Chapter 8

Shay Apartment

It was approaching seven that night when the Shay family with Freddie and Sam were gathered around the kitchen table for dinner. It was slightly crowed and several additional chairs were needed, but the group fit around the table with the Colonel and Granddad sitting at opposite ends of the table. Carly and Freddie sat on one side and Sam and Spencer on the other. Sam even joked that Carly could always sit on Freddie's lap. Carly blushed for a moment and Freddie glared at Sam which just brought on a joyful laugh for the blonde.

However, it also brought a look of disapproval from Granddad Shay that he directed at his son. His son just returned a half grin to the white haired man. The younger Shay couldn't help but enjoy irritation that his father was feeling. He knew Taylor wouldn't approve, because this was his father, but then again… this was his father.

As the gathering began their meal to celebrate all the Shays under one roof, Granddad Shay looked to Freddie and asked, "So young man, what do you have planned for after you graduate?"

Freddie looked up from his meal and looked caught for a moment at the question. He recovered quickly and sat his fork down on his plate to reply, "I was thinking about several colleges, sir. I haven't decided specifically on a major yet, so that's playing a role and well now…" he looked to Carly and smiled, "Other recent 'developments' will affect my choices in schools."

"So where my granddaughter decides to go to school will affect your choice in which school you decide to attend?"

Freddie blinked at the bluntness of the question and looked to Carly for a moment to see her curious and hesitant look. Before Freddie could answer, Carly replied in a hesitant tone, "We haven't given it much thought granddad." She looked to Freddie for support and he obliged with a nod of his head. She continued, "We're still figuring out a lot things."

"I just hope you take the time to consider what is best for each of you and realize that may not be the same as going to the same university."

The brunette pair looked at each other with questioning looks about a possible future of being separated for four years after all they went through to just to get to this point in their relationship.

"They still have time to figure out what's best," Shay offered between bites of his food. "Being together during college and each getting the best degrees and education they want are not mutually exclusive choices."

Granddad Shay replied in surprise tone, "That's an interesting position for you to take about time considering your choices about going to college."

Shay grinned. "I going to college in the first place was in debatable choice at a time. Then of course things changed and well, it became different then what they're facing."

Sam asked in a curious tone. "How was it different?"

Shay's grin got bigger, "I was already married at the time when Taylor and I applied for college."

"Yes, rushing into marriage did limit your options."

Shay smirked. "You had me at twenty-three dad and since I'm not a bastard child, Taylor and I only had you and mom beat in getting married by what? Three, four years? You two got married while still in college."

Before the argument became any more heated, Freddie interrupted, "Mr. Granddad Shay, there is still Sam to consider. I thought maybe all three of us would go to the same college."

"Me college? I see Freddie is finally getting his sense of humor back," Sam grinned, but once she saw that Freddie wasn't even smiling, least long laughing, she lost her grin. Carly looked to Freddie was just as surprised.

"Don't count yourself out yet Samantha," Shay spoke up. He rubbed his stubble covered chin and chuckled, "I was not the most studious student when I went to high school, but I came back strong my senior year. I went on to college and graduated four years later with an engineering degree and a commission as a second lieutenant in the Air Force through the school's Air Force ROTC. At twenty-three I was flying an F-Fifteen C. So, you can surprise yourself in what you're capable of doing."

"You should have went back to get your masters," Granddad commented idly as he dug back into his meal.

"I already have two Master's Degrees dad," Shay replied with a raised eyebrow.

"But neither in engineering," Granddad commented before sipping his tea.

Shay replied in a cold tone, "Circumstances prevented that and you damn well know that."

"Yes, I know what put those plans on hold, but you've could have put in for retirement six years ago and went back to school for it," Granddad replied just as sternly.

"A stop-loss policy was in effect. They would have rejected my retirement even if I wanted to leave the service. We went into Iraq just a year and a half earlier; they weren't going to just let me go as an experienced officer when everything was still a mess. Even if they did, they reserve the right to reactivate me if necessary. We've been through this; why do you keep bringing it up? I get it: you never liked me joining the military."

"Maybe we should change the subject," the eldest Shay suggested with a sense of becoming uncomfortable with the direction of the conversation had gone.

"Yes, maybe we should," Shay commented with a hint of annoyance in his voice.

The rest of the meal went by with idle chatter about how the Shay children's lives had been going over the last few months and an edited version of how Freddie and Carly decided to start dating. Carly realized that maybe her granddad didn't need to know all the details.

