Hello! Sorry (again) for the delay, I'm super super busy.

This is the second part of the mini-arc, though if you don't like arcs, just ignore I ever said that, b/c, truthfully, it fits in just like a normal chapter. If you do like arcs, then hopefully you'll like this! :)

IMPORTANT: I am NOT going to stop writing this story. There may be annoying breaks in between postings when I get busy, but the chapters will continue to come. I try to post as often as I can, but unfortunately that isn't as frequently as I wish it was. I also need time to plan chapters so they're not all horrible. But don't worry, Sam's still adding firsts to her list. :D

Chapter 19: My First Battle

"Thanks." I slid the burrito off of the counter, folding my hand over the change and making my way over to a booth with Carly and Freddie.

I sat down next to Carly, leaving Freddie to sit on the other side of the table. After sitting down, I regretted my decision, realizing I was going to have to look at Freddie now. Angling myself just so, I looked up at Carly, Freddie's figure blocked out of my vision by the hair on the side of my head.

"This burrito looks delicious." Without any hesitation, I looked down at my food and started eating.

The entire meal passed in a blur, and it felt like it went on forever. Carly and Freddie talked a lot about nothing in particular, and I answered questions whenever asked. But I wasn't in the mood for talking; I was just too confused. Luckily, my burrito was a good excuse to stay silent. So was my second. And my third.

"I can't believe she said no," Carly turned around in shock as she unlocked the door to her apartment.

"Yeah, me neither. But I guess she just flipped out and walked away." Freddie shook his head, chuckling.

"That chick's crazy," I added, walking through the doorway.

"I didn't think anyone would ever turn down an offer like that, but I guess she did."

"Ugh," I sighed, slouching onto the couch. "I don't understand."

"I doubt anyone ever will," Carly sat down next to me. "So, what's everyone up to tonight?"

"Nothing."

"I'm not doing anything either. It's spring break and I'm not going anywhere. None of us are."

"Good point. Well, you guys can just hang here if you want."

"Sounds good to me," I lied. It was tricky enough trying to deal with my feelings and decide what to do about them, but trying to do so was a billion times harder while hanging out with Freddie.

"Sure. It's not exactly a long journey home, but I don't have anything to do anyway," Freddie shrugged.

After a few awkward moments of silence, Carly spoke up, "we could go plan things for iCarly."

Freddie groaned.

"What?"

"Nothing. It's just that you two do all the planning, so I'd be stuck with nothing to do."

"Oh, suck it up Benson. Life isn't fun all the time. Once in a while you have to sit there and do nothing, just like I used to do when I was really young and my mom brought me along on her dates."

Freddie and Carly gave me skeptical yet apologetic looks.

"On a different note," Carly continued, a little flustered. "We could watch a movie."

"Yeah, um, what about the new movie with that guy in it?"

"Sam, that describes like every new movie out there."

"Sorry that I don't pay attention to commercials!"

"You know what? Why don't we just go to the movie theater and buy tickets to the first movie we see a poster for?"

"That could be fun," I lightened up. Sitting in the dark and not having to do any small talk sounded like the perfect excuse to ignore Freddie (and my feelings for him).

"Um, one ticket to…" Carly turned around. "What does that poster say?" She pointed to the poster closest to her.

"Dragons and Doughnuts."

"What is it even about?"

"I don't know; this is the first time I've heard of it."

"Well, we have to stick to the plan." She turned back to the man behind the counter, who was getting impatient, "one ticket to 'Dragons and Doughnuts' please." She flashed him a smile and he slid her ticket under the slot.

"And for you two?"

"I'll have a ticket to 'Dragons and Doughnuts.'" I stood, impatiently waiting for the man to give me my ticket.

"Are you two together?" He motioned between Freddie and me, who were standing relatively close while Carly made her way to the popcorn line.

"Uh, yeah? I guess so? We came together, if that's what you mean." Stupid, stupid, stupid. That's obviously not what he meant. I ridiculed myself, realizing my mistake too late.

"Well we're having a special Spring Break Saturday Special for couples. If you-"

"Ew, no. We are not a couple." I glared at the man with a gaze that could most likely saw into the Earth's core. I stuck out my hand, and he hastily placed my ticket into my grasp, hurriedly doing the same for Freddie.

Silently, the two of us joined Carly on line.

"Got your tickets?" She turned to us.

Freddie and I awkwardly avoided each other's gazes while shifting awkwardly.

"Um, yep. All set. Now all we need is tons of food!" I changed the topic, trying to figure out how much food I could get for all of the money I had with me.

"Next!" Carly walked up to the lady at the counter, smiling sweetly as she ordered a soda and large popcorn for all of us to share.

After she was done, Freddie ordered a soda for himself, and then I did the same, adding on several boxes of candy and an ice cream cone. One can never have too many snacks in a movie theater.

We made our way into the theater, totally unaware of what to expect.

Seating ourselves in the middle section, a bit to the right, the three of us watched the trailers.

"That looks so cute!" Carly squealed after a rom-com trailer played.

Freddie looked at her, shaking his head.

"Don't make fun of me." Carly pretended to pout.

"No offense, Carls, but you may be seeing that one on your own."

"But you went with me to see The First Kiss."

"Yeah, but neither of us thought it'd be good. You're actually excited about this movie."

"Maybe you'll change your mind."

"Doubtful."

"For your best friend?" Carly looked at me with pleading eyes.

"Stop playing the best friend card," I pretended to be upset. But she smiled victoriously, knowing I'd go with her. There are only so many things for saying 'no' to when your best friend asks, and this was just not worth it.

The lights dimmed and I relaxed in my seat, finishing off my ice cream cone.

About halfway through the movie, I reached for the popcorn, which for some reason wasn't on my lap anymore. When I turned to get it, I saw Freddie, and, though I saw him all the time, I felt a wrenching feeling in my stomach. Pretending I had to go to the bathroom, I got up. The movie was awful anyway, so it wasn't like I was missing anything.

Standing in the lobby, I thought through what had happened. I had to make a decision. I had to make it soon. Otherwise I'd be left confusing and torturing myself for too long, and probably end up in a mental hospital or something annoying like that.

"Sam?" Great. "What're you doing out here?"

"I went to the bathroom, and then I was trying to figure out if I wanted to get a slushy or –" I paused. "Wait a minute. What are you doing out here?"

Carly looked at the floor, embarrassed. "That movie's so awful, I had to get out. I said I had to go to the bathroom, but I just didn't want to watch it anymore."

"You left Freddie in there to deal with it himself?" I wasn't worried. No, I definitely wasn't worried. I don't care about Freddie. I don't care about Freddie. Now I have to repeat it 100 times so it sticks. I'm hopeless.

For a minute, Carly looked worried, but then she calmed down, "No, he fell asleep right before I left."

The two of us laughed, realizing how weird this situation was. Despite the fact that the movie was terrible, I was actually having a good time.

"Here the two of us are, standing in the movie theater lobby, trying to escape some random movie we picked on a whim. Freddie's asleep, and it's spring break." