CHAPTER 1

I paced in front of Carly's door. I'd knocked, but no one was answering. I stopped and banged on the door again, harder this time. Still no answer. I attempted to peer through the peephole into her apartment, with no success. Sighing angrily, I stood there for a moment. I could pick the lock. It wasn't very hard. But I'd have to find something to pick it with, and I was tired. And hungry. I could use something to eat right now. There were other options, though, right? I could go home –lost the key for that, too, but it was worth a try-- or I could ask Freddie if he knew where she was. He probably would. Pathetic, hopeless kid.

After a moment's hesitation, I rapped my fist on Freddie's door. It swung open almost immediately, and there Freddie stood, looking sullen. "Yo," I stood there, feeling uncomfortable. If this was Carly, I would shoulder my way in, but this wasn't my best friend. This was the dork that did all our tech stuff for iCarly. This was the dork I had kissed a few months ago. "Uh...." I was forced to continue talking when Freddie didn't speak up. "Out of ham?" I made a poor attempt at a joke. "What's wrong?"

"My Aunt Jodie just died." Freddie muttered in dry monotone.

I shrugged. "So... That's a big, uh, deal for you, right?" Freddie didn't respond, just looked at me with a knowing look, avoiding the trap of my sarcasm. "Listen, I just wanna know where Carly is, okay?" I watched his face. Everyone knew he liked Carly; But for some reason, at the mention of her name, Freddie didn't perk up. Was his aunt really that important?

"Dunno." He wasn't making much attempt at conversation.

"So, that thing with your aunt is pretty bad, right?" I changed the subject quickly. I'd gotten what I wanted, but I didn't want to leave the poor guy hanging.

He rolled his eyes as if to say 'She's dead, so, yeah, things aren't going so well for her' but answered, all the same, "Yeah. She was my favorite."

"Why?" I prodded. I didn't really care, but what else was there to do besides wait for Carly. I hated to admit it, but little tiny pits of care were forming in my stomach for Freddie. And right now, they were overflowing with sympathy.

"She was my mom's sister, you know, and she... well, she was really fun. She told my mom to relax. The kind of mom I always wanted." I could imagine an audience cooing with compassion in the background.

"Oh." I wasn't very creative. I didn't know what else to say. "Sorry."

Freddie nodded. "Thanks," he shut the door. I stood there, still looking at the grain of the wood that had been shoved into my face, until laughter rang out from down the hall. I turned just as Carly and Spencer came into view.

"Hey, Sam," Carly said as Spencer unlocked the door. "Lost your key again?" I nodded. "Too lazy to pick the lock?" She asked as we went inside.

"Ooh, yeah." I replied as I sunk into the couch. "Hey, can you grab me some soda while you're in there?" I called to Carly, who was in the kitchen. She came out a few seconds later with two drinks, and we flipped on the TV. I didn't pay attention to it, though. Instead I asked Carly, "So, hey, did you know Freddie's aunt died?"

"No," Carly looked up, concerned. "He didn't tell me!"

I shook my head. "Me either. I just went to ask him where you were and he told me then –where were you, by the way?"

"Spencer and I went to go get smoothies." Carly pointed to Spencer, slurping a smoothie in the kitchen. I nodded.

They should've waited for me. Then I could have avoided the weird talk with Freddie about feelings and gotten a smoothie. Yawning, I let my eyes flutter closed. "Nap," I announced, thrusting my legs out across Carly's lap. She chuckled and patted my ankle. The dramatic sound of cartoons in the background set me on the track to drowsiness, and soon I was asleep.

When I woke up it was night. Carly and Spencer sat at the kitchen counter, eating turkey sandwiches. My stomach instantly alerted me of its need. Urgent to put a stop to the rumbling, I jumped off the couch, despite my craving to curl up and get some more shut-eye, maybe watch a little TV. "Dinner." I sang to no one in particular as I prepared two turkey sandwiches for myself, hopping up next to Carly. My blonde hair fell across my face and I shook it out of the way, biting into my sandwich without restraint.

After I finished eating, I slid down and sighed. "Well, I guess I should go home now." I made my way to the door, waving goodbye to Carly. Out the door, I headed for my apartment, knocking loudly. My mother opened it, looking like she just woke up. "Hey," I greeted her, walking in and going straight to my room. The apartment was a mess. It reeked of scents –ones I didn't want to decipher –and looked like crap. My room was littered with plates and clothes. Jumping into bed, I went straight back to sleep.

Again my eyes drifted open, and sunlight streamed through the tiny window on the far side of my room. I hauled myself out of bed, pulling on fresh clothes and grabbing my backpack –there it was, my key, under my yellow leggings. I grabbed the lanyard and was off, without even a goodbye to my mom.