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Road Trip 5

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Road Trip

Chapter 5

Vancouver Fun

"We're almost there, gang!" Gerald announced as they drove by a sign that advertised the Canadian border was a mere three miles away. "Canada!"

Met with silence, Gerald checked the rear-view mirror to see his girlfriend and Helga sitting silently. Phoebe was engrossed in a book while Helga looked out the window. He sighed at the silence and glanced over to his friend. Gerald had assumed driving duties the entire day, while Arnold co-piloted in the passenger seat next him. It was well into the afternoon, the day after the argument, and the group hadn't spoken much since.

He thought back to what had all started this. Actually, he didn't know exactly what had transpired before the argument. Details aside, he had been paying close attention to Phoebe, when his foot slipped and hit the steering wheel, causing the horn to sound. He looked up just in time to see Arnold and Helga sitting on the hood, both staring at him with wide eyes.

Gerald couldn't get the image out of his mind, of Arnold's arms around Helga, with Arnold looking at him like the two had been caught. He said his apologies, then retreated to the inside of the car to help phoebe out of her awkward position, having royally spoiled the moment between the two of them, not to mention whatever was happening between Arnold and Helga.

The thought of his non-violent and timid friend taming Helga G. Pataki just seemed so out of place. The argument started shortly after that thought, and led to Arnold storming off down the side of the road, while Helga stood there shouting obscenities to him. He hadn't heard most of their words, but he had tried to stop it, to no avail.

But what had shocked him the most wasn't the argument itself. He'd seen plenty of those between the two blondes over the years. It was the quiet sound of Phoebe whispering "oh Helga" as she gently opened the car door and walked over to her friend, where she whispered soothingly into Helga's ear, until the slightly taller girl turned around and embraced Phoebe.

Gerald still couldn't believe it. After that fight, the most venomous bully he had ever known was visibly trembling as she cried into his girlfriend's shoulder.

Phoebe let Helga's tears dry before coercing her into the car, then they drove slowly to Arnold, and Phoebe pleaded with him to do the same. They stayed at a Motel 6 a couple miles farther down the road, and after a night of listening to Arnold ramble about how much he hated Helga, Gerald found the relative calm of the car to be welcome.

It was getting old however. So he was relieved when out of the corner of his eye he saw Helga finally looking somewhere else other than the window. From his vantage point, he could see how she was concentrating on the back of Arnold's head. Her eyes seemed to convey softness. He averted his eyes to the road ahead before Helga could notice his stare. Gerald had to hand it to Helga. The girl could surprise him when she really wanted to.

In fact it was Helga who decided to break the silence as she spoke up to no one in particular. "I don't know about you guys, but I'm definitely going on the Hell's Gate Airtram when we get there. Awesome views and going on North America's only descending gondola? Hell yeah!"

"That does sound like fun, Helga! I'd love to go the Vancouver Aquarium." Phoebe chimed in and sat her book in her lap.

"Hey why not, that'd be cool too. I hear they have Belugas there!"

Gerald smiled. This was a welcome change. "All right, ladies, glad to hear the excitement! But before we go anywhere we need to find our hotel first."

"I concur Gerald."

"Hey babe, do you want to room with me tonight?"

"NO!" Both blondes shouted.

Gerald looked at Arnold in surprise, and then looked back out over the road. "Damn...can't you both just kiss and make up so I can be with my girl?"

"Can't you keep Jabba in his Hut for five minutes?" Helga asked, then crossed her arms and leaned back in the seat.

Phoebe turned bright red. Even Arnold snickered at Helga's embarrassing outburst.

"Don't think so! Starting now, you two are going to like each other and get along!"

"No. Starting now you two are going to have to learn to sleep in different rooms for a change."

"Helga..."

"Oh please don't tell me you agree with him Phoebe."

"Well I kind of do."

"You know what? Fine. You guys win. I give up! Football Head, we'll hook up, we can screw in our own room and actually do them a favour for once."

"Helga!" Phoebe cried in shock.

"What? I thought you guys wanted to be able to share a room so you can screw with no obstacles."

"KNOCK IT OFF HELGA!" Arnold shouted feeling his whole entire body turn red.

Everyone fell silent at Arnold's sudden outburst.

"'Knock it off Helga!'" Helga mocked in a high voice, and then looked out the window. "'I can't take it 'cause I'm soooo hard now and I might just burst!'"

"Dude, knock it off..." Gerald glanced angrily into the rear-view mirror at the woman who was successfully getting under his skin. He was remembering why all that time he had never really liked Helga.

"Okay, okay, fine, all joking aside, forget it Geraldo. We gave in to your wants and needs all through this trip. Phoebs is rooming with me and that's THAT!"

Gerald wanted so much to growl, he wanted so much to stop the car and kick Helga's ass right then and there. His hands gripped the steering wheel tightly for control, and a tense silence fell upon the group in the car until he heard Arnold breathe out a quiet but long breath. "Helga, let them share a room."

"WHAT?" Came Helga's started voice from behind.

