Previously: Carly looked up from her aching feet and noticed her boyfriend leading Sam to the dance floor. At first she thought it was a harmless dance between two old friends. When the music switched to a slower, more romantic song, they made no attempt to leave the floor, in fact they now began dancing closer. A little too close for Carly's liking. Knowing their history, despite her friendship with Sam, Carly began to get her hackles up.
Chapter 13
As she watched the two of them move together, Carly slowly began to put two and two together. She knew Freddie had been "with" Sam in L.A., he had confessed to her that Sam was his first and that night was right before he started college, nearly five years ago. Sam mentioned that Stephanie had just turned four a few weeks ago. Contrary to what she told Freddie, she also knew deep down inside that after he left L.A. and started college that Sam was too much in love with him to ever even think about being with another guy.
Her eyes shifted to little Stephanie, sitting with Tasha, two empty tables in between them, and she took in every square centimeter of the child's face before looking back at Sam and Freddie. Carly suddenly realized that her face was nearly identical to his. 'OMG, that's his kid!' She thought to herself. This was certainly not the kind of thing any girl wanted to figure out about her boyfriend.
Carly felt herself begin to grow angry, but she wasn't sure who to be angry with. Surely, Freddie didn't know anything about Stephanie or he would have been involved in her life. He wasn't that kind of guy, she knew better than that. Besides, if he knew he had a kid, he'd be head over heels and talking about her constantly. After all, he was clearly disappointed that she had no intention of reproducing.
Sam, on the other hand, had no contact with either of them, so she couldn't be too mad at her. After all, her blonde friend surely didn't choose to have a child at eighteen. Maybe she should just be angry with herself for getting into things so deep with a guy she knew she really wasn't compatible with.
'What's there to worry about, it's not like she's trying to steal Freddie away, is she?' Carly thought to herself. The only thing was, the way they were dancing right now, it was looking like no stealing would be necessary and that he was a willing accomplice. There was only one way to get to the bottom of this, come out and ask, just walk up to him and say it.
If the blonde was trying to make a move on Freddie, Carly knew she would wind up on the losing end. First off, Sam could mop the floor with her even if her old friend had a broken arm. Secondly, Freddie was making no attempt to get away from her grasp. It was then Carly realized that she was Freddie's consolation prize and the way him and Sam laughing and having a good time together, they had never lost their spark.
'OMG!' Carly thought. 'He never acts like that around me.' Her anger intensified if for no other reason than the fact that Sam had a connection with Freddie that she never would. Sure, Carly wasn't all that passionate about Freddie, but she didn't want any other girl, especially Sam, to have him either. Jealousy is a true bitch.
As she looked back and forth between the couple and Stephanie, it suddenly hit her. She and her two old friends weren't the only players in this game. 'I'm standing between them.' Carly said to herself as her heart broke, not only for her own sake but for the little girl's, who had never known her dad, one of the most wonderful, intelligent and generous men Carly had ever known.
The brunette felt a tear come to her eye as she realized the awful truth. She was never Freddie's true love in the first place, his heart had always belonged to Sam Puckett. She saw Sam and Freddie's body language and it confirmed exactly that. The writing was on the wall in big, bold, florescent red letters and it was one word: Seddie.
Carly's emotions ran the gambit from being angry to defiant to sad to now grieving in a matter of a few moments. She turned to Marissa with a faint sigh and tried to stifle a tear. "I guess this is the end, isn't it?"
"I'm sorry, dear." Marissa said quietly before taking a huge gulp of another mixed drink. "More sorry than you'll ever know."
Mrs. Benson realized years ago that Freddie loved Sam more than anything, but as long as he was with Carly there was hope that he would never reconnect with the blonde. That solitary fact made her come around to Carly in the first place. Over time, she and Carly developed a special relationship of their own, that would never change, but it was now clear to his mother that Carly was simply filling a void left by Sam. Whether the over-protective mother liked it or not, Sam was now back in her son's life-for good.
