Alright guys! Nearing the climax part of my story. From this point, all the drama mama...and such. ^^
I don't own Hey Arnold, awww :/
The next two and a half weeks or so seemed to make the memory of my bad day fade into the woodwork. It was the last slow day I seemed to have, everything suddenly seemed to pick up the pace as the last month of the school year loomed in the distance, now only a mere few weeks away. Honestly, there wasn't very much about those weeks that stood out, most of it just blurred together. I really don't remember what happened on what day, only that they did.
School proceeded on as usual, and whatever people assumed was going on with Helga and I became the last thing on everyone's mind. Posters for prom were starting to manifest themselves on every blank space of wall, though this had no real effect on me as a junior. Prom was just not on my list of top priorities – I'd worry about it next year. Besides, it was the same weekend as the banquet. I wasn't going to back out of that – though, I still hadn't mustered up the courage to ask Lila out yet. Murmurs of EOCT's and finals were swarming the halls, people knowing the cram sessions would be coming in as well as end of term projects. I was barely managing to stay on top of everything, what with having to register for what courses I'd be wanting to take as a senior and barely managing to stay on top of the classes I was taking now. Even Gerald was showing strain, which made it shocking when he merely poked and prodded at his tray during lunch. Not that I could blame him: I'd been gnawing on a chicken bone for about five minutes as I went back and highlighted my history notes.
"Are we supposed to know all the dates?" I mumbled, finally dropping the clean bone on my tray.
"I don't know. I don't even remember all the names. I get everyone confused," Gerald retorted halfheartedly, now resorting to just drawing shapes in the margin of his notes. "I mean seriously, only four more weeks of school left as a junior. Then we'll be in our last year of High School!"
"Gerald…"
"Then it's on to college, and then after that it's on to getting a real job!"
"Gerald…"
"Then there's marriage and mortgages and I'll end up like my dad, freaking out about the electricity bill and freaking out about some guy at work name Bob!"
"Gerald!" I said with a bit more force this time. "Calm down. Let's just finish this year first. Okay?"
"Okay, okay. So, you're really not going to come hang with us at the prom?" he asked, frowning.
"I told you, I'd already promised Helga I'd go to this banquet with her. Besides, I don't have a date."
"I thought if you didn't have a date, you didn't have to go to the banquet. That means you could totally go to prom!"
"That also would mean I wouldn't have a date to prom," I reminded him, shaking my head.
"Not if you ask someone besides Lila!" He wiggled his eyebrows.
I narrowed my eyes. "Why would I ask someone besides Lila? The whole point was for me to get a date with Lila. Seriously, keep up here. You and Phoebe will have a great time."
"So when are you gonna ask Lila out?" he pressed, making me squirm. "Haven't you and Helga finished your 'lessons'?"
He was right, we had concluded our lessons on Monday actually, though we were still meeting after school today (Wednesday). She wouldn't tell me what for, only that we were. I really didn't mind it either way. I'd had all fifteen lessons by this point, and I'd done my best to implement them in my daily interactions with Lila. And by daily, I literally mean I had to use a lesson everyday as homework for Helga. I'd done the complimenting, the gift giving, attempted the physical signals, carried books, snooped for activities she liked – why, I'd even switched to a cologne she specifically said she really liked even though it had a weird earthy smell, like I'd been rolling out in a field or something. Helga said it smelled like a cow field in particular.
"Yes, we finished earlier this week. I'm going to ask Lila today. I really don't have much time left," I said with halfhearted enthusiasm, scared out of my mind at the thought of finally asking her. I'd had all the prep, done all the steps, and yet I had no courage. That hadn't been one of the lessons.
"So grow a pair." I looked up as Gerald finally started to dig into his now cold food. "And now would be a great chance, 'cause here she comes."
I almost choked on my soda, sputtering as I heard her voice behind me. "Hello Arnold!"
"Hi Li-" I had another brief sputtering cough. "Hi Lila."
"How is your studying going? I'm having ever so much trouble focusing on mine," she asked, nodding at my notebook. "A distraction might be nice."
Was that a hint, was I supposed to ask her? I looked at Gerald, who made jerking head motions toward her. I stood up from my chair, brushing my hands on my pants. "I know what you mean," I said, laughing nervously. Okay, I could do it. Just ask her. I could do this. One more deep breath. "Would you….maybe want to go out sometime soon then? Like, a date?" I had to will myself to not look down at the floor.
