Chapter 11: Hole in the World
Four days, eight hours, and sixteen minutes. That's how long it had been since his world fell apart. If he had to he could probably count the seconds …373,440, every one of them filled with the worst kind of agony. And he learned something in that time.
The world didn't stop just because he was dying inside.
When he was little, his mom used to read him nursery rhymes at night. His favorite was Humpty Dumpty. He and Humpty had a lot of common these days. Ever since the 'incident' with Sam, which is what Carly had taken to calling it, everyone had been walking around on eggshells, trying to put him back together.
For the first couple of days it was nice to have people care. His mom made sure he ate. Carly had come by every day, sometimes he talked but mostly he just sat and pretended to listen to whatever she talked about. Gibby and Brad had come by and played video games with him, on their way out mentioning as nicely as possible that he might want to think about taking a shower. If it hadn't been for all of them he'd probably be sitting mute in his room, hungry, lonely, and smelling like an old sweat sock. He was glad to have friends like them, but they were starting to annoy him.
Every day from everyone it was the same question: How are you? How the hell did they think he was? As Sam would have said, he was jacked; completely and totally screwed. Sam was the first girl he'd ever really loved, unless you counted Carly, which he didn't. And she was gone. No real explanation, no warning; just over. They all expected him to get over it. They acted like this had merely been a quick fling that suddenly rose up and just as quickly flamed out, not something that he had been feeling, albeit at a low level and mostly out of sight, for much longer. They just didn't get it. Losing Sam was like losing the heart in his chest…and he didn't know how anyone got over that.
You're such a girl
That's what Sam would say if she could see him now. He could almost hear her saying it in his head. That happened a lot now…hearing her voice. It was probably a little crazy, or a lot crazy, but he didn't care. It was his way of keeping her with him even if she'd chosen to leave.
He hadn't seen or talked to her since it happened. She was mysteriously absent from school on Monday and Tuesday, and part of him was relieved. He wasn't sure what he'd do when he saw her again. He wasn't ready to find out. He knew that she had been to Carly's house. He'd purposely stayed away. It was funny; he'd accused her of doing exactly what he was doing now – hiding, but going to Carly's and seeing Sam there was too dangerous. Maybe he'd go and she'd act like he wasn't even there, or maybe she'd go back to the Sam she'd been before all this started. He wasn't sure which idea bothered him more, being ignored or her pretending nothing had ever happened, so he just avoided it altogether.
Today his game of hide and seek would end – not because he wanted it to – but because yesterday Principal Franklin had told Carly to give Sam a message: she'd reach her limit of unexcused absences. If she wasn't in school today he'd be forced to send her to summer school. He would have to see Sam today and there were two reasons that made him sure of it. One, Sam's mom had moved on from the doctor to a blackjack dealer – so Sam's access to bogus doctor's excuses was over. Second, Sam hated school so, to her, summer school was an abomination. To lose the three months they gave her off from 'that prison' would be unthinkable. She would definitely be there today, and that thought made him want to crawl under the covers and hide until summer started.
"Freddie! Breakfast!" His mother yelled from the kitchen. "You'd better hurry or you're going to be late for school!"
His mother. He dreaded being in the same room with her anymore. It wasn't anything she said. She was surprisingly quiet about the situation, but he kept catching her staring at him; at dinner, while he watched TV, or when they crossed paths in the apartment hallway. The look she gave him always seemed to have a hint of what struck him as pity. Which was the last thing he needed right now.
Oh well. No sense putting it off. This was likely to be the worst day on record and the sooner he got it over with the sooner he could come back to the comforting solitude of his room.
"I'm coming" he yelled back, grabbing his book bag and heading for the door. He was wearing stripes today. Sam hated stripes. He'd spent the last couple months shoving all his striped shirts to the back of his closet, in an effort not to piss her off. He figured it didn't matter anymore. He was no longer under any obligation to the whims of Samantha Puckett.
He paused in front of his closet, groaned in frustration and stripped off his striped shirt, replacing it with a light blue polo.
Old habits die hard.
