Chapter 7

The rest of her classes flew by her in a daze. Once she fixed her standing at the college, she could graduate in a year. Then real jobs, not just ones working under someone with a real job, would open up to her.

But Carly hated herself.

She hated that she had fallen in love with a man that would not be a father to Sarah, she hated that she left college for him, lived a life with him without giving Sarah everything she needed, then left him without a great reason to do so.

Every time she made a decision, it was a mistake. Even now, working under Freddie only led to more confusion. If she and Dustin worked things out, what would happen with her boss? Would a man in love retaliate? Of course, Nevel would, but that was a given.

Still, Carly knew she had to work with her husband, not fight him. It was better to see what they could work out, if anything, than live the rest of her life wondering.

The professors said almost nothing the first day that interested her.

It was with a headache that she arrived at her house. The lights were on. Sarah's laughter was clearly heard all the way to the street. It was almost too nice of a moment to spoil.

Carly waited until five minutes before bedtime, and then went in. She heard about Sarah's day, and what she had missed. Dustin was standing upright in his chair, trying desperately to look responsible. He really wanted this to work.

Once Sarah was in bed, the two had to have an adult conversation.

"So…. Now what?"

It would be easy for them to ignore what had happened, but somebody had to speak up.

Carly explained what she had been up to, and Dustin listened intently, "Babe, listen, you may have Sarah's best interests at heart, but you can't count on her coming home to an empty house every day!"

She bowed her head. As hard as it was to admit it, being a single parent was… bad. Besides feeling insufficient, as many parents feel, she had to feel insufficient by herself. And Dustin could stay in the home. He had often worked out of his house when they were together. Maybe he could take care of Sarah?

"I know. And I feel terrible about it already… I guess, I guess I need you," She murmured.

"More than you need Freddie?" His voice was accusatory. Also, since they were never divorced, she had technically cheated on him. It was not as though their separation was a clean one.

"I don't need Freddie," The words came out hard but true.

A young, teenaged part of her heart screamed its frustration. We do need Freddie, it protested, when will we ever learn? Freddie was there through it all. He created ICarly, kept it going, kept her going. Even as a boy he gave her love and support. Even now, with the chance she may use her education to leave him, she knew he supported her. But she did not want him to. Some stupid part of her wanted to give Dustin a chance, and that part was winning. Her gut told her she would regret it.

Days passed. Tuesday was the worst work day in months. Besides knowing just how long it had been since Freddie had held her in his arms, there was no way he was ignorant of Dustin's return. He was a bit hostile, really. Tori took the brunt of it, withstanding a fifteen minute lecture on the importance of knowing the exact definition of 'perpendicular'. She was almost in tears when Carly stepped in. She confronted her boss as politely as possible, knowing he was frustrated and could do nothing about it.

"She'll do better in the future. And I know you can do better," It almost sounded like she was implying Tori ought to be fired, but in truth she communicated with him through that unspoken link, you're not mad at her, you're mad at me and you can't come out and say it.

What can I say?

Exactly, if you're going to be mad, do it by yourself.
She let Tori know that Freddie would be drinking tonight. Nevel called a private meeting that only he, Freddie, and someone 'off the books' would be attending. Gibby walked in. He was still the secret dark hand who dealt with whatever needed to be dealt with. Seeing him was never good news. Tori, ever one for gossip, leaned into the doors.

"Alright, we're pulling you," Says Nevel, arms crossed, "Whatever has been dealt has been dealt. Kara is no longer our concern. You're needed elsewhere."

There was a pause, "Is there a problem?"

Gibby shifted almost uncomfortably, "It's just…. This is Sam's kid. I found her, alone, abused in a foster home. I brought her here, got her into a nicer house. I've watched her for years and now you expect me to just drop her.

Nevel and Freddie exchanged looks. Dark hands did not get emotionally attached. Since this was a matter of heart, Freddie took the lead.

"I know that Sam meant something to each of us, but… it's best if we let Kara be. We don't even have a 'take your daughter to work day' so I'm not tempted," If anything, this inflamed the agent more.

He stormed off.

Tori and Carly returned to the room, standing at attention. Nevel, for once, was without condescension or humor.

A.N. Yes, I received a review, so another 'chappy' is on the way. I want to thank everyone who reads this. Why do I crave reviews? Well, many reasons. Right now, I want to know where you guys see this going. As mentioned earlier, this one is considered, 'done' in my book. The conclusion works, but I'm thinking trilogy. Tell me what you think.