AN: Hi, ya'll. It's Monday so you know what that means: update time woo. Haven't had the best day as I've been suffering with a hella bad migraine but I really wanted to post this today, especially after leaving you guys hanging after last week's update. Please enjoy!

Chapter Eight

Considering neither of them had lost a kid before, they knew exactly what to do.

"I'm sure she couldn't have got far."

Call Carly.

"Carly, she was right beside me and then she just left," Sam said, fear trembling in her voice. "What if we've lost her, Carls? What if she's gone? I should've held her tighter."

"Sam, it isn't your fault," Freddie tried to reason, though he was nervous as well. When his mom found out about this, she would be fuming, and his aunt Cathy, as chill as she was, would probably not let him look after his cousins for a while. And the offer of the summer vacation at hers would probably be taken right off the table. "We'll find her."

"Yes, listen to Freddie," Carly agreed, nodding her head. "Sometimes, kids just wander off."

"And then they go missing and get kidnapped and murdered," Sam finished, frowning. She felt guilty for losing her. Even if she'd never voice it aloud, she wanted Mrs Benson to accept her, especially when she and Freddie were to finally get back together. She knew the stuff Marissa had done in order to try and get them together last time – Freddie had kept some of the stuff from her, but she had her ways of finding out. She just hoped that this time, with Freddie's newfound independence his mother was allowing him, would be different, or at least, it would've been if she hadn't lost Mrs B's niece.

"Sam, that isn't going to happen," Carly assured her. "Right, you go that way towards the swing sets. Freddie, search by the monkey bars and playhouse. Then I'll take George through the outdoor adventure park bit. Maybe she ducked under a barrier."

"Be careful, Sam," Freddie told her, before disappearing through the rain to where Carly had instructed him to go. Sam headed into the rain, hair dripping wet. The storms had been relentless the past few weeks and it was going to be like that all the way through to December apparently. The sky grew darker above her. She turned around and noticed how her friends were no longer anywhere near the small pergola where they had gathered originally.

It was eight thirty. They should've been home by now. Mrs Benson was going to be calling Freddie any minute, so they had to be quick. Sam took a short lap around the main playpark equipment, before going round in circles. There was no sight of the missing brunette, or her friends. So, she hurried to the hedged area where they had the outdoor assault course made of wood and sand-based ground.

"Lily?" she called softly, watching the water running off the metal benches. Carly was supposed to be looking around here. "Carly?" she also called. With no reply from either girl, she ventured further down the track, knowing that if she took a left turn here, she'd be led through to a field where her and Melanie used to go blackberry picking in the summer, which was gated off, padlocked and had been for the past couple of years. The park was actually pretty overwhelming to a little kid who hadn't been there before. "Okay, it isn't funny anymore. Can you just come out or something? I am terrified your mom and aunt are going to hate me for the rest of my life."

Then she heard a quiet sobbing from a nearby hedge. Following the sound, she kneeled down in the wet sand with a grimace, and finally found the small four year old tucked away in the bush. "Lily, have you been here the whole time?" She sniffed and nodded her head. "Oh, it's okay, come here." Sam embraced her and kissed the top of her head, holding her close. "You scared the heck out of me and Freddie."

"I'm sorry, Princess Sam," she sobbed, clinging onto her tighter.

Sam sat down beside her, her head touching the top of the bush. "Why did you leave? You scared us, Lily."

"Please don't be mad."

"I'm not mad, angel, okay?"

She nodded her head, looking down.

"Hey, look at me, Lily. It's okay." Sam reached over to wipe away a stray tear. "Why did you go? We were going to take you back to your mom. In the warm. It's raining really badly."

"I just, I didn't want to go back. I never get attention; mommy just cares about George and my brother and sister. Her and daddy always fight. I don't want to be here. Can I stay with you?"

Sam laughed gently, but in all honesty, she could understand the younger girl's point. Growing up, well, at least until Melanie went away, her mom didn't like her, and it was her dad who was there for her. Then when he left, and Melanie left, she was all alone, her mom not even acknowledging her. Throughout all her life, she had been compared to Melanie – "oh, why can't you be more like Melanie?" Heck, Freddie even thought Sam was playing a prank on him and pretending to have a sister just to get at him. If she had the attention and was the one sent away to the boarding school, she wondered whether she'd feel differently about everything now. "All parents argue," she told her. "My parents used to fight a lot. It's normal to fight with someone when you love them."

"Do you and Freddie fight?"

She smiled. "Yes, yes, we do. It doesn't mean you love someone less. Also, I'm sure your parents will make up. Plus, having two parents isn't too bad. Double the birthdays, double the presents, double the food." Lily's face lit up at the idea of food. A girl of Sam's heart, truly. "And you're an older sister to your brother. He needs you there, you know. Also, even if you don't think so, your mom will still miss you. You can't live with me, sweetie, because I have a family too."

