[A/N: Hey all! Thank you so much for your kind words and encouragement 3 I can't express how glad I am that there are people enjoying this fic. You're the best!

Thanks to a few hours of inspiration, I have another chapter done! And this one is longer, woo!

Please read and review and enjoy!]

Arnold awoke to the sensation of his cell phone vibrating in his jeans pocket. As he began to regain consciousness, the smell of disinfectant was a faint reminder that he was still in the hospital. One by one, his senses alerted him to his environment. He could feel the chair he was uncomfortably slouched in, its dark green cushioning doing nothing to make up for the hard wooden arms and awkward positioning. As his eyes began to flutter open, he could see the faint hint of daylight peeking in through the closed window blinds on the other side of the room. There was a light above Helga's bed that was still on but other than that, the hint of dawn outside was the main thing illuminating the room.

Finally somewhat aware of himself, he quickly pulled his phone out to check who was calling him.

"Hey Gerald," Arnold mumbled into the phone, his eyelids closing as he tried to reposition himself in the chair. He kept his voice low as Helga was still asleep in the hospital bed next to him.

"Dude, where the hell are you?" Gerald exclaimed into the phone. He sounded concerned.

"Mmm… Concordia," Arnold said as a yawn escaped him.

"Concordia?" Gerald's voice was much more flustered and jarring than Arnold was ready for this early in the morning. What time was it, anyway? "Well, you better get your ass back to Hillwood," He paused. "What are you doing in Concordia?"

Arnold was starting to wake up more now and he rubbed the sleep from his eyes, sitting up in the chair and stretching. "It's a long story," Arnold said quietly as he stood up and moved to the other end of the room, hoping to avoid disturbing Helga's sleep.

"The hell you mean, 'It's a long story'?" Gerald asked tersely. "You can't just be disappearin' and scarin' the shit outta people, man…"

"I'm sorry," Arnold said, glancing over to Helga's sleeping form. She was lying on her side facing away from him and he watched as her side rose and fell with each breath. She didn't stir. "It wasn't something I planned,"

"What's going on with you, man?" Gerald asked in a much calmer, though still concerned, tone. "You haven't been right for a while. Even before all the Lila shit,"

Arnold sighed and rubbed his face, leaning back against the window to the hallway. The curtain over it was pulled and Arnold could see a few nurses bustling around, probably just starting their shift. Oh yeah, what time was it? He pulled his phone away for a second to look at the clock on the screen. 7:12.

"I'd rather not have this conversation over the phone," Arnold said simply and for a moment, there was silence. That obviously wasn't the response Gerald wanted.

"Are you okay?" Gerald asked after a minute.

"Yeah," Arnold said honestly. "Yeah, I'm okay. And I promise, I'll tell you what's going on when I get back,"

"And when will that be?" Gerald asked. "I'm only gonna be in town a couple more days,"

Arnold glanced over at Helga, trying to come up with a plan as quickly as possible. "Okay," He said. "I'll be back soon; I promise. Umm… I'll take a bus and come back tonight. Is that alright?"

"Sure Arnold," Gerald grumbled, obviously still annoyed. "You know you can't be doin' this shit. Disappearin' in the night and scarin' your friends… we're worried about you, Arnold – me and Brainy. You haven't been acting like yourself, man. After everything that's gone on with you, it'd be nice for you to clue us in…"

Arnold sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "I know; I'm sorry," He said humbly. "Let's grab a beer tonight and I'll tell you everything, okay?"

Arnold spent the next hour or so searching for bus tickets that would take him back to Hillwood at the lowest rate on his phone. Eventually the sun peeped over the horizon and fully illuminated the room such that any artificial light was unnecessary. He'd just completed his purchase when Helga finally began to stir.

"Hey," She said softly, her eyes only half-open, as she turned on her side to face him. "What time is it?"

"Going on nine," Arnold replied with a small smile. There was something captivating about her. He'd never seen her this calm – he hadn't seen her at all in years… It was probably just due to the fact she was only half-awake, but still, he couldn't help himself from smiling at her.

Helga yawned and pulled herself into an upright position. The bandage on her head had been jostled in her sleep but it was obvious the bleeding had stopped so it wasn't a concern. "You're still here," Helga said in a small, careful voice.

"Yeah," Arnold said softly. "How are you feeling?"

Helga let out a soft groan. "Okay, I guess…" She sighed. "Kind of numb after last night,"

The hospital psychiatrist had met with Helga late last night to assess her mental state. Considering the incredible revelation that Arnold was actually alive, she was in a much different mindset than she would've been otherwise. She'd spent a good hour talking to the psychiatrist about what had happened and why she did what she did, not that she'd really wanted to but she didn't have the energy to care about embarrassment or feeling vulnerable. She had already maxed out her vulnerability level. In the end, they'd decided to keep her for a few days to ensure she wouldn't be a risk to herself anymore and to get her some inpatient counseling in the meantime.

