Hello, people of internet! Here's a new Seddie story for you guys! This story is mainly focused on the Seddie friendship rather than the relationship. Keep in mind that iOMG has never ocurred. Also, I'm sorry for any mistakes you might find. The program I wrote this on doesn't have spell or grammar check. :( Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: I'm not Dan Schneider. Case closed.

I watched the rain as it gracefully slid down the small, cracked window in the dark hospital waiting room. Sipping my bland coffee, I happened to notice a large wool blanket had been wrapped around my shoulders. The anoying nurses had been on my case all day. Would you like something to eat, sweetie? How about a tissue? Is there someone I can call to come get you? Buried in my fears, I couldn't even shake my head to refuse their unneeded offers. Instead, with my tired, beaten-down mind I replied, No, just save Carly.

Carly. My sweet and innocent best friend, Carly. Why do bad things always happen to good people? This should be me, I thought. I should be the sick one. I didn't even pay attention to the signs. People get bruises. People sometimes sleep a lot. People get fevers. Who knew that could all lead to leukemia? Everyone knows that, stupid. Everyone but you. I should have noticed. I should have talked to her about it. I should have taken her to the hospital weeks ago instead of that dumb ambulance that brought her here last night. Although I tried to force it back, the memory of the night before came into my mind as vividly as it had actually occurred.

"Hey Sam, you want a glass of my homeade lemonade?"

"Not really," I said. "But I know you're going to give me some anyway."

She did her famous Carly giggle and walked over to the fridge. I sat on the stool closest to the computer, so I couldn't help but notice she was being a bit more clumsy than usual. I looked at Fredlumps sitting next to me and saw that we were wearing matching expressions. Upon returning with my cup of lemondade, Carly took a slow, long breath and quickly gabbed the counter with a hint of pain in her eyes.

"Hey, uh, Carly? Are...are you okay?" I quietly said with a shaky voice.

"Yes, I'm fine. "It's just-" she slowly released her grip on the counter and straightened her posture. "I've been having these sharp pains below my ribs, sometimes even reaching my stomach. It's nothing to worry about, though. Probably only a- OW!"

This time, Carly's pain knocked her right off her feet and onto the floor. Instantly, Freddie and I both ran over to where she was screaming in pain on the hard ground. Quick as lightning, her face became blue and she was grasping for air.

"I...I...can't...b-breathe!" she said with fear in her eyes.

"Call 911!" I yelled to Freddie, who ran to the phone with quick strides.

"Shh, Carly," I said. "You're going to be okay. I promise."

Although I had been sitting in that awful waiting room through a countless number of tests, cries, and prayers, I couldn't get up the courage to move. My whole body felt limp, and I doubted my brain would even register the fact that I learned how to walk years ago. Carly had been sleeping all day, but I still felt guilty for not seeing her. I just couldn't look at that face of an angel with mutiple tubes and needles sticking out every which way. One by one, though, people arrived carrying flowers and gifts for her. I looked at every single one of them and wondered the same question, How are you doing this?

Luckily, no one had noticed me sitting in the dark corner all alone behind this plant. No one saw me, and no one asked for me. I don't know that I could handle their pathetic excuses of comfort, anyway. "Carly will be okay," they would say. "She's gonna make it. Don't you worry about her." Those are the things that scared me the most. What if she doesn't turn out okay? What if she doesn't make it? How can you not worry about your best friend while she is stuck in a hospital room fighting a deadly disease that could kill her in seconds? No one understood my reasoning. That's why I was better off alone.

"Sam?"

I heard a broken voice call for me from behind. Great, I thought. Just what I wanted. I slowly turned away from the window and saw Freddie awkwardly standing behind me. He looked terrible. His eyes were red and puffy from crying and lack of sleep. His hair was messy and tangled, and his right hand was wrapped in a white bandage.

"Sorry, Fredwart," my voice came out shaky and hoarse. "Apparently you didn't realize this is a fight you can't try to win for Carly. Cancer can take a pretty hard punch."

He looked down at his hand and sighed. "Sam, do you really think this is a good time for jokes and name calling?"

I really wasn't in the mood to be mean and sarcastic, but I couldn't let Freddie see how upset I was. That would ruin everything I stand for. "Carly's sick. Nothing else has changed."

"Everything has changed, Sam! Everything is going to continue to change!" His voice echoed deep inside my mind; I had never heard him speak this way before. As his face suddenly turned a bright shade of red, I also realized he was shaking. It reminded me of a werewolf springing into action, and, for the first time in my life, I was scared of Freddie Benson.

