Chapter 10

One month passed…

Carly and Danny's relationship continued to be fresh and exciting to both of them. They did spend a lot of time together, even during the week, and pretty soon Carly was spending more time with her boyfriend than her other friends. But Carly still put iCarly ahead of her busy "boyfriend" schedule. It didn't bother Danny any, he actually didn't mind having a "guys" night with his other friends on Friday's.

Sam would have probably been hurt by Carly ditching her like she was, but Sam was actually focused on getting her grades up to take notice. She still got to hang out with her best friend on Tuesday's, Thursday's, and Friday's, and even some time on the weekend. Sam was very smart, as Freddie had told her, and it didn't take her long to start getting her grades back up. By the time October began, she moved her overall "D-" average up to a "C+" average, and in the process moved her class ranking from the bottom 10% of her class to nearly cracking the top 50%. She and Freddie were working very well together during their study times.

Freddie, meanwhile, was now spending more time with some of his guy friends when he wasn't hanging around Sam. He and Jeremy were hanging out on the weekends, and sometimes they had Gibby tag along with them as well. Freddie was working closely with Sam and working on her study habits to improve them. He was very impressed at how well she was doing, and how much she had raised her grades in just a few weeks. Often, they would even challenge each other during their studies as she was getting more competitive with him on their grades. They did team up as partners in science class on projects, and they've been working very well together.

October was going by, and the leaves on the trees were changing color in Seattle. It was beginning to become jacket weather for the group as temps were starting to get a little cooler in the late afternoon and early evenings.

One Tuesday afternoon, Sam was walking over to Bushwell Plaza after school. She wasn't in the greatest of moods. Freddie had gotten a small case of the stomach flu the previous night, and he had to miss school. She wouldn't be able to study with him, but she was going to stop by and let him know what homework would be due the next day.

So, she stopped by Freddie's first, and talked to him for a couple of minutes. Freddie was feeling a lot better, but he thought that it probably wasn't a good idea for them to study. Sam told him about the assignments, made some comments about the way he looked (much to his displeasure), and walked over to Carly's.

"Hello, anybody here?" Sam hollered as she came right on in to their apartment.

"We're here in the kitchen," Spencer yelled from across the way.

Sam made her way into the kitchen and was headed to the kitchen when she stopped in her tracks. Right in the middle of the kitchen where the table would be was probably the biggest pumpkin Sam had ever seen. "Oh my gosh," she said, her eyes bugging out.

"Yep," Spencer said proudly, "as you can see, I am trying for the second straight year to create a giant jack-o-lantern. I think you guys remember what happened last year."

Indeed they had remembered. Spencer was making the jack-o-lantern when a bunch of neighboring kids stopped by the apartment trick or treating. Spencer had forgotten to get candy for Halloween, and he was giving the children odd items for their treats. The kids took revenge on Spencer when they rolled the big pumpkin (with him in it I might add) into the elevator; out of the building, and down the street.

"How did you get that thing in here?" Sam asked, her eyes were still bulging. Carly was standing right beside her brother shaking her head.

"It's the first project he's had since August," she said, as she began to walk into the living room, "and don't ask how he got it in here, I'm more worried about how he's going to get it out of here when he's through."

"My friend Socko sent it up the elevator like he did with the one I had last year," Spencer answered, as he was looking over his pumpkin.

"By the way," Carly grinned, "are you going to remember to buy candy this year for the trick or treaters?"

"Come over here," Spencer said as he hurriedly went towards the back hallway to his room. He pulled out a huge foot locker, and dragged it to the front room. He opened it so he could let Carly and Sam see inside. The foot locker was filled to the brim with bags of Halloween candy. "I didn't forget the lesson I learned last year about kids during Halloween," he said as he reclosed the locker and pushed it back towards his room.

Carly giggled, "I know that's a lesson you'll never forget." Carly was motioning for Sam to come follow her into the other room.

Sam walked back into the kitchen to the fridge first and grabbed a deli tray that was in there; then she brought it into the living room so she could sit down with her friend and talk.

"So, no study date for you and Freddie tonight because he's sick?" Carly asked as she sat down on the couch with her friend.

Sam shook her head, "He told me he's feeling better, and he's looking better than he was this morning. I don't know who he's kidding; he'll never be better looking." She teased.

Carly smiled at her friend's joke. She and Freddie were finally on speaking terms again after a long time. He explained to Carly why it took so long, and she understood. Now she enjoyed her friendship with Freddie more because she didn't have to worry about the way he looked at her now.

Sam was making a little bit of a mess with the deli tray, so Carly got up and went back into the kitchen for some plates and napkins. While she was in there, the doorbell rang. "Oh Sam," she hollered, "Would you please go get the door?"

Sam put her food down and got up, "Sure thing cupcake," she said as she walked over to open the door. She smiled a bit, because she was expecting Freddie to be on the other side. The person that was standing behind the door, however, made Sam frown.

"Oh, hey Sam," Danny said as he greeted her before he came in through the doorway.

Sam just nodded to him. "Great," she muttered to herself, "Wonderboy is here." She walked back around the front of the living room and made her way back into the kitchen to see what Spencer was doing.

"Hi sweetie," Carly smiled as she came back from the kitchen with the plates and napkins. She set them down on the coffee table, then turned to Danny and gave him a kiss.

"Hey you," he replied, and kissed her back, "Sorry I didn't call before I came by, but I wanted to tell you that I'm going to get reservations to the Jaffe' Restaurant for our one month anniversary that we're celebrating on Saturday."

