AN-So this is a sequel to chapter 194, where Sam and Freddie talked during Carly and Sam's fight in iQuit iCarly.

Equipping

Freddie walked up Sam's driveway, trying to avoid the old buckets of fried chicken that littered the entire surrounding area of the house. He reached the door and knocked. He heard a hissing noise, and he looked down at his feet to see Sam's cat, Frothy, staring at him menacingly.

"Er, hey there, Frothy," Freddie said. He never did like this cat…"Um, good kitty. Very good-Ah!"

The cat had pounced and sunk its claws into Freddie's leg.

"Frothy, let go," Sam said, opening the door.

At her command, the cat released Freddie's leg from its grasp and hurried into the house.

"That cat hates me," Freddie mumbled, rubbing his now sore leg.

"Yeah, probably," Sam shrugged. "Anyway, get in already, it's cold!"

"So do you and Fleck have the video ready to be edited?" Freddie asked, coming inside.

"Most of it," Sam replied. "We still have shoot one more scene tomorrow night outside your apartment building on the window washing thingy."

"Alright, cool," Freddie said, setting his laptop down on Sam's very clustered coffee table. "Um, is that a hand under the couch cushion?"

"Relax, it's plastic," Sam said, grabbing the fake hand and tossing it away. "So, Benson, do your editing magic on this baby." She handed him her own laptop.

"What's your video about?" Freddie asked as he inserted his USB into Sam's laptop so he could do the editing on his computer.

"These tourists who have their tour guide replaced with a zombie," Sam replied. "And since I don't have to run my ideas by Carly anymore, I got Gibby to dress up in a zombie costume with real swamp gunk on it."

"How…lovely," Freddie said.

"You know what," Sam said, angrily slamming her bottle of root beer down on the coffee table, nearly knocking over what looked like a jar of old steak sauce. "At first, I was actually a little upset about this fight, but now that I think about it, I am so much better off without Carly as my best friend."

"Sam," Freddie sighed. "You don't mean-"

"I don't have to listen to anyone constantly shutting down my ideas because they're 'harmful'," Sam said. "I don't have to spend hours in Glitter Gloss helping her decided between two dang shirts that look exactly the same! I don't-"

"Sam, don't do this," Freddie said.

"What? Bash on Carly?" Sam said. "Why shouldn't I when she's been doing the same exact thing, according to you."

"Both of you need to stop it," Freddie said. "You can't tell me, honestly, that you're more happy now not being friends with Carly than you were during your friendship."

"Yeah, well, I'll get used to it," Sam mumbled, leaning back in her seat. "Sure, Carly and I were 'best friends', and I practically spent all my time with her, but hey, I can get on with my life without her just fine. It will be just like when Melanie left for boarding school?"

"Melanie?" Freddie frowned. "Wait, I'm still confused on this whole subject. Does she, or does she not, exist? Because you told me she didn't, but Carly always says that she does and the whole thing just confuses me."

Sam got up and headed over to her fireplace, the mantle of which was just as crowded as her coffee table. She grabbed a picture frame from behind a half-eaten bag of pork rinds and tossed it to him.

Freddie looked at the picture and saw two young, identical blonde girls.

"Whoa, wait, so she's real?" Freddie asked, staring at the picture.

"Yes, Frednub, Melanie's real," Sam said, rolling her eyes. "And her and I used to be really close when we were little, like me and Carly are-were. But then when we were seven she got admitted to a fancy boarding school in Texas and she left and then it was just me."

Freddie set the picture down. "But Sam, if you'd just talk to-"

"I'm not talking to Carly!" Sam said loudly. "Maybe…Maybe if she came to me…but that's not going to happen. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that Carly doesn't need me in her life. She can make friends in a heartbeat. Watch, by this time next week she'll have a new best friend who can host iCarly with her."

"Sam, you're not going to be replaced on iCarly," Freddie said.

"Yeah, right," Sam spat.

"It's true," Freddie said. "Firstly, I'd have to agree to it, which I wouldn't, and secondly, as mad as Carly may be right now, she's not going to do that. And She's not going to replace you as her best friend either. Believe it or not, you happen to have plenty of characteristics that make you a pretty great best friend to have around."

"Like what?" Sam asked.

"Well, you're loyal," Freddie said. "And you're honest, plus you're fun. I don't think there are two many people out there who can say they have all that."

Sam showed a small smile. And then after a minute, she said, "I'm still not talking to Carly first."

"You two," Freddie said, shaking his head. "Are the most stubborn girls in Seattle."

"Just edit the video, Fredgut," Sam said.

"Alright, alright," Freddie said. "And just so I don't toss and turn all night worrying about this…How are you getting the window washing machine to do your last scene?"

"I talked to the building manager already," Sam said. "He's equipping us. Don't worry, nothing illegal about this video."

"Just checking," Freddie chuckled.