(A/N: Sorry for the delay! I spent the last few days deciding how I was going to go about this chapter that I ended up thinking up many more ideas for future ones instead of actually writing this one lol. My fault. This chapter took almost an entire day to write so hopefully it's not too bad...
I'd also like to mention something I don't think I have yet, and it's something a lot of you are putting in your reviews (which is awesome btw) and it's how my story could be actual episodes! Well... that was actually the point of me writing this! lol! I wanted to kinda sorta make my own few episodes of season 6 in case in never comes out (if we keep praying, it will...) so I'm really happy that my story has kept up to the shows standards! Like beyond happy, really. As stated up there ^ I have a lot more ideas for future chapters regarding more of the characters so look forward to them in the future!)
The car ride home was about as expected with awkward silence as thick as peanut butter. Phil had done his best to perk up the kids with his usual antics and jokes, however not even his usually playful grandson really responded back. Instead, Arnold sat in the passenger's seat with his head propped up with his hand and stared longingly out the car window. Not that there was anything interesting outside as all it was, was fast pace passing cars, people and buildings, but because he had a hanging objective on his mind. With his grandfather's voice as white noise in the background, Arnold pondered thoughtfully.
Are we an item? He thought, looking at himself in his own reflection from the window. The sky had turned dark and night time finally hit the city of Hillwood. Street lights began to turn on around him, as well as cars turning on their low beams. Is Helga… my girlfriend? Sure, he was now well aware of the feelings he was harboring along with at least a partial understanding of her own feelings; extreme as they may come out, but what did it really mean to become boyfriend and girlfriend? Did he have to formally ask her out, or was it just implied with them acting as a couple around others? Images of them holding hands together, going out to the movies and possibly sharing small romantic moments began to flood the young man's mind and a smile graced his lips. He could fill the warmth begin to well up inside and his brain becoming a little foggy.
Phil looked over at the boy with concern due to his lack of spunk and briefly examined his face before looking back to the road. He smiled to himself. He had known Arnold since he was born. Known all the shenanigans he had gotten into, all his do-good schemes, known all his friends; good and bad ones. Phil knew the expression plastered on his face, as it was one he was all too familiar with.
Soon, all of his classmates had been dropped off at their respected households, said their goodbye's and Arnold and his Grandpa were on route home.
"Whatcha fantasizing about there, Shortman?" Phil asked as he nudged the boy for his attention.
Snapping back into reality, Arnold jumped. "Huh? What do you mean, Grandpa?"
"Oh, you know! You've been quiet ever since I picked you and your little friends up. Got something on your mind?" Phil asked warmly as he stopped at a stop sign and looked over at his youthful passenger.
Arnold heard the question but remained quiet for a moment. He gathered up all his feelings and thoughts and tried to put them into a sequence that would make sense. He had always confided in his elder, and knew even though he could have some pretty wild advice, most of the time it was sane and well thought out. "Grandpa, how do you know when you're dating someone?" He asked innocently, looking up at his Grandfather with hope.
"When you gone out on a date." Phil plainly said, cocking an eyebrow and peering over at the youth.
The answer had been so obvious, it hit Arnold in the head like a ton of bricks and he sat there and blinked for a few moments. "Is it that simple though?" Arnold continued, "You just go out on a date then suddenly become boyfriend and girlfriend?"
"Aren't you a little too young to be asking these sort of questions already, Arnold?" Phil asked with his voice full of both concern and bewilderment. "Don't you have some sorta baseball tournament to be thinking about or something?"
Arnold replied with a sigh of irritation and turned back to the window. "Never mind…"
The old man looked over at the boy and could see his clear disappointment and immediately began to regret his reactions. "Oh, I'm sorry Arnold. I was just joking." He explained as he put his free hand on the boys lap with a pat. "You really wanna talk about something like this with some old guy like me? I haven't been on the dating scene since the 1940's!" His face became soft as he started to remember. "Oh those were such good times though. Simpler too! Going out for walks in the park, getting your Grandma a milkshake with what little pocket change I had…"
Arnold perked up as he heard the small memory. "And then you asked her to become your girlfriend?"
"Oh gosh no!" Phil replied loudly as he pulled in front of the boarding house and parked his car. "I wasn't sure how to go about that actually," Phil tilted his head up and scratched his chin in thought. "What ended up happening was your Grandma got so impatient with waiting on me to ask her, she came up to me one day, grabbed me by the collar and said I'm your girlfriend now, got it?!" He began to laugh, "And in front of Jimmy Kafka, no less. Oh I didn't hear the end of that for weeks! He kept calling me a sissy for making a girl have to officialize it but look at me now! Married and have a wonderful grandson like you, Shortman… While he dies alone…"
"Grandpa!" Arnold scolded as he scowled up at his grandfather. "That's not very nice."
