I am so sorry this chapter took so long! I told a lot of you I planned for this to be ready September 3rd, but that didn't work out, and then when I sent it to my fabulous beta KingxLeon21 he didn't get it the first time cuz Gmail is just a huge jerk :P Anyhow, I'm sorry, but here is the second last chapter of this story, I hope it doesn't disappoint :)
Let me know your favourite line at the end?
Sam and Freddie entered Mackenzie's gigantic backyard, both of them, lost in their own worlds. Freddie reached out for Sam's hand and made contact, and they, both, broke free of their mulling over what would happen that day. Both thought it was an important day; Sam, because she thought it was a chance to push Mackenzie to the breaking point and make her regret dumping Freddie. A goal that, had since, disappeared from Freddie's mind. He was focused on his promise to Jeff, in which he agreed to admit his feelings for Sam.
Freddie glanced slightly behind them, where Jeff, Brittany and Carly were all talking and laughing. Jeff glanced up, apparently, having felt Freddie looking at him, and for a second the two of them exchanged a nervous but firm look. They were going through with this, no turning back.
"So, is there anything really big you had planned for today?" Sam asked him, brining his attention back to his fake girlfriend.
"What do you mean?" his voice going high and paranoid without his permission.
"To make Mackenzie jealous….? You know? I thought today was going to be the last day for this whole fake dating thing. Right?" she shot out questions impatiently, but with uncertainty.
"Right, today's the last day, we should do something big," Freddie grinned at Sam, who returned it with a slightly wicked grin of her own. Even if he was going to tell Sam how he felt today, there was no reason he couldn't have some fun messing with Mackenzie too. Maybe he'd even find a way to do both at the same time.
"I have an idea," she told him, her eyes sparkling, "You're not the worst singer in the world, right Freddoritto?"
"I guess not. Why?" Freddie felt his brain quickly work to figure where she could be going with this.
Sam tugged him forward a little and pointed to a massive karaoke system, complete with stage. Oh, well that should've been obvious.
"Wouldn't it just be the cutest thing in the world if you sang a song dedicated to your girlfriend while up on that stage," Sam cooed, her voice dripping with smug sarcasm.
"You're a genius," Freddie admitted. Him singing a song dedicated to Sam at Mackenzie's birthday party was sure to drive Mackenzie absolutely crazy.
"Are you sure this isn't too mean?" Freddie suddenly asked, interrupting Sam's silent gloating session.
"Freddie, she dumped you. She's a total dog. And besides, she didn't just do that to you, she did it to a million other guys. Someone needs to teach her a lesson."
Freddie nodded in agreement at Sam's statement, and imagined him up on stage, singing along to some stupid song in honour of his fake girlfriend. Maybe, he debated; while he was up there he might admit something to Sam that would end with her finally being his real girlfriend.
"And then, when Penny and Raj came out into the living room, and Raj was just wrapped up in a blanket by then Leonard, Sheldon, and Howard were all in the living room and totally saw them coming out from Leonard's bedroom!" Brittany howled, Freddie, Sam, Jeff, Carly, and Tasha all joining in her laughter. To Freddie it seemed like this Big Bang Theory show was pretty entertaining, maybe he'd have to start watching. It sounded like this guy Leonard was a lot like him.
Everyone calmed down, but then Gibby spoke up with a confused expression, "I don't get it, what were Raj and Penny doing in Leonard's bedroom?" the rest of the teens burst into laughter again, even Tasha, much to Gibby's annoyance.
"Hi," the table instantly went silent as Garret came out of virtually nowhere and shoved a chair between Jeff's and Brittany's. Brittany shifted awkwardly in her seat and Jeff gave Freddie a quick look.
"Uhhh… Freddie, I'm getting pretty thirsty, why don't you help me grab drinks for the gorgeous ladies at the table," Gibby pouted at Jeff, "And handsome boys," Jeff added quickly, brightening Gibby's face.
"Sure, sounds great," Freddie agreed. Conversation overflowed again as everyone told them what to grab them, and Sam reminded him that if he screwed up hers he was getting a punch to the stomach.
The two left, heading towards the soda fountain on the east side of Mackenzie's yard, abruptly turning to the left soon as they got there, heading in the direction of the karaoke stage.
"What exactly are we doing?" Freddie asked curiously, trying to keep up with Jeff's long legs.
"I made a video," Jeff replied simply.
"How are you planning to play it?" questioned Freddie, silently relieved Jeff didn't have the same crazy plan as him.
Jeff pointed to a rolled up project screen attached to the back of the stage that Freddie hadn't noticed. "Oh, cool. What kind of video?"
Jeff turned his head to smile at the younger boy, "A sort of, music video I guess you could say."
"Awesome." Freddie grinned back up at Jeff, suddenly nervous for him. Jeff had known Brittany since they were little kids, loved her since they were kids, and still did even now that she was engaged.
