate as she was.
Helga sat there for a while before she eventually mustered up the strength the get up and walk through the empty house. If we hadn't moved back here I wouldn't be going through this shit, I wouldn't have this awful pain in my side or these damn stitches that threaten to pop out with every move I make. But, then again, up until now this has been one of the best summers I have had here. I have had a second chance to make friends with my old friends, and-and Arnold. If I had never came back I would have never seen him again. She began to whimper as she thought about everything that had happened over the last few months.
After a few moments of out bursts and low sobs Helga was finally able to compose herself. She walked through the hallway trying her best to put those awful images in the back of her mind. It was starting to get late so she decided to take her pain medication before bed, making double sure the locks were all locked securely.
As she lay in her bed, the effects of the pain medication starting to kick in, she began thinking about Arnold. He had stayed as much as he could with her while she was there, but he got caught up doing some stuff for his grandpa at the boarding house. He had text her saying he wasn't sure if he would be able to make it in time when she got released, but he would check in on her as soon as he could. At the thought of the last message she got from him, her eyelids began feeling very heavy.
Helga's dream was absolutely horrid, she was in her house all alone and that man was there. He was holding the blood stained knife as he approached her, she made a run for the door, but the door disappeared. She was trapped as he got closer, seeing the look in his eyes made her knees buckle and she fell against the wall. Her side was hurting so bad she could barely stand to fight the tears. As she looked up he grabbed her by the collar and raise the knife to her throat, she couldn't move, she couldn't find the strength to fight back this time. Her arms lay limp by her side as a devilish grin spread across his face, "I told you, you little bitch not to do anything stupid. You just couldn't listen could you?!" he snarled, the smile growing wider as in one swift motion he ran the knife across her throat…..
Helga shot up from her sleep, panting and sweating profusely grabbing her throat. She began crying at the thought of seeing his face so clearly in her dreams, and how real it felt. She cried for a good while before she was finally able to calm her hysterics, grabbing her phone she noticed she had a missed call and a new text message. It was Arnold…."Hey, I am so sorry it took so long. I had way more to do than I thought. Phoebe told me you were staying at your house….are you ok?"
As she read the text she started to breath frantically again, looking at the clock, it was 1:23 in the morning. It is probably too early, but I have to at least try, she thought.
"Yes I am here alone…and I can't do this. I thought I could but I can't." She read her text through watery eyes before hitting send. She was not the tough shelled girl she had once been in middle school, now she was just broken, so fragile. She needed someone, someone that could help her through this and she could think of no better person.
Arnold's…..
He lay in his bed tossing and turning, thoughts of Helga being at her house alone after what had happened made him nervous. He also felt really bad about not trying harder to be there for her when she left the hospital. Yeah he had tried to call her earlier with no luck, so he sent a text with no reply to that as well. As he lay in his light slumber he was startled at the sound of his phone. Arnold sat up quickly, maybe a little too quickly giving him a head rush.
He looked at the name on the display, Helga, his eyes shot wide open as he also saw the time. It was about 1:23 in the morning, his heart started to beat rapidly as he thought something might be wrong.
He read the message, "Yes I am here alone…and I can't do this. I thought I could but I can't." As quickly as he could he said to hell with the text and called her back instead. The time he waited for her to answer seemed to take hours…finally.
"Hello," She sounded winded and her voice was weak.
"Helga?! Is everything ok?!" he asked quickly.
He could hear her beginning to sob, his heart now racing as he waited for her to answer him. After a brief moment he heard her take a deep breath, "No Arnold, no I'm not ok." She said between soft sobs.
"Helga, what is wrong? Do you need help?" he asked, trying his best to not let her hear how panicked he had become.
"Arnold?...I know i-its late, but do yo-you think….maybe…you co-could come over?" She said in a weak voice.
Arnold sat there for a minute, not sure if he heard her right but he knew he had.
"Arnold?" she said again, a small break in her voice this time.
"I'm still here," he started, taking a deep breath, "Give me 15 minutes?" He finally answered, simultaneously getting up and grabbing his stuff.
He heard a faint, "Ok." He decided to go out his skylight and down the fire escape, this way to keep from waking anyone. He was going to call her once he was there so she could unlock the front door.
Helga's….
Helga had just gotten off the phone with Arnold, she now sat in her bed her eyes now stinging from the amount of tears that had plagued them. She waited for what seemed like forever, I can't believe he agreed to come over this late, she thought smiling knowing that he would soon be there and she knew she would feel much better with his company.
The sound of her phone startled her, she looked down to see she had gotten a text from Arnold, "Outside."
She slowly made her way downstairs, wearing her cutoff sweatpants that were now shorts and a random T-shirt. Her hair was in a mess laying down her back and over her shoulders, she really didn't care though. Helga unlocked the door, and almost instantly she felt a rush of relief seeing him standing there. He walked inside, Helga closing and locking the door as he stood off to the side waiting for her. She turned slowly, but was quickly met with a tight but very gently embrace.
He kissed her forehead as he held her close, the sound of his breathing and the rhythm of his heart beat made her feel so safe. She breathed him in deeply, her head spinning. She pulled away a bit so she could look at him, a smile on his face as his eyes met hers.
"Thank you for coming to my rescue." Helga said trying to lighten the mood a bit.
He let out a soft chuckle, he leaned in close to her, their noses almost touching, "No need to thank me, I will always be there for you Helga." His smile slowly fading, and hurt now in his eyes, "I am just sorry I couldn't hel….." Helga placed a finger over his soft lips.
"Arnold, there was nothing you could have done. I am just glad you and the others made it when you did." With that he pulled her in tighter, this making her groan in pain a little. He immediately loosened his grip taking a step back, "Oh, I am sorry. I forgot."
Helga just gave him a smile as she signaled for them to go sit on the couch.
"Want to watch a little TV?" She asked, her voice still very soft, as they sat on the couch, "I am not sure how long I will last. I took more pain medication before you got here. That stuff makes me very sleepy."
He smiled and reached for the remote, "Yeah, it is a little too quiet in here."
They both sat watching TV, snuggled up on the couch. Helga had lost track of time, but before she knew it she felt arms around her. She opened her eyes slightly, watching the walls move, Wait! The walls are moving? With that she took in a quick breath, a little startled that she was no longer sitting on the couch.
"Shhhhh….go back to sleep." Arnold said quietly, the sound of his low whisper made chills run down her spine.
He had carried her to her room, now laying her in her bed. Giving her a soft kiss on the forehead, he turned to make his way out of the room, but he felt something grab his arm. Looking down at Helga's hand on his forearm, she sat up slightly.
"Helga, you need your rest. Go back to sleep, I will be downstairs if you need me ok?" he said softly.
"Arnold?...could you…um," Helga was glad he could not see the immense amount of red now on her face. "Could you maybe….stay here…stay here with me?" She finally said, twiddling her thumbs nervously.
Arnold was a little startled by her request taking him a minute to find the words.
Helga let out a low sigh, "Never mind. Forget I….."
"Ok." He finally answered, catching Helga off guard this time. At this point she could feel her face on fire, and it only got worse as he slowly laid in bed next to her. Pulling her in close, but not so much so as to hurt her. Helga finally calmed her racing heart, getting herself comfortable, and laying her head on his chest. The sound of his heart beat, a little rapid at first much like hers, but soon slowed to a steady rhythm. She lay there listening to his heart beat, and feeling his chest rise and fall, she slowly slipped into a deep slumber.
So? What did you as readers think about it so far? Reviews please! Thank you :)