Author's Note: Thanks again for all the reviews. They mean so much and just make me even more excited to write this. So sorry for the delay with this update, I just really needed to take me time with it. As always, please review.
A Twist of Fate Chapter Two
It was the Saturday two and a half weeks after Helga Pataki moved back to Hillwood with her son. Unpacking and organizing her new home took less time than she expected. Over the last two weeks she had ran into many of her former classmates, who all somehow recognized her after eighteen years. She ran Sid and Stinky at the grocery store (apparently they were throwing a raging kegger; Helga had stared blankly at them after they asked her to come.), Rhonda and Curly at the dry cleaners, Eugene and Sheena at the toy store, and Nadine at the book store. She realized that the news of her return had spread quickly.
What Helga did not know was she nearly ran into Arnold Shortman on six separate occasions, just missing him by mere seconds each time. The first time was the incident at the diner. In the grocery store Helga and Adam were in the bread isle while Arnold was in the canned vegetable isle, Arnold walked out of the post office only moments before Helga walked in, Helga had brought Adam to the bathroom in the bakery while Arnold bought some doughnuts. While Helga went for a walk and Adam rode his bike Arnold was walking across the street and at the hardware store while Helga and Adam were looking at paint for the Batman wall mural she was painting in Adam's room, Arnold was looking at light fixtures for a house he was designing.
It was the middle of May and the first really warm day of the year, so Helga decided to take Adam out for ice cream at Tina Park and let him play for a while. Helga turned to Adam, handing him his ice cream cone, "Can you hold mine for a minute?" Helga asked and Adam nodded. She handed him her ice cream cone before turning back to the teenaged boy who was working the ice cream stand to pay him for the two ice cream cones.
Helga only had her back turned for a minute. But when she turned around Adam was gone.
Panic. Fear.
Those were the emotions that hit her first. She whirled around, looking at the area around her. Adam was nowhere in sight. "ADAM!" She screamed. She couldn't breathe. Where did he go? She only had her back turned for a minute. He could not have possibly gone far. "Adam!" She screamed his name again as she took off in run on the path they had been taking towards the playground equipment.
Arnold Shortman looked up from his book to find a little blonde boy sitting on the park bench next to him. He held an ice cream cone in each hand. Thy boy licked the light blue ice cream cone that he held in his right hand, "Hi." The boy smiled at him.
Arnold checked his surrounding, there was on one, other than the young boy, around. He set down his book and adjusted the napkin that was around his own ice cream cone. He frowned. Where were this kid's parents? He did not look old enough to be at the park all by himself. "Err…Hi." Arnold greeted the boy with a nervous smile. "Are you all by yourself?"
"Nope." The boy answered, "I'm with my mom."
Arnold took another look around, still seeing no one in the area, "Where is your mom?"
"Paying for the ice cream." The boy answered, as if it should be obvious. "Doi." He looked at the ice cream cone in Arnold's hand. "What kind of ice cream do you have?"
"Turtle." Arnold answered. "Does your mom know where you are?" The boy shook his head and Arnold's frown deepened, "Don't you think she is looking for you?" He stared down at the boy, as a strange lingering feeling of familiarity filing his senses.
He shrugged, "Probably."
"Adam!"
Arnold looked up to see a blonde woman in near hysterics running on the path towards them. He looked down the blonde child, "You Adam?"
Adam nodded, "That's my mom."
Arnold stood up, "He's over here!" He yelled, getting her attention.
The blonde visibly relaxed, but she didn't stop running until she was in front of Adam. "Thank God." She breathed a sigh of relief, kneeling in front of Adam, pulling the boy into a hug, "Criminy Adam. You know better than to wonder off by yourself! You scared the crap out of me." She tightened her hug. "Don't you ever do that to me again."
"I'm sorry Mommy." Adam hugged her back, being careful not to get any ice cream on her. "I didn't mean to scare you."
"Just don't do it again." Helga whispered, kissing the top of his head. She looked at Arnold, being eighteen years older; she did not recognize her childhood crush. "Thank you so much for finding him. I had my back turned for a minute and then he was…" She trailed off, "Just thank you."
"Actually he found me." Arnold smiled, realizing Helga did not recognize him. Of course he wouldn't have recognized her either if he hadn't known that she had a son named Adam or is she hadn't said criminy. He had only known two people in his life that used that word, and she certainly was not Big Bob Pataki.
