Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned in this story.

They all belong to their rightful owner: Craig Bartlett.

Title: "Lovely misandry"

In the former chapter: Prom is on its way and that means college applications have officially been sent. Due to their silent treatment of each other, Arnold and Helga were unaware which colleges either of them had sent applications to. Despite the urgency of the situation, they decided to leave the college talk for later.

When her classmates found an article of her dad's new grand shop opening, Helga were encouraged by Arnold to go and see him for the first time since her parents' divorce. The lack of drama confused Helga and she returned to Arnold, after talking to her dad, confused, relieved and disappointed all at the same time.

Author's 1st note: I am so sorry that this has taken so long, I can't even blame it on the length of the chapter, I've just been REALLY unmotivated to write this final chapter. I hate to admit that, but I'd rather be honest about it than give some half-asses, fake excuse. I'm glad this is finally finished, I hope the conclusion is satisfactory to people even though I experimented with a different way of handling certain scenes ;)

[Please notify me if you notice any grammar mistakes. This isn't my first language, so there's bound to be mistakes.]

Chapter 22: I dare you to love me

"You know… most people are happy after the exams are over."

"Yeah, and when prom is so close too."

"But then there's you two…"

The gang were currently at the park, in the middle of a one-way conversation with the blonde couple. They were trying to cheer them up, but failing miserably. Exams were indeed over, and while both blondes did well, exams being over meant school was practically over. Prom and graduation were approaching and while happy events, it also meant the end of a chapter in their lives. And the end of life as they knew it. That was scary for them all, but especially for the two blondes who still didn't know how to tackle being away from each other on their designated colleges. They had yet to approach the subject, procrastinating to the best of their abilities.

Arnold was probably the one who felt the most torn; he had been dreaming of attending prom with Helga as his girlfriend since he even knew what prom was. That was finally coming true, and she had even agreed on his idea about him wearing a pink tie and her wearing a blue dress. He and Helga had never been better, except for this black cloud constantly hovering above them. And that led him back to why he was torn; the thought of being away from Helga, his best friend, was downright surreal. It was a painful thought and he couldn't shake it off no matter how hard he tried.

"You know…" Patty whispered to Arnold and he looked up at her. "Sometimes it's not the butterflies that yell you that you're in love… but the pain."

Arnold blinked. "That's… beautiful… and really sad."

"I can't remember who said it, but it really resonates, right?" Patty asked with a sympathetic smile.

"Uh-huh." Arnold huffed and sighed, earning a pat from Patty. He then frowned determinately. "I'm not gonna spend my last days in Hillwood moping."

Helga overheard Arnold's small outburst. "Yeah, no, that seems more like my thing than yours."

Arnold gave the best smile he could muster. "Come on, Helga. Is this really how we want to end this?"

"The key word is end, Arnold. This is truly the end."

"Oh, what a drama queen!" Rhonda bellowed ironically dramatically.

Helga blinked, her eyes growing almost twice in size. "Did Rhonda just call me a drama queen?" she asked, earning nods from her peers. "Fuck it then, I'm not moping anymore."

"There you go!" Gerald praised and held out his fist for her. Helga bumped it semi-awkwardly and smiled.

"Actually… can I talk to you boys? Without you, Arnold."

"Uh… ok?" Arnold answered and watched as his girlfriend left with the other boys, leaving him alone with the girls. He looked at Phoebe. "What was that about?"

Phoebe shrugged innocently, but something told him she knew. She did indeed know, but had promised Helga to keep her mouth shut. And it wasn't in Phoebe's nature to reveal secrets about Helga, not unless it was to the blonde's own benefit. This was a good kind of secret though. She just hoped that the boys could actually help her.

"So, what's up, Drama Queen?" Sid asked, earning a smack on the back of the head from the drama queen in question. "Ow! Chill!"

"Shut up, Sid, I need your help, so don't make me regret this."

"Our help? With what?" Stinky questioned.

Helga sighed, clearly uncomfortable. "I can't figure out what to give Arnold as a graduation present… I want to give it to him on prom night because I want to give it to him alone, and we all know the graduation party is gonna be bananas. So… any ideas?"

Gerald didn't hesitate. "The thing Arnold would want the most—"

"Yeah?"

"Is for you to say you love him."

The blonde girl blinked, silent for a few seconds. "What would be second best?"

"Helga, really?"

"Yes, really." Helga said dismissively and looked at the other boys. "You got anything?"

Gerald rolled his eyes. As far as Helga had gotten, it didn't seem like she was ready to take that step yet. She loved him, they all knew it, she just couldn't bring herself to be quite that vulnerable yet. Gerald understood her, he really did; it wasn't like saying I love you wasn't the most natural thing in her world. He honestly had to wonder if she had ever told or heard it from someone. Arnold hadn't told her he loved her, Gerald knew that much. But Helga knew he loved her anyway, so there was still an imbalance there.

"Well, it is prom night." Sid said, wiggling his eyebrows.

Helga scrunched her nose. "What are you getting at?"

"You know what I'm getting at."

"You're voted off the island. Go join Arnold and the girls." Helga scolded, pointing towards the others.

"Oh, calm your tits, Helga." Sid joked, resulting in Helga shaking her chest violently.

"Don't tell me what to do!"

The boys laughed heartily. They couldn't believe how fun Helga was once she was comfortable with them. Which took some time, mind you, but she really had made a huge progress in the last 9 months. More than she had since they were kids. Arnold was to thank for lightning the flame, but Helga was the one who kept it going and kept pushing herself. She had done this on her own and she was at a much happier place than she ever had been before.

Sid, as requested, joined Arnold and the girls. "Your girl kicked me out of the meeting."

"What did you do?"

"Sorry, dude, can't say. Helga is being secretive for a reason."

Arnold smiled. Sid could be a real slime ball, but he was a good-hearted, loyal slime ball. "Fair enough."