His mother was already sitting at the table eating breakfast when he took a seat across from her. He immediately dug into his cereal, grimacing at the taste but determined not to meet her gaze. Even as he attempted to ignore her, he could feel her gaze burning into him.
"Fredward…"
"Mom, I don't want to talk about it, at least not right now." He looked up at met her eyes, filled with worry and the words she seemed desperate to say. "And I don't want to listen to you talking about it either. Let's just forget it." Why not, he thought, Sam probably already had.
"I'm so sorry Freddie Bear."
"Argh!" He groaned, "Mom, please don't do this. I don't want to talk about it!"
"It might help you to talk about it…get it off your chest."
His anger boiled over. Four days of the hurt and confusion he'd tried so hard to suppress rose to the surface. He threw his spoon down into his cereal bowl, sending milk flying over the table, onto his shirt.
"What do you want me to say Mom! Do you want me to tell you that Sam took my heart, threw it on the ground and stomped on it? Do you want me to tell you how horrible I feel? How the pain gnaws at me every freaking second of every day until I think I'll go crazy? Or maybe you want me to tell you that you were right? That she was right? That this whole thing was a giant mistake, some colossal joke the universe is playing on me? What's the point, huh mom? It doesn't matter anymore. Sam is gone, and she's not coming back." He slumped in his seat, his shoulders drooped in defeat. "She was right, ma. This wasn't real. It was just a stupid fairytale."
His mother didn't say anything. She just looked at him intently, reaching across the table to grab his hand.
"Freddie, I'm so sorry this happened to you. I've spent every day since you were born trying to protect you from being hurt but the truth is - I may be able to prevent your body from being hurt, but I don't have much control over your heart. Heartbreak happens to everyone. What happened with Samantha…"
"Mom, I really don't need to hear your 'I told you so!'" He jerked his hand away from her grasp, grabbing his cereal bowl to put it in the sink.
"Freddie, honey, I never said anything like that." She followed him out of the kitchen. "Let me finish!"
He stopped at the kitchen doorway, his back to her.
"What happened with Samantha was … unfortunate. Am I happy with the girl? No! But…things aren't always what they seem in situations like this Fredward."
He couldn't believe it. His mother was defending Sam? Now he'd really heard it all.
"Freddie, the other night when you told me about you and Samantha I saw something in you I'd never seen before. I saw the way you defended her, the way you protected her. I saw how strong you were…and I was so proud. Proud of the man you're becoming; the kind of man who's willing to stand up for what he believes in no matter who disagrees with him." She reached out to touch his arm, "You say that maybe the whole thing was a fairlytale…maybe you're right. But that doesn't mean it wasn't real."
He sighed deeply, trying to maintain control of his emotions. Pretending was the only thing keeping him sane right now. Pretending that he and Sam had never happened, pretending he didn't miss her, pretending his heart wasn't breaking. He couldn't listen to his mom – it would upset the already fragile balance of his emotions. Listening to her might stir the hope in his heart that she was right, and hope was a luxury he couldn't afford.
"I gotta go mom, I'm gonna be late for school" He grabbed his backpack and left the house, leaning against the closed door to regain his composure.
He knocked on the door to Carly's apartment so they could walk to school together. He really hoped that she'd lay off the interrogation today, he just didn't have the energy to endure it. Spencer answered the door.
"What's up kid? Looking for Carly?"
"Yeah, is she ready for school yet?" He walked inside behind Spencer, setting his book bag on the sofa.
"Um…Carly isn't here Freddo. She…had something to do this morning" Spencer stood awkwardly, as if delivering lines he'd been forced to rehearse.
"Where is she?"
"Well… she had to go do…a thing, at um… a place, with, like…a person…" Spencer was obviously uncomfortable.
"She went to…Sam's?"
"Yeah, she went to… over there, with…"
"Sam! Her name is Sam! You can say her name…I'm not going to crack up just because you said her name!" Freddie was annoyed, which didn't happen with Spencer often, no matter how completely ridiculous Spencer generally was. He was annoyed because, once again, everyone was acting like he was on suicide watch. Like just mentioning Sam's name might send him straight to Troubled Waters!