"Yeah well neither is him still owing me that $20 from last July!" Phil retorted, both half serious and half joking. "Anyway, the point is if you want to officially be dating someone, you gotta ask them out on a date! If all goes well and she likes you the way you like her, you ask her to be your number one sweetheart and hopefully live happily ever after! Or end up like Jimmy, get punched in the face and look forward to a life of unpleasant loneliness and regret." Before Arnold could scold him again, Phil got out of his car and shut the door. "But I'm sure you'll be fine."
"How can you be so sure?" Arnold asked, following him into the house.
Phil stopped and placed his hat on top of the coat rack in the hallway. He had known for a very long time that Helga had liked young Arnold and even tried to open his grandson's eyes to the possibility, only to be shot down. He looked down at Arnold and placed his hand on top of the boy's oblong head with a smile. "Because, who wouldn't wanna accept a date from such a good boy like you?! Now go upstairs and get ready for dinner. I heard your parents were preparing us something special for tonight."
Arnold nodded and did what he was told with thoughts of possibilities and the future still in his mind. What should he say? Where should they go? Should he dress up? Arnold's heart pounded a mile a minute as he ran up to his bedroom. He then began to remember her insecurities and worries and suddenly his body turned cold. "What if she's not ready…?" He asked himself out loud before sitting down on his bed. Arnold stared at the floor as he simmered in his feelings. What if I ask and she rejects me? I know she's scared to show her feelings outside of privacy… What if making it official is too much for her? What if ASKING her is too much for her…? Slowly Arnold started to become aware of the endless possibilities; good and bad. He began to recall everything she had told him about herself, all the things she had done for him and all of the things he wanted to do for her. Even if she isn't ready, we can take it really slow. Yeah! I'll ask her and if she isn't sure, I'll tell her that she can set the pace of how we go about it. His revelation made him smile. Helga likes being in control anyway, I'm sure everything will be fine so long as we go at her pace.
"I'm home…" Helga called out lazily as she swung the door open to her place of current dwelling, promptly dropping the bag of beepers she had brought in attempt to get rid of them all.
Bob emerged from out of the sofa he was sitting in and marched towards her. "It's about damn time!" He hollered. "How many did you sell? What kind of contracts did you sign?!"
Helga gave her father a deadpan face, "None." She replied with a complete lack of emotion.
Her father's face began to swell and turn red. "What do you mean none?! I gave you the best ones I had to sell and you've been gone for hours! How have you sold none?!"
"Simple, Bob. No one wanted them." Helga answered as she proceeded to walk past his statue of a body and into their makeshift kitchen.
"Hey, hey, hey! We had a deal! You told me that you and your friends were going to sell my beepers and put us back on the map! Just what were you doing all this time?" He continued to interrogate as she poured herself a bowl of Sugar Crunch cereal.
"We did try to sell them. Many people looked interested, took flyers and information then walked off. I cannot help it if they decided to not get any." Helga said before taking a bite out of her dinner. "Maybe they'll call you tomorrow for more information?"
Bob stood there and contemplated her words for a moment. "Yeah, I hope so. If they don't, you can expect to be eating that as dinner for many more days to come." He replied before stomping back off to watch his soap operas.
Helga sighed solemnly as she continued to slowly eat her cereal. This wasn't the first or the last time this was going to be her meal, and it wasn't like this was a new thing either. It was if her father just happened to forget that they only ever made dinners when Olga was around. If it wasn't for her, than Helga's diet mainly would consist of junk food, take out and whatever the school provided. "Not like this place even has a real kitchen anyway…" She muttered to herself, as she placed her dirty bowl in the sink. The Beeper Emporium had a pretty normal sized break room in the back that included a sink, refrigerator and some cabinets. Fortunately, cooking didn't need to happen often so the small makeshift one worked just fine.
Helga opened her bedroom door and glared at her bed from afar. It still was in the same unmade state she had left it in earlier that morning. It looked welcoming, however she knew that the moment she lay on it, sleep wouldn't happen. Sleep hadn't been a pleasant visitor of Helga's ever since they had been forced to move into this rundown place. I wonder if anyone has bought our old house yet? She wondered as she kicked off her shoes and fell flat on her back against the bed. In order to gain more money, Bob had sold their house back to the bank and the last she knew, it was still up for sale. Bob and Miriam had bought that house the moment they found out that Olga was arriving into their lives. It had tons of sentimental value to the family; however nothing seemed to matter more than money in the end.
