Bushwell Plaza, Seattle

There was a minor commotion going on outside the door of apartment 8-C. Inside the apartment, Spencer Shay was helping his young friend Gibby Gibson construct an elaborate habitat for Gibby's pet weasel as, in Gibby's words, "the poor little guy looks so unhappy in that little cage." Spencer figured it was the least he could do after all the times Gibby had helped him out.

The voices in the hallway didn't exactly sound angry, but they were having a fairly intense discussion. Spencer walked to the door to see what was going on. He opened it to reveal a blonde and brunette in mid-conversation. His sister was speaking "…time was not going to be in an airplane bath… Spencer!" She practically jumped into his arms.

"Carly!" he screamed back, holding onto his baby sister for dear life. He couldn't deny her time with Dad, but the truth be told, he hadn't wanted her to go to Italy at all. She was the stability in his life, and the messiness of the apartment proved that this 31 year old man wasn't really capable of living on his own.

Spencer turned his attention to the blonde half of the duo, "Hey Sam, I thought you guys had a two hour layover in Chicago?"

"Your sister really wanted to get home, and we were able to upgrade to a direct flight in New York," she answered.

"Aww," he pouted, "I had everyone coming over later. We were going to surprise you."

"I think I've had enough excitement for a while," his sister responded. "Thank you very much."

Spencer was suddenly sullen, "Yeah, Dad already phoned. I've been instructed to tell you that you are no longer his daughter." At the sight of tears forming in Carly's eyes, he continued, "It's alright, Carls. I'm no longer his son, either, for 'aiding and abetting your escape,' whatever that means."

Sam took the melancholy Carly into her arms. "Don't worry, Cupcake. You have all the family you need, right here," she soothed.

"And we don't need Dad's money anymore," Spencer added. "I've got a great financial advisor who's set up investments so we can live off the interest of my winnings for years."

"Where'd you find a great financial advisor?" Carly asked.

"Socko's cousin, Fanny May," her brother answered.

Carly sighed, "Of course she is…" On the bright side, the young brunette was smiling again. She couldn't help it, it was so nice to be home. That's when she noticed someone else in the apartment. "Hey, Gib!" she squealed.

"Carly!" Gibby squealed back, hugging her.

"What's all this?" Carly asked, gesturing toward the weasel village.

"It's a new home for my pet weasel. Look, it's got ramps, a wheel, his own dining room complete with food dish, and even a little mini-Gibby-head in the living room," the young man replied.

"And it's almost done," Spencer added, glue gun in his hand. "We just need to glue on this one last piece." As he finished the sentence, the glue gun burst into flames in his hand. He dropped it to the ground and stomped it out, but not before the fire alarm went off.

"I'll get it," Carly said dryly, picking up a pineapple. She threw the fruit expertly, silencing the offending noise.

Just then the front door burst open. "Spencer, is there another fire? I thought I heard…" Freddie was yelling, then he saw Sam and Carly. He ran to the young brunette and engulfed her in a bear hug. Before he even thought about what he was doing, he kissed her squarely on the lips.

As he glanced over Carly's shoulder, he noticed the face of the angry blonde standing behind her. He hadn't meant anything romantic by the kiss, but he knew Carly's girlfriend would misinterpret it. "Sam, it wasn't…" he pleaded. As she came at him with a battle cry, he screamed and ran for his life up the steps.

Carly surveyed the scene with amusement. Sam chasing Freddie, the burn marks on the living room floor, Gibby being… well, Gibby. "It's so nice to be home," she mumbled before running up the steps herself. "Sam, don't hurt him!" she yelled.

The End