A/N: This takes place during the second season of iCarly.
I got the idea from listening to Hero (Red Pill Remix) by Superchick.
In honor of Suicide Prevention and Awareness Month, I present this story.
Freddie noticed the boy first. He had been a transfer student from…somewhere. That's all they know. He was a transfer student. No one sat with him. No one talked to him.
Freddie wanted to sit with the new boy, but Carly and Sam scoffed at the idea.
The boy wore all black and dyed blond streaks in his long black hair. He didn't even fit with the troublemakers at the school. Not even Gibby was friends with the guy, even though he hung out with Reuben. Freddie wasn't sure what happened to him.
Now Freddie was alone. Carly and Sam had gotten sick from Gibby.
Freddie decided to sit with the new boy. The boy was writing something in a notebook.
Freddie walked over and sat at the table with him.
The boy looked at him with kind of creepy light green eyes. Freddie refrained from moving away, "I'm Freddie."
The boy nodded, "I'm Tyler."
"What are you writing there?" Freddie asked.
"Something for creative writing," Tyler replied. He looked confused, like he was wondering why someone was sitting with him.
"I hear you're a transfer student. Where did you transfer from?" Freddie asked, ignoring the confused look from Tyler. He opened the package of the peanut butter jelly sandwich.
"Ohio," Tyler replied.
Freddie nodded, "Nice."
"Why did you transfer?" Freddie asked. Tyler looked put-off with the question. "You don't have to answer that."
"My dad died," Tyler replied. "He was in the Navy."
"My friend's dad is in the Air Force," Freddie replied.
"What about you?" Tyler asked.
"My dad is a country singer," Freddie replied. "He lives in New Orleans. He does a lot of tours. My parents are divorced. He sends me things."
"That's nice," Tyler replied.
Freddie asked, "How about your mom?"
"She's a chef." Tyler replied, "How about your mom?"
"She's a therapist," Freddie replied. "Hey, you can hang out with me at my place?"
Tyler shook his head, "My mom worries at times."
"Oh," Freddie replied. "Maybe we can go to the Groovy Smoothie tomorrow?"
Tyler gave, what Freddie hoped, was a smile. Tyler had seen how movies, TV shows, and books are. Someone cool asks the loner to hang out, only to turn around and embarrass them. It made him wary of the offer, "Yeah, tomorrow."
"Cool," Freddie said. He hoped Carly and Sam didn't ruin what could potentially be his own friend that might be normal, well compared to Gibby anyway.
Tyler wasn't entirely sure, but he felt like he made his first friend since sixth grade. He held the pocketknife to his wrist. He had written his suicide note and put it on his bed. He was ready to take his life, but something kept stopping him from cutting his wrist. He did cut before, but somehow it was different.
He thought about all the insults hurled his way. No one was stopping him, but the thought of meeting Freddie in the Groovy Smoothie stopped him. Whether or not it was a prank, he had to show up. Something his dad told him was to take risks, whether or not they will hurt. His dad had risked his life in the Navy and it was for a good cause.
He closed the pocketknife and put in a nightstand drawer. He folded the note and placed it in with the pocketknife and pills.
Tyler thought, can I consider Freddie a friend?
His mom, spider-walked into his room, and Tyler looked at her. His mom said, "Dinner is ready."
Oh yeah, his parents both worked in a Cirque and that's how they met.
"Okay." Tyler replied and went to leave the room. His mom growled at him. Tyler sighed and bent backwards, till his hands touched the ground. She smiled at him and they both spider-walked to the kitchen. Bending backwards was the only flexibility he has.
"Mom, how can you tell if someone is suicidal?" Freddie asked.
Marissa looked at Freddie, "Well they feel trapped, they have ideation, they're withdrawn, they have anxiety, they feel hopeless, they're angry…" She trailed off and looked at Freddie. "Why? Are you suicidal?"
"No," Freddie replied. "It's someone that I just met. I asked him if we can meet at Groovy Smoothie."
"That might be good. They need someone to talk to," Marissa said.
Freddie nodded, "Okay."
Freddie had gone to Groovy Smoothie, to see Tyler sitting near the window, staring outside. Freddie recognized the multi colored hair. Tyler's wrists were wrapped with caution tape.
He sat down at the table with Tyler, "Hey."
Tyler looked startled and relieved. "I thought I was going to end up in one of those stories or plot-lines when I get embarrassed by the person that's considered popular."
Freddie looked confused, "Why would I do that?"
"It happens in books," Tyler said.
After Carly and Sam got over the flu, they came back to school.
Freddie didn't want to leave his newfound friend, but he knew Carly and Sam wouldn't want to hang with him.
He kind of figured that Tyler was weird. The guy wore caution tape as wristbands, dyed blond streaks in his hair, and wore black clothing all the time.
Carly and Sam sat at their usual table during lunch. Freddie went to sit with Tyler. Sam looked at Freddie, "Hey dork. Where are you going?"
Freddie realized what he was doing, "I'm going to sit with Tyler."
Carly looked confused at the name, "whose Tyler?"
Freddie motioned to his new friend, "Tyler." He went to the table and sat with him. Tyler looked surprised at the fact that Freddie wasn't sitting with his usual friends.
After a few weeks, there was a knock on the door. Freddie went to answer the door and looked at Tyler who was standing there. He looked upset.
"What's wrong?" Freddie asked, and Tyler held his arms out. There were five scars on each wrist. They looked old.
"Thank you for saving my life," Tyler said. He busted into tears and hugged Freddie.
Freddie was surprised. The choice he made saved a life. Did that make him a hero?
"What?" Freddie asked, feeling stupid.
Tyler released Freddie. "Before you sat next to me at lunch, I was planning on attempting suicide. Then you asked me to hang out with you at the Groovy Smoothie, and I couldn't bring myself to attempt suicide. You became my friend and I haven't thought about it. I thought you should know."
Freddie felt like some type of hero. Heroes did what was right and saved lives. Freddie did what was right and he saved a life. He was a hero.
A/N: I think that this came across as forced, but I can't tell.
I put Tyler and his mother's interaction in there because it can't be the iCarly universe without someone coming across as weird.
If you, a friend, or a loved one might be having suicidal thoughts or if you're concerned about it, call 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for a referral.