"Aren't you worried about Garret?" Freddie inquired, causing Jeff to stop completely in his steps and look down on Freddie with an amused expression.
The two were silent for a few seconds before it clicked in Freddie's head that Jeff being scared of Garret was perhaps the most ridiculous idea he had even considered. The two continued walking.
"I don't really care what Garret thinks," Jeff clarified, "It's just Brittany, she might be really mad. Honestly though, I can't take this anymore, I can't watch her marry that jerk, and if I keep this quiet any longer I'm gonna explode…" Jeff's voice trailed off softly at the end, scratchy with emotions.
Freddie just bobbed his head in understanding and the two crossed the rest of the short distance in silence, arriving at their destination in seconds. Next to the stage was a DJ booth, with a scrawny, chicken legged kid messing around with the music that was blasting out of speakers set up all over the yard. When it got dark, Freddie knew that the music would be even louder and everyone would be dancing in the spots where some fantastic attraction wasn't. The idea of dancing with Sam in the darkness again sent a little shiver of excitement through Freddie, catching Jeff's eye and making him smirk.
"Figured out a way to tell Sam?" Jeff suddenly turned to him, just feet away from their destination.
Freddie shrugged, "Karaoke."
"Got a song in mind?"
"Just The Girl."
"By The Click Five?"
"Yeah."
"Good choice." Freddie grinned gratefully at Jeff; it really was a song to perfectly describe Sam.
"So, you're good with tech stuff right?" Jeff asked, now eyeing the DJ booth.
"As long as you can scare that guy from the booth, I got the tech stuff covered," Freddie grinned smugly, proud that he'd be using his geeky knowledge to help someone get a girl.
"Thanks," Jeff smiled down at Freddie briefly before advancing towards the blonde wearing oversized headphones.
The moment he got there he brought his fist down hard on the booth, causing the tiny DJ to snap his head up.
"I'm gonna need to borrow this from you. Is that gonna be a problem?" Jeff asked, probably smirking underneath the mess of hair.
The DJ shook his head violently, "No, no, of course not! Just go right ahead, I have to uh, pee anyways!" Without another word he took off, shooting across the yard and getting lost in the mess of people.
"Excellent. Freddie, here's the disk." Jeff handed Freddie a blank CD that simply said "Brittany's Video" on the front. Freddie took the disc and slipped past Jeff, quickly taking control of the laptop and therefore all the technology set up in Mackenzie's yard.
First Freddie triggered the projector screen, few people noticing when it gently rolled down and covered the back of the stage. Then he turned the projector on and got it ready to play Jeff's disk.
Jeff gently shook Freddie's shoulder, "Oh yeah… I want to say some stuff at the beginning and end of the song, so the mic needs to be working."
"No problem," assured Freddie, then checking to make sure the microphone was on. When everything was ready to go he hopped out of the DJ booth to talk to Jeff, "Do you want me to go get her?"
Jeff shook his head, "No, I'm kind of hoping the music and stuff will just draw her close. Can you make it loud enough for them to hear from where they are?"
"There's speakers set up all over Mackenzie's yard, don't worry it won't be problem."
"Okay, thanks Freddie." Jeff let out a shaky breath and climbed up on stage, obviously nervous.
"Hey Jeff," Freddie called from the ground below.
"Yeah?"
"Don't worry, she loves you." Freddie smiled confidently at his friend, who relaxed slightly and smiled back.
"Thanks Freddie."
Freddie nodded in response, then, scurried up into the DJ booth, battling butterflies in his stomach. He felt like a nervous wreck and it wasn't even him declaring his love up on stage yet. Without giving either of them a chance to back out, Freddie pushed his mouse to the bottom center of the laptop screen and clicked play.
People started to stare right away with the opening of the catchy pop song, and immediately, two cameramen swung their huge cameras towards the stage. Jeff relaxed upon hearing the song start, and regained that aura of confidence that Freddie was used to seeing from him. Behind him, pictures of Brittany flashed on screen. Jeff was standing just out of the way of the projector, therefore not messing up the video, and Freddie found himself smiling at the pictures of Brittany at various ages and moods.
"Ladies and gentlemen!" Jeff boomed into the mic, "I am here; up on stage, because of a very special lady. No, it's not the birthday girl, although congrats on hosting such an amazing party. The special girl's name is Brittany, and this is sort of a tribute to her, because she's my absolute favourite person on the planet," he paused, the song still blaring in the background, "And I love her," he added, just before the lyrics picked up.
Hey Brittany
A cute clip of a teen Brittany smiling appeared on screen.
Why are you messing with me?
Another video clip, this one of Jeff with Brittany over his shoulder.
Is your boy on your mind?
Is your boy in your car?
