As promised, here is Chapter 21 of Songs of Hillwood.

Chapter 21 is based off the song "Two is Better Than One" by Boys Like Girls and Taylor Swift.

I don't own things.

Author's Notes at the end.

Enjoy!

It took a while for Arnold to get a grip on the fact that he was graduating college. It was something that he didn't expect as he sat on his front porch, less than two hours away from being a free man. Out in the world with nothing but the degree he earned and the small amount of cash that he had managed to earn from the countless amounts of summer and school year jobs. But over the past four years, it had seemed like all of his college experiences were coming to end and it was something that he just wasn't ready to face. So he sat and stared at the cars that passed by. He thought of his hometown. He knew he was gonna go home, see his parents, his grandparents, the rest of the boarders, his friends.

Well his old friends. He hadn't talked to many of them in years. Only Gerald really. He was dating Phoebe still so he could always get information about her through him. Even if he didn't really want to know what was going on. But the fact that he could know what was going on was always a good thing he guessed. The rest of the gang from his childhood went off to do their own things. College changes a person.

But there was someone that he hadn't heard about in years. Considering that she had had the biggest impact on him growing up, the fact that he had no idea what she was doing with her life was something that concerned him. It concerned him even more that even her best friend Phoebe had no idea what had happened to her. As much as he hated to admit it, he missed her.

He had missed the way that she constantly would roll her eyes at him as he attempted to talk to her. He remembered the day they first met, a rainy day in front of their pre-school. She was soaking wet and sad. And he hated seeing her sad like that. He had liked her bow; he had always liked her bow. It made her unique. It sat on the top of her head for the longest time before it made a tight and careful bow holding her long blonde hair into a ponytail as she played softball. It got frayed and faded but she wore it everyday up until the day they graduated where she had it lining the edge of her graduation cap.

He had missed the constant nicknames. The Football Heads, Arnoldos, the way that she seemed to be in the most random places at just the right time, the way she managed to kick his ass at every single sport that they came across. She was creative, she liked poetry and he missed how different she was than everyone else around her. Different than all the other pretty girls that seemed to line the hallway. The girls that only cared about themselves. Sure, Helga was a bully. A real "bitch" according to the other girls. But he knew it's because she was so different that everyone else. While the others wore dresses and skirts, wore bunches of makeup and high heels to class, Helga would walk in everyday in a t-shirt and jeans, along with her trusty black Converse All-Stars and her pink baseball cap.

He had missed the way she had actually managed to find ways to make him better. In secret of course. There wasn't a time where Helga openly helped him. Like when he found out that it was Helga who had found Mr. Hyun's daughter that one Christmas. Or that it had been Helga who managed to find his parents in San Lorenzo and had managed to save not only their lives but his own.

But there was one memory that would always stick out in his head. The top of the FTI building when they saved the neighborhood. She had told him that she loved him and she had kissed him. Granted it wasn't the first time that she had kissed him, but it certainly had made an impact. At the time, it could have just been heat of the moment. But he knew better…now.

He had missed her a lot. He dove into his pocket for his cell phone and flipped through the numbers, hesistated slightly over her number. He turned it back off and stuck it back into his pocket with a sigh.

He stared at the cars some more before he heard the phone ring. As he pulled out the phone, he froze at the number on the screen. Hers. He stared at the phone as it kept ringing before shaking off his nerves and answering it.

"Hello?"

"Arnold? It's...it's Helga."

"Hey… Helga, what's up?"

"I remembered you went to Hillwood. And I'm actually supposed to meet Olga here."

"You're… meeting Olga here? I thought…"

"I know, it's a shock. But once Olga got a place of her own, she offered to let me live with her once I got into college. We started getting along after that. She actually just got a job here last year. So she asked if I would move with her to the city. So I'm here."

"You're…uh… on campus?"

"Right now? Yeah. Olga's a professor here. Music education. Some of her students are graduating today and she wanted me to go to graduation with her."

"Yea, um…graduation is today….uh…where are you?"

"Baker Hall?"

"Oh. Uh…I'm not too far from there. I can meet you there."

"Really? That's awesome! Thanks, Arnold. So I'll see you soon?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, bye!"

"Bye…"

He hung up the phone and continued to stare at it before slamming it back into his pocket and running towards Kimball Hall. His parents started walking towards his apartment as he tried to run past them.

"Arnold? Where are you going? You have to graduate soon."

"I know. I'll meet you there."

"It's in two hours! Don't you need your cap and gown?"

"Can you bring it? I have to meet with someone real quick. I promise I'll be back soon."

His parents looked at each other before his mother nodded.

"Thanks."

Arnold kissed his mother's cheek and ran towards Baker Hall. As he got there, he started to look around, looking for any indication of Helga. Until he saw her.

He stopped dead in his tracks, about 100 feet from Baker Hall, just staring at the woman sitting on the front steps. She was in a white sundress and white sandals. Her blonde hair in loose curls framing her face and dropping down her shoulders to her mid back. She was toned and tanned, surprisingly enough, since she went to school in Massachusetts. In just one words, she was beautiful. He felt as if his heart was going to give out on him right then and there. He couldn't move his feet enough to walk over to her. He never did any of this for a girl and it surprised him that his old bully was making him feel the way that he did. She noticed him and waved before running over to him and hugging him.

"Arnold! You look so different. It's been four years, hasn't it?"

"Yeah. Four years. You look really different too."

She smiled.

"Why so fancy?"

He stared down at his clothes.

"Oh. Right. I'm graduating today too."

"I thought you were going to be a doctor, like your parents. That's like 6-8 years of schooling."

"I changed my major."

"To what?"

"I double majored in Film and Spanish."

"Film? Really."

"Turns out, I really like making movies."

"You always had an overactive imagination, Football Head."

"…You called me Football Head."

"Sorry, force of habit."

"No! It's okay. I missed it."

They both blushed awkwardly before Helga decided to speak again.

"So…um…"

"Right! You need to find Olga."

"Yeah. Right…"

"Music is part of the Theatre and Dance school and well, you actually…managed to find it on your own."

"I did?"

"Yea. Baker Hall is usually where that graduation is. So I'm betting Olga is in there."

"Oh."

She smiled.

"Um…well…thanks Arnold."

"Don't mention it."

"You should probably go though. I'd imagine your graduation is starting soon."

"Yeah…you're right."

"I guess…I'll see you around?"

"Yeah…"

She hugged him quickly and started to walk away before Arnold shouted after her.

"Hey Helga?"

"How long are you back in town for?"

"Well considering Olga and I live here now, I'd say a while."

"Would you…uh… wanna go to Slausen's tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow…hmmm…I don't think I have anything to do tomorrow."

"Really? Oh. Cool. It's a date."

He covered his mouth instantly.

"Arnoldo, did you just say it's a date..."

"…no…"

She walked back over to him.

"I'm pretty sure you did."

He attempted to stammer out a response before she leaned up and kissed him on the cheek.

"It's a date."

She walked back towards Baker Hall and inside before Arnold grinned. As he started to walk back to his apartment, he stopped and realized something.

He had a date with Helga G. Pataki tomorrow and he had no idea what to do about it.

Hope you enjoyed Chapter 21 of Songs of Hillwood!

Since I'm writing a lot more now, Chapter 22 should be up by the end of the week, most likely Thursday or Friday.

Here's your clue for Chapter 22...

"Mysterious, that's what I call you, I'm curious about you..."

See you next week.