Disclaimer:Nickelodeon and Viacom own Hey Arnold, and Craig Bartlett created it.

Chapter V: The Forbidden Words

Billy remained rigid for the next three minutes in the same position and expression that Arnold had left him until an old woman approached him with benevolent concern to ask if he was alright. Of course, he had to snap out of the stage of breathlessness in this uneasy situation. At least, he knew that he had to pretend to be what he wanted to pretend to be. In this while of politely showing gratitude to this kind stranger, he debated with himself about his eventual confront with Arnold on the rooftop. Should he – No. He could not. It was already too late to be fickle. He decided to be Billy. God gave him the chance to be Billy, so he could not betray his decision. Therefore, he must accumulate the possible arguments that would wipe away Arnold's curiosity and stop further meddling in bringing their ghosts back to life to that unpleasant place called home. I must… save both of us!

As Billy gathered his thoughts and entered the elevator, he noticed this radiant being whose face glows with her soft smile between the perfectly genuine braids. She did not seem to remember him when their eyes met. She politely greeted him to break the evidently awkward air, and he nodded in a sigh of relief. Billy thought to himself about the innumerable coincidences that were endowed upon him from the heaven that could possibly be hints for the predicaments of the future that his life would not be peacefully the same, or perhaps they were warnings kindly sent by the spirits that he had to return his precious treasure- his heart. Suddenly, a ring tone of Insomnia by Craig David interrupted his thought. Hilda was calling.

" Hello?" Billy answered the phone. "What's up?"

" Oh, the manager just told me to work overtime today, so I'm just letting you know."

"Alright. Don't work too late. And wear something warm while you're working."

"I wish. There's still the uniform rule, you know. Plus, it's summer."

" Ah, who cares about those ancient regulations? I don't want you to get sick, Hilda."

" Yes, sir. Alright, I got to go. I'll see you later. Eat dinner without me." Hilda hang up.

While Billy closes his phone, Lila looked over at Billy. She couldn't have guessed that the world is actually very small-so small that it allowed the presence of the dead Helga to haunt her. Hilda, he said. Hilda, that girl. As Lila was lost in the moment, Billy noticed her gaze at him in a certain kind of subtle bewilder look and thought of a brilliant idea.

Arnold had already seated himself twenty minutes before the exact time of the meeting and pressed his back against the cool cement that shielded him from the burning warmth of summer. In this while, he closed his eyes to recap what had happened, what was happening, and what will happen. In his hand, this piece of woodwork lit up his hopes and the possibility that he didn't dare to imagine… yet. He had to be sure before he goes crazy.

What felt like years waiting- to Arnold- was five minutes after the proposed time of the meeting. He jerked up with the sight of Billy… and Lila?

"Lila?" Arnold's eyes were wide opened.

" Hi Arnold," Lila replied with the usual smile with a little bit extra excitement in hearing the news from Billy that Arnold had secretly planned a meeting between them by asking a hotel boy to deliver the message to her.

"I have brought her here due to your request, sir," Billy said coolly. "This won't be considered as miscellaneous service of the hotel because we are greatly grateful that you were a kind customer to protect the hotel property and return it to us."

"You mean this is a hotel property?" Arnold held up the broken photo frame.

"Yes. It belongs an employee here."

"Then why isn't the owner of this thing here to get it, but you?"

"Sir, our employees here have to work according to schedule. Thus being a good co-worker and boyfriend, I am here on her behalf to obtain the object."

Boyfriend. That word appeared like thunder volt that twittered Arnold up to a long silence. For a moment, Billy's suave moves and actions were almost convincing that Arnold was being delusional, and Arnold realized it. However, whatever the reasons for this stranger's lies already revealed to Arnold that this person was afraid of his words or questions enough to prepared a pre-caution to make Arnold stuck in silence and just return the locket. This guy is hard egg to crack, Arnold thought.

"I think I might happen to know the owner of this locket," Arnold said. "Her name is Helga."

Billy was silenced.

"It is undeniable that it is Helga," Arnold stated – this time, with an increment of confidence.

Lila understood that her existence was unwanted- or rather, unnecessary here. Arnold's mind had not leave Helga behind as he promised. She could understand the heaving guilt that might have imprisoned his nonchalant thoughts or the romantic fantasy with her, but seriously, it should not to the extent that those thoughts could be completely evaporated because of this irrational possibility that Helga might be alive! Arnold, look at me! "Helga is dead, Arnold," she lamented. "Please forgive us for still mourning the loss of our closest fri-"

"No," Arnold was determined, but the intervention of Lila's presence felt like the absence of oxygen that caress upon him to shush. Nevertheless, this was urgent.

"Sir, if you please to just return-" Billy reached out his hand.

"You know about Helga, too, don't you?" Arnold clutched the locket in his pocket tightly.

"I am here to retriev-"

"Your lies are not making sense."

"What are you talking about? With all due respect as our customer, plea-"

"This locket belongs to you, not your female co-worker," Arnold snapped. "Hence the words behind it…"

"I do not know what you are talking about," Billy replied with a forced indifference. "That locket is my girlfriend's stuff; and I was just holding on to it for her while she works."

"I should return it to her myself then," Arnold said.

"NO," Billy yelled, knowing he had shown too much of himself to help this situation. "I'm sorry, but I hope you understand the protectiveness of a boyfriend who does not wish for a stranger to bother his girlfriend."

"I will not return it to you until I understand the words behind it by some explanations of this owner," said Arnold. With that, Arnold turned to leave. He knew there were more behind these words and that picture that could bring Helga back. He was not crazy. He knew that this was sanity that kept him searching for this inevitable truth, so he wasn't going to let go.

"Wait!" Billy cried out as desperation told him to trick Arnold with an innocent question, so he could take a run and go for the locket. "What made you think that locket is mine?"

Arnold reached out for his pocket and held out the broken pieces of the locket. "Here-"

"You broke it?" Billy's instinct was guiding him to exaggerate his dumbfounded expression before the broken hotel's property. Thus he got closer to Arnold and increasingly hinted a scolding tone. When a pinch of guilt showed up on Arnold face, he caught on to the moment, grabbed it, and ran passed Lila.

"HEY-" Arnold yelled and turned around to follow Billy.

The shadows upon the rooftop followed one another and disappeared into the door down the stair. All except a shadow of a brunette who had stood there, neglected in a corner. She collapsed to her feet with a sigh of confusion of witnessing this implicit conversation. As she was about to get up and leave the placid rooftop as well, Lila noticed a piece of paper on the ground near the doorway that had not been there when she came. She picked it up and noticed it to be an antique photo of a girl with a straight bushy eye brown above her round nose and unnoticeable lips with a pink bow of her head placing perfectly in between the messy blond hair that hang over from the sides of her ears. The photo rang a sense of familiarity to what was five years ago and invoked security to the theory of Arnold's sanity. As she turned the photo around to see the back of the photo that might have contained the words Arnold talked about, she imminently dropped it for it to slowly floating to the ground while she was still digesting this information.

It read: I love *Helga* Hilda.

A/N: Okay. The last part where it said "It read: I love *Helga* Hilda." The word Helga was supposed to be strike, but somehow I can't get the it to save sucessfully, so just know that it's supposed to be striked out. I apologize for the unconvience of that. Anyhoo, thank you for reading. :)