No doubt about it, Freddie would stand by Sam and even if his mother didn't like it, Freddie and the 'blonde-headed demon' were irrevocably connected. The good news was that by the looks of things there was a genuine love between them. She couldn't help but be happy for her son for that, but only that. Marissa, like everyone else was fully aware that her son and Carly just didn't have any kind of spark. She smiled to herself because her son looked so happy, despite the fact that she was terribly upset with him for getting himself into this mess in the first place.
Carly gave Marissa's hand a squeeze, took a deep breath and slowly stood up. It was time to face the music. She walked over to Sam and Freddie, who were still dancing to a slow song, her head on his chest, his arms around her waist, their love for each other showing loud and clear to everyone in the room who bothered to look their way.
"Mind if, I um, - I cut in?" She asked Sam quietly, touching her shoulder.
Sam left go of her baby daddy and Carly stepped into her place. After a few minutes of holding Freddie for possibly the last time, the brunette finally spoke up. "So, I'm guessing you either don't know Stephanie is your daughter, but I don't think you're that stupid, or you were waiting until after the wedding to tell me about her and that you really want to be with Sam."
Freddie tried to pull back, but Carly kept a tight grip on him. "Carls, listen, I - I, uh didn't know about her until yesterday. I swear, I would have never done that to you, I care too much about you to play with your heart. If I had known Sam and I had a child together, I would have been in L.A. with her, not in Seattle playing you along. Go ahead and hate me, but please don't be mad at Sam for this, she, she . . . "
"I know, Freddie, and for what it's worth, I do love you." Carly said through misty eyes. "Even if it's not a passionate kind of love, you're still my closest friend. But you and Sam have something special and that little girl needs you. She needs you both, together. She should grow up in a normal family with her mom and her dad. She deserves what none of us ever had when we were kids."
The fact that Carly seemed to be taking it so well, made Freddie's heart break for her. "I love you, too, Carls. I'm so glad you don't hate me for this, you'd have every right to." A tear ran down his cheek and he hugged her tightly. "Just please don't kick me in the, um, you know."
"I could never hate you Freddie, no matter how much I'm hurt. But no promises on the kick." Carly tried to make herself feel better by making a joke and wiped at her eyes with a free hand. "I suppose I won't be wearing that ring anytime soon but I think it might look pretty good on Sam. You know, I always suspected you still love her. I don't think you ever stopped, did you?" Carly smirked and he shook his head in shame. "C'mon, let's go over there. I'd like to talk to my best friend."
The song ended and Carly escorted Freddie off the dance floor. They headed straight for Sam's table, where she was just returning from the restroom with her daughter. Stephanie was staring at her father, being literally drug their way by this strange woman with shoulder-length brown hair.
Carly marched right up to Sam and at first the blonde didn't know if she was going to hit her, curse her out or hug her. "So, this must be the famous Stephanie." Carly bent down to look at the little girl. "You're so pretty, you know that? My name is Carly and I'm a good friend of your Mommy and Daddy." Stephanie stepped partially behind her mother out of shyness.
Sam immediately broke out into a smile. Carly stood up and hugged her friend. "I'm happy for you, Sam. For both of you. You both deserve to be happy." Though her heart was torn in two, the brunette knew this was the way things were really meant to be and she couldn't help but be happy for their little family. 'Even though I'm miserable.' She silently thought to herself.
"I'm sorry, Carls. I know you're hurt and I can't help but think this is all my fault. If I would have just told him from the beginning this would have never been dropped on your heart. But I was just too scared. Scared of what Freddie might do, how he might ruin his future because of me." Sam began to tear up, but Freddie took her hand and squeezed it, assuring her that everything was going to be alright. "Then when you guys got together, I didn't want to do anything to mess it up. I'm just so sorry."
"I'll be alright, Sam. It's not your fault." Carly smiled through her tears as well. "You did what you thought was best. You know, I always did think you two made a great couple. Freddie and I, we-we were just fooling ourselves. We're too alike to ever be together. But you guys, you'll last forever. Seddie all the way."
Sam rolled her eyes at the word Seddie, it reminded her of the nutty fans at the web-i-con. "Say, um, Carls. I know this is sort of short notice, but how about hanging out tonight? We never did get much of a chance to get caught up." Sam offered. "You know with the wedding planning and the shower going bust and all. Stephie and I don't fly back to L.A. until next week so we have time for a proper reunion."