After the meal, Granddad Shay was preparing to leave, he stopped at the door and stated, "I'll see you tomorrow."

Shay replied with a smile, "You don't have to do that dad. I know how much trouble it is to make the trip here."

"No trouble, I'm staying in the hotel across the street."

"Okay, but Spencer and I are going to the museum to set up the Metalbot in the morning. I don't know how exciting that will be for you."

"That's fine; I want to see his complete sculpture displayed." Granddad then looked to Spencer and Carly. "I'll see you both tomorrow, bye kids."

"Bye Granddad," Carly and Spencer echoed together.

The eldest Shay then looked to the Colonel, "Bye son."

"Bye dad," Shay said dryly then shut the door. "Thank God," Shay whispered with a shake of his head. He turned around to face the group and noticed Carly's surprise look evident on her face.

"Wow," Carly whispered as she looked at her dad.

"Your granddad and I do not see eye to eye on a great many things and neither of us likes to back down."

"I just didn't think it was like that. I mean that you and granddad have always been nice to one another," Carly explained still trying to figure out the real relationship between her father and grandfather.

Shay let out a breath. "Well, he started his mess up with you and Spencer with him wanting you to live with him and Spencer going to law school and obviously trying it with you and Freddie now, so the gloves had to come off. I can't let him start interfering like that; I had to put a stop to it right now. I didn't want you to see the problems I have with him. I didn't want you and Spencer to be caught up in our disagreements."

Carly nodded her head at the explanation.

Shay palmed his forehead for a moment and looked to the floor to gather his thoughts. He looked up to look at Carly and Freddie. "Carly, Freddie, you two will have to decide about which is the best way of being together and accomplishing what you want out of college: go to the same one or two different ones. I can't make that decision for either of you or really give you any helpful advice."

He looked to Sam. "Samantha, I don't know if you really want to go—"

"I can't afford college and let's face it: I'm not smart enough to get any kind of scholarship."

Shay patted her shoulder. "If you want to go to college with Carly or go to some technical or appropriate school that would be more helpful and useful in what you want to do in life, I will pay for it, but you have to pull up your grades now to be able to get into the school."

Sam blinked at him unable to respond to the offer. Shay waved her towards the kitchen. "Now go get yourself some dessert then I'll take you home."

May 1980

It was about dinner time when Steven pulled up into his driveway and into the garage. He turned off the ignition and put the kickstand down before hopping off the motorcycle.

His father was already preparing dinner as Steven walked into the kitchen.

"Where have you been?" Greg asked as he was cooking over the stove.

"School," he replied flippantly as he hung up his jacket.

Greg rolled is eyes up to the ceiling then closed them releasing a sigh. "I mean after school."

Steven shook his head as he took a seat at the dinner table, "I've been out."

"Where?"

"Places," he replied then took a sip from his drink already on the table.

"Steven Shay," Greg stated his son's name in a tone that he was tired of his son's evasive answers.

Steven rolled his eyes. "I hung out with my friends after school; you know the same as always."

"Is that all you do? Hang out with a bunch of losers?"

"Those losers are my friends. What's the big deal?"

"Because you could be doing something more with your life than paling around with a bunch of hooligans."

"Whatever you say dad."

Greg turned his attention back to the stove finishing the cooking. "Have you seen that Dorfman girl?"

Steven cocked an eyebrow, "I've seen her in passing."

"Is she doing alright?"

Steven shrugged a shoulder. "I guess. She seems the same way she's always been: quiet and keeps to herself."

"So no one else has bothered her?"

Steven blinked for a moment caught off guard by the question. He finally replied darkly, "Only if they don't have any sense."

"What's that suppose to mean?" the elder Shay asked as he brought the food to the table.

"It means that anyone that tired to bother her would have to be stupid after what happened to Evan."

After Greg took his seat he asked, "You're going to fight anyone that bothers her now?"

Steven immediately dug into his meal, since he hadn't eaten since lunch and didn't go to his usual afternoon hangouts to get a quick meal. "Don't have to fight anyone else. People would just be afraid of having to fight me so no one is going to mess with her. I never have to lift a finger."

"So you think making people afraid of you is the answer?"

Between bites of his food, Steven asked, "Isn't that how adults keep us kids in line? Fear?"

"That's different. We're adults and you're the children."

"So what are we 'children' suppose to do when the adults refuse to do their jobs? Revert to the kids from Lord of the Flies? If that's the case, I don't intend to turn out like Simon or Piggy… and I'm not going to let her be either of them either."