Throughout the last eighteen years Helga Pataki had crossed Arnold's mind a few dozen times. He wondered what she was doing or what she looked like. And now he knew. She was beautiful. She was wearing a light pink t-shirt that had a pink bow at the collar and a pair of light colored jeans. Her blonde hair was scooped up into a simple pony tail and she didn't seem to be wearing any makeup. He couldn't think of any other woman who was so effortlessly beautiful.
"Mommy." Adam tugged on Helga's shirt. "His head kind of looks like a football."
"Football head?" Helga whispered. She shook her head, "I'm sorry…Arnold?" She laughed, "Wow! I can't believe it's you!" Standing up she gave him an awkward, but friendly hug, "God, I'm sorry." She quickly pulled away, "I guess I'm a little out of whack from losing Adam." She sighed, "You probably don't even remember me."
"Of course I remember you." Arnold grinned, "You are kind of hard to forget Helga G. Pataki."
"Mommy, you know Football Head?"
"Adam Phillip Pataki!" Helga scolded, "Don't say that. That is not nice." She looked over at Arnold, "Sorry." She quickly apologized.
Arnold laughed, "It is okay. It has been awhile since I heard that nickname."
"Adam, this is Arnold." Helga introduced her son to her old crush, "I went to school with him when I was little. Arnold this is my son, Adam."
"It's nice to meet you Adam." Arnold smiled down at the young boy.
"Mommy, your ice cream is starting to melt." Adam told her as he handed her the ice cream cone.
"You two want to join me?" Arnold asked as he sat back down, picking up his book from the bench so there was room for Helga to sit down.
"That would be great. Thanks." Helga sat down between Arnold and Adam, "So…How's life?" Helga asked awkwardly. She had not seen Arnold Shortman for eighteen years and she had no idea what to say to him.
"Life has been pretty good. I have been really busy at work for the past six months or so, but I hired a couple new guys, so things are finally calming down. I can't remember the last time I was able to sit down and read a book." He told her as he shut his book.
"Dino Spumoni a Biography: Love, Life, and Music" Helga read the title of the book out loud, she smiled, "I have a bunch of his songs downloaded on my iPod. I don't think I will ever forget when he sang at our fourth grade dance. How is the biography?"
"It is really good so far. It's pretty interesting." Arnold cleared his throat, "Gerald told me you moved back. How do you like being back?"
"So far it's been good." Helga told him before taking a lick of her ice cream. "I kind of missed it here, you know. I loved New York, but Hillwood always felt like home." She paused for a moment, "I'm happy to be back."
"How does your husband like it here?" Arnold asked dumbly, forgetting the fact that Helga was recently divorced.
Helga looked down to where her wedding ring should be, "Actually, I just got divorced."
Arnold winced, his thumb and forefinger pinching the bridge of his nose. "I knew that. I'm sorry."
Helga took a bite from the top of her ice cream cone, raising an eyebrow. "Should I been creeped out that you knew that?" She teased, "Just how do you know such things about me Mr. Shortman?"
"Um…Gerald told me." Arnold stumbled on his words, "I…"
"Relax Arnoldo. I was kidding. I figured it was Gerald who told you." She told him with a laugh.
"Mommy, my hands are sticky." Adam complained.
Helga look down Adam, his hands stained light blue from his cotton candy flavored ice cream. "You are messy." She observed as she opened her purse with her free hand, since she still had half of her ice cream cone left. She pulled out a container of wet wipes, "Arnold, could you hold this for a second? I need to clean his hands."
"Only if I get a lick." Arnold joked.
Helga handed him the cone, "Knock yourself hair-boy." She pulled a wet wipe out and wiped down Adam's hands. "Can you throw this away?" She handed the wet wipe to Adam, who threw it away in the trash can next the bench. She took her ice cream cone from Arnold. "Thank you. You didn't take a lick." She observed before taking a lick herself.
"Mommy, can I go play now?" Adam asked.
Helga nodded, "Yeah, you play." She stood up, turning to Arnold.
"Arnold, you come too?" Adam asked; his bright green eyes locked with Arnold's.
Before Helga could tell Arnold he didn't have to Arnold agreed, "Sure, I'll come." Arnold stood up and led the way to the playground, which was just down the path. "What's your favorite thing to play on Adam?" He asked the little boy who was excitedly walking between his mom and Arnold.
"The swings!" Adam grinned, "Do you like the swings?"
"Like them? Are you kidding me?" Arnold asked, "I love the swings."
