Chapter Four

Carly and Sam were sitting at the kitchen island reading emails from the show, when Carly turned to face Sam to ask a question.

"So…do you like him?" She asked with a meddling smile.

"Like who?" Sam replied still reading the emails.

"You know…Kevin; Tim's friend." Carly stated again, trying to get Sam's attention. Sam still didn't answer or look away from the computer. Carly was starting to get impatient with Sam just ignoring her question, and pretending she didn't know who she had been referring to. "Sam!" She yelled, while elbowing Sam in the side. Carly was getting annoyed of being purposely ignored.

"Sam thinks this is a game I'm sure. Orrrr…maybe she's afraid to say anything." Carly thought to herself.

"Carl's…you don't have to holler, my hearing is just fine." She said turning around. "I like him okay…will you stop going all girly on me like that?" She said.

"Oh…I don't know you sure looked pretty girly to me yesterday."

"Take that back Carly…I don't do girly and you know it." Sam was getting upset, but only because she didn't want Carly knowing how much she really did like him, and especially how he made her feel.

"I can't take back what I saw Sam. You were practically drooling over him." She said with a smirk.

"Well…maybe you're losing your eye sight. Girly is not the Pucket way." She said plopping down and turning the TV on. Carly walked over to where Sam was now sitting and sat down next to her. She wasn't finished and wasn't about to be anytime soon. "Okay, have it your way Sam. But when I have watched you beat some guy down for looking at you wrong; I never; and I mean never heard you giggle." She said.

Sam smiled. She knew that carly had won that argument; but only because she couldn't deny what Carly had said was true.

"Look Carl's…I like him. He's funny; he has a cute smile, cute brown hair and brown eyes you can drown in. So yeah…I lost the Pucket edge yesterday." Sam said starting to sound enthusiastic again about her date with Kevin.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door; interrupting their conversation.

"Who could that be?" Carly asked, getting up to go answer it. As she opened it; a smile formed on her face immediately. She swung the door open to reveal her Tim, standing there with his friend Kevin; who was peering in hoping Sam was there.

"Hi sweety! Glad you're here…what brings you by?" She asked stepping aside so they could get through the door.

"I came by to tell you… Oh hey Sam! I didn't see you here." He exclaimed, seeing Sam sitting there for the first time.

"Hey Tim; where Kevin?" Sam's eyes lit up a little at the question.

"He's right behind me…can we come in?" He asked

"Sure...make yourself at home." She said stepping out of the way, letting them both in.

Time and Kevin walked in and walked over to where Sam was still sitting on the couch trying not to look too excited to see that Kevin was in Carly's apartment.

Just then Freddie burst in. "Hey Car… oh….hey Tim and…."

"Kevin…my name is Kevin. We met at the movies yesterday."

"Oh…right. You were there with Sam. Did she let you eat, or did you have to just sit and watch?"

"Watcha need nub? Forget your tick lotion?" Sam said smiling slyly.

"Ha ha…verrry funny Sam. Why you here? Mom forget to stock the fridge?" Freddie wasn't going to be beat in a battle of wits today. He was feeling good, and no matter how many times Sam insulted him, he knew he was going to give it right back to her.

"No dork…I come here because I have friends; you know…people that actually like hanging around with each other?" She said still sporting that sly smile.

"So what are you doing here then?" Freddie was pretty proud of his comeback, because for a few seconds, Sam didn't say anything. But the history between them wouldn't let them stay quiet for any long period of time.

Kevin stood there, shocked at the way Freddie was talking to Sam.

"Why is this guy being such a jerk to her?" He thought to himself.

"Why are you talking to her like that?" Kevin said, not being able to stand aside any longer and let Sam get picked on.

"What?" Freddie and Sam both said in unison. They had both been so busy in the banter back and forth, that they forgot that there was anyone in the room watching.

"You heard me. Why are you picking on sweet Sam?" He said now resting his hands on his sides.

"Yeah Freddie, why are you picking on a sweet innocent girl like me?" She said using that comment for all it was worth.

"WHAT?...um…eh…WHAT?" Freddie had been dealt the final blow by Sam, as always he lost the battle of wits with her.

"See you Tim; Carly; Kevin aaaaand Sam, this isn't over." "Um…yes it is" She said. Freddie turned and went across the hall.

A few minutes after Freddie got into his house. He sat down on his couch, he thought about Sam being interested in this guy Kevin. "That's not the kind of guy usually gets involved with; why now?" He thought to himself. Freddie felt bored, and decided to go to the Groovy Smoothie. After he got there, he saw Cindy sitting there by herself. So he walked over to see what she was up to.

"Hey Cindy! I didn't know you were going to be here?" He said sitting down at the table with her, and staring into her blue eyes.

"Well…my friend is hanging out with Gibby, and I didn't know if you were available to do anything." She said looking down at the table.

"There's something different about Cindy. I just can't put my finger on it." He thought to himself. Freddie decided to put the thought out of his mind and just enjoy Cindy's company.

"So what are you doing next weekend?" He asked still unable to stop staring about what the familiarity could be. "Actually, My friend and I are going to the mall; kind of a girls day out. But maybe next weekend if that's okay with you?" She said while swirling the straw in her smoothie nervously.