Greg leaned back in his chair at the dinner table with evident surprise displayed in his face. "I wasn't aware that you were familiar with the story."

"I'm lazy dad, not stupid. I can read."

Greg took a deep breath and sighed, "Reading has never been your problem. How are you doing in math?"

Steven shrugged a shoulder as he replied, "Probably low C."

"You just can't get by that way."

"Don't you worry pops, I'll graduate," Steven replied as he was still chewing his food.

"I'd prefer it wasn't at the bottom of your class," Greg shook his head in disgust.

"You're a laugh riot dad," Steven smirked at his father.

"You flunking out of high school isn't funny. How do you expect to go to college?"

Steven laughed, "I'm not going to flunk out of school and I don't expect to go to college. Why do I want to be some egg head or some frat boy?"

"So what do you expect to do then?"

"I haven't figured that out yet, but when I do, I'll let you know," he answered with a smile. Steven finished the last of the food on his plate and complimented, "That was great dad." He then stood up from the table and headed up to his room while shouting back, "Later pops."

Shay Apartment

September 2011

It was an hour later after dinner when Carly and Freddie were laying on her bed staring up at the ceiling. Carly had her head resting on Freddie's right shoulder and his arm around her waist with their fingers laced with one another. The speakers on each side of the bed's headboard were softly playing music.

Carly whispered breaking the silence the two shared resting on the bed, "So you would apply to the same colleges I would just so we could be together?"

"Before… this," he whispered pulling her tighter against him for a moment, "I was going to anyway."

"I really hadn't given it much thought. I didn't think that this time next year everything would be different: no more Ridgeway, no more hanging out after school… no more iCarly. That's kind of scary."

"I know, but we have each other and Sam to see us through it."

Carly gripped her hand tighter with their laced fingers and asked, "So you meant it about Sam?"

"She's your best friend and she's my… well we're still figuring that out. Anyway, why wouldn't it come up that she'd go to college with you? You two being roommates might be funny since I remember the stories you told me when she stayed here when she was on the outs with her mother."

Carly let out a laugh. "She left her panties on the stairway banister."

"I didn't need to know that detail," he replied embarrassingly and Carly noticed that his face started turning red.

Carly just chuckled at Freddie's embarrass look. "I wonder what you'd look like if you found my panties on the stairway banister."

Freddie's face got redder and he just shook his head. "That's not funny Carls," he replied trying to hold back a laugh.

She turned her head and kissed his cheek. Freddie turned his head to look at her and the brunette grinned and whispered, "Do you know you're adorable when you're embarrassed?"

Freddie just broke out laughing. After a few moments he caught his breath and replied, "Well come to think about it, you have dug through my draws and found my underwear before my socks to use as a blindfold, so if I see yours it would only be fair. Not while you're wearing them of course."

Carly's pale cheeks instantly blushed and it was Freddie's turn to grin. She just rolled slightly to hide her face in his shoulder, but gave him the opportunity to kiss her right temple.

In Route to Puckett Residence

Shay leaned his head on his left hand as his elbow propped up his head from the driver's side door as he drove the SUV towards Sam's home. Sam was just looking out the passenger door window seeing the buildings passing by as the vehicle traveled down the various streets.

"Were you serious about college?" she asked breaking the silence.

"Yes I am. If going to the same college as Carly is what you think will help you the most in whatever future career you want then I'll pay for it."

"Why?"

"Because I care," he replied distractedly.

"I'm not your daughter," Sam whispered and Shay thought he heard a hint of regret in her voice.

He glanced at the blonde from the corner of his eye for a moment and replied, "Close enough for me."

The trouble maker just blinked and looked at him for a moment before turning her attention to look straight ahead. After a few minutes she asked, "Do you really have two Master's Degrees or was that a bunch a chizz?"

"No, it wasn't a bunch of 'chizz'. I have a Master of Military Operational Art and Science from Staff College and a Master of Strategic Studies from the Air War College. I worked my tail off for them and I worked on the second on in a war zone at the time. I already told you what I was like at your age, so I don't want to hear any bullshit excuses from you about being stupid and can't get into college and actually succeed. If you can't make it in to stay with Carly and Freddie then the only one you can blame is yourself for being lazy, not because you can't afford it."

"If you're so smart, are you going to be a general one day?"

Shay shrugged his right shoulder. "Well… we'll just have to see the next nomination list."