"I can swing really high. Right, mom? Tell Arnold how high I can swing."
"You can swing really high." Helga smiled down at Adam, "Sometimes I'm scared you'll swing all the way over the top of the swing set."
Adam's eyes widened, "Can that really happen?"
Helga laughed, shaking her head, "No it can't." When the swings came into view Adam ran a few feet ahead of his mom and Arnold. "I'm going to finish my ice cream and then I will play with you, okay?" Helga and Arnold sat down on a park bench that was in few of the swing set.
"Are you looking forward to the welcome home party Gerald and Phoebe are throwing for you next weekend?" Arnold asked Helga as he finished off his own ice cream cone. He frowned as he looked down at his ice cream soiled napkin. Now he had nothing the wipe his hands off with. Helga noticed this and handed him the package of wet wipes from her purse. "Thanks."
"I guess I'm looking forward to it. It will be nice for Adam. From what I heard a lot of the old gang has kids around Adam's age. It will be good for him to meet some new kids." She took a bit of her ice cream cone, "But I don't know why they want to throw a whole party for me." Helga had never liked being center of attention, it made her uncomfortable. She had always guessed it was because she was ignored by her parents throughout most of childhood, so even now, having the extra attention still felt foreign to her. She cleared her throat, "Are you coming?"
Arnold nodded, "I am." He rubbed the back of his neck, "So when did you get divorced."
"It was finalized a few weeks ago, but Jason and I had been separated for six months." Helga paused, her line of vision going to Arnold's ring finger, "I think the last I heard you were engaged to Lila."
Arnold smiled, "I guess it has been awhile since you heard anything. That fell through years ago."
"Oh…I'm so sorry. It was a while back. I ran into Rhonda in New York while I was pregnant with Adam and you know how Princess is…I talked to her for about five minutes and was caught up on most of what was going on in Hillwood." She laughed nervously.
"Don't be sorry." Arnold told her, "It was for the best. Even if we had gotten married, I doubt we'd be married to day." He told her truthfully. "We were trying to force something that wasn't really ever there. She's married to Arnie now."
Helga scrunched her nose, "Your weird cousin?" She asked and Arnold nodded, "Is he still so weird? I remember how he would read the labels off of everything." She laughed, "Do you remember that first time he came to visit?"
"You pretended to be my girlfriend to make Lila jealous." Arnold grinned, "Yeah, I remember. God; did that plan backfire."
Helga laughed, "Yeah by the end of the week we didn't make Lila jealous and Arnie professed his love for me." She shuttered at the memory of Arnie telling her he loved her. Of course she didn't bring up the fact she had suggested the fake girlfriend in hope that he would fall in love with her in the process. He didn't know that then and he didn't need to know that now.
"You know for months after that Arnie asked about you every time I talked to him." Arnold chuckled when he saw Helga wince, "I don't think you have to worry about Arnie anymore, he and Lila had a baby last year."
"Was them getting married really weird for you? I mean you were engaged…"
"It was a little weird, but Lila was much happier with him than she was with me. When we broke up it was mutual, so ended on very good terms." Arnold explained. "I'm glad they are happy."
Helga smiled softly, "I wish I had your viewpoints sometimes." She admitted, "Sometimes I secretly wish my ex is miserable without me."
"I take it you two did not end on good terms."
Helga sighed, "We didn't exactly on bad terms, but they certainly weren't good either." She looked over at Adam, who had a large smile on his face while he swung on the swing. "He never even fought for visitation. Jason doesn't want anything to with either of us."
Arnold nodded, sensing she needed a subject change he changed the subject, "I think I saw your dad a few months back."
"You might have." Helga told him, "Him and my mom moved back to Hillwood after he retired last year." She told him, not taking her eyes off of Adam.
"Mom!" Adam yelled from the swing, "Can you and Arnold swing with me?"
Helga looked at Arnold, "You don't have to if you don't want to. You probably have other things you want to do today."
Arnold stood up, jogging to the swings, "I bet I can swing the highest!"
Helga watched him for a moment and her heart fluttered and she felt the all too familiar butterflies in her stomach. How could after all these years could Arnold make her heart skip a beat.
"Mommy! Come on! Come swing with us!" Adam yelled as he pumped his legs faster, trying to swing higher.
Adam snapped Helga out of her thoughts and Helga ran to the swing set, "You really think you can swing higher than me Bucko?" She asked Arnold with a grin, "We will have to see about that."