Reflecting on the day that had just passed, Helga rolled on her side. She could smell the musty scent of her sheets that hadn't been washed in forever and it made her nose wrinkle. The day hadn't been so bad, even considering the lack of sales she knew would happen anyway. The fight with Gerald didn't even manage to bother her. In fact, Helga noticed at that moment that she was pretty content. Just the day before, something revolutionary had happened to her; something she never thought was even remotely possible… Arnold had accepted her for her. He had seen through her thick steel exterior and into the warm squishy heart that she had always wanted to show him. Even better than that, he had pointed out things that only Phoebe had ever touched upon: Her creativity and her passion. He was her creativity and passion! He was her muse, her inspiration, the force behind everything that drove her from becoming an unholy beast like her father.
Feeling the inspiration welling up inside of her, Helga reached down under her bed and pulled out a notebook. Flipping through the used pages, she eventually happened upon a blank one and fished out the pen from the spiral binder.
"Oh perfect creation upon which I am unworthy of,
How can you see right through me?
Through thorns, fire and stone barricades,
You have captured my undying love.
What do you see when you look through the glass?
A fragile girl, An abused specimen, An unruly guard?
How I long for you to break through and save me,
To bring us together forever at last.
It is true,
I scorn you, berate you and plunder you so,
But somehow with your magnificence,
You have given me something new.
When all my hopes seem to fade,
There you are, my prince!
Hold me in your arms, Take away the pain and banish my sins,
Now I am forever yours… I will not be afraid."
"I will not be afraid…" She repeated as she reread the words written down.
She closed the book, stuck the pen back into the spine and shoved them both back under her bed. "I can't keep doing this to myself." She spoke aloud, "I finally have Arnold! Like… I HAVE him! Arnold, my one and only true love! The boy of my dreams! The angel in my heaven! And what am I doing? Running away from him like a deranged lunatic?!"
Helga suddenly pranced off her bed and steeled her nerves. "This is absolutely ridiculous! He's right. I'm Helga G. Pataki! I don't care what everyone else thinks! I should be waving him around in front of everyone, proud of him loving me!" But although she spoke what she wanted out loud, her inner self poked at those nerves and reminded her of all her insecurities. "And yet…" She whispered as she took out her golden locket. Her beloved stared back at her and, with a single finger, she stroked his face lovingly. "This is so hard for me. You, my angel of mercy, are right here with me. Watching over me, protecting me, and even trying to save me from this wretched household! With your benevolence looming all around me, I should feel at ease… not nervous." Helga closed her eyes and inhaled deeply before placing her locket back into her bosom. "That's it. I won't take Arnold for granted any longer." She stated as she plunged her foot back in her shoe. "I am going to go over that stupid football head's house and give him a piece of my mind!" She continued as her other foot was thrashed into the other shoe. "Not really so much as mind, as heart but… whatever! Who cares?! I'm just talking to myself like a psychopath at this point!"
Stomping out of her room, she grabbed a light pink jacket from a closet nearby and flung it over her shoulder just in case the night had cooled off. She glanced down the hallway in front of her and could see the flickering light of the T.V that her parents were possibly watching but heard no movement or noise. "Great, they're probably asleep." She smirked as she quietly tiptoed towards the emergency exit of the emporium. "Since we're too poor for an alarm, I'll just use this to my advantage and slip out without them noticing…" Helga slowly opened the door and peeked outside. It was deserted as usual. Looking around the broken cement around her, she noticed a small rock and wedged it into the door. "There, that outta hold until I get back. Hopefully they don't notice I'm gone." She snorted in response to her own comment. "Like that would happen."
Quickly, she ran down the streets with only one thing in mind: talking to Arnold. Sure, she could have used an office phone and called him but this was something that needed to be done in person. With him looking at her with those kind and beautiful green eyes of his, there was no way that she could go back on her new decision. Don't be afraid. Don't be scared. Don't let anyone get in your way! She yelled inside herself as she made haste towards his nearing street. Who cares about anyone else?! Who cares what they think or what they do because, in the end, I can just pound them! She continued to coach herself as she saw his red building in the distance. After all, he accepts my love. Oh! My love! She clenched her locket though her clothes and pleaded internally.
Finally it was the moment of truth. Standing in his doorway, Helga breathed in and out rhythmically as she could feel her nerves beginning to break. "You can do this, Helga." She spoke as she reached up towards the doorbell. "All you gotta do is… ring this doorbell…" and with that, her finger plunged deep into the small circular object, causing the whole house to hear the alarm.
