Chapter 3: Will It Work?

Hallway

As Gerald watched Arnold grab his books from his locker, he realized his friend had never settled on a location to give Helga her present that week. "So, you decide where to give your lady her gift?"

Arnold shut the door to his locker, just then having thought about it. "I kind of forgot about it."

Gerald glared at his friend, knowing what the two of them had to have been up to after making it back to the boarding house the previous day. "Whatever you say Arnold."

While Gerald was hoping to get the image out of his head, a few of their other classmates were discussing Lila's party at the other end of the hall.

"As I said Nadine, we will need your help with the shopping this afternoon. Come with us to The Corner Store. There we can pick out the decorations and needed necessities for the party." Rhonda explained.

"It sounds just oh too perfect." Lila said happily, listening to Rhonda explain things to their friend.

After reminding her friends of this, the girls made their way towards the classroom. On their way there, Lila couldn't help but overhear...

"So, Arnie's coming tomorrow. I feel for you buddy, I really do." Gerald said, patting his friend on the back.

"Yeah. I'm still trying to figure out how to spend time with Helga without bringing him along. I know she doesn't care about Lila's party, but…"

Before finishing his thoughts, Arnold was interrupted by a sweet voice that came from behind him.

"Arnie?!"

Arnold turned to see his redheaded classmate who had been listening in on the conversation.

"Oh, hey Lila."

"I'm afraid I couldn't help but overhear what you were saying Arnold. If Arnie's coming to visit, I'd love to see him at the party, just ever so much!"

Looking into her pleading eyes, Arnold sighed at the thought of bringing his cousin along. Although he knew it was likely to happen, the chances of it not happening now were even more unlikely. "Okay Lila. I'll see what I can do."

"Thank you just ever so much Arnold."

After watching the happy girl walk away, Arnold stood and thought to himself a moment, as Gerald shook his head and said "Mm, mm, mmm! This is definitely not good."

Classroom

Phoebe was sitting in her desk as she glanced over at her friend who was doodling pictures of her beloved in her notebook. As she listened to Helga release a deep sigh, she was reminded of the disappointment Helga felt for the way their week was turning out.

Before Phoebe could say anything encouraging to her friend, she noticed the boys walking into the classroom. Arnold took a seat in front of his girlfriend, not bothering to speak to her before class began.

After noticing this, Phoebe was anxious to ask Gerald what was going on between their friends until they heard…

"Okay class, today we'll finish our exciting Nutrition lecture! Isn't that great?"

"What's so exciting about it? Do we get to eat?" Harold asked, as Helga took a break from her doodling to roll her eyes and say to herself… What an idiot!

"Well, not exactly Harold." Mr. Simmons scratched his head, not sure of how to explain why he may find it to be exciting.

Rather than paying attention like she normally would, Phoebe politely tapped Gerald on the shoulder.

The curious boy glanced back to see his girlfriend trying to slip him a note, while their teacher prepared for the lecture.

Is everything alright between our friends, Gerald?

Gerald wasn't happy to be the bearer of bad news. Arnold wasn't likely to get out of bringing Arnie to the party however. What was the point in dodging her question?

Lila invited my man's creepy cousin to her party this week. He doesn't know how to break the news to Pataki.

A frown formed on Phoebe's face, knowing Helga wouldn't enjoy hearing about this.

The morning classes soon ended with all the students having had something other than the school on their minds.

What little time would Helga have to spend with Arnold without Arnie? How was Arnold going to tell her there was no hope of it happening? Was there anything their friends could do to comfort them?

Once lunch time came, Arnold turned in his seat to ask his girlfriend "Ready for lunch?"

Rolling her eyes, she scoffed "You mean we actually get to sit together?"

Although Arnold didn't appreciate the sarcasm, he was happy to know she wanted to be with him.

Cafeteria

"Maybe he won't see her? You know how anxious Lila is to spend time with him."

As the boys stood in the lunch line grabbing food for their girlfriends, Arnold tried thinking of how it would be possible to attend the party with both his cousin and his girlfriend, without his cousin bothering his girlfriend.

