The Slender Man 2

"Okay, seriously, by the description Geraldo gave us...he sounds a lot like some kind of Jack Skellington ripoff!" Helga went on to say, shaking her head.

"...Yeah, it does sound a bit like that." Arnold admitted thoughtfully. "Being tall and very slender, although Jack is a skeleton and the Slender Man is...well, I have no idea."

"At least Jack scares people for fun, the spirit of Halloween! This skinny guy, yeah that's right, skinny guy, no different from saying he's a slender man! The skinny guy is some kind of who-the-heck-knows-what scaring people for some kind of evil thing!"

"The skinny guy...slender man must sound more threatening." Arnold chuckled. "I mean, if it was a horror movie and someone yelled 'Watch out for the slender man!' that actually sounds chilling. But if they said 'It's the skinny guy! Run!', then that makes it sound like something you just can't take seriously."

"Heh, you're getting better at this." Helga smirked. "Slender Man...Skinny Guy, whatever you call 'im, it doesn't matter since he's not real."

"Right, Helga." Arnold agreed. "It's all just a silly scary story to scare kids."

They came to the Pataki household, seeing that the downstairs lights were still on. It was an obvious indication that Big Bob was watching TV, or Miriam was struggling to stay awake. The two kids ascended her front stoop, with Helga taking out her house key, turning to her love with a mild blush present on her cheeks.

"So, guess I'll see you tomorrow?" She asked hopefully.

Arnold blushed and nodded with a smile. "Yeah, tomorrow at two. Like I promised."

"Cool. See you then, I guess, Football Head..."

"Yeah, see you then, Helga..."

Helga nodded once more, and then just let her key drop. "Oh, c'mere, you!"

Almost immediately, Arnold was pulled to her in a tight but loving embrace and met with her eager lips against his own. This made him smile and relax in her grip as he kissed her back happily, his arms encircling her waist. No matter the time or day, as long as they were alone, Helga always made sure to bestow one of her kisses upon him. He'd never known a girl could kiss with so much love and passion, like she was trying to make the best of every single moment of it, as if she'd never kiss him again. Granted, she definitely did offer her share of gentle and sweet kisses, which he loved as well, but her passionate kisses such as this were always taking him by storm. You'd think he would be used to it by now, after dating all this time, but no, she never failed to take him down a peg.

Sure, he didn't have anyone to compare it to, but she sure did know how to kiss like she meant it.

Unfortunately for them both, it seemed to end way too soon.

Helga giggled at the goofy smile on her beloved's face, which always seemed to take effect after a sweet kiss between them. It definitely made her heart soar to see that she really did have that much of an effect on him. "Guess I'll see ya later then, eh, my love?"

Arnold nodded a bit, the smile never waning. "Of course, Helga." He gave her a loving hug, which she returned, and kissed her on the cheek. "Have a good night."

"You too, Arnold."

She watched as he happily bounced down the steps, waving at her as he headed off down the street, and continued to do so until he disappeared. Sighing happily, Helga was about to head inside when something else caught her eye.

There was someone standing under a street lamp across the street, diagonally from where she was currently standing. Since it was dark, and it was a fair distance away, she couldn't make out who the person was. Whoever it was was standing in a particular spot that bathed them in shadows, revealing a barely visible silhouette. The silhouette was tall, from what she could see, but it was very dark. Hard to make out entirely. It was definitely not a midget, nor was it short enough to be a kid. It had to be an adult.

Helga suddenly felt uneasy. Her eyes couldn't tear away from trying to make out the sight of whoever was over there. For some reason, it was making her feel quite anxious, like she was in danger, and had to get out of there.

Without wasting another second, she picked up her dropped key, unlocked the door, and hurried inside. She panted, standing with her back against the door, as if barricading it, and hastily locking it again.

"Helga? Helga, is that you?" Miriam came from the kitchen, looking at her daughter with curiosity and concern. "What's wrong, honey? You look a little nervous."

Helga felt herself stiffen a bit, not just because she knew she was likely just feeling anxious over something nonsensical, but also that her mother actually noticed something was up. Yes, it had been this way ever since Miriam not only had the courage to go to AA Meetings, AND get herself a job as a retail assistant at a local bookstore, but even Helga had to get used to the fact that her family was no longer ignoring her.

"I-I'm fine, Mir-mom. I was just...just running a bit, that's all!"

Miriam didn't seem to buy it, but decided not to pry. Lucky for Helga, she assumed that she was hiding about being with her little boyfriend and didn't want to fully admit it.

"Oh Helga, you know you don't have to be embarrassed about Arnold." Miriam giggled. "It's nice that you two are having fun together."

Helga blushed, mumbling to herself as she headed toward the kitchen, already forgetting about the silly scare she'd been through just now. Although, it didn't exactly fight off the uneasy tension that still lingered within the back of her mind.

XXX

"Grandpa, I'm home!" Arnold announced when he walked into the boarding house, shutting the door behind him.

"Well hey there, short man!" Phil greeted as he came downstairs, likely from the bathroom, given the way he was patting his stomach. "Aaahhh, I sure feel ten pounds lighter!"

"Uh, right. I'm going to do some homework and go to bed, okay?" Arnold headed toward the stairs, shaking his head.

"So soon? C'mon Arnold! Won't you tell your ol' Grandpa what urban legend your little buddy Gerald told you today?" Phil gave a grin, egging him on.

"Grandpa, it's no big deal." Arnold shrugged it off. "It was just a silly story."

"Ooh! Did he tell you the story of the Headless Cabbie?"

"Already did that one, Grandpa."

"The Ghost Bride?"

"Already told that one."

"The Sewer King?"

"You mean Sam."

"Oh! Then I bet you anything it was the Slender Man!" Phil said, and grinned all the more. "It's one dang chilling story, short man! My buddy named Pat Reynolds went missin' back in 1929 because of that thing! Took him away off into the night!"

Arnold rolled his eyes. "Grandpa, didn't you say he died of pneumonia?"

"Ohhhh right, must've been mistaking him for my pal Fred Oliver! He went missing because of the Slender Man! You'd best watch out for him, short man! Once he stalks his victims, they can never escape!" Phil waved his hands in a ghostly manner. "Soon they're gone, just like that!"

"Grandpa, it was just a silly story made up to scare people." Arnold muttered before he headed upstairs.

"I'm tellin' ya, short man! The Slender Man is one heck of a scary being! Just you be careful! Or else he'll get ya too!"

Ignoring him then, Arnold just went upstairs to his room, shutting the door behind him. It really was just a silly, scary story you'd tell around a campfire. Most of the urban legends were just silly misunderstandings, anyway. Arnold was pretty much impervious to them now, after having been proven wrong about them being true so many times. It was ridiculous. Now this?

He had to wonder just where Gerald got all of these stories.