Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned in this story.
They all belong to their rightful owner: Craig Bartlett.
Title: "Blackmail toy"
In the last chapter of "Blackmail toy": Insecurities led to yet another misunderstanding between Arnold and Helga. All things considered, then their previous sexual encounter hadn't been out of love, so perhaps their denseness was bound to make them misunderstand each other?
Helga finally did have enough though, when Arnold had been avoiding her for the last couple of days. She crept onto his rooftop and forced him to confess to her, that he started feeling aroused every time he was around her, because of what happened the last Saturday.
After having thrown away the misunderstandings, both Arnold and Helga realized that even though they weren't quite lovers at this point… then they were so much more than friends. And perhaps that could lead to so much more later.
Author's 1st note: Well! :'( I'm a little sad to say that… I don't know how many chapters there will be after this since… I just realized something… WE'RE OVER HALFWAY TOWARDS THE ENDING! :D I'm happy and… sad? xD We're at the last week of Aaron's visit in Hillwood, which means that when he goes home Saturday the 4th of April. this story's over! So we have, what, 6 days to get our favorite blonde teens together? O_O Boy, gotta hurry up then xD (We'll start off at what happened after what occurred in the last chapter first though ;))
Chapter 33: "You'll start considering Helga as the saint"
With a very content sigh, Arnold walked towards his skylight to get into his room again. He opened the hatch and climbed inside, feeling like just jumping down onto his bed, and stay there to daydream for the rest of the day. Until a voice broke him out of his already daydreaming thoughts. "Well, well, well."
Arnold glanced over his shoulder to look towards the voice. "Aaron?!" he shouted in a bit of shock, involuntarily letting go off the build-in ladder in his wall and falling to the bed. When I wanted to just jump off, I didn't mean like this… He thought in annoyance and sighed. "How long have you been standing there?"
"Only for about 10 minutes. I was wondering where you were, and then the weirdest thing happened; I heard a female gasp, almost like a scream, but it didn't sound painful. Care to explain?" Aaron inquired with a very amused smile on his lips.
Arnold's face turned red as the memories roamed through his head yet again. "Uh… what makes you think I can explain? I'm just as shocked as you. I was climbing down here to try and go outside to check what happened."
"Uh-huh. Except two things. One, at least ten minutes passed before you went down here after the scream, and, two, wouldn't it have made more sense to just use the fire escape if you were gonna go outside anyways?" Aaron asked, still with the amused smirk on his face.
Arnold groaned and sat up to look at Aaron with an annoyed look. "Look, Aaron, do you want something?" he asked, absolutely not in the mood to deal with him right now. "Nothing really, just congratulate you, I suppose." He answered, the smile fading a bit from his face.
Arnold cocked an eyebrow at that. "Congratulate me? For what?"
"For finally taking the plunge with Helga?"
"Taking the… We didn't go all the way, pervert! We were on a roof!"
"I'm not talking about that, you pervert! You did tell her about your feelings…" Aaron started, but when he saw the look on Arnold's face he frowned. "… didn't you?"
Arnold lifted his hand to scratch his neck in embarrassment. "Uh… n-not exactly…" he answered honestly. He turned to look at Aaron, who seemed like he was staring at someone who was mental. He lifted his hand as if to speak in frustration, but then took a deep breath to calm himself. "Why, if I may ask?"
"What do you care?"
"I care the same way I care about people in soap operas. Seriously! You guys are so slow! I don't… You know what? Forget it. Talking to you about it will obviously not change anything." Aaron decided and then went out of the room.
Arnold's eyes went wide at that statement. What in the world…? Why does he care? Shouldn't he be happy that I haven't told Helga about my feelings yet? Since he… and that was when Arnold remembered Gerald's words from the party at Helga's: "I'm telling you: just because Aaron has real feelings for Helga, that doesn't mean you have to hold back."
With everything else, that happened that night and this following week, Arnold had completely forgotten about that. Real feelings… he repeated in his head and let himself fall down onto the bed again. He was staring up at the sky through his skylight, as he pondered.
