Shine
"-And next on iCarly, we're going to show you a new fake movie trailer!" Carly said, beaming at the camera as her, Sam and Freddie filmed the latest episode of iCarly.
"It's called Fifty Pairs of Pants!" Sam grinned. "And it's about a young man's tragic quest to find the perfect pair of pants in the big and hefty store. Play the trailer, Fredbag!"
The girls looked over at their tech producer who was currently looking down at his phone in his hand.
"Um…looks like our tech producer is a tad bit distracted," Carly said.
"Huh, what?" Freddie said, his head snapping back up.
"Dude, pull your ears out of your butt and play the fake movie trailer!" Sam snapped.
"Oh, right, sorry," Freddie said, quickly keying in a few commands on his camera. "Alright, the movie commercial is playing…now!"
On his computer, the image of Carly and Sam were replaced by the trailer they had recorded earlier in the week.
"Hey, what's going on with you tonight?" Carly asked, taking advantage of the three minutes they would have until the trailer finished and the show went live again. "You've looked at your phone at least six times."
"Yeah, that's so unprofessional," Sam scoffed.
"Well some random number keeps calling me!" Freddie defended.
"Who'd be calling you?" Sam smirked. "The hobo you got that shirt from?"
"Sam…" Carly sighed, rolling her eyes. She turned back to Freddie. "Look, we still have a couple minutes of the trailer left. Just call back the number and see what they want so we can get on with the show."
"Fine," Freddie agreed, setting down his camera and heading out in the hall.
"Nice," Sam said, shaking her head as Freddie exited the studio. "He can take phone calls in the middle of the show but he yelled at me for trying to buy an inflatable chair online last week?"
"Be nice," Carly said.
"I wonder who kept calling him anyway," Sam said. "Probably his mom's therapist begging Freddie to fire him or something."
"Nah, his mom's therapist quit last week," Carly chuckled. "I've got to hand it to the guy, he lasted longer than the others."
"Oh yeah, how long was it? Six weeks?" Sam said. "That's gonna be a tough record to beat."
"Well, whoever he's talking to out there, he needs to wrap it up soon," Carly said. "The trailer ends in forty-five seconds."
"I'll get him," Sam said.
"Don't use violence!" Carly called after her.
"We'll see!"
Sam hurried over to the door and poked her head out into the hallway.
Freddie wasn't even talking on the phone; he was just standing there, staring down at his Pearphone in his hand.
"Yo, Fredwad," Sam said, snapping Freddie out of his daze. "Get a move on it! In case you've forgotten, we're kind of in the middle of a web show. Jeez, for someone who claims he's an important part of iCarly, you're sure spacing out on your chiz tonight."
"Right, um, sorry," Freddie said quickly, shoving his phone back into his pocket.
Sam frowned. Something was wrong.
Years of hanging around him, a short period of dating, had given her a strong sense of when Freddie was okay and when he was not. And right now, he seemed very far from okay.
Sam opened her mouth to say something but quickly shut it. It wasn't the time for that; they did have a show to finish, after all. Besides, who said Freddie would even want to talk to her about it. Maybe if it was three months earlier and they were still a couple, sure, but now he'd probably wind up turning to Carly after the show.
Freddie followed Sam back into the studio, where Carly was waiting anxiously by his tech cart.
"There's only ten seconds until we're live again!" she told him.
"Relax, I've got it," Freddie said, picking up is camera and pointing it at the girls.
"In five, four, three, two, one…"
Sam nearly fell over in shock. Did Freddie just say the one? He never said the one!
"Okay, now that you all have seen yet another horrible movie trailer," Carly said to the camera, obviously not noticing Freddie's slip up. "It's time for us to bring the show to a close."
Carly looked over at Sam, who was still caught off guard.
"Oh, um, sorry," Sam mumbled, quickly pressing a button on her remote, emitting a loud series of 'boos'.
"So until next time," Carly grinned. "Shine your flea collars!"
"And vote no on nutritional school lunches," Sam finished.
The girls looked over at Freddie, waiting for their usual exit cue, but Freddie seemed too distracted to even notice what was going on.
"Um...Freddie?" Carly said.
"Huh? Sorry," Freddie said, quickly shaking his head as he pressed a few keys on his computer. "We're clear."
Sam watched Freddie gently set down his computer, not looking at either girl.