"What in the world?" Phil said, placing his fork down on top of his dinner. He looked around at everyone at the table with a questioning glance, in which everyone responded back with shrugs and head shakes. "None of you are expecting anyone, are you?"
"Maybe Suzie is finally home!" Oskar cried out as he quickly stood up in his chair.
"Yeah and maybe you won the lottery, Kokoschka! Yeah right! Sit down and eat your food before I do." Ernie remarked as his fork clanged against the czechoslovakian man's plate, causing Oskar to promptly sit back down and grab his plate away.
"Who would come this late at night?" Mr. Hyunh asked as he too looked around the room with much concern.
"Arnold, are you expecting company?" Miles asked as he tilted his head to his son.
Arnold shook his head but got up anyway. "No but you guys keep eating. I'll go see who it is."
"If it's those stupid salesmen, tell them I'm dead!" Arnold heard his Grandpa cry out behind him, as he exited the dining room. Arnold shook his head in disapproval and reached the door.
With much curiosity he opened it and, to his surprise no one was standing there. "Huh?" He stuck his head out of the door and looked out into the darkness. Upon looking left, he saw someone in pink creeping away. His eyebrows rose in skepticism of the situation, however there was only one person who fit the description of this figure. "Helga?"
Hearing her name from his mouth caused the young girl to halt in her track. Crap! She panicked, slowly turning her head around to confront him. "H-hey… Arnold!" She weakly called out to him, fully turning herself back to his direction.
Arnold walked outside and closed the door behind him. "What are you doing here this late? Did you forget something in my Grandpa's car?"
Helga managed to inch her hesitant body towards him, fiddling with her hands that were tucked behind her. "No. No I don't think I forgot anything…" She avoided revealing her true intentions.
Eyeing her, the young man stepped down off his stoop. It was clear that she was nervous about something but couldn't think of what. "Okay, so then what brings you by my place this late?"
"I just happened to be walking this way…" She lied with an innocent look. "It's a free country, Arnoldo I can walk this way if I want."
"And ring my doorbell?" He bluntly asked without sympathy.
"And I can ring whose ever doorbell I want too! Criminy!" She scowled in return.
An awkward silence surrounded them and as much as she hated to admit it, she wasn't going to get anywhere by backing out. "Maybe I just wanted to visit you." She squeaked out in a way he almost couldn't hear.
Arnold fortunately heard her, but was still surprised. "Do you want to come inside?" He offered, unsure of how to approach the situation.
Ignoring her awkward emotions, Helga managed to walk to his stoop and sit down. "No. Here is fine. Moon's out shining, crickets chirping, winds blowing…." She evaded, "I think here is fine."
Giving up, Arnold shrugged and sat besides the girl. The wind blew softly besides them both, while they sat in silence. He had no idea why she was here, or why she had decided to come at this hour of the night but what he did know was she was visibly uncomfortable and unable to bring up the reasons just yet. Calmly he let out a sigh and turned to her, causing her nerves to peak once more. "Is everything okay?" He asked, hoping to move things along.
"Yep, all's well here." She quickly responded. "You good?"
Arnold nodded, knowing this wasn't the direction to take. "Yes. We were actually just finishing dinner. Are you hungry? There is still some left over, I think."
"Nope, just had a nice big bowl of cereal so I'm pretty stuffed." Helga responded, sounding like she was in a rush of some sort.
Arnold was admittedly becoming a little impatient with her rouse. Although he was going to wait until the weekend to bring up his own concerns, he now figured this would be as good time as any. Mustering as much courage as he could, he proceeded to ask her the one thing that had been on his mind since that afternoon. "Do you want to go out somewhere this weekend?"
The question seemed completely out of the blue and caused Helga to sharply twist her head to look at the boy. She could see even though the darkness that his face was turning a bit red and he began nervously scratching the back of his neck. "What?" she asked in disbelief.
"You know…" He started as his voice trailed off, "Like a date?"
Helga stared at him blankly, still trying to process the question at hand. "You want to g-go out on a d-d-d-d-daaate with me?" She stuttered out as her heart began to race.
He was nervous. She was nervous. The whole situation was weird and now Arnold was beginning to regret his decision, as he had just finally resolved himself with letting her set the pace. "Y-you don't have to, if you don't want to!" He quickly shouted, turning to look at her better.
Helga's heart began to pound so hard she could feel it in her throat. This wasn't expected or what was supposed to happen. "A date? Like… a date, date?" She asked, trying to clarify as her voice turned high pitched.
