Chapter 54
He loves me!
They lapsed into silence once more.
"Not again!" Helga thought. "Well, at least there's one thing I can do." She reached into her pocket and pulled out her poetry book. "Should I? I mean, Arnold's right here." She thought for a minute. "Well, he already knows that I like him. Love him. Obsessed with him. Whatever. And it's not like he hasn't seen me writing before. Besides, he loves me back, so there's no risk!" She said that sentence to herself again. She still couldn't believe it. "He loves me!" Struck by inspiration, she opened her book and began to write.
My own true love,
my own true love,
at last I've found you,
my own true love.
No lips but yours,
no arms but yours,
will ever lead me
through Heaven's doors.
I've waited so long
in search of this.
I knew I'd know
by your kiss!
And by your kiss
you've shown true love.
I'm yours forever,
my own true love.
Helga glanced at Arnold out of the corner of her eye and was surprised to find him staring at her.
"What do you want, bucko?" she snapped at him.
"What?" he asked, snapped out of his trance.
"Quit staring at me, will ya? It's creeping me out!"
"Oh, was I? Sorry."
"You should be." Helga closed her book and put it back in her pocket.
"I can't believe I was so rude to him!" she thought. "If I don't want to lose him faster than I got him, I'd better start being myself and stop being the girl he hates."
She looked back at him. "You know I didn't mean any of that, right, Arnold? Just, you know, bad habits that I gotta break. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been so mean to you. If you really have nothing better to do with your time than stare at me…then I guess you can. I don't really mind." She shyly stared at the ground.
"You kids mind keepin' it down?" Jack asked. "There seems to be some sort of a storm up ahead, and I need to check it out."
"You got it, Jack," Helga replied.