It began with one of those moments that are so cliché you have to wonder how it snuck its way into reality.
"Sam, she's looking over here," Carly explains in a panicked voice.
"Who?" Sam questions, having no idea why Carly is panicking.
"Aspen Phillips."
Sam looks around curiously, but doesn't spot anyone that appears to be staring in their direction.
"Again, who?"
"Ugh no time to explain, she's coming over here…just follow my lead," Carly begs before a taller brunette girl with a fit body and blue eyes appears.
"Hey Carly, I see you're cooling off with a delicious smoothie."
"Cooling off? It's below fifty degrees outside," Sam cuts in unashamed.
"No matter the temperature. Carly is always smokin' hot."
"Excuse me?" Sam begins to question, but Carly interrupts.
"Settle down, hun. She doesn't know."
Sam and Aspen both send confused expressions in Carly's direction at the inclusion of 'hun'.
"Well, uh, maybe you should inform her about what she doesn't know," Sam persuades, playing along as Carly had asked her to earlier.
"Oh yeah, sorry Aspen…I don't believe you've met my girlfriend. This is Sam."
Aspen directs her attention to Sam, giving her a once over, then gives a fake sideways grin.
"You pick 'em a little odd Shay, but there's nothing I like more than a challenge."
It takes all the self-restraint Sam has not to reach out and do harmful things to Aspen after she finishes her comment. Carly can tell Sam is getting tense and sighs.
"Please leave us alone. I'm not interested."
"Right, gimme a call when you figure out your 'girlfriend' here still macks on the dudes."
Aspen turns briskly and walks out of the Groovy Smoothie without even ordering a drink. Sam looks at Carly, clearly amused now that she is gone.
"I used to think Freddie was the worst person who could ever have an obsessive crush on you. Silly me, ruling out our gender completely when forming that thought."
Carly looks at Sam disappointedly and it's hard to tell whether it's an effect of her reaching the end of her smoothie or relating to the situation with Aspen.
"Our French teacher assigned her the seat beside me. She hardly pays attention to the lessons at all. It feels like she's always watching me instead."
Sam frowns.
"Skunk bag's gaydar must be broken. You only daydream about baking cookies on attractive male specimen."
Out of nowhere, Carly changes the subject.
"We should head over to my place. Tons of homework to do."
Sam originally fails to see motive behind the quick distraction from the progressing topic, but it doesn't take long for that frame of mind to change.