I, Carly, Sam, and Freddie

by iEmbargo

After "iGoodbye," Freddie Benson is at the vertex of an isosceles love triangle of his own making. How will Carly, Sam, and Freddie deal with their feelings and interference from other interested parties?

2. Act I

Thank you for the reviews, favourites, etc.

I want to thank the following writers for their advice and encouragement. Please read their fics for encouragement:

arreyellewebb, iCarlyismelife, LivelyMelody14, MixItUp, Team Plus 2, Harry Potter Fan 1994, iLive iBreathe iCarly, this little heart of mine, JadeSelena, bluduckie, NinjaNovelist, MegColes, and YouSpokeOfIt.

For those that are wondering, the parts of a television script in the US are the prologue (part before the opening titles), several acts (the bits between the commercials), and the epilogue (last bit before or during the end titles). The old FF standards for fanzines required that you wrote to the format of the shows you were writing for.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of iCarly, the MAA, Sam & Cat, VicTorious, The Big Bang Theory, Doctor Who, or The Beatles.

Act I

i to the i-the power = { exp ((4k – 1) * pi / 2) : k an integer }

Carly saw Marissa Benson opened the door to Freddie's room as Spencer and Pam's video turned off and disappeared. "Freddiekins, would you and Gibby like to have Tofuburgers with spiced tomatoes, guacamole, and tropical fruit salad for dinner?"

Meanwhile, Carly readjusted her picture to three vertical screens. She could see Melanie and Sam doing likewise as Colonel Shay quietly left the room.

They watched Gibby made a face, but then Freddie shrugged in response. "It's actually OK. It's a South American taste and the tofu has the consistency of hamburgers and the tomatoes replace ketchup, honestly. We can prepare for the USAMO afterwards."

Gibby shrugged before turning to Marissa. "Sure, thanks."

Marissa smiled and nodded. "OK, boys. It'll be ready in about 15 minutes." She pulled the door lightly, so it did not quite shut.

Carly, Sam, and Melanie frowned. Carly spoke first. "USAMO?"

Freddie turned first and responded, "United States of America Mathematics Olympiad."

Gibby then turned from the door. "Freddie's been the man for the school year for the Mathletes," he said excitedly as Freddie began adjusting his monitor.

Sam grunted, "Nubby as ever."

Gibby ignored Sam and continued, "I've been riding his coattails to go with him to the ARML."

This time, Melanie asked, "ARML?"

Freddie put the finishing touches on the monitor orientation. "American Regions Mathematics League."

Carly's giggle in response was met by glares from Freddie and Gibby. Gibby then added a light cough before changing to the topic they were all curious about. "Your Dad's not happy, is he, Carly?"

Carly shook her head. "Nope. But I could tell he's willing to give Pam a chance." She glanced at Sam and Melanie. "Sam, Mel: Spencer should thank God for you two – if you hadn't turned your family's legacy around, my dad would be dragging Spencer here on the first plane out of Seattle."

Sam perked up. "Hey, the business world is a lot more like my family's legacy than you would think!" Melanie, Carly, Freddie, and Gibby laughed out loud at her comment. "On the other hand, it was a bit surreal watching Mom kiss, um, Spencer."

Melanie nodded at her sister. "Yeah. He was the first nice boy we met after Dad ran out on us."

Carly looked at the twins quizzically. "Boy? You guys were eight, he was 21!"

Gibby and Freddie whistled in response as Melanie and Sam blushed slightly. Gibby frowned. "Both of you had a crush on Spencer?"

Sam and Melanie both shrugged in a mirror image fashion. Sam replied curtly, "Duh, we're twins. I get along with Carly, so Mel gets along with Carly."

Melanie nodded. "Yup. If Sam find Cat's naivete frustrating, you know I do. Conversely, if I think a boy is adorable, I know Sam does."

Sam coughed overly-loudly as Carly stifled a laugh. "Yeah, well. And don't forget that we had our parents' shady associates to deal with to, not to mention leering boyfriends."

Carly nodded and then smiled. "Yup, Spencer was extraordinarily safe by comparison. I remember you two saying how you couldn't trust other boys or men you knew – and then would fight over who would get to marry him." This time, Gibby and Freddie snickered quietly as Sam and Melanie shifted uncomfortably.

"Wouldn't it have been creepy if he had considered one of you?" Gibby finally asked.

"Yeah," Sam mumbled, "a creepy mix of incest and paedophilia." The three girls shuddered. Sam then cleared her throat. "Now that I have this business, that seems so creepy now. The age difference between me and the kids I babysit is like it was between Spencer and us." The five iCarlies shivered. "I don't want to imagine any of them wondering if they could marry me or Cat."

Melanie nodded. "Agreed. It seems unreal thinking about this at our age."

Sam nodded. "Yup. And I had to double my case load ever since the IRS came down and forced us to start with the back taxes."

Gibby's eyes widened. "How bad?"

Sam snorted, "Let's see, FICA, self-employment tax, federal tax, state tax, local tax, ugh. No wonder Cat's friend Jade played us that Beatles song, '…There's one for you, nineteen for me…'" She shook her head. "All you can do with the IRS is gargle and say, 'I OBEY!' Then we had to register with the State of California as licenced child care providers, get training, insurance…" She leant back in her seat and cleared her head. "Maybe they make it hard for child care so that no couple can have kids, so no one gets married and everyone pays the singles' tax rates." Freddie, Gibby, and Melanie leant back in shock.

Carly leaned forward with a concerned look. "That bad? You didn't go to your family, right?"

Sam shook her head. "No, but it's going to be more hectic for more hours of more days for a while. This Sunday is the first day free I'll've had in three weeks!"

Freddie gave Sam a sympathetic look. "Wow, that's tough."

Sam got to her feet. "Yeah, but at least there are two of us and friends of ours drop in every now and then to help." Sam then looked down at the bottom of her display. "Well, everyone, because I am 9 hours behind Carls and I need to be up at about 5am before my Friday kids come in, I can't stay on much longer.

Carly, Melanie, Freddie, and Gibby chuckled. Carly then spoke. "Whodathunkit – Sam Puckett being disciplined enough to both not stay up too late and to get up early."

Sam grinned. "It's for money, not school!" The five of them laughed together. After they settled down, Sam continued. "It's a deal – their kids stay here and get into relatively minimal trouble; then Cat and I get paid for having done so."

Freddie nodded. "What would my eleven year old self have said after being told that I would tell Sam Puckett, 'Wow, Sam. You are working hard, making an honest living, and not getting into too much trouble.'"

Gibby snorted, "Nothing – he would be lying on the ground after fainting before you made it to the end of the sentence." Again, the five of them laughed together.

Sam glanced at the bottom of her screen. "I gotta get ready for bed, everyone. I also should get to bed before I forget that Mom won't be dating horrible guys again."

Melanie nodded vigourously as Carly, Freddie, and Gibby merely smiled. Melanie added, "Good luck getting used to that idea quickly."

Gibby wrinkled his nose. "You two are genuinely going to lose sleep over it?"

Sam and Melanie shook their heads. Sam spoke for the twins, "Nah. It will take some adjustment, though." She then sighed and reached her hand out to the monitor. "Good night, everyone."

Sam's part of the screen went blank; then Carly's monitor adjusted to having Melanie one one side and Freddie and Gibby on the other. Carly adjusted her chair before speaking to the others. "I can't stay on much longer either. But I'd like to talk with all of you before I go."

Melanie, Freddie, and Gibby nodded in assent. Melanie asked for the three of them, "What do you want, Carly?

Carly and Freddie straightened up. Carly cleared her throat. "You know how much I have disliked the guys Sam gets interested in, right?"

Melanie nodded. "Yeah – something about, '…have a neck tattoo, outstanding warrants, or…'"

Carly broke in. "No – you're confusing what I said with how Penny describes her old boyfriends to Leonard in 'The Big Bang Theory.'"

Freddie chuckled. "Although what Carly said was pretty similar – '…disgusting, heavily tattooed, or on parole.'"

Gibby laughed. "No wonder Melanie got confused. Carls – did the writers give you the right to plagiarise them?" The four of them chuckled light-heartedly.

Freddie looked at Melanie puzzled. "And I am remembering you two – you twins fell out of your mother on a bus, while Sheldon and his twin sister Missy fell out of their mother at K-Mart, right?"