"I'm outta here" he grabbed his stuff and headed for the door.
"Freddo, wait…" Spencer stopped him at the door.
"Spencer, not another 'the sun will come out tomorrow' speech. Please?" He pleaded, before entering the elevator, leaving Spencer standing at the open door.
This was going to be a long day.
She'd been to Sam's house twice in the last few weeks. That was a record, but today she was on a mission. She approached the front door of the Puckett residence and rang the doorbell, hearing a loud screech from Sam's cat Frothy inside. Carly generally considered herself an animal lover, but that cat was disturbing. With a missing leg, bald patches in his fur, a tail bent at an awkward angle, and a constant stream of mysterious foam coming from his mouth, the cat seemed not to have one redeemable quality. Sam had found him on her porch five years ago, and if it could be believed, he'd looked even worse then. But Sam took him in. She said it was because he wouldn't leave after she'd shared her sandwich with him, but Carly knew that wasn't why. As tough as Sam was, she had a soft spot for things and people that the world had given up on. Carly suspected that was where her obsession with hobos came from.
She rang the bell again, more insistently this time and still had her finger on it when the door swung open.
"Well if it isn't Senorita Prissy Pants herself, in the flesh…" Sam's mom eyed Carly's thin frame. "What little of it there is. Seriously, do you eat?"
Sam's mom stood aside to let Carly in, smiling. Carly had learned that, like Sam, sarcasm was Pam Puckett's native tongue – something she did on reflex that was often not a true reflection of how she felt about you. If you got past the predatory obsession with men, her penchant for wearing clothes that weren't exactly…flattering, and her general lack of mothering instincts, she wasn't all that bad.
"Hi Mrs. Puckett."
"Pam…Mrs. Puckett is my mother…and she only wishes she had a body like this!"
Carly tried not to look at Pam. She was sure that even at 7:00 in the morning, she was wearing something under that robe that was sure to offend.
"Okay…Pam. Um… is Sam here?"
"Is she here? Where else would she be? She's spent the last three days holed up in that room, walking around this house like she lost her best friend. You ever try to get lucky with a moody teenager hanging around?" She looked at Carly as if she expected an answer.
"Um…no?"
"Well it ain't easy, let me tell ya. She is seriously putting cramp in my style if you know what I mean."
"Okay, well…I'm just gonna go up and talk to Sam. It was, um…nice, talking to you Mrs. Pu…Pam." Carly fled the living room, leaving Pam on the sofa, screaming at the television. If anyone ever wondered how Sam got to be the way she was, they really should pay her mom a visit.
Carly knocked lightly on the door to Sam's room. The door opened and Carly stared in shock. Sam was awake, and dressed and possibly even showered. She'd been expecting to have to come up here, drag her from the bed, throw her in the shower, then force her out of the house and to school. After their conversation last night when Carly had explained Principal Franklin's message she honestly didn't think it would make much difference to Sam. True, she hated school, so summer school was a powerful threat indeed, but, these days Sam didn't seemed to care about much of anything. So seeing her standing in the middle of her room, apparently ready to go, was a shock.
"Wow Sam, you're ready…already?"
"No point putting it off. And I'd rather boil my eyeballs in vinegar than spend a perfect good summer in academic hell." She grabbed her bag from its hook by her closet. "You ready Shay?"
She looked bad. And Carly didn't think there was really a nice way to say it. Her eyes had dark circles under them, like she hadn't slept in weeks. Her hair was an even wilder mess than usual; Carly wondered when she'd last brushed it. She started to ask her if she was okay but thought better of it. There was no point. Sam was very obviously not okay.
"I came early because I figured I'd have to wake you up. So we have some time before we have to leave. So…do you want to talk?"
Sam groaned, here it was. She loved Carly to death but the girl was completely incapable of letting go…of anything!
"Carls… we've already talked. We talked so much I'm tired of hearing my own voice!" 'And yours too she thought', "There isn't anything to say. Freddie and I were together, and now we're not. That's it. What else is there to say?"
