Disclaimer: I unquestionably, assuredly, without a shadow of a doubt, do not own Hey Arnold! (But if there was a way to own it for cheap, I would've done it already and I wouldn't need a disclaimer!)

Chapter Three - Free at Last

Rhonda felt so lonely. So empty. So hollow. She had everything she could ask for: the fanciest apparel, the most extravagant limo to go around town in, the finest, most exotic food, not to mention the greatest slumber parties. She was the most consummate child of Hillwood. But at that moment, she didn't feel like it. She glanced across the empty, lengthy table. She looked down at her plate and scooped up the last morsel of lasagna from her plate and took a bite. Every chew of it took an eternity. She finally swallowed it down, experiencing every bump and slide the bolus took on its trip down her throat. A swig of sparking apple cider usually made her happy, but this time it did nothing to absolve her of her guilt. Her mother left the table a few minutes ago, yapping away on her cell phone to Rhonda's father about something. She suddenly excused herself and went somewhere else. The maid rushed by and cleared the table of her plate. If Rhonda's mother figured out the truth, the truth that Rhonda had avoided school two days in a row, she would be yapping at her and not her father.

The tears gushed from Rhonda's eyes. She pushed her plate away and put her head down, letting it rest in her folded arms. She felt glad to be in darkness. She was tired of being in this reality, always having to concealing the truth. She was tired of keeping her mouth shut, unable to tell the truth to anyone. But why? It's what she wanted. She requested Curly to leave her alone, but she didn't truly wish for him to die. She didn't loath him that much. Her anger may have shown that he was the bane of her existence, but deep down, nothing could be further from the truth.

"What's wrong my love?"

An amiable hand came down on her shoulder and evoked her to jump. She lifted her head and glimpsed to her left. Her jaw dropped in absolute shock. His red glasses shimmered even in the dim light. His lips curled upward into a habitual big smile. Looking at his body, he was dressed in a nice, sable, three-piece suit.

"Curly!"

She tripped out of her seat, landing on her hands and knees. Supportive hands took hold of her arms and hoisted her up. They straightened out the creases and wiped some of the dust off her shirt and her knees.

"I thought you were dead, and-"

Looking up at Curly again, wondering if she'd witness his unmistakable face, absolute confusion swirled in her mind. It was actually her maid, correcting her shirt collar that had come undone when she fell.

Rhonda blushed. "I'm so sorry!"

She allowed the maid to clarify that she somehow fainted after eating dinner and was discovered on the ground when she came to check on the nine year old.

Rhonda excused herself and dashed into her room. She shut the door and pressed her back against it. Her eyes closed as she sighed with her hand on her forehead. After a silent moment, she threw herself on her bed, still dressed in her typical school clothes, worn to cover up for being absent from class. "Oh my gosh. What's wrong with me?"

Rhonda opened her eyes. She became overwhelmed by all the sounds and bright lights. Her head lethargically turned from left to right, digesting everything in the enormous room that was so spectacularly decorated. It resembled one of the balls she attended with her parents a few months ago.

People were seated at every table. Waiters ambled from table to table, bus boys carrying dirty dishes right behind them, and at the front of the room, a few chefs were in the kitchen busy preparing customers' meals. A trio of violinists in the middle of the room played Johann Sebastian Bach's "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring".

She closed her eyes and breathed in. She relished the baroque arrangement and the delightful aroma of what she discerned was spaghetti. She lifted her left hand to find she wore a long, ivory glove that went up to her elbow, as was her right. She yanked on her cherry shirt to discover it was a pure white dress. She was a full-grown female again.

Where am I? Why am I dressed like this? What's going on?

"Enjoying your dinner, babe?"

Rhonda's heart stopped in its place. Across from her sat Curly; rather, a grown up Curly. He had discontinued eating his steak tartar to chatter with Rhonda. His smile actually didn't repulse her. In fact, it felt a little…warming.

She smiled. She held up a hand and waved it at him. "It's very delicious, doll. I'm happy you took me here for my birthday."

Doll? Curly? No way! Why did I call him doll? And why did he call me babe and I didn't slap him or something? I don't like him. Right?

Bach's music came to an end. The piano player behind the violinists started to play "Chopin's Waltz No. 69 Op. 2" and the violinists joined with him.

Rhonda smiled and shut her eyes; enveloped in the hypnotizing sensation that piece always gave her. "Ah, how I just love this tune."

Rhonda lost her breath when she identified her hand was in Curly's. He stood by her side and helped her stand up. He directed her to the other side of the room, where a few other couples were dancing with each other, following along to the music.

Curly pulled away, her hand still in his. He bowed. "May I have this dance?"

Rhonda found herself at a loss for words. She put her other hand to her flushing cheeks, grinning. "Why yes, Curly."