Arnold nodded in response and could feel himself beginning to sweat as well as his pulse beginning to quicken. This was a lot harder than he hoped this would be.
Finally getting a hold of herself, Helga shook her head violently and stood up, trying to obtain ground. "Hold on." She started; her voice and body language returning to normal. "Like a real hands holding, strolling along the park like we have no care in the world, going out to eat in some fancy-shmancy restaurant type of date?"
The description she had for it made the heat turn to his face even quicker, but he stood up along with her and faced her properly. "Yes, something like that."
There he stood, in the dark of night; moonlight glistening in his cornflower hair and a face as red as the strawberries she was allergic to. His emerald eyes began to shimmer and pull her in closer.
Noticing her advancement, Arnold shyly looked down and took both her hands in his own. He could feel her palms beginning to sweat, just as they did back in the jungle before their inevitable kiss and he couldn't keep himself from smiling. "I know it might sound crazy, and maybe this is a little too fast for you but…" Arnold started as he squeezed her hands a little to hopefully convey his feelings. "I think we should go on an official date."
Helga noticed her knees beginning to weaken at his touch, as well as her hanging on his every word. His voice was soft and had a way of lulling her into a sense of complete bliss. "You mean, l-like a boyfriend-girlfriend type of thing? Just the two of us?"
Arnold nodded and squeezed her hand again, pleased that he had finally conveyed his intentions. "Yes!" He gleamed.
Collecting all her thoughts, feelings and concerns, Helga closed her eyes and focused a little. She remembered her whole goal in coming here and couldn't help but to begin giggling. Arnold tilted his head and opened his mouth to ask, but before he could, she had began to full belly laugh.
"W-what? What is it?" He asked, fully confused on how the mood changed. "Was it something I said?"
Helga could feel pools of tears beginning to emerge from her eyes, as her laughter continued and she grasped the side of the stoop for support. Unable to make words, she shook her head in response.
"Then what is it?" Arnold asked again, now feeling less concerned and a little giddy himself in response to seeing her in such a state.
"Ohhhh!" Helga breathed out loud, clutching her side as a twinge of pain began to sprout from her sides due to the laughing. "This is hilarious!"
"What is?" Arnold continued to ask as he sat himself besides her once more, hoping she would reveal the big joke.
"Me!" she shouted suddenly. "You! This!" She continued to shout through her uncontainable laughter.
Still confused, Arnold patiently waited for her to calm down and finish.
Helga wiped her eyes from the little bits of expelled tears, and chuckled a little more before finally regaining a little composure. "I came here- No, Ran all the way down here to tell you that I didn't want to hide it anymore…" She explained.
"Hide what?" Arnold asked, a smile growing on his lips from the hope he had instilled in his heart.
She continued to breathe deeply in and out until finally and fully regaining herself again. "Us, Arnold." Helga finally answered. She could see he was opening his mouth to speak but she continued anyway. "I know I said I was scared, and don't get me wrong I still definitely am, but I realized something today after Gerald yelled at me in front of everyone. I realized that, as much as I can't stand him and his stupid hair sometimes, he was right about one thing."
"Which was…?" Arnold pried.
Her heart began to beat a little faster as anxiety began to grow within her chest. Here she was again, trying to be open and honest but her body was beginning to betray her. Regret and disappointment began to protrude from the depth of her soul and caused her once blissful smile, to slowly fade away. "That I wasn't treating you like I should because… I was afraid."
Her words seemed odd and Arnold was taken back a little. "What do you mean? You're treating me like you normally do in front of everyone."
Helga sighed sadly. "Yes, I know and that's sorta the problem. I know I'll never be able to fully be how I want to be around people because, let's face it, I'm a lost cause when it comes to taking down my barriers, but right now…" She explained as she looked down at his hands before grasping them herself, "You're doing something really nice for me and, instead of thanking you like I want to, I instead rant and rave about it like it's a-a bad thing."
"The project?" Arnold asked, feeling a little accomplished as he was able to hold her hand again but this time she had initiated.
"Y-yeah…" Helga closed her eyes again, pushing down all her negative emotions that were doing their unruly best to push forward. "A-arnold…"
"Yes?" He asked, rubbing one of her hands with his thumb in hopes of calming her nerves a bit.
"Thank you for caring about me." She said finally, although her voice still shaky. "I know that I made it seem like I didn't want your help, and at first I didn't but after you kept pushing in your stupid annoying little way, I realized how happy it made me that you wanted to do this for me." Helga opened her eyes again and saw his face: The face that haunted her dreams, the face that she yearned for daily, and the face that made everything in her life worthwhile so long as she could continue to look upon it.
