Sixth Grade Beginnings

Chapter 1

....

"Hey! Hey Arnold, you coming?"

Gerald's voice could be heard in the distance, standing out amongst the loud crowd of kids behind them.

Snapping out of his daze, Arnold turned around with a smile towards his best friend and waved. "Yeah! Sorry Gerald, I'm coming."

Gerald shook his head and continued to walk down the hall way, his friends close behind him "it's pretty amazing how suddenly your parents are in your life now man. I can't imagine how you're feeling but it's gotta be good!"

"You got that right! It's just..." Arnold's voice slowly faded as he dug within himself for a suitable answer "It's just unbelievable. I'm not sure how else to describe it. It's like one moment I've given up all hope on ever finding them, let alone them being alive and the next moment they're following to school!"

While the conversation continued as they reached their new classroom, Helga and Phoebe followed behind about a foot from the boys. Although the topic was important, the girls had something slightly more important on their mind.

"So, how are YOU feeling, Helga?" The small Asian girl whispered to her best friend.

"Huh? W-what are you talking about Pheebs? I'm fine! Totally fine! Fit as a fiddle..." Helga blurted out loudly with a hint of nervousness in her voice and unconsciously rubbing the palm of her left hand with her thumb.

"Well..." Phoebe continued, noticing the topic wasn't going to go smoothly, not that she even thought it would. "So much has happened in the last month and I couldn't help but notice but you didn't let Arnold hold your hand..."

"Yeah? SO?!" Helga replied, sounding angrier than before.

"I just thought..." Phoebe began but was immediately cut off by her progressively frustrated friend who stopped in the middle of the hallway, allowing others to pass around them and giving Arnold and Gerald the opportunity to get into class before them and not listen in.

"You just thought what?" Helga started as she threw her hands in the air "You just thought everything would be all hunky-dory and full of sunshine and rainbows? That I would just lovingly hold the hand of the boy I've been pining over and secretly loving for practically my entire existence? That I would proudly announce to the world that he actually ACCEPTED said love over the vacation period and go about life as if our whole past didn't exist?!" Phoebe remained quiet and calm as her blonde companion continued to rant on, even if she was a little confused as to why she was so upset in the first place.

"I'll fill you in on a little fact there, Phoebe, the past DID happen and I'm Helga G. Pataki!" Helga began stomping around and kicking a few lockers as she did so. "I'm the biggest, baddest and meanest bully in all of P.S 118 and you better believe it will always be this way!"

"But you don't have to be." The small girl finally got a word in between the loud bangs of Helga kicking a locker and almost tripping a kid passing by.

"What?" Helga turned and looked at her, her anger still present but also curious as to what Phoebe was about to say.

"You don't have to be that anymore, Helga. You don't have to keep putting up this facade to make everyone near you run away." Phoebe knew it was a long shot to try and talk any sense into Helga but didn't stop. "We are in sixth grade now and you finally have Arnold's affection! Why not turn over a new leaf and just be you? The Real You."

Suddenly the class bell rang, interrupting heated battle. Helga heaved a heavy, solemn sigh and reached for the door handle "Because... Phoebe," she replied with pain lingering in her voice "The world can't handle the real me..." and with that entered the classroom, leaving her Japanese American friend standing in the hallway.