It's crazy (that someone could change me)

A/N: Chapters are starting to get more detailed. I hope you like this one. I think it might be one of my favorites. Although the next chapters will get progressively deeper in themes and characterization, I think.

Tell me what you think of this chapter, please!

Disclaimer: I don't own Hey Arnold!


"How was the tapioca today?" Arnold found Helga's hand and squeezed it. The final bell had rung and the two hands found themselves together again.

"Thinking about doing a food review, Arnoldo? Don't tell me you're actually interested in pudding when I'm right here." She finished getting the rest of her items out of her locker, slamming it shut.

"I'm more interested in the girl who ate the pudding. She's pretty cute." Arnold winked.

"The boy asking isn't too bad himself. Kinda handsome." Helga smirked. Arnold smiled sweetly and kissed her cheek.

"Uh Uh, football head, I want a full one. Come here." Helga turned the boy closer and planted her lips against his. She momentarily dominated the boy until he realized what was happening and pushed against her mouth, begging for entrance. The two, so lost in their kiss, didn't notice amused looks from around the hall or their two best friends walking up to them.

"You're a bold kid, Arnold."

Arnold blushed breaking the kiss and turning to his best friend who walked up alongside his girlfriend, Helga's best friend Pheobe.

"Gerald, I thought you were taking the long way to your place?"

"Oh, I am man. Just made a quick detour. Pheobe had books to drop off at the library. Speaking of which, I didn't see you two-"

"Thank you for your apt observation, hairboy. Can you both go now? We were in the middle of something here."

"Like eating off each other's faces? Yeah, I'm good."

"Take a hike, Geraldo!"

"Geez what crawled up her butt and died? Anyway, I'll call you later Arnold. Good luck!"

"See ya, Gerald." The two shared their secret handshake. Helga thought after seeing it so many times, that it wasn't a secret anymore, even if she didn't remember fully how to do it.

"Mmm mmm Mhhm! Bold kid and even a bolder lady. Man!" Gerald said escorting Pheobe out.

"Was that really necessary Helga?" Arnold turned to look at Helga, unamused, His hands on his hips.

"What?" She shrugged.

Arnold resisted rolling his eyes. "You know what I'm talking about. You were rude to Gerald and Pheobe."

"Rude? They interrupted us in the middle of-"

'That doesn't make it right." He reminded her. Just because she was his girlfriend it didn't mean she could treat their friends poorly.

"Of course, you'd say that. You always have to do the right thing. Why not just tell him to get lost when he's being a nuisance." She folded her hands over her chest and scowled.

"You're the only one that thinks he's a nuisance. And you didn't even say anything to Pheobe. Did you two have a fight?" He adjusted his backpack as the two made their way out of P.S. 118.

"Pfft, why do you care?" Helga tried desperately to save face but Arnold just wasn't having it. Especially because he knew her so well.

"Helga." Arnold came to a full stop, narrowing his eyes at her. It wasn't often anymore that Helga took out her frustrations on Pheobe. Not since before San Lorenzo.

"No, she just wouldn't stop bugging me, okay? I told her to knock it off and she finally listened." She explained attempting to take the boy's hand in her's again. Arnold relaxed and intertwined their fingers again.

"She's just worried about you." Arnold murmured, "We all are." It was true and word was starting to go around the class that something was off about the unusually reserved youngest Pataki. It was a dead giveaway when the fourth time in the row the girl didn't eat lunch.

"You say that like you're talking about more than just you and Pheobe. Stop being dramatic, football head." Helga argued.

"I'm not being dramatic and if you would stop minimizing everyone's feelings you would be able to see that." He stopped to look at the girl, frowning.

"Fine. I'm sorry, Arnold. Okay?" Helga didn't really want to fight, She was just being difficult because she thought it would get Arnold off her back faster. It didn't, of course.

Arnold tried again, "Will you at least tell me how the tapioca was today?"

"Why do you care so much?"

"Because it was the only thing you ate today. I know you didn't eat breakfast." Again Arnold and his kind and caring heart strike again. Even after Helga criticized him, he still cared enough to ask about her well-being.

How could she reward his good heart with such a mean response? He didn't deserve it and at any rate, Helga knew he would soon get sick of her and want to break up. Her stomach churned at the thought.

"It was good." She managed out. She felt her throat start to close up at the thought of breaking her fast over sweet words and touches from her beloved. Was she really so weak and worthless to be this distracted?

Arnold smiled sweetly. "I'm glad to hear that."

Helga's stomach churned again. She was a disappointment.


Helga and Arnold made their way to her house. A few months ago after the switch to cellphones, Big Bob was able to buy back the house and they moved back in. If you asked Helga, he should have done that change ions ago so they wouldn't have had to move in the first place.

No one ever asked her anything.

She sighed rubbing her temple, she could feel a headache forming. The mere thought of her clown parents made her irritated. Arnold reached over and put an arm around her shoulder, "It'll be okay, Helga. I just know it."

"You say that like it's some magical charm." She mumbled nearing the house, the source of her frustration. She knew Miriam was likely in their drunk.

It was embarrassing having to bring Arnold over to see that. The blonde boy was, as always, kind about the situation much to Helga's embarrassment. It wasn't lost on her that seeing her Mom like that wasn't normal. Helga's known it was unusual since she was 3.