Pictures of Brittany and the, always, irritable looking Garret flashed behind Jeff, who was occupied with searching the crowd for Brittany.
Or are you alone?
Suddenly; Brittany, Sam, Carly, Gibby, Tasha, and Garret all emerged from the crowd. Freddie felt himself go pale, but Jeff grinned widely and started to sing along.
So why does everything I say make you upset?
Footage of Brittany glaring at the camera showed while the real Brittany pushed closer to the stage.
And I'm not here to bring you down, lift you up lift you up.
Pictures of Jeff and Brittany smiling and laughing together showed on the screen, and she smiled at them. A camera swung around to catch her just in time. Freddie was so focused on the video and Brittany, he didn't even notice Sam's disappearance from her side.
So yeah, yeah, yeah, go ahead and lower it down
"Hi Freddie," Sam spoke, scaring the llamas out of him, appearing in the booth.
Lower it down just a little bit
"When did you get here?" shrieked Freddie, spinning around to face Sam.
Just a little bit
"You helped him," she said simply, ignoring his question.
Lower it down
Freddie shrugged, "He loves her. And she loves him too."
The song broke into the chorus.
So where do we go? Where do we go? {When you have to fight, just to be alone} You cannot know, you will not know
Conflicting pictures of Brittany & Garret and Brittany & Jeff played on screen, matching the uncertain look that Brittany wore.
So where do we go? Where do we go? {When you have to fight, just to be alone} You cannot know, you will not know
As the line repeated, Garret stood next to Brittany and took her hand, yanking her backwards, away from Jeff, and the stage, where her attention was currently fixated. Freddie saw Sam glaring sternly at Garret.
The lyrics broke for a second for a guitar riff.
"Sometimes the stupid people realize who they're supposed to be with," Freddie whispered to Sam in assurance. She grinned back at him.
Hey Brittany! Where is your engagement ring?
A picture of Jeff and Brittany playing in the water that Freddie remembered Carly taking.
Did it mean anything?
Brittany broke free of Garret's grasp, causing a gasp from the crowd.
Does the boy with the ring know you bounce, bounce, bounce around?
The Groovy Smoothie was on the screen now, with Brittany dancing around inside it with Jeff while he held the camera.
So how am I supposed to act when you're around him?
Still on screen, Brittany waved at the camera, wearing a huge smile.
When everything he says brings you down, brings you down, brings you down
"Come on Brittany," pleaded Sam quietly, "Don't be a moron."
So yeah, yeah, yeah, go ahead and lower it down
Jeff on stage continued singing, and down on the grass Brittany started walking close to the stage.
Lower it down, just a little bit, just a little bit, {Lower it down}
Even from where he was, Freddie could tell there was a gigantic smile on Brittany's face when she got to the edge of the stage and Jeff leant down and scooped her up.
So where do we go? Where do we go? {When you have to fight, just to be alone} You cannot know, you will not know
"Yes!" Sam victory fist pumped in the air.
As the line repeated Brittany lifted her left hand up in the air, and very slowly and deliberately slid her engagement ring off her finger, holding it between her right thumb and index finger when she was done.
As the calmest part of the song played, without any lyrics, Brittany smirked and then with a flourish tossed the ring in the sky, and for a glorious moment the circle got lost in the bright sunlight and then came falling, down, down, until it landed right at Garret's feet.
The lyrics started to pick up again, but Jeff motioned at Freddie to turn it down, which he quickly did. Brittany and Jeff now stood close together on stage with pictures and videos of them still playing on the screen.
"Jeff?" Brittany spoke, grabbing the mic to amplify her voice as she did so.
"Yeah?"
"I love you. I think I always have."
A huge cheer went throughout the crowd, the loudest coming from Freddie and the blonde next to him, who was also victory dancing.
"I know I've always loved you," Jeff assured her when the cheering calmed down. The crowd laughed, then cheered again when Brittany put her feet on top of Jeff's, pushed up on her tip toes and met his lips for a kiss.
As the cheering and laughter died down, both Freddie's favourite and least favourite blondes, suddenly, were fighting for his attention. Sam calmed down and casually leaned back against him, like she used him as a giant pillow all the time, while Mackenzie burst through the crowd and pulled herself on stage. For a second, Freddie didn't know which one was possesing his attention the most, but then Sam tensed up and snaked down her hand to his, possesively clenching his fingers.
The majority of his attention was still on Sam and her death grip, when Mackenzie took control of the mic.
"Hi everyone! Congrats to this lovely couple here! I'm sooooo happy it happened at MY birthday party!" Mackenzie oozed up on stage, "I really am a do-gooder. I hope you all remember that." Freddie rolled his eyes, grinning when he noticed Sam doing the same.
"Thanks Mackenzie," chorused Jeff and Brittany, huge smiles still on their faces.