"I don't know Gerald. Even if he does leave Helga alone, she's still not going to like the idea of being there with him."

"I don't see how that's any worse than living with her sister? Every morning she walks in complaining about how unbearable her family is, but she always manages to pull through." Gerald pointed out.

Whether or not that was true, all it did was make Arnold want to find a way to fix things even more. If Helga's life was already that miserable, he wanted to make her happy whenever he had the chance.

While the girls were sitting at the table, waiting for their boyfriends to arrive, Phoebe took notice of the puzzled look on her friend's face and thought to herself…

Perhaps I should tell Helga the news before Arnold arrives?

Before having the chance to speak up, the boys sat at the table, and Arnold handed Helga his dessert.

"Here you go Helga." he sighed, anxious to get the bad news off his chest.

Helga began shoving spoonful after spoonful into her mouth until finally, she looked up to see everyone staring at her. "What are you looking at?!" she scoffed.

"Just tell her man." Gerald said, knowing it wasn't going to go well, no matter when he decided to do it.

"Tell me what?" she asked, cocking her brow at her boyfriend.

"Helga…"

"Yeah?"

"Lila found out Arnie's coming to town and wants me to invite him to the party."

Helga could handle being at their perky classmate's party with her boyfriend. She could handle seeing his creepy cousin for a few minutes as long as he wasn't constantly hanging over her shoulder. The idea of being around both of them all night however was just too much.

Angrily gripping her spoon, she scowled "Fine! Go! Don't expect to see me there with you headboy!"

"Helga wait!" Arnold yelled, watching her angrily march out of the cafeteria.

Seeing there was no stopping her, Arnold sat back down in his seat, propping his head in his hand, as he began to sigh at the table.

"I assure you Arnold, she's not angry at you." Phoebe said.

"Judging by her actions, I beg to differ." Gerald said wittily.

"Helga wouldn't appreciate me passing along such personal information. However, the idea of something coming between whatever time she has to spend with you is a bit frustrating to her, Arnold." Phoebe explained.

"I know Phoebe. I don't think there's anything I can do at this point though." Arnold shrugged his shoulders.

Restroom

"Oh why am I such an idiot! My love looks for every chance he has to please someone in need. What do I do? Lash out at him for doing one of the things I absolutely adore him for! Why can't I just…"

"Helga?"

"Phoebe! Sheesh!" Helga screeched, turning away from the sink to face her friend who was standing in the doorway.

"Are you alright Helga?"

Staring sadly at her friend, Helga sad "Yeah Pheebs, I'm fine."

"Let me assure you, Arnold is not at all pleased with the way things seem to be set for the week." Phoebe said, hoping to comfort her friend.

"I know Pheebs. Let's go."

Classroom

Helga entered the class just as the bell was ringing. Approaching her seat, she saw Arnold leaning his head in his hand, and watched what appeared to be him drawing in his notebook.

The last three hours were unbearably long, as she sat there waiting for the chance to speak to her beloved.

When the last class ended, Arnold didn't rush to get his things together, knowing his girlfriend was upset with him. While reaching onto the floor for his bag, he saw his girlfriend standing beside him and listened to her say "Since when do you waste time drawing in class?"

"Huh? Oh I was just…" he began, before watching his girlfriend snatch his notebook.

Rather than drawings, Helga looked to see the list of places Arnold had put together to give Helga her gift at.

"What the heck is this for?" she asked, cocking her brow at the sheet of locations.

Quickly snatching it back from her, he replied "Oh umm I was just thinking of some places Arnie might find to be more fun than Lila's party. Maybe he won't bother us."

Cocking her brow at his response, Helga asked "You were going to send the poor sap to FTi?"

Arnold began to blush, not sure of how to keep his cover. "Well I…"

Seeing his friend was stuck and Helga insisted on knowing what Arnold was up to, Gerald butted in to say "How could that guy not enjoy counting the words on the hundreds of documents that building has to offer?"

Rolling her eyes, Helga handed her beloved back his paper and said "Whatever. We going or what?"

Hallway

After everyone had left the classroom, Rhonda stood beside Nadine and Lila in the hallway to say "Alright girls, we can begin shopping for the party!"

