Escalating Love 3 3-4

Dinner had been pretty pleasant, albeit with some teases toward the two kids that made them blush, especially since they were sitting next to each other. As well as some knowing winks from Phil, which made Arnold want to disappear into his food and leave Helga mildly confused. But none the less, it was quite enjoyable and even entertaining. Gertie had put together some home-made Chinese food, including Chow Mein, General Tao chicken, brown fried rice, noodles, sweet and sour chicken, wonton noodles, egg rolls, and some dumplings.

And there was even some fortune cookies, to which Mr. Hyun admitted to having brought home from the restaurant he worked at.

"They wanted to use new recipe! So they let me have these and bring them home!" He'd said.

Everyone got one, even with Oskar trying to take two, which Suzie kicked him in the shins for.

When Arnold read his fortune, even if he never much believed in them, couldn't help but blush at what it read: Love's great ways remain a mystery to even the trained eye. Now wasn't that the truth.

Helga on the other hand had quite a similar kind of fortune, which read: Within the grasps of true love you slip so far but return upon actus rheus.

'You have no idea.' The both of them thought to themselves, hiding their fortunes to prevent the other from seeing it.

"Kimba, Eleanor, will you two strapping kids give ol' Bwana a hand?" Gertie winked at the two of them as she began to gather everyone's dishes.

"S-Sure, Grandma." Arnold said, trying not to sound so nervous. "Um, we'll help! Right, Helga?"

"Y-Yeah, we'll help out, Arnold's Grandma...I mean, Gert...I mean Bwana." Helga tugged at her collar nervously before she stood up, taking her plates. "We'll get right on it! C'mon Football Head, we got work to do!"

Despite everything at hand, he still couldn't help but offering a good-natured smile in her direction as he too began gathering his plate and everyone else's who sat near him. "Whatever you say, Helga."

"Darn right, whatever I say. Now c'mon, chop chop!"

The two of them cleared the table, bringing everything to the kitchen to either be washed or put away, and preserving any leftovers...that Oskar didn't get his hands on first. Arnold was then in charge of washing and rinsing the dishes, while Helga would dry them and put them away, while Gertie would put everything else away and also keep her eye on them with a knowing smile on her face.

As they washed, rinsed, dried and put away, they got into talking about random things to kill time as they did so.

"So I don't know about you, Arnold, but the effects for those little monsters were pretty weak. The CGI just looked fake." Helga remarked, talking about the movie they'd watched earlier on.

"Yeah, the CGI wasn't the best, but the rest of the movie was good." Arnold agreed, handing her a dish he'd finished washing.

"Are you kidding me? It was a pretty good adaptation." Helga took the dish and dried it off with the hand towel. "And that Craig guy was a nut." His dad almost sounded like Big Bob...scary. Thankfully not THAT extreme, and he sure never creeped me out with the langoliers.

"His father pressured him a lot, and he was pretty unstable because of it. Remember the third-grader, Ken Walsh? Who was always pressured by his parents, and he ended up being sent to live with his aunt in Tennessee because of it?"

"He went crazy, and had to be sent away because of all the pressure put on him. Guess his parents said the langoliers would get him!"

"Whatever happened to the boogeyman?" Arnold chuckled, handing her another dish.

"I know, right? I mean really." Helga shook her head in agreement, drying the dish he'd given her. "Hey, how about that Nick...you know, the British guy, sacrificing himself? That takes guts to do something like that."

"It really does, but at least his sacrifice wasn't in vain, either."

"It's Stephen King, even he knows when to dish out happy endings, sometimes! All we can hope is that we don't hop a plane that goes through a time rift."

"I'm with you on that one, Helga." Arnold then saw he was finished with the dishes, and then smiled. "Hey, Helga?"

"Yeah?" She turned to look at him curiously as she put the last plate away.

SPLASH!

"HEY!" Helga squealed in surprise. "Did...did you just splash me?"

He just smiled coyly. "I don't think so. I'd never do that. I'm Arnold, remember?"

"That's it. You are so DEAD!"

With that she splashed him back, laughing all the while. But he fought back and splashed her yet again. Pretty soon they got carried away and continued splashing each other with the lukewarm, soapy water, just acting like a couple of kids...even though they were.

Gertie just hid a chuckle behind her hand and walked out of the room quietly, not wanting to ruin their fun.

Arnold and Helga just continued splashing each other, laughing all the while and getting completely soaked to the bone.

Finally, though, the soapy dish water ran completely out, and, with giant grins on their faces, the two soaking wet and soapy kids both just shared one last laugh and then both agreed that them both taking a shower was definitely in order now. Arnold told Helga she could just take a shower in the regular bathroom in the hall and that he could just use his grandpa's secret one down in the basement.

