The students at Ridgeway High still looked funny at them when they walked by, laughing and actually acting like... friends. The tough tomboy and girl's volleyball captain and the weirdo with the restaurant in the school's basement.
Sam grinned and remembered the incident that got her to become close friends with Gibby.
Sam had dated Daniel, a lacrosse player for about five weeks before he broke up with her. In public. With almost the whole school around, watching them.

/Flashback./

"You're violent and agressive and a bad kisser!" He yelled at her.
Sam furrowed her eyebrows in anger. Violent, okay. Aggressive, okay, she was aggressive sometimes. But a bad kisser?! There were several guys in the watching crowd, like Pete, that could easily say different, but they didn't. They seemed to be too shocked that someone actually dared to talk to Sam Puckett like that!
"Oh, am I?" She snarled. "Is there anything else you'd like to say, Daniel?"
"Yes! You are the most terrible girlfriend I ever had! And you are a disgusting eater with terrible manors!"
Sam crossed her arms over her chest, raising an eyebrow and putting all her weight on one leg.
"You're ugly and-"
"Shut up, Butthead!" Someone yelled from the side.
Sam turned her head, expecting Freddie or Brad, although she knew they had a football-meeting between classes. Carly had a meeting of the yearbook club and couldn't be her saviour either. So logically, who could that be?
But to her surprise it was Gibby. Her look turned from angry to surprised. What was Gibby doing? She always ripped on him and still kinda used him. They were friends, sure, but not that close.
"Aww, is the little weirdo sticking up for the bully? What a romantic tragedy. Better get away from her, Gibson, before she gets you into jail, too, just like her whole rotten family." Daniel snickered and looked around at his friends, who all laughed along.
Gibby had stepped up to Sam and Daniel and stood in between them by now.
"Oh well, you know-" Gibby started, but then he swung his fist at the jerk's face in an instant.
Sam's eyes widened as she heard a satisfying crunch as Gibby's fist collided with Daniel's jaw.
"I'm sticking up for a friend, you jerk. And Sam's a better person than you will ever be." Gibby growled at the boy on the ground who was clutching his face.
"Ouch! You fucking little weirdo, Gibson! Get him!" He bellowed to his fellow lacrosse players. They lunged at Gibby after a brief moment of shock, but he was awaiting them with his fists up.
Sam growled like a lion and jumped into the next lacrosse player that she could reach.
"Six against one isn't what I'd call fair!" She yelled as she ripped the first guy to shreds, landing a few pretty good punches to the guy's face and stomach. She could see that Gibby was fighting like a giant bear. He boxed and wrapped his arms around one guy, throwing him against the lockers. This short disturbance of her concentration got her into trouble. One boy, Tom or what's his name, pinned her against the lockers, grinning triumphantly. The blonde grinned back mischievously and let her knee collide with the boy's southern regions. He buckled over, hitting his head against the locker beneath her face. Sam grinned.
Then, suddenly, Tom was yanked away from her and thrown to the ground. Her blue eyes searched for the one who had yanked him away from her and saw a huge boy pinning the next lacrosse player to the lockers on her right.
It was Taylor, the football team's captain. He was in Sam's biology class and they got a long well. He was the only one in the whole school who stood a chance against Sam in an arm wrestling match.
As she looked past him, she could see Brad and Freddie, fighting two more lacrossers.
Gibby punched his opponent a last time, before his victim went running, seeing that the rest of the footballteam was approaching.
Daniel stood there, looking absolutely panicked.
"This isn't over, Puckett!" He yelled, before he bolted away, followed by his friends.
"I think it is, you chicken!" She screamed after him.
"Are you all right?" Taylor asked her, planting a gigantic hand on her shoulder.
"Yes, thanks, man." She said and relaxed for a second before remembering her savior.
"Gib!" She bolted towards him.
He stood in the middle of the hallway, panting heavily, blood flowing from his lip and his right eye looked terribly red. It would swell in only a few minutes, she could tell.
"Gib, you dumbass! Are you okay?"
"Yeah," he breathed heavily and then started grinning, "I got them pretty good."
Sam laughed. "Yes, you did, Gib. Thank you."
"No problem. What are friends for, after all?" He said nonchalantly.
Sam smiled, amazed by that weird boy's loyalty.
She looked around for the other boys. Taylor was barking at the watching kids, clearing the crowd. Freddie stood beside Brad, watching her and Gibby, rubbing his fist. She smiled at him and mouthed a quick thank you.
"Come on, Gib, let's get you something for your eye." She said eventually and patted his shoulder.

/Flashback end./

"Sam? Sam!" Gibby waved his hand in front of her face.
"What?"
"You were totally spacing out. I said what do you think of self-made gelato to serve at Gibby's?"
"Oh, yeah, great idea." She said and smiled.
The break-up with Daniel had been a few weeks ago, before Gibby broke up with Tasha - which she thought was still a bit her fault, because she had cared for Gibby after that. She had been thankful and felt guilty for his black eye. After that, the wedgies and bullying lay off and they opened Gibby's were real friends and partners now and although the student population of Ridgeway still wasn't used to it, Sam didn't mind it and even appreciated the weird boy that had used to walk around shirtless.
"And how about some spaghetti tacos?"
"Whatever you want, Gib, whatever you want."