"Right," Melanie replied. "But anyway, back to the matter at hand." Melanie's face became stoic. "Freddie," Melanie said, "you were the first nice guy she's ever really liked."

Gibby mumbled, "A bit like Penny with Leonard."

Melanie continued. "She hasn't said anything to me, but I don't think she's dated since you two broke up."

Freddie put his face into his hands before nodding and looking back at Melanie and Carly. "I was afraid of that."

Carly frowned. She then leant forward. "You and Gibby know about our deal?"

Melanie and Gibby nodded. Gibby then sat up, "Freddie asked Sam to get back together with him shortly before you and Freddie made out in the iCarly room. Sam found out and the three of you made a deal to settle the issue when Carly returns from Italy or someone makes up their mind so that none of you hurts the others." Carly, Melanie, and Freddie nodded.

Melanie shifted in her seat. "Sam claims that the arrangement was Freddie's idea and that she was against it because Carly had been so forward."

Freddie nodded. "It's true. We vid-chattted after Carly arrived in Italy. Sam said Carly and I should act on our feelings, but somehow I felt she was really hurt."

Melanie frowned. "Why would you think that?" she asked knowingly.

Carly shrugged. "If Sam really didn't care, why would she agree to this arrangement? One of the possibilities is that she and Freddie get back together, right?"

Melanie sighed. "I can see your point." She then glared at Gibby and Freddie. "And why did you two poker faces flinch when she made that Doctor Who reference?"

Carly gave them a puzzled look. "What Doctor Who reference?"

Freddie replied, "Oh, that thing after the Beatles lyrics was a reference to a monster called the 'Daleks.'"

Carly frowned. "So that's another nubby reference after her picture with the kids using her toy phaser and her light sabre?"

Gibby whistled. "That's another thing – not only has she straightened herself out, but she did keep watching those SciFi shows and movies. You know – Star Wars, Doctor Who, Star Trek, and the like."

Melanie nodded. "Yeah, I know." She then adjusted herself to look at Carly. "Carls, how do you feel about Freddie, really?"

Carly shrugged. She then looked at Freddie intently before starting. "I hadn't really thought about him as a guy to go out with until that idiot from the computer store got too friendly. Then I saw what he had to put up with from his mother. When I realised that I might not see him for a long time, I realised how important he is to me and how much I needed him; I guess I figured my feelings could have changed."

"That's mighty co-dependent," Melanie thought to herself as she glared at Carly. "Hadn't it occurred to you to ask Sam about it first?"

Carly frowned and rocked in her seat. "Not really. They acted as if their relationship had never occurred, almost as if someone wanted me to forget its existence." Freddie hid his head in his hands as Gibby turned and stalked around Freddie's bedroom. Carly noticed their reactions and added, "Why does everyone give me looks whenever I say that?"

Melanie slumped into her chair. "Because we've all heard Cat talk about how her friends Tori and Jade became real friends."

"I haven't," Carly said as she shook her head. "Who told you?"

Melanie made a rueful smile and replied, "Cat, in one of her less tactful moments-"

Gibby added as he kept pacing. "Cat's doesn't know how to be tactful, Mel! She probably just said it when it was cogent but inappropriate."

Everyone chuckled in response.

Melanie stopped laughing first and sat up ramrod-straight to look intensely at Carly. "Jade had broken up with her ex, Beck. When Tori was replaced by Jade on some awards show, Beck tried to kiss her, but Tori eventually stopped him because she thought Jade still liked him."

Carly shrugged. "But Sam didn't seem to feel that way about Freddie."

Melanie and Gibby sighed and paused. She then continued. "Maybe you should have looked harder." Carly looked harshly at Melanie, offended. Melanie continued with alacrity. "Even though Jade had tried not to let on, Tori guessed that she was still hurt and that Jade was deliberately avoiding going with guys."

Carly shot forward in her chair, but almost crouched into a defencive posture as Freddie stood up angrily. "Oh, no," she whispered.

Meanwhile, Freddie pounded his desk as Gibby stopped pacing and ran to his side. Freddie growled, "She didn't! She took Zayn from One Direction to the elevator!" as Gibby held him still at the middle of his torso.

Gibby shook his head. "You are so toast, Dude." He then forced Freddie into his chair and stood over him.

