I'm fiddling with my thumbs, I don't do well with bad news like Carly's Dad telling us he has to leave for Florence tonight, but my attention is caught when he asks Carly to come with him. I glance at the guys, who look equally shocked and I open my mouth to tell her (or beg, however it ends up sounding) not to go when it hits me.
She needs to go, she needs her father... I can't hold her back. I blink as this realization hits me, am I actually letting Carly go? Have I actually matured enough I can not beg her to stay? Thoughts of when she almost went to that prep school enter my mind and I smile fondly before I realize she's talking to me.
"If it were my Dad..." I begin, "Well first I'd say 'ohh... So YOU'RE my Dad.. Then I'd probably go." The words taste bitter in my mouth and I notice, out of the corner of my eye, that Freddie is trying to subtly glare at me (and I might be the only one that notices) until Carly says his name.
"Freddie?" she asks and her eyes light up in a way that makes me sick.
"You just can't stand the thought of Carly and I as a couple" Said the younger Freddie.
"You're right, the thought makes me want to puke up blood." The younger I had retorted.
I was snapped out of my memory by Carly announcing she was going to Italy and my heart sank but I put on my best fake smile, which seemed to fool everyone, as Carly made plans for one more iCarly. We go upstairs and Freddie begins his countdown, which I'm going to admit I'll miss hearing, and we Start right into the show, no introductions yet.
"Now, you must be wondering why we're doing this broadcast, well.., We have a special guest tonight."
"My Dad!"
I push one of the buttons to make a clappng noise while Carly and I clap as Colonel Shay comes into view of the camera and walks over to Baby Spencer.
"This freaks me out." he mutters, "You know I paid to put this kid through law school?"
"About that..."
I can't help but giggle as Freddie has to turn the camera away when the Air Force Colonel starts strangling his son.
We then jump into a idiot farm girl skit, Another thing I'm going to miss, and finally Freddie gives us a nod: It's time to say goodbye. "This isn't goodbye." I finally say, though the words taste like a bad fat cake.
"No it isn't!" Carly adds.
"Carly's going to Italy for a little while with her Dad..." I pause, biting back tears and Carly picks up where I left off.
"This show has meant so much to me... I've loved every moment." She says, "Without you, the fans... We would have just been idiots with a camera."
"Which we are!" I add in.
She shakes her head and sighs, "I just want to say... Thank you and, I'm Carly."
"And I'm Sam."
"And.. This has been iCarly." we say together and just like... It's over.
We, minus Freddie, head downstairs to have a crazy hat party to say goodbye to the brunette who had been so important in our lives for years. We all socialize for a little, but I can tell Carly is distracted and finally she heads upstairs and I smile knowingly.
"Where's Carls going?" Spencer asks me.
"She's going to tell someone something he's been waiting to hear for years."
He gives me a confused but I shake my head, "I'm gonna get a soda."
Finally Carly comes downstairs followed by Freddie who looks pleased with himself and I smile knowingly at her but she doesn't seem to notice.
Finally it's time to say goodbye, her dad is waiting downstairs to take her to the airport, and I tell Carly I'll ride down with her, so I can say goodbye alone, and we all hug and scoot into the elevator. After everyone but Carly and I are out of the elevator the brunette looks at the guys and smiles, "I love you guys..." And I swear she's talking to Freddie.
"Love you too." he says softly, I haven't heard him tell her that in years.
The elevator shuts and I turn to Carly "I want you to have this." I say as I hand her the blue remote.
"Sam..."
"Take it." I insist.
She takes it and presses one of the buttons, making the remote emit a cheering noise... The exact opposite of my mood. She hugs me and I smile as I return the hug, "Take care of Freddie for me." She whispers in my ear.
I nod but I know I'm lying as we exit the elevator and I head towards the motorcycle Spencer and I had repaired earlier while she goes towards the car waiting to take her away to Florence.
"Take care of yourself Cupcake." I call as she gets in the car.
I rev up my bike and sigh, it really is the end of something...
As I ride home one of my fondest memories comes up and I can't help but smile as I stop at a red light.
"Would I have to do like... Work and stuff?" The younger me asks.
"You gotta do work to prepare for a show!" Carly retored.
"Then I'll just show up and be your amusing little side kick." I tell her while trying to get ham off the bone.
And what an amusing little sidekick I had been, even though I'd almost quit a couple times, it was just now hitting me how big iCarly had been in my life.
When I finally get home I let it out, the sadness and fear that I'll never see Carly again I'd been holding in since the opening few minutes of iCarly, and punch my wall as a few tears fall and I sit down on my bed. I don't sleep at all that night, and it hits me around 4 in the morning...
I can't stay here anymore, this hasn't been my home for years and the one thing keeping me here is gone. I briefly think of my promise to Carly and shake my head, "Sorry Carls... But he needs you not me, it was always you."
Finally sleep over takes me, but it isn't long before my alarm wakes me up at 9:30 "On a Saturday?" I groan, I had forgotten to turn of my alarm, and shake myself awake. My computer is on and there's a website for Los Angeles, Good place for a fresh start. I think with a sigh.
