AN: Hey, guys. This is Chapter 3 of iPet. It was originally chapter three and chapter four, but I mashed the two chapters together instead. And I'm really proud of this chapter - I find it quite funny what happens. Sam and Freddie are walking on a thin line at the moment. One wrong move and their whole secret will go crashing down; they can't afford mistakes, but with Carly digging, how long will they last? Let's find out. :) Please enjoy. x

Chapter Line: "Sam? Was that Freddie?" - Carly

….

The next day came a lot faster than Carly would've hoped. She was sat in the kitchen at a bar stool, watching in amusement as Cat ate her breakfast. Though she was acting as a dog, she still ate human food - evidence the dry cereal in her pink bowl.

Carly's friend's behaviour was becoming weird. And no, now it was Sam who Carly was most worried about. First, it was subtle things, like how she'd say one thing one day but something completely different the next, or the faint noises on her side of the phone. Was she really bailing her mum out or was it something else? But if it was something else, why would she have wanted it kept as a secret? Carly was her best friend after all.

Interrupting her thoughts, the doorbell rang. Carly frowned - she wasn't expecting anyone to come over and she knew that Sam would've called if she was coming home early. She opened her door to Sam and Cat's friend, Jade.

"Oh, hey," Jade mumbled, her fists clenched at her side. It was obvious that she was upset or angry, maybe even both, over something. "Is Sam here?"

Carly shook her head. "No, she's away for the weekend, and I have no idea where she is or when she'll be back. Do you want me to give her a message?"

Jade sighed, her temper dropping slightly. "No, I'm fine. My girlfriend Tori and I just had a stupid fight, that's all."

"Oh," Carly said. "Hey, you're Jade, though, right? I remember Sam talking about you."

"Yeah," Jade nodded. "And you're Carly. I think we've met before - the barbeque party last summer? You know, when Sam convinced you and Freddie to try that spicy bacon which didn't agree with your stomach and-"

"No need to remind me," Carly cringed, suddenly not hungry. She placed a hand on her stomach. "I still have flashbacks."

Jade laughed. "It was pretty amusing."

Carly rolled her eyes. "I'm glad it was funny for someone," she said bitterly, though she shook it off and went back to being her happy-self, well, as happy as she could be at the moment. She felt like she was being betrayed and lied to by her best friend, remember? Of course, she wouldn't feel very cheerful. "Do you want to come in? I can always make you some special lemonade that always makes me feel better when I'm mad or upset."

Sam was wise to have previously warned Jade about Carly's lemonade at the party last summer. "Oh, um, I'm okay about the lemonade," Jade said quickly. "But sure, I'll come in."

Cat began to bark happily upon seeing Jade. She wanted someone to play with her since Carly had declined earlier that morning. She approached Jade and licked her face before Jade could do anything about it.

"Eww, Cat!" Jade scolded. "No!"

Cat pouted.

Jade quickly stepped back out the apartment, wiping her face clean with her sleeve. "Um, actually, I think I'm okay. I'll see you around, Shay." She was gone before Carly could say another word to her.

"Oh, right, okay then, bye!" Carly called after her, closing the front door. "Cat, go back to eating your breakfast. That was absolutely disgusting." Now she thought about it, Jade was acting rather strange too. Did she know what Sam was trying to hide? Did she know where the blonde was and who she was with?
Unable to stop herself, Carly grabbed her phone and dialled her best friend's number, ready for some answers. There was no answer, so she tried again.

"Hey. You've reached my voicemail. Nobody checks these messages so you might as well just hang up."

Carly called again. And again. And again.

Nothing. No answer at all. Eight rings then voicemail.

So she called the only other person she could think of who would hopefully know where Sam was. Melanie.

She answered after the second ring.

"Hey, Carly!" Melanie squealed happily. "What's up, girl? I haven't heard from you in so long!"