Arnold nodded his understanding. After the psychiatrist had left her for the night, he'd come back to her room. He offered to talk about what happened but she was too drained and before either of them knew it, she'd fallen asleep.

"I have to head back to Hillwood later today," Arnold said gently and upon noticing the change in Helga's expression added, "But I can come back. I just have to take care of a couple things,"

Helga bit the inside of her lip and nodded. "Yeah, yeah. Sure, that's… that's fine,"

"You sure?" Arnold eyed her carefully.

"I'll be fine, Footballhead," She said, smirking for the first time since they'd been reunited.

Arnold chuckled. How could he ever have expected to feel relieved at hearing his old nickname? "I thought you forgot about the whole 'Footballhead' thing,"

Helga scoffed humorously. "Forget? How could I?" She dramatically gestured to him with both arms. "I mean, look at you!"

Arnold smiled, still amazed at how nice this banter felt. In an odd way, he felt like he'd missed it and that surprised him the most. "I'm gonna get some coffee. Do you want any?"

"Desperately," Helga said in a grave tone.

Arnold grinned. "Be right back,"

. . . . . . . .

Early that morning, Lila had attempted to leave Stinky's house before he woke up but was sorely surprised to find he was already sitting on the living room sofa when she crept down the stairs, bag in hand.

"Mornin', Miss Lila," He greeted her. "Whacha got yer bag there for?"

"Oh," Lila said softly, trying to come up with an excuse. After her conversation with Brooke last night, she had a new plan. According to Brooke, the answers (and revenge) she was looking for were in Concordia. It'd been amazing to listen to Brooke recount stories of her mother that she'd never heard before. When her parents had met, Brooke was already living in Hillwood for some time. Her father owned a farm in a rural part of the state and when they got together, she'd moved from the city to the farm with him. After she died, her father had moved them back to Hillwood as a sort of sentiment to his late wife. In all that time, he'd never known where she came from and as a result, Lila had never known. It wasn't until she connected with Brooke years ago that she began to learn the real story of her family and there were still things she didn't know.

"Um…" Lila hesitated a moment. "Stinky, I appreciate everything you've done for me… just ever so much, it's just… I think I should go back home. I… I-I can't keep living this lie anymore," She said, giving him a sad, pitiful look.

Stinky stood up from the couch and approached her at the staircase landing. "Lila," He said, taking her bag and setting it on the floor next to them and gently lifting her chin to look at him. "You did what you had to do. Yer safe here; you don't gotta go back,"

"I know," Lila said, looking away. "I know I'm safe with you and I can't tell you how grateful I am, it's just… there are some things I need to take care of before I feel completely safe,"

"Like what?" Stinky asked, looking at her quizzically. "Whatever it is, I'll do it for you," Then he added in a more solemn tone, "I meant what I said all those years ago, Lila,"

Lila pursed her lips and nodded thoughtfully, pausing just a moment before asking, "Do you still love me, Stinky?"

Stinky hesitated at that, his eyes darting bashfully to the floor. "I… I-I reckon I do…" He said quietly and Lila smiled.

Lila gently picked up his hands in her own. "I'll come back," She said sweetly, their faces only inches apart. "I promise,"

. . . . . . . .

Later that evening, Arnold was back in Hillwood, standing outside the local bar and waiting for Gerald. He'd promised Helga that he would come back as soon as he could and he was already looking at buses leaving for Concordia in the morning. He didn't have a long-term plan yet; all he knew was that his court date wasn't for another couple months and his job had put him on a temporary leave of absence. To him, this meant he had the time and as long as there was room on his credit card for the fare, he had the means.

Gerald appeared around the corner, his hands tucked into his pockets as he made his way down the sidewalk toward Arnold. They'd already crossed over the threshold from winter into spring; trees were overrun with little buds on their branches and the days were beautiful and bright. However, at night, the temperatures dropped and a jacket was still necessary as the winds could be chilly.

"You showed up," Gerald said in mock surprise once Arnold was in earshot.

Arnold deadpanned. "I said I would," He grinned good-naturedly. "Come on,"

As they settled at the bar with their drinks finally in hand, Gerald initiated the conversation.

"Okay, so spill," He said, leaning one arm against the bar and facing his best friend. "What's been goin' on with you, man? Brainy said you were doin' some questionable shit but he wouldn't tell me what," Gerald looked around, lowering his voice. "Is it drugs? You can be straight with me, man, I—"

"I'm not doing drugs, Gerald," Arnold said in a serious tone though he struggled to keep from laughing. "That's not what's going on,"

"Okay, so then what is it?" Gerald asked, sipping his beer bottle.

Arnold sighed, tapping a couple fingers against his own bottle as he tried to formulate an explanation. "Okay… You remember that accident back in high school?"

"Yeah," Gerald nodded in earnest.

