Chapter 53

Rescued

After running through a confusing maze of twists and turns, they finally made it out of the cave. Two jet black helicopters rested on the ground, their propellers whirring madly.

"Climb on in!" the first man said, opening the door for them.

Arnold and Helga struggled against the wind of the propeller, their hair blowing widely around their faces. They finally managed to climb in, and the man slammed the door behind them then climbed in the passenger seat in front. There was another man seated at the driver's seat, wearing the same uniform as the other two men.

"Hey, what about Brainy?" Arnold said to the men. "What are you going to do, leave him?"

"Not to worry, kid," said the man in the passenger seat. "He's going in the other helicopter. We still have to ask him a few questions about something."

Above the roar of the helicopter, they could faintly hear the man outside. "Now tell me again, how did you know they were here?"

Helga sat down on the floor of the helicopter, and Arnold sat down next to her.

She brushed her windblown hair out of her face. "This is why I don't wear my hair down," she muttered. She started to put her hair back into its traditional pigtails, but Arnold stopped her.

"Leave it down," he said, grabbing her wrist.

She looked at him in surprise. "Why?"

"Good question," Arnold thought, wondering why he had said that.

"I don't know," he said out loud. "I just think it looks good down."

"You do?" Helga asked in astonishment. It wasn't everyday that he said something nice about her.

"Yeah." Then he was silent.

Helga wasn't sure what she was supposed to do. He loved her…but now what? She wished he would say something, anything. The silence was too much. She was faintly aware of the helicopter taking off and flying away from the island, but she was so dazed by what was going on that she barley noticed.

He loved her. He actually loved her. Her football headed love god, whom she had worshiped since she first set eyes on him, loved her.

"What will everyone say?" she thought, suddenly worried. The odds of anyone even surviving the flood were pretty slim, but with all that was happening, the chance of their survival didn't seem all that impossible anymore. "It isn't everyday that the bully and the victim fall in love." She was sure her classmates would have a hard time adjusting to it. And she was sure she'd get her fair share of teasing. But right now she didn't care what they thought. She finally had the one thing she had always wanted, and nothing was going to spoil it for her.

She wanted desperately to do something, anything, but she couldn't. Not in front of…whoever these people were. For now, she would just have to wait in that dreadful silence.

It was the man in the passenger seat that finally spoke.

"So, where exactly do you kids live?"

"Hillwood City, Washington," they said in unison.

"Washington? How the heck did you get down here?"

"On a raft," Helga said simply.

"Where exactly were we?" Arnold asked.

"Believe it or not, you kids were on an undiscovered island off the coast of California."

"California?!"
"Yep. I can't believe you kids actually made it down there. How long exactly were you on that raft?"

They glanced at each other.

"Um…"

"I don't remember…"

"Well, that's okay. The point is that you kids are finally making it back to civilization. Me and my buddy James here will take you right back home."

"Thanks," Arnold said, "but how did you even know where we were…um…"

"Jack Larson. Call me Jack. It's the strangest story, really. See, your friend with the breathing problem, Brian-"

"Brainy."

"Brainy, called us at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and said that he knew where you two were. So, naturally, we were real excited, since we'd been searching the country top to bottom for you guys-"

"You were?" Arnold interrupted.

"Yep. Your grandparents have been real worried, calling 24/7. Your grandmother even resorted to stealing one of our jets to try and find you."

"Is she okay?"

"Oh, yeah, she's fine. But they've both been worried sick."

"What about my parents?" Helga asked, without much enthusiasm.

"Your parents? Yeah, they called a couple times. Kept calling you 'Olga' though. Must 'a been real confused."

"Yeah," she said sarcastically. "Confused."

"So, anyway, we arranged to meet Brainy, and he said you guys were on a little island by California. We kind of thought he was kidding cause how would he have known that? But he seemed so darn convinced that he knew where you were that we decided to give him a try. Turns out he navigated us right to that island, then to that cave, then to you. I tell ya, that kid's some sort of a freak."

"Well, duh," Helga said.

"But how did he know where we were?" Arnold asked, not really believing the story.

"To tell you the truth, I haven't got a clue. That's why we're taking him back to our headquarters. If he's got some sort of 'psychic abilities', then who knows what else he could find!"

"So…you're kidnapping him so he can be part of your detective team?"

"Nah, he'll be back in time for school tomorrow."

"Drat," Helga muttered.

"Alright, I'll be even with ya. The kid did give one reason, it just doesn't make much sense. He said it was because he was so in love with you-" Jack gestured to Helga "-that he could track you from anywhere in the universe. Personally, I don't think he's your type. He's just too…weird. No offense or anything. Now you and, and, what's your name kid?"

"Arnold."

"Yeah, you and Arnold would make a cute couple. But that's just me."

"You really think so?" Helga asked in astonishment. No one had ever said that before. Plenty of people said that Arnold and Lila made a cute couple but her and Arnold? No one had ever said that. No one would have dared.

"Sure I do," Jack said, laughing. "But don't let it go to your head. You kids can't be more than ten. You're too young for love. Then again, you were alone on an island…" He laughed again. "Ah, youth. It's so crazy. Don't you think, James?"

"Hmmm," the pilot muttered monotonically.

"Exactly what I was thinking, James."