Melanie started to turn red like Sam did when she got angry. "You're going there? Really?" Melanie paused to calm down as Gibby got behind Freddie to hold his shoulders down. "After you told Sam that only Carly cared about you at Nora's place? Is that why it was OK for you to lie to her face about crushing on Carly again? Is that why it was OK to undermine her at a job where she outperformed you? And when you were, ahem, 'in love' with Carly, you crushed on Shelby Marx and then Tori Vega too? Somehow, you are the aggrieved party here?"

Freddie spluttered as Gibby whispered to him, "Where did your brains go, Fred-man?"

Freddie dropped into his chair and slouched. "To Florence and LA, I guess." Gibby smacked him in the side of his head while Melanie smacked her forehead with her hand.

Meanwhile, Carly threw her hands down in disgust. "Freddie! Chizz! Why don't I know about any of this?"

Freddie spluttered again. "I figured she had moved on and was going out of her way to rub my nose in it." Melanie, Carly, and Gibby groaned derisively. "So it didn't seem to matter."

Carly was indignant. "Freddie – you know that Sam doesn't like appearing weak. Didn't it occur to you that it might have been an act?"

Freddie glared back at Carly. "Well, it didn't occur to you before you kissed me!" he spat.

Carly raised her voice over his. "Sam didn't say anything to me, so-"

"So it's still her fault for hiding her feelings," Freddie interjected.

"No!" Melanie and Carly yelled.

"Yes!" Freddie yelled defencively. Gibby pressed down on his shoulders. "Ow!" he snarled.

"Stop it!" Carly screamed. After a few moments of stunned quiet, Carly continued. "Freddie, have you ever heard of 'licking your wounds'?"

"Of course."

"I thought she might be avoiding talking about it because she needed some space," Carly continued. Freddie shrugged. "She's not going to tell me because the person you were comparing her against was me. If you had said something about this, I would have kept my distance."

Freddie shook his head. "She could have told you."

"No, Freddie," Carly replied. "It's because it's specifically me and specifically you for her."

Freddie sighed and slumped back into his chair. "Oh, no, not the 'Sam sees Carly as a rival' thing again."

Melanie interrupted Carly. "Yes. You chased her for how long?"

Carly sighed. "Ugh, five OCD years."

Melanie nodded. "Why do you think she tried not to let you know how she felt in the first place? She ahem, 'knew' you loved Carly. She figured letting you know meant she was coming unglued."

Carly started to tear. "Sam was so happy when she was with you. You don't know how much you meant to her. She couldn't come to me."

"I get it!" Freddie shouted. He then sighed and slumped back into his chair. "It's too late to fix that now, though. So what about us, Carly?"

Carly closed her eyes and tried to blink away the tears. "I hate this."

Gibby looked at her. "Hate what?"

Carly took a few moments, sniffled, and then spoke as quietly and levelly as possible. "I hate feeling that I've betrayed my best friend because of an impulse." Carly choked back a sob. "I don't want to hurt Sam. And I'm still not sure of my feelings." Carly paused to think over how she should continue. "It could be like the taco truck – maybe the possibility of Freddie not being around scared me. I know how much his affection and support have meant to me over the years." She folded her arms on the desk in front of her and buried her head in them.

"Oh, yeah," Freddie mused. "The 'Mitch' thing, right?"

Carly sat up. "Uh huh." Carly thought for a moment. "Her relentless ripping on you might have kept you interested in me; her presence kept you from hooking up with Rona Berger-"

"Ew," Melanie and Gibby said together.

"-and me from thinking Nevel Papperman was boyfriend material."

"Ugh." Melanie cringed and shook her head to clear the image.

Carly shifted uneasily in her seat. "For all that we bailed her out of trouble early on, she has really made us stronger and more independent."

Freddie nodded. "Yeah. I don't want to hurt her either. We've all come a long way." Gibby nudged him in the back. Freddie turned around and shrugged at him. Gibby pointed at the screen.

"What was that all about?" Melanie asked.

Freddie harrumphed. "The other problem is because Sam is still my friend, and we broke up amicably and knew we had fallen in love with each other, there's still a part of me that, well, is still in love with her too." Carly grunted as she saw Freddie look up at her. "It's not fair to either Carly or Sam until I get my head straightened out."