"What exactly are we buying?" Nadine asked, not having been given as much information as Lila about the event.

"We'll need decorative notecards, candy...Lila, do you have elaborate dishes for us to use?" Rhonda insisted on knowing.

"Well to be just perfectly honest, no." she said sweetly.

Acting as though it was another tough probably only she was capable of fixing, Rhonda replied "I suppose we'll figure something out."

Walk

Arnold and Helga were walking down the street side by side. The two remained quiet, not able to think of what to say to each other. Helga walked along thinking to herself…

I should just apologize for what happened. It's not his fault Little Miss Perfect is still gaga over his creepy cousin.

Helga then turned to see the sad look on her boyfriend's face and said "I'm sorry Arnold. I know it's not your fault your lame cousin is coming...and that Little Miss Perfect still seems to think she has a shot with him. What a couple of buffoons!"

A weak smile formed on his face as he picked up her hand to take in his. Rubbing it with his thumb, he asked "Would you like to go to Slausens for a shake?"

The Corner Store

Watching Rhonda grab the items, knowing she must have already been putting a lot of thought into this, Nadine asked "What games did you pick for us to play?"

As she continued tossing the needed items into the basket, Rhonda replied "Well Nadine, I informed Lila of the best housewarming games to make this another successful party."

Knowing how proud her friend was, Nadine continued to listen.

"Well, seeing as how everyone is well aware of Lila's new home, I've taken it upon myself to create a new game; Old Town Trivia. Everyone will guess facts about Lila's previous location, rather than her current one."

Nadine couldn't help but roll her eyes at Rhonda's boasting, while listening to her go on.

"Next, we'll use the treats we've bought to create a scavenger hunt for everyone to explore Lila's new home."

"It sounds just every so fun!" Lila exclaimed, listening to the description of the night.

"I've decided to take it upon myself to be the tour guide for the night. Once everyone has had a tour of the rooms, we can allow the guests to play Room Memory; hence the decorative note cards." Rhonda explained, feeling proud of herself for the thought she had put into this.

"What about the Housewarming Gift Game you had on the list?" Nadine pointed out.

"Why do you think we're here?" Rhonda asked, watching her friends shrugging her shoulders.

"This is all about putting on a show for the guests. In other words, taking advantage of an opportunity to be creative. We'll buy cups and cards with flowers and hearts to set the perfect theme for the party!" Rhonda insisted.

Phoebe's House

"I couldn't help but notice our friend's leaving in a bit of a rush. Do you suppose everything is alright between them Gerald?" Phoebe asked as she sat doing her homework with her boyfriend.

Gerald knew how badly Arnold wanted the week to be over and done with. He wasn't going to let Helga's frustration stand in the way of his feelings for her.

"As rough as Pataki is, Arnold always manages to bounce back. That boy's got more patience than Eugene does clumsiness." Gerald said wittily, while watching his girlfriend hold back a laugh.

Slausens

"I'll have an extra large triple chocolate shake, two cherries, and don't skimp on the whipped cream!" Helga pointed a finger at Wyat, not noticing the smile her boyfriend was giving her.

"What would you do if they did skimp or worse forgot your whipped cream?" Arnold laughed, seeing his girlfriend turn to glare at him.

"Pttss...no one would DARE do that!" she smirked, seeing his smile eventually fade.

After hearing him let out a deep sigh, she asked "What's with you football head?"

Arnold was beginning to worry about what things would be like when Arnie showed up. Even if by some miracle, Helga managed to tolerate him, he couldn't just force Arnie to stay away from her. It was Lila's party; Arnold couldn't simply kick Arnie out when he was getting too clingy.

"Oh, I was just thinking about the party."

Rolling her eyes at the thought of everything as well as everyone meant to be there, Helga scoffed "Well, unless you plan on telling Ms. Perfect he can't make it, I don't see a way out of this one."

"If my grandpa would just watch him for one night, we could do something together. He won't do it though." Arnold sighed, seeing Helga cock her brow.

"Pttss...can you blame him?"

"I guess not. You don't have to come to the party if you don't want to." Arnold said, reaching across the table for her hand.