So… Aaron has real feelings for Helga too, but… then why would he blackmail her? Then again, he could have fallen in love with her after that… but, why did he slip me that kind of pill, what would he gain from that? Nothing. Does he really have feelings for her…? Gerald seems to think so, but… does Helga know that? They do seem to get along a lot more since… since… when, actually? Since the aphrodisiac thing. What happened after I left? Arnold couldn't help but frown in frustration. He lifted his hands to cover his face in despair and then turned around on the bed, face down into the pillow.
Everything is such a mess… This was so much easier when I thought that Aaron was just looking for a one night stand with Helga. Then I could be mad at him for that, but I can't be mad at him for falling for the same girl as me… but he's going back to New York soon, so it's not as if their relationship could… but what does that matter? In the end, it's what Helga feels which is the most important. I'd like to think it's me she cares for, but… "Ugh!" Arnold finally shouted and sat up on the bed.
I don't know anymore! What if this whole… 'friends who do stuff' is actually a bad thing? What if she thinks I'll start only wanting to do that with her? I-If she doesn't realize I want her on another level as well? Arnold started shaking his head though, refusing to indulge in the sudden urge to confess to her.
But I promised myself to shut up until this whole blackmail thing is over. She must be stressed enough as it as. Having to deal with my feelings, in case she doesn't feel the same, might just make everything worse. I am so sorry, Aaron, for thinking like this, but go home already!
The following Monday, both Phoebe and Gerald seemed to wonder why their own best friends were behaving… oddly. It had started out with both Phoebe and Gerald waiting for the two blondes to arrive to school. Arnold had been the first one to arrive, wearing a somewhat worried look on his face.
"Hey, man, what's up? Looking forward to the game on… Thursday? What's with you?" Gerald asked, wondering why Arnold didn't seem excited. Their class was after all going to play a baseball game against the seniors this next Thursday, and Arnold always seemed to look forward to a game. This particular morning though, he had seemed to have forgotten all about it.
"Huh?" Arnold muttered and looked up from the ground, having not noticed that anyone was even speaking to him. "Oh, hi, Gerald. Good morning, Phoebe." He greeted when he noticed them, still wearing a worried look on his face. "Good morning, Arnold." Phoebe greeted back with a small frown, worried about what could be troubling him, since she knew what had happened the last Friday.
"What's wrong, man? You don't look so hot." Gerald observed, also knowing what had happened the last Friday, scared that something else had happened since, though Arnold hadn't told him anything of the sort. "Uh… no, I, uh… didn't get much sleep last night." Arnold answered, yawning a bit.
Gerald cocked an eyebrow at that statement and went to whisper into his ear. "I'm guessing you didn't lose sleep because of something good?" he asked. It took Arnold a couple of seconds before he understood, started to blush and then punched Gerald's arm. "Keep your boyfriend in check, would you, Phoebs?" he asked with a teasing smile. Phoebe and Gerald laughed at that, both happy that Arnold at least wasn't down in the dumps or anything.
"Good morning!" A female voice yelled. The group looked towards the familiar sound and noticed Helga walking down the street. She was taking her arm down from the air, having been waving just before. "Good morning, Helga!" Phoebe greeted happily and waved herself.
Gerald glanced at Arnold, who had a faint blush on his cheeks and a small smile on his lips. Gerald shook his head in amusement. Whatever troubled him before is suddenly forgotten. Gee, I wonder why? He thought with sarcasm and snickered to himself.
"G-Good morning, Helga." Arnold greeted with a slight stutter. Helga glanced at him, gave a somewhat tense smile and nodded. "Good morning, Arnold." She answered, also having a slight blush on her cheeks.
Gerald and Phoebe looked at each other, both wearing big smiles. They were both guessing that it was only a matter of time before Helga and Arnold would finally give in at this point. Though the fact that something was troubling Arnold was still on the back of their heads.
That was when the bell rang, pulling all of the teens out of their own thoughts. "Well, we better get inside now!" Helga declared with a slight edge to her voice, making it obvious that she was a little nervous all of a sudden. "Come on, Phoebs."
Helga snuck her arm around Phoebe's who simply complied, as she always did. "S-See ya in math, you guys." Helga said, while glancing over her shoulder. "See you." Phoebe quickly chimed in, which only Gerald noticed. Arnold gave Helga a tense smile as she had given him earlier, also having trouble with not smiling to above both of his ears.
