AN: I may be a bit slower to update for a while. I was home sick the past two days, so I had nothing to do but write. I'm back at work now, and I have a house guest, too. That means a lot less time to write, but I will still be hatching ideas in the meantime.

Much love to all those who reviewed and/or favorited this story. You're awesome! As your reward, here's the next installment of "iOwe You My Life."

Please see author's note at the end!

iOwe You My Life

Chapter 7 So Much for Promises

Carly stared down at the display screen of the camera she held. Through it, she watched Freddie assure all the iCarly fans that he was on the road to recovery and that iCarly would be up and running again soon. Carly stopped the recording when Freddie gave her the signal. He stood from where he had been sitting on the door of the car and reached for his crutches by the wall. Carly looked up at him with a smile. "That was great," she said. "You really are a natural in front of the camera when you just relax."

"Thanks," he said, "but I'll never be as funny as you and Sam."

"You could be funny with some practice," Carly said trying to encourage him. He just looked at her with one eyebrow cocked. "Well, who says everyone has to be funny, anyway?" she asked as she carried the camera back to the tech cart.

"Nobody," Freddie offered, "but when people tune in to a comedy show, they usually like to see comedians." When she didn't answer, he went on, "Anyway, I'll just edit this video sometime tomorrow and get it up on the site. That should keep our viewers happy for a little while."

"Hope so," Carly agreed.

"Say, would it be okay if I work on some tech stuff in here the night of the Valentine dance?" Freddie asked.

"Uhm, sure," Carly answered. "Spencer won't be home, though. He's skipping town for Valentine's Day." Freddie gave her a curious look. "Avoiding Trudy," she offered.

"Ah," was all he said. He hobbled over to the cart and reached for the camera she was still holding. Their hands touched, and they almost pulled back out of habit. Instead, Freddie placed the camera on the cart then laced his fingers through hers and squeezed gently.

"Carly," he whispered.

Her eyes locked with his. "Yeah?" she asked, her voice slightly shaking.

"Was it real?" he asked. Hope and love and need mixed on his face, turning his expression into one that made Carly's heart ache. She couldn't find words at first, and he thought she didn't understand his meaning. "In my room," he added, "the kiss and…everything. Was it real, or was it just gratitude or something?" He hoped for the best but braced himself for the worst.

Carly was drowning in his warm brown eyes as she considered his question. "Was it just gratitude? No, gratitude might be strong enough to get him that first tiny kiss, but it wouldn't have pulled me down to him the second time. Gratitude couldn't light a fire like that in my blood."

Carly recalled everything she had heard the past week about Freddie and what she already knew of his character. "Gratitude doesn't affect how amazing Freddie is."

Then she remembered how she felt when Duncan flirted with her—how thoughts of Freddie had made Duncan's charms seem so much weaker. "Gratitude wouldn't have kept Freddie's face in my mind while Duncan was trying to work his charm on me." Then Carly realized just what that last thought really meant. "Other guys don't pale in comparison to Freddie just because I'm grateful to him! That happens because I love him!"

"Oh, god, Freddie," Carly whispered, her eyes wide.

Freddie misread her reaction. "That's what I was afraid of," he said sadly, withdrawing his hand from hers. He took a step back and fixed his eyes on the floor.

"Wait, Freddie!" Carly pleaded, "Let me explain!" She had to make him understand what she was feeling. She needed to make him see how much she loved him and how she knew it was real.

Freddie was standing by the elevator door now with his hand over the button. "I'm not sure there's anything to say, Carly," he whispered.

"Y-yes, there is!" she persisted. "See I had been hearing all these stories about you from kids at school. About how nice you are and stuff. I was starting to think maybe there was a side of you I hadn't seen before."

Freddie just listened. He wasn't sure whether this was good news or bad. He figured at this point, it could go either way.

Carly continued, "Then on Friday, Duncan asked me to the Valentine dance."

Freddie felt a knife—a cold, rusty, jagged knife—rip through his heart. "Duncan Bower?" he asked, his voice barely audible. "So much for her promise not to leave you alone, eh Benson?" he thought. "You're a fool to think she'd skip the dance to be with you, especially with a trophy buck like Bower nosing around."

"Right," Carly said excitedly. She was about to pull the ace out of her sleeve. "Well, you know how all the girls think he's so hot and all." The damage to Freddie's heart just got worse as she went on. "Well he was really pouring on the charm, and I thought about you, and…"

"Stop it, Carly!" Freddie said firmly.

"But, Freddie," she argued.

"I SAID STOP IT!" he shouted.

Carly's jaw fell, but she remained quiet. She was totally shocked. He had never shouted at her like that before.

Freddie took a deep breath and faced her. "Look," he said sternly, "I'm in love with you. We both know that. What happened in my room today…well, that was the most wonderful thing I've ever experienced. I was starting to hope—I mean really hope—that things had changed between us." He took a deep breath and soldiered on. "It hurts like hell to have that taken away from me again, especially after getting so close," Freddie paused as the tears started to fall from his eyes. "I can't do this anymore."

"But, Freddie, I…" Carly tried.

"No, Carly," he said, holding up his hand to silence her. "Don't, okay? Just don't." He offered her a weak smile that didn't reach his eyes. "Go to the dance with Duncan," he said in a softer tone. "Have fun. You know I want you to be happy, no matter what it costs me. I've finally realized that you're never going to love me the way I want you to, and I think I'm just hurting us both by holding on this way. I'm still your best friend. I still love you, but I love you enough to let you go."

Carly could see the light reflecting off his tear-streaked face as he called up the elevator. She turned away like the coward she knew she was. She wasn't strong enough to watch him walk away from her, and she definitely wasn't brave enough to follow him. She heard his crutches thumping on the floor and the elevator closing. She stood motionless in the studio until she no longer heard any sounds indicating his presence in the apartment. Then she fell to her knees and cried like she had never cried before.

AN: Hold on! Don't grab the torches and pitchforks just yet! You'll notice this story is classified as Romance/Angst. Well, here's where the angst part comes in. Don't worry, though. I believe in happily ever after! There's more Creddie love to come! :)