"Gerald and Phoebe never get any time alone back in Hillwood because Gerald has too many family members at home, Phoebe's parents are strict when it comes to them being together. They both invited us to this trip...they didn't have to but they did so I guess we should, try to get along and share a room and, if anything I could always sleep on the floor."

"You were always such a saint, Football Head." Helga crossed her arms again. "Okay, you know what, fine. You take the bed. I'll sleep in the bathtub. Can't have you catching a cold if you sleep on the floor. Oh, wait! I know! We can try to get a room with two beds! That'd be ideal."

"Um, Helga, about that..." Phoebe began, her face sympathetic to her friend over the hell she was about to unleash.

Helga looked at Phoebe and her eyes pleaded with her. "Oh no, Phoebs, don't finish that sentence..."

"...A lot of the rooms were either, booked or far from our price range." Phoebe admitted and she smiled sheepishly. "We'll each have a room with one bed. ...Sorry."

Helga just sighed and put her head on her knees. "...It could be worse. I could be rooming with one of the other boys from school. Hate to say it but, Arnoldo, you're the only gay guy in our group. So I know you won't do anything to me."

"...Gee...thanks..." Arnold said sarcastically.

"Don't mention it."

"Trust me; no guy would do anything to you." Gerald heard Arnold, and laughed inwardly. That was a pretty low insult for Arnold to say. It seemed to take the edge off of the angry thoughts in Gerald's own head. He smiled slightly. Besides, Helga deserved it. Didn't she?

Across the seat, Arnold sighed and looked out his window. Why should I keep being nice and letting her get away with things. She won't stop hurting me.

Behind him, Helga was still reeling at Arnold's insult. It made her dizzy. It made her heart hurt. So it took a moment for her to catch her wits again. She looked out the window and whispered to herself. "I know."

Phoebe sighed. She'd had enough of this. She rubbed her temples. "Okay, look. You two need to stop acting like children." Arnold and Helga both turned in their seats to look at Phoebe. Both seemed astonished. "What happened last night was a nasty argument and wasn't fun, I know. But we are on vacation and we are going to have fun, and I will not have you two fighting like cats and dogs and ruining things for all of us. Now please, try to be civil with one another. If not for your sakes, then for Gerald and myself."

"But-" Came Arnold's attempt at a rebuttal.

But Phoebe wouldn't let him continue. "No. No buts. You two stop this and start acting civil. It's not that hard. First off, Helga, apologize."

"I don't have to apologize for any-"

"I said apologize." The words seized up in Helga's mouth as it hung open mid sentence. Her petite Japanese friend from Kentucky looked very serious. Phoebe was also one of the only people whose eyes could truly pierce Helga's armour, right through into her vulnerable soul, like she was doing right then.

Gulping, and feeling as if she were under the mercy of a tiger, Helga sighed. It was better to get this over with, or else she would disappoint Phoebe, and Helga knew she couldn't take much of that. "Okay, okay, you're right. I'm sorry guys. ...And, Arnold, I'm sorry about last night." 'There goes my pride. Lovely! Now I'm just admitting he's right. ...And he is right. That's the problem!' "...I'm really sorry. I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. Look, it's not easy for me, but I'll try to put things aside so we can all have fun. So... truce?"

"A truce from you is like shaking hands with the devil... OW!" he felt a painful punch on his arm, turning to see it was…Phoebe?

"Apologize!"

Arnold sighed and turned around in his chair to look at the two Girls. "Okay I'm sorry, she just gets on my nerves and" turning his attention to Helga. "It's not like me to be this way but sometimes I can't help it because you love getting under my skin so just for this trip I'll call truce, but that means you can't break it just because you want to get your way like you always-"

"Arnold..." Gerald admonished him.

Arnold eyed Gerald, and then shook his head and sighed in defeat. "Anyway…truce." He held out his hand to shake hers.

"Truce." Helga shook his hand.

"Good. No more fighting, you two." Gerald said.

"Yes daddy."

"Helga." Phoebe poked her warningly in the side.

"Sorry mommy."

"Well than as your father, keep quiet, we're almost there and Arnold?"

"Yeah?"

"Stop with your pouting"

Arnold simply shrugged in defeat and looked out the window. "Yes father."

X X X

A few hours later, the group drove into Vancouver after having no problems crossing the Canadian border, and a quick stop at a currency exchange. The car had descended into silence again, but both Gerald and Phoebe found that the silence was preferable to the alternative. Unfortunately.

They were booked at a Holiday Inn Express, with two rooms side by side. After checking in, they all agreed to get settled in and have room service for dinner, and then they'd go to the Vancouver Look Out to see the lights of the city at night.

Helga and Arnold left Phoebe and Gerald at their hotel room door, before entering their own room to begin unpacking

Okay, I can do this...I made a promise to Phoebe and we're going to get along. Helga looked up, and cleared her throat to get Arnold's attention as he was unpacking

Arnold looked over at her. "What?"

His green eyed stare froze her heart, and she could barely speak, but she managed. "Hey. I'm getting room service now, 'cause I'm starving. What do you want?"

