(The students are fourteen. I don't own Hey Arnold!)
…..
"Would you like help with that, fair lady?" Curly asked from behind her. Rhonda cringed. She couldn't stand the creep!
"No thank you Curly," she said, and continued to try to struggle until she saw her best friend. "Nadine!"
Her best friend turned around and smiled, but lost it when she saw Rhonda's bags.
"Seriously?" she asked, coming forward to help her. "Rhonda, we're going on a one day field trip, not a five day holiday!"
"Oh, Nadine," she said, as if talking to a simpleton. "I'm not walking around sweating and getting bitten by bugs. I have my swimsuit, for swimming, my bathing suit, for sunbathing, and several changes of clothes in there!"
"Jeez, are you trying to sink the boat?" Helga sneered. Rhonda's face ticked. UGH! She hated Helga. The girl was quick as a whip with insults and sarcasm. She was mean and loud and rude, and had absolutely no sense of style what-so-ever.
"Helga," warned a soft, soothing voice. Arnold. The nicest guy in their grade. "Come on, we're going to be on a boat and island with these people, don't get off side with them."
Rhonda Wellington Lloyd would never understand what Arnold saw in Helga. He was her complete opposite. Though she had to admit, Helga wasn't as bad when he was around. He seemed to be able to keep her in her place with a tone of his voice, or even the touch of his hand on her.
Many people wanted to learn that trick!
"Whatever," Helga said, covering her mouth with a yawn, as if bored of the whole situation. "I just want to get there, do what we need to, and get back in time for Wrestlemania tonight."
Ugh! Did that girl have a feminine bone in her body? She and Nadine watched as Helga and Arnold walked away together, Arnold speaking to her softly.
"I'll never understand," Rhonda said, shaking her head and sighing.
"I don't understand why your coming on this trip, Rhonda," Nadine said. "You just said it yourself. You hate bugs, nature and getting sweaty. Why'd you change your mind?"
"Him," Rhonda said, pointing to Lorenzo.
"Lorenzo?" Nadine asked. "Since when were you interested in him?"
"Hm, let me see. Rich, check. Cute, check. Smart, check," she said. "Plus I haven't dated him yet. He's so elusive."
"That's probably because he has a girlfriend," Nadine pointed out.
Rhonda just shrugged.
"Is she here?"
"No."
"What a shame," Rhonda said smirking.
…
"I feel bad for Curly," Helga told Arnold as they were taking seats on the charter.
"What's this? Helga G. Pataki, feeling sorry for someone other than herself?" Gerald asked.
"Shut up, stack-a-hair," Helga snapped. Great, Gerald was going to be hanging around Arnold like a bad smell, now that Phoebe was unable to come. She's come down with a stomach bug. Helga had told her not to volunteer at that kindergarten with all those little two-legged disease bags running around, touching her and breathing on her, but she had laughed. Well, who was laughing now? Certainly not Phoebe.
"Rhonda has made herself at home on the top deck," Gerald said. "Right in front of Lorenzo."
"Poor guy," Helga said. "Another victim of the Princess of Serial Dating."
Arnold and Gerald nodded. Gerald had fallen prey to her himself. At one point he had stopped talking to Arnold for two weeks, all because Rhonda had been singing Arnold's praises. It caused a fight between the boys, which made Arnold sulk, and annoyed Helga, so Helga had a talk to the girl, and it stopped. The "misunderstanding" was cleared up, and Rhonda was distantly polite to Arnold now, and he was probably the only semi-popular guy she hadn't dated. That was when Gerald let up on Helga a bit. He knew she couldn't stand him hanging around, but put up with him for Arnold's sake. So he figured the best thing he could do was return the favour. Though he wouldn't jump into the sea to rescue her if she was drowning, he would at least throw her a flotation device to help her out.
"I'm going to leave you guys to it," Helga said, standing up. "I'm going to go upstairs and watch the show. Should be interesting."
As she went the two boys shook their heads.
…
"So, Lorenzo huh?" Helga asked.
Rhonda moved her sunglasses down her nose.
"Can I help you Pataki?" she asked.
"No, no, I'm cool," she told her smiling. "But you know me, Princess. Never one to miss the show of you embarrassing yourself."
