A/N: A story I wanted to write while I work on my other stories.
DISCLAIMED: I DON'T OWN ICARLY
Carly Shay was a seventeen raven haired beauty that was grumbling about being woken up in the middle of the night. She didn't understand how somehow could be knocking on her door at three in the morning, and she really hated the fact that her brother, Spencer, was such a heavy sleeper. She had her best friend, Freddie Benson hook a speaker into her room that let her hear when someone knocked on the door since she was a very light sleeper.
She walked downstairs and to the front door. "Freddie?" She asked surprised.
"Hey," the short brown haired boy said casually.
"And, you're here in the middle of the night because…?"
"I wanted to say goodbye."
Carly looked at him confused, but then she noticed the suitcase behind. "Freddie? What's going on?"
He ran a hand through his hair. "I'm…Well, I'm leaving."
"Bushwell Plaza?"
"Seattle."
"Why?" Carly asked feeling overwhelmed.
Freddie sighed. "I'm sick of my life, Carly. I want something new, something fresh. I feel like I'm drowning here. If I stay here…If I stay, I think I might end up killing myself."
"What?" Carly asked horrified.
He ran a hand through his hair. "Look, I enjoy iCarly and all that, but nothing else has been going well for me. Everyone at school treats me like I'm worthless and look what happened in that interview you guys had before you visited your grandpa in Yakima. I'm not considered important. I saw their technical crew and that will probably be my future if I keep going. That's why I'm leaving. I'm leaving Freddie Benson of iCarly behind. I'm leaving the old Freddie behind to start a new life."
"You can't just leave," Carly pleaded but Freddie grinned grimly.
"Can't I? The money we got for the Tech-Foots? I invested it. Barely spent a dime. I've got it all with me." Freddie laughed softly. "I know it'll be a step down going from living in this nice place to living in my van, but hey, I prefer that than getting trapped in a life I don't like. The show's taught me a lot over the years, you know? One thing that has always stuck though was the fun we had on it. Carly, I'm not having fun anymore."
"Why not?"
"Carly, we had to hire an intern. We can't do the work ourselves anymore. Look at what happened at Webicon and Nora. You were interviewed for the show. This isn't us messing around anymore. It hasn't been that for a while, but I've stuck with it. I figured the good outweighed the bad, you know? Then I got thinking lately about everything. We wanted to have fun. We wanted to enjoy our lives. That's why we created the show. That's not what we're doing anymore. Now it's work." Freddie laughed. "Boring old Freddie Benson wants to be a free spirit, can you believe that? Don't get me wrong. I'm not afraid of commitment or anything, but I don't see the point in continuing doing something that I don't enjoy anymore."
"We can, you know, end the show," Carly said tears in her eyes. "You don't have to…You don't have to leave."
Freddie smiled apologetically. "Carly, other than you and Sam I have no reason to stay. My mom and I aren't ever going to agree on anything again. Not since I had the chip removed. School? I'm starting to fail my grades. I just don't have the drive to stay here any longer." Freddie spread his arms wide. "This is a big world, Carly, and there's a lot to explore. I want to see as much of it as I can. I don't want to live with regrets."
"I don't want you to go."
He smirked. "You could come with if you want."
Carly's eyes bulged as her mind processed that. "Go…Go with you?"
"Sure, why not?" Freddie shrugged. "You and Sam have been on the rocks lately, and Spencer's been distant ever since he got that new girlfriend. I know you haven't been the happiest here."
"I…I don't know," Carly stuttered stepping back confused.
"Look, I'll wait one hour in my van. I haven't gotten rid of my phone yet. If you decide to go with me, just call me up before then all right? If you don't, I'm leaving without you." He looked very seriously at her. "I didn't make this decision on a whim, Carls. I've been thinking about this for a while, but I'm on a schedule right now. You've got to make up your mind, but you are the only one I'm making this offer to. I'm not bringing Sam along or Spencer or anyone else. Only you."
"Why me?" Carly asked feeling strangely flattered.
"Because of everyone I've ever met, you've always treated me the best. Sure, you weren't an angel, but you weren't a devil. You didn't ignore me when it didn't tickle your fancy like Spencer does or try to violently hurt you like Sam likes to do. You are the person I'll miss the most when I'm gone." He turned around and began to walk away. "Remember, one hour and that's it."
Carly closed the door and rushed to her room confused and unsure of what to do. How could Freddie just leave everything behind? How could he ask her to do the same? Okay, she'll admit that she's not enjoying iCarly nearly as much as she used to. The whole thing has become far too serious for her tastes and people are treating them like television characters instead of people now. Then there was Sam. Sam and she had been distant ever since Sam and Freddie broke up. They try to act like there wasn't a noticeable gap, but she could see it as clear as day. Sam was finding more and more excuses to not come over or to go home early.
Spencer would be the hardest, yet easiest person to leave. He was her big brother and she loved him, but his attitude was getting old. You can only set things on fire for so long before it stopped being funny and became really annoying. The two of them had grown so far apart that aside from the usual greetings one might expect, they haven't really talked. Now he barely even does that since he got his first steady girlfriend. She was still furious the way he spent most of her college fund on that woman's car, and had taken all of the money out of the account after that day. She had hid it in her room where Spencer would never find it and waste more of it.
She was doing well in school, but she couldn't stand the people. Three of the boys she tried to date were only using her for fame, and she had to ditch most her friends now that they only wanted shout outs on iCarly or something. The teachers were no better since Principal Franklin basically hired anyone, and they knew that. She didn't like a single one of her teachers this year and all of them seemed out to get her. One had even told her that he was. She had skipped more school this year than any other because of it.
Freddie hadn't been the only one thinking of leaving her life behind. She could never seem to build the nerve to actually do it. Part of it was that she'd be leaving Freddie behind if she left. He was the only one that didn't seem to have some friction or problem with her, but then she rarely ever fought with him. Even when he stopped trying to get her to date him, they seemed to be on the same page most of the time. Many people said they were boring friends because of it, but she found it refreshing.
Carly snorted to herself wondering why she was having such a tough time choosing what to do. The major reason she had stayed so long was now waiting in his van ready to leave forever. It had been overwhelming to think he was leaving her behind, but now that she was really awake the choice couldn't be any more obvious.
She hurried through her room picking up a few clothes and stuffed them in a suitcase, and grabbed her money from under her supposedly broken trampoline. Once she was sure she had everything she needed she pulled out her Pearphone and dialed.
"Hey, Freddie? I'll be there in a minute…"