"Oh... Well I could go some for pepperoni pizza and a yahoo soda."

Arnold's gaze softened and Helga's heart breathed a sigh of relief. There was a possibility this truce would work out after all.

"I wonder if they even have Yahoo soda here..." She wondered aloud as she picked up the hotel services booklet and thumbed through the pages. She then picked up the phone, and fingered the room service button. After a moment, Arnold could hear a faint voice come from the handset in Helga's hand. "...Yeah, hello. This is room 322. Hi. I'd like to order a personal pepperoni pizza, some chicken teriyaki, and...do you guys have Yahoo soda? ...You do! Okay, then we'll have two of those. ...Hmm, chocolate cake, bring two slices. Kay, thanks." She hung the phone up and plopped onto the bed, then resumed looking over the guest book. 'Least it's a Queen-sized bed. ...Damn, now I can't get close in my sleep. Oh well, least it'll help a bit.' Helga thought to herself, almost forgetting the last day's worth of spat she'd had with Arnold.

She sat the booklet on the nightstand, and then took the TV remote. The flat screen TV blinked to life, right to the on-screen guide, and as soon as Helga saw that it offered free movies on demand, a smile washed across her face. "Hey, look. We can pick movies on this thing."

Of course we can…that's what comes with the hotel. Arnold thought sarcastically, but then frowned as he shook his head from those thoughts. No we promised Phoebe. We agreed on a truce. Those thoughts didn't stop the years worth of torture induced anger from rearing itself in his mind. Truce or no. He couldn't ignore the fact that he was very angry with Helga, and had no idea how he could survive this.

Unlike all the days and years before, he could tolerate Helga enough without feeling like throttling her. It wasn't until this trip actually that he'd ever given a thought to outright punching Helga as payback for making his life miserable. He never gave a thought to actually hating her. Until now. But... He didn't understand why.

Sometimes he even found himself wishing he never offered her his umbrella all those years ago. She seemed so lost then, so down, like how he was feeling deep down at the time. Had he known that she would turn out to be a bratty little hellion, would he have reconsidered the umbrella, and days later, the graham crackers? Arnold sighed. But a truce was still a truce. He turned to Helga, with mock curiosity. "Oh really?"

But Arnold hid his deceiving look poorly, and Helga picked up on it easy enough. 'Damn it. I can't do ANYTHING right. Of course I can't. Way to go you stupid little bitch. Way to fucking go. Thanks to you all you're doing is striking anger. You don't deserve him. You can try to be nice, but he'll just act hostile, like you always do. You deserve it, you know. You have NO right to be upset, you bitch. It's your own fault.' She closed her eyes and looked away from the TV. "...Yes really. So if you want to watch something, I don't care either way." She tossed the remote aside, on the bed towards Arnold, then got up and walked to her luggage.

Arnold watched Helga's reaction and frowned. Regardless of his anger towards her, something about her reaction, something about the look in her eyes, got him in the gut. She was angry, but, not at him. He was sure of it. Some of his anger faded and it was replaced with sympathy towards Helga. His features softened. Arnold looked at the remote, and then reached for it.

"Hey Helga. You know, there is this show I've always wanted to see." Arnold started as he changed through the channels. "It's called Dinosaurs and it was suppose to be a kids show but of course this was in the 90's and the censors used to let programs get away with a little more cursing or some innuendo than they do now. The baby is actually voiced by the same voice actor who plays Elmo."

Helga looked over to Arnold, who patted on the other side for Helga to sit down.

'What the hell? He's supposed to be mad at me! ...What am I saying, he's Arnold, he doesn't stay mad for very long. ...And yet all I do is bring it back again. Okay, okay girl, take this opportunity, and be nice.' Helga allowed herself to smile, just a little. "That's pretty messed up."

"Well it's almost ending but at least you get to see the baby. We could watch The Notebook after that. If you're into crying your eyes out. The ending made me cry and I remember..." Arnold laughed. "Gerald made fun of me for a week about it."

"You saw The Notebook? I had no idea you were into chick flicks..." Helga beamed at yet another thing about Arnold she had never known before. All resistance was forgotten in an instant. "...Okay, fine, I saw it too, but only because Olga made me!" 'And I'd be lying if I didn't fantasize about you and I kissing in the rain like that...'

"Well, normally I don't. But after everyone kept talking about it I ended up seeing it, I liked the whole rain scene." Arnold admitted sheepishly. "I also want to try kissing upside down in the rain like Spider-Man." He laughed. "I guess I'm just a hopeless romantic."

'Holy shit, I felt the same way...' Helga's heart skipped a beat. She was forgetting the truce, the anger, and the arguments. It felt good."You sure are all right. ...Guess I can't blame you; they DID make it seem so awesome. So easy."

"Yeah I know. Kissing in the rain sounds good, but it's something to share with someone you love, you know. So basically I would see a few chick flicks but anything like The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants or The Happy Bunnies...no."

