Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned in this story.

They all belong to their rightful owner: Craig Bartlett.

Title: "Roadside girl"

In the last chapter: Two weeks after Arnold and Helga's kisses outside the stage, Arnold still had dreams of Helga. Helga started noticing his odd behavior and a confrontation turned into yet another passionate kiss between them there was interrupted yet again.

While most would say Arnold and Helga have improved their relationship and are much more comfortable with each other, sparks of not just lust but also anger still flashed between them. When the director told them that a new song between them was to be added into the play, Helga's frustration and pressure from having to learn a new song on such short notice turned into another lashing at Arnold, who was ready to lash back.

Kimberly, the vocalist, has watched this and suggested that they needed to get the palpable sexual tension between them out in the open in order to get it away. A not so well-thought comment from Arnold ended another fight between him and Helga and he stormed off in embarrassment.

Author's 1st note: WARNING: The first scene that they are performing in the play in this chapter deals with sexual abuse. It's of course acting and therefore not real, but it is described in a way so that there's no questioning what's happening. If you're uncomfortable with that then skip from the sixth paragraph and start at the twelfth paragraph again.

[Please notify me if you notice any grammar mistakes. This isn't my first language, so there's bound to be mistakes.]

Chapter 10: "It's just acting"

Neither of the blondes had expected to be confronted by the other on the same day. Not at the same time, naturally, but nevertheless on the same day. It had started out as a regular day with muscle and vocal exercises first and then going through most of the scenes in the play. There were still a few scenes though the director had deliberately avoided due to Helga and Arnold's on-going fights. Because Arnold hadn't been in the play from the beginning, he had focused only on the scenes he was a part of. Therefore, he had no knowledge of several scenes and so when the director declared that they would take the scene after the fight, he was seated with excitement at the front row. He had absolutely no idea what was supposed to happen between Adrasteia and the pimp in the scene so he was gung-ho on trying to remember as much as possible. The dynamic between Helga and David was amazing when they were on stage and he sometimes felt a little jealous of their acting skills, but he also admired them.

"All right. David, Helga, you remember your lines?" the director asked and they both nodded. David had his arm around Helga's stomach, the same way he would have in the former scene where he would carry Adrasteia away from the passed out Aiden on the dance floor. "Good. Be careful with your actions. It's the first time you're rehearsing this with an audience so focus on the emotions as well, but don't hurt each other, understood?" the director asked and they nodded again. Hurt each other? Arnold questioned in his head and frowned. He silently wondered how violent this scene would be when the director told them to inhale deeply. They did in unison and then exhaled at the director's order. "Start!"

The pimp lifted Adrasteia off the floor, her feet kicking in desperation of getting down as she yelled profanities at him. Without any hesitation, he threw her to the floor and loomed over her. She barely managed to turn around on her back before his hands were around her neck, choking her. "What did I tell you?!" he asked angrily as her hands went to his wrists in an attempt at getting them off her throat. After hissing for a moment, he let go and she turned around on her stomach, her breath hitching desperately. "I…" she started, but then coughed again. "I did not ask him to come here!" she insisted, but that only made him angrier. He grabbed her by her hair and she squealed in pain, but didn't try to pry her hair away from his hand. "You have been meeting with this man outside the brothel, haven't you?" he asked her and then let go of her hair. She fell to the palms of her hands, her arms visibly shaking, but she didn't say a word.

The pimp loomed over Adrasteia, a dangerous look on his face. "I'll slaughter him." He said in a hiss, but his face was expressionless. Her eyes went wide. "No, please!" she begged before she could stop herself and didn't realize her mistake until she saw his face. "If your silence hadn't been answer enough, your outburst right now was." He stated and started to walk towards her. She slithered backwards, trying to get herself standing up, but she had only gotten halfway there when he grabbed her wrists and banged her up against the wall. She shrieked at the pain, but she looked at him in defiance. He had never physically touched her like this before, despite common belief. His abuse had only been verbal, but she had a churning feeling in her stomach that it was going to be everything and verbal this time.

