Helga made her way to school, walking alone as she normally did. Phoebe would often walk with Gerald to school. Phoebe would most always offer to walk with Helga, but she protested nearly every time, wanting her best friend to be happy, unlike her.

"Just walk with tall hair boy," Helga said, as she packed her school bag and kept from facing Phoebe, not wanting to show her how sad she really was that she couldn't walk with her best friend anymore. "I really don't mind."

Phoebe could hear in Helga's voice that she was putting up her walls again. She never knew how to help her anymore. "Helga, Gerald is important to me, but so are you. There must be some way to compromise this. Perhaps we could walk together as a group to sch-"

"Yeah, no thanks," she said, cutting Phoebe off. "I don't feel like being a third wheel, but thanks anyway, Phoebs."

That was the end of discussion for that topic. Phoebe didn't know what to say after that. She hated seeing her best friend so closed off and hurt. She knew however, that no matter how much she plead, Helga was very stubborn and would never agree to walk with them if she thought she would just be an interruption or distraction to Phoebe's happiness.

Helga didn't really feel like walking around with Phoebe and Gerald as they kissed and said sweet things to one another. This only made her think of how much she missed Arnold. It killed her inside to see couples on the street. It made her wish that Arnold was with her, holding her hand and kissing her on the cheek as they walked to Slausen's or to any of the stereotypical romantic spots. She had a hard exterior but when Arnold came into her thoughts, she became a little girl again, wishing she was a princess and her prince would save her from this constant hell she was living.

As Helga walked to school alone, her mind began to wander. She remembered that moment.

I can't do this…

for everyone…

I'm leaving.

Helga stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. Tears began to form and her hands began to shake. Her legs turned to jelly and started to wobble as she put forth all of her effort to walk. She couldn't bring herself to do it and dropped to the hard sidewalk. She managed to crawl into an alley and sit against a brick wall, not wanting anyone to notice her. She placed her face in her glove covered hands and silently wept. No tears came out and to anyone passing by who may have glanced her way, she looked as though she was a crazy person, sitting in an alley on hard cement.

One man saw her, however. He walked up to her and tapped her shoulder lightly. She looked up, her nose running, but face dry.

"Ma'am, are you alright?" The man asked in a low, concerned tone, as he held his hand out for Helga. He had a slight southern accent, but it was hardly noticeable. He dressed in a black suit and tie, obviously a very successful man.

"I...I'm fine," Helga finally said, as she wiped her nose on her sleeve. She got up on her own, rejecting the man's assistance. He retracted his hand and put both of his hands in his pant pockets.

"If you don't mind me asking, why were you on the ground, miss?" The man asked, seeming to be more concerned about this young woman as he looked into her eyes. He could see mass amounts of pain in them.

The way he was staring with concern at her made her feel uncomfortable and made her heart hurt with sorrow, reminding her of how Arnold would look at her when she was sad. She flushed with anger and shut her eyes tightly, remembering how caring he was and how she would never look into his caring and thoughtful eyes again. "T-that's not any of your business, now is it, bucko?" Helga snapped at the man, trying to hide her broken interior.

"Perhaps not, but, and correct me if I'm wrong, you're not quite an adult and should be in school. I am obligated to report this to the authorities if you are in fact skipping school because I work with child protection programs. However, I don't really want to be the bad guy here and would rather help you than get you in trouble," the man explained, trying to get her to open up somehow. He never liked pulling out the big guns to get children to do what he wanted, but from the looks of it, this girl seemed to need some nudges to get her mind straight again.

He pulled out his wallet to reveal an ID, showing is name to be Dr. Farfield, also proving his statement of working for child services. She looked at her watch nervously, seeing that school had begun an hour ago.

Have I really been sitting here for that long?

She looked back at the man and, though not trusting him in the slightest, she knew she would have to get herself out of this jam somehow. She sighed and began to open her mouth so she could explain herself.