"Speaking of secrets… you, uh, got anything special planned for the special night?" Sid asked, earning eyerolls from the girls.

"You mean prom?" Arnold confirmed and Sid nodded. "Well… I just want to make it a really good night for me and Helga."

"And how are you gonna do that?" Sid pressed.

Arnold's eyebrows knitted together. "I think I know why Helga kicked you out."

"Oh, come on, Arnold! It's your man Sid, you can be honest. You've fantasized about doing it on prom night, haven't you?"

Arnold didn't answer. Mostly because he didn't have a very gentlemanly response. Sid was right; prom night was, for many couples, the perfect excuse to have sex. It was a big party, you'd have a lot of fun and then go have a different kind of fun later. It was kind of romantic if you did it right too. And with the way things were going, there was a pretty good chance at it happening. Helga had outright said she was comfortable with it now, and Arnold had been comfortable with it for years. Fantasizing was very different than actual doing though and there were so many things to consider, so many things that could go wrong, and despite Arnold's usual optimism, he couldn't help but worry a lot when it came to Helga. And if this was going to be one of their only chances before going off to college, he didn't want to end it on a bad note.

"Anyway," Sid interrupted Arnold's thoughts and stuck his hand inside his pocket. "I want you to have this. Think of it as a graduation present."

Sid took Arnold's hand in his, and Arnold immediately felt something in his palm. Discreetly, so the girls wouldn't see, he took a look at it and flushed bright red. "Sid, take this back!"

"What, you're not planning on not using one, are you?"

"No, but just… take it back!"

"I did this out of the kindness of my heart! This is a good brand, dude. Lots of lube—"

"Sid, I swear—"

"What the hell are you two doing?" Helga's voice cut through.

Before either boy knew what was happening, she was already right in front of them. Despite his attempt at keeping his hand closed, Helga saw Arnold holding something and grabbed it. She held the small pack between her index and long finger, eyeing it thoughtfully.

"I didn't buy that." Arnold insisted. "I'm not… assuming things."

"You usually sweat like a sinner in church when you lie, so I believe you." Helga answered with a smirk and looked at the pack again. "Though this really is something we need I guess… This is the wrong size though, Sid. They're too small."

Shocked expressions stared at Arnold.

"Wait, how does Helga know that?" Harold asked, tilting his head in a mix of curiosity and confusion.

Now, that surprised Helga. She thought for sure Arnold had told the boys about her little experiment on New Year's Eve. Perhaps only Gerald knew? His face didn't give anything away, so she wasn't sure if even he knew. Either way, this was a good opportunity for her to both tease and give Arnold a little ego boost at the same time.

"Yeah, these are too small." Helga repeated, being very sincere and casual in her comment. She gave Sid the pack again. "If you're gonna give us condoms, do it right."

By now, Arnold knew what Helga was doing and was sending her a glare mixed with genuine amusement. She winked at him before she joined the girls, leaving him to battle off questions from the boys. Both about Helga's knowledge of this and just how big he really was.

"You two will just look so adorable!" Olga squealed happily, holding a camera in her hand, bouncing on her leg.

"Careful, sweetheart." Robert warned, putting his arm over her shoulders. "You should still be careful on your leg."

Olga rolled her eyes good-heartedly, but she smiled brightly. "You're such a worrywart."

Arnold couldn't help but smile at the display. Knowing how rotten and abusive their relationship had been, he couldn't feel happier for them now. Both of them. Robert had been more serious than anyone had ever thought when he started seeing a therapist and took anger management classes. He had made excellent progress and even though he still had a temper, he never laid his hand on Olga again. Or anyone else for that matter. It was a miracle. A very rare one, but then again, miracles usually were.

Arnold just hoped it lasted, and that nothing was happening behind closed doors. Though Helga would probably find out if something was going on. But now she was going away to college, who was going to notice if Robert started going backwards? Surely not Miriam. With Helga gone, what if Olga ended up getting tangled into the abusive pattern again?

Great, I've made myself depressed now, Arnold scolded himself. Happy thoughts, happy thoughts!

"Well, here she is." Miriam's voice said, causing all of them to turn towards her.

Behind Miriam, stood Helga with her arms awkwardly in front of her lap and her eyes turned away. The blush on her cheeks wasn't makeup and her eyes seemed sparkly even without the slight hint of silver eyeshadow on her eyelids. She was wearing a blue gown with a sweetheart neckline, a silver belt under her chest and the skirt going all the way past her ankles. Somehow Olga had convinced Helga to wear a ballgown type of dress though the skirt was as small as absolute possible. Helga had refused to look fluffy, as she had called it. Miriam had tied her hair up in a messy bun, some of her blonde locks slightly curled to give some bounce and volume.

She looked perfect.

"For crying out loud, someone say something!" Helga's voice cut through the silence, looking pleadingly at Arnold.

The blonde boy immediately stood up from the couch and approached her. "You look beautiful, Helga." He praised earnestly. She rolled her eyes, her expression giving signs of the embarrassment flooding through her. Before she could argue, he showed her the corsage he had gotten her. It carried the flower they had admired together when they first got together; the Gumamela flower.

"Ugh, you absolute dork." Helga groaned, but smiled brightly as he fastened it on her wrist. Once it was secured, he lifted her hand and kissed the back of it gently. The hint of pink on Helga's cheeks grew into a dark red, and her expression was a mix of surprise and glee. A bright light broke the moment and she scowled at her sister. "Olga!"

"You will thank me when you're older and have these kinds of pictures, baby sister." Olga insisted, their mother nodding in agreement. "Now, pose this time!"

"Olga, I swear—"

"It would be nice to have these pictures in college." Arnold interrupted, giving Helga a hopeful look.

"Oh, low blow, Arnold…" Helga mock scolded, rolled her eyes and put on her best toothpaste smile.

"Oh, come on, you can do better than that! Arnold, make her smile for real." Olga requested, readying the camera.