And so they both showered, and changed into their pajamas (Helga just borrowing one of the Arnold's plaid shirts and a pair of pink shorts that a blushing Arnold admitted were once white but got mixed in with one of his grandma's crazy neon pink socks), and were now just laying on Arnold's floor in his room, their hair still a little damp and small smiles resting on their faces.

Helga was the first to break the (finally) contented silence. "So, what do you wanna do now?" She turned over on her side to look down at him, a hand supporting her head.

Arnold just shrugged, smiling at her from where he lay, clad in a plain pair of blue pajamas, and his hands just resting lazily on his stomach. "I don't know, Helga. We've already watched a movie, rehearsed our lines, eaten, and we're clean... I guess, we could just... talk." He shrugged again, still with that smile.

Helga rolled her eyes playfully, sitting up on the floor to stare down at him, with her hands hooked in front of her legs and her knees to her chest. "We've already talked, Football Head. And yeah, we've eaten, but I don't know about you, but I could DEFINITELY still eat. How about we pop in 'Monsters Creek' and have ourselves some dessert?" She grinned mischievously down at him.

Arnold smiled, sitting up next to her now also. "Sure. I'm pretty sure we've got some Chocolate Chunk ice cream in the freezer downstairs." He'd already begun standing up so he could go get it.

"No, Football Head, I meant 'dessert' as in..." She stood up then, a very foreign look coming to her face and eyes as she took a step towards him. "...'practice.'" Suddenly, she grabbed him and pressed her lips to his...

"Snap OUT of it, Football Head!"

And then he suddenly felt someone shaking him, and his eyes went wide at the realization that he'd just gotten a little lost in one of his daydreams... They'd been happening more and more frequently lately.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, Helga. I guess I just, um... lost my head for a second."

"No kidding, Football Head. I yelled your name like five times, and nothing! Criminy, could you PLEASE keep that wide head of yours out of the clouds for a minute to listen to me?" She huffed, sitting up on the floor.

"O-Oh, sorry, Helga." He hoped she couldn't notice the all too obvious blush growing in his cheeks.

"What I was SAYING was that I think we should go ahead and watch 'Monsters Creek' now, and maybe have some of that chocolate chunk ice cream I spotted in the fridge earlier while we were putting away the leftovers. What do ya say, Arnoldo?" She nudged him, her slight irriation with him vanishing as quickly as it came.

Arnold just blinked, before a smile came to his face and he stood up. "Sounds good, Helga. I'll go get the ice cream, and you put the movie in and, uh... get comfortable. I'll be back in just a minute." He smiled one last time, before making his way downstairs to get them some ice cream.

"Oh, NO WAY, Football Head! I'm coming with you!" Helga suddenly buzzed over to the door, opening it up before he could even get his hand on the doorknob.

Arnold blinked, that pleasant smile on his face only increasing. "Really?"

"Of course, Arnold. You don't know what kinds of sprinkles I like." She smirked at him, already beginning down the stairs of his room, her hair swaying back and forth as she walked.

Helga...what a girl. Arnold stared down after her for a few moments, a lovesick, dreamy look on his face.

"C'mon! Let's go!"

Snapping out of it, Arnold nodded and went downstairs after her, his cheeks heating up like crazy.

XXX

Which now brings us to this moment. Arnold and Helga, both simple nine-year-old kids, sitting on his flippable couch, eating chocolate chunk ice cream, and watching a scary monster movie (Monsters Creek), and all the while...doing their best to pay attention to the movie and their dessert and NOT each other. And to NOT think of how much they were secretly on the prowl for one another. Oh if only they knew what the other knew...

It wasn't until Helga broke the silence between them that their minds were off of things a bit.

"Hey. How much you want to bet that the monster will get the geeky idiot next? He just said the idiotic 'I'll be right back' line and left."

"I don't know, Helga...maybe, but the movie could twist us around and maybe get the other girl first." Arnold suggested.

Helga smirked a bit. "Oh you think so, huh? Think you'll win this time? You wanna bet?"

"I don't know Helga, are you up to it?" Arnold smiled at her innocently.

"You're on, Football Head. If I win, you..." Her smirk grew, her eyes gleaming with mischief. "You have to kiss me."

Arnold's eyes widened. "W-What? K-Kiss you?"

"You heard me."

Of course, he was more than glad to acquiesce if she did end up being right, but it was still pretty surprising that she actually said that. Did that mean something? Did she WANT to kiss him? He didn't doubt that she didn't like it when they kissed, because if she really didn't like kissing him, she would have stopped it from happening a long time ago. Heck, the first time they'd kissed was enjoyable and she didn't seem at all repulsed by it one bit. It was part of what did seem to confirm his suspicion that she may have liked him a bit more than as a friend...but really though? What WAS going on?