"How about why? I mean…I still don't get it Sam. I know you said you both just agreed you were better off as friends, but I've seen Freddie and he doesn't look like a guy who "mutually agreed" to anything. He looks like a guy whose pet cow was run over by a tractor!" she tried, and failed, to keep her voice calm and even. "You did this. And I want to know why!"
"Carly…please, not today. I can't do this today." Sam, dropped onto her bed, praying that, for once, Carly would just drop it.
No such luck.
"I'm sorry Sam, I'm not trying to meddle."
"And yet…here you are"
Carly sat beside her friend, searching for the words to say. This whole Sam and Freddie situation was such a mess. Just when she'd gotten used to the idea that her two best friends were in love…with each other, it was over. Just like that. She'd actually been making prom plans for the three of them when she'd found out. Sam had walked into her house, and Carly knew immediately that something was wrong. Sam had stood by the door, not flopping down on the sofa or going to raid their refrigerator like she normally would.
"Freddie and I are over." she'd said woodenly, "I just thought you should know." She gave Carly the obviously false "mutually agreed upon break-up" excuse before turning and leaving. Carly had been in too much shock to even follow her and all the texts she'd sent the rest of the day had gone unanswered. Freddie was no better. Her texts to him gave no information.
Carly: Sam just left here. What happened?
Freddie: What did she tell you?
Carly: That you both agreed you'd be better off as friends…
Freddie: Then I guess that's what happened.
Carly: You guess?
Freddie: Just leave it be Carly…I gotta go
She'd continued texting him for thirty minutes but he'd ignored her. These two were almost as secretive in their breakup as they'd been in their relationship.
Carly sat in silence watching Sam. She was tapping her foot on the floor, her trademark nervous twitch, and staring at her feet. Carly looked around Sam's room. It was a series of contradictions, just like Sam. The furniture was white and far more girly than anything one would imagine Sam having. The edges were finished with ornate carvings trimmed in pink but her bedding was red and black, skulls and crossbones criss-crossing it with the words 'Born Bad'. On her desk were pictures, tons of them, some in funny frames, some just taped to the edges of the shelves. The smiling faces of Sam, Carly, Freddie—she'd never truly realized just how many were of Freddie until now—Spencer, even Gibby looked out from them. Gibby would be amazed to know the Sam had pictures of him in her room – even if most of them were of Gibby at his…Gibbiest.
She looked to Sam's nightstand, a jumble of old papers, fat cake wrappers and what looked like small firecrackers. Leave it to Sam to have explosives at her bedside. In the middle of the chaos Carly spied black and white fur.
Pippy.
She remembered the first time she'd seen Pippy. It was a rare occasion when Carly had come for a sleepover. In the morning she' d woke first and been shocked and amused to find Sam snuggled up with a small stuffed panda. Sam was not the stuffed animal type. Sam had woke to find Carly staring at her and her face flushed as she realized that Carly had seen Pippy. Her explanation was short and sweet. She'd had him for a long time, she slept with him sometimes. She begged Carly not to tell anyone – it was the first real secret they shared and in the years that followed she could always gauge the extent of a crisis by whether or not Pippy was present.
Pippy was on the nightstand, not under the pillow where he normally resided. So this situation with Sam and Freddie was serious…more serious than Sam was letting on.
Carly leaned over to the nightstand and held the small, worn panda in her hands.
"So…Pippy's out."
Sam glanced toward Carly. She'd meant to put Pippy back this morning. She's been sleeping with him every night now, the picture she'd shredded was taped back together and once again hidden in his cotton stuffing.
"Yeah…" Sam didn't know what to say. Carly knew her, so she knew that if Pippy was out, something was wrong. Really wrong. But she didn't even know how to begin to explain it all. She wasn't sure she even understood it herself. "I just…I guess I needed him."
"So, this thing with Freddie…" she trailed off, unsure of how to pose her question.
"My dad…he bought that for me when they brought me and Melanie home from the hospital. He said I slept with it every night from then on. I couldn't say "pretty" when I was little, so I called him Pippy. My dad used to call him my faithful sidekick." She smiled, but no light reached her eyes.