"You know, just because you go doesn't mean you have to stay." Helga said, while an evil grin began to form on her face.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I think there will be more than enough people at Princess' dumb get together for you to slip out without your lamebrain cousin noticing you left."

Arnold began to rub her hand with his thumb as he looked away a moment to consider this…

I guess I could bring Arnie, then leave for a little while with Helga. Can I really trust him to be alone without something bad happening? No one's going to want to watch him for me.

Rhonda's House

"We at last have what we need for the party! Now it's simply a matter of making sure to have everything prepared before the guests arrive. That being said, Lila, we'll be heading straight to your place after school Friday to arrange everything." Rhonda informed her.

"Thank you just ever so much for your help Rhonda!" Lila smiled, happy to know everything was taken care of for the upcoming event.

Walk

The two walked down the street hand in hand to Helga's house, not happy about the upcoming events that week.

"Well, thanks for coming with me." Arnold said softly, knowing he'd be picking up his cousin the next day.

"No problem." Helga sighed, while thinking about having to accompany her parents to pick up Olga.

Arnold really was taking Helga's suggestion to ditch Arnie for a few hours into consideration. The only two people he felt he could trust to watch him however were Gerald and Phoebe. They weren't going to want to do it anymore than his grandpa would.

Helga's House

Making it to her porch, the two looked at each other with eyes that implied one weekend of ruined plans was like a lifetime of being torn apart.

Lacing his fingers with hers, he said "Aside from school, we probably won't be seeing each other until the party now."

"Yeah, guess not." Helga turned away, wishing there was something she could do about it.

She then turned to face him again, asking "Did you want to come inside?"

A warm smile came to his face, as he said "Sure."

Helga led him inside to see Miriam past out at the counter. It never cease to amaze Arnold how different things were when Olga wasn't around. Her family actually got along and acted as if they cared for one another when she was there. If she was away, they all acted as though they couldn't stand the sight of each other.

Helga's Room

Arnold followed Helga upstairs, almost wishing he had her gift with him. As Helga shut the door behind them, she watched Arnold take a seat on her bed with a puzzled look on his face.

"Even Miriam's not that depressing headboy." she scoffed, taking a seat beside him.

Knowing what he must be thinking about, Helga added "When you think about it, you won't have anything to feel guilty about if you do happen to ditch your pathetic excuse for a relative at the party."

"Why not?"

"Think about it football head. That list you showed me earlier was a list of places you already planned to dump him at."

Arnold began to rub his neck, knowing he might as well come clean. Everything else about the week seemed to be getting ruined one way or another. "Actually, that's not what the list was for."

Cocking her brow at him, she asked "What the heck was it for then?"

Taking her hand in his, he said "I was trying to decide on a place to give you your gift at. I don't know if it really matters now that such a mess has been made out of this week."

Helga smiled weakly at the idea of him wanting so badly for their week to work out so perfectly. After letting out a deep sigh, she took Phoebe's words into consideration and said "Relax football head. Once your idiot relative is gone, we'll have plenty of time to spend together."

Arnold looked into what he could still tell to be a set of disappointed eyes. Placing a hand on her face, he said "It can't come soon enough."

Helga let out a heavy swoon. Each and every time she heard such sweet words come from her beloved was like music to her ears. Being reminded of how much he cared for her was something she wasn't sure she would ever be able to get used to.

Pulling her face closer to his, he asked "Where would you like me to give it to you?"

"Right here, right now. Doi!" she scoffed, watching him roll his eyes at her witty remark.

"Whatever you say Helga." he sighed, pressing their lips firmly together. As he wrapped his arm around her back, pulling her closer, the memory of his dream about visiting his cousin a few years ago came to him.

Although he hadn't felt he was too fond of Helga at the time, the idea of her and Arnie being together in the dream was disturbing.

Now, here he was in a relationship with her, having to deal with the idea of someone either hoping to win her over (which was highly unlikely) or driving her away with their unbearable behavior (which was possible).

If their plan to escape from the party didn't work, they wouldn't be spending much time together the next couple days, without Arnie attached to their backs. As annoying as Olga was, she was still avoidable.