"Does your mommy miss you sometimes too?"

"Sometimes," she lied with a nod of her head. She couldn't remember the last time her mom said anything of the kind – wasn't even sure her mom had said she loved her or missed her. "But she's always going to be your mom and take advantage of being young while you still can. Being old sucks."

"You're not that old! Not as old as Aunt Marissa."

Sam snickered. "Hey, come on. Let's get you back to Cousin Freddie and your family."

Lily whined again, pouting. "Why can't I stay with you? In a castle with ponies and a kingdom."

"Hey, let's make a deal." Lily nodded her head shyly. "You go back to your family, and I'll go back to mine. Deal?"

.

"We're back," Freddie called out, throwing his keys in the bowl beside the door. Sam led Lily back inside, and when her mom saw her all drenched from the rain, she quickly got her wrapped in a towel.

Mrs Benson huffed. "What are you doing back so late? It's dark outside." Freddie had to persuade Lily not to tell anyone about their little detour on the way home if she was allowed to watch a movie with him and Sam. Though, considering the look on her face – the look of pure anger – she either already knew or she was going to send them both to bed immediately. "I thought Cathy said half eight, Fredward Benson."

"No harm done," Cathy inputted quickly, helping George out the pushchair and holding him in her arms. "Did you guys have fun?"

Lily nodded her head, jumping up and down. "Yes, mommy! Princess Sam told me about her castle with three swimming pools."

"Four," Sam corrected, to which Freddie rolled his eyes and took the opportunity to put his arm around her waist, causing her to slightly jump at the sudden contact.

"Can Sam and Freddie take me out again?"

Cathy laughed. "Yes, sweetie, I'm sure that'll be fine if that's okay with them of course." The little girl looked up at them with wide eyes, and they both nodded their heads at her. "Right, now, I think it's bedtime. The twins are already asleep." She gave her sister a kiss on her cheek and went towards the guest room; Lily ran back to the teenagers and gave them both awkward leg hugs. Sam patted her head with a laugh.

"Goodnight," she told her.

"Night!" the four year old cheered back, running off towards the guest room.

"You two are drenched," Marissa fussed, the attention now off Cathy and her children. "There's fresh towels in the hall closet. Fredward, let Samantha use your shower to warm up. Then have a shower yourself." Then she disappeared down the hall and into her own room, closing the door behind her with a quiet slam. The two looked at each other. It had only been three or so hours when they agreed to go on the date, but with the reservations having been cancelled and the rain, it didn't look like they'd be going anywhere fancy soon. The leftover salad that Cathy had made looked very unappealing now with soggy lettuce and cold chicken, so Sam settled on the hidden bag of chips under Freddie's bed tied closed with one of her hairbands.

Freddie had ended up showering first, but he opened the door meekly and stood behind the closed door, peeking his head round. "I, uh, forgot a towel," he said with a frown.

Sam burst out laughing at his attempt to hide behind the door. "It's not like I haven't seen you naked."

"Laugh it up, Samantha," he teased. Her face dropped.

"Don't call me that!"

"But—"

"I don't like it!" Sam frowned. Then she threw the towel at the end of the bed at him. "Here you go," she said shortly. He just laughed, shook his head, and retired back to the bathroom. Once he was decent and in a pair of pyjama bottoms, he left the bathroom and found her laying on the sheets of his bed, practically asleep. He laid down beside her carefully, not wanting to disturb her. "Hm, how dare you," she said to him, eyes still closed, catching him off guard. "Don't call me Samantha again." Her voice was so quiet, so soft he'd almost missed it.

"Okay, Sammy."

"Or that!" she said a bit louder with a slight huff.

"Fine, fine, Sam it is," he smiled, closing his eyes.

"Do you think your mom will spray me with tick spray if I end up spending the night?"

"As long as we don't, you know, do anything, I think you'll be okay."

She opened her eyes, rolled over to face him, and gave him a look. "What do you mean "do anything," Benson, huh? As you should know, I don't sleep with anyone on the first date."

He laughed dryly. "This isn't the first date though, is it? And well, it wouldn't be the first time we've—"

Sam covered her ears. "Lalala, rainbows and unicorns, rainbows and unicorns," she chanted, pretending to be mortified at the topic. In reality, she was glad they could still talk about that without it being weird. She uncovered her ears and smiled at his laughing face. "You should know that I'll throw you out a window if you ever mention that—" He was already up and off the bed, going towards the window. "Wait, what are you doing?"

"Seeing if the drop is worth it."