Arnold thought for a few seconds before he simply went to kiss her on the cheek. She snorted through her nose, but a happy giggle left her and Olga snapped a few pictures. Despite her utter shame, Helga kissed Arnold's cheek as well, listening to the clicks from the camera taking pictures. Now that they were both more comfortable, they made some more traditional poses and Olga took quite a few more pictures.

"I'll make sure to send these to you as well, Arnold."

"Thank you, Olga."

"Yeah, hugs and kisses, can we please just go now? Before I regret even telling you guys about Arnold and me."

"We always saw it coming, dear." Miriam asserted with a secretive smile she shared with her oldest daughter.

"Say what now?"

"Let's just go, Helga." Arnold laughed and dragged her by her hand.

"Son of a bitch, how they did they know something I didn't?!" Helga complained, but followed Arnold out of the door anyway, right after grabbing her coat. Once they were outside, she stopped him though. "Hold on, I have something for you."

"What?" Arnold said in surprise and watched as Helga lifted up her skirt. "Um… Helga, I'm not opposed or anything, but—"

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Football Head." Helga teased playfully.

The blonde pulled out a flower she had hidden safely inside one of the layers in the petticoat. It was a tiger lily, sprayed pink. Arnold stared at it in wonder.

"I asked the boys what you'd like as a graduation present, but"—Helga remembered Gerald's suggestion—"they were all useless. So I asked Nadine and she told me about this flower. It's kinda fake, obviously, but… the sentiment is real." She explained and started putting it into the chest pocket of his coat. "Apparently it means… I dare you to love me."

"Well, look at you, Miss Pataki…" Arnold mused, a dazed look on his face. "You can be romantic when you want to."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, tell anyone and you're dead."

"So, what am I supposed to say when people ask about the flower?"

"That Fairy Fuckmother gave it to you." Helga laughed.

Arnold frowned unamused. "And the moment is gone."

That moment was indeed gone, but many more were to come that evening. The blonde couple spent their prom mostly hanging out with their friends. Every once in a while, they'd go dancing on their own, chat for a few minutes or sneak out to get some air. But most of the evening was spent reminiscing the years they had all shared, walking down memory lane and being nostalgic. A few games were played and some traditions were followed while others were ignored. The dark cloud hovering above the couple was still there, but it was forgotten for tonight. Especially considering what the end of the evening had in store.

"Goodnight, you guys. Thanks for a great evening." Arnold gushed.

"You too, man." Gerald replied, doing their signature handshake. "Have fun."

Arnold understood the implications of what Gerald said and gave him a crooked smile. "Yeah, you too." Gerald laughed heartily at Arnold's comeback and patted his back.

"Be safe, kids." Sid hooted as he gave Arnold a new pack of condoms.

"Thanks, Sid…" Arnold sputtered, on one hand honestly and on the other hand… very much not.

"Ey, Helga, I got the dotted ones for ya'!"

"The what now?" Helga asked and took the condom pack from Arnold. "Ribbed for her pleasure… Uh, appreciated." She immediately put the condom pack in Arnold's chest pocket. "We're out before Sid gives us more weird shit."

"Useful weird shit!" Sid argued.

"Fair point. Goodnight, guys!" Helga waved at the others and then took Arnold's hand to leave. "What does it mean by dotted?"

"Um, it means it has like little… dots or something, I think."

"Yeah, no shit, I mean—"

"It literally means small dots on the condom. It's like… stimulating or something." Arnold explained to the best of his abilities. He wasn't exactly a condom expert. In a way, he was kinda happy Sid had gone out of his way to give them these. Arnold would of course have gotten some himself, but he was grateful he didn't have to.

"Huh." Helga muttered, deciding not to press the subject.

It suddenly felt very real. They were just walking down the street, hand-in-hand, as if nothing big was going to happen soon. But something big was going to happen, and they both knew it. And while the feelings floating inside them weren't the same, they could agree on one thing; they wanted to make this good. If this was going to be their last chance, if this was going to be their only shot, they wanted it to be perfect.

It seemed the weather gods had other ideas though as rain suddenly started pouring down without warning. Helga squealed in equal annoyance and joy. Looking at Arnold who had a shocked expression on his face, she took off her coat and put it over his head. She took his hand and started running with him, laughing as they did so. They found shelter under a bus stop and their laughter slowly subsided as they shook off the water in their hair.

Arnold let Helga's coat fall to his shoulders. "Feels like you're always the one who protects me."

Helga looked at him, panting a bit from running so fast so suddenly. "You protect me too." She insisted, but he didn't seem convinced. "What's so wrong with me protecting you?"

"Nothing!" Arnold insisted, but his face gave him away. "I guess it just makes me feel a little… useless sometimes."

This sweet idiot, Helga thought while she put her hands on his shoulders, clasping her coat in the process. "Would you call me the protective kind?"

Arnold couldn't help but snort. "No… with the exception of a few people maybe."

"And why is that?" Helga questioned, causing Arnold to look at her pensively. "It's because I only protect the people I really, really care about."

Somehow, someway, Arnold knew Helga was about to say something. Maybe it was the way her eyes were glistening, maybe it was the way she was holding his shoulders so tightly, maybe it was just something in the air along with the rain. Somehow he knew what he was about to hear and he couldn't ever have prepared his heart for it. No matter how many times he had dreamt about it.

"I love you."

Helga felt Arnold's shoulders slump under her hands. A breath, he didn't know he had been holding, left him. He breathed a few times, willing himself to calm down so he could answer her. She just stood there though, smiling sweetly at him. Completely confident and comfortable with what she had just confided in him. To believe she had been so against saying it just a few days ago. Perhaps the words had been roaming around in her brain long enough for them to feel natural.

"I…" the boy whispered, trying to put words into how he was feeling. "I've been planning the perfect way to say it since I was 13 years old, waiting for the perfect moment and then you end up saying it first."

Helga blinked in confusion. "Uh… sorry? Want to pretend I didn't say it?"