He could see that she was doing her best and he was proud. "Of course I would want to help you, Helga. I'm just so happy to hear that you don't really hate the idea." He explained with excitement in his voice.
Now that, that was out of the way, Helga remembered his proposition from earlier. "So… about this date…" She started as she pondered all the possibilities, "What did you have in mind? And you better not skimp out on me, Bucko! Because if we're gonna do this then it better be right."
Arnold began to relax at the sound of her normal voice and gazed at her with half lidded eyes. "I don't know, really. I figured I would let you decide what we would do." He shrugged. "It's up to you if you want the date to be private or in public since I don't want you to feel uncomfortable."
Oh, my love! Always worrying about me with his giant football shaped heart! Helga swooned inside. "Hmm…" Helga thought as she tipped her head back and looked up at the night's sky.
"We could see a movie, or go out to dinner?" Arnold suggested thoughtfully. "I don't have too much money but I'm sure my Grandpa would lend me some."
Helga began to consider how they both would look, sitting hand in hand at some expensive high end place. Jewels around her neck and him in a tie; sharing a bowl of cheese fondue and an assortment of random horderves to dip with. French waiters playing a violin around them as they feed each other… "Ohhh~" She swooned out loud un-expectantly before catching herself and blushing. "Oh- That sounds like it could be a good idea. You know, if you like that sort of stuff."
Arnold tilted his head with a little confusion. "Or we could get some ice cream and walk around the park and just talk, if you want?"
Giving her more suggestions to work with only broadened her imagination. Scenes etched in her mind of them laughing with glee as they held hands and strolled along the park. Him in a dashing tuxedo and top hat and her in some long flowing pink gown and flowers in her hair. With bold excitement, he would lift her up by her waist and twirl her around in the air before bringing her down softly and touching noses. My darling! You're the only woman for me! He would say after drawing her closer. Yes my pet, do tell me more, She would respond as she batted her eyes and looked away shyly. Dream Arnold nodded and continued, As you wish, my Queen! Your eyes are like two sparkling blue sapphires that brighten up even the darkest nights! Your physique is womanly and always flattering in any form of clothes you shall choose. No one could compare themselves to your brains and beauty! You're my Helga… Helga…
"Helga?" Arnold called out to her, now definitely concerned with her glazed over expression. "Are you okay?"
"Yes, my love?" She called back in a passionate longing voice, still completely entranced in her own dream.
Blushing from her response, Arnold cleared his voice and looked away for a moment; gaining his own composure. This hadn't been the first time she had been in a dreamlike state in front of him but all those other times he hadn't fully grasped why. Now here she was, swooning and daydreaming to her heart's content while she sit on the stoop with his hands in hers. Unsure of how he should break her from her fantasies, and almost unsure if he even wanted to, Arnold knew it was best if they were going to continue the conversation. He let go of her hands and snapped his fingers in front of her. "Helga…" He called out again. "Helga!"
Her gaze broke, as Helga stumbled back into reality and nearly forgotten the whole conversation. "Huh?!" After looking at his reddened face and recalling her thoughts, Helga immediately knew what had just occurred and fought her instincts to become a deer in the headlights over it.
"W-what?!" She screamed before crossing her arms in defiance.
Arnold giggled softly. "Nothing, don't worry about it." His face returned back to normal and he decided to continue on with the topic at hand. "Do you have any suggestions on where you'd like to go?"
"I-I don't care, Football head! Just decide for me or something!" She scowled.
"Well, what are some of your favorite places or things to do?" He asked, completely unfazed by her sudden aggression.
"I don't have favorite places or things to do." Helga replied snidely.
Unintentionally rolling his eyes at her remark, Arnold pressed on. "Oh come on, Helga. Of course you do. Everyone has favorite places and things to do." He suggested and waited for another smartalic remark but when one didn't come, he continued. "What about wrestling? I know you're fond of that."
His suggestion caused her eyebrow to rise and looked over at him in interest. "Y-yeah, I guess I am but it doesn't matter because the big match between Big Andrychowski and the Death Bringer isn't for another month and a half." The thought of Arnold being that attentive to her own likes, made her feel a little shy. When had he really begun to pay attention? Not that she really hid her like for Wrestle Mania or anything, and on a few occasions she and Harold even invited other classmates along with them to see the fights.
"Then there has to be other things as well…" Arnold pointed out as he did his best to recall other things he had seen her like or do in the past. Suddenly he remembered something and a large grin planted on his face "How about ice cream?" He asked.