"Oh," she replied, her eyes widening. "I…yes. That sounds like it would be ever so much fun."
And somewhere in heaven the angels sang a halleluiah chorus. Amen, praise Jesus, Hail Mary. All that good stuff. I exhaled in relief. "Great! When would be a good time for you?"
"I'll actually be out of town this weekend with my dad, so would next Friday be okay? I'd say Saturday, but I already promised it to a woman I babysit for." She said in her sweet voice, and I just nodded eagerly.
"Sounds great! Where would you like to go?" I said, now just floating on air. Anything she was saying after this point was just magic.
"Nothing too big. I'll leave it up to you." She gave another smile, and I returned with what I knew had to be a dreamy face. The bell to single the end of lunch broke us from our moment, and we bid hasty goodbye before going to clean up out trays.
"Wow. Smooth," Gerald teased as he dumped his tray in the trash.
"It's a gift."
"You're a bold kid, Arnold."
"Put on the blindfold."
"Why do I-?"
"Just do it!" I didn't ask any more questions, slipping on the piece of fabric Helga had handed me as I entered her bedroom. I was well aware I would be getting no helpful answers whatsoever, so I kept my mouth shut as I felt her take hold of my wrist and start to lead me across her room. I heard a door open, which I could only assume was her closet. I couldn't remember any other doors in her room, and I knew we hadn't gone back to the door that led in.
"Watch your step," she instructed, and I felt her press my hands on something I hard. A moment of feeling around like a blind man revealed a small ladder.
"Why do you have a ladder in your closet?"
"Why are you asking so many questions? Climb it, stupid!"
"Say please," I teased, laughing as she dealt a playful blow to my arm. I hesitantly took a step up the ladder, feeling my stomach flop. "I don't feel comfortable doing this blindfolded…"
"Stop being such a weenie, it's a small ladder."
I sighed, hesitantly placing hand over hand as I climbed. Thankfully the ladder was small, and I found myself soon sitting on a soft pillow in what I assumed was the attic, though I was still blindfolded.
"Okay, you can take it off!" I finally heard Helga instruct, so I slipped it over my head. My eyes widened at the sight, mouth agape.
It wasn't a large attic, just enough room for us to sit on the pillows on the floor. It had been painted a relaxing shade of blue, with white Christmas lights strung around the room for a twinkling effect. A beanbag chair rested in the corner across from me, along with various books and writing utensils. The newest thing added to the room was a large cake on a TV table, with scraggly plaid lines drawn on it. Next to it was a rolled up piece of paper and a faded black graduation cap. Helga was standing by the table, and I noted she had very little head room.
"What do you do up here?" I blurted.
"Read. Write. Whatever the heck I want to do, bucko," she snapped, her cheeks tinting slightly as though the question embarrassed her.
"So what am I doing up here?"
"So maybe sometimes I use it for special occasions. I used to come up here all the time when I had problems, and it held some of my most prized possessions," she explained, tossing her pigtail over her shoulder as if to prove some point.
"Like what kind of stuff?"
"Stuff that's none of your business!" Helga retorted, focusing her attention to the cake. "Today we are here to celebrate the graduation of you, Arnold, from your lessons. You have stepped up from chauvinistic pig-" I shot her a dirty look "to an educated gentleman," she concluded with a teasing smile. "Capable of wooing all the ladies. As valedictorian of your class, come put on your cap and give a speech!"
I couldn't help but laugh as I made my way to the table, having to hunch slightly so as not to bump my head. She switched places with me, going to sit on my pillow. I had a bit of time trying to get the hat on, since one size fits all is a very relative term.
"What am I supposed to say?" I asked, crouching down to rest on my knees. She gestured with her hand for me to say something, anything. "Um, hi graduating class. Look, we made it this far. I get to sit in an attic with a borrowed graduation cap-" this time she shot me the dirty look -"but that's the beauty of it, I guess?" I laughed, rubbing my neck awkwardly. "Thanks, Helga, for taking the time to do all of this for me. It means a lot that you've taken two days of your week for, wow, two months to teach me all your witchy women voo-doo secrets. And it's not just about that, even. I mean, who'd of thought that by this point you'd become my closest friend –well, next to Gerald of course. And I just want to thank you for that again. You helped me accomplish something I wasn't sure I could, and…well, that's all I've got."