"You belong to me." He hissed in Adrasteia's ear and she turned her face away from him. "No…" she said for the first time in her life. "No?" he questioned with a smirk. She inhaled and looked at him. "No, I don't belong to you. Didn't you say I belonged to the world? To every man who wanted me? Well, Aiden wants me… more than anyone else does. Therefore, I belong with him." She told him, her eyes shimmering with a willpower he had never seen before. He observed her for a moment, eyeing her for a long, tense moment before he smiled. She gasped when he connected her hands, thereby holding them up above her head with the strength of only one of his own. "Looks like I need to remind you that you are not your own." He said and while she felt fear, she showed none.

Adrasteia closed her eyes, closed her mind as she felt his hand touch her leg. His hand roamed around her for a long, agonizing, but acceptable moment before he suddenly growled and swung her around, surprising her enough to shriek as she fell onto her hands and knees in front of him. "I have taught you this before, Arch your back." He said and she felt his foot step down on her back, forcing it into a curve. Her face twisted in the pain, but she didn't make a sound. She felt him behind her, his thighs touching hers and his hands on her hips. She held her tongue as his chest leaned over her back and he talked into her ear. "Come on… Scream. Beg this… Aiden to come and save you."

First, his statement confused Adrasteia, but then her eyes went wide with realization. He wanted her to scream, he wanted to see her in pain, to see her break under him. She then made a low snort and looked at him, seeing his confused expression. "I am never going to scream for help… not because of you." she told him, feeling his seething rage explode within him. "We'll see about that." he said in determination, grabbed her thighs and spread her legs around his own. She hissed in surprise, but it was only her face that showed any sign of the pain she felt the moment, he lifted her skirt and did this vulgar deed to her many men had done before. She refused to give him the satisfaction of hearing her put her agony into words or even sounds. She was quiet as the grave when he moved, only her face showing disgust from time to time.

"Scream!" he ordered before putting his hand to her head and pushing it down against the floor. She gasped for a mere second, her hands shaking in an attempt at getting herself up again, but she did nothing else as he continued. She could feel him going frustrated with her, his motions becoming rigid and harsh, but she stood her ground. He had used her for so many years; he'd had his way with her body and her mind for her whole life. There was no way she would give him this last satisfaction. This had been done too many times to her for it to even matter. It only mattered when Aiden had held her; she had felt loved, she had felt wanted in a way she hadn't before and everything else dulled in comparison.

Adrasteia heard him growl above her and suddenly the stinging pain disappeared. For a mere second, she thought it was over. Maybe he had given up, maybe he'd had enough of her and would just throw her out and she could run to Aiden. That wasn't it. The moment he disappeared from her, she felt his hands turn her around, her back hitting the floor and her head falling off the stage. Ow! Helga thought for a moment as the pain started to dig into the back of her skull. Her face was shown to the audience in this ungraceful upside-down position, but she knew it was a powerful way to convey the scene, so she ignored the stabbing pain and gasped shortly as she was supposed to.

"Come on, Adrasteia. It would take so little to have me stop. Just beg me to." He told her, his face looming over her like a dark shadow. Adrasteia's face was still expressionless though even as the stretching feeling appeared in her again. All the reaction he got was her spitting into his face. In the back of her mind, she regretted that action because in the same moment, one of his hands pressed down on her throat painfully, but not enough to kill her. Her head was forced back and she felt her back scratch against the wooden floor. Her face was hard, cold, her breath and his grunts the only sounds surrounding them.

Then mercy came; he had reached his limits and with a finally blow to her stomach in the shape of a fist, he let her go. Adrasteia choked for a second, gasping for breath as she coughed and shook from the pain. "You will regret your disobedience, Adrasteia… There are other ways to break you." he told her and then left her lying there as he disappeared out of the room. She could feel herself get dizzy from the blood rushing to her head and her arms shook as they moved. She felt her wrist fall down the same way her head did and felt her whole body go numb and her face dead and cold. Her insides were anything but dead though; she could feel the stabbing pain, the shame and the guilt flooding through her and it took all of her strength to make one solid cry before she passed out.

"Thank you, David and Helga. That was very powerful." The director complimented and clapped along with the rest of the actors, Arnold being the exception. His face was frozen, his eyes wide in horror and Helga didn't even get to turn around and stand up before he ran out of the room. The director barely noticed Arnold leaving as he approached Helga and David who had just gotten back on the stage. Helga watched as Arnold ran out of the auditorium and she barely noticed that David was offering her his hand. She heard him cough behind her and she finally took his hand and let him help her stand up. The director kept complimenting them as David let go of Helga's hand, but she kept looking at the door where Arnold had disappeared. Once the director declared they would take a break though, she jumped off the stage and went out of the auditorium.