"Ice cream?" Helga became confused. Sure they had gotten a milkshake together once when she was "blind" but that was her only recollection of an instance that he could have thought of.
"Yeah! I've heard you and Phoebe talk about you really liking ice cream in the past! You want to go to Slausen's?" He smiled, completely unaware of what he was actually saying to her.
The color began to drain from her face at hearing those words come out of his mouth. She partially wanted to scream but at the same time, wanted to go back into hysterical laughter. The whole point of their code "ice cream" was so others wouldn't have any idea that they were actually referring to her longtime obsession over Arnold, and as much as it wasn't a surprise that it worked, she was surprised that he had overheard some of their conversations about him.
Deciding to go along with the rouse, Helga smiled nervously. "S-sure, Football head… If that's what you want then whatever floats your boat… haha…" she said as she flipped her hair back and avoided his eyes.
"Then it's a date!" Arnold jumped up in delight, completely oblivious and taking her along with him. "How about we do this after that fashion shoot with that internet model that Rhonda was showing us?"
"Oh great…" Helga rolled her eyes. "I completely forgot about that. When was it, again?"
"Saturday," Arnold answered "And we need to finish writing our project by tomorrow if we're going to hand it in on time." He then looked worriedly up at his house and sighed. "I'd say we could do it right now but… It's getting kinda late and I'm sure my family is already worried about me being out here so long."
The thought of her having to leave her beloved and return back to that hellhole made Helga frown, but she also knew he was right. "Alright… Well then how about after school tomorrow, I come back here with you and we write that sucker up, deal?" She asked, deeply trying to conceal her real feelings.
"Yeah, sounds like a good plan. I originally had planned to play baseball with Gerald but I can push that off for a few days." The young man explained, beginning to feel the weight of realizing that she would have to leave soon. He then thought of an idea and held his finger up to her, "Hold on one moment Helga, I'll be right back." He said quickly and before giving her the option to reply, he dashed up the stoop and into his house, leaving the young blonde girl alone in her own thoughts.
The breeze blew again and caused her skin to grow thousands of goose bumps along side it. Helga had been glad she brought her light coat along with her for the trip. Slipping her arms through the cottony fabric, she could feel her skin returning to normal in seconds and her body began to warm up. The summer was at its end and soon autumns chilly arms were going to embrace their city and cause all the trees to begin to die and turn colors. This caused her to think about Halloween and what she could wear for Rhonda's inevitable costume party. Obviously this year she had no intention on dressing up as Lila, as she won Arnold over already. Maybe something horrifyingly gross? Like a decapitated housewife or something? She thought as she scuffed her shoes into the pavement below her. Looking down, she could see her bare legs being exposed and considered other options. Maybe something more flattering to make him notice me more… Like some 50's cocktail waitress or something? The thought was promising but Helga shook the idea out of her head. Nah, that kind of flashy really isn't my style..
Suddenly she heard the front door to Arnolds boarding house open up again, and he slowly crept back outside with his jacket on. "Okay, let's go." He said after he closed the door and ran down the steps. "I asked my parents if I could walk you home since it's so late."
Helga crossed her arms again and felt a little offended. "You know I'm perfectly capable of walking home by myself, right?"
"Yeah I know but," His voice trailed off and reached her with a sudden stop. "Better safe than sorry, right?" He said shyly as he grabbed her hand. It seemed as though he was taking every opportunity possible to be close to her, which made her heart melt in her chest.
She recalled a similar conversation between them just a few days earlier and laughed. "Whatever you say, Arnoldo. Just don't try anything funny. Got that?" She said jokingly.
"Of course not." He mused at her comment. "After all, I have to maintain my gentlemanly status, right?"
They began walking down the road together, continuing their joke back and forth. It was difficult to believe that just a year before, maybe even two, that the possibility of them both behaving nicely in such a way was even manageable. The school year had just begun and yet so many new things were happening to Arnold left and right. It made him wonder what life would be like come the next few months. Even his birthday was coming soon. What would he do for it? Would they do anything together? Arnold began to feel warm at the thought and tightly grasped her hand with his, causing her to look down at him. They were nearing her building but letting her go didn't seem like much of an option for him at the moment. So many feelings, old and new made their way through his body and caused him to feel a little nervous, but in a good way.
Meanwhile, unbeknownst of this to herself, Helga was feeling calmer than normal. Their fun banter back and forth had ceased a few roads back and had just become pleasant silence between the two. Not even swooning came into mind for she was perfectly content once more. I wonder if this is how we'll remain… she wondered as he squeezed her hand.