"Well," Arnold sucked in a deep breath and exhaled sharply. "I've felt really guilty about it for a long time…"

"But Arnold –"

"I know," Arnold cut him off. "It was an accident. But still, Gerald, Helga was in a coma for almost a year! She couldn't talk or do anything for herself… I really messed up her life!" He paused, vaguely aware that his foot was tapping but he could do nothing to stop his fidgeting. "I felt horrible for what happened and I couldn't stop thinking about it and wondering what happened to her and how she was doing… After I started working with Brainy, he taught me a lot about computers and well…"

After an extra long pause, Gerald prodded, "And?"

"And… I started hacking into Helga's computer –"

"You WHAT?!" Gerald exclaimed and Arnold quickly shushed him.

"I was trying to help!"

"By HACK –"

"Shh!" Arnold shushed him again, more forcefully. "Yes, I know it wasn't the best idea but it's all I could think of and I was too ashamed to try and contact her directly," Gerald remained silent but stared at his friend with wide eyes, shaking his head in disbelief. "Anyway," Arnold continued. "I started helping her find information for all her articles and assignments she was researching for work. Misguided as it was, I wanted to help her and try to make up for what I put her through," He looked down at the bar, his face forlorn.

"Hey man," Gerald said gently, putting a hand on Arnold's shoulder. "It wasn't your fault you couldn't stop in time. You can't beat yourself up over it,"

Arnold huffed, looking up at the ceiling for a second before finally taking his first sip of his beer. "It was, though. You know why it happened, Gerald? I was thinking about Lila,"

He paused for a second and Gerald patiently waited for him to continue.

"We'd just had a stupid argument… or something, I don't know. I touched her the wrong way or something and she freaked out. The point is I was distracted," Arnold's shoulders hung in shame and his gaze focused vacantly on the label of his beer bottle, his mind wandering through a distant, though vivid, memory.

Gerald sighed, aware that he didn't have anything particularly inspirational or uplifting that could take away the pain his best friend had been feeling all these years. He wished he'd known sooner but even then, what could he have done? He wasn't sure.

"But anyway," Arnold kickstarted the conversation again. "You wanted to know why I was in Concordia. I'll tell you – and I know you're gonna tell Phoebe so just… be gentle when you do it – Helga's been in Concordia for some time now. She's on some type of project but I'm not sure what," He paused. "She's been dealing with her own crap over the years, related to the accident and feeling guilty, too… She thought I died in the crash, though,"

"Wow," Gerald said, his eyebrows raised.

Arnold nodded. "And last night, I was um… looking in her computer and noticed that she… started writing this… this… suicide note,"

"Holy shit," Gerald breathed. "For real?"

"Yeah," Arnold said softly, taking a deep breath and exhaling. "So I sent an ambulance to her address and caught the soonest flight I could up to Concordia,"

Gerald paused. "Is… is she okay?" He asked warily.

"Yeah," Arnold replied. "She's gonna be in the hospital for a few days but she's okay," Another pause between them. "Soo… that's what's been going on," Arnold breathed, then took a sip of his drink.

Gerald's brow was furrowed and his gaze fixed on the bar. "Damn…" He shook his head, still in disbelief from it all. "We thought we had problems when we were kids, look at this shit…"

Arnold shrugged, setting his bottle down on a coaster and straightening it so it lined up with the bar.

"I'm sorry I kind of got on your ass this morning," Gerald said. "I was just worried about you. With Lila missing and you under arrest, we didn't know what was up and I guess I overreacted a little when he called me,"

"It's alright, I get it," Arnold waved him off. "I guess it's good to know I have people who want to check on me in the first place,"

"Of course," Gerald said, playfully hitting Arnold in the shoulder. "You're my brother,"

Arnold smiled and relaxed against the bar. "But yeah, if and when you tell Phoebe…"

"Oh, I know," Gerald put a hand up. "She's already super pregnant and kinda crazy. Believe me, I'm learning how and when to bring certain things up," He chuckled.

The two friends were interrupted by the sound of Arnold's phone going off. He didn't know the number but his phone said the call was coming from Concordia.

"This might be Helga," Arnold said. "I gave her my number before I left,"

Gerald motioned for Arnold to go ahead and answer the call.

"Hello?" Arnold spoke into the phone and was met with incoherent sobbing. "Helga?"

He recognized her voice but her speech was so punctuated with cries that over the phone she was completely inaudible.

"I can't understand you," Arnold said calmly. "Relax, try to breathe…"

Gerald shot Arnold a concerned look and Arnold shook his head, shrugging his shoulders.

"What's going on?"

"He… he…" Helga began but her voice fell apart into sobs once again. Arnold waited patiently for her to catch her breath and when she finally did, his face fell.

"Okay, I'll be there as soon as I can," Arnold said urgently. "It's gonna be okay, Helga. Just hang on until I get there, okay?"

Arnold hung up and Gerald immediately questioned, "What happened?"

"Rich just died in the hospital," Arnold said, slipping back into his jacket and getting off of the bar stool. "Peapod kid,"

[A/N: Oh no! What do you think is gonna happen? I'm starting to see the end in sight... can you tell we're slowwwllyy getting close to the (second) climax? Let me know what you thought of this chapter and/or what you think might happen! I love predictions ;)]