A/N: This chapter contains a lyric that I've borrowed from the Alkaline Trio. I don't think they'll mind.

On Sunday, Arnold awoke to the sound of his Grandpa shouting up the stairs. "Arnold! There's something here for you!" Arnold ran downstairs still in his pyjamas and took the letter from his Grandpa. He thought about opening it there in the hall, but found himself wanting to read it alone. Helga's words reverberated around his mind. 'I want to see how it all turns out.' He didn't quite understand yet, but he was starting to, and he knew the answers lay in this final chapter. He wasn't as dense as Phoebe said, he had noticed the similarities, but he didn't think it meant that much. He sat cross legged on his bed and looked at the envelope. It was pink. He smiled, just like Helga he thought. 'Arnold' was printed across the front in delicate handwriting.

With a grin on his face he tore the envelope open and unfurled the final chapter. It wasn't that long, but maybe that was just Helga's writing style. As he began to read, his expression changed from a grin to something much more solemn.

Henry watched Amanda

Amanda wondered how Henry could be so blind

As Amanda wrote her final goodbyes... her final testament.. she would still see him

As Amanda wrote her final poem for Henry, a goodbye to her desires

Ok, this is it. No more hiding.

Helga signed off her last ode to the boy she had loved unconditionally for so many years. Now was the right time to tell him, to get it all off her chest at last. If she didn't tell Arnold soon she would die, but now she was only telling him so she could move on. She had tried to do it without him knowing, but it was no good. Her mind would not let her rest on her laurels on so much wasted passion. She read back the words she had just written.

"Arnold, I remember when we first met. We were only young, you and I. I had been shunned by my family, forced to walk in the bitter weather. You shielded me, you smiled at me. God Arnold, at that young age you even complimented me! It's why, at my age, I still wear the silly floppy bow in my hair. Because YOU liked it. It still matches my clothes, did you notice? Do you even remember? I guess not. But you started something that day Arnold, you spawned an obsession which I now realise I have to let go of, because you will never be mine. You didn't even realise how I felt, did you? How could you? I was so mean, so spiteful, desperate for you to never know how much I loved you. I don't need to give anyone else ammunition to use against me.

Do you remember how I cracked, that night on the top of FTI? How you goaded me into revealing that which I had kept secret for so long? I told you I loved you, head over heels, but I never told you of all the schemes and plots and plans I had concocted, just to get close to you. How I resented Ruth, and how much I despised Lila for winning your affections. And the worst part? She turned you down. What a fool! What a complete imbecile! She could have your kisses as soon as soon she asked, whereas I would be lucky to even feel your breath.

I was your Valentine once. Remember?

But I can't do this anymore Arnold. I can't keep torturing myself and you any longer. When you see me tomorrow you can say what you will. You can say you never knew, you can apologise for being so blind, but know it will be empty to me. I don't mean to make you feel bad Arnold, but the part of my life that revolved around you is over. It's gone and I never want it back. I guess now you know all this a lot of things are falling into place huh? The little pink book, the locket with your picture, my masquerade as Lila... it was all for you, Arnold. My own little sanctuary and my own private Hell, all rolled into once. And this is goodbye. Not to you Arnold, but to myself, the part of me yearned for you, that I've finally killed off at last. If it was up to me I'd never have to miss you, but it's for the better, and the bitter, and I guess you know the best.

All my love forever,

Helga G. Pataki"

She signed the note with a kiss, folded it carefully and pushed inside a pretty pink envelope. She took great care writing his name on the front, trying to make the moment last forever. As she walked over to his house, she kept her hand closed on the note in her pocket, eager that she not lose it, knowing inside that he would never tell a soul. They would take this secret to their graves, and that was how Helga needed it. Arnold would know the truth, but the other kids would be none the wiser. As she pushed the envelope through his door, a single tear rolled down her cheek and fell to the ground. She walked home slowly, crying bitterly and silently, trying to find meaning in it all and knowing that one day she would.

"Goodbye, my love," Helga whispered to no one, and the girl with the sweet pink bow silently slipped into the neighbourhood to mourn for her lost love.

Arnold dropped the page onto his bed, speechless. He didn't realise she had gotten so far in, he couldn't believe he could inspire such intense feelings in someone. He looked up through his glass ceiling, at the clouds floating by. She had been his Valentine once, and no, he had not forgotten. He just hadn't known. He finally appreciated Helga for what she was, a delicate flower who had been stepped on so many times it had hardened her, but her inner beauty still glowed strong. He sighed. She was, deep down, one amazing girl, and for a brief moment, she had been his. He just wished he had realised it.

"Oh, Helga," Arnold whispered to no one, and the boy with the cornflower hair slipped silently into mouring for the creative soul that had destroyed herself that day.

THE END

A/N: Thats it then. Sort of a sad note to finish on, I kind of want to do a sequel! However, next fic in the works is How Helga Got Her Mean Back. Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed! -Sky.