There they were again, standing at the road in front of the entrance to her home. It was time for them to part, even though they both regretted it. Thoughts and excuses began to run through Helga's mind as she tried to come up with some reason for him to stay beside her longer, but to no avail. There was no way he could stay there with her. Although it was possible to sneak him into her room, it wouldn't be logical as his family was waiting patiently for the young boys return. Then that thought turned into more daring thoughts and Helga mentally kicked herself for it. Now's not the time for that! She scolded herself before turning to him and peering into his eyes.
"Guess it's time I go inside, huh" She asked both of them, fighting off her urges to stay longer.
"Yeah…" His voice sounded sad but he pushed it aside to remain as hopeful as ever. "But it's alright. We'll see each other tomorrow."
Helga knew it was true, but parting was always such sweet sorrow. Thinking back to their lovely performance of the school play, she couldn't help but feel all girly inside and smile. Being able to act how she truly felt inside, and in front of people no less, was exhilarating. Back then, she dreamed that Arnold would speak such loving words to her in real life but just to hear them in a play caused her whole body to melt. Could he ever truly love her so much? She knew she was very advanced for her age, Dr. Bliss had even said so, but hopefully, one day, Arnold could feel the same amount of passion for her as she did for him. On that note, Helga began to think back on to their earlier subject of the date and a question popped in her mind.
"Hey Arnold?" She asked quietly as she processed what she was about to say.
"Yeah?" He was surprised to hear her voice after such a long pause between them.
"I have a question, and don't look too deep into it because it's not all that big of a deal…" She began to ramble quickly, trying to beat her urge to stop. "But it's a very important question, to me… that is…"
Arnold raised his eyebrow in confusion and smiled. "Of course. What is it?"
Crimson began to overrun her cheeks and she grabbed the sleeve of her coat and began to tug on it to avoid looking at him directly. She could feel his beautiful eyes were on her and were awaiting her question. "Can I…." she started but couldn't bear to finish.
Her odd behavior caused the young man to worry and he placed his hand on her shoulder, becoming even closer to her. "Can you what, Helga?" His voice was so innocent, so sweet and so addictive that she could feel her emotions threaten to explode from the inside out.
"Can I… be your girlfriend?" She fought valiantly out then exhaled in exhaustion.
The worry that had become incredibly tense on his heart had let go the moment she finished her sentence and Arnold smirked as a result. "Only if you want to be." He answered lovingly.
That was it. It was the final straw to break her of her solid composure and Helga could feel her head beginning to spin in absolute rapture. "Yes!" She shouted, causing him a little shock that he recovered quickly from. "Yes! Yes!" She continued to shout and he let go of her, allowing her to spin in place and him to giggle at the sight.
"I didn't realize that meant so much to you." He stated through his small giggles.
Helga halted and grabbed both his hands, staring at him dead in the face. "It means the whole world to me- No, The entire existence of creation!" She began to glow, fully allowing herself to express how she really felt.
"I-I'm happy you feel this way" He breathed out, letting his own worries vanish into pure bliss along with her. "I'll admit, I wasn't really sure how to ask you if you wanted to be so I'm really glad you-" But before he could finish, she let go of his hands and wrapped her arms tightly around his head and squeezed.
"Oh my adorable Football Head!" she cooed as she squeezed harder and began to block his airway with her chest.
"H-helga" He squeaked out, "too tight…"
"Oh." She then let go and laughed nervously. "Sorry about that."
Despite nearly getting suffocated, the moment they were sharing was like none other. There she was, glowing in a way he couldn't have imagined. It was far more than just her opening up; it was her allowing herself to be herself right in front of him. "It's okay…" He laughed. There had only been two times in the history of him knowing her that she had fully allowed herself to open up in such away, however this time had been the only time it didn't result in hysterics and aggressive behavior. This was the side of Helga he always wanted to see, even back then.
Feeling his eyes on her, and now becoming embarrassed that she just shoved her chest into his face, Helga knew it was time to go. "I'll just…" She started, as she pointed behind her and slowly walked backward. "I'll just be going now. See ya!" She shouted than turned around and ran towards the side of her building where the emergency exit was waiting.
"See ya, Helga…" He whispered back as he watched her form slowly disappear into the darkness surrounding Bob's Beepers. His feelings quelled into serenity as he stood in that spot a bit longer before finally turning around and heading home. Thoughts of her going home happy and having pleasant dreams flooded his mind and caused him to feel something new, something warmer than he had ever experienced before. It was love.