"Carly is deadly ill and is just going to get worse! Don't you get it? Carly has to stay here in this hospital every single day to get treated, which means no more meets at Groovy Smoothie, no more sleepovers, and no more iCarly! You can't survive without her, Sam! She does everything for you! How are you going to stay out of trouble? Who are you going to cry to when your mom comes home drunk? Don't you dare say that nothing has changed because everything has!"

My tears began to fall like the rain outside. Those tears became sobs, and the sobs became screams of worry. Very carefully, Freddie sat down and pulled me on his lap. For once in my life, I didn't object to his touch. I let him hold me in his arms placing small kisses on my head for what seemed like hours.

"Sam, you don't have to be so strong all the time."Freddie whispered. "Things happen that are out of our control. Unfortunately, life comes with pain and sadness. You can let your guard down sometimes."

"I'm so scared." I replied with my head buried in Freddie's chest.

"I know. Me too."

"What do you think will happen?"

"Well," he paused for a minute before answering. "I think Carly will get better as long as we believe that she will. We just have to keep the hope alive and pray that she becomes healthy. It's going to be a long journey, though, Sam. There may be times when you feel this way again. It's not going to be easy, but we have to be here for Carly."

"What's going to happen to me?" I whispered, almost hoping he didn't hear me.

"What do you mean?"

"You said I won't be able to survive without Carly, that I would have no one to cry to or share my secrets with."

Freddie let out a long sigh with regret burning in his eyes. "Sam, I-"

"What am I going to do when school starts this fall? It's my senior year; I can't go to juvie now! Not after I've worked so hard to be a decet kid! I mean, sure I might throw out my butter sock or punch a dork every now and then, but I get good grades and I haven't even been suspended since seventh grade! And you know why all this has happened? Because I've had Carly! How can you seriously take down someone when you have her "pretty girls don't fight" speech in the back of your mind? And if I wasn't at her house all the time I would never study! I would still be in eighth grade if it wasn't for her!"

"Sam, please-"

In the time it took the nub to interupt me, I realized I was crying again. Even so, I continued my hopeless rant. "I don't wanna be a bad person again, Fredie! I really, truly don't!" By then, I was hysterical. "What am I going to do? I-I can't...I can't do this without her!"

I buried my head in the crook of Freddie's shoulder as he rubbed tiny circles into my back. Though I would never admit it, it made me feel a million times better. Just being in my nub's presence always made me feel better. He brought a certain smile to my face that no one else could, not even Carly. He brought me to life every single time he spoke, yet I still couldn't understand my feelings for him. Having never received love as a child seemed to have scarred me terribly. Were these feelings toward Freddie pure friendship, or were they something more? I didn't know. What did it feel like to love a person? That is the question that got my mind working every time I looked into Freddie's eyes.

"Sam," Freddie finally said. "You don't have to stop being who you are just because Carly is absent. You'll stay the same, I promise."

"How?" I replied nervously. Freddie's gaze slowly turned away from me and landed at the window. I followed his eyes, but didn't see anything other than bright headlights and wet pavement.

"I, uh, I'll...I'll be here for you."

I didn't know how to reply, so I only sat there, hoping he would go into more depth. Luckily, he did.

"Look, Sam, I'm only admitting this because of the situation. Don't hit me or anything. Although, this would be the best place to be if you did injure me; there are doctors and nurses around every corner. Hmm, I should think about this the next time you wanna use me as your punching ba-"

"Freddie! Fredwart! Fredducinni! Nub! Loser! Dork! Whatever! Get on with it!" He chuckled very cutely, and I tried not to smile.

"Anyway," he continued. "Sam, you're my best friend. Forget Carly, Gibby, and Brad. You're the person I know I can trust and be myself around. Though you have caused me much physical and mental pain over the years, I crave your company more than anything. I guess what I'm trying to say is, I will always be here for you. I can keep you out of trouble, help you keep your grades up, and maybe sneak you past my psychotic mother if you want to stay with me some nights." We both grinned at that one. "You can count on me, Sam."

"Promise?" I said with tears streaming down my face.

Freddie leaned over to press his forehead against mine before replying. "Promise."

With that, I settled deeper into his lap and realized how tired I was. I closed my eyes quickly and hoped to finally get some sleep. I didn't know how long it had been since me or Freddie had last spoken, but I was certain when he started to speak again, it wasn't a dream.

"Sam?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you, you know."

"I know." He chuckled, but I knew he was hoping for more. "I love you, too, nub." I replied. Then, I wistfully fell into unconsciousness.