After Rhonda curtsied, they moved onto the "dance floor". Curly took her right hand in his left and extended it out slightly to the side. He then placed his right hand on her left shoulder blade. She felt her face reddening even more at his touch. They soon started to do a simple box step, keeping in rhythm with the music that was so lovely to her ears. It was as if they knew where each other wanted to go, able to move as one. She sighed, feeling contented to be dancing with him. Watching the other couples dance to the waltz, she knew deep down, she and Curly were the best dancers in the room. The few moments the music continued on, gently caressing her ears, felt like forever.

Wait, why am I dancing with him? This is Curly Gammelthorpe that I'm dancing with! I'd rather be with Harold or even Stinky than with…with him!

Rhonda moved her lips closer to Curly's ear. She whispered, "I wish this didn't have to end."

"Me either."

"I can't believe this is happening. It's like it's a dream, like it's too good to be true. But it actually did come true."

"It has. Can you believe we've been married for a year now. It feels like we're newlyweds."

Rhonda closed her eyes and shifted her lips closer to his, the warmth of his breath inviting her closer.

Wait, what? Newlyweds? We're married?

She abruptly opened her eyes. At the sight of his lips, she let go of Curly, who ceased his dancing.

Curly's grin vanished. "Rhonda? What's wrong?"

"I can't do this," she said with tears in her eyes. "I just can't."

"What?"

"I've gotta go. I'm sorry."

Rhonda turned and began to scamper away, holding her dress up so it wouldn't touch the floor. Her high heels echoed throughout the room that suddenly grew silent.

"Rhonda, wait! Rhonda!"

Rhonda's eyes burst open. She looked around, finding herself in darkness. She raised the covers so she could get out of bed. She couldn't sleep anymore. Not after that dream.

She glanced at the clock. 3:12 am, it read.

She only had three more hours until her maid came in to get her dressed and prepared for breakfast. She dragged her palms over her face, bawling even though there were no tears. Too many had been shed that day for her to shed anymore. At that moment, she recognized what she had to do tomorrow after school: reveal everything.

Rhonda chose to take the bus after school. She didn't get off at her usual stop, but a stop at the other side of town. She sauntered down the sidewalk for a few blocks, avoiding the homeless people and intimidating strangers that headed her way. She stopped once she spotted her destination. She looked up at her friend's house. It had been two days since Curly died. She could already feel her will start to break. Observing the brick building made her will about ready to snap in half.

A cold gust of wind came and went, brushing her neck and her legs. Everything seemed to go in slow motion, like it was teasing her, taunting her to enjoy her last few hours left before everything went to Hell. Cars honked their horns in anger from someone probably negligent that the light changed to green. Beside the stoop, a few cats dashed from out behind a trash can, knocking it over and spilling trash on the sidewalk. She ignored the negative thoughts pricking and prodding her brain, trying to egg her on to turn around and go back home. Instead she placed her hand on the metal stair railing and walked up the steps to the front door, her hand up and balled into a loose fist.

She knocked once, twice, three times and took a step back. She never realized how huge the door was. Maybe her problem was making things seem scarier than they appear? She could've sworn it was only an average sized door. A quivering sigh departed from her lips. She couldn't believe it. She was actually going to ask for help. But what else could she do? She couldn't tell her parents, or the school, or any grown-ups about who really was the culprit behind Curly's early death. They'd throw her in the funny farm for saying such a thing. Or even worse, jail. The Lloyds would be totally ashamed of their daughter. Her family name would be besmirched, befouled and insulted for generations.

I can't imagine me, Rhonda Wellington Lloyd, being thrown into those cold, dirty cells, wearing those tacky suits, shivering in a corner somewhere, talking about 'it was a mistake' while some girl is about to pound me into dust!

Rhonda shuddered at the tactful hand that touched her arm. She raised her head to see just who she wanted to talk to. She stared at her with amiable, steadfast eyes. What scared Rhonda was they could also turn apathetic and uninviting if she was rubbed the wrong way.

"Rhonda?"

Rhonda blinked in confusion. She shook her head to clear her mind. She took a good look at who it was and laughed nervously. "Oh! Um, hi Patty," Rhonda looked down. She put her hands behind her back and nervously bounced up and down on the heels of her shoes. "If I'm interrupting you, I'll just-"

Patty frowned. She seized Rhonda's hand. "No, you're not. Come in."

Patty escorted her by the hand to the couch and they sat down. Rhonda let her hands lounge in her lap, inattentively wringing them along with the beat of the ticking from the clock. She noticed the framed picture on the end table next to Patty. Harold and Patty were smiling and sitting in a restaurant booth. It must've been a nearby hamburger joint. It definitely wasn't a fancy restaurant that Rhonda was used to. Something began to kindle in her heart. She felt a diminutive emotion of resentment about that picture. But why she felt that way, she couldn't figure it out. It couldn't be because Harold was with Patty, could it? She had already gotten over him. But what could it be about seeing them together that got on her nerves? Could it be Patty found someone while she hadn't?