"I'm definitely with you on that one, oddly enough. Lila and Olga talked me into watching The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. ...And I don't know about you, but all those girls were different sizes and shapes, there is NO way, that a pair of jeans the size they were could fit them. Forget it, it doesn't work that way."

There was a knock at the door and the pair looked up towards the entry way. "Room service!" Someone called on the other side.

"All right, food!" Helga threw a fist in the air in mock triumph, jumped off the bed, and went for the door while grabbing her wallet on the way. Helga opened the door happily, to a gray haired man with a food cart. There were four covered but appetizing looking plates, along with two yahoo sodas.

She stepped aside for the man to wheel the cart in. The man removed the plate covers for her, and Helga's eyes lit up at the sight of the food. "Here you go, Miss. Will that be all?"

"Yep." Helga said while counting out a tip that she then handed over.

"Thank you Miss, have a nice night." The server pocketed the tip, nodded to Helga, and then exited the room.

Arnold smiled as Helga wheeled the food out into the open. He picked up his plate, took a slice of his pizza along with a soda and then reclined back in the bed to watch the movie that had just started. "Ever watch WALL-E? I think it's an awesome movie."

Helga snorted. "Are you kidding me? It's one of the best movies I've ever seen! ...And I don't say that often. ...And you know, don't tell anyone I said that. I won't lie, I love that movie. WALL-E is adorable and EVE kicks ass."

"Oh good then it's on right now."

"All right, let's watch it then."

As they watched, Arnold glanced over at Helga. He had always thought of Helga to be sort of uncultured; A tough girl with an equally tough attitude. So he was surprised when Helga opted for chopsticks instead of a fork. She picked up a piece of chicken like a pro, then caught his stare and looked at him. They looked at each other for a brief moment, and then Helga smiled as she resumed watching the movie, and Arnold did the same.

X X X

After WALL-E, and after their plates had been emptied of everything but crumbs and teriyaki sauce, the two sat on opposite sides of the bed. Not too close, but not on the edge of the bed either. They had gone back to the on demand movie selection and decided to watch Homeward Bound because they both liked it, and it was one of the first movies to pop up on the screen as a 'suggested title.'

Arnold watched the credits start to roll, and then glanced towards Helga. "You never get tired of the classics, I'm glad they played Homeward Bound, I love this movie but I wonder how long it took to make it since it's hard to train the animals to do certain moves."

Helga rolled her eyes. "Are you kidding? I got this movie trivia down. They get trained professionals, and work for days and weeks to get the dogs and other animals to do certain things. Given that, who knows...it'd be worth looking up. But the mountain lion scenes? Now that was all real."

Before Arnold could respond, there was a loud knock at their door.

"Hey guys!" Gerald called from the other side of the door. "You girls ready? We're goin' to the look out! It's dark out now and it's a great time to go, to see the city all lit up and the mountains too!"

"You still want to go?" Helga took her hair out of her ponytail, fluffing it a bit from its previous confines.

Arnold smiled back. "Sure, let's go."

"We'll be right out, daddy!" Helga yelled back.

Gerald laughed. "Okay, kids! Be good now! We'll meet you downstairs."

X X X

An hour later found Arnold looking through the viewfinder of his camera. All round them, spread out and crisp in the night air, was an incredible panoramic of the Vancouver skyline with the majestic North Shore Mountains beyond that. They were at the lookout point in downtown Vancouver. Everything was lit up and it in the night sky.

The group was in the middle of taking pictures of each other. "Hey! Hey man, me next!" Gerald waved to Arnold, and made the silliest face he could muster with the city in the background.

"Gerald..." Arnold chuckled, taking a photo.

Phoebe came up next to Gerald, who watched as she pulled down her lower eyelids and stuck her tongue out. Gerald laughed as he mimicked her.

"Crazy daisies." Helga giggled, shaking her head.

"Hey take one of me and Phoebe" Gerald said, wanting to have a couple's photo with her.

Helga shrugged and stepping the side. "Whatever floats your boat." She watched as Gerald and Phoebe gave a sweet, romantic pose, cheek to cheek. The blonde girl couldn't help but feel a spark of envy. No, she wasn't jealous of either of them, God no. She was jealous of what they had. She was very happy for them, whole heartedly. But it also came to remind her just how much she wanted to share that joy with her beloved. She looked down and away, and chewed on her lower lip. The sight made the dull pain in her heart worse.

She knew what would quench that thirst. But she knew unless she shaped up, it just wouldn't happen. All she was doing was driving him away. It hurt. Really hurt. And she had no one to blame but herself. This game of charades, this self imposed facade of hers to hide what she really was from her enemies, and from Arnold, just couldn't go on. It had to stop. Helga the bully, Helga the firebrand tough girl, born from a plate of preschool graham crackers, had to die. She had to do something if she wanted to be with him.

Looking at Gerald and Phoebe, she wanted to have that romance with Arnold more than ever now. She was seventeen, they had one last year of high school to go, and then it was off to college. Who knew where he would go for college, she sure didn't know. She would regret it if she never told him how she truly felt. If that happened and she never saw him, ever again, how would she survive?