"Sam…"
"He used to sit out on my bed. And at night when dad read me a story, he'd tuck Pippy in the bed with me. He'd even kiss us both goodnight. 'One for the Princess, and one for Pippy too'." Her eyes had a faraway look in them, as if she was there again, five years old and watching her father tuck her in for the night. "He didn't tuck us in that night. The night he…left. It was like I went to bed and the next morning he'd just …vanished. My mom said that it was too much to deal with."
"Sam. Your dad leaving…it's not… it wasn't your fault."
"I guess I know that…somewhere. But in my head I just wonder…how did he walk away? I was a brat as a kid, always getting in trouble, screwing something up…just like now. But…he was still there, always there until one day…when he just…wasn't." her voiced lowered to a whisper. "And I think sometimes…if he could leave…just walk away from me…why would anyone else stay?" She stared at her hands in her lap, blinking back tears.
Carly turned to her, grabbing her hand and squeezing it.
"Sam. Freddie…is not your father."
"I know Carly. And that's the problem. He left. My own father, he didn't think I was important enough to stick around for. It was his job to love me, to be here for me and it still wasn't enough to make him stay. Freddie has a million totally valid reasons to not be with me, and there are a ton of people who could give him a million more. How could that have worked? How could I just stand by and wait for him to see that I'm not good enough for him? I couldn't do it Carly. I'm not going to stand here and hold my breath until it happens again."
"Oh Sam… don't you get it? You've spent all this time waiting for Freddie to hurt you, ready for him to leave. You were so convinced that it couldn't work that you did to him exactly what you feared he'd do to you…you left."
Sam felt the ache in her heart spread as her mind scrambled for a reason Carly was wrong. A way to justify the mess she'd made. But hurt is a cunning thing, twisting the truth and clouding reality until you gladly cling to the even the darkest of lies.
"You don't understand…"
"I know. That's what you keep telling me, and it's ridiculous Sam! Do you think you're the only one who hurts? Do you think you have a monopoly on pain?" She raised her voice, more in frustration than anger. "We all hurt Sam, everyone. And I know what it feels like to lose…" her cracked as tears began to rise in her eyes. "someone important. I know what kind of pain that is."
"I'm sorry Carls…I didn't mean…"
"I know what you meant Sam. And I know that you weren't thinking about the fact that Freddie and I have both lost parents too. That's the problem Sam… you aren't thinking! Maybe Freddie and I didn't lose our parents the same way you did…but that doesn't make it hurt any less. There isn't a day that goes by when I don't think about my mom, and wish she was here. I wish she could see Spencer and how great he is at taking care of me. I wish she could meet you and Freddie and see what we've done with iCarly. And for a long time I let that hurt change me, make me believe it was pointless to get close to anyone because of how bad it would hurt to lose them. But that was wrong. Loving someone is never the wrong thing…neither is letting someone love you. I know you love Freddie, Sam. Now... let him love you."
The two girls fell into silence, each lost in their own thoughts.
Carly wondered if she'd gotten through to Sam. She loved Sam, who was more of a sister than a friend. And she wanted more than anything to make her pain go away. But she knew that this was something Sam was going to have to do on her own. She'd trapped herself in a prison built of lies, hurt and fear but she was the only one with the power to set herself free.
"Come on…we'd better get going. I promised Principal Franklin I'd get you to school on time." She reached for Sam's hand, pulling her to stand. When she went to let go she felt Sam's arms around her. Hugs were rare with Sam.
"Thanks kid" the sound of Sam's voice was muffled in Carly's shoulder, "for…everything. Now let's go, before I change my mind and have to spend my summer with Briggsy!" she pulled away from Carly, grabbed her bag and stood to the side as Carly exited the door.
This was going to be a long day.
Carly had once watched Gibby break into a half-naked dance in the middle of the Cheesecake Warehouse. The cops had been called and the manager had thrown them out, dragging a struggling Gibby out of the door as he screamed "I gotta dance!" It was awkward to say the least, but she'd relive that moment a million times over if it meant she could avoid the awkwardness that was Sam and Freddie right now.
