Chapter Two

The next morning Carly awoke before Sam. They'd barely moved in the night. Carly noticed a little bit of drool on Sam's pillow, and for reasons unknown, this made her smile. She brushed some of the unruly hair out of Sam's face, and continued doing so until Sam roused.

"Hey, Cupcake." Her voice was gravelly with sleep. "'Time is it?"

"Early." Carly told her, and it was true. The sun had just barely begun to rise, casting a low, golden light into the bedroom.

"Can we sleep some more?" Sam asked, eyes still closed.

"Sure."

"Good." Sam turned around to face Carly. Eyes still shut, she buried her face into the crook of Carly's neck, inhaling deeply.

"You smell good." She told the brunette. Carly laughed.

"Thanks."

"Mmhm. Night." And as Sam drifted back to sleep, Carly wondered what she'd dream about. If it would be about her - because her dreams had been about Sam. She'd often dream of Sam; they were best friends. Lately, though, her dreams had taken a different mood. They were mostly about holding Sam, taking her hand, laying in bed together. She still hadn't quite figured out what it all meant, but she knew she liked it. It made her feel contentment like she'd never felt before in her life. She rested easy these days.

With her bed, her room, and her thoughts filled with warmth, it did not take Carly very long to drift back to sleep.

"Carlaaay I made bacon cups for breakf-" Spencer cut himself off as he entered Carly's room and walked in on the two girls asleep together.

"Oh!" He shouted, louder than necessary. "Uhh... SORRY! I'LL JUST BE... DOWNSTAIRS!" He immediately turned around and walked back out the door, not really knowing just what it was he'd walked in on.

Carly bolted up shocked and confused. Brain still slow from sleep, she began processing what happened as Sam stirred awake herself.

In the hallway Spencer shook his head, deep in thought. He'd expected his little sister to be in bed, and maybe even Sam as their impromptu sleepovers have never been surprising. What he didn't expect was the way they were laying together. It seemed so... INTIMATE.

But Carly and Sam were best friends. Girl best friends. Girls cuddle and stuff all the time, right? What he just saw was most likely totally innocent and not at all some kind of THING. They were fully dressed. And Carly would tell him if things had changed between her and Sam. Right? Yeah. Also, as far back as he could remember, Carly had always been as boy-crazed as they come. He had nothing to worry about. They probably didn't even realize they were sleeping so close. Still, he couldn't shake the feeling...

"Was that Spencer or am I dreaming about loud, apologetic giants again?"

"It was Spencer."

"Why do you think he was so wigged?"

"I don't know..." Carly lied. She had an inkling. She was pretty sure Sam did too. It just didn't feel like the right time to address what they'd been doing... Whatever it was. She had a lot of things to figure out. They both did.

"Well I hope he hasn't reneged on his offer of bacon cups." Sam threw the covers off and Carly felt a shiver. She wasn't sure if it was from the cold or from the sight of Sam's bare legs. She didn't remember Sam taking her pants off in the night. Of course her boxers kept her perfectly modest. Still, she couldn't stop thinking about it.

"Reneged?" She quipped, her senses returning.
"I read."
"What do you read?" Carly challenged, already knowing the answer.
"You know, cereal boxes, ham packaging, shampoo bottles... I like to be well rounded."

Carly smiled goofily as she watched Sam put her pants back on.

"I'm glad you're feeling better today." She told her friend sincerely. Sam's face went momentarily blank. When in good moods like these, it was easy for her to forget the bad times. The depression that loomed like a low hanging storm cloud.

"Me too." She finally said. "Now let's go get some breakfast."

Downstairs, Spencer busied himself by plating 5 of the bacon cups he'd made earlier. 2 for him, 2 for Sam, and one for Carly. Bacon cups were a new specialty of his, made by weaving strips of raw bacon on the bottom of a muffin pan and baking them in the oven. He filled them with scrambled eggs and cheese. They were Sam's new favorite culinary invention.

He decided he should say something as the girls came down the stairs, yawning and bed-headed. He just didn't know what.

"Soo... You guys decided to have a sleepover?" He asked. He'd never asked about Sam's presence before.

"Yeah." Carly told him, fibbing slightly. "Sam's mom was giving her a hard time so she came over here." She knew Sam's mom often gave her grief, she just didn't know if that was the real reason Sam had come.

"Carly's being polite. My mom had her scuzzy boyfriend over, so I made myself scarce." Sam thought for a moment. "She's kind of a skunkbag, really."

This was news to Carly. Maybe she was right about her mom. Somehow, she felt that was only half of the truth.

"Well, you know you're always welcome here." Spencer announced as he laid the plates on the kitchen table. He was satisfied with this information. Of course he was bummed Sam was having a bad time at home, but it explained things well enough for him.

As the trio munched on bacon cups and sliced watermelon, the girls schemed on what they'd do on their Saturday off. Eventually they settled on a matinee movie.

"Should we invite Freddie?" Carly asked. Sam's look said it all.

"Spencer if Freddie comes over later, just tell him we're out. Don't tell him we made plans, I don't want him to feel excluded."

"Got it." Spencer was a horrible liar but he knew how chuffed his techy neighbor got about being left out of the girls' plans. It wasn't worth the boy's mopeyness to tell the truth.

"Do we HAVE to see this one?" Sam moaned as they stood in line for tickets at the theater.

"You picked the last movie and I was forced to sit through two hours of that awful blood bath. So yes."

"Killer Clowns 4 was a cinematic masterpiece."

"It was horrifying."

"No, THIS is horrifying."

"Nicholas Sparks is amazing. It's going to be amazing. Besides, Sam. Every relationship needs compromise."

Sam raised her eyebrows in a bemused manner. "Relationship?"

"Friendship. Whatever. You know what I mean." Carly couldn't help the hot sensation that crawled up her neck and cause her to blush lightly. She didn't even know what she had to be embarrassed about.

As they got to the booth, Carly bought their tickets and Sam groaned once more before they made it through the concessions.

Sam happily munched on the extra buttery popcorn Carly got for them while they waited seated for the movie to start.

Much to her chagrin, Sam found herself actually enjoying the sap fest. She kept stealing glances at Carly to see how her friend was liking it, but Carly's expression was completely unreadable. She had to be enraptured though, because her eyes never left the screen and she hardly ate any of the popcorn.

She almost didn't even notice when Sam reached across the arm rest and grabbed onto Carly's hand. Her's were soft and slightly buttery from the popcorn. Carly looked at her, surprised, when realization struck. Sam gave back her signature shrug and the two continued the film, hand in hand.

Carly couldn't help but love the contact. Sam's hands were always so soft, despite how rough she was in life sometimes. She was almost embarrassed by how much she enjoyed her friend's touch. It sent waves of good feelings through her body, pooling in a deep, warm sensation in the pit of her
stomach. What were they doing? She asked herself over and over again. Ultimately, she concluded she didn't really care. It felt nice. That's all that mattered.

It wasn't until after the credits had finished rolling that Sam finally let her grasp go, standing stiffly and stretching.

"That wasn't SO bad." She admitted.

"No, no it wasn't at all." Carly agreed, speaking of more than just the movie.