Helga and Arnold kept gazing at each other for a bit, before Phoebe started pulling at her a bit, mostly hoping that no matter how love dazed her two friends were, then they wouldn't have to be late for class. Helga followed Phoebe lazily the first two steps, but then seemed to shake her head to get out of her daze and then turned around to run with her.
As soon as the girls were out of hearing range, Arnold took a deep breath and simply sighed in what seemed like pure happiness. "Man, yuck, I don't wanna know what you're gonna be like, when you two finally admit you love each other. You're gonna be a pain to be around!" Gerald announced and punched his upper arm.
Gerald had expected Arnold to roll his eyes and either punch back or just continue his lovesick daze, but instead his face fell heavily and he started wearing that worried look again. "… Ok, that's it." Gerald said with worry. "What's the matter with you? You look troubled."
Arnold hesitated and then shook his head. "I don't know, Gerald…"
"Oh, come - - "
"No, seriously." Arnold interrupted and looked up at Gerald. "I… don't know what's the matter with me. After Helga came over last Friday, then… I've been thinking a lot, and yet I've gotten nowhere. It's like… I can feel something heavy tuck at my heart like if I'm in pain, but I don't know why. I'm anxious, but about what?"
"Oh, please. You're concerned because you're closer than ever to get together with Helga, and you're scared you're gonna fuck up like with every other girl you had a crush on in the past."
"… Thanks for the pep talk… You really think that's it?"
"Arnold," Gerald said with a friendly tone and snuck his arm over Arnold's shoulders. "I've known you since preschool. I've seen you on the lowest and on your highest. Trust me: You're worried that you're gonna mess it up or something, and knowing that your cousin has feelings for her too makes you more nervous. Not because you think she might feel the same, but because you have the conscience of a saint. You can't stand to see someone get hurt."
Arnold blinked a couple of times, but then smiled. "Again: what's with the sudden words of wisdom?" he asked teasingly, earning another punch on the arm from Gerald. "And again: Phoebe's been rubbing off on me… like Helga seems to be doing with you; you're getting rude!"
Arnold couldn't help but laugh at that, since he wouldn't mind Helga rubbing off on him, since she was Helga after all. Perhaps, she could give him the backbone to actually confess to her. Wouldn't that be ironic? "Sorry, sorry. It's just… Thanks. Now, I at least know what's wrong with me."
"There's nothing wrong with you, man, you're just a worrywart." Gerald answered with a smile, not knowing who was the last person to call Arnold that. He started blushing heavily, starting to remember two certain events.
Gerald quirked an eyebrow at the sudden lovesick look on Arnold's face: Especially since it, to Gerald, had come out of nowhere. Then a thought occurred to him though and he started snickering. "Did a certain someone call you a worrywart recently… bucko?"
Arnold frowned at Gerald's last word. "You can't pull off bucko." He stated matter-of-factly. Gerald gave a dramatic, mockingly horrified face, making Arnold laugh loudly. "How dare you! I can pull of bucko as much as the next one!"
"Naw, only Helga can pull it off." Arnold answered, the lovesick look starting to appear on his face again. "Ew!" Gerald shouted with a sarcastic smile and grabbed Arnold by the shoulders with his arm. The two boys laughed loudly while they went on their way to their first lesson.
It wasn't only Gerald and Phoebe who noticed the different atmosphere between Helga and Arnold. As soon as the first recess started and Arnold, Phoebe, Gerald and Helga met up again, it was starting to get less obvious which boy and girl in this group was the couple. While Gerald and Phoebe of course were in love, their love was mellow because of their personalities, but also because they had been a couple for quite some time.
In Arnold and Helga's case, they had also been in love for quite some time, but had never really indulged in their feelings; until now, it seemed. They seemed rather… playful to their peers and they were all whispering here and there about the odd behavior.
Not to Arnold and Helga's notice though, they were far too indulged in each other to notice anything else. Especially when lunch period enrolled. As usual, Helga and Arnold were sitting next to each other with Gerald and Phoebe in front of them.
Gerald and Phoebe couldn't help but smile at each other, while Arnold and Helga chatted about nothing in particular it seemed. Or rather, they had been talking so much by now, that Gerald and Phoebe had lost track in the conversation. They just enjoyed looking at the both of them so happily.