"Turn your tassel," she whispered, making the motion.
"Oh yeah," I muttered, moving the dusty tassel across the cap.
She clapped enthusiastically, grinning the whole time as though I had actually done something important. "I even made you a diploma," she said with joking smile, pointing to the paper on the table. I slipped the rubber band off, shaking my head as I unrolled the paper.
"Wow. I'll have to frame this," I teased, placing it off to the side where I had deposited the graduation cap. "So about the cake, do I get to eat that?"
"Just be patient, geeze," she commented, picking up the plastic shopping bag that was under the table. She handed me a paper plate, cutting me a piece from the cake.
"This is really good," I commented, holding my hand over my mouth so I wouldn't spew cake in her face. "You make it?"
"Well yeah, but it's just from a box," she said sheepishly, cutting a piece from herself. "I don't know how to bake. At least not from scratch anyway."
"Lila likes to bake homemade stuff all the time. Speaking of Lila, I asked her today and she said yes!" I looked to Helga, hoping to find her just as enthusiastic as I was.
"Great! I'm happy for you," she said, stabbing her fork into the cake ferociously. "So this means you'll be coming to the banquet, I suppose."
"I was going to come whether she said yes or not," I assured her, taking another bite of cake.
"You were? But that wasn't part of the deal!"
"So what? You kept up your end by teaching me. It's not like it would've have been your fault if she said no. So there."
"You remember it's this Friday. Of course, Prom is too. So really, if you two were going to Prom or something, I'd get it," she mumbled, more or less just scooting the cake around the plate by this point.
"Hey," I said gently, reaching out to give her hand a quick. "I'm going with you because I want to. I wasn't planning on going Prom anyway."
"Really?" her tone was disbelieving. "You'd rather spend the night at some boring banquet with me than go with your friends and your dream girl?" I noted the sarcastic tone at the end.
"Of course. Besides, I said I couldn't afford a tux. So this is like the next best thing, right?"
I laughed as she punched me in the arm again. "You still have to dress nice!"
"I'm wearing the stupid khakis. Because I look good in khakis," I continued to tease, finding her anger at this point a bit funny.
"I changed my mind, wear slacks! I bet slacks make you look like…like crap. And speaking of crap, whatever you do, please don't wear that poor excuse for cologne you wear for Lila." She wrinkled her nose in disgust. "Your old one smelled much better."
About an hour and a half later, I was on my way back home with some leftover cake in one hand, and my diploma in the other. Overall, it'd been a rather pleasant evening, in my opinion. The weather had even cooled down to a nice temperature, so I wasn't in danger of drowning in my own sweat and passing out from dehydration. A definite improvement.
I stepped aside as I opened the door to the boarding house, a myriad of animals stumbling around my feet. I don't even know where these cats kept coming from, but I was sure it was something to do with grandma. I shook my head, giving the little gray one that was standing half-in half-out a push with my shoe so I could shut the door behind me.
The house was surprisingly quiet, which didn't really bother me in the least. I continued my journey upstairs, depositing my cake on my desk next to my computer. I unfolded the diploma, making a mental note to find something to put in it so I didn't lose it. First things first. I pulled up a search page, typing in the name of the restaurant that had opened a few months back. I'd already decided this was where I wanted to take Lila for our date. It was supposed to be really nice, but also really busy. I wanted to go ahead and call and get it all set up in advance. No last minute surprises.
I found the number easily, punching it into my cell. I got an answer on the second ring, and I sighed inwardly. Success.
"Hi, I was wondering if you had any reservations open for next Friday?" I asked in my most mature voice. I hoped it came off that way, at least.
"Yes, sir, we do in fact. We have a seven o'clock opening and a six o'clock opening. Would either of these work for you?"
"The six, please."
"Very good. How many will be in your party, and what name should I list it under?"
"Two, and just under Arnold is fine. Thanks so much!"
"Not a problem!"
I hung up, smile plastered to my face. That went well. Perfect. I grabbed a pen from the cup on my desk, making my way to the calendar to mark the time down. My hand froze as I looked at the date, and my head started to spin as it worked out what I had just done.
I'd scheduled my date on the night of Helga's show. But my date was at six, and the show didn't start till seven. If we could possibly get done by 6:40, I'd have just enough time to get there before it started. I could have both.
Right?