"No way!" Arnold raved before he threw his arms over her shoulders, trapping her in a soaring kiss.

Helga barely got to gasp before her mouth was covered by his. She wrapped her arms around his waist, clutching his coat in her nails and feeling a sense of thrill travel through her whole body. She could sense the hormones being overproduced in her system, and all it took was a kiss with so much promise and love in it. Part of her wanted to bask in that feeling a little longer, but her pride and stubbornness made her pull away just a little bit.

With a smile, she whispered: "If you think you're gonna get out of saying it back—"

"I love you too." He interrupted before pulling her back into a kiss. "I love you."

Those words were so natural on his lips and so completely foreign in her ears. He had said sweet things to her before, romantic even, but this sent a shiver through her. She knew he meant it, she knew he meant it before he even said it. She wondered how long he had loved her, when a simple crush turned into undeniable love? When did he know he was always going to see her as not just a girl, but the girl he wanted to spend his life with? How and when did he know all those things, while she was living unaware?

"Let's go to Sunset Arms." Helga whispered against his lips. She felt him nod, his damp hair tickling her face as he did so, before he took her coat off his shoulders. He helped her put it back on, before he took her hand in his and ran down the street.

The boarding house was uncharacteristically quiet. Everyone was sleep from Arnold's parents and grandparents to presumably Mr. Smith. All except for the two blondes, who were now heading up towards Arnold's room. At least until Helga stopped walking. When her boyfriend turned around, she was looking at the bathroom door.

"Can I… be a real girl and care about a stupid thing like showering first?" Helga questioned, refusing to look at Arnold as she did so.

"Oh, uh, yeah, of course… I actually think I might want to be a girl too." Arnold laughed tensely.

"You trying to join me?" Helga joked and headed towards the bathroom.

"No, not as such—"

"Not as such?" Helga repeated, quirking an eyebrow at him. She looked away again, opening the door. "I don't mind."

The words had come out as a whisper, but Arnold heard them just fine. He followed her into the bathroom, only letting go of her hand when she did. A heavy feeling of anticipation hung in the air as the blonde girl turned her back and started undressing. He copied her, lifting his coat off his shoulders and letting it slide down his arms. He hung it on the rack, seeing Helga's hand reach out the same time. The thin straps of her dress allowed it to hang next to his coat and he couldn't help but look at her, while loosening his tie. His hand stilled though, one finger hooked inside his tie, when he saw what she was wearing under her dress. What she had been wearing under it all night, without his knowledge.

"When else am I going to wear this?" Helga chuckled, tucking a lock of her hair behind her ear. "I wasn't sure about wearing the negligee, but your face makes it worth it."

"Well… now I can't get my clothes off." Arnold breathed, his eyes scanning that negligee he bought with her around Christmas. "My hands are shaking too much."

Helga looked at his trembling hands. "No kidding. You're shaking more than I am." She observed before approaching him and taking over the task of undressing him. "Since we're gonna shower together… I guess the point of wearing this negligee is kinda… moot."

"I… think it's done its job though." Arnold joked.

"Oh, yeah? And what was its job, Football Head?"

"To… make me excited?" Arnold suggested lamely, trying to pull forth some of that boldness he knew was stored in him. Somewhere.

Helga looked up at him through her long, black eyelashes. "I have a feeling I don't need the negligee for that." She mused before pushing his now opened dress shirt off his arms. She let it fall to the floor, giving him a few small kisses on his lips before turning towards the shower. "Doing this all slow and sweet is just making me more nervous. So get your ass out of those pants and join me in the shower."

Arnold obeyed immediately, in even more hurry once Helga let her negligee fall to the ground. His eyes kept going back and forth between watching the not particularly interesting bathroom floor to her naked form. His heart was hammering in his chest and he knew despite the brave way she had delivered her words, she felt the same way. She stepped into the shower, turned on the water and let the water clean her of any sweat she could have produced during the evening. She closed her eyes, painfully aware of Arnold's presence as he entered the shower as well. After a deep breath, she stepped backwards, letting her back touch his chest.

Ah, hell. I had almost hoped his heart was beating faster than mine… Helga thought as she felt their hearts start to sync their rhythm. Well, I'm just going to have to make it beat faster then.

"Arnold, can you wash my back?" the words left Helga's mouth before she even thought about it. Only once they had echoed in the bathroom, did she feel the shame rise up in her.

Arnold chuckled awkwardly. "If I do that… I'm not sure if I can keep my hands to myself."

"I know."

OK, where the hell is this coming from? Helga thought, the proof of her embarrassment showing as a red tint on her cheeks. Am I trying to make it worse for Arnold so it's easier for me?

She could hear Arnold gulp behind her before he went to grab the loofah pad. He put some of the body wash in it, stuck his hand inside it and then started washing Helga's back. She shivered when he first made contact, but relaxed quickly under his tender touch. She made a happy sigh, enjoying the contrast between the rough fabric of the loofah with Arnold's gentle motions. She closed her eyes, sighing once more through her nose and almost felt a little dizzy. She put her hands on the wall, steadying herself.

"You ok?" Arnold asked softly.

"Yeah… it feels really good." The girl chuckled.

"Yeah?"

"Mmhmm." Helga moaned, sighing once again.

The change in the washing on her back was obvious, its executor encouraged by her compliment. She smiled secretly, enjoying how a few words from her could make him so eager to please her. Was this also one of those things Patty had talked about? The control? Helga enjoyed it, she couldn't deny that. The blonde gasped a bit when the loofah touched her lower back and she took a step closer to the wall. She felt him walk closer to her, since she had stepped away, and she almost felt trapped against the wall. It wasn't a bad feeling though, it almost excited her a little bit that Arnold, in his enthusiasm, would forget himself. She felt him put a hand on her shoulder, presumably to steady himself a bit while the loofah kept roaming around on her back. She looked down at his hand and kissed it softly, causing him to look at her. When their eyes met, she sent him an alluring glance. He whimpered at the lewd sight, smiled and stepped forward. Their lips met in a kiss, the washing briefly forgotten.

