Arnold waved goodbye to the nurse in the front office. He stepped outside and stared up at the sky for a moment, a pleased sigh escaping his lips as he closed his eyes. Everything was going so well for him this year. He really enjoyed interning at the city hospital while he was studying in college. He was 22 and was already creating a name for himself in the world of medicine. He had been given special permission to assist in minor surgeries that took place in their hospital and was also able to sit in on the more major surgeries. He dipped his hands in the pockets of his scrubs as he headed towards the boarding house.

He still lived in the boarding house with new tenants. Unfortunately, his grandparents were both deceased. Grandma was lost to breast cancer a few years back, and grandpa died not too soon after, they said from a broken heart. It was hard for Arnold to cope, but he soon realized that they were together in a better place. Not to mention, his grandparents made sure he'd be well off in their passing, leaving the boarding house in his name and a hefty amount of money for his schooling and miscellaneous things.

He was lost in thought when he suddenly bumped into a young woman. Since Arnold was a bit built from his daily trips to the gym, the woman bounced off of him like a bouncy ball. She hit the ground with a small thump.

"Oh miss, I'm so sorry!" Arnold rushed to her side and lifted her up gently by her arm so she could stand. She felt very frail in his gentle grip. It felt like one wrong move and her arm would snap. The woman looked up at him, flipping her blonde hair in a huff of frustration. "Oh no, it's fine really, I just love being knocked over by people who don't pay attention to where they're going." She said sarcastically. That voice sounded so familiar. They finally made eye contact and they both seemed stunned to see each other after all these years.

"…Helga?" Arnold asked hesitantly. Helga seemed even more shocked than he was. She looked around slightly, trying to think of something witty to say, but she looked so tired. "What of it, football head?" She said harshly.

Arnold rolled his eyes. He hadn't heard that name in seven years, since their freshmen year of high school. "All these years and you're still so mean Helga." He said, almost disappointed.

Helga almost felt ashamed. "…Yeah…sorry Arnold…" She said, a little more quietly. Arnold was caught off guard by that last sentence. Did Helga just apologize? He looked down at her; he had grown quite a bit since they last saw each other. "It's alright Helga. Hey, why don't I make this up to you and take you to get a coffee together? My treat?" He asked.

Helga looked up at him, searching his eyes a moment. Then nodded. "Sure, I need a good pick me up." She said, forcing a small smile. Arnold looked at her again, before smiling. Something seemed off with her. They began walking to the shop and after an awkward silence; they reached the shop and ordered their coffee. They both sat down across from each other. Helga was clutching her coffee close to her, staring at the brown liquid swirling around in the cup.

Arnold, trying to find something to talk about, coughed slightly before speaking. "So, how's everything going? I haven't seen you since freshmen year."

Helga looked sad at that last comment. "Things are going, I guess." Her eyes shut for a second and she sighed. "Bob and Miriam decided to move right after I finished freshman year and I had no choice but to go, because Olga was too busy with her damn husband to take me in." There was an etch of ice in her voice.

Arnold frowned. "Well, what brings you back to Hillwood?" He asked, genuinely curious. She looked at him, almost like she wasn't really sure why she came back. "I dunno, just felt a pull to come back here. I left Bob and Miriam's on my 18th birthday that they forgot about, and never looked back."

"Oh…Helga…I'm sorry." He said, saddened by her parents not even seeming to care about her absence. Helga just shrugged. "Yeah well, shit happens I guess." She eyed his scrubs, before smirking after a second. "Okay so now it's my turn to ask, what are you getting into these days?"

Arnold looked down and smiled. "Well, I was going to college for psychology, but after grandma and grandpa died, I decided to start med school, it's actually really cool, I've worked very hard and they decided to let me assist with minor surgeries now. Sometimes they even leave me the floor to take care of patients that aren't terminal. Like broken bones, common illnesses, or drug abusers." He noticed Helga twitch at the words 'drug abusers.' That was when he noticed the bruising on the inside of her arms, and the tired, almost lifeless look in her eyes. Helga was a heroin addict. That explained what was so off about her. The frail body, the tired look in her eyes, the bruising on her arms. Arnold felt his heart break for her, he felt so bad that she felt like this was all that she had to turn to after her negative home life.

"Oh Helga…" He said, reaching for her arm. She retracted it back quickly, shooting him a look that could kill. That was the only life he saw in her since they bumped into each other. "I don't need your pity football head, so don't bother giving it." She quickly scrambled to grab her bag, standing up abruptly. "I've gotta go. Thanks for the coffee." She said, tossing two crumpled bills onto the table before opening the door brusquely and walking out of his sight from the windows. Arnold stared at the crumpled two dollars on the table and sighed.

