Disclaimer and A/N: This might end up a little darker than I normally write. Or at least I hope it does, BUA HAHAHA. I don't own iCarly or any of its characters.

Freddie's POV

Everyone thought I was crazy for doing my double major in Education and Business in college. My mother especially, but I was all alone at college. Carly had gone to an acting school in California, and a year later after I tutored her to genius Sam joined her. I went to Seattle Tech and lived with my mother. I was saving up money so I could start my own business. Everything was like a dream when eight years later I opened my nightclub, I had just graduated, I had my own club, which judging by the throng of people outside was going to be a big hit, but my heart still felt cold and stony.

"Welcome to the opening night of 4Saken, Drinks are on me! Enjoy yourselves!"

I handed the mic back to the deejay and stepped off the stage amid a load roar of cheers. Music started to thump from the speakers and the screen lit above the stage with videos to match. I had worked hard to open this club after Quisp's Dance Club had closed down. This town needed a cool hangout for kids, no one in the crowd was over the age of eighteen.

After wading through the throng of teenagers on the dance floor, a couple reaching out to shake my hand, I managed to get back to my balcony office. This place had once been a theater, but the company had gone out of business ages ago, and the place was empty until I fixed it up and moved in.

I was pouring over some notes on my desk, my rough figures as to how we were going to do tonight. A knock on my door made me jump a bit, I looked at the tiny monitor for the camera outside the door. I recognized Gibby and reached under my desk for the buzzer. The door clicked open and Gibby pushed it inward.

"Freddie!" He panted almost out of breath from what I guessed was a sprint up the steps." We broke 1,000 and more are waiting outside!"

I frowned, I had hoped for more, "One-thousand dollars, that's nowhere near my estimate."

He slapped his hands on my desk, "No! A thousand kids! We had to stop them from coming in because of the fire code!"

I smiled, this was awesome, "Great work man." Gibby smiled. He had become a police officer after high school and was my head of security in his off time. We had convinced a lot of his fellow police officers to volunteer or work here for a fairly low rate. They all understood the need for a safe hangout for their teenagers. Gibby's radio squawked and he raised a brow, "I gotta get down to the door, a small situation."

I nodded and smiled, he left my office and I turned, looking out over the crowd through the massive window that overlooked the floor and stage. I sighed, and smoothed the wrinkles from my blood red button up shirt, and straightened my black tie. 'One thousand kids within the first hour of opening. This is a much needed place.'

I hoped Gibby could handle the situation, I wondered what it was as I watched the lights flash and all the dancing bodies on the dance floor. Another knock sounded at the door, breaking my revelry, I looked at the monitor again and saw that it was Gibby and a female. I buzzed him in and stood beside my high backed leather chair, resting my hand on it. I recognized the tall brunette and the redhead immediately.

"Carly! What are you doing here?" I smiled and moved forward, hugging Carly, then my assistant Wendy. Who was supposed to be at home watching her kids tonight.

"Oh, Carly wanted to come, but she didn't know where it was." Wendy bubbled.

I gestured to the sitting area of my office and the girls took seats on the plush leather couch. "Sam wanted to come, but someone had to watch the little Gibsons."

At the mention of Sam's name I fell into the chair perpendicular to them. I don't think either girl noticed because they just chatted amongst themselves, Gibby noticed my far off stare and sat across from Carly and his wife. I couldn't blame anyone but myself for how I felt, I chose to stay in Seattle. I had been accepted to a top notch film school in California, but my mother wanted me closer to her and not my deadbeat actor dad. I saw Gibby wave his hand a few feet in front of me and I snapped out of my thoughts to hear the question Carly repeated for probably the fifth time.

"How have you been Freddie?" She seemed genuinely concerned, her brown eyes dripping with something a normal person would recognize as worry. I recognized it as the act, the mask she wore, if they had genuinely cared they would have called or e-mailed back or something. No, the only word I heard from Carly or Sam was when I would see them in a movie. Maybe I was just being harsh, but I knew they were both amazing actresses, still we had been friends so long, I could spot the real and the fake.

"I've been busy, with school and the club and all." I knew my tone bit, like an icy breeze it was cold with no emotion. My heart was hard as stone these days, at least to the old times, Gibby was the only person I felt I could confide in anymore. Only he knew I nursed old wounds, and like a dog who had been in one too many fights, I was hesitant to trust the claw and fang that had pierced my skin before.

I know I had brought it onto myself, to be forsaken in this city of seemingly endless rain, 'But Eight years! They left me without a word for Eight years!' I screamed at myself, my thoughts broken by Gibby clearing his throat.

"Freddie, Sal just called, he needs you backstage. Problem with the band"

"Of course," I smiled my best fake smile, "You and Sam should join us for dinner Monday night, to celebrate the opening." Carly smiled and nodded, Wendy pulled out her notebook and scribbled something down.

"Thank you, Carly, Wendy."

I went to where my suit coat hung and grabbed it, throwing it on quickly and rushing out the door, slapping Gibby on the shoulder as I passed, " Thanks" I let out a low mumble and nearly sprinted down the steps and towards the backstage area. Most of which had turned into my living quarters, there was no band scheduled to perform tonight, but Gibby knew I needed an out, I had to get away.

I unlocked my room and ducked inside, closing and locking the door quickly behind me. The room was soundproofed so the thumping beats couldn't reach me in here. I clicked on the light and Sal sat patiently in front of me, his bottle-brush tail sweeping across the carpeted floor.

"Why Sal? Why did they come back?" I fell to my knees, not caring about my suit and hugged the mangy grey mutt to my chest. He sensed my distress and licked the side of my face and nuzzled into my chest whimpering softly.

**Flashback**

It was about a year after Sam left Seattle, I had given up trying to call and write them, my attempts never actually achieved anything but my own heartache. Now I was contemplating killing myself, it was sometime after midnight and I sat on the railing of a bridge running over the Sound. I know this was a stupid, cowardly thing to do, but it seemed like the only viable option. I almost fell when a bark surprised me. I turned around to see this mangy grey mutt staring at me. He looked like a dirty old mop head, but his eyes were the most piercing blue. He barked at me again, I don't know whether he was daring me to jump or telling me not too.

I climbed off the railing that night, and the next when he showed up again to save my life. This cycle went on for a week, I would be seconds from taking the jump from the bridge when those same blue eyes and the deep bark called me off the edge. I finally just quit when on the seventh night he was sitting, patiently waiting for me at the railing. I took him home, much to the chagrin of my mother, but after a well thought up lie, Sam would be proud, she let me keep him.

Everything changed after that, me and Salvation were almost inseparable. My school work excelled, I started investing small sums of money I had saved over my 19 or so years. I started to forget about the icy casement that surrounded my heart, but it still wouldn't allow anyone to get close. Gibby and Sal were pretty much the only "people" I would talk too. Wendy, I love her to death, was too much of a gossip, and my mother, well she wouldn't understand. She didn't understand how much I had loved Sam, how much my heart ached for her to even be near me again, how much I kicked myself for not telling her before.

**End**

I must have stayed like that for awhile, because eventually a knock broke my thoughts and I stood and opened the door to Gibby.

"Everyone's gone." He whispered, "Except Wendy, she's waiting for you upstairs to count."

"Awesome," I smiled, submerging myself in the thought of money always made Sam's face disappear, at least for a few seconds. "C'mon Sal, we're gonna go see Auntie Wendy."

His ears perked and he twirled in a circle, tail waving happily. He let out a happy bark, 'Yeah Sal, maybe one day I will be happy too.'