AN: A special thanks to sockstar, HappyIsWhatHappens, wstrnplsr105 and greenpenguin15 for reviewing. I'm glad you guys liked the story and reviewed it for me. It really means a lot.

Now on with the story!

After his mom's death, he had gone into a deep depression and could barely function. Carly would go over to his apartment every day to make sure that he was eating and taking care of himself, but even with her visits, he was slowly wasting away. iCarly had been up on hiatus indefinitely until Freddie was better. Two weeks after the shooting, his aunt came to take him to live with her. Carly had gone to his apartment to help him pack only to find him screaming that he wouldn't leave. His aunt couldn't let him stay in the apartment alone, so Spencer invited Freddie to stay with Carly and him. It was the first time Freddie had smiled since that phone call.

However, even after moving into the spare room in the Shay apartment, Freddie remained depressed. He spent long hours of the day just staring out the window at the sky, and every night crying into his pillow. Carly couldn't stand to see him like this, and exactly a month since Mrs. Benson's death, she had to say something.

"Freddie? Please talk to me. It's been a month and you've barely said a word to anyone. You don't eat, and I know you haven't been sleeping. I want to help you." She walked over to sit beside him on the floor. He didn't seem to recognize her presence in the room and continued to stare out the window.

"Freddie. Come on, let's go downstairs and get you something to eat. We can sit at the bar and talk." She gently grabbed his arm and started to lift him up. He turned to look at her; silent tears were rolling down his cheeks. Carly gasped quietly at the sight of him. His lack of food had taken its toll on him. His cheeks were sinking in and his eyes were red and hollow. His lips were tight and dry. His body was smaller and his collar bones were noticeably sticking out. But the thing that shocked Carly the most was the lack of emotion in his eyes. His once deep, brown eyes were dull and lifeless. They didn't glow at the sight of her like they used to.

"Why bother?" His voice was raspy and weak. "She's gone. What's the point to anything?"

"Your friends are still here for you Freddie. I'm still here for you. We can help you get through this together. Just let us help you." Carly begged him.

"No, no one can help me now. I'm alone." He pulled his arm out of her grasp and lowered himself back to the floor.

Carly stayed with him for the rest of the day and into the night. Spencer brought up food for them, but Freddie still refused to eat. Carly was getting desperate so she called Sam.

"Hey Carls. How's he doing?" Sam said.

"Not good. He's still not eating and all he's doing is staring out the window. If this doesn't change soon, he's going to have to be hospitalized." Carly answered. She had moved to outside his door so he wouldn't hear her talking about him.

"Alright, I'm on my way over. I'll see if I can make him eat." Sam sighed and hung up. This is ridiculous. He's going to kill himself if he keeps this up. She thought as she headed out of her house and down the street to the Shay apartment.

"Alright, let's get the nub to eat." Sam had just walked into Freddie's room. She went over to him and forced him away from the window. He didn't struggle; he just glanced over at her with sadness on his face. "Come on Freddie, if you don't eat you're going to die. Is that what your mom would have wanted?"

Freddie flinched at the mention of his mom. Tears started flowing down his face again, he shook his head violently. "No. No, she wouldn't…" He cried and fell against the floor.

"Then come on, I bet if you eat, you'll feel better." Sam pulled him up and placed the plate of food Spencer had brought up in front of him.

Freddie grasped his fork weakly and ate. He soon realized just how hungry he was and before long, the plate was empty. He looked up at Sam, and then at Carly. "I'm still hungry." He said softly.

Carly smiled. "There's plenty of food downstairs in the kitchen. Let's all go down there, and you can have whatever you want."

Freddie nodded and with the help of the two girls, they all headed to the elevator. Spencer was at the kitchen table staring at the wall. He had lost the will to sculpt since Mrs. Benson's death. All the sadness that was in the house was putting a cork in all of his creative energy. He knew that as the adult, he should be able to take responsibility and help poor Freddie get back on his feet, but he didn't know what to do. His thoughts were lost as he heard the elevator ding as it stopped on the first floor. Carly, Sam and Freddie walked out.

