Helga's POV

The rest of the 'date' didn't go too bad, I guess. Although Cody kept 'accidentally' interrupting Arnold and I whenever we tried to talk...

5:48 PM

The streaks of daylight had begun to fade over the horizon as Cody's stretch limo drove through the streets of Hillwood with Cody, Helga and Arnold in the backseat.

"Wasn't that fun guys?" Cody asked with enthusiasm as the driver purposefully drove past Helga's house. "Guys?"

"Whatever." Helga muttered, sipping a soda from the mini-fridge. Arnold remained silent, looking out the tinted windows at the multi-colored sunset.

"Mr. Nickelson, I am sad to report that we have passed by the residence of Ms. Pataki." The driver called out snootily, keeping his head forward and high with a smirk.

Well done, Francis. Cody thought, hiding the happiness in his voice, "I guess we'll drop Arnold first then instead of circling back?"

"Indeed. T'would be a shame to waste precious fuel."

Or to waste a precious chance. He sighed, looking up to the white chocolate ceiling, then over to Helga's depressed face. There was just something about the girl he couldn't quite pinpoint; like someone he knew... He just had to figure out her brooding sense of mystery. So much about her, yet so little I know.

He frowned, yanking a Sprite out of the second mini-fridge next to him as he looked over to Arnold. Arnold Shortman, the legend of the neighborhood since he and his best friend saved it when they were only nine. More than whatever his 'movies' did.

He opened the can and took a sip, continuing to ponder. He could already tell that he had a crush on blue-eyed, blonde-haired wonder that was Helga Pataki. He could understand why though. After you looked past her somewhat biting words and cruel nicknames, she could be sweet. Just like Cecelia... could she be...?

No, He thought firmly as he took a gulp of soda. No possible way. They look completely different, talk completely different. Still, it wouldn't help to gather more proof. After all-

His thoughts were cut short by Helga sweet yawn, followed by her leaning against Arnold's shoulder, much to his delight and Cody's disgust.

Could she possibly like him too? If so, he would need to change that in an instant. After all, no girl could resist his charms, single or otherwise. If she did, he would have to use his backup plan...

Blackmail. All the while continue to be 'friends'. Nothing would screw his plan up.

"Mr. Shortman, we have arrived at your residence."

Arnold gently shook a smiling Helga off him, and with a silent wave he departed. After seeing her slightly sad face after she waved back followed by a longing sigh as she pulled out her iPhone, Cody decided to make his move.

"Hey Helga." He scooted towards her.

"Hey," She responded, too preoccupied in her phone to care.

"So, whata playing?"

Helga answered without looking up, "Railroad Runners."

"Oh, I love that game!"

Helga nodded in response, bored with the conversation. "Yup."

This is going to be harder than I thought. "So, what do you like to do in your free time?"

Helga sighed, pausing the game. Criminy, can't this kid take a hint? "Hang with Pheebes, Geraldo and The Football Head. Why?"

"I was wondering if you guys would like to come over to my place on Saturday. You know, pizza, video games, all that stuff."

Hmm...this guy is up to something. "I'll think about it."

"Great."

"Ms. Pataki, we have arrived at your residence."

Helga stuffed her phone into her pocket. "Yeah, yeah I'm leaving." She paused right as she stepped out of the limo.

"Uh, Cody?" She shifted uncomfortably.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks." And for a moment, there was a whisper of a smile before she slammed the door.

Phase 2 complete, Cody smirked, The plan is fully in action.

Francis thrummed at the steering wheel from impact of the door slam. "Are you sure her and her comrades are worth the trouble, Mr. Nickelson?"

"The black kid, Japanese girl and odd-headed kid?" Cody said in slight disdain, sipping yet again from his half-empty soda, "A snowball would be worth more than the information they would have to offer. But Helga...yeah, SHE is."

"If you believe so, I shall support you all the way."

"That or you lose a job, Franny."