Helga didn't need to look for Arnold for long; she heard him. Some choked sounds, sounds anyone could recognize ricocheted from the co-ed restroom. She walked towards the door and opened it slowly and what she saw was what she had expected; Arnold was hunched over the sink, currently vomiting whatever he had eaten for breakfast and perhaps even for dinner the night before. He didn't hear her come in and he therefore flinched when his hair was removed from his face. He looked up and into the mirror in front of him, seeing Helga's face in the reflection. "Your hair may not be my length, but it can still get vomit in it." she explained and he felt something more emit from his throat.

A minute later, Arnold finally lifted his head, his face a dangerous shade of green. "Criminy." Helga muttered and went to grab some tissues. She put them forcefully into his hand and then turned on the cold water. Once the puke was gone, she told him to drink. He leaned forward, his legs a little wobbly, but Helga's hand on his back steadied him. He drank as much as he could and then put the tissues to his mouth. Not just one, but all of them. In his hazy mind, he wasn't aware of how many tissues he had in his hand.

Arnold turned around, leaning back against the sink. "Sit down instead." Helga told him and dragged him towards the wall. With her support, he did as told. She sat down next to him with her hand on his knee, her thumb caressing him soothingly. He kept the tissues to his mouth and turned to look at her, hoping his face was showing the appreciation he was feeling. If her smile was anything to go by, his actions had been understood. They sat there in silence as Arnold calmed down and his face turned back into the healthy, creamy color again. He threw the tissues into the trashcan next to him and leaned his head back against the wall.

"You ok?" Helga asked with little to no concern in her voice, but her thumb kept caressing Arnold's knee as she did so. "I guess… I didn't, uh… expect that." he answered. "Your reaction or the scene?" she asked with a bit of humor in her voice. "The scene… That was… hard to watch." He admitted and she chuckled. "Too much for the kind-hearted Arnold?" she questioned with a small smile. "It wasn't just that." he responded and she looked up at him. "Then what?" she asked and he turned to look at her as well. He didn't need to answer; she could see the answer in his expression.

Helga scooted closer to Arnold, her hand disappearing from his knee and went to his head instead. He let her move his head until it was on her shoulder and he felt her cheek at the top of his head. Her hand was caressing his temple and his hair soothingly, almost as if trying to comfort him. He could feel his heart speed up; this wasn't a Helga he had met before; gentle, sweet, concerned. Even back when he found out his parents were dead, her way of getting him back on his feet had been a little mean. It had worked, but he preferred this way of being comforted. He let his nose nuzzle her neck and she jolted for a moment at the ticklish feeling. It was such a foreign moment, but they both really liked it.

"It's just acting, Arnold." Helga told him in a small voice and he opened his eyes. "It looked too real…" He countered and he felt her chest jump as she snickered. "So you're telling me I'm a good actress?" she asked and he frowned childishly. "Too good." He countered and felt her snickering again. The sound vibrated against his ear since his head had now fallen to her chest and he blushed at the feeling. He inhaled her scent and he noticed a hint of vanilla. She made a low, high-pitched sound when he exhaled and he looked up at her. "That tickles, you know." She pointed out and he apologized before putting his head back on his new favorite pillow.

"Has throwing up made you woozy?" Helga asked with a chuckle as Arnold nuzzled against her chest again. "I think so… but I'm also just tired. I haven't been sleeping well recently…" He muttered against her bare skin and she did her best to ignore the ticklish feeling. "Really? Why?" she asked with shaky concern in her voice, their proximity suddenly dawning on her. "Um… I've been dreaming a lot…" He answered absentmindedly and she looked down at him in curiosity. "About what?" she asked and she felt his eyelashes move, telling her he had opened his eyes. "Uh… Just, uh… The usual." He answered and then suddenly laid his arm over her stomach, half holding her in a sideways hug.

Helga jumped at the sudden motion, her free hand automatically falling to Arnold's arm while the other stayed on his head. "Whoa, what is with Mr. Cuddly all of a sudden?" she asked sarcastically, her voice a little nervous. Arnold wasn't deaf to her jumpiness, but he really did feel a little faint from the throwing up. Usually a person would feel better after puking, but Arnold tended to get tired instead. It usually took him some minutes before he was fully awake again. He simply snuggled closer to her, eventually falling onto her lap. She tensed at that and looked around as if she was expecting someone to catch her in such an embarrassing position at any moment.