"Hey guys!" Spencer smiled, thrilled that Freddie was finally out of his room. "What are you up to?"

"Freddie's hungry." Carly said returning the smile. "We're going to get him something to eat."

"Awesome! How about I make us all some spaghetti tacos?" Spencer was grinning from ear to ear. He couldn't contain his excitement. He was hoping this was the turning point and Freddie was finally on his way to acceptance and recovery.

Carly turned to Freddie. "Would you like some spaghetti tacos?"

Freddie looked at her. She could see in his eyes that he was struggling to come up with what to say, as if he had lost his ability to process thought. "Y-yes… Please…" He said.

Everyone smiled at him. "Great, I'll get cooking!" Spencer jumped up and raced around the kitchen. Carly led Freddie over to the table to sit, while Sam grabbed plates and glasses. There was a since of hope in the apartment. Spencer, Carly and Sam all believed that Freddie was going to get better. This was his turning point.

That was five months ago.

Now, Carly and Sam barely saw Freddie. He still lived at the Shay apartment, but he was almost never home. He would spend days off with his new "friends", and when he did come home, he wouldn't talk to Carly or Spencer. Just head straight up to his room and lock the door. Carly was becoming desperate to talk to him, but was too afraid to. At the start of this new behavior she had tried to find out what was wrong with him.

"Freddie, where were you last night?" Carly asked. She walked over to him as he lounged on his bed.

"I was out. What's it to you?" He shot back angrily.

"I-I was worried about you."

"Well that's great. Why don't you go worry about me somewhere else. You're bothering me." He snatched a magazine of his dresser and hid his face behind it. But Carly didn't leave. "I said get out!" He yelled and threw the magazine at her. She ran from the room crying.

"I don't need you. You'll only leave me like she did." He said bitterly to himself.

Carly hadn't tried talking to him since then. They still acknowledged each other at school and at home, but it was nothing more than a look and small nod.

Freddie had taken to several new hobbies. He worked out now, and was one of the strongest guys in the school. He and his new friends would terrorize the younger kids and smoke behind the building during class. Freddie had become the school bully, more feared than any other kid, including Sam.

Sam didn't take to well to that idea, and had challenged him one day, after he had beaten up a ninth grader for no apparent reason.

"What's wrong with you Benson?" She yelled.

"What's it to you Puckett?" He growled back. He was several inches taller than her and looked very intimidating.

"You used to be the tech nerd that everybody loved. You were a top student, what the hell happened?"

"I grew up." He said forcefully.

"No you didn't! Your world fell apart when your mom died, and now you're taking your anger out on every person you can get your hands on." Sam shot back, her voice rising. A group had gathered around to see the argument.

Freddie stiffened at the mention of his mother. Pain flashed through his eyes and he looked down at her. His hands clenched and unclenched and his breathing sped up. "As your former friend I'm going to let you off with a warning Puckett. Walk away now, and I won't beat the snot out of you." He then turned and headed away from her.

"Oh no, you don't!" Sam ran up and grabbed him around the neck, pulling him to the ground. She stood over him with anger across her face. "You weren't the only one that got hurt you know. Carly, Spencer and I hurt every day for you. Are you just going to let that all go for some drugs that numb your brain?" She said this part quietly so that only she and Freddie could hear it.

He stared up at her. "I've moved on Sam. Now I'm asking you to leave me alone, before I force you to."

"Never Benson. Believe it or not, we still care about you and we're not going to lose you."

"Have it your way." Freddie said and tripped Sam with his leg. She fell to the ground, hitting her head on the floor. Freddie grabbed her by the collar of her shirt and pulled her up. Sam struggled against his hold, but he was stronger than her now. He threw a punch at her, but stopped just before it collided with her head. They stared at each other for a moment before he threw her roughly back to the floor. "Leave now Puckett, or next time I will hit you." And with that, he was gone.

Ok, this chapter was a little bit longer than the last one. I hope you all like it. I'm not sure how long I'm going to make this story yet, but expect several more chapters for sure. Reviews are always welcome, and I accept the good and the bad. Thanks guys!

Cthepokedots