"I'm telling you; there's something up with those two!" Rhonda whispered in a slight frenzy. She was currently sitting with Nadine and Lila, all of them talking about Arnold and Helga's sudden odd behavior.
"Yes, definitely. A lot of really weird things have been happening for the last couple of weeks! At your party, Helga slapping Arnold, her wearing a skirt, them popping out of a locker, and now this!" Nadine agreed and gestured towards Helga who just playfully threw a crouton at a laughing Arnold.
"It's really weird, right?" a male voice suddenly asked. The girls turned to look up at the owner of the voice, noticing that Harold, Stinky and Sid had suddenly appeared. "Yes, it is!" Sid agreed with Harold and sat down, Stinky and Harold doing the same thing.
"I personally think it's ever so adorable, and ever so long awaited." Lila chimed in with a smile. Her peers stared at her in disbelief. "What do you mean 'long awaited'? Do you know something we don't?" Rhonda asked, starting to furrow her eyebrows at the thought of one of her friends keeping anything from her.
"Well…" Lila started with a pensive look. Should I really tell them this? Helga told me that in confidence back then, even told me she'd… what was her words again? Oh, right, strangle me with her bare hands… but… all things considered… they do seem on the right track. What could be the harm? "Helga did confide in me back when we were in fourth grade that she liked Arnold a little."
The group's mouths went agape. "What?!" they all shouted. "But she always acted so mean towards him!" Nadine pointed out. "Oh, you guys didn't read through the lines, did you?" Lila asked with a gentle smile. "Don't boys in that age also tease the girl they like? Haven't Helga always been a bit… on the more boyish side? It makes sense for her to be ever so cruel to the guy she likes, right?"
They all turned to look at no one in particular, almost as if silently questioning him or her if they agreed. "Well… when you say it like that… then it actually makes sense." Rhonda observed with big eyes and started to lean her chin on the palm of her hand. "Helga liking Arnold… and Arnold obviously likes her too. You think he has liked her ever since back then too? I mean, he did always talk nicely about her, even if she was mean to him."
"She hasn't only been mean to him." Sheena suddenly chimed in, arriving together with Eugene and Curly. "I think Arnold likes her too." Eugene chimed in with a nod. Lila smiled at her friends' calm way of handling this. Phew… for a second, I was scared they were going to make a big deal out of it. I just hope Arnold and Helga will confess ever so soon. She thought before glancing at them over her shoulder, noticing Helga pushing at Arnold's shoulder, laughing at whatever he had just said. If they haven't already that is…
"Hey, guys. What's up?" Aaron asked when he arrived at their table. "Hi, Aaron! We're just talking about you-know-who." Nadine answered and wiggled her eyebrows. He sat down with a confused look on his face. "Who, Voldemort?"
"No!" Rhonda answered with a bit of annoyance and grabbed his face. She turned it around, so that he was looking in Arnold and Helga's direction. His eyes went a little big. "Whoa! Didn't they look really awkward just last week?" he wondered aloud and pulled his face out of Rhonda's grasp.
"Yes, they did, but now look at them!" Rhonda answered with a big smile, feeling happy that she had finally solved the puzzle. Lila kept observing Aaron as she could see something almost invisible in his face. "Well, good for them. It was getting annoying to see them so dull." He said with something resembling indifference and turned to look at his food. Lila's eyes narrowed at that statement.
"I still can't believe it. Arnold and Helga. It just seems so… weird. They've always been like a big scary cat and a small, timid mouse. What kind of relationship would they have, if they actually started dating?" Stinky wondered aloud, making Rhonda look pensive too. "I'm guessing that… I have no clue. I think maybe they would have a really rocky relationship, you know?"
Aaron's eyebrows lifted a bit at that, Lila noticed. "Rocky? What do you mean by that?" he asked. Rhonda gave a thoughtful sound. "Like… they fight a lot, right? They don't have much in common, so they're bound to keep fighting. I think Arnold might bore Helga actually, since he's a goody-two-shoes and she's, well, not at all. I can imagine her doing something bad, him preaching about it and then they fight."