"Arnold, we need to get back." Helga pointed out, hoping her cheeks were simply hot and not hot and flushed red. Arnold made a disapproving sound, but then moved to sit up again. To Helga's unhappiness, his eyes widened at what she assumed was her blushing cheeks. She bit at the flesh inside her mouth in embarrassment when he suddenly leaned forward. Before he could kiss her, she lifted her hand and covered his mouth with it. "Arnold!" she scolded and he opened his eyes in surprise. "You just puked." She reminded him and he seemed to remember as well. When she removed her hand, he looked away in embarrassment. "S-Sorry…" he mumbled and she couldn't help but feel a little bad for him.

Then Helga did something Arnold definitely hadn't expected. She leaned forward and kissed his cheek. It was silly really; compared to everything else they had already done, one would think that a kiss on cheek wouldn't be a big deal… but it made his heart stop altogether. It was so affectionate, so sweet and so unexpected that when his heart suddenly started beating again, it almost hurt against his ribcage at how hard it was beating. He felt her moist lips leave his cheek and he turned to watch as she stood up. Much like him, she was also shy because of the gentle gesture and it didn't help when she offered her hand. He took it, tentatively and yet without hesitation and let her help him up. She dragged him with her, her steps fast and furious, but her hand holding his softly.

About two hours went by and it was almost time to end the day. "Ok, everybody. Before we go home for the day, let's take Aiden's death scene and Adrasteia finding him before I want my innocence back comes on. We'll take that one tomorrow." The director said and they all nodded in agreement. They had taken this scene before. The pimp would have Aiden killed by a couple of thugs and the scene would switch to Adrasteia waking up from the pimp's former ministrations. She would run away to find Aiden, but would instead find him dead in an alleyway. The song would play and she would run off. It was an easy scene, Helga believed. No hard lines and the music did more to make the mood than the actors had to. It should have been easy per usual at least. Sure, it had been a couple of weeks since the last time they went through it this thoroughly, but it should have gone by as usual. Helga had never had any problems with scene… but things had changed since a couple weeks ago.

Helga was standing backstage, chatting with some of the girls while listening halfheartedly to the music on the stage. She imagined Aiden getting beaten up out in what was supposed to be the street and when the signal in the music rang, she stepped onto the floor, still out of sight from anyone else. She placed herself on the part of the floor that moved and once she was lying down on her back, she sprawled unceremoniously and felt the wood beneath her move in a jolt. She went through her few lines in her head for a moment and then felt the floor stop beneath her.

Adrasteia slowly opened her eyes, pain still shooting through her spine. Shakily, she turned onto her stomach, her palms attempting to help her standing up. She fell back down at first, but then got onto her wobbly legs and looked around. She went to grab a post, hoping to hold herself steady until her dizziness would fade. Helga heard the music in the background, listening to every slow, tense beat and remembering with ease when she was supposed to start walking. When she did, Adrasteia hissed in pain from time to time, looking around in the club for Aiden. She didn't call his name, she didn't dare, and simply walked out of the club and onto the streets.

Adrasteia looked around. The streets were empty, it was 4am after all. Even the club was slowly closing behind her. She kept walking around, the dull music from the nightclub magically turning louder despite her walking away from it. She felt her knees give in for a moment and she grabbed the corner of the wall next to her. She turned to look inside the alleyway for no apparent reason; she just felt the need to. Adrasteia frowned and started walking, while Helga felt the stage moving beneath her again. There would be a big wall to hide her once the stage was finished and the music would go louder and louder.

Adrasteia turned around the corner of the alleyway and there, on the cold and wet tiles from the rain, was Aiden. Adrasteia just stood there at first, observing the scene in front of her, watching the blood spread around him like rings in the water. She heard thunder in the background and the scene lightened up, making Aiden's body all that more obvious to the audience. Adrasteia inhaled sharply before walking towards him. She fell to the ground in front of him and looked at his lifeless face. She hated it. Aiden was always so full of emotion, be it anger, love or sadness; this lifeless expression didn't suit him… it was the way her face had looked for so many years and she felt as if she had stolen his expressions from him. It was her fault he was dead…

Dead. Helga repeated in her mind and then something in her snapped. Her logic told her that he wasn't dead. Of course he wasn't. The theatre blood wasn't even there, she had just been imagining it. The stage didn't even look remotely like an alleyway just yet; the pieces of wall behind her was made out of cardboard for crying out loud, but something about the scene in front of her; something about this feeling that started to rush through her. She could hear her recorded voice in the background singing. She heard her cue to take the small knife from her thigh and swing it around in her hand as the song said that she would cut you, but she didn't do it. She just sat there on her knees, her chest feeling tight.