Arnold leaned back, smiling at his girlfriend before he wrapped an arm around her waist. He made her step away from the wall, giving him room to put the loofah on her stomach instead. With a gulp, she put her hands on his arms, feeling his travels in the palm of her hands. He kissed her neck and she stretched it delightedly, giving him more room. While continuing slow, stimulating strokes on her stomach and chest, Arnold kissed and sucked the skin on Helga's neck, taking his time to explore, taste and remember every little curve or bump he'd come across. He wanted to be able to close his eyes and imagine every part of her effortlessly.

Especially if he wasn't going to get another chance like this again.

Arnold shook his head, tickling his hair against Helga. No, don't go there, he scolded his brain and gave the neck in front of him a very aggressive lick to pull himself back into the moment.

One of Helga's hands soared back and grabbed him at his thigh, causing him to bite her neck in response. She gasped and dug her nails into his flesh, subconsciously avenging the bite even though she knew she was the one who had caused it. While the loofah got more chest-oriented, Arnold's free hand started roaming more around her lower stomach. He could feel the muscles under her skin, marveling at how strong he knew she was. His hand traveled to her thigh as well, touching as much of it as he could while standing up. He looked at her, wondering why she was so quiet. The face he saw was better than anything he could have ever imagine; parted lips, red, flushed cheeks and he had a feeling it wasn't because of the heat. He licked behind the shell of her ear, successfully drawing out a small whimper from her.

"OK, I think I'm clean." Helga hissed and turned around, grabbing the loofah in the process. "Your turn."

Before Arnold could protest, not that he was planning to, Helga started scrubbing his chest, a bit too roughly. He gasped in surprise and with a small sorry, she calmed her strokes. She washed his chest slowly, watching as the suds spread over his skin, almost as if hypnotized. The way she was looking at him didn't go unnoticed, the way her eyes seemed to be taking mental pictures of his newly muscular chest, how her loofah-less hand seemed to be subconsciously massaging his shoulder. He coughed awkwardly, causing her eyes to drift up towards his face.

"You, uh… you're staring."

"I'm not gonna apologize for that." Helga dismissed and looked back at his chest. "How come… you continued to work out even after we were ok again?"

Arnold chuckled breathlessly. "Probably because of the way you looked at me when you caught me working out in the school yard."

Helga blinked a few times, trying to remember. "How did I look at you?"

"Like… I don't know."

"Yeah, you do."

"Just like… you thought I looked good, that's all."

"I thought that before too, you know."

"You did?"

"Yeah, I'm not blind. You've always been a cute guy."

"That's… not the type of look I meant."

Helga blinked. "Ah… that look. Yeah, I've seen you give me that look too."

"Like I am right now?

"Probably!" Helga giggled though she didn't dare look at him to confirm. "I can't believe I never noticed it."

"I hid it pretty well I guess."

"I'm… sorry you had to do that. And for so long."

"It's alright, Helga. I… never thought I'd get to where I am right now. So, you were worth the wait." Arnold confessed happily.

A big grin spread on his face when he saw how flushed he had made her cheeks. She looked up at him once more, looking more tantalizing than ever to him. He leaned forward and, to his surprise, she was quick to close the space between them. Her hand stilled on his chest, her lips nibbling sweetly on his. They'd had many kisses at this point, many different kinds, everything from passionate to gentle, but this was different. There was a sense of promise in it, urgency, but compassion and tenderness as well. The kiss was somehow very childlike with the same nervousness, but happiness from feeling someone you love's lips on you. Their hands went into each other's hair, her combing his wettened locks and him massaging her scalp. The loofah fell to the floor, neither of the blondes noticing it.

"Are we… Are we done showering?" Helga asked.

"Are we?"

"Yeah."

"OK." Arnold agreed and gave her chin one last kiss before he turned off the water.

The blondes stepped out of the cabin, the male one handing the female a towel. With a meek smile, she put it over her head and gestured for him to dry her hair for her. With a chuckle, he did exactly that, enjoying the way she was practically purring from his touch. She did the same for him and they dried each other off lazily.

"What… do we do now?" Helga asked, causing Arnold to arch an eyebrow. "I mean… do we… just walk to your room in our birthday suits or…?"

"Oh! Uh… if someone wakes up and sees us that'd be pretty awkward, so I guess we should just… take a towel?"

"Yeah, sure. Oh, and bring our clothes of course."

"Yeah."

And with that, the blondes scrambled to wrap their bodies in towels while carrying their clothes to Arnold's room. Once inside, Helga felt a bit unsure about where she should put her clothes. And should she fold them? She wasn't a particularly neat person, but she felt uncharacteristically awkward in the unfamiliar situation.

"You can just, uh… put your clothes on my chair if you want."

"Gotcha." Helga responded, happy that Arnold seemed to have read her mind for once. She put her clothes on the chair, not bothering wasting time folding them, but not just throwing them unceremoniously either. When in doubt, settle for a compromise.

What now? Arnold thought, sensing the utter stiffness in the room. Helga was still standing near her clothes, pointlessly readjusting them, probably trying to figure out what to do herself. He looked towards his bed, smiling. "Remember the last time you were in that?"

Helga looked over her shoulder, seeing his bed. "I've been there a lot of times, they all start to blurt together."

"Oh, really?" Arnold implored, not believing her for one second. She shrugged, giving him a sideways glance that told him he was right. "So the last time was just as uneventful as ever?"

"I don't remember anything interesting happening."

Arnold sputtered before resolving to scratching his neck. "Not interesting, huh?"

Helga hummed in mock thoughtfulness. "Let's see… we were totally wasted."

"Cause it was New Year's eve."