"Something tells me you two won't be flying back alone." Carly chuckled and motioned toward Freddie. "You want to maybe come by our place? We just bought some of that fancy French-Canadian bacon." She suggested.
"Sure, Carls. You know I can't say no to bacon." Sam smiled and looked at Freddie for approval.
"I guess you two girls can get caught up while I do some packing." He nodded. "I don't think I should stay at the apartment any more."
"Plenty of room at my mom's place." Sam whispered in his ear while Carly was saying a few words to Stephie, who seemed to be coming around to her.
"I think I know where we can even get a good sitter for Stephanie. Maybe we can all go out to dinner tomorrow." Freddie suggested before bending over to talk to his daughter. "Stephie, Sweetie, do you want to go for a walk with me? There's someone I'd like you to meet."
Sam immediately knew what he was thinking and she wasn't sure about her daughter being left alone with Mrs. Benson for fear of her being lathered with anti-bacterial lotion and tick repellent. She didn't protest too loudly, however. After all, the kid should get to know his mother, too. "No tick baths, mister." She said quietly as Carly smirked at her thought.
He took the child's hand and led her to his mother's table where Marissa was looking like sadder than a basset hound left out in a blizzard. "Mom, there's someone who I'd like you to meet. This is Stephanie. Stephanie this is your grandma."
"Hi." The child said quietly, again half-hiding behind Freddie.
Marissa's face brightened and she opened her arms to hug the child. "Nice to meet you, Stephanie. You can call me Nana." Marissa was very proud to be a grandmother, even though this was a bit sudden. She had been wishing Freddie was able to change Carly's mind about the subject ever since she found out that children were not in the game plan for the brunette.
Stephie hugged her grandmother and crawled onto Marissa's lap for a minute. "Freddie, has this child had her tick bath?" She whispered to him. "You can't be too careful when it comes to ticks and I don't want my granddaughter infested with something."
Freddie simply rolled his eyes at his mother's paranoia. "I'm sure she's perfectly tick free, Mom."
Spencer approached with Carrie, who had noticed Freddie taking the little girl to Marissa's table. "So, Mrs. B, what's it like to be a grandma?" He asked.
"Wouldn't trade it for anything." She replied as she hugged Stephanie. "She's so perfect, Freddie. A perfect little angel."
"Well, I can't take too much credit, after all Sam's the one who's been raising her for the last four years."
It was his statement which made Marissa realize that perhaps Sam wasn't the same girl she was in high school. "Maybe she's not such a demon after all. I think I need to get to give her another chance." Marissa choked back a lump in her throat.
They were soon joined by Carly and Sam, who had already made plans for their evening together and were all smiles. "Hello, Mrs. Benson. Um, h -how would you like to watch Stephanie for a few hours this evening?" Sam asked.
"I'd love to, dear." Marissa stood to hug Sam. "You've done a wonderful job with this child, I'm very proud of you."
For the first time in a long time, Sam was speechless. She simply smiled back at Freddie's mother.
"Don't you two have a plane to catch?" Carly asked her brother and his wife. "To someplace called Hawaii?"
"Speaking of planes, please tell me you're not going back to California right away, Saman, er, Sam." Marissa asked. "You just got back to town, we need to reacquainted. And I want to spend some time with this little one."
"It was supposed to be Monday, but I think I'll maybe wait until Freddie can get a flight to go along. No sense in us going back alone if he's coming a day or two later. I'll just give Mel a call and let her know we'll be staying a little while longer."
"Here I thought you'd be staying here in Seattle." Spencer suggested to her.
"Oh, I'll be back, Spence. Pam told me this morning that I'm welcome to stay at the house as long as I want, with Freddie of course. But I need to wrap up a few loose ends in L.A."
"What about Melanie?" Carly asked. "She'll be in California all alone. And your job."
She and Freddie had already discussed this subject the night before. "Meh, she can find a new room mate, Cat told me she's coming back to L.A., they'd get along pretty good. I figure I can baby sit anywhere but Freddie has a job he loves here, so we'll be back before you can miss us."
The next chapter will wrap up the story, and we'll see how everyone is adjusting a few months in the future.