She gave him a look, but then the two just ended up laughing with each other. Freddie went over to the wardrobe and grabbed one of his old hoodies and a pair of his gym shorts that were now too small for him, so he passed them to Sam and told her, "If you don't want my mom to kick you out, I advise that you shower, especially when you were hunting around for Lily in the sand earlier." As much as she didn't want to admit it, Freddie was right, so she crawled into the shower for a while and when she was convinced that she had used more than fifty dollars worth of water, she got dressed and got back into Freddie's bed, exhausted. "Ah, yes, make yourself at home."

"Funny, Benson," Sam said, faking a laugh.

Freddie looked at her. She seemed off. "You alright, Sam?"

"Just tired," she half-lied. She was tired, but that wasn't what was wrong. She remembered back to her conversation with Lily and knew that tomorrow, she had to go home and face her mom. She got home from Las Vegas last night, but after the message she'd received from her the day she'd ran out of the Shays' apartment and Freddie got hurt, she didn't want to see her and go home. But now, she felt like she should. She felt it was finally time. She was eighteen now and could move on – maybe she could convince Carly to get an apartment with her when Carly was going off to college. Or even ask Freddie if she could go with him to whichever posh ivy-league college wanted him. Because once Carly and Freddie were gone, Sam didn't feel like anything tied her to Seattle anymore.

"Do you know what you're doing next year?"

"Maybe MIT or Caltech," Freddie told her. "I've been looking at a few abroad too. What about you? Has Sam Puckett got college plans, or is college for dorks?"

"I mean, yeah, college is for dorks, but I can still apply to a few community colleges. Ivy-league colleges kinda suck," Sam said. "Although, there is a cooking course in UCLA that looks good. A cousin went there or something on my dad's side – so don't be too surprised. I'd be the first Puckett to go to college, well, minus Mel, who I think is going off to some distant fashion college anyway. Not like we have a family business to continue or anything."

"UCLA? That's pretty far to come back for dinner."

Sam shrugged. "If I don't start this year because I've missed deadlines, doesn't mean I can't go next year. What do you think?"

"Well, I never thought you'd be laying in my bed five years ago."

Sam scoffed in response. "Just tell me it's a bad idea and get it over with."

"No, Sam. I actually think it's amazing. I just meant that five years ago, you and I both, we wouldn't have expected you to consider college."

"Ah, yes, but unlike you, I'm not smart and do not have grades for a scholarship let alone get in in the first place. So, never mind. Dreams crushed."

"Hey, that isn't true. If you're going for a cooking course, apply for a cooking scholarship."

"Like those actually exist, Benson."

"You'd be surprised, Sam. Just consider it. I know some colleges actually are accepting applications up until graduation," Freddie told her. "Might mean you start there a bit later but it's possible. There are other people in your situation, so don't doubt yourself. Hey, and if you decide that's something you want to do, I could always, uh, accept my place at Caltech."

"Dude! You got in?"

"Aha, yeah, got my acceptance last week," Freddie said, rubbing the back of his neck. Sam slapped his shoulder playfully, congratulating him. "I think this is when you kiss me." He even leaned towards her, turning his head, and pointing to his cheek. She rolled her eyes but surprised him highly as she grabbed his face, turned his face to her, and kissed his lips quickly before he had even realised and fathomed what had happened. "I wasn't being serious but—"

"Shush and just let it be," Sam told him, pressing her finger to his lips, before tiredly laying back down. "Whatever is meant to be will always find a way."

"Carly has a shirt that said that." He swatted her hand away with a grin, deciding not to dwell on the kiss too much. It was Sam, after all.

"Used to have a shirt that said that," Sam corrected. "I think it's now in the dirty laundry basket at mine."

"So, Caltech? The distance from UCLA really isn't far."

"Oh, yeah? You've got a mental map in your head of California then?"

"Funnily enough, no. I went down there last summer for that NERD camp and toured both campuses while I was there." In the end, Freddie's dream of being accepted in that NERD camp became a reality as one of the admission people's daughter watched the webshow and found out what had happened. They were happy to give Freddie another chance after finding out that it wasn't technically his application originally. "And with that camp experience, I can apply to most colleges now even if my GPA is lower than it needs to be."

"Well, that won't happen. You practically breathe GPA."

Freddie laughed at her comment. "California this year it is."

Sam made a quiet hum in response, before for a reason unknown to her or Freddie, she burst out laughing. The two were laying beside each other, smiling and laughing, and they couldn't help but feel that that was how it should always be. Taking the chance, he leaned closer to her and she stretched out over him, her head against his chest. "Comfortable?"

"Very."

They weren't sure what time it was when they finally fell asleep there, but they did know that it was one of the best night's sleep of their lives.