Arnold still had the desire to help people, just like from when he was a kid. And his desire to help Helga was more than what he normally felt when he saw a distressed soul. Seeing how different she was now. He would've rather had the mean Helga instead of this… almost zombie like woman that had sat across the table from him just moments ago. He prayed he would see her again, so he could try to convince her to get help from his hospital. He fished his wallet from his pocket and pulled two dollars out, setting it on the table on top of Helga's. He stood up, collecting his coat and tossing it on, heading out the door in the opposite direction Helga left.

Later that night, Arnold laid in his bed, deep in thought about Helga's situation. Where did she stay? Did she have a decent place? Maybe she'd be better off staying in the boarding house. After all, there was a room open. He kept thinking about Helga. It was so foreign to him to think so fondly of her, especially after all these years. He admitted that there was a time he cared for Helga, in freshman year, even more than friends. Was there an unresolved affection he had for Helga?

His thoughts were cut off by the sharp ringing of his iPhone. Gerald was calling. Perfect, he was actually living with Phoebe, so maybe he could get some answers from them and if they knew anything about Helga's predicament. "Hey Gerald." Arnold answered. "Hey man! How's the hospital treating ya?" He said, cheerily. Arnold smiled over the phone. He always looked forward to Gerald's calls, even though they were rather late, seeing as this was really the only time neither one of them were busy with work or school. His lifelong friend always managed to make him happy, even if things
were at rock bottom. "It's going great actually. But listen, I'm actually really glad you called. I ran into Helga today." Arnold said, quickly changing the subject. There was silence on the other end of the line. "…How bad does she look now?" Gerald asked, concerned. "You know about her problem?" Arnold asked, a little surprised.

"Yeah, Phoebe ran into her about two months ago and she looked pretty rough. She offered to help her, but Helga's as hard headed as ever and hasn't spoken to Phoebe since."

Arnold stared at the opposite wall, holding the phone against his ear. "You there man?" Gerald asked. Arnold snapped out of it and shook his head slightly. "Yeah, but hey listen, I think I'm going to try and help her." He said, hope in his voice. "You're a bold guy Arnold, but I think you should go for it. If anyone can get her to come to her senses, it's you, lover boy." Gerald laughed.

Arnold rolled his eyes. "Tell Phoebe I said hi. Oh, and Gerald?"

"Yeah man?"

"Wish me luck." Arnold smiled.

"Of course dude, you'll need it with Helga G. Pataki. Call me and let me know how it goes. Bye."

"Bye." Arnold hung up the phone, setting it back on his nightstand. He sat up in his bed now, trying to figure out how he'd run into her again, seeing as he didn't even know where she lived.

He sighed; he knew he really needed to get some sleep. He looked at the clock. 11pm. He had to be in class in 9 hours and needed all the sleep he could get because right after his classes he had to be at the hospital by 2pm. Helga was a problem for tomorrow, he just hoped he wouldn't regret trying to help her in the end.

He lay back down in his bed, shutting his eyes. After a few minutes, sleep finally took him and he dozed off.

Across the street….

Helga stood at her window, coming down from one of her legendary highs. She had just cut off the latex on her arm, gently prodding the now forming bruise from where she had stuck herself with the needle. She noticed Arnold's light go out in his room across the street in the boarding house, sighing quietly. She felt bad for her outburst in the coffee shop. She just got so frustrated, because she didn't want Arnold to know, that was the last thing she needed. She laughed to herself, it was so ironic that this seemed to be the only apartment available in her price range, and wouldn't you know it, it just so happened to be right across the street from her lifelong crush's place. It's funny how the world works. She looked back to her bed. She should really get some sleep. Her shift as a waitress at the local diner was starting at 10am, so she needed all the sleep she could get.

She stretched, then slipped on an old nightgown of hers and crawled achily in her bed. She was starting to notice how bad this problem was becoming. Normally she'd just brush it off, but seeing the pain in Arnold's eyes for his old friend really made her think twice. Tomorrow… tomorrow is the last day I'm going to do this… She thought to herself.

Unfortunately, she knew that this wasn't the first time she had said this, and probably not the last. She slowly rolled over; shutting her eyes, praying that sleep would take her away from reality soon.

*EEEEEE (: I'm excited about this new fanfic of mine. I really hope you guys like it! It's a bit on the darker side, and I hope I wrote it well. Told you there was a slight twist! And of course, leave comments and reviews, let me know what I can do better! Thank y'all for reading!*