My first stop is Bushwell Plaza for one final goodbye, and I pound on Spencer's door as my phone rings with a text from Carly. When the older Shay sibling answers the door I say quickly, "get a pencil and a piece of paper so I can write this down!"
He does so and I scribble it down twice, one for me and one for Freddie, "You have her address right?" I ask.
He nodded, "yup."
"Listen I um... I came to say goodbye."
"Goodbye?"
"I'm leaving Seattle, I can't say here... I'm not meant to stay here."
"Well um..." And I start to feel bad, everyone's leaving him,and so I hug him.
"It's okay, I'll come visit, I promise."
He smiled softly, "See ya Sam... You're a good kid."
No I'm notI think guiltily, "Thank you.. I um, I need to go see Freddie."
I go across the hall and knock on the nubs door, pound on it more likely, "Hey Nub!" I shout when he doesn't answer the door.
"What's up Sam?" he asks as I enter the living room
The next part almost chokes me up, "I came to uh... Say goodbye."
The expression on his face kills me, but I need to do this, he needs Carly. "Goodbye?"
"I'm... I dunno, I mean I'm not gonna stay here." I say "I'm thinking L.A... I hear it's nice down there."
"W-What?"
"Carls is gone nub, did you honestly think it was going to stay the same?" I ask
"I.. It's really over isn't it?" I sigh, poor kid is just realizing this...
"She kissed me!" he blurts.
"What?" "I was in the studio.. packing up the equipment.. She covered my hand and kissed.." "Okay I get it." I interrupt him "And you let her go?!" Wow this kid was thick "Yeah..." He mumbled, "I... I wanted so badly to stop her but it... I couldn't." "Go after her!" "You're insane." He protested "I can't just run off to Florence.." "Dude, you've been in love with her since we were eleven years old... You almost died for her. Even I have to admit that's true love and if she loves you back it's your duty to go after her." I could tell he was coming around and I smile before hugging him in goodbye, "You're gonna need this." I whisper. "Good luck." I can't blame him for being surprised and I sigh as I head towards the door
"Goodbye Puckett, take care of yourself." he whispered and I barely hear him.
"I'll try." I reply, my heart aching from the goodbyes I've had to say I pull away from the hug and head for the door, but he stops me before I can leave
"The trio... It's really over isn't it?"
"Yeah... For now. But you and Carly will have each other.."
"I'll make sure we come back and see you... You're still our friend."
"Thanks.." She released me from the hug and moved towards the door "Goodbye... You really are a good friend Benson."
"I'm gonna remember that." he teased
"I'll deny it ever happened."
"See you Sam.."
"Bye Freddie."
And just like that... I walked out of Freddie Benson's apartment.
I head home and grab my motorcycle, I don't need or want much else, and head on out. My mom is god knows where, and she wont't miss me, but I do stop to call Carly.
"Sam?" She asks as she answers the phone.
"The one and only."
"Oh my god, it's only been a day and I miss you!"
"I miss you too Cupcake, how's Florence?"
"So beautiful, but I miss Seattle so much." I laugh,mostly grateful just to hear her laugh. "How's Freddie?" I finally force myself to ask."
"Oh... He's fine.." She says in a knowing tone, "Listen I just called to tell you something."
"What?"
"I'm moving to L.A"
"What?!"
She shrugged, "There's nothing here for me Carls, Freddie doesn't need me... He needs YOU and Gibby well... It's Gibby."
She sighs and I smile "Well,... I wish you luck, and I'm going to come see you sometime I promise."
"I'll hold you and the nub to that promise one day." I tell her, hiding how close I am to crying again.
We say goodbye and I hang up before getting on my bike and driving off.
The drive to L.A is longer than I thought, it seemed short when Spencer was taking us to get dirt on Carly's 'boyfriend'. I end up stopping about four hours later at a gas station, feeling thankful I took my mom's stash of money, and get myself a ham sandwich and a fatcake. After that I drive for another six hours until I'm sure I'm in California, then find a cheap motel to sleep at.
That night I dream of Seattle and Carly and Freddie and all the adventures we shared during the course of our little webshow, I even dream about when Gibby opened a restaurant.
The next morning I awake mostly refreshed and head out on the highway. An hour later I stop for gas, my hopefully last stop, then it's back on the road again. It's almost dark when I reach Los Angeles so I stop at a convenience store and grab a stick of Jerky and a fat cake, thank god they have them here, and decide to buy a paper in hopes to find a place to rent. I walk to the back and munch on my jerky while flipping through the paper until an ad catches my eye and I pull out my phone and dial the number on the paper.
"Hello?" A girl's voice answers and it sounds familiar, but I can't place it.
"Yeah Uh.. I'm calling about the apartment uh, vacancy?"
"Yay a roommate!" she said excitedly, "Oh right, Tori says I should... Meet them first, so come by the apartment tomorrow morning and we'll talk?"
"Sounds good."
"Kay Kay.." she says before hanging up.
I look at the phone before slipping into my pocket and sigh, I guess it's true... The end is only the beginning.
Note: So I hope you like this, the last part of the iGoodbye trilogy. Any questions, concerns or comments? The review box is open! I don't own iCarly, or anything in this story so... That's it and I hope you like it!