Only one way to find out.

"O-Okay, Helga..." Arnold managed after some thought. "If I win..." He now had to think yet again about what to make come out of this. Something worth it...as she seemed to be doing, but not enough to freak either of them out. A date? No, too much. A kiss? No, that would be silly and would give no reason for either side to want to win since they would get it either way. A hug? Come on. They were already friends and shared hugs when they were alone. A snack? No way, not worth it...even if a snack they liked was always good. Then he thought of it. "You have to wear your hair down until you leave tomorrow."

Helga rose one side of her eyebrow and snickered. "Man, you really like it when I wear my hair down, don't you? Do you want to brush it and run your fingers through it while you're at it?"

"Can I?" He asked in surprise.

Again she snickered. "What the heck. Fine. You're on, Football Head."

She held her hand to him to shake, which he did, and they went back to watching the movie.

They watched the screen intensely, watching carefully for when the next person would end up getting slaughtered and WHO exactly that person would be...

Some time later, both kids were staring at the screen with wide eyes, their spoons frozen in mid-ascending-to-the-pie-hole...

After a moment, they turned and looked at each other, and immediately burst into laughter, their ice cream nearly falling out of their laps and just plopping down onto the floor.

"I... can't believe that... we tied!" Helga managed between laughs.

Arnold nodded through his laughs, replying back best he could, "I know... Who'd've thought she'd actually end up FOLLOWING him and getting killed off right alongside him?" He chuckled some more.

"Seriously!" Helga coughed out, finally beginning to get her laughs under control.

Arnold wiped his eyes free of any tears that may have escaped in the middle of his laugh-fest, still grinning like crazy.

The two kids just sat there in contented silence for several seconds...

And then the reality of what exactly BOTH of them winning meant finally set in, and the two of them immediately found themselves gulping, blushes rising in their cheeks at an alarming speed.

Helga laughed a little nervously, though she tried her best to seem casual about it all. "Well, I-I guess you owe me that kiss now, Arnold..."

Arnold felt that a gulp was in order once again at these words, and he looked away, refusing to look her in the eye as he said, "Y-Yeah... I guess so..."

He heard shifting on the other end of the couch, but he payed it no mind... not before he suddenly felt a hand come to his shoulder and start trying to force him to turn around. He jumped slightly at her touch (and the delightful little shock that it had caused to shoot through him), and he turned around to face her with wide eyes, realizing almost immediately that she was MUCH closer than she was before...

Helga gulped, the blush only getting stronger in her cheeks. 'Come on, Helga ol' girl, don't chicken out now. You were brave enough to make up this whole stupid bet in the first place... and he has no choice but to comply, so... YOU'D BETTER NOT MISS OUT ON KISSING HIM AGAIN!' She took in a shaky breath, some actual strength actually returning to her voice as she said, "Well, might as well get it over with, right, Arnold?" She laughed a bit shakily, though thankfully not as shakily as before.

Arnold's breathing got a bit heavier at her words, and the small bit of leaning in that had accompanied them, and the only thing he felt he could manage at this point was a small nod in return and to close his eyes real tight and pucker his lips slightly, just waiting for it...

"OH no, Football Head, the bet was that YOU had to give ME a kiss! Not the other way around. Now lean, already!" He could suddenly feel her warm breath tickling the small hairs of his face, and his breath hitched in his throat at the feeling, causing his already pounding heart to practically explode with anxiety and anticipation and even slight frustration with himself that he was acting so shy and silly over something that they'd already done nearly eight times... But he supposed that he couldn't help it. Every new kiss he received from her was like the first... a spark would fly through him, a tremble would pass through his spine, his hands would start sweating, his heart would burst... it was wonderful... but he'd never actually had to just... go for it. It was usually in the heat of the moment and all just this big emotional rush... but this time, HE had to initiate it all by his little self, and he just...

He took a deep breath, unable to wait any longer for fear that he would explode, and just smashed his lips into hers, hoping he was doing it right (After all, all the other times he'd done it, it had just been completely on instinct and natural, but this time... he actually had to think about it while he did it and before he did it, which was a tad bit new to him)...

Helga just sighed into the kiss, almost immediately just melting into him and wrapping her arms around his neck and head... it caught him a bit by surprise, but then again... what DIDN'T Helga do that caught him that surprised him?

His musings were dashed, though, when he felt her hands suddenly start weaving through his hair gently... almost lovingly even...

His brain shut down nearly completely, and he just flung his arms around her completely on instinct, and began pulling her in as close as he could get her without knocking himself over onto his back. His heart sang, his head tingled, his entire body shivered, his eyes shut tighter, and his voice moaned...

It was wonderful.

Did he just MOAN? Did he moan? Oh ARNOLD! Helga held him tighter and continued to lovingly weave her fingers through his hair, kissing him more passionately but allowing him to take it over, gladly submitting to him, and moaned in response.

Arnold sighed again through his nose, her responses were indication enough that he must have been doing SOMETHING right. She was an amazing kisser (even if he had no one to compare it to), and she actually liked his kissing. Wow, what a concept. She was even moaning, just like before. Her moans were enough to send pleasurable shivers up and down his spine. What could possibly have been better than kissing Helga? Everything about her was so strong and passionate, and yet soft and sweet deep within.

The movie played on in the background, as the two of them lost themselves in their kiss, not a care in the world. Aside from maybe fighting off the urge to just passionately admit they loved each other, of course.

When his fingers now came to play with her pigtails, Helga swooned and brought her beloved closer to her, drowning in his kiss, his scent, the warmth of his body. Oh how perfectly he fit against her... Not to mention being able to kiss him so many times in one day! This had to be a new record!

Much to their dismay, the need for air was getting to them. So they had to pull apart, away from each other's wonderful mouths. For a few moments they stared at each other, eyes half-lidded and panting softly, holding on to one another, not speaking. The same thoughts, questions, were running through their heads as they sat in silence for who-knows-how long.

It wasn't until the loud pitter patter of the rain now going on outside pounded on his skylight above them when they finally snapped out of it and broke the silence.

"We...uh...seem to have some kind of knack for kissing each other." Helga murmured.

"Y-Yeah...Um, Helga, d-did you...want to practice?" Arnold managed.

"Er...yeah...yeah! I know I could've asked but hey, wanted to make it more fun with a silly challenge!"

They let go of each other, turning back to the movie, both of them blushing furiously. When they finally managed to calm down and regain their breathing, they managed to return to watching the movie. All the while Helga undoing her hair from its pigtails, as part of what she had to do, and couldn't help but inwardly smile that she could do a little simple thing to make her beloved smile. He liked it when she wore her hair down, it was a pretty sweet deal.

"Go on. I know you want to." She then said, snapping his attention back to her. "We were tied, so I'm living up to my end of the bet bargain."

"O-Oh!" Arnold remembered, and nodded. "Well, sure, Helga...if you don't mind if I do."

Helga snickered. "You modest Football Head. If I really didn't want you to, I'd have objected when you made your bet."

"I-I guess so." He managed, and scooted closer to her, reaching out to touch her hair. Those soft, golden strands he could never get enough of. He was close enough to her to smell her sweet vanilla scent, and the flowery shampoo she used in her hair to make it smell like a vase of wildflowers. The lovesick boy had to resist the urge of getting close and smelling it entirely, burying his face in it, even. But he didn't dare, the last thing he wanted to do was scare her. It WAS their first sleepover together, after all. He didn't want her to get scared and think that she was going to wake up to him smelling her hair while she'd been sleeping.

It didn't help that she looked so adorable in his plaid shirt and pink (used to be white) shorts...

Arnold shook his head vigorously and managed to bring both hands up to play with her soft tresses. So soft, holding a million possibilities. He had to stop as she took a hairbrush out of her bag and handed it to him, winking at him. He blushed, taking the hairbrush, and proceeded to brush his beloved's hair, gently smoothing out the strands. He smiled, it was pretty nice to brush someone else's hair, especially the hair of a girl you really liked.

Helga exhaled softly and closed her eyes, allowing him to brush her hair. He was gentle but sure, and it felt really nice, almost like getting it brushed out at the hairdresser. Only this was no hairdresser trained and paid to do this, but the one she loved, the only other person aside from her family, maybe Phoebe, and a hairdresser ever touch her hair.

"Hey, you're pretty handy with that brush, Arnold."

Arnold blushed a bit and smiled more. "Thanks, Helga. Just let me know if it ever hurts, okay?"

"Gotcha."

This went on for a couple of minutes, Arnold brushing her golden hair, and Helga enjoying it, not once feeling it being tugged or the messiness of tangles. It felt great for both of them! He eventually finished, and simply opted for running his fingers through the strands lovingly, thankful that her back was turned so that she wouldn't see the lovesick smile on his face.

Helga let out a soft sigh at feeling his fingers run through her hair, and she informed him, "This actually feels pretty good, Football Head."

"Yeah..." Arnold murmured dreamily, before he snapped back to reality and stuttered out, "I-I mean, yeah, for YOU. Heh, heh... I'm glad."

"Mmm-hm..." Helga hummed, thankful that her back was turned to him so he couldn't see the big dreamy smile on her face and just HOW half-lidded her eyes were.

Arnold just continued to rake his fingers through her hair, feeling the softness and watching as each piece fell back into place after his fingers came through. He had no clue how anyone's hair could be that soft and shiny and vibrant... It was so lovely. But then again, what about Helga Pataki could he find that WASN'T lovely? Her breathtaking eyes, her adorable nose, her so very kissable lips, her soft hands, her long legs, her cute bow, her beautiful hair, her wonderful voice... He sighed quietly to himself, his eyes glazed over in affection and love.

Since her back was turned, and she didn't look like she'd be turning around any time soon, he continued to run one hand through one side of her hair, and he leaned his head in so he could give the other side a small sniff.

How could she possibly know how much he loved wildflowers? He couldn't recall ever mentioning it to her, and yet here the wonderful scent was in her hair... He took in a deep breath of it, and then let it out in a shivery breath, trying to be quiet.

He supposed he really should stop soon, since he was almost sure that if he didn't he was just going to collapse in a fit of happiness and love. Oh, why couldn't she just love him back? It wasn't hard for him to fall for her... It felt almost natural, despite how much he'd tried to fight it at the time. Sure, he'd been playing around with the idea of her having a bit of a crush on him, since she didn't seem to mind the kissing and seemed to enjoy being around him nowadays... but how could he possibly know for sure? Before this whole weird relationship between them had started, she'd hated his guts. There was no way she could possibly switch from absolute hatred to crushing on him that quickly. What had changed to make her like him? What?

He sighed again, this time in a bit of melancholy. He didn't know HOW he got himself into this mess... He just adored her at this point, and her feelings were about as much of a mystery as how the heck Oskar possibly didn't get to the ice cream before they did... He'd had to deal with similar things like this before, what with Ruth McDougal and even some of his REALLY old crushes from way back when... Unrequited affection. No one had ever really LIKED him as more than just a friend before... How could he possibly expect to win the affections of someone as strong-willed and fierce as Helga G. Pataki? And this wasn't just unrequited affection this time, since all of his past crushes were just... well, crushes.

But this was different. He actually loved her...

Unrequited love.

Well... that was even WORSE. What would he possibly do with himself if she ended up rejecting him? It had been fairly easy getting over all the past girls he'd liked, but how was he supposed to get over someone he LOVED? And especially someone he loved this MUCH, and not just any kind of regular love... but a love that the more time he spent with her... the more his feelings just got more and more intense?

His heart heavy with all these thoughts of his current situation with Helga Pataki, Arnold just sighed, hugging Helga from behind and holding her tight, yet gently, not even really realizing what he was doing.

He supposed that the only thing he COULD do at this point was to just spend more time with her, try and get her to warm up to the idea of them together (Like his grandfather had said), and just... hope. Though he knew his chances were low, he was an optimist at heart... He'd just have to keep hoping.

"I love you, Helga." He muttered next to her ear, still holding her tight.

Though Helga hadn't been sure as to WHY Arnold had hugged her, she'd just assumed he was thankful for her letting him play with her hair. So she'd just smiled and squeezed the arms he had around her, and right at the moment she'd opened her mouth to say, 'Your welcome'...

She'd heard his little confession muttered softly into her ear, and her entire body froze. "I-I'm sorry... what?" She muttered back, her eyes huge and EXTREMELY unsure.

Arnold smiled at her question, letting out a small sigh and opening his eyes. He knew how to get out of this... though he was slightly annoyed with himself on his lack of being able to just out-right tell her... He told her again, "I said I love you, Helga... you know, strictly as a friend. Like I love Gerald, and you love Phoebe." He squeezed her a bit tighter, snuggling against her hair affectionately (Though he knew it would just come off as friendly and playful). "Thanks for letting me brush your hair and everything, Helga. It was nice."

Helga released the breath she'd been holding, understanding what he was saying. "Ah, I getcha." She laughed nervously. 'Yeah, Helga, he just randomly decided that he's suddenly in love with you.' She rolled her eyes mentally, telling him, "W-Well, in that case... I love you too, Arnold."

His hug got tighter around her, though she wasn't quite sure why. She just sighed in his embrace, happy that he cared about her this much... as a friend, of course. And although she dreamed that he'd love her in a MUCH different way someday... at the moment, she couldn't help but just be thankful that even if she couldn't have him as her boyfriend like she wanted... she could have him like this. She sighed blissfully to herself, squeezing his arms a bit more.

Some time passed, though neither were really keeping track of it... just happy to be with each other like this...

Soon, though, Helga began getting worried about how long they'd been hugging, and, still not wanting him to suspect any sort of feelings of her, she cleared her throat. "Um, Arnold... you can let go now."

His arms stayed tight around her another moment, and then unwound from around her and he pulled back completely, a blush on his face and his heart still pounding from having her so close. 'Get a grip, Arnold! Don't blow it now!' He thought to himself, gulping and trying to sound as casual as humanly possible (Though, being honest little Arnold, this was incredibly hard), "O-Oh. Sorry, H-Helga. I didn't realize..." He laughed nervously.

She just waved him off, a friendly smile on her face (After all, she was an excellent actress and more than used to faking it by now). "No sweat, Arnold. I kinda forgot what we were doing for a minute there, too." She made herself comfortable on the couch again, stretching her limbs a bit with a yawn. "So... what do ya wanna do now?"

Her question hadn't quite processed with him just yet, as he was a bit distracted with just how cute her little yawn looked... He took in a deep breath, and, doing his best to push aside his love for her for now, he shrugged. "I-I don't know, Helga... Was there anything in particular YOU wanted to do tonight?"

"Hmmm..." She put a finger to her lips in contemplation, not even noticing how this action seemed to make Arnold stiffen slightly. "Well... I'm not sure..." She began with a suspicious tone in her voice...

Suddenly, she bolted upward off of the couch, and ran over to his bed and grabbed one of his pillows, a giant smirk on her face as she said, "How about a pillow fight?" And with that, she instantly ran over to him and began whamming her pillow into his head, feathers going everywhere.

Arnold erupted with laughter, his woes of her not loving him back disappearing to the back of his skull as he fell off of the couch, doing his best to block her attacks. "No fair, Helga! There was no warning!"

"Exactly, Football Head! That was the whole point! Doi!" She laughed back, still whaling on him with the pillow, feathers flying. "What are you gonna do about, huh? What is a little shrimp like you going to do?"

"THIS!" Arnold managed to roll off the couch onto the floor, dodging her latest blow, and hurried to his bed to grab his other pillow. "I'll fight back!"

"Oh really? Well, bring it on, Football Head!"

"I will!"

The two circled each other, holding their pillows, ready to strike at any given moment...

"In this corner, we have, weighing at who-knows-what, Helga 'Ol' Betsy and the Five Avengers' Pataki! And in that corner, we have Arnold 'The Football Head'...who's also very short!"

"Hey!" Arnold laughed, and then went in for the kill, whacking her with his pillow. "Take that, you evil fiend!"

"Bring it on, Romeo!"

"As you wish, my fair Juliet."

"Let's end this."

"It's not over until it's over!"

The hilarious pillow fight between them lasted well into the rainy evening, as it grew much darker outside, the rain still pattering on his skylight, and their laughter drowning out into the night.

It wasn't until later, when Phil came up announcing that he and Gertie were going to bed, and that they try not to get into any trouble or anything too noisy. So with that, Arnold and Helga decided to get into bed too, since they too were getting tired and decided to turn in after such a long, but wonderful (for the most part) day.

So now, with Helga laying on a pillow with a sheet and blanket, on Arnold's couch, and Arnold in his bed, the two lay there in the darkness of his room, staring up at the rainy skylight, wondering what they could discuss to pass the time before falling asleep.

"What, no goodnight kiss? Goodness Arnold, how will you make it in life?"

"Helga!" Arnold covered his mouth to keep from laughing. "You have kissing on the brain, you know that?"

"Hey, how can I not?" Helga rolled onto her stomach so she could face him. "With all that we have to do, and the fact we're friends and have kissed more times than I can count, more than any friends would...don't you think that kind of sticks to my brain a little?"

'Good point. ...Wait, does that mean she WANTS me to?' Arnold thought, but it was all he could think before he gathered his courage and pushed all thoughts aside, getting out of bed and walking over to her, standing next to his couch so he would be facing her. "Gosh Helga, if you wanted a goodnight kiss, all you had to do was ask."

Before Helga could respond to that, his hands came to her cheeks, gently cupping them, and his lips came to hers. His kiss was gentle, sweet...loving, even. It effectively shut her up, and made her melt and freeze at the same time. Before she could absorb it, her beloved parted from her, smiled, and headed back to his bed, as if nothing had happened.

'What..was THAT? Did he just kiss me? Practically of his own free will, even though I put the idea into his head without meaning to even though in a way I was and yet wasn't...oh who cares, I'm getting confused, but he KISSED ME! So gentle, sweet and tender! Arnold my darling, my love! I love you so much! The moment I spoke those words to you, I meant them! Oh please, somewhere in your mind, know that I meant them more than what we said they did!' Helga marvelled and rolled onto her back, the dreamy, lovesick smile on her face.

"Helga?"

"Mm-hm...?" Came her dreamy reply, not quite listening.

"You know...well, all things considered, and everything that's happened lately, I'm really glad we...well, decided to have a sleepover like this. It's pretty fun to spend time together like this, and overnight, too. I never did this with a girl, to be honest. Well like I said, sleepovers between girls and boys our age doesn't happen often, anyway, but...for the first time ever, it's been a lot of fun. I-I guess you COULD count that camping trip, but it was all four of us there, and your dad and my grandpa...but this one I guess is more personal and 'real'."

Helga beamed, glad to know that the first time spending overnight with a girl, namely her, that didn't include anyone else. It almost seemed like a given, since they were good friends and enjoyed their evening, but it was sweet to hear straight from him that he enjoyed it. "Good to know, Football Head. Sure is fun for me, too. Heck, we should do this more often."

"...Would you want to?"

"Well yeah. Why not? We obviously like doing it, so of course. No reason we can't. You game?"

His heart thumped. Maybe she WAS warming up to the idea of them being together soon after all. Maybe there was hope! "I'd sure like to, Helga. It's great spending time with you like this."

"Then we've got a dealio! ...And you know, it's great for me, too. I'm uh...I'm glad to hear that...you know, we have fun like this. Like tonight."

Arnold chuckled. "It is, Helga. It really is."

"Glad to hear it. Again. Anyway..." She yawned, and then got an idea. "Goodnight."

"Sleep tight."

"Dream of bedbugs tonight."

They both laughed a bit at this, before snuggling into their blankets and getting comfy in their respective sleeping spots.

"Hey Arnold?"

"Yes?"

"...I love you." 'Please catch the real meaning...and at the same time, DON'T catch it!'

For one brief moment, he imagined it to be real, to be the truth words he longed to hear from her. For just ONE moment... And then it was gone. But still, he smiled. "I love you too."

Helga sighed contently, snuggling deeper into her pillow and just beginning to drift off to sleep...

Arnold stayed awake a few more minutes, just staring up at the sky through his skylight, barely being able to make out the few stars in the sky through the clouds and rainfall.

He sighed to himself, pulling his blanket up over himself some more. 'And I mean it, Helga... I do...' He thought to himself, closing his eyes and drifting off to sleep...

Arnold cracked his eyes open, the sunlight from his skylight filling his eyes instantly with their light, the rain from the other night erased from the sky in it's entirety.

He yawned, stretching in his bed. Memories from the past night filled his mind, and a grin came to his wide head. His eyes snapped over to his couch, seeing Helga still lying there, buried under the covers to where he couldn't quite see her face, and her golden tresses spilled out over her pillow. He sighed happily, getting out of bed and walking over to where she laid.

He heard her mumble something incoherently in her sleep, and he had to hold down a small chuckle at how cute the concept of her talking in her sleep was. He just watched her a moment, marveling at how the sunlight shone so brilliantly off of her blonde hair...

After a few more moments of this, he, with smile, just leaned down and gently pulled the covers off of her head so he could see her face, still tucked deep into her pillow and the ghost of a smile on her face. He smiled a bit wider at the sight of her, confirming that last night truly had been real.

Though he could have just watched her for hours, he was anxious for her to be awake so they could talk again, and so he gently took hold of her shoulder and shook her a little, muttering to her, "Helga, it's time to get up..."

WHACK!

"Ow!" Arnold rubbed his head, staring down at her in confusion. She'd just whacked him in the head!

"Come on, Miriam... just twenty more minutes..." She mumbled, now laying on her back and her eyes still closed tight.

Arnold stared at her a moment in bewilderment ('Miriam...?'), before what she must have meant by that and who she thought he was finally processed with him fully and he began cracking up.

Helga's eyes flew open wide at the sound of Arnold's laugh next to her, as opposed to what she'd expected which had been a, "Oh, sure, dear... I'm... I'm gonna go get a smoothie..." coming from her mother. She bolted up on the couch, and snapped her head in the direction she'd heard him laugh, coming to see him just standing there next to her, laughing happily with a hand on his head and the other just dangling aimlessly at his side.

She was about to scream, when the memories of last night filled her mind, and she relaxed immediately, letting out a breath of relief. "Oh... Hey, Football Head." She greeted tiredly, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

Arnold managed to get his laughter under control soon enough, and he just smiled at her, leaning in slightly as he replied, "Good morning, Helga." His eyes fell half-lidded.