Gibby patted Freddie on the head. "Good boy," he snarled condescendingly. He turned to face the screen. "So the deal seems like the best thing to do at the moment."

Melanie frowned and suddenly became very serious. She leant forwards almost growled, "I still don't think you all quite get it – especially you, Freddie." Freddie's eyes widened in fear. "You didn't have to hear my sister, um, well, act quite like my sister hasn't since the day I went to boarding school. The sonic screwdriver at Nora's, you crushing on the one person she could not handle emotionally you turning to, and then you had the gall to lie to her about it!"

Freddie stared at everyone with a stunned look. Carly glared at her screen and Gibby smirked. After a few moments, Freddie recovered his composure. He then looked back at Gibby, who then added nodding to his smirking. Freddie turned back to face his monitor. Melanie could see the disapproving look on Carly's face mimicked her own. "Yeah, that wasn't good."

Carly rolled her eyes in disgust. "Ya think? Freddie, she's one of your best friends and your first girlfriend. She has been loyal to you almost to a fault since you two dated and you lied to her?"

Gibby muttered, "Past a fault," quietly to no one in particular.

Freddie cringed. "I didn't want to hurt her."

Melanie bellowed, "Oh, so telling a lie is so much better than letting her know where she stands even if she gets hurt from knowing that yet another boy went from her to Carly."

Gibby spun Freddie around harshly and got into his face. "You don't know what that lying did to her, Freddie!" Gibby then stood up, paced for a few moments before coming back to glare down at him. "She tried to hide her tears. Let Melanie tell you the worst of what happened."

"You bet, Gibby," Melanie yelled so that Freddie could hear her. Melanie waited for Gibby to turn Freddie around. In the interim, Carly folded her arms and looked at her screen with disgust. Once Freddie realised he had to face this, he sighed and slouched into his chair. Melanie then continued. "She began to think that you just dated her out of pity or to make yourself look appealing to Carly."

Freddie's head shot up. "No, way! I can't believe it!"

Gibby pushed him downward and spoke harshly. "You have no idea how much your lying hurt her. I had to send her home early from Gibby's when she almost smashed the first set of dishes to wash."

Freddie shook his head in disbelief before he slumped again, crestfallen. "That's not true. When I told her I loved her, I really meant it. I didn't mean just in place of Carly. She was really my number one." Freddie folded his arms in front of him and buried his face into them. He shook his head in self-disgust for a few moments before raising it again. His eyes were red and puffy. "I wish she knew that it wasn't like that."

Melanie sighed. "You sort of made up for it with your deal – except it would have worked better had you not made out with Carly. For now, at least her work keeps her from obsessing over it."

Freddie nodded dumbly. Gibby tapped him on the shoulder. "That's why this is so complicated, you know." Freddie agreed and nodded. He blankly stared at his screen.

Carly was about to add something when heard her father yell from behind her. "I've got breakfast waiting. I've got to go. We will deal with some of this later."

#### cameddie #### creddiam #### seddily #### sardie #### farlam #### framly ####

Carly picked up the phone next to her bed early the next morning. As she awakened slowly, she mumbled into it, "whaddayawant?"

Spencer's voice was in a panic. "I just ran into T-Bo getting the Bensons' mail. He said that Mrs. Benson finally got upset at Freddie over his 'girl angst' and 'decided to do something about it – tomorrow.'"

Carly shot upward in her bed. "What happened?"

Spencer quickly blurted, "They left town some time today. I think they are heading to Sam's place so that she can stop them."

Carly was in a panic. "It's too late to call Sam and hope to speak with her. I am going to leave a message on both her business and personal phones. What about you?"

Spencer thought for a moment. "Best I can do is fly to LA and hope that Marissa hasn't done something stupid or provoked Sam. Good luck Carls." He hung up the phone quickly.

Carly reset her phone and called Sam. "Please answer this first, Sam…"

Sam's personal phone rang for several seconds before her voice mail message began. "This is Sam's personal line. If I'm not answering, then I have a good reason. Don't leave chizz for a message if you want a call back."

Carly rolled her eyes when the beep came. "Sam – it's late Friday night for you. Please call me as soon as you get this. Something happened with Freddie."