Chapter 1
(Helga POV)
"What a snooze fest!" Helga grumbled, stretching her arms as she and Phoebe left the assembly. If she'd known it was going to be that dull, she would've taken a nap. Good thing she sat behind good ol' Football Head. He was always a great distraction.
"Aren't you worried?" Phoebe asked as they walked into the crowded hallway.
Helga raised her unibrow. "Worried? About what?"
"The new anti-bullying policy," Phoebe muttered, frowning.
Helga scoffed with a smile, swinging her locker open. "That's what the big speech was about? What's next? We hold hands and sing 'Kumbaya'?"
"This is serious, Helga," Phoebe insisted. "Principal Wartz said it's a zero-tolerance policy. If anyone gets caught bullying, they could get detention or even expelled."
Helga's smirk faltered for a second, before she slammed her locker shut. "Relax, Pheebs. No dumb policy is gonna scare me."
She'd never been expelled, just given detention for her sharp tongue. No one dared snitch for fear of her fists.
Once they entered the classroom, Helga passed by Arnold sitting at his desk. Their eyes met, and she felt that familiar flutter in her chest.
"What're you looking at, Football Head?" she snapped.
Arnold sighed and looked away, his shoulders slumping.
Helga plopped down in her seat next to Phoebe, watching Arnold brush the last spitballs out of his hair. She scowled, trying to shake the uneasy feeling growing within her. Everything was just fine⦠or so she told herself.