She liked to think each year she just got better at dealing with it. Now that she had Arnold fully in her life, she was all the more cognizant of their family differences.

The Shortmans were wholesome and kind. Helga was sure Stella and Miles never even cursed. After all, the perfect family had a perfect child and their lives were perfect.

"Deep breaths, Helga. It'll be okay." Arnold motioned to her as she opened the front door. He knew of her anxiety and stress entering her home. Helga was normally unhappy most of the time when she was with Bob and Miriam. Arnold did his best to make Helga smile at school to get her mind off her crummy living situation.

He silently hoped for her sake that once they got older and became full-fledged teens, she'd be able to find ways to stay outside the house longer if her family situation didn't change.

As much as he hoped the girl would eventually find a way to work with her parents to create a functional family, even Arnold knew that hope was optimistic and likely unable to happen. At least not with how things were.

And now his girlfriend wasn't eating and her parents couldn't bother to be found. Arnold wanted to talk to them, to make them see that she deserved more than what they'd been giving her. His beautiful and sweet girlfriend deserved more than the hand she was being played and has been for the last 12 years.

He had hoped that if Bob and Miriam really cared about Helga as much as they did about Olga, they'd stop their acts and support the girl the way she needed. Arnold did what he could but even he had to admit it wasn't enough to replace the parental love and affection he knew Helga lacked.

"Do you want me to come in?"

"No, you don't have to unless you want to."

"Helga," Arnold said with a nonsense tone.

"Fine. Yes, please come in."

She inwardly preened again with the boy grasped her hand again and intertwined their fingers. She never got enough of the feeling of his hand pressed against hers, the gentle weight that clung to her own hand. She'd rather die than have that feeling end. This is why if they broke up, Helga honestly didn't know what she'd do. So far Arnold handled her well. She was a handful but the boy seemed to take it all in stride. The fact that he was still wanting to hold hands with her was a good sign, right? She hoped so.

"Miriam, are you home?" To Arnold, it sounded so weird calling a parent by their first name instead of mom or dad. It still tripped him up having his parents back and saying "Mom" and "Dad".

The duo found Miriam in the kitchen head down, asleep. A half-drunken smoothie sat next to her on the counter.

Typical.

"Well, here she is. While Bob's working, she's here asleep. Figures. C'mon, let's go to my room."

When Arnold first went to her house he was a little concerned about Miriam's sleepiness. He found it strange even after his girlfriend explained why she was so sleepy, that the woman could find it in her to choose to not be present in her daughter's life.

"Oh, do you want anything? I can see what we have." Helga offered. Already broken their hand-holding to venture to the kitchen cabinets. She was mildly surprised to find food. Actual food beyond peanut butter and jelly and beans.

"I'm okay, thank you. I think you should have something so you don't have just pudding in your stomach from earlier."

"Oh Arnold, always thinking about me, aren't you?" Helga smirked leaning against the counter. "I'm okay. At least, I will be until I'm not. Let's go to my room before she wakes up plastered. That is not something you want to see."

"Lead the way."

Helga took Arnold's hand and pulled the boy through the familiar hallway of the Pataki household. The house had a darker color scheme than his own and he was always fascinated when he visited his girlfriend's home because of how different everything was. They walked up the hallway silently.

The girl pulled the boy out of the hallway into a very pink and very girly room. At first, he was taken aback by the girl's bedroom because of how different it seemed from her own personality but when Arnold thought about it more, it was clear the girl was a reflection of her own bedroom. Soft, gentle, and romantic hidden behind a tough exterior. An exterior Arnold had worked a lot on breaking down.

He understood deep down why he may never see Helga's real personality with their friends. That it would be a sort of secret no one would believe for however long they were together. 'Hopefully a long time', Arnold thought.

"How much do we have to do? Criminy, I feel like a slave at this point." Helga whipped out her planner thumbing through the list of assignments that were due the next day.

"It's not so bad. At least we're doing it together. That makes it more bearable." Arnold smiled. "Plus, you're really good at all of this stuff, so it'll be easy."

Always the optimist.

"You would say that, football head." Helga leaned over and kissed the boy soundly on the lips. "Compliment me more, and you might get a little more than you bargained for."

Arnold blushed heavily and rubbed his neck. "Well, I do love to compliment you. Especially when you look this good"

Helga smiled sweetly and leaned over their homework, kissing the boy over and over. She placed her arms around the boy's shoulders without a care in the world.

Arnold wrapped his arms around her waist and let the girl push him so that she climbed on top of him.

Making out with Helga was fun. It was one of the best perks of having a serious girlfriend. He enjoyed Helga's kisses almost as much as he enjoyed just sitting with her and holding her delicate hands in his. He loved her blonde hair and how soft it felt when he took it out of its pigtails. He loved how soft her bow felt in his hands and how pretty she was when the light hit her crown.

She truly looked like an angel. And maybe she was his angel. Always looking out for him and going to great lengths to ensure his happiness. How could he want more out of such a truly fantastic girl?

He ignored the feeling of her thin waist poking his hands. He knew it wasn't an easy solution and couldn't be fixed in a day. But he wouldn't give up.

He'd love her through it.