Helga swallowed at the look from him... that beautiful half-lidded gaze she couldn't get enough of... 'Oh, Arnold...' She sighed, shaking her head at him slightly. "Yeah, yeah, Football Head. Enough with the mushy stuff already." She twisted around so that her legs hit the ground, and she sat there a moment, delighting in his slight blush at her words before standing up completely so she could stretched with a yawn, before scratching the slight itch on her head.

Arnold, still with that slight blush, just smiled a bit more at her cute little yawn before telling her, "It's about nine, Helga. We slept in a little. But I'm sure there'll still be some breakfast left if we hurry up and get ready. You can use the bathroom first, if you'd like, Helga."

Helga shrugged, walking over to the door with a, "Whatever floats your boat," before noticing the stack of her clothes from the other night folded neatly and laying by the door. She blinked, leaning down to pick up the small note that came with them. She read aloud, "'Here's your clothes, Eleanor. Have a blast. Love, Leonora.' Leonora? Who the heck is-"

"Grandma." Arnold interrupted her, putting away her pillow in his closet and the now folded blanket she'd used.

Helga blinked, glancing over at him before looking back down at the note with a hint more comprehension. "Ah." She set the note down on the couch, and hugged her clothes to her chest with one arm while she opened the door with her other arm. "Great. I'll be out in a few minutes, Arnold."

"Take your time." Arnold told her pleasantly, making his bed now, though he managed to cast her one last smile before the door behind her clicked shut.

Arnold sighed happily to himself, fluffing his pillow some. "What a wonderful way to wake up." He mused to himself, now finished with making his bed. He had to admit, now that he'd fully admitted to himself that he loved her... he felt pretty... free. Like a small weight had been lifted off of him. It felt good. Though not nearly as good as he imagined it would feel to finally tell her he did. He sighed to himself once again, his mood waning for just a moment before it came back full force, him pushing his troubles to the back of his mind, not to be thought of again... at least not for today. He just wanted to go with the flow today, just enjoy the simple happiness of being around Helga... despite the fact that he wasn't technically 'with' her.

"Knock, knock, Shortman!" He heard his grandpa's knock on the door. "You awake yet?"

"Yeah, Grandpa, I'm awake! You can come in!" He called from where he now sat, perched up on his bed with a smile.

Phil entered the room then, smiling at his grandson. "Hey, Shortman, I just passed by your little lady friend on my way up here. She looked like she was in a pretty good mood this morning..." He observed the small grin on his grandson's face a moment, suddenly feeling amused (Or at least more than he was feeling before). "And I see she isn't the only one."

Arnold just beamed at his grandpa. "Yeah, last night was just really fun. Thanks for letting her sleepover, Grandpa."

"Ah, she can come over anytime she likes, Shortman. You know that." Phil laughed, walking over to his grandson so he could give him a small nudge in the shoulder. "So, anything interesting happen last night after your grandma and me went to bed?" He eyed him suspiciously with a twinkle in his eye.

Arnold blushed slightly, shaking his head quick. "No, Grandpa! After you went to bed, we just followed suit. Nothing happened."

"Then why do you look so happy?"

Arnold just shrugged, still with that grin. "It's just nice to be around her, that's all. Was there anything you wanted, Grandpa?"

"Oh, I just came up here to tell ya that breakfast is still on the table, and we managed to snag ya couple of pancakes and some bacon and eggs before any of the boarders managed to get their greasy hands on them..." He mumbled something incoherently under his breath a moment, sounding somewhat like, 'Kokoshka' before he smiled again, finishing, "but that's not nearly as fun as watching you squirm over all the 'fun,'" He air-quoted, "you had with your little friend that you just so happen to like last night."

"G-Grandpa..." Arnold blushed furiously.

Phil gave a laugh and patted his grandson on the shoulder. "No need to be embarrassed, short man! Being happy with the girl you like so much is always great! You just have to remember one last thing."

"Let me guess."

"That's right! Never eat raspberries!"

"Grandpa..." Arnold sighed, but still had the grin on his face.

"Haha, well you two get your keesters ready and we'll be downstairs! You grandma's got some blueberry pancakes!" Phil patted his stomach and then went to the door. "By the way, here comes your little lady friend! Quite a catch, short man! She's a keeper!"

"Grandpa!" Poor Arnold's face was rivaling a tomato, despite that he completely agreed.

"Good mornin', Helga!" Phil greeted her as he went downstairs and she came in.

"Hey, Phil." Helga said casually, and came back into the room, now fully dressed. "You go get ready now, because I'm starving! I could smell those blueberry pancakes a mile away!"

Arnold grinned and nodded, going to his closet to get some clothes. "Whatever you say, Helga."

"Darn right. Whatever I say!" She grinned back at him.