"I don't see why that would be a problem. I have a pretty big project for school I have to get done anyway." He said plainly.

"Are you doing anything for the rest of the day?" He asked trying to get her to do something; anything.

"I know this is going to sound like I'm avoiding you, but I promised my mom I would take her to her doctor's appointment, and that's in about an hour." She said once again looking down at the table trying not to make eye contact with him.

"That's cool; I better get going, I have some prep work for icarly to get done before we rehearse the show." He said sounding a little disappointed, but trying not to show it.

Okay Freddie…next weekend then." She said giving him a goodbye hug and then leaving. Freddie sat there awhile, going over in his mind. "Was t here something that I had done? Something I said? Or maybe she's involved with someone and doesn't know how to tell me." Freddie sat there for some time. He was so involved in his thoughts, that he didn't notice Sam and Kevin walk in together. That is until Sam walked by the table.

"What's up sir nubs a lot?" She said jokingly in passing. "What's up demon?" He said in response. Not really noticing Kevin.

As Sam walked over to Kevin, Freddie noticed how Sam acted around him, she wasn't her usual self, she was more like….Melanie. He thought to himself.

Freddie didn't know why, but he wasn't in the mood to sit there and watch Sam act like somebody he knew she wasn't. So he got up and left before they could see him go.

Sam grabbed a hold of Kevin's hand, and then laid her head against his shoulder.

"So Sam; what can I get you?" Kevin asked pulling his wallet out. "Well, I know what I would like to have, but To Bo doesn't serve it here." She said looking a little disappointed.

"What's that?" He asked not really knowing Sam eating habits that well.

"A meatball smoothie." She said plainly.

Kevin started to look a little green at the thought.

Sam looked at her potential boyfriend, and wondered how it was going to work if he couldn't handle a little meat talk.

"I'll just have a vanilla raspberry." She said letting go of his arm. Sam and Kevin sat around for about an hour, before Sam asked the question she really wanted to ask.

"Kevin. I have had a really good time with you, but do you think this is really going to work out after you leave?" She asked finally getting the question out that she wanted to ask him since that last time they were together.

"Well, I have been waiting to tell you this later, but since you brought it up, maybe this is a good time for me to tell you." He said smiling at her. His smile confusing what she was thinking and feeling on the inside.

"Sam. I was talking to my parents, and my Dad has to go overseas for his job and he is taking my mom with him.

"So here it comes…he's saying goodbye. I knew it was coming, but I still didn't want it to." She thought to herself, still not ready to except him having to leave to go back to California. "So Tim's parents said that I can stay here for the rest of the school year, so I don't have to go to a strange school and try to make new friends." Sam started to show a small smile, but still not fully understanding everything that Kevin was telling her. "So…if you wouldn't mind, since I don't have to go back home anymore, maybe we can hang out a little more?" He said trying to sound cool.

"I'd love that, now let's go get those smoothie's." She said grabbing his hand and grabbing the smoothie from him, and taking a sip while looking up into his light brown eyes.

Carly and Tim were still sitting in Carly's apartment discussing Sam and Kevin; surprised that the two had taken to each other so quickly.

"So…Sam looks happy." Tim said sitting back on the couch and wrapping his arm around Carly.

"Yeah I would have to she does. But do you think it's a good idea for her to be getting close to someone that is going to be leaving tomorrow?" She said concerned for Sam.

"Actually, He is going to be staying because his parents are going overseas for a few months or so, so he is staying with me so they don't have to pull him out of school just to go over there with them." He said smiling knowing that Carly really cared for her friend and didn't want her to get hurt.

"Do you think she likes Kevin?" He said a little concerned for his friend.

"More than you might think she does. She talked about him all night after the movie when got back home. Kevin this; Kevin that." She said reassuring Tim's thoughts of the two of them.

"Good to know…good to know." He stated simply.

Freddie was back in his room, finishing up home work for Monday morning, when his mind kept reverting back to the sight of Sam with Kevin hanging out in the Groovy Smoothie. He was happy for Sam, but in the back of his mind, there was a nagging thought that he couldn't shake.

His thoughts were interrupted when there was a knock at his door. Freddie got up from his desk and went to the door to find out who was there, since he wasn't expecting anybody. When he opened the door, a smile appeared on his face at the sight of the person standing in the door.

"Hi Cindy…what brings you by?" He asked surprised to see her at his house.

"My mom and I got back a little early, so I figured I would come over and see what you were up to." She said standing there looking pleased to see Freddie.

"Do you have anything that you're doing right now? Or can you go to the groovy Smoothie and grab a smoothie with me?" He asked hoping she could.

"Yeah…I'd love to." She said smiling and waiting for him to exit his apartment.

"Let me get my wallet…you can come in for a second and wait if you would like to." He said walking off and leaving the door open for her to let herself in. Cindy slowly stepped into his apartment, but just to the inside of the door. As she was waiting, she noticed a picture of Freddie, Sam and Carly holding the web award that they had received in Japan.

"Ready to go?" Freddie said, startling Cindy back from her thoughts.

"Yeah, let's go." She said smiling. Freddie allowed Cindy to exit the apartment first, and then closed the door behind him as he quickly followed her to the elevator.

I know it's kinda slow getting to the parts I want to get to. Put be patient, it's getting there