"Well," Rhonda said. "For your information he's been looking my way on and off for a while now. They all have."
"That's probably because your boob's exposed," Helga told her.
"What!" she cried, sitting up and grabbing her boobs. All the boys looked over. Rhonda glared as Helga laughed. Nothing was exposed.
"Oh man, you are too easy," she said laughing.
"I'm counting on that," someone laughed behind them.
Sid.
"As if," Rhonda said.
The boat started to pull away from the dock. They heard some shouting downstairs and they all walked to the railing to look back at the dock.
"Oh, no, the teachers and parents!" Nadine cried.
"What the heck is going on here? Does the driver know he's left behind three quarters of the passengers?" Helga asked.
"Who cares?" Sid asked. "Party time, woooo!"
"Such a dork," Rhonda said, watching him go over to where the other boys were.
"Hey guys, no teachers!" he called out. A cheer went up.
Rhonda saw Helga dissappear back down below. Good riddance!
….
"What's going on?" Helga demanded.
"I don't know," Gerald said. "Arnold's gone to find the captain and tell him."
They watched as the boat got further and further away.
"Are those flashing lights?" Helga asked, squinting. "Did they call the police?"
"Over a boat leaving them behind?" Gerald asked. They looked at each other, imaginations going into overdrive. This was probably the worst part of Gerald and Helga being around eachother. They both had wild imaginations that ran rampant. Most of the time Arnold could talk them down, but sometimes even he got caught up in it all.
"We should probably find Arnold," Helga said.
"Good idea."
…
Arnold knocked on the door to the control room.
"What?" a gruff voice snapped from inside.
"Um, you left most of the people behind," Arnold called out to him.
"They'll be on the next boat," he was told by a different voice. Did he hear laughing. "Relax kid, and enjoy the ride!"
Arnold took a few steps back and eyed the door, suspicious.
"Arnold, there you are!" he turned to see Helga and Gerald making their way over to him.
"What's going on?" Gerald asked. Arnold grabbed Helga's hand.
"I don't know," he said, looking back at the door. "They said the others were going on another boat."
"Another boat?" Helga asked. "But this boat is more than big enough."
"I think we should go outside and talk," Arnold said in a lowered voice.
…..
All the remaining students, the teachers and the parents looked up in surprise as the boat started to move away from the dock. Stella was the first to call out. Where was it going? They weren't ready. The adults weren't even on board!
The other adults and students joined in, and they looked up to see some of the students look over a railing in shock. She spotted Helga looking alarmed. Damn it. If there was one thing she had learned Helga didn't like it was boats without adults she knew. In fact, most of the students who were with her son on that trip were wary about going somewhere without adults they know. Helga, Arnold and Gerald especially . . .
"Oh, baby sister!" Olga cried out. "Why are they leaving?"
A few minutes later they heard sirens and looked to see at least six police cars, lights flashing, sirens sounding, stopping, then getting out of their cars. They ran down to the dock and she heard some of them swear. Then one pulled out his walkie talkie.
"They've escaped!"
…..
"What do you mean the kids have been kidnapped!?" Bob Pataki bellowed.
"Please, sir, we're trying to locate the boat right now."
Bob's throat closed up. The last time he had heard those words in regards to his youngest daughter, it was because she and her class and teachers had been kidnapped by pirates in the jungle. He had truly thought he was existed. He had vowed then and there that things would change. It hadn't been easy, but things had. For the better.
He looked over at the parents of his daughters boyfriend. They looked even more distraught, and he could understand that. Miles had been a few years younger, and behind him in school, but they had grown up in the same neighbourhood. Miriam had started a coffee group of sorts and his wife had attended at times with Alfred. Or was it Harold? No, Harold was the fat boy . . . Arnold! That's right. They had been separated from him for years. They must be so worried now, being separated from him again.
"We will let all of you know when we have more information," the man behind the desk said.
"Are they dangerous?" one of the fathers asked. He was short and slim, with thinning hair and a long nose.
The desk clerk was quiet. He didn't have to say anything. The look on his face said it all.
The boat hadn't just been hijacked by criminals.
It had been hijacked by dangerous criminals!
His heart sank.
'Keep your heads down and your mouths shut' he silently begged his daughter and her friends.