Finally, an update! I hope it's worth the wait. The next one won't take as long and the more reviews I get on this chapter, the quicker I will post it! Thanks for all the reviews I've gotten so far!! :) Each one is like a hug from a friend...

------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next afternoon, Carly and Freddie met up at the Groovy Smoothie.

"So, you still have no idea why Sam's been acting so weird?" Carly asked, poking around a pickle on her plate she had really not wanted to buy.

"I…think she's mad I'm so much smarter than her..?" Freddie replied, because that was honestly his best guess.

The iCarly star stared at him, completely disappointed with his obviously wrong assumption, "C'mon, Freddie! Does that really sound like Sam?!"

"Well, does any of this really sound like Sam?" He shot back. Carly could only shrug so he went on, "I just wish there was something I could do to help…but it probably has nothing to do with me. But I want my best friend back! I miss her smile."

"I know," Carly nodded, "But we've done everything we can, so, maybe we should just enjoy our time together."

He gently took her hand in his, "I love our time together."

"Aww, Freddie!"

"Uggghh, can you ever say anything else besides that??" He groaned, tossing her hand aside.

"What??"

"Nothing," The frustrated boy just shrugged. And suddenly, the 2 found they had nothing else to say, leaving Freddie to wonder where the magic in their relationship had gone. Wasn't this everything he'd wanted?

Thankfully, the uncomfortable silence between them was broken as "Stay My Baby" blasted from Carly's cell phone. She read who was calling and quickly hit ignore, looking back at Freddie like nothing had happened. But the call was followed up by a text. Finally, tired of her leg vibrating, she opened it. Skimming it over, a slight smile crawled over her lips.

"Who's it from? What's it say?" He leaned over, trying to see.

She snapped her phone shut immediately. "Oh, uh, just Spencer. He wants me to go see his new invention…the Derfinator 2000. Catch ya later." With a quick peck goodbye, she was off, waving to Sam on her way out.

"I so wish I'd walked in here 5 seconds later," Confessed Sam aloud. Not only had Freddie broken her heart but with every kiss, he was crushing it into a few more pieces.

"Aww, aren't you 2 just adorable?" She commented as she took a seat, wondering how clearly her sarcasm was shining through.

He shrugged, dozens of thoughts colliding together in his head. She hoped to God she just might be in even one.

"What? Isn't Carly supposed to be your true love or something?" She silently begged he'd shake his head and just reach over and hold her until everything was okay again.

"I don't know," The quiet brunette mumbled, kicking the floor with his shoe, "It's just..going out with Carly…it's not as great as I'd thought it'd be."

She froze, torn between shock and joy and wanting to keep it all hidden. That was almost as good as what she'd hoped for. Carly was disappointing him. Sam swore, right then and there, that, if given the chance, she would never let him down.

"I-it's even kind of boring," He continued, "I try to be this perfect, romantic boyfriend and all she does is sit there and go, 'Aww, Freddie!'" He mockingly imitated.

Sam couldn't help but crack up, "That's all?"

He nodded hopelessly, "Well, sometimes, she stands and says it. Oh, and once, she rubbed peanut butter on my face. Sweet, huh?"

Again, she laughed, grateful to finally have a reason to. "What's she supposed to do? Add some jelly?"

Freddie looked up at her with an adorable grin. "Maybe, for once, after I compliment her, she could reply by saying something good about me?" He suggested.

"Uh? How could can she do that when there's nothing good to say?" The blonde insulted him out of forced habit. "What do you expect to hear? That your hair is the softest she's ever felt? Or you smell amazing? That your eyes light up when you smile?" She came closer, getting lost in them, as she listed off all the things she loved about him, "Or when she gets this close to you, she can barely catch her breath…"

"Really?"

"No." Sam answered coldly, sitting back in her seat, "That's why she doesn't say it. Chayea!" She focused back on Carly's smoothie she would generously finish for her.

Freddie stared at her, confused, "…Were those things you said to Griffin?" And for a second, he felt like he'd just solved the whole puzzle, "Is that why you're mad? Because he dumped you?"

A gulp of smoothie hit rewind and sprayed straight out of her mouth, "He didn't dump me!! I broke up with him!"

"What? Why?? I thought everything was perfect between you two," He reached for a napkin to wipe off a few drops of smoothie from his arm.

"But it wasn't, okay? It just wasn't."

"Well, he blew it," He told her, getting up, "Anyway, I gotta get home."

She just sat there as he began to walk away, then realized she couldn't, "No, wait, don't go!!" She yelled, finally saying what she was thinking. "I mean, I'll walk with you."

On their little stroll together, they decided to stop at a bridge and climbed up on the rail. They sat there, laughing and skipping rocks in the water, and as Sam stared down at the reflection of them side by side, she knew that was exactly the way it was supposed to be.

"Will you make me a promise?" She said, taking a break from all the inside jokes.

"Within reason," Freddie answered, still chuckling.

"That next time me, you, and Carly are together, you guys won't meet up for a game of tonsil hockey right in front of me," She gagged.

He was taken aback a little at that, "...You know, Sam, I can kiss Carly a million times. You'll still always be my first."

"But I don't want to just be your first. I want to be your first, last, and forever..."

"So, do you promise??"

"Uh? I guess…if it bothers you that much," He said, though not seeing why, "But Carly and I are going out. Of course we're gonna---" He stopped, noticing how she was just staring down, looking more repulsed at every word he said, "Wait…is that it??"

"Is what it, Queerbait?"

He totally ignored her diss because he couldn't wait to ask, "Samantha Puckett…are you jealous?"

"…Jealous? JEALOUS?!?!?!?!?!?!" She screamed and shoved him over into the water.

"Oh no..." She whispered to herself, "Please don't die, Freddie."