"It could have been a school day for all I cared." Helga snorted. "We fell asleep… I woke up in the middle of the night and…"

Helga pondered what to say next. Or whether she had the guts to spill the sentence that was just itching on her tongue. The silent agreement to not speak of this was clearly moot now so…

"I jerked you off."

"Ah, so it wasn't a dream." Arnold concluded after the few seconds of shock at the way she had phrased it. His response earned him a playful glare and he laughed clumsily. "What made you do that anyway?"

"Morbid curiosity." Helga dead-panned. "You were… already like that so, it was just me being, well… curious, I guess."

"Morbidly?"

"Well, what I did was kinda morally gray, so—"

"Gray?"

"Don't you dare judge me, Shortman, you haven't exactly been a saint yourself."

Arnold put his hands up in surrender. "I admit that I've been morally gray as well."

"Yeah, for like… one night." Helga huffed, suddenly feeling oddly imbalanced next to him. It wasn't anything new that she was permanently on shaky moral high ground while he was placed safely on a freaking hilltop or something. That had never bothered her, but maybe it did bother her now. Just a little bit.

"I wouldn't say just one night." Arnold confessed. He almost regretted it when Helga sent him a curious stare, but he decided he might as well end the confession. "I… may have thought about both those times… a lot."

"Oh… Yeah, that makes sense I guess." Helga concluded, letting the information process in her mind for a bit. "That reminds me… I think I've asked this before or… maybe I just thought I did, but you've thought of me while you've… you know… right?"

What kinda question is that? Arnold thought in horror, feeling his cheeks heat up. He sat down on the bed, holding his towel securely to his waist. "Well… I'm a teenage boy and I, uh—"

"Just answer the question, Arnold."

Arnold looked up, surprised by the heated tone in Helga's voice. The eyes she was sending him were intense and he felt like he didn't have a choice in answering, so he nodded.

"I want—No, I need to hear you say it."

Struggling to breathe, Arnold curled his hands into fists and willed his heart to calm itself. "I have thought about you when I… I—I touch myself."

"What do you think about?"

"Nothing. Everything."

"That's not an answer."

"Have some mercy, Helga, you're asking about something that I've kept secret for many years." Arnold pleaded and Helga kept quiet, but still looked at him in a way that made him feel naked. Well, more naked than he already was. "I think… sometimes I just think of you without it being anything specific. I don't… really, I mean… I—I don't think about anything special, I think."

Helga blinked. "You're lying, I can see it."

"Goddammit." Arnold sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Look, what do you want me to say, Helga? That I imagine you under me? That I would give anything to hear you moan my name because I'm making you feel good? Is that what you want me to say?"

"Well, is it the truth?"

"Yeah!"

"Then yes!" Helga hooted. She held her stomach, continuing to laugh at the childish sourpuss face her boyfriend was making. "Arnold, I'm just… I don't know, this is really new for me. I mean, it's not that long ago that I was thinking of you as a monk. I thought you just weren't interested in love and all that crap, I didn't know it was cause you were crushing on me."

Arnold smiled. "I would probably have stayed loyal to you my whole life if you never found out."

"I'm not sure whether to be happy or sad about that."

Arnold chuckled. "Me neither. I guess I should just be happy that it didn't turn out that way."

"Me too." Helga answered with every ounce of honesty. She truly meant it, she couldn't imagine this not having been the turn of events, no matter how shocking or rocky it had been. Every little event had led up to this point… the point of no return. She couldn't imagine not being with Arnold like this and go back to being friends, it would feel too surreal.

Speaking of surreal… Patty had taken the liberty of having the sex talk with Helga a few days ago. Well, not the traditional kind, Helga didn't need that. But Patty had decided to take it upon her capable shoulders to teach Helga what she knew her friend would enjoy, and what Arnold would enjoy. Patty had managed to convince Helga that the one thing she had promised herself to never do was actually something she really wanted to do. Patty's description of it made it very appealing and Helga couldn't wait to try it… no, really, she didn't want to wait anymore.

Helga took a few quick strides towards Arnold, causing him to flinch when he suddenly saw the white towel in front of him. He looked up at her, smiling in slight confusion. She smiled back at him before she leaned down and planted her lips on him. Her hands landed on his naked thighs, causing him to jerk in surprise before he reciprocated the kiss. He let one hand stay on the towel, feeling a bit anxious about risking it falling down, but used his other hand to caress her cheek. He could feel her going down to her knees though and followed her for as long as he could until he was too confused and had to open his eyes. Helga was indeed on her knees in front of him, her hands still resting on his thighs. He blinked in surprise, his brain reeling from what he couldn't help but assume.

"Uh, Helga?"

"I've never done this before… obviously." Helga started, her eyes shifting between looking at him and at the towel.

No way! Arnold's mind was truly reeling now, his face blushing scarlet red. He was thankful they hadn't bothered turning on the lights when they talked in cause he really didn't want Helga to see how much even the thought turned him on.

"So… no complaints if I suck, OK?"

"Heh."

Helga rolled eyes, but smiled good-heartedly. "You know what I mean!"

"Sorry, sorry. It's just… Helga, just the thought of you doing this is… turning me on."

Helga's eyes darted towards Arnold's lap, noticing the small bulge growing under the towel. "So I see…" she scoffed with a smirk.

And with that, Helga leaned up to kiss Arnold once more. She put her hand over his, the one that was holding the towel, and rested it there while she kissed his chin. She left a trail of small, sweet kisses from his throat, down his chest and when she reached his waist, she helped him pull away the towel. She wasn't sure where the towel ended, she kept her eyes closed and continued kissing downwards. It wasn't until a gasp hit her ears that she knew she had reached her goal. She kept kissing, unsure where she even really was kissing, until she felt something twitch against her lips.

Wait… did that thing really just move? Helga thought in confusion, slowing down her kisses as she kept thinking. I mean, I guess that makes sense… It can't really stand up without moving, can it? Stop thinking so much…

And that's what Helga did as she kept kissing the area, sneaking one eye open so she knew where she even was. She knew what it looked like, of course she did, but it wasn't like she had actually seen one for real before. So maybe it wasn't that surprising that her eyes sprung open at the sight of Arnold's flesh standing at attention in front of her.