Aaron cocked his head to the side, wondering if Rhonda might be right about that. "But… and maybe I'm just saying this, because I don't know how Helga was when you guys were children… Arnold mentioned she's become less bad." He pointed out.
"Well, yeah, she actually has… Ever since we came back from San Lorenzo to retrieve Arnold's parents, she seemed to become at least less violent. Her mouth can still be really filthy though." Sid answered with a small frown. "But she's done a lot of good stuff for you guys too, right?" Aaron asked, making Lila frown a little more at him.
The group turned to glance at each other again, some of them slowly nodding. To Aaron's surprise, they started listing off some things they remembered Helga doing for them through the years. Lila noticed how he started smiling at that, and then her eyes went wide. "Oh, dear…" she muttered worriedly.
"Did you say something, Miss Lila?" Stinky asked politely. "Oh. No. I… Could I speak with you for a second, Aaron?" Lila asked, seeming desperate to do so. Aaron frowned at the sudden enthusiasm to be alone with him. Out of the three girls who had been 'hitting on him' since he arrived, Lila had been the one to show least interest.
"Uh… sure, I guess." Aaron answered and started to stand up. Lila did the same thing and together, they walked through the cafeteria towards the hallway. "All right. What do you wanna talk about?" Aaron asked, as soon as they were outside.
Rather than answering immediately, Lila turned around to face him, an out of character pensively look on her face. Aaron frowned in confusion. It was odd seeing Lila make such a face, and – in a way – it scared him a little.
"What?" Aaron asked with a harsh tone, not at all liking the accusing look on Lila's face. "… I'm not gonna let you." she answered with determination. His eyes went wide and his eyebrows furrowed. "Excuse me?"
"I'm not gonna let you get between them." Lila answered, still wearing determination on her face. Aaron's eyes went wide. He was blinking rapidly, not at all knowing what she was talking about or how he should react to the accusation. "Uh… and again… excuse me?"
Lila shifted a little on her feet, not used to confronting other people like this. "I've been having a bit of a funny feeling lately, but I decided to ignore it. Though, now it's back and I can't not say anything." She said, as if that would explain anything to Aaron. His frown just got deeper though. "Uh…" he shook his head a little, still very confused. "I still don't know what you're talking about."
Lila took a deep breath, and Aaron felt as if an anvil had just landed on his head when she spoke. "You like Helga." She said very matter-of-factly. He blinked at her a couple of times, before his face went dark. "Oh, so that's what you were hinting at." He observed, feeling a bit of anger shining through her. "How in the world did you figure that out?"
"I'm observant. I also noticed that Helga had a crush on Arnold when we were kids… even before she admitted it to me. Granted, because I lured her into doing so – not one of my proudest moments, but I got the answer I wanted nevertheless." Lila explained and crossed her arms.
Aaron crossed his arms too, wearing an impressed smile on his face. "Yeah, I heard about that… You're sneakier than you'd like to admit, aren't you?" he asked with a cocked eyebrow. Lila didn't seem to like his question, as her lips went into two thin lines. "Like Helga, I… I have things about me, I'd prefer to keep hidden. She and I don't have the best relationship, but we know enough about each other to know that we both have less than ideal families."
"… Yeah?" Aaron said, hoping for Lila to continue to speak. With a small sigh, she did so. "I live with my father in a rundown neighborhood. All the girls in my class know that, but they have never once asked my where my mother is. If they did, I'd have to tell them that… she killed herself just before we moved to Hillwood."
Aaron's eyes went wide. "Oh… I'm sorry." He said, unsure of how to react. Lila simply smiled at him though. "Thank you, but it's alright. I didn't understand it back then, but today I know that… perhaps it was better for her, even if it did leave me and my dad in pain. She was really unhappy. I won't go into details, but she did resemble Helga's mom a little bit, except for the drinking."
Aaron looked pensive at that. How much does Lila really know about Helga's mom? They all know she's a bit of a drunk, but Lila seems to know more. Then again, she's observant. Perhaps she could just recognize something in Miriam no one else did, if her mom really did resemble Helga's.
