A/N: Okay, guys, chapter three is finally up. Sorry it took so long. This chapter was supposed to have something else in there, but I decided to save that for the next chapter since this one turned out to be so long already. Please enjoy. And don't forget to review.

Disclaimer: I do not own iCarly

Chapter 3

The Reactions

Sam POV:

I felt something wet falling on me. I looked around to see that it was raining, predictable Seattle weather. I used to think that predictable was the worst thing in the world. Knowing what's on people's minds, what people are about to do, and when they are going to do it is boring. That's what I love so much about me and Freddie. I never knew what was going to happen, what we would fight about next, or which one of us would start the argument (more than likely it would be me). Dating Freddie was an adventure. Since the beginning, our relationship had been a mystery to me. Now it was on the border of being over. And for the first time in my life, I wish I had seen this coming. What Freddie said had not only surprised me, it had also taken me for a roller coaster ride.

Something kept hitting my body. I blinked to see that the rain was coming down harder. It seemed that some of the rain was being held back by the fire escape. The rest of it was hitting me directly. After being on the fire escape for these few minutes, I realized that the rain was telling me to go. But for some reason I didn't want to leave. Maybe I thought that I would give Freddie a few minutes to reconsider. That he wouldn't need to wait until after the next iCarly to tell me we were supposed to be together. I looked up at the sky and watched as the rain fell. I thought about all those sappy movies where it started to rain because something sad had happened. Before I just thought it was a load of crap. Now I believed that it was a load of bull crap. Rain was just about an everyday weather report for Seattle.

Oh my God. What am I thinking? Sam Puckett does not contemplate the weather. I don't let a tear drop because my dorky boyfriend wants to think about our two year relationship as a couple. And I most certainly Do Not wait around for a guy, much less Freddie, no matter how I feel about him.

I stood up and went inside. I walked down the hall, making my way back to Carly's apartment. As I arrived, I didn't even look at Freddie's door. I just walked straight into Carly's place.

Carly POV:

I was sitting on the couch watching Girly Cow when a wet Sam finally came through my doors. I was slightly surprised. I didn't know that Sam and Freddie had left the building. But I figured that since Sam had been gone so long that they probably went to get something to eat.

"Ah, Sam you're wetting up my floor," I stated. "Go upstairs, dry off, and get changed."

"Yes, Mom," Sam said sarcastically.

"Your sarcasm is not appreciated."

As she went upstairs to dry off and change, I cleaned up the puddle Sam had left in front of my door. I wondered if she knew what was up with Freddie. I really wanted to know. I mean, I wasn't trying to be nosy or anything. I just wanted to know what was up with my friend. I continued to wonder until Sam made her way back downstairs. She went directly to my refrigerator and got out some left over chili.

"Sam, you're hungry?" I asked. I was sure Freddie would take her to get something to eat.

"Duh, Carly. I've only had a few slices of ham today."

"Oh, I just thought Freddie had taken you out to eat somewhere."

"Why would you think that? I've only been gone for what thirty minutes?"

"No, Sam, you've been gone for about four and a half hours."

"What?" Sam practically yelled.

"Yeah, and since you had been gone so long I thought Freddie was okay. What happened with him anyway?"

Sam was quiet. She started to move around the kitchen. First she grabbed a bowl. She put some chili in it and went over to the microwave to heat up her food. Finally, when her food was good and hot she sat down at the table, nodding at me to do the same. She took one bite of her chili and sighed. At first, I believed it was because she was enjoying her food. Then I realized that it was a sad sigh. My friends were really in a sighing mood today. And I still didn't know why. Suddenly Sam began to speak.

"Freddie wants some space."

I was shocked. "What do you mean?"

"He wants to take a break in our relationship."

"What? Why? You know what, just start from the beginning."

"Fine."

And so she began. She told me how she knew Freddie would be out on the fire escape. How he was listening to Cascada. She even told me about her trip down memory lane.

"Wait. How does that video remind you of you and Freddie?" I asked.

"I would be the hot blonde. He would be the dorky librarian. Now no more questions, Shay."

Sam continued to tell me what she remembered about the party. How she didn't remember anything that had happened after she drunk some drink that was given to her on her way back from the bathroom. Then she told me what Freddie told her. She told me how he wanted some time to think about their relationship. And also how after he left, Sam remained sitting on the fire escape until it started to rain.

"Sam…" I trailed off. I didn't know what to say. "I'm so sorry that that happened to you. But come on. I know you can see where Freddie's coming from. Just give him some space. He'll come around."

"You think? I mean…I don't know what to think. I just don't want the stupid dork to dump me. Do you know how embarrassing that would be for me?"

Now I knew Sam was trying to cover up her feelings for Freddie. I knew for a fact that if Freddie broke up with Sam, her world would come crashing down. "Trust me. Freddie's whole life revolves around you. It's just a few days. Before you know it, you two will be back together."