Stop staring at it, Helga told herself and kissed it again, eliciting a small moan from Arnold. Yeah, that's what I need to focus on… whatever makes Arnold make those noises.

Helga did her best to listen to every single noise Arnold made, good or bad, and used them to guide her through this experience. She experimented like Patty had suggested, switching between using her hand or scratching his stomach, trying to both use tongue and moan so she would vibrate around him. It was surprisingly fun to experiment and listen to what Arnold liked and disliked. It was like she was getting to know him a little more, which was a strange thought since she had known him all her life. Part of her thought there wasn't possibly anything she didn't know about him.

"H—Helga, wait!" Arnold groaned and put his hand on her head, causing her to look up at him in mild irritation at being interrupted. "If—If you keep that up… I'm not gonna last long."

Helga sprung up to his eye level. "Really?!" she asked in excitement.

Arnold couldn't help but laugh. "Y—Yeah… you're, uh… really good at it."

"Naw, you're just saying that cause you love me." Helga joked, caressing her nose against his. Despite her words, she seemed formidably happy with herself. "So, uh, what do you wanna do—"

"What do you—"

The blondes looked at each other in surprise before chuckling.

"In sync again, huh?" Arnold noted, scratching his head.

"Well, why stop now?"

"Speaking of…" Arnold whispered gently, putting his hand behind Helga's neck and pulling her into a sweet kiss.

She smiled against his lips and crawled up on the bed with him. He leaned down, pulling her with him, but carefully so she didn't slip. She sat on his lap, and almost immediately flinched at the feeling if their crotches touching. Arnold reacted the same way, but went to grab her towel nonetheless. She let him take it off her, exposing the last part of her he had yet to see properly. He didn't spend long just watching though, throwing the towel away on the floor and pulling her down to his level. She had expected the kiss, but not its location. She made a high-pitched gasp when his mouth touched her breast, kissing and licking it lovingly. He could feel her breathing hard against him so he started caressing small circles on her back to calm her down. She did, but her breathing was still labored.

"A—Arnold!" Helga gasped in a warning tone. "Can we… Shit, can we just please get to the… the, uh—"

"The main course?"

"That's as good a metaphor as any." Helga chuckled and sat up, their crotches connecting again. She clenched and he jerked, their eyes meeting awkwardly. With a gulp, she moved her hips forward in a smooth motion, eliciting a deep groan from the boy underneath her. She did it a few more times, loving the feeling of Arnold digging his fingers into her hips, encouraging harsher movement from her.

"H—Helga, how are we gonna do this?"

That made Helga stop altogether and look at him in confusion. "Uh… don't we only have one way to do this?"

Arnold chuckled. "I mean… do you want to stay where you are or…?"

"Oh, position! Um…" Helga started mumbling to herself thoughtfully. "I think… I think I trust you more than I trust myself right now so… l—let's switch."

"Wow."

"Don't get mushy on me." Helga warned and grinded aggressively on him. "I'll go get the condom."

And with that, Arnold was suddenly left alone and felt very cold without his girlfriend's presence. He watched her trudge towards his shirt, pulling out the condom from his chest pocket and then she was back with him as quickly as she had left.

"Can I do this?"

"Uh, sure. Do you know how?"

"I mean… in theory, yeah. You're not the only one who knows how to use Google."

Arnold rolled his eyes good-heartedly, but his expression changed drastically when Helga opened the condom wrapper with her teeth, ripping it open. "Oh, my god…"

"What?" Helga asked with little interest as she pulled the condom out of the wrapper. "That… is weird-looking. Must be the dots."

"How can you see anything at all in this darkness?"

"Your eyes haven't adjusted yet?" Helga asked while fiddling with the condom.

"Not as much as yours apparently." Arnold retorted, watching as Helga held the condom rather confidently. Within a few seconds, she was testing the fit by stroking him roughly, causing him to gasp in surprise. "Yeah, that feels right."

Helga huffed proudly. With yet another snicker, Arnold pulled her into a kiss and gently maneuvered her around him. He lifted her by the thigh, making sure not to squish it as her back hit the bed. They kissed for a few minutes, letting the feeling of what they were about to do sink in. It was intense and yet reassuring, it was rather indescribable really.

"OK…" Arnold whispered against Helga's lips, causing her to shiver. "I'll go really slowly, ok? I'll go little by little, stop and then continue when you tell me to, ok?"

"OK."

"OK…" Arnold reassured, gave her one last kiss and positioned himself on his knees. They both looked as he used his hand to guide himself towards her, but nodded at each other quickly before he went any further.

Helga took a deep breath when she felt his skin touch hers. She exhaled slowly and when she started to inhale again, he inched inside her, causing her to tense up. She furrowed her eyebrows in determination and nodded. Little by little, literal inch by inch, she could feel him entering her, stretching her in an unfamiliar and uncomfortable way. She willed herself to relax, reminding herself that tensing up only made it worse. Her feet lifted slightly off the mattress when he moved once again and she grimaced.

This was… not pleasurable, but not painful either.

"Alright…" Helga sighed. "You can move again."

"No, I can't." Arnold answered, causing Helga to open her eyes for the first time in the last few minutes. "I'm all the way in."

Helga blinked. "Oh, thank God!" she cried in relief and then her body finally, fully relaxed. They both laughed, tension in the air ebbing away with every breath. "How are you feeling?"

"Overwhelmed." Arnold confessed, a big smile on his face. "I'm… in disbelief."

Helga sighed happily and nodded. "OK, Football Head… Give me all you got."

Arnold arched a curious eyebrow and made one solid thrust, causing Helga to tense up again. He smirked knowingly at her and she looked away in shame.

"After a few minutes of still being gentle." She corrected with a pout.

"There's no rush, Helga." He reminded her, kissing the top of her head. She smiled up at him, nodded and took one more deep breath before he began moving.

The next few minutes were a myriad of feelings and thoughts. Eventually, Arnold and Helga found a steady rhythm and everything became natural. Once in a while, either one of them would do something to break the rhythm, like kissing or touching the other, but mostly they couldn't handle more than what was already happening. When Arnold had called it overwhelming, he hadn't exaggerated. Everything about what was happening was awe-inspiring; they had been best friends since before they could talk, they'd had their ups and downs, but after a long time of struggling and fighting in their own ways, they had finally reached a point where they were so unbelievably happy together, happy enough to share this wonderful, one-of-a-kind experience with each other.

And it was possibly the last time.

After tonight, after all these months, college was right around the corner. The next few months would be dedicated to the big move. Getting the things they'd need at their designated colleges, rooms, perhaps cheap apartments, books, computers, everything a college student would need. There would be little time for anything else and they would only get busier once college truly started. And to make matters worse, they would be far away from each other. They had never not been more than 10 minutes apart, never not been able to come if they other called. This next chapter of their lives was overwhelming enough as it was, but the fact that they couldn't be there for each other the same way they had grown accustomed to… was heartbreaking.

Neither was sure when it had happened, but they had at some point pulled each other into a hug and were sitting on the bed rather than lying down. The steady rhythm had turned into the occasional thrust from either of them, but something had changed. Rather than feeling connected, they had never felt further apart. Their hearts were reaching for each other, unable to reach. It was Arnold who first felt tears running down his cheeks. When he felt them, he gasped in shock. How long had he been crying?

"Oh… I—I'm sorry, Helga." He whispered when he felt Helga shake in his arms. "I—I… I just… I didn't want to think about it, but I—"

"Arnold…" Helga whimpered and pulled away slightly, her hands still digging into his back. Her cheek touched his and he felt it very clearly; their salty tears mixing.

"Oh, Helga…" Arnold sobbed, unable to hold back his tears knowing she was crying as well. She wheezed when he pulled her into a strong hug, holding onto her for dear life. She let out a loud sob and cradled him in her own arms.

"I don't want to leave!" Helga wept, failing miserably at keeping her breathing steady.

"Screw college." Arnold agreed, breathing harshly through his nose even though it was getting stuffy. He hid his face inside his hair as they laid back down on the mattress, letting each other and themselves cry to their hearts' content.

"Well… that was a bust." Helga whispered, her voice hoarse from crying. She could feel Arnold nodding, his chin bumping the top of her head gently and his hand running up and down her arm soothingly.

"I guess we're too caught up in our emotions." Arnold agreed, his eyes bloodshot rendering him still rather blind in the darkness.

A knife could cut the silence between them. Despite their words in the heat of the moment, they knew they couldn't drop out of college before they had even begun. Both of them had dreams, career goals, that needed a college education. As much as it killed them, not going to college wasn't an option. Going to the same college wasn't an option either. So what was even left?

Helga took a deep breath. "OK, so I hate mushiness."

"Could have fooled me." Arnold joked, despite feeling too emotionally exhausted to actually laugh at anything. The half-hearted slap on his chest told him Helga felt the same way. "Let's get this over with."

That didn't sound good; Arnold immediately felt very much awake.

"Clearly… we can't live without each other." She stated matter-of-factly. The sigh of relief leaving Arnold's mouth was so loud that Helga almost thought he was being sarcastic, but the nod she felt on her head told her otherwise. "So… how about we actually talk about this like grown-ups?"

"Do you… have a grown-up solution?"

"Maybe." Helga declared and lifted herself up so she could look at him. "How about we find an apartment between our colleges?"

Arnold's eyes couldn't have gotten bigger, they were almost bulging out of his eye sockets. "Helga Pataki… are you asking me to move in with you?"

"I did no such thing!" Helga yelled out of mere habit, but then bit her tongue. "Well… guess I am, yeah. I mean, we've slept over at each other's places like a lot anyway and we know each other's living habits and… the alternative is, what, stupid phone calls and seeing each other maybe once a month if we're lucky? I'd rather live with your annoying habits than that."

"And you don't have annoying habits?"

"One of my annoying habits is being annoyed by your annoying habits!"

Arnold laughed heartily and pulled her down to his chest again, feeling her snuggling closer to him. "Are you serious?"

"No, I just wanted to break your heart a little bit more."

"There's a special place in hell reserved for people like you."

"Good. I hate standing in line."

Arnold rolled his eyes at the familiarity of their banter; he couldn't believe how brokenhearted he was just a minute ago. And now, here he was, about to move in with Helga.

"So, this will still really suck, like really suck." Helga huffed. "Most days we might not even see each other until like… before we go to bed."

"But we'll know that when we come home, the other will be there."

"Except on days when we can't make it home. And we'll probably be in the crappiest of crappy apartments that we can barely afford even with part-time jobs. That is if we can find jobs… or an apartment to begin with."

Arnold smiled, knowing full well that despite her words, Helga was as excited about this development as he was. "Why do you do that, Helga? Why do you always have to look on the dark side?" he asked, knowing what she would say.

"Somebody has to."

The end

Author's 2nd note: IT'S DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONE! Be honest, how many of you forgot about this fanfic cause it's been so long? Hahahaha… I'm so sorry about that, like really. But I hope the conclusion was to most people's liking despite the long-ass wait.

And as a reminder, my next long fanfic will NOT be a Shortaki one. Some of you might already know exactly who the next fanfic will be about, I've been posting hints here during autumn x'D I can't say when I'll be able to start it because my life is changing (yet again) in 2019, so I need to have all that settled before starting any big fanfiction projects again. I also want to be sure I have time to go back to a more regular updating schedule, I have been failing miserably at that this past year and I want to get back on track.

That's all for now, folks! Stay tuned :D