Francis scowled, thinking of multiple ways to rid his life of Cody once and for all as soon his 'plan' was complete...

Later That Night

"So let me get this straight." Gerald asked later that night, pacing Arnold's room as Arnold himself sat on his infamous red couch. "Cody took you guys to Chez Paris to make up for annoying you."

Arnold nodded, not sure this was going, "Yeah..."

"And you complemented Helga calling her...beautiful." Gerald continued, ignoring how that sentence felt in his mouth.

A dreamy look overtook Arnold's features, and with a blissful smile he nodded.

"Then right when you were about to tell her about your huge crush on her Cody interrupted you."

"Yeah," he sneered, "Like always."

"Mmm mm mm." Gerald concluded as he sat on the bed, "Looks like he's doing it on purpose just to piss you off."

"I guess. But what if it was just really bad timing?"

Gerald shrugged with a 'I don't know' look. "Either way, you need to do something. Make a move."

Arnold rolled his eyes, "Gee, what was your first clue?"

"I mean relationship-wise. Take the friendship to the next level."

Noticing his blank stare, Gerald nearly face palmed at his best friend's obliviousness.

"ASK HER ON A DATE!"

"Oh..." He nodded, the meaning sinking in, "But what if she refuses?"

"What happened to thinking on the brightside?" Gerald smirked, waving it off, "If it doesn't work out, just move on. There's plenty of other fish in the sea."

Arnold painfully sighed, walking over to his bed. "Gerald, it's not that easy."

He shrugged, "Why not? It's just Helga."

Arnold shook his head angrily, "No, it's not JUST HELGA. This is the girl that's probably been unconditionally in love with me since she saw me. This is sweet, intelligent, caring person that hides herself from that world because she's afraid of being judged and mocked. She's the most amazing person I could ever hope to meet and I'm lucky just to have her as a friend. And if she realized that I'm not really that guy... the guy that she is truly in love with..."

"It would really hurt, wouldn't it?" Gerald finished, noticing the unshed tears, for the fist time he could remember, in his best friend's eyes.

"Yeah," he looked down to his palms, his vision slightly blurred as he blinked back the tears. "Should I still tell her?"

"Maybe you shouldn't. If you're that nervous to tell her, maybe you stay friends."

"What about Cody?"

Gerald walked over to him, patting his back. "Ah, I'm sure you'll think of something."

"Thanks." He responded with a flat tone and an annoyed expression. "That really helps."

"Don't mention it."

"What did you find out?"

Cody sighed, plopping back on his spinning chair. "They're opening up to me. I invited them over to my house on Saturday."

"Excellent!" She grinned madly, "I'll have my crew set up cameras and microphones. So much potencial information!"

"Is this really necessary? You know I can collect the information myself."

"Of course it is!" She stood up, slamming her hands on the wooden desk. "The last time you tried, you forgot to hit the record button with the speaker!"

"One time! Besides, I told you I was speaking with Cecelia. You could have done it."

She gave him a look that could kill. "One time too many. We cannot afford any more screw-ups. I need all the information we can get. Was there anything beneficial in the limo?"

"Ask Franny, your boyfriend." He taunted with a smirk.

"You need to shut up. He not my boyfriend."

Cody scoffed. As if I didn't see them getting hot and heavy in the backseat of her car. I'm not five. "Whatever."

"Good. Now, have your little friends arrive at 2 pm, that way there's all day for the cameras to collect evidence of everyone mingling and crap like that. Then, I want..."

Tuning out her words, Cody checked his Fmail for anything of value. Seeing none, he decided to close it and attempt to listen to her boring speech. But only one thought crossed his mind:

Who the hell are you, Helga G. Pataki?

Sorry for that scare in Christmas Eve. This idea flow out of my head before I could type it, causing me to rethink other possible outcomes that couldn't work.

Yeah, I know some stuff here was 'suggestive' to say the least, but I did say there was cursing in the description Hope you enjoyed this chapter, adbit it being short.

Please review and Happy New Year :)