o O o

As was his custom, Freddie let himself in to the Shay apartment Thursday morning to escort Carly to school. Well, HE thought of it as escorting; Carly probably thought of it as two friends traveling in the same direction. He joined her at the counter as she finished her obligatory coffee.

"Good morning Sunshine, are you ready to roll?"

"Sunshine?" she questioned with a smile. Freddie was so comfortable and familiar; sometimes she forgot that he was patiently waiting to be something else. That something else was on the back burner, but every once in a while he turned it up just a little bit to remind her that it was still there.

"Did I say that out loud?" he replied easily, pouring himself a cup. He took a sip and made a face. "I know Spencer insists on decaf, but couldn't he at least pick a palatable flavor? What is this anyway?"

"Brazilian Maple Bacon. Spencer bought it for Sam. "

"Well let Sam drink it then," he groused, pouring it out in the sink. "I fail to see why it should be foisted on you; it's horrid. And she's not even h-" he paused mid-word as Sam strolled up behind him.

"Dissing my joe Benson?" she asked archly.

"Good morning to you too, Princess," he replied sarcastically. "I guess it's the thought that counts, but frankly I'd rather drink my mother's medicinal tea than this stuff."

Her Puckett scowl dissolved into a grin. "I know, right? I didn't have the heart to tell him that it's awful." She continued in a conspiratorial whisper, "If we leave now, we still have time to stop at Skybucks…"

"Carly, let's move," Freddie ordered, "there's a Cinnamon Dolce Latte calling my name."

"So bossy HB," she tossed back, but didn't object when his hand found the small of her back to urge her towards the door.

"HB?" Sam inquired, curious.

Carly started to reply but Freddie shook his head. He'd never hear the end of it if Sam found out about the High Browed Heart Throb. "Just a joke," he replied smoothly, "Let's go ladies; time's wasting."

"You two go ahead; I'll catch up in a minute." Sam dashed back down the hall. Freddie shrugged and ushered Carly out.

"She got up awfully early to be here in time for coffee this morning," he commented idly as they moved towards the elevator.

"That's because she never left. Spencer moved her in last night."

Freddie stopped with his hand hovering over the call button. "You're serious? I guess I should say he's serious? " He had to tread carefully; as far as Carly knew, his knowledge of the relationship was limited to what she'd told him – namely, that Spencer and Sam were 'an item.' "Did he just want to get her away from Pam, or…"

"Oh no," she shook her head. "Nothing to do with her parent – probably a lot to do with ours. He's beyond serious Freddie; Spencer's dated plenty of women over the years but I've never seen him like this. Sam is the focal point that he's rallying around – it's like he sees something in her that's waking him up. He's been idling all this time – in some kind of waiting place, because he had to take care of me. I can feel the gears shifting; I'm just afraid of what happens when he finally decides to go full throttle."

"You don't approve of the two of them then?"

"I'm fine with them Freddie; I just didn't get a chance to tell you the rest of what happened last night. Granddad called – Dad's coming home." The worried look on her face belied what should have been happy news.

"From your tone, I'm guessing that Dad will NOT be fine with them?"

"Dad will not be fine with a lot of things. He and Spencer have a somewhat antagonistic relationship to begin with. I want to support them – Spencer's always been there for me, but I hate that there have to be sides at all." There was a catch in her voice when she finished, "Our family isn't that big Freddie…"

"Don't cloud up and rain Sunshine," he soothed, putting his arms around her. He was surprised when she didn't pull away. "It will all work out. " From the corner of his eye he saw Sam approaching. "From what I can see, Spencer really loves Sam. If she's even half as good for him as he is for her, that's bound to come through to your father."

"It would be different if Mom were here. I MISS her Freddie, and I miss Dad too, and I'm afraid he's going to make Spencer leave and then I'll have to miss Spencer AND Sam, because she'll follow him; I know she will."

Sam hesitated in the hall – Carly rested her head on Freddie's shoulder as he glanced her way. She met his gaze with an inquiring look of her own. Should I keep on coming? He nodded her over, speaking softly to Carly.

"Carly, the good thing about this is that we all get to play grown up now. If Spencer and Sam leave, they're only leaving Bushwell. They're not going to disappear from our lives - no one will be able to make them. Believe me, I understand how you feel about your family – mine isn't so big either. Spencer and Sam are important to me too. One thing will still be true, no matter what happens. All of those people – your father, Spencer, Sam…and me, we'll all still love you."

"What's up amigos?" Sam questioned cautiously.

"Carly's worried about what will go down when her father comes home. "

Sam straightened, unconsciously clenching her fists. "I would say that's entirely up to him."

A small sob escaped Carly. "That's exactly what Spencer said…"

"You got room for me Freddie?"

He opened an arm without comment, allowing Sam to join them. With their heads put together in their own little prayer circle, Freddie was surprised once again when Sam gave voice to the very thoughts that were in his head. "Carls, he's worried too, ok? We – you, Spencer, Freddie, me – we're all in the same boat. For different reasons none of us have a father who's ever been around. Spencer needs something from your dad. You need something from your dad. On the one hand, they're the same things. On the other hand, they're not. I understand that. I don't know if either of you will get those things, but I can see what kind of place you're in right now. Even though we hope you're on our side, Carly, I promise that we're never going to ask you to choose between us and your father. Our fight isn't your fight. We're going to be who we are, but who we are loves you either way."

"Let's just wait and see what happens Carly," Freddie suggested. "Sometimes people can surprise you." Locking eyes with Sam, he caught the small smile that flitted across her face. Sometimes people did.