Helga approached the railing of the lookout, and leaned into it while she focused on the foreign lights of the unfamiliar but welcoming city of Vancouver. She sighed. Would her soul die, leaving the empty and crumbling shell of a girl that nobody liked? She'd asked herself that to her foggy reflection in the bathroom mirror countless times before. She never liked the answers she got.

'I have to do something... I can't go on like this. I want, I need Arnold so much... But if I keep this up I'll never tell him how I really feel. I don't deserve him, but I can't just let him go. ...What do I do...'

Arnold went for another picture of the happy and very photogenic couple, who made another pose for him as they laughed and stole kisses from each other's cheeks. But something else caught Arnold's attention instead. In the corner they had occupied, Helga was looking out over the city of Vancouver. He could see her face in profile, and what he saw there, made his heart ache.

She had a very perceptible frown, and a very thought filled expression in her eyes. Something was troubling her, he knew. For all the years he had known Helga, he was familiar with her insults and her bluster, but he also knew she had a softer side. Helga wasn't just a dumb bully. Her antics hid an agenda. They weren't just empty actions. She was intelligent, and well, very cute, in her own way. The way the wind blew around her golden blonde hair sent pangs on sympathy through Arnold's heart.

Suddenly he didn't want this stupid truce anymore. He wanted something more permanent. He wanted to be Helga's friend. There was something significant about Helga that very moment. It was the most profound pose he had ever seen anyone in. Standing there, filled with worry about something, he didn't know what, looking out over the night life of a city, with only a frown marring one of the most beautiful profiles in a face that he had ever seen. The presence of an adorable ear from underneath her windblown hair just sealed the deal. If only she could see what Arnold saw at that very moment; He knew what he had to do.

He pretended to take a picture of Gerald and Phoebe. He focused the camera on Helga, setting up to take an image of Helga that he had never seen before, but one he wanted to remember. 'What are you thinking about, Helga?'

Quickly he snapped a picture of her, and then another of Gerald and Phoebe, making it seem like he was taking two shots of them. It snapped Helga out of her trance, and she looked towards the rest of the group.

"All right!" Gerald took the camera, oblivious to what had happened. "Who wants to be next? Anyone?"

Phoebe took the Camera from Gerald "Helga why don't you take a picture of yourself, come on you know Olga is going to want some pictures of you."

"Whatever, suit yourself Phoebs." Helga tried to smile for Phoebe, but Arnold could tell it was a ruse. And he suddenly decided he wanted to see Helga's smile again, no matter what it took. As Helga stood in front of Phoebe and the camera, right then he got an idea. When Phoebe held the camera up to her eye to take a picture, Arnold quickly stepped behind Helga, stuck his tongue out, and crossed his eyes. She immediately felt his presence and turned around to face him.

SNAP!

"What the hell?" Helga gasped. "What did you do that for?"

"I don't know, I felt like it?" Arnold smiled and rubbed the back of his neck. He had done his part. It was up to Helga now.

He watched Helga's expression to see if it had worked or if he needed to run to save his neck. Helga blinked, and then a small but disarming smile graced her lips. His plan had worked! Very softly, Helga said, "Thank you, Arnold." She then turned around, and willingly posed for Phoebe.

Phoebe snapped another picture then started laughing. "Oh my! Heh heh heh." Helga turned around to see what was so funny, only to encounter another silly face.

"Okay you," Helga furrowed her brow. "Have it your way!" She turned around, rolled her tongue at the camera, and then crossed her eyes.

The next several pictures were of Helga and Arnold trying to outdo each other in the funny face department, until Phoebe admonished them to be serious. This didn't help much. Arnold stood up tall along with Helga, but their faces were 'trying to look serious,' and it was too much for poor phoebe.

She lowered the camera, and rolled her eyes. "One more, and please be serious guys."

"Okay, mom." Helga mocked. Then she folded her arms in front, and smiled slightly at the camera. Arnold stood beside her, and in one very bold move, snaked an arm around her shoulders.

Helga's breath caught at the feeling of Arnold's arm across her upper back, and how his hand gently held her upper arm. Her eyes widened and a soft blush tinted her cheeks at his close presence. But unknown to her, her smile grew ten times and her eyes lit up. Phoebe noticed and before anyone could move an inch, took two quick shots, then lowered the camera.

"All right, you sillies, I'm done."

"My turn!" Helga stepped forward and snatched the camera. She glanced briefly at the photo on the camera display that Phoebe had just taken, and smiled a little. She would have to remind herself to get a copy of that photo.

"Here's one you can take!" Gerald grabbed Arnold in a headlock and noogied him.

"Gerald!"

"That's it, that's it, hold it!" Helga laughed, then took the picture

"I don't think so!" Arnold growled. In one swift move he lifted Gerald up even though Gerald still had him in a headlock.

"OH CR-AP!" Gerald laughed as Helga took another picture. Arnold finally put him down. "Damn I forgot you still know martial arts."

"That's what you get for messing with someone who has a black belt"

"I have a black belt too."

Phoebe blinked in confusion "Really Gerald? I never knew that!"