Carly smiled. She felt her anger leave her body as she heard Melanie's peppy voice. "I'm doing good," she said. "And yeah, since I moved back to Seattle from Italy, I've been taking classes at the community college. It's been a rather crazy year."

"Have you got a pet dog or something?" Melanie asked. "It sounds like an animal barking on your side of the phone."

Carly laughed before turning around and putting a finger to her lips, hinting for Cat to be quiet. The redhead pouted and went back to her breakfast fortunately. "Yeah, um, something like that. So how's your life going?"

"It's going amazing," Melanie beamed. "I have a new boyfriend called Jake, and he's so hot. And college is going well, well, just about. I've been up to my neck in homework for the last week or so, but I'm fine apart from that. I've also got an internship at a fashion studio for this summer, which is exciting."

"Yeah," Carly said. "It sounds amazing. You're going to have to tell me more about it another time. But do you know how Sam's doing bailing your mum out of jail?"

Melanie was silent as she thought for a moment. "What? Mum's in jail?"

"Um, yeah," Carly nodded, though she knew Melanie couldn't see her. "Didn't you know? Sam said you were sending money over to help get your mum out."

"Was I?" Melanie asked, more to herself than anyone else. "God, I swear my memory is getting worse. I walked into the kitchen the other day and forgot what I walked in for."

"So your mum's not in jail?" Carly confirmed, furrowing her eyebrows together.

"Yeah, she's definitely not, Carls," Melanie replied. "I'm sure I would've been told if she was. I'll call Sam and see if she knows what's going on."

"I wouldn't bother if I were you," Carly stated, sitting back down on a bar stool. She grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl. "She isn't answering the phone so I thought I'd call you to see if you knew what was going on."

"I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation for this," Melanie said. She paused for a minute. "Nah, I can't even convince myself of that."

Carly chuckled. "Thanks anyway, Mel."

"We'll figure out what's happening," Melanie told her. "Don't worry. Maybe she is actually bailing our mum out but I've just forgot."

Carly picked at her nails. "Yeah, maybe. I'll try calling Sam again."

"Alright," Melanie smiled. "Call me if you find out something."

"Sure," Carly agreed. "Bye, Melanie."

"Bye," Melanie echoed, hanging up the phone.

Carly got up and went over to the coffee maker, knowing coffee could make her feel so much better. She thought she'd get reassurance from Melanie that her best friend wasn't lying to her, but the call made her feel the exact opposite. She poured herself a mug of coffee and went into the bathroom to run a bath for Cat. She spotted a rather large bucket by the door. It was obvious to her what it was for.

Bathing Cat in a large bucket.

Alright, that certainly isn't on my bucket list. Carly thought to herself. Bucket list? Bucket? See what I did there?

She found herself laughing at her own joke. She had to grab her side so she didn't fall over from laughing so hard. Cat came into the room a moment later and frowned at the sight and sound of running water. She began to bark again.

"Cat, please," Carly said, her laughter dying down. "I'm beginning to get a headache for crying out loud. I'd appreciate it if you were quiet."

Cat growled.

"Cat!" Carly scolded, stopping the tap since the bucket was now full. She put down her coffee and using all her strength, she lifted up the bucket and placed it on the floor. "Ow!" she groaned. "I didn't know it would be that heavy."

She grabbed a cloth and the shower gel from beside the bath. "Be a good dog and get in the bath, Cat." She kicked the bathroom door shut.

Cat stayed where she was.

"Cat," Carly warned. "I'll call Sam."

Cat didn't budge.

Carly frowned. "Cat! Get in the bucket now!"

….

Sam smiled up at her boyfriend. They were currently trying to watch a movie - trying being the operative word. She was laying on the sofa with her legs hanging off the end while her head rested in Freddie's lap. He was absently playing with a lock of her hair. "You know, I did regret lying to Carly at first," she told him quietly. "But it's worth it."

"Yeah," he agreed. "It is."