"Stop." The director said, shocked that Helga of all people would forget what she was supposed to do. The music died and Arnold opened his eyes in surprise. While the director asked Helga if something was wrong, Arnold turned his head to look at her. He gasped in a low voice at the sight of a few tears running down her face. His first instinct was to reach out and dry her tears away, but seeing his hand approaching her seemed to snap her out of it and she violently swatted them away from her face herself. "S-Sorry. I guess I'm really tired." She said to the director and put on a smile. Arnold could see it was fake, but the director couldn't so he just nodded in acceptance. "That's understandable. All right, everyone. Let's go home for today." The director said and they all hollered in joy.

"Helga…?" Arnold questioned gently, but she refused to meet his eyes as she crawled towards the end of the stage and jumped off it. He quickly stood up, doing his best to follow her as she grabbed her bag and swung it over her shoulder. He wanted to call her, but he figured he shouldn't; Helga probably wouldn't appreciate him calling attention to her right now. He quickly grabbed his own bag, making sure his eyes never left her as she jogged out of the room. He did little to nothing to hide that he attempted to follow her and he ran out of the auditorium, right on her heels.

"Helga!" Arnold called once they were outside on the streets, but she didn't stop walking. He ran up next to her and saw her rubbing her hand against her cheek. "What?" she asked and looked away from him. "What happened? A-Are you ok?" he asked. "Yes, of course I'm ok!" she insisted, but her red eyes spoke against her. "I'm just tired." She stated once more and turned around the corner, until she noticed that she was going in the wrong direction. Before she could turn back to the right direction though, she managed to notice that she had been about to walk into an alleyway. She scrunched her eyes tight before getting back on track.

Arnold watched her, blinking in confusion before looking back into the alleyway. His eyes widened a bit and he followed her again. "Helga…" he said and put his hand on her shoulder. He had expected her to fight against him, but she let him stop her and he turned to stand in front of her. She didn't look at him, but he could see a fresh tear running down from her eye. Now, despite the fact that Arnold wanted to be a psychologist, he wasn't exactly known for being good at reading between the lines… but this didn't need much reading. He knew she felt the same way right now as he did earlier that day.

Arnold put his hands on Helga's cheeks and placed his lips beneath her eye, softly kissing the escaping tear away. He felt her close her eyes and he pressed a kiss to her eyelid for good measure. She sniffed and then let her forehead fall onto his shoulder, her arms slowly wrapping around his waist. She wasn't one who usually liked being babied, but that scene just before got more to her than she had thought it would… or should for that matter. His arms over her shoulders felt like a protective wall and she tightened her grip around him.

"It's just acting, Helga." Arnold teased and she snickered at the familiar words. "It looked too real." She countered for good measure and felt him rocking her a little from side to side. "So you're telling me I'm a good actor?" he asked sarcastically, but frowned at her answer. "Well, I'm confident you have the acting ability to play a corpse." She told him and then felt his palm slap her back gently, at least much gentler than she would have if their words had been reversed. "Helga." He scolded warmly and she leaned back to look at him. "Hey, that was a compliment!" she insisted, but snickered at his cold stare. "All right, all right… Sorry." She said and kissed him. He sighed into the kiss and instinctively put his hand at the back of her head to pull her closer.

The sound of music caught their ears and they pulled away to look towards it. While Helga simply leaned to the side, Arnold turned most of his body around. "Oh. The music is coming from Civic Opera…" she observed and finally noticed the crowd of people that were waiting outside the doors, which were just opening. Arnold turned to look at her, observing the small sparkle in her eyes as she looked towards the opera. "Wanna go?" he asked before he could consider his words. She quirked an eyebrow at him. "Just like that? We don't even know if they have any tickets left for… whatever they're playing." She said, but a smile was appearing on her face at the thought.