"Yeah, I bought it at a store." He joked and then winked at his girlfriend, before getting in a position to play fight with Arnold. Rolling his eyes, the blonde boy did the same.

"In this corner, standing at six feet four inches, seven feet if you include the hair, weighing at one hundred and sixty pounds is, Geraldo! And in this corner, standing at six feet two inches, weighing at who knows what is, Football Head!" Helga announced dramatically before snapping another photo.

"Very funny!" Gerald said, snickering.

"Hey why don't I get a name? Football Head is not a real name Helga"

"Okay okay...Arnoldo!"

Gerald looked at Arnold. "She's making it seem like we're cachascanistas, técnicos ,or something."

"Mexican Wrestlers?" Phoebe translated.

"Yeah." Gerald nodded and stood straight. "We sound like a couple of Mexican wrestlers. Then again you were born in San Lorenzo. So it's kinda close."

"Really?" Helga seemed shocked, she hadn't known, and this was something she wanted to know. "You were?"

"Ah, well yeah I was, do you remember the temple we went to?"

Helga nodded her head and curiosity gleamed in her eyes.

"I was born in that temple."

"Wow, Arnold, that's..." She was unsure of what to say, but she did smile. "That's really cool. I mean, wow. ...Um, you know, I'm curious, how did that happen?"

Arnold smiled back. 'Well this is new, actually taking an interest in something like that without being mean or critical...' "It's a long story, I'll tell you about it sometime."

Helga blushed at Arnold's attention to her, and the fact that he was actually volunteering information about his past to her. She looked down. Did she deserve to hear? "Well, if you want."

"Sure, I'll-"

"Ahem." Gerald said. "Sorry to interrupt, but we should get going, we got a lot to do tomorrow."

"I'll tell you as soon as I whip Gerald's butt."

"Oh really now? I think it's the other way around my friend."

Smirking back at his best friend, Arnold swiftly made an attack pose "Bring it."

After a few silly fights and additional photos of the carnage, the gang headed back to the Hotel, sightseeing along the way.

X X X

Gerald and Phoebe excused themselves to their own room after spending a few moments in Helga and Arnold's room. After the couple left, a soft silence fell between the two of them, punctuated only by the air conditioner under the window, and the sound of a loud, rambunctious child running down the hall with his parents calling after him to slow and be quiet.

Other than small talk like "I'm going to go get changed" or "what side of the bed do you want." Not much was exchanged between them, not much was offered to talk about.

Arnold emerged from the bathroom after brushing his teeth and donning his pyjamas. While he was in the bathroom, Helga had turned off several of the lights, to prepare for bed. The only lights left on were those beside the bed, on the night stands. He stood beside the foot of the bed, and marvelled at the site before him.

Helga was standing to one side of their third story hotel window. The curtains were drawn, so she was peeking through them at the view of the city, in her pink PJ's, and a thoughtful expression on her face. In the dim light of the room, she looked soft and warm. With her hair down and framing her softened features. Her hair was still slightly windblown from their visit to the lookout. Arnold decided it looked good like that. At that moment he had a fleeting fantasy of walking up to Helga and holding her in his arms, with his head resting on her shoulder as they looked out over the city lights, but he quickly dismissed it.

He shook his head, and walked over to Helga, where he stood beside her and peered out to the rapidly emptying streets below them, and the city lights beyond.

"Nice view, isn't it?"

"...Yeah." Helga murmured. She didn't break her gaze at the scene outside, but Arnold's presence still made her feel butterflies. "...Arnold?"

"Yes?"

"...I'm...I'm..." Helga swallowed. 'Do it Helga, this ends tonight. You need this.' She let out a breath. "I'm sorry."

"Huh? What for?"

"Everything. ...I was being a class-A bitch to you since this whole vacation started and not once did I thank you for inviting me along. I wanted to say I'm sorry about all that. ...And thanks for inviting me along. I don't expect you to forgive me, and that's okay. I don't deserve that. ...I just wanted you to know that."

Arnold sighed. "Helga. You know. I wasn't acting very nice to you...actually I didn't really want you to come." He winced when he saw the reflection of her eyes in the window, and the pain they held. He could see the crestfallen look on her features. He smiled sadly. "But of course I'm...well now I'm glad you got to come along, I mean I would have been here by myself and I'd feel like the third wheel without you. Plus there are times where we are getting along good."

Helga managed a small smile. "...Yeah, we really did. I did enjoy our fun times so far."

"Me too." Arnold agreed.

'This feels...really good. Apologizing and opening up like this. And he's so close to me!' Helga caught some of Arnold's reflection in the window as they continued to look out, and smiled a bit more. She gripped the curtain. It was all she could do to resist the temptation to lean into Arnold. "We did have some fun, especially that night at the dance club. ...Honestly, I've never had that much fun at a club before. I...well, what I'm saying is that I had fun dancing with you. Really."