When they'd arrived at school Freddie was already there and what had happened next could only be described as a standoff. Freddie stood in the middle of the hall, staring at Sam who had quit moving as soon as she rounded the corner and saw his face.
"Ooo…staring contest!" Gibby said, walking up to Carly, "I got next!"
"Gibby!" she said, giving Sam a nudge, trying to get her moving. The push seemed to bring her back to her senses and she moved toward her locker, head down, saying nothing.
Her movement had a similar effect on Freddie and, though he remained in the middle of the hallway, he offered a nervous greeting.
"Hey Gib, Carly…Sam." He glanced at her quickly.
"Hey…Nub" Sam called over her shoulder, still refusing to meet his gaze.
She was back to calling him names, but something still seemed off. The usual bite was missing – she was off her game.
Carly stood at her locker, gathering her books and thinking about her friends. This was so ridiculous. She slammed her locker, ready to tell them both what she thought of the mess they'd made when Principal Franklin's voice came out over the loud speaker.
"Carly Shay, Sam Puckett and Freddie Benson … please report to the principal's office."
On reflex they all turned to look at Sam.
"What!" she said, "I haven't even been here this week…it's not me, I swear!"
Carly turned from her locker and followed Sam and Freddie toward Principal Franklin's office.
This day was just getting better and better.
Entering the office, Sam returned a hello to all of the secretaries; she'd been there enough that they all knew her, there was even a large cabinet labeled "Samantha Puckett" where they stored all of the items they'd confiscated from her. She was something of a regular.
"Sam, Carly, Freddie…you can go right in. Principal Franklin is waiting for you."
Carly nodded and followed Sam through the door and into Principal Franklin's office. He sat with his back to them, turning to them briefly and raising a finger before returning to his phone call.
"Yes, I understand Superintendent…I think this will be a wonderful way to promote our school…No they haven't agreed, but I feel certain that they will. What's that?... yes, I assume she'll be there as well…No, I don't think extra security guards will be necessary…Okay, I'll let you know as soon as I've spoken to them. Goodbye."
He turned around to face the trio, his face holding its usual friendly smile.
Carly…Freddie, thank you for coming. Samantha…glad to see you back with us. Couldn't tolerate the idea of summer school, huh." Sam shook her head. "Ah, I thought you'd see reason".
Sam leaned back in her seat, propping her feet onto Principal Franklin's desk.
"So what's up Ted, why'd you want to see us?" she asked
"Oh, well as you heard, I was just on the phone with the superintendent and we have come up with an idea that we think you'll love…or we hope you will. You see, there have been all sorts of budget cuts in the school district. One of the ways we offset those is with the money we raise from fundraisers and extra-curricular things… like school dances. Prom is usually a pretty big money maker, but apparently – unbeknownst to me- school dances have become…'lame'" he said, adding air quotes.
"So how can we help you with that?" Carly asked
"Well, we were thinking that since you host a very popular webshow, maybe you'd consider hosting a special edition of iCarly…live from the Ridgeway Prom!" He looked between Carly, Freddie and Sam with excitement. "Doesn't that sound fun?"
"If by fun you mean the lamest of the lame things we could ever do then absolutely…that sounds like a blast." Sam said sarcastically, twirling a piece of hair around her finger.
"Sam!"
"What? You can't tell me you actually want to do this? I mean… you don't really want to do this!"
"Just because you don't want to do it, doesn't mean no one else does. Oh, I forgot, you like to make decisions for other people." Freddie bit back at her, his eyes narrowed.
"Watch it…" Sam warned, standing to her feet.
"Or what! What can you do worse than you've already done?" Freddie stood too, daring her to answer him.
"Whoa! Sam, Freddie…settle down!" Principal Franklin said.
They stood staring at each other for a full minute, neither of them willing to be the first to back down. Strange the way that hurt can make love look like hate.
"Sam…" Carly pleaded, knowing that this game of wills could go on forever, "Please… just sit down."
Sam began to lower herself in to her seat.
"Alright Carly… for you!" she added finally.
"Of course, why would you do anything for me?" Freddie said before sitting down, a smirk on his face. He'd won, but the victory felt hollow.