"Because of that somewhat similar background, I've always felt… an ever so small connection with Helga." Lila then admitted with a sad smile. "Though we don't really get along at all. We handle our family problems differently: She gets defensive, perhaps even rude, while I… put on the best smile that I can. I try to stay ever so positive and that has helped me, but I don't think it'd work with Helga, which is ever so unfortunate."
Aaron felt something odd tuck in his heart at Lila's statement. "Have you ever told Helga this? Maybe she'd listen to you, you know? Knowing someone who has a similar background with her might get her to talk. I can… promise you that, actually."
Lila frowned at him. "What do you mean?" she asked. Aaron sighed a bit. "Uh… my parents aren't really ideal either. My mom drinks too and such, so I have something in common with Helga. That's how I know about her home life. I guess she confided in me, because I could understand it. Maybe she'd do the same with you?"
Lila blinked in surprise. "She… actually spoke to you about that? I thought Arnold would be the only one to ever truly know. Except for Phoebe that is." She answered, starting to frown a bit. Aaron simply shrugged though. "We have that thing in common, that's all." He said with a bit of unhappiness to his voice.
"Indeed that's all." Lila said, starting to look slightly angry again. "That's also why I'm saying this: Helga may not like me, but I do care for her, so I have to ask you to not get between them, please. Helga is finally ever so close to make Arnold fall in love with her too."
Aaron smirked in amusement, knowing that Lila's statement wasn't completely true, since Arnold had been in love with Helga for years by now. "Oh? And what gives you the right to tell me what to do?" he asked.
"Nothing. I know I don't have any right to interfere with what you do or don't do." Lila answered, her arms crossed beneath her chest and a serious expression on her face. Aaron frowned at that reply, knowing that couldn't possibly be all she would say. "Then, why are you interfering anyhow?" he asked.
"Because, like Helga, even I can't always keep my mouth shut." Lila explained. Aaron's eyes went wide. How much out of character could this girl suddenly be? In a way, he was oddly intrigued. "I'm known as the sweetest girl in school, and that often makes people forget that even if I am really sweet, then I'm still a human being with flaws and bad sides. One of my bad sides is my nosiness, so that's why I'm interfering right now." She added before stepping closer to him.
Aaron kept standing where he was, even if Lila was suddenly threateningly closer. Her face was emotionless as she kept speaking. "If you do anything, anything at all to ruin this for Helga. If you somehow manage to crumble the hope I have for her to finally find the happiness she deserves… then with what I'll do to you, you'll start considering Helga as the saint."
Aaron's eyes went wide, the rest of his body freezing on spot. Lila kept staring him down for a couple of seconds, until she simply walked past him and went into the cafeteria. He heard the door close behind her and he just kept standing there for yet another few seconds, trying to comprehend what the girl known as 'little miss perfect' had just threatened him with.
Aaron turned to glance over his shoulder at the door, his lips curling up into an amused, but mostly incredulous smile. He snickered in shock and turned his head around again, simply staring at nothing in particular. He lifted his hand to touch his forehead, as if trying to hold his head steady, honestly believing his neck might break in shock.
Then Aaron started laughing. He didn't know why, but everything that had just happened had surprised him to the very core of his body. It was like experiencing Helga monologging about Arnold all over again, which had also shocked him quite a lot. Seeing Lila threaten him, threaten anyone, made him think that perhaps if Helga gave her a chance… those two could become quite good friends.
Author's 2nd note: Not much Arnold and Helga in this chapter, I thought it was time to take a look of the other peers! They've started to notice and wonder if our two favorite blondes are in love. I also wanted to try and portray Lila here. I've been hinting through this story that Helga doesn't hate her, and that Lila perhaps could be a hidden accomplice.
Believe me: I'm one of the Hey Arnold! Fans who mostly dislikes Lila (she's annoyingly sweet xD) but I don't despise her as much as I could :P I like to think that she has a bit of a dark past. We don't know where her mom is after all, so I wanted to throw the idea of her somewhat knowing what Helga's going through out there.
I also like the thought of Lila being this positive because of the same reasons for Helga to be negative; to hide their sadness. While Helga is rude (in a lovable way :P) then Lila is also very sweet, but they both choose to act only like that one side of them. So, to me at least, they could be having such a thing in common. I'd like to think so at least :3 In a way, it'd also make me like Lila more… give her a little more depth, right? xD