She sat herself up slightly and reached for the remote to pause the tv. She had no clue what was going on anyway - something about the butler murdering the mistress's niece. It was a confusing storyline, and one they both hoped would end very soon. "When will we tell her? I feel bad lying."

Freddie gave her a knowing look.

"Alright, fine," she mumbled. "I don't feel bad lying, but come on. She's going to catch on eventually."

"I know," he whispered. "We will tell her."

"It's been nine months," she pointed out, raising her eyebrows. It had been both of their ideas to hide their relationship after the barbeque last summer, but they both knew they'd have to be careful. They both had doubts. But most of all, they both hated lying to their best friend. "It's been a while."

"And she hasn't suspected a thing so far," he reminded her. "Hey, it's going to be okay. When we do tell her, she'll understand why we kept it from her."

Sam sighed. "And why did we keep it from her?"

"Because sneaking around is fun?" Freddie suggested. "Um, because we thought it was good for her health that she didn't know?"

She laughed. "You're awful at suggesting things."

"But in all seriousness, we kept it a secret because we didn't want anyone interfering," he said. "I mean, last time we dated, it crashed and burnt within a month. But this time, it's been nine months and we've been absolutely fine, haven't we?"

"We have," she agreed, nodding her head. She planted a soft kiss on his cheek then looked around for her phone. "But hey, do you know where my phone is?"

She jumped up from the sofa and went into the bedroom, returning a moment or two later with her phone. "I swear I had it with me when we came in."

Twelve missed calls. Eight from Carly. Four from Melanie.

"Crap," Sam muttered. "I think we have a problem."

….

"Sam!"

After what felt like a lifetime, Carly had managed to get Cat in the bath and quickly washed her. Though, when she was getting her changed, her phone rang and relief passed over her when she saw it was Sam calling her.

"You weren't answering," Carly continued. "I was so worried!"

"Yeah, well, so was I yesterday," Sam pointed out. Carly detected an eye roll. "But have you spoken to Melanie recently?"

"Yeah, this morning," Carly replied, closing the bathroom door. "Why?"

"No reason," Sam said quickly, laughing nervously. "So how's Cat? Have you bathed her and fed her and-"

"She's fed, yes," Carly said, interrupting her best friend from finishing her sentence. "But I don't really want to have to bath her again."

Sam's laughter came to a sudden stop. "But hey, you did as you were told, so well done. I appreciate it, Shay."

"I saw...stuff no other teenage girl should ever see," the brunette sighed.

Another voice was heard on Sam's side of the phone.

Carly gasped quietly. "Sam," she said slowly. "Was that Freddie?"

"What? No!" Sam replied, not missing a beat. She laughed again. "I'm just about to leave the hotel."

"You're coming back?"

"No," Sam said. "I'm going to the jail again. Melanie transferred the money over this morning."

"Alright, well, I have to go," Carly lied, knowing for a fact that Sam was hiding something now. Melanie didn't transfer any more, and Carly knew that. "Are you coming back tonight?"

"Probably not," Sam said. "Tomorrow, though, probably."

"'Kay," Carly said. "Bye then." She hung up the phone before hearing Sam's reply. Her best friend was lying and she was going to find out what was going on even if it killed her first.

It was that evening when she next heard from Sam - it was brief conversation, barely lasting a minute, just to say that she was coming home the next day. It sounded like she was putting lipstick on at the same time but Carly couldn't be too sure. After all, the brunette knew that her best friend usually despised makeup, so why would that night have made any difference?

She shrugged the thought out of her head as she put the phone down and made herself some dinner. Cat still hadn't returned to her human ways just yet but Carly was hoping it would happen in the next few hours or so - she was taking a nap in the other room.

AN: Sorry for the abrupt ending, but I had to end it somewhere. :) So, what did you think? Did you love it? Did you hate it? What was your favourite part? How long do you think Sam and Freddie are going to manage to keep it a secret? And what do you think is going to happen next? Chapter Four will be out soon hopefully. I hoped you enjoyed this chapter. Bye for now. x