Then in a heartbeat, Arnold stepped away from Helga, and walked towards the bed. "I had fun dancing with you too." He approached the bed, reached for the remote and pressed the power button. The TV blinked to life, and a melody filled the room. It was just the guide channel, but the audio was a slow dance from a classic movie. It was Marilyn Monroe singing I Want Be Loved by You.

Helga's eyes widened and her heart began skipping beats. She let go of the curtains and turned around to see Arnold looking at her from the bed. At first he was startled by her sudden movement. But then her eyes met his, and Arnold's stare became curious. 'Arnold,' she thought to herself as she almost instinctively walked slowly towards the bed. 'Do you understand that my heart sings this song to you?' Something more profound than the two of them was pulling Helga forward, and it was some force stronger than gravity; a warmth that her heart was seeking out, like a candle to keep itself warm from the cold outside. 'You're my candle. My flame. Oh Arnold.'

As Helga approached Arnold, her heart was pounding so hard that she could hear it.

Arnold listened for a moment to the music, caught the hopeful expression in Helga's eyes, and then smiled warmly at what it was she wanted. He stood up and held his hand out to her. "May I have this dance?"

Helga stopped, and stood there, facing Arnold. Instead of seeing the seventeen year old, she saw the three year old holding out his hand like he was offering her his graham crackers to replace the ones that had been so cruelly stolen from her. But this time, it wasn't graham crackers. It was something else.

Helga took a breath, and then looked up from his hand to his face. She lost herself in the green of Arnold's eyes as she reached out and took his hand wordlessly. She looked at him with curiosity, and allowed herself, just a tinge of adoration. 'Can I be so bold, my love?'

Helga gently placed her hand on his shoulder while he held her other hand. He noted the slight nervous tremble in her fingers as he put his other hand on her warm waist and they began to slow dance to the song.

'Oh my God,' Helga's mind raced, 'you actually want to dance with me? We're slow dancing to a classic love song? You're dancing with me, like that night at the club...Wow, you're such a good slow dancer! What am I kidding, you're the best slow dancer in the world, Arnold.' Needless to say, she was in heaven now. On cloud nine, as they danced together like never before. Her insides warmed up and froze all at once, her heart pounded, her cheeks became tinged with the deepest of pink, and her eyes wandered around before focusing back into his. She felt as if they were the only people in the world. Nothing else mattered. She felt peace, harmony, happiness... She had no control, it was all Arnold's now, but she didn't even care, Helga smiled genuinely with adoration and joy, her eyes seeming to light up with so much love. Her walls were being torn down, and frankly, for once, she was going to damn well enjoy it.

Without another thought, Helga stood closer to Arnold, and rested her head on his chest. It was such a gentle motion, but immediately Arnold felt as if the wind had been knocked out of his lungs, only to be replaced by unimaginable warmth as he gently breathed in. After the sadness she displayed earlier he wanted to make her somewhat happy but after she actually apologized he felt he wanted to show her...

'Show you what?' He asked himself inwardly. 'You're not unworthily of forgiveness? Maybe you're a pain in my side sometimes but you deserve to be happy, everyone does. You're the smartest girl I know when it comes to getting your way with things; you've always been there for me whenever one of my girlfriends broke up with me. Sure you play tricks on me but you always did listen to me.' He focused on the hair atop Helga's head and felt confused at the warmth, and how good this all felt. 'Helga? What am I to you? I must know.'

Helga lifted her head away from his chest, and Arnold shivered, but then she placed her arms around his neck, and they looked into each other's eyes.

"Helga?"

"Hm?"

"I'm happy you came with us."

"You know...I'm happy too."

"You really do dance great."

"You're not bad, yourself."

His eyes landed on her lips, and he wondered how soft they were. Helga was smiling, and they were parted slightly. She still had an overbite, but like he had noticed before when they first had to share a bed a few nights ago, it was so unbelievably cute. So much so that he wondered what it would be like to touch those lips with his own. And he knew, that moment, as they stopped dancing and the music hit a crescendo through the TV's tiny speakers, he had to know those lips.

He closed the distance between them effortlessly, and softly, in a feather like touch, his lips were upon hers.

The feeling ran through his entire body making his heart beat in two-step to the music. Her lips were like soft velvet petals, cold at first but then incredibly warm. They sent sparks through Arnold's body. Such incredible feeling, and all he had done to feel that, was press his lips against hers.

'I can't believe I'm kissing Helga...Her lips feel so...' It was then that Arnold realized Helga had been standing still. Panic raced though his mind. He pulled away from her and cleared his throat. His cheeks burned red and he looked away. "I'm... Sorry..."

'He kissed me...he kissed me...HE KISSED ME!' It was the only thing Helga could think of. Her lips tingled like crazy, and she had never felt so warm, so alive. She was way too happy now. Everything seemed to disappear, everything. She was drunk without booze. This feeling was what she longed for, what she had wanted for so long. It had been six years since they last kissed, and now her goal was met, she got to kiss him again. 'It's working... I was nice and he wanted to kiss me!'