"Thanks, Carls." Sam smiled at me before finishing her chili.

For the rest of the evening, we just hung out around my apartment. We watched some TV and then some movies. When Spencer got home we grilled him about his day, but mostly about his date. And then we finally got ready for bed. Sam had spent the whole weekend at my house. Tomorrow we had to go to school. Ugh.

I wanted to talk to Freddie. I knew that Sam would never cheat on him. She wasn't that type of girl. I knew for a fact that he knew that, too. But what I couldn't figure out how Sam got put into that position. Maybe she was drugged or that last drink Sam had was a type of alcohol Sam hadn't had before. I needed to know what was going on in his head.

I sighed. Great now I'm doing it. I just had to fix this mess.

Freddie POV:

What I did on the fire escape was hard. But, I knew that a short break was what we needed. I just wanted some time to think. And that's what I had gotten, a lot of time to think. Last night, I was awake for hours thinking about Sam. And when I actually did sleep, I dreamed about Sam. I barely got any sleep. When my alarm went off this morning I was already woke. As I prepared for school, I thought about any conclusions I got to last night. Throughout the night, I made a list. It wasn't really a pro and con list, but it was a list about things that happened during our relationship and things I knew about Sam.

Sam almost cheated on me

Sam isn't the type to cheat

Sam always becomes drunk at parties

Sam always pulls pranks on me

Sam beats me up on a regular basis

Sam is entertaining

She's great in bed

Not only my lover, but is also my best friend

A wonderful kisser

Keeps me on my toes

Embarrasses me in front of everyone

With Sam I never have a dull moment

Makes fun of my crazy mother (though true, it's not appreciated)

Makes me laugh

Always copy my homework without permission

Naturally vicious

My exact opposite

I'm in sync with Sam

Sam loves me (I think)

I love Sam

And that was only off the top of my head. I looked in my mirror. It was about time to go. I decided to grab a breakfast bar for breakfast, and then head over to Carly's.

I hesitated before I knocked. I truly didn't know what to expect. I didn't see Sam at all after our little scene on the fire escape. And I was glad. I took it as a good sign that Sam wasn't going to hurt me because I decided to put our relationship on hold. But now, I didn't know how to act. Should I act like everything was normal, or should I completely ignore Sam? Well I was aware of the fact that I couldn't ignore Sam, especially since she was going to be riding in my car to school and then at school we had a few classes together.

I took a deep breath. The best way to approach would be to go with the flow, I guess. So I knocked on the Shay's door twice then took the initiative to enter. Carly was sitting on the couch putting books into her bag. Sam, on the other hand, was sitting at the counter with her back to me. From my view it looked like she was eating.

"Hey guys."

"Hi, Freddie," Carly greeted.

Sam said nothing.

"So, are you two ready to go?"

"Uh, yeah, I am." Tension filled the air. I sensed that Carly felt it too because she said, "Let's go ahead and go to your car, Freddie. Sam finish up and come on. We'll be waiting in the parking garage, okay?"

"Sure, Carly," Sam said in a monotone voice. She didn't turn around at all. "I'll be down soon."

Carly and I made our way out of the apartment. We got into the elevator and rode down to the parking garage. I was about to open the driver's door to my Altima when Carly stopped me.

"Sam told me what happened on the fire escape yesterday."

I sighed. I understood why Sam told Carly. I figured that she would tell Carly. I had just hoped that Carly would say anything to me about it. I asked for some space so that I could think. I didn't need Carly to come and try to help me figure things out. I could do that on my own.

"Okay," I said with a blank face.

"I understand the logic behind what you're doing. What I don't understand is why you are doing it. You know Sam would never cheat. You know she was drunk, or possibly even drugged. So, why are you putting you and Sam through this?"

"Look Carly, I'm only going to say this once. After this I want you to drop it, okay?" I didn't wait for an answer. "I'm doing this because I need to. I love Sam. From the bottom of my heart, I do. But before we go on with our relationship, I want to make sure that I'm willing to handle everything that comes with Sam. That includes the pranks, the constant beatings, and seeing her drunk at every party we go to. I don't want to be put through what I went through the other night again. With Sam, it's a possibility and you know it." I took a breath. "Carly, what I asked for was space and that's what I need. Please don't tell Sam about any of this. I don't want her to feel the need to change so that we can be a couple. She shouldn't have to change for anyone. Agreed?"

Carly thought about what I said. Then after a minute she spoke. "I understand. I agree."

We got into the car and waited for Sam. I saw her coming in my rear view mirror. For a second, she paused. I guess she was trying to decide where to sit. Sam came up to the passenger seat, and sat up front with me. As soon as she buckled in, I took off for school. It was going to be a long few days.