Carly raised her hand to silence Sam before she could say anything in response to Freddie's purposely hurtful comment.
"So, Principal Franklin. You want us to film iCarly from the prom? And you think that will help you sell more tickets?"
Ted Franklin was staring at Sam and Freddie. He'd been their Principal for three years, if you didn't count the time he'd been replaced for a week, and he didn't. In that time he'd witnessed his fair share of fights between the two of them. Sam usually won but even then their arguments were always more like banter than anything truly mean spirited. And for the most biting comments to come from Freddie Benson, well that was truly a shock. Freddie was a good boy; mild mannered, clean, polite and fiercely loyal to the two girls sitting on either side of him. He wondered what could have happened to change that.
"Yes Carly, that's exactly what we'd like and we're sure that you filming iCarly here would make the prom a phenomenal success. So what do you say?"
He glanced nervously between Sam and Freddie, who both seemed to be seething with anger, before looking to Carly. The superintendent was really pressuring him to make this happen which was interesting since he'd fired Ted for being on iCarly not long ago.
"Well, can you give us a minute to talk it over…alone?"
"Sure thing, I'll just be right outside. Try not to let them..."
"Kill each other?" Carly said, "I don't think I can make any promises"
He shook his head before exiting, closing the door softly behind him.
Carly walked over and stood in between Sam and Freddie, perching on the edge of Principal Franklin's desk.
"Alright, listen. This is ridiculous. You guys are miserable and you're making everyone around you miserable…it's got to stop, now!"
She looked between them to see if they understood.
"He started it!"
"What?! I started it? You must have short term memory loss Puckett… this whole thing is because of you!"
"Great here we go again…let's dump it all on Sam, it's all my fault…"
"Ha! Dump! That's an excellent choice of words!"
Carly grabbed the bullhorn sitting on the edge of the desk and screamed into it.
"ENOUGH!" Now they'd even pissed her off. "That's enough. You…" she pointed at Sam, "shut up… I mean it… not another word!" Freddie snickered, "And you too Mr. Moody McGrumpy Pants! Enough yelling at Sam! You shut up too!"
They both sat back in their seats, annoyance apparent on their faces, but they didn't say a word.
The door creaked open and Ms. Lessner, Principal Franklin's secretary peeked her head around it.
"Um... Carly? Principal Franklin told me to tell you… off the record… that there's a can of mace in his bottom drawer… in case you need it." She shut the door firmly behind her.
Satisfied that's she'd be able to get a word in, Carly sat the bullhorn down on the desk.
"Okay. Now I know things are… bad, between the two of you right now. I don't know why and it really doesn't matter because at this point the one thing I'm certain of is that both of you are being really stupid! We've been friends for a long time and I'm not willing to let that get all messed up just because the two of you can't get past whatever it is that happened. I also know that both of you are hurt and that' s why you're acting like angry lunatics. You're ripping each other to shreds and you're not even considering that you're not the only ones that get hurt when you do that… it hurts me too! I know that whatever is wrong with you guys can't get fixed overnight but you're going to have to figure out a way to at least be in the same room without killing each other or making everyone else want to leave!"
She looked at them both, waiting for their answer. Freddie finally broke the silence.
"I can't make any promises Carly. But I'll try…if she will"
"Yeah…I'll try." Sam said, reluctantly.
"Great. Now about this prom thing. I think it's a great idea, we'd planned on doing an iCarly special soon anyway and it could be cool. I hear they're going to do some live music and they're letting students sign up to perform if they want."
"So we'll spend the night all dressed up watching some no talent losers make fools of themselves?" Sam asked, "Been there…done that."
"I'm actually with Sam on this Carly" Freddie face twisted into a grimace, as if agreeing with Sam made him sick to his stomach, "I don't really want to be at prom."
"But you already bought tickets didn't you?" Carly said, remembering too late exactly why he'd bought tickets; who he'd bought them for. "Sorry…"
Freddie thought about it. This day had been terrible, and it had just started. Everything felt off, nothing felt normal and as much as he wished he could go back in time and fix whatever had broken between him and Sam, right now he just wanted to feel normal again. He just wanted to be a regular guy, hanging with his friends… not hurting. Maybe if he got back to doing normal things he could forget.