"I wish our one month didn't fall on a Friday…" Carly was saying.

"No sweat," Danny smiled, "I know how important iCarly is to you, so you do your web show, and this weekend, you're mine…if that's okay with your brother, of course."

"You know I have no problem with you, Dann-o." Spencer stated while he was standing over his pumpkin, marking the spot that he would start to carve with his chainsaw.

"Great," Danny said as he and his girlfriend sat down on the couch. Danny was looking at the food, plates and napkins on the coffee table. "Was I interrupting anything by the way?" He asked concerned.

"No," Carly replied looking around for Sam, "we were just hanging out, and Sam was eating." Carly saw that Sam was in the kitchen sitting in a chair watching Spencer finish making his marks on his pumpkin.

Danny followed Carly's gaze into the kitchen. "Your friend is never gonna like me, is she?" He asked rather glumly.

"I'm sorry," Carly replied somewhat depressed, "Sam is who she is."

Danny looked at Sam for a second, then smiled to Carly and said, "I think I know how to fix this. You remember my friend David?"

Sure she remembered him. David Gomez was a friend of Danny's he had met on a trip to Olympia. David had come up to Seattle a few times to hang out, and that's how Carly met him. David had a Mexican accent and complexion to him, but he was very nice, and VERY cute.

"So, what about him?" She asked.

"I showed him that picture of you guys on the set of iCarly, and he really thought that Sam was pretty hot." He replied trying to paint a picture for Carly.

"Okay," Carly said, nodding her head as if she understood was Danny was planning.

"Why don't we try to hook them up? He's coming into town this weekend." He now looked at Carly straight-faced. "If you don't mind, we could have them double date with us on Sunday."

Carly smiled, "This all sounds great, if I can get Sam to agree with it."

Danny smiled back, "Great, I'll let David know. Let Sam know it won't be anything fancy. We can make an afternoon and an evening of it." He looked at his watch. "Hey, I gotta get going."

"Oh, but you didn't stay very long," Carly moaned as she got up from the couch.

Danny also got up from the couch and headed for the door, "Sorry, but my folks are expecting me. Besides, it looks like you might have work to do to get Sam to come on Sunday." He stated as he looked into the kitchen at Sam who had her back turned to them while she watched Spencer. He gave his girl a quick kiss; then he strolled out of the apartment.

Carly shut the door behind her man, and walked back to the couch. "Okay Sam, he's gone," she said dully as she sat back down.

Sam got up from her seat in the kitchen, and walked back to the couch and sat back down next to her friend. "So what did you two talk about?" She asked as she got back to work devouring that deli tray. As if I really care, she thought.

Carly smiled, "Actually, we were talking about you."

Sam began choking on a piece of turkey when she heard Carly's response. "Me?" She asked after she regained her composure.

Carly nodded, "You don't have any plans this weekend, do you?"

Sam didn't think she liked where this was going, but she didn't want to try to make up an excuse for what she would rather be doing. She looked at Carly and said, "No…"

"Good," Carly said, "Because you are going to join me and Danny on a double date on Sunday." She sat back on the couch, just dying to see Sam's reaction.

"Gee Carls," Sam said with a narrowed gaze, "That's all fine and dandy and all, but I was always under the impression that FOUR people going out together at the same time was a double date."

"Oh, there will be a FOURTH person coming on this double date," Carly said somewhat curtly, "You will be joined by one of Danny's friends…"

"Nope, nope, nope," Sam began as she put the rest of the food back down on her plate, "I don't do blind dates," she sat back against the cushions of the couch. She had lost her appetite, "…especially with one of Danny's little friends."

"Sam, you don't even know him yet," Carly said defensively.

"If it's one of Danny's friends, I don't like him already." Sam stated as she crossed her arms together.

Carly was getting a bit frustrated with her friend, "He's really cute, and nice, and he wants to date you."

Sam rolled her eyes up and kept them there, "Oh, please," she said slightly agitated, "how could you possibly know that he would want to go out with me?"

"I've met him a couple of times," Carly answered, "Danny, he, and I have sat down a few times and talked. I told him about my best friend, and showed him a picture of you. You should have seen the way his eyes lit up when he saw you. He really wants to meet you. He lives in Olympia, but visits on the weekends."

"Oh dandy," Sam said annoyed, "he doesn't even live here in Seattle. This is just getting better and better."

Carly was silent. She couldn't do much more persuading at this point. She could really only beg Sam at this point. She looked at Sam with her famous puppy dog eyes and said, "Please?"

Sam looked at Carly giving her the puppy dog eyes and quickly looked the other way, "Oh, no," she replied getting up from the couch to get away from her friend, "don't give me that look."

Carly got up from the couch as well, and chased her friend around the apartment. She kept whining "please?" all the while, and Sam kept replying "no" right back at her. At one point, they went by Spencer in the kitchen. When he saw his sister's puppy dog eyes, he even whined to Sam to do it.

After a couple of minutes of listening to the Shay siblings whining at her, Sam shouted, "Alright, but under one condition. I want to see a picture of him first."

Carly smiled, "Done."

Sam rubbed her eye temples, and sat back down on the couch to finish the deli tray. I am so gonna regret this, she thought.

Author's Note: Ahh, what do we have here? A delay for Seddie? I hope everyone will like where I'm going with this in the next couple of chapters. I always appreciate hearing what you all think.