Shoutout to SlideshowJazz1 for the constant stream of reviews.
She heard the doorbell ring. Helga growled and put her cereal down. Who was coming over this early? She paused the tape and moved slowly toward the foyer.
"Yeah! Yeah! I'm coming!" Helga called out.
She opened the door to stare into Louis' green eyes.
"Hey Helga." He greeted, letting himself in.
"What are you doing here so early?" She questioned with folded arms.
"Taking your sister out for breakfast." He answered. "You feel like coming along?"
"No, not really." Helga said with a mockery that would have escaped the Patakis, but not Louis. For a moment, the two stared at each other in an almost tug-of-war fashion.
"Helga are you alright?" Louis finally asked. "Is something bothering you?"
Helga simply continued to stare at him with a frown before a certain bubbly voice interrupted and totally changed the atmosphere.
"Hi Louis!" Olga gushed as she came down the stairs.
Helga only tightened her arms over her chest as she heard the overly-loud smooch that Olga gave to him. How come she was even annoying in the sounds she made when she kissed someone?!
"And good morning to you baby sister!" Olga greeted when she was done. "Did you sleep well last night?!"
"Oh, I slept wonderfully well!" Helga answered in a light tone whose sarcasm was unmistakable, unless your name was Olga Pataki.
"Oh great!" Olga answered. "That certainly seems true since you're up so early and you're on vacation and..."
"Olga, get your coat." Louis cut her off with a firm expression.
She looked up at him questioningly but quickly smiled. "You must really be hungry!"
"Yeah." He simply answered, and then smirked as he watched her move toward the nearby closet.
Helga took the opportunity to leave after exchanging one last glance with Louis. He noticed that Helga was watching Wrestle-Mania on TV, presumably taped from last night's broadcast.
The sound of loud footsteps coming from the stairs got his attention.
"Hey Loumeister!" Robert "Big Bob" Pataki greeted, to Louis' comically raised eyebrow which he did not notice. Miriam followed her husband downstairs, still dressed in her nightclothes, looking like she was not yet awake. "Everything good for tomorrow?"
"I called my photographer and my lighting artist. They're flying out today, and I've already got all the video equipment handled. Everything's set for tomorrow afternoon."
"Great. Great." He answered. "Time to bring Big Bob's Beepers to the world wide web with some amazing content!" He said enthusiastically. Miriam walked past him to the kitchen, looking like she could care less. "We can go out to eat after that!"
"Sounds fine enough." Louis answered.
"Helga, do you want to come out with us for breakfast?!" Olga asked enthusiastically as she put her coat on.
Helga only grumbled.
"What's that baby sister?!" Olga's tone did not change.
"Yeah, you should go out with your sister, Olga." Bob seconded. "Maybe you could learn a few things." He laughed and went straight to the kitchen. Helga visibly scowled at him.
"Olga, let's just go." Louis beckoned firmly.
She again gazed up at him questioningly, but agreed as he led her outside and closed the door. Helga sighed in relief and went to finish the rest of her program. She would need to get ready for her second appointment with Dr. Bliss for the week.
"So things aren't going well?" Dr. Bliss asked.
"Nope." Helga replied.
"But your play did get a standing ovation. Is your home situation bothering you? I'm guessing your talk with your sister didn't work?"
"Of course not!" Helga growled and punched the large bowling pin-like-object in the room. "I tried telling her to not soak up my spotlight and she says she agrees, but then does it anyway! And it was much the same at dinner last night! I might as well not even exist!"
"Can you tell me exactly what you said to Olga?"
"I asked her if she could tone it down a bit because everyone focuses on her when she's around. And guess what? They did. She didn't even try!"
"And...her boyfriend, is he same way...? Is he adding to the problem?"
"Louis? I don't know..." Helga trailed.
"What do you mean you don't know?"
"Well, Louis does seem perfect, just like Olga. He's very good-looking, very intelligent, and he's only twenty-five and already owns a seemingly successful business. But it's just..."
"It's just...?"
"Louis doesn't look like he has his head in the clouds. Just this morning when I was trying to watch TV, Olga was trying to goad me into going out to eat with them, being her usual self. Louis on the other hand could clearly tell that I was annoyed and stopped her...in an indirect way."
Dr. Bliss widened her eyes and began to write something down.
"And he stopped Olga before dinner yesterday too. I think she was gonna try to lecture me about how I was too young to watch Ghost in the Shell which is one of his favorite movies, but he didn't let her."
"Well Helga, this is big." Dr. Bliss said with a smile on her face. "I want you to do two things. Firstly you need to talk to Olga in a more direct fashion and tell her your real feelings. I think she does care about you, Helga, so she will listen." Dr. Bliss continued after the audible 'hmph' from Helga. "Secondly, I think you should talk with Louis. He might be the key to smoothing out the differences between you and your sister."
"But wait, what makes you think he'll have any interest in doing that, if it can even be done? Last night he looked more interested in talking with Big Bob about a business deal than caring about other problems, pretty much exactly like Olga. And when Olga tried to introduce me to him after the play, he brushed me off because he needed to talk about stocks."
"Well Helga, I don't know. I haven't met him. I just think it's your best shot. And you need it. If Olga's going to be home, then you need to resolve these issues, given how much they bother you and are harming your self-esteem. You don't want to carry that burden around with you."
"Oh..." Helga moped.
"Helga, trust me, you can do it. I suggest you get them both together and then tell Olga what's on your mind. Maybe he can mediate between the two of you. Olga does care about you Helga, and if she's been with Louis for a year she cares about him too. You just need to show her how you really feel, and maybe he can help her realize her mistakes, given your description of him."
Helga walked out of her therapist's office and back toward home when the session ended, unsure of how to handle this, but with knowledge of what needed to be done.
"Oh Arnold..." Helga trailed as she looked down at his face in her locket. "How will I get through this one?"