"Now everybody party!" Mackenzie ordered, causing a wild cheer from the people on the grass.
"Wait!" Jeff grabbed the mic back from Mackenzie, "A friend of mine, made me a promise. And I can't think of a better time then right now to fufill that promise!" Freddie suddenly felt very weak. Sam turned to him curiously, eyebrows knitted together, her hand pulling away from his.
"Freddie Benson, get up here!" Jeff's voice was almost giddy, fueled by his new love.
Sam looked at him with confused but excited eyes and gave him a little shove. "Well go on Benson. Apparently you made a promise." Smiling weakly Freddie left the safety of the DJ booth and Sam, knees weak as he got on stage.
Jeff and Brittany beamed at him as he inched to the middle of the stage. Just behind them he could see Mackenzie bouncing up and down ever so lightly, like she thought he was coming up to declare his love for her. Dear socks this was already a disaster and he hadn't even opened his mouth.
"Sam you get up here too!" Brittany's voice was suddenly coming through the speakers.
Freddie turned back around and saw Carly pulling Sam towards the stage. When she got to the edge of the stage Freddie couldn't help but smile at the slightly pained expression on her face. Leaning down he grabbed her hand and yanked her up onto the stage. For a second he glanced back at Carly, and she sent him back a serene, knowing smile that reminded him that everything was going to be alright. She didn't have the faintest idea of what was going on, but in that moment Freddie felt a wave of calmness and turned back to the stage feeling much less afraid.
He took the mic from Jeff, ignoring the piercing glare he was getting from Mackenzie. "Hi everyone! I'm Freddie, as most of you just found out. And this… is Sam." He pulled her closer to him, "The thing is, Sam and I have been friends for a long time," she gave him a look, "Okay, so not exactly friends," he admitted. The crowd laughed.
"But there's something I have to admit," the crowd grew silent and Sam looked at him in surprise, "This whole summer, me and Sam have been pretending to date." The crowd gasped; one of the cameras edged closer.
"I knew it! You just wanted to make me jealous!" Mackenzie grinned in victory, her shouting loud enough that she did not need a mic.
"That's what it started out as. But now, it's not that way anymore," Freddie turned to Jeff, who was now towering in the DJ booth with Brittany.
"Hit it Jeff!"
For the second time that day a pop song came blaring out from the speakers. Freddie's plan was simple; sing his heart out, confess to Sam, then kiss her till she couldn't breathe.
Turning to face Sam, Freddie grinned at her mischievously before breaking out into song, "She's cold and she's cruel but she knows what she's doing." Upon hearing the first line a knowing smile spread across Sam's face.
"She pushed me in the pool at our last school reunion. She laughs at my dreams, but I dream about her laughter." Boldly Freddie grabbed Sam by the waist and stared right into her eyes, "Strange as it seems, she's the one I'm after." He smirked a little at her blushing face. And in the next few seconds all that could be heard of the song was the guitar and the drums, but when the lyrics started flashing on the projector screen again no singing could be heard. Karaoke only works if the singer's lips aren't being kept busy by another set of lips.
For six suffocating seconds Freddie's body was cold and his hands were clammy, reaching frantically for the girl he actually wanted to be kissing. It seemed like it took him years to pull away, and when he finally did he was staring into the smug eyes of the one Mackenzie. Freddie whipped around but Sam was already gone, disappearing in the short time it had took for Mackenzie to yank him around and shove her lips on his. He shouldn't have doubted her, she really was a ninja.
Still sweeping the crowd he only found Carly, who was motioning to him rapidly. Before Freddie hopped off stage he turned to Mackenzie, brought the mic to his lips and did what he had come here to do, "I started dating Sam to make you jealous, but now, I'm in love with her. And I will never love you." Gasps from the crowd were heard, and people parted quickly as Freddie dropped the mic on stage and hopped off, running straight to Carly.
"Where'd she go Carly?"
"I don't know, she ran out of here talking to someone on her cell phone. She looked really worried Freddie, something must be wrong." Carly nearly pleaded with Freddie, obviously freaking out that Sam had just taken off somewhere.
"Which way she'd go?" Freddie asked desperately. Carly pointed at the gate that opened to the street, and just in the distance Freddie could see a small blonde blob moving down the sidewalk.
"Come on, let's go," Freddie took off, Carly following right behind him. The two chased Sam, finally catching up when she reached a bus stop.
"Sam! Don't take off like that!" Carly scolded the moment they got there. Sam turned to her friends in surprise.
"Why are you here?" her voice was weak, and immediately Freddie knew that he had never seen her sound so vulnerable.
"We worried. Sam, what's going on?" Freddie took one of her hands, nearly dropping it in surprise, when he felt her cold, clammy, skin.
"It's Mike, someone found him passed out in an alley yesterday," tears coated Sam's eyes, "and he hasn't woken up since."
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