Entertainment

As Freddie slowly opened his eyes, he let out a soft yawn.

It was Sunday morning, and for the first time in he couldn't remember how long, he didn't have anything he needed to do. Lately at work, his department at the Pear Company had been so busy that they had needed him to come in to work even on weekends. He loved his job, but he had really been feeling worn out from it.

He felt the bed shift next to him, and he looked over, a smile creeping onto his face.

His girlfriend, Sam, lay peacefully beside him, her long, blonde curls sprawled out on her pillow. She had kicked her covers off in the middle of the night, and Freddie made to put them back over her, but as he reached for the sheet, he got a bit…distracted.

Him and Sam had moved in together a week ago, and one of the many new things Freddie had learned about Sam was that in the summer, she only slept in her bra and a pair of shorts. He had absolutely no complaints, of course, but it did sometimes make it hard for him to focus on falling asleep at night when he'd feel her bare leg brush against him, instantly putting other thoughts into his mind…

"Please tell me you're not watching me while I sleep," Sam mumbled, blinking her eyes open groggily.

"Sam, you wake up to the most beautiful woman in the world in your bed, your eyes linger," Freddie chuckled, leaning down to kiss her.

Sam laughed. "Jeez, I'm up for five seconds and you're already so disgustingly romantic that I want to puke."

"Hey, you knew what you were getting yourself into when you moved in here," Freddie chuckled.

"I guess I can deal with it," Sam smirked, sitting up. She moved closer to her boyfriend, who wasted no time in wrapping his arms around her. "So what are you doing today? Do you have to go into work?"
"Nope," Freddie replied. "We finished that big project yesterday so now I get to enjoy some time off."
"Really?" Sam said. "So you're not doing anything today?"

"Not as of now," Freddie said. "Why? You have any ideas?"

"Well," Sam said thoughtfully. "Since you've been all stressed and crotchety from work lately-"

"Do you have to use 'crotchety' every chance you get?" Freddie asked, shaking his head.

"Yeah," Sam grinned. "See, it's funny because it sounds-"

"I get it," Freddie said, rolling his eyes.

"Anyway," Sam continued. "How about we just relax in bed all day? We don't have to go anywhere or run around or deal with anybody. It can just be the two of us."
"Hmmm," Freddie said thoughtfully. "But what will we do for entertainment all day?"
Sam gave him a mischievous smile as she brought her lips to his, kissing him passionately.

When the couple finally pulled apart, Sam raised an eyebrow. "That give you any hints?"

"I think I see what you're getting at," Freddie chuckled. "Man…have I told you how much I love you?"

"At least six times in the past twenty-four hours," Sam said. She gave his hand a gentle squeeze. "Love you too, baby."

"Why don't I go get us some breakfast in bed?" Freddie said, kicking back his covers. "And then we can get this 'relaxing' started. Bacon and eggs work for you?"
"Always," Sam nodded.

Freddie gave her one last kiss before getting out of bed and heading out into apartment.

I'm really living the good life, Freddie thought happily to himself as he pulled out a pack of bacon and a carton of eggs from the fridge. Here I am getting to spend the entire day in bed with my amazing girlfriend…I bet those guys from the AV club would be real jealous if they could see me now.

He took a frying pan and set it on the stove.

This really is the way to live, Freddie thought. There's nothing that could happen right now that could make today anything but the best day of my-

Just then he head a loud series of knocks at his door.

"Freddie!" called a familiar voice, causing Freddie's eyes to widen in shock. "Freddie, open up! Freddie! Fredward Benson!"

"Nooooo," Freddie moaned. "No, no, no! Why? Why is this happening to me?"

He dragged his feet to the front door and opened it up to reveal his mother standing at his doorway carrying a large suitcase.

"Mom, what are you doing-" Freddie started.

"Freddie!" Marissa gasped, frowning at the boxers and t-shirt Freddie was wearing. "What are you wearing? Where are your clothes, young man?"

"I just got out of bed!" Freddie defended. His eyes fell onto the suitcase Marissa was holding. "Er, mom? What-What are you doing with that bag?"

"I'll need to stay here with you for the next week," Marissa said, walking right into the apartment.