She would've been fine at that point. She had an easy out. The old Helga would accept it and say 'It's okay, Arnold' then be done with it. This kiss would have held her off. But something was borne of the fire she felt in her heart right then. A desire she had that trumped anything the old Helga would have done. Her love struck heart had plans. She would not back down. She would not run away.

"No." Helga breathed, stepped to him, and brought her hands to his shoulders, up to his neck, and then his cheeks as she gently held his head in her hands. "...Please..." She caught Arnold's eyes in her gaze. 'Hair like tufts of prairie grass, eyes like azure pools that I want to swim in. Arnold. I love you.' Her eyes were moist and she shook her head. "Don't you dare say you're sorry." And then she leaned up and kissed him again. She wanted more. She let her tongue slip gently between his lips to glide along his teeth. She needed more. So much more.

For a moment Arnold didn't know what to do. He let his jaw loosen and was met with a pleasant surprise as he felt Helga's tongue brush against his own. He let his eyes flutter closed and he tilted his head to let Helga deepen the kiss. As her tongue met his, Arnold remembered all the other times he'd kissed a girl. None of those times were like this. All at once, Helga's kiss was needy yet tender, greedy yet nurturing. It was gentle and warm.

The way her lips lovingly caressed his, if a kiss could speak, were saying 'please?' Arnold obliged. Her kiss had brought him to a blissful place. The world around him ceased to matter, and he wrapped his arms around Helga to pull her closer than ever before, in one of the tightest hugs he had ever dared. The girl in his arms moaned into the kiss, and stood on her toes. She wrapped her arms more around Arnold's neck, and he could feel her using him for leverage, as if she was melting in his arms. It all felt wonderful.

An insatiable desire washed across Arnold, and he let go of Helga's lips. He sought out her forehead and pressed his lips into it, and revelled in how warm it was. Helga's excited breaths tickled his neck with warmth, and he trailed kisses down the bridge of her nose, to the very tip. He then kissed her eyebrow, then her other, then over to her temple. Everywhere his lips brushed seemed so electric, so charged with fire.

Helga didn't let go as Arnold gently brushed against her eyelashes, and then let his nose brush through her hair, where he could smell shampoo and skin. He held her there, with his hands gently grasping her pyjamas, as he felt her breath against his collarbone, and her warm lips against his chest, Arnold's heart raced. This feeling he felt, was indescribable. He felt wonderful.

He held her there as the song faded into the distance, only to be replaced by another old melody that he couldn't identify. Helga moved slightly, and Arnold kissed her hair, and then went to kiss her cheek, but then stopped when he realized, through the kiss, he could taste salt. Her eyelash had brushed against his cheek, and if felt wet.

Arnold finally pulled away and looked at Helga's face. Her eyes were closed and there were tears on her cheeks. His heart beat with concern and he lifted a hand to caress Helga's ear. "Did...I...did I hurt you?"

A moment later Helga shook her head "no..." She let go of Arnold and stepped back slightly, letting Arnold's hand fall from her face as she reached up to wipe her eyes. "No...not at all." He noticed her eyes were still brimming with tears, but of joy, and yet sadness at once. A small smile broke out on her face. Silently she came a little closer and leaned up to kiss him once more on the cheek. This time it was gentle, sweet, and full of love. She held the kiss gently. 'I love you so much... Thank you...'

After prolonging the kiss a few heartbeats more, Helga pulled away and smiled before she sat down on the bed and wiped her tears with her PJ sleeve. She breathed in tears and a shallow sob.

Stunned and not knowing what else to do, Arnold walked into the bathroom. He turned the light on as the door clicked shut, the overhead mercury light flickered to life, and he stood before the sink. He studied his reflection in the mirror.

He had just kissed the very girl whom he'd spent most of his life trying to avoid. His lips had pressed against the lips of the very girl whom insulted him most of the days of his life. The same lips that uttered venom laced tirades against him. He had tasted the tongue of the girl whose darkest words hindered his optimism even on the brightest of days, but yet tasted bittersweet; and somewhere in his mind he thought that wasn't just the yahoo soda.

Arnold had held Helga G. Pataki in his arms, and he didn't want to let go.

He had kissed her lips, her cheeks, her nose, her eyebrows, her eyelashes. He had even tasted her tears. As he looked at himself in the mirror, he realized, the way Helga tasted, the feeling of her skin, and the way she felt in his arms, her scent, all of it, was still with him.

...and he loved it.

-End of Chapter-
Hey everyone. This is Pyrex Shards. The next chapter edit is going to be delayed by a couple of weeks. I will be taking a much needed vacation, my own little series of road trips with some friends of mine, so zero time will be allotted to editing, let alone writing. I was given a lot of freedom on Road Trip, so my work on this story isn't just a proofread. I've been putting my own special blend of unique herbs and spices on this story, rewriting a scene here and adding a little scene there, while I attempt to preserve the unique flow of the storyline. It takes time to finish each chapter because I am not a writer by trade. I am most definitely making this up as I go along. ;)

On behalf of myself and BrokenNintendo, thank you for reading and I apologize in advance for the irregular updates, but they cannot be helped.
© 2011 - 2024 BrokenNintendo
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