"I'll do it." he said.
Carly stared at him and Sam choked on the water she'd been drinking.
"What?" Carly said.
"I said I'll do it. Why not? " He glanced at Sam who was staring back at him, her face unreadable.
"Okay," Carly said, "So that makes the vote two to one in favor of doing iCarly live from the prom. Sorry Sam… you're outvoted" Carly walked out the door to get Principal Franklin.
"What the hell Freddie?" She said, turning to stare at him. "Do you really want to do this?"
"Sam, I'm going to say this once and then I'm done with it," he summoned his courage and looked directly into her eyes. "What you did… it killed me. Every day since then has been a nightmare. I loved you Sam…really loved you, and you just walked away."
"Freddie…"
"No, Sam. You said what you needed to. It's my turn" she slumped down into her seat. "I'll never understand it Sam, no matter what you say, but one day I hope I'll get over it. Maybe I'll even be able to forgive you. But right now, all I want it to feel normal again, and if doing this stupid show at the stupid prom will help that happen than that's what I'm going to do. And if you don't like it…well, I really don't care." He stood and grabbed his bag. "I'm done making my life revolve around what you want." He walked out the door, leaving Sam alone.
"Freddie?" She heard Carly call to him as she entered the office with Principal Franklin in tow.
"What did you do Sam? I thought I told you two to be nice? Do I have to get the mace?"
"Sorry Carly, wasn't me this time." Sam said quietly, in shock from what she'd just heard. "Look, I'll do it. I'm gonna go, you can fill me in on the details later. See ya, Ted." she waved, walking out of the office.
"I'm sorry about all that." Carly said, sitting down across from Principal Franklin's desk.
"Sam and Freddie seem a bit more…at each other's throats than usual. What's going on Carly? Anything I can help with?"
"Not unless you're Cupid with a magic wand." She sighed, "They were enemies and then friends and then they were in love but now they're not…well they are but they don't want to be…well, I think Freddie still wants to be, but Sam says they can't so now they're…" She paused, not knowing what words to use "driving me crazy!"
Principal Franklin laughed. Oh, to be young again.
"So what is your decision regarding the prom?"
"Oh… we'll do it. Just tell us what you need us to do."
"It's fairly simple really. Just walk around the prom, do you normal witty banter, talk to some of the students. Oh, and this year we're allowing a few select students to do performances…don't worry, we've listened to them beforehand…they're actually very talented! We'd give you a list of their names and you could do a little introduction and maybe interview them after. We'd give Freddie access to any of the schools A/V equipment he might need. So…what do you think?
"Sounds…good, Principal Franklin. So we'll just plan on being here early on Saturday. Is seven okay?"
"That sounds great Carly, thanks so much…you're really saving me on this one." He smiled at Carly as she stood to leave, calling to her right before she shut the door. "Oh, and Carly?"
"Yes Principal Franklin?"
"I wouldn't worry about Sam and Freddie. These things have a way of working out. Plus, maybe a little 'prom magic' will rub off on them. Those two might just have a happy ending yet."
"At this point I'll just be happy if their ending doesn't involve, blood, broken bones or a trip to the emergency room. See you later Principal Franklin." She walked toward her homeroom, feeling completely helpless.
She had no idea what to do about this. She was fresh out of ideas, a rare occurrence for her. What she did know was that if something didn't happen… and soon, three months of love was going to ruin six years of friendship. And she just couldn't let that happen.
A/N:
October 6th is a big day in the iCarly fandom...the premier of the final season of iCarly. The day before will prove to be a big day for the iCarly fan fiction fandom. On that day, many of your favorite Seddie authors have accepted the challenge to post new stories or new chapters to existing stories. It's a MASS posting...tons of Seddie fun! Get excited!
If you'd like to take part in the challenge just drop me a PM and I'll add you to the list of participants. On October 5th DwynArthur and I will post chapter one of our new story 'Until the World Ends' and include all participating authors and story titles there for you to see.