"What?" Freddie exclaimed. "Why?"

"Because while I was doing my daily inspection of the living room back home I found a questionable looking dust ball and I need to have the place cleaned by professionals," Marissa said.

"You-You're staying-Oh…" Freddie said, the relaxing feelings that had been going through him before quickly replaced by stressful ones.

Marissa did not yet know that Sam and Freddie were living together. Even though the couple had been dating for four years now, Freddie's mother still did not have the ideal relationship with Sam. True, she had stopped trying to set Freddie up on blind dates with women she deemed more acceptable and no longer sprayed Sam with disinfectant every time she saw her, but Freddie knew there was no way she'd be okay with the two of them living together.

"What is this you're cooking?" Marissa demanded, looking at the bacon and eggs on the stove. "Do you know what this food is going to do to you? Throw this junk away and I'll whip you up a nice, nutritious bowl of sugar-free porridge."

"Mom, um, not-not that I'm not thrilled to have you here," Freddie said. "But-But wouldn't you be more comfortable in a nice hotel or something? I mean I only have one bedroom here and-"

"Those hotel rooms are filled with germs and who knows what else!" Marissa said.

"I'm sure they're very clean-"

"Dude, what's taking so long with the food?" Sam asked, coming out into the room, still just wearing her bra and shorts. "Hurry up so we can-"

"Samantha?" Marissa gasped, causing Sam to jump in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"What are you doing here?" Sam frowned, grabbing her jacket that had been lying on the couch and pulling it over herself.

"Um, Sam, my-my mom's going to be staying here with me for a week," Freddie said, sending her a silent apology with his eyes. "Isn't-Isn't that fun?"

"Are you serious?" Sam exclaimed.

"That's right, Missy," Marissa said. "Now maybe you should hurry on home so me and my Freddikins can start our week of fun mother-son bonding time. I picked three new puzzles for us, Freddie!"

"What do you mean hurry on home?" Sam asked, crossing her arms. "I am-"

"Hey, baby, can I see you in the hall for a second?" Freddie said quickly, grabbing Sam's hand and pulling her towards the door. "I have to talk to you about a thing…"

"Dude!" Sam hissed the second the couple was alone outside the apartment. "What's going on?"
"Sam, what am I supposed to do?" Freddie sighed. "She just showed up here with her suitcase. I can't just kick my own mother to the curb!"

"But what did she mean back there?" Sam asked. "She told me to go back home. Doesn't she know that-Oh my God! You never told her we were living together, did you?"

"Er…it-it's possible I might've forgotten to mention it," Freddie said lamely.

"Freddie!"

"Well you know how she would react!" Freddie pointed out. "She'd have thrown a fit!"

"Well she's gonna find out now, isn't she?" Sam said. "How are we supposed to hide it with her here for a whole week?"

"It-It could still work," Freddie said. "Maybe…Okay, is there any way you could maybe, you know, stay with Carly for a week?"
"You're kicking me out?"

"No!" Freddie said at once. "Of course I'm not. It's just things have been going so well for us living together and-and I don't want my mom to ruin that."

"So you're just not gonna tell her ever?" Sam frowned.

"I'll tell her…eventually," Freddie said. "Just not now. Please Sam, for me?"

Sam pondered this for a moment before she let out a sigh. "Fine," she conceded. "I'll call Carly up and ask her if I can stay there."
"Thank you," Freddie said, giving her a quick kiss. "I really appreciate this, Sam."

"Yeah, well…good luck dealing with your mom for the week," Sam said, giving him a small smile.

The two walked back into the apartment, where Marissa and was currently busy placing the silverware into a pot of boiling water.

"Oh, you're still here," Marissa said, looking over her shoulder at Sam.

Sam used all of her self-control to refrain from firing back. "I just have to, um, grab some things I sort of left here," she mumbled. "Then I'll leave you to torture-I mean bond with your son."
Freddie felt horrible that Sam now had to leave her own home. But he knew he couldn't tell his mother about their current living situation.

"That girl has no manners," Marissa huffed as Sam disappeared into the bedroom to collect some clothes for her stay at Carly's. "A polite boy like you deserves a girl who knows how to act like a proper lady."
"Mom, please," Freddie said, rolling his eyes. "Sam has manners. You know, it wouldn't kill you to be a little more polite to her."