Arnold definitely wanted to go to the Civic Opera with Helga now, especially if it made her smile like that. "We can always try. Though…" he said and looked down at himself. "We're not exactly dressed for it…" he continued and started to frown. Maybe one can't be spontaneous about everything. He thought sullenly and Helga smiled at his concern. "Meh, they won't care." She said, took his hand and went towards the opera. "How do you figure?" he asked and she looked at him sheepishly over her shoulder. "They… know me." She admitted and he instantly took two long steps forward so that he was walking next to her. "They know you? What kind of know?"

"They, uh… It's a long story. Civic Opera often reviews other plays and they have reviewed every single one I've been in. I've also been in the same interviews along with the director from this place and I mentioned watching Carmen there back when I was a child and… well, he said I could have a discount at any time so I think we're safe." Helga explained. Arnold cocked his head to the side as he smiled. "Boy, you're in a… completely different world, aren't you?" he asked and did his best to hide the worry in his voice. Helga heard it though and smiled at Arnold. "Naw, it just feels like that. I'm still Helga, just with a little more influence." She responded and nudged her elbow against his arm as she still held his hand. He smiled, seeing right through her attempt at soothing him. It worked.

They snuck through the crowd together, people giving them weird looks due to both their ages and their clothes. While the others were on their way inside the auditorium, Arnold and Helga went to the ticket booth. "Hey. Any tickets left for… whatever's playing?" Helga asked with a big smile. The woman gave her a disbelieving look and was obviously about to question how serious she was until a male voice boomed across the room. "Helga Pataki?" the man asked and Helga turned to look towards the voice. "Brent Anderson." She said with a smile and pulled Arnold away from the ticket booth.

"I did not expect to see my favorite young actress at the premiere of Murder she wrote." Brent Anderson said and held his hand out for Helga to take. Luckily, she was holding Arnold's hand in her left so she could easily shake his hand without letting go of Arnold. "Oh, so that's what's playing?" she asked and he gave her a stern look. She gave him her signature grin though and he shook his head in amusement. "May I ask who is accompanying you tonight, Miss Pataki?" he asked and looked Arnold. "This is Arnold Shortman." Helga said and used her now free hand to gesture to the somewhat shy Arnold. "He is my co-actor for Roadside Girl."

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Shortman." Brent said and offered his left rather than his right hand. Arnold couldn't help but smile in appreciation as he took his hand. "N-Nice to meet you too, sir." He answered as he shook his hand. "Based on your clothes, I assume that you are here to watch Murder she wrote on a whim?" Brent questioned and eyed Helga. "Well, yes, Mr. Anderson. We were hoping we would be allowed to watch another one of your astonishing operas even though we didn't know if it till now." She said with a smirk.

"You've always known how to work me, Miss Pataki." Brent answered with a chuckle and then eyed their clothes again. "I am not letting you in wearing that though…" he muttered and she pouted at him. "Oh, don't give me that look." He said with a smile. "Listen… agree to advertise Murder she wrote in your own special way and I will let you loan some extra costumes to wear. They will look more appropriate than… the sports outfits." He suggested and Helga smiled broadly while Arnold was staring at him in disbelief. Just like that?! He wondered, but Helga simply kept smiling. "Oh, Mr. Anderson, you are too kind." She said sweetly. "It's a deal. I will recommend Murder she wrote on my blog."

"You have a blog?" Arnold whispered and Helga simply gave him a slanted look while Brent turned his back to them. "Follow me." He ordered and Helga dragged Arnold with her. "Since when do you have a blog?" Arnold asked in a whisper and Helga snickered. "Since it was requested of me by fans. Also, it's a great way to get free stuff like right now. I'll bet you fifty bucks that all he expects of me is to give Murder she wrote a good recommendation on my blog and not even money to pay for the tickets. It pays to be well-known in this world." She told him and leaned back to smirk at him. "I told you they knew me."

Author's 2nd note: I totally didn't plan this ending… The whole going to the Civic Opera thing came out of nowhere so now I have to plan this date too… Son of a bitch xD Oh, well. It'll be fun :3

Oh, and this opera is of course based on the series Murder she wrote. That came out of nowhere too. I was thinking about the names of the operas I knew, thought of Madam Butterfly and all of a sudden Murder she wrote came to mind… Don't question my logic! xD