Rhonda cleared her throat and finished with a smile. "I see you and Harold are getting along quite well."

Patty nodded. Rhonda prayed Patty didn't detect the bitterness in her compliment. Patty turned to look at the picture. "Yeah. We took that a few weeks ago before we went to see Wrestlemania. He got us in for free."

"Oh," Rhonda said. Her lips trembled, trying their best to maintain her hypersensitive smile. "Sounds…fun."

Patty eyed Rhonda. Her unibrow dipped down. "Is something wrong?"

Rhonda's embarrassed laugh resurfaced. "Um, what makes you say that?"

"The last time you came by was for our slumber party," Patty said. Rhonda could sense a bit of conflict in her tone. "Any other time we hung out it was at your place."

"Oh! No, it's not like that Patty. Your place is," she looked around the living room, and then stared at Patty. "Reserved. Practical. Um, yeah, very practical. Not to mention organized."

Patty frowned. "Then what is it?"

Rhonda gazed down at her jittery hands. She sighed. Patty was smarter than she thought. Not to say she was dim-witted, but she wasn't as naïve as Nadine. It also wasn't helping by the fact her hands couldn't stay still.

"Well, you see…um…" Rhonda's eyes raced back and forth between the picture and Patty's eyes, anticipating a good lie could pop in her head. After a small moment of inappropriate silence, Rhonda felt herself shrink as she situated her head in her hands. "Oh my God, this is so embarrassing."

Patty's frown disappeared. She slung her arm over Rhonda's back. "Rhonda, we're friends. You can trust me. I promise not to tell anyone."

Rhonda's uppity attitude returned as she sat up and gazed at Patty's eyes, perceptively filled with authentic concern. Rhonda's eyes ached with tears starting to clutter her eyesight. "You absolutely, positively, promise? You won't tell a single, solitary soul?"

"Yeah."

Rhonda rubbed her arm, keeping herself composed. She ignored the tingling in the back of her eyes as best she could by blinking in hopes the tears would stop coming.

Rhonda wanted to squirm at the realization that sweat was building up below her brow. There she was, alone in Patty's house. Just the two of them, yet she still refused to tell Patty the truth.

I guess if it's anyone I can really trust to keep a secret, it's Patty. Plus, who knows what she'd do if she found out I lied to her. I mean look at her! She could beat any other sixth grader to a pulp! Imagine what she could do to me?

"Rhonda, it's okay. I'm here to listen. Tell me what's wrong."

She brought a finger under her eye and wiped a tear away. "You remember Curly, right?"

"Yeah. The fourth grader who hunkered down in Principal Wartz's office over not being ball monitor? I think he also let the animals free from the zoo during Arnold's geek party, right?"

"Right. That's him."

"I feel sorry for his family. You know, because of what happened to him."

Rhonda winced from the lightning bolt that pierced her heart, making it feel inflamed. The last thing she wanted was to be reminded by someone else about his death. She thanked God her straight face didn't falter. "Um, yeah, me too," she paused. She took a deep breath. "And you remember a few days ago when you recommended where to buy that potion I wanted?"

"Yeah. What about it?"

An estranged, feverish sentiment fluttered throughout Rhonda's chest. Cold sweat popped up in spots in her palms. The clock ticking grew louder. Patty's house phone ringing sounded like it was directly in her ear. A motorcycle that growled as it sped by Patty's house almost gave her a heart attack.

The sounds, the thoughts, the conflicting emotions, her apprehensiveness, suddenly exploded within her. She threw herself at Patty, wrapping her arms around her, burying the side of her face in her chest.

"I took the potion you said that would work and the directions specifically said to take it at night and the next morning you can make your wish come true, so I took it and the next morning Curly was bothering me all day and at lunch, so I finally had enough of his antics and stalking me all the time so I confronted him about it and I threw him against a locker and told him I wish he'd do everyone a favor and just die or something, and then the next two days he didn't show up in class and then on the second day Mr. Simmons told us that he died and that's when I realized he died because of my dumb, stupid wish and he's dead because it's all my faaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaault!"

Rhonda sobbed extravagantly in her friend's chest, something she never envisioned ever occurring. Maybe with Nadine, but with Patty, it never crossed her mind. It felt like an eternity she kept her head there. It was a place she could finally release her frustrations.

Rhonda finally drew back and upon seeing the wet patch that not just comprised of tears but mucus on Patty's shirt, she gasped.

"Oh my gosh Patty, I'm like, so sorry about that! I promise you I'll have my maid wash it for you, and-"

Patty held up her hand to make Rhonda stop. She said with a smile, "Don't worry about it. Besides, since you've been gone from school the past few days, you've got a lot of catching up to do."

Patty helped Rhonda up and walked her to the door. Rhonda stepped out and turned back around to face her. Rhonda wanted to say something, but Patty cut her off. "Listen. Meet me tomorrow twenty minutes before school starts. I'll fill you in on everything, including an update on Curly."