"I mean what kind of a girl treats her elders that way?" Marissa continued. "I spent years working hard to instill nice, wholesome manners into my only son and he goes around and hangs out with someone like her? It's enough to make any mother cringe!"

"Mom, Sam's not some hooligan like you think!" Freddie said. "Maybe if you'd ever taken the time to actually sit down and have a real conversation with her that didn't involve you criticizing her for once, you'd see that she's-"

"I just wish this little rebellious phase of yours would end," Marissa sighed. "So you could find a nice woman to settle down with."

"Okay, that's it mom," Freddie said angrily, his tone catching his mother off guard. "I'm not going to let you stand around in my own home insulting the woman I love. I hate how you talk about Sam!"
"Freddie, I-" Marissa sputtered.

"Do you know it makes me feel to hear my own mother say those things about the girl who-who I want to spend the rest of my life with?" Freddie said loudly.

"The rest of your life?" Marissa gasped.

"That's right," Freddie said firmly. "I love Sam. This isn't just some 'rebellious' phase I'm going through. I love Sam, and that's never going to change."
"Alright," Sam said, coming back into the room carrying a small duffle back. "I'm gonna go over to Carl-I mean, back to my own home. Er, see you later, Freddie."
"No, you know what?" Freddie said, stopping Sam as she made to head towards the front door. He put an arm around her and stared right at his mother. "You're not going anywhere, Sam. It's not fair; you are home."

"What do you mean she's home?" Marissa demanded. "Are you implying that-"

"That's right, mom," Freddie said. "Sam and I live together now. She moved in here a week ago and it's been amazing ever since."

"Dude, what are you doing?" Sam whispered, though looking very proud of her boyfriend.

"You live together?" Marissa repeated, looking as though she had been hit by a bus. "But-But-Freddie! How could you-You-You-What the yuk?"

"I'm twenty-three, mom," Freddie said. "You don't have to agree with what I do with my life anymore. But the bottom line is, Sam and I both wanted to take this next step, and it was the best possible thing for us to do. Now, you're still more than welcome to stay here while your house is being cleaned, but you need to accept the fact that Sam is here to stay, and you need to treat her with respect."

Marissa stared at her son, completely dumbfounded.

"So what will it be?" Freddie asked. "Are you going to stay here with me and Sam? Or would you rather find somewhere else to stay?"

Marissa looked back and forth between Sam and Freddie, surely trying to weigh her desire to spend the week with her son against her dislike of Sam.

"I-Fine!" Marissa said, looking as though she had swallowed a lemon. "I'll stay here with the, ugh, both of you."
"Fantastic," Freddie said brightly. "I'm sure you'll really enjoy getting to know Sam this week, mom. I know Sam's been saying how much she wants to try and have a better relationship with you."
"When did I ever-" Sam began, but Freddie quickly elbowed her in the ribs.

"Where's the bathroom?" Marissa asked. "I need to have oatmeal bath before I start to cope with my precious son, oh, cohabiting!"

"It's down the hall," Freddie said.

"Wow," Sam said as Marissa ran off. "I am impressed. You stood up to your mom!"

"Well it's time she learned how serious I am about you," Freddie said, tilting her chin up and planting a small kiss on her lips. "I see us being together for a long time, so she's gonna have to get used to you."

"Thanks, baby," Sam smiled. "And I guess…I guess I can work on being a little more…behaved around her too."
"I think she'd really appreciate that," Freddie replied.

"You know," Sam said, rubbing her hand up and down on Freddie's bicep. "It is sort of too bad that your mom's just in the other room right now, though. Because watching you get all feisty like that…well, it was nice. And you and I did have those plans today…"
Freddie bit his lip as Sam continued to rub her hand over his muscle.

"Oh well," she sighed. "I guess we'll just have to wait until she leaves. Too bad…Well, I guess I should go and unpack all my clothes since I'm not spending the week at Carly's anymore."
As Sam headed into the bedroom, Freddie groaned as he fell onto the sofa.

"Stupid questionable dust," he muttered darkly.