Sarah Puckett gripped the steering wheel of her rusty, blue pick up truck until her knuckles turned white. Her eyes anxiously scanned the road as she drove, searching for the looming, gray, juvenile prison. Her phone rang loudly, startling her enough to give her whiplash. She flipped it open, and pressed it to her ear. "Hello?" she asked. "Mom? It's Melanie. What's going on? I have about 27 missed calls from Sam, and now I can't reach her. Mom? Is she in jail?" Sarah heard tears in her daughter's voice, and longed to have her nearby, close enough to offer her comfort. "It's okay, Melanie, honey. She's on her way to juvy, but so am I, and they aren't planning on making her stay. They just want to scare her. It's a unique situation because the man she assaulted was an ambassador from Mexico," Sarah explained, working to keep her voice calming, and reassuring. "But she didn't assault him, Mom, she just put a corn dog in his pants." Melanie said in exasperation. "I know, honey. Don't worry. Sam will be fine. I'm pulling in now, but I will call you tonight okay? I love you, Mel," Sarah said, turning into the parking lot. "Love you too, Mum," Melanie answered, and hung up the phone.
Sam sat quietly in the uncomfortable aluminum chair, her hands in her lap, head down. She was thinking about Carly, and how she would always avoid trouble by crying. Chewing on her lip, she glanced up at the clock. iCarly would be starting in 30 minutes. Quickly, she sent a text message to Freddie, knowing that Carly never checked her phone before a webcast, and punched herself in the thigh, regretting that stupid craving for a chilidog…
It was wrapped up in aluminum foil, and burning her palms as she clutched it. She walked over to the lone register, anticipating the smooth hot dog, and spicy chili combination on her tongue. She peeled back the foil, and took a bite. A large man with a thick mustache and a business suit looked at her, and then stood in front of her in line. "What the chizz?" Sam screeched. Having watched various men take advantage of her mother over the years, Sam let no one ever do the same to her. The man turned around. "Que desea usted?" he said angrily. "No one messes with Mama and her corn dog!" Sam screamed, shoving the corn dog down his pants. The store manager grabbed her arms and called the police.
Sarah couldn't help feeling a surge of pride as she saw Sam sitting in the office, looking down at her lap, but sitting tall. She vaguely wished that she was able to approach life with the "take no shit from anybody" attitude that Sam had. "Hi, officer. I'm Sarah Puckett, Samantha's mother. Can I take her home now?" she asked softly. The officer glared at Sam, bu nodded. "Normally, we don't do this. And you do have a record, missy. But take this as a warning. There isn't really a charge for shoving lunch food down ambassador's pants, so we will let your mother punish you how she sees fit. I do not want to see you again, Samantha Puckett." He shook his head menacingly, and left the room.
"Sam! Don't you ever scare me like that again, do you hear me? With a record like yours, you are just lucky that they didn't book you." Sarah said angrily. She turned around, and pulled Sam into a hug. "No one messes with us Puckett girls, right?" she whispered into Sam's ear.