"Good show tonight," Carly said brightly. "I can't wait to see the comments about that new sketch we did, The Man Who Forgot What Ducks Are."
"I'm sure they'll be great," Freddie mumbled.
"Hey, I'm gonna go downstairs and grab some juice," Carly announced. "You guys want anything?"
Freddie simply shook his head.
"Um, no, I'm good," Sam replied.
"Alright," Carly shrugged as she headed out of the studio, leaving Sam and Freddie alone.
As Sam sat down on one of the beanbag chairs, she looked back over at Freddie. He was absentmindedly fiddling with one of the buttons on his camera, lost in his own thoughts.
Sam sighed. She knew it was probably a stupid idea, but seeing Freddie acting all weird as a result of something she didn't cause was unsettling. She had to at least ask him what was wrong. There was no harm in that, right?
"So, um, did you find out who kept calling you during the show?" Sam asked, trying to sound nonchalant. "Because if it was one of those annoying telemarketers, I know a guy who can-"
"No, um, it-it wasn't any telemarketer," Freddie replied, clearing his throat. "It was my cousin, actually."
"Oh," Sam said. "Well, um, which one? That gross Amanda chick?"
"Er, no, not-not her," Freddie muttered. "It was one of my cousins from-from my dad's side."
Sam blinked. She hardly ever heard Freddie mention his father.
"Really?" she said slowly.
"Yup," Freddie said heavily. "Apparently…Apparently he died."
He said those words so casually that Sam was almost certain she had misheard him.
"He-He-"
"He died," Freddie repeated, looking everywhere around the room but at her. "This morning. My cousin said there was some sort of accident on his way to work…"
Sam didn't know what to say.
"I guess I should've figured something was wrong," Freddie said. "I mean, no one on his side of the family calls me unless something bad happens."
"Freddie, I-I'm sorry," Sam said softly.
Freddie didn't reply.
"Are-Are you okay?" Sam asked hesitantly. She was beginning to wonder why Freddie was acting so calm. She was pretty sure this wasn't the way you were supposed to be handling the news about the death of a parent.
"I-I don't know," Freddie answered honestly, finally meeting her gaze.
"You don't know?" Sam frowned, confused.
"I mean, yeah, I-I guess it feels sort of strange," Freddie said. "But-But at the same time…I've never been close to my dad. I think the last time I spoke to him on the phone was two years ago and I haven't seen him in person for at least five. I-I get that he was my dad and all, but-but I dunno I just…I don't know."
Sam was silent.
"I mean…" Freddie said cautiously. "Would-Would you feel sad if you suddenly found out your dad had died."
Sam pondered this thought for a moment. She hadn't seen or heard from her father since she was three, and even then he was never around enough for her to get a chance to know him. She didn't think she'd even recognize him if he passed on the street…
"No," Sam answered. "I-I guess I wouldn't."
She looked down at her lap. "I mean…he was never a really good dad. When I was little, Melanie and I used to watch all these other dads in our neighborhood teaching their kids how to ride their bikes or playing catch with them…our dad never did that. I remember the one time I did ask him to teach me how to ride a bike he told me to teach myself…that he didn't want to spend his time doing something stupid like that. I think that's actually the only memory I have of him, come to think of it…Guess it's not exactly a happy one, but-"
She stopped talking as she suddenly heard a soft sob. She looked up and saw that Freddie was crying at his tech stand.
Sam had never seen Freddie cry like this before. Sure, she had seen tears from pain (usually from a prank she had pulled), but this was different. These tears weren't from physical pain at all, but from the cruel sting of an emotional blow.
"Freddie…" Sam whispered.
"My-My dad," Freddie said shakily. "He-He did teach me how to ride a bike. I remember how he begged and begged my mom to let him do it…He bought me the most expensive bike at the-at the store because he said every-every kid should have a good bike. And even-And even though my mom bought six layers of padding, he-he never made me wear it. And when I finally got the hang of riding the bike, he-he said that when I turn eighteen, he-he would teach me how to-how to ride a motorcycle too."
He let out another soft sob.
"But I guess he won't get to do that…"
Sam quickly got to her feet and stepped across the room and for the first time since they had broken up, she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly. She let him cry into her shoulder, his tears staining her shirt.
…
AN- I actually didn't mean to have two chapters about Freddie's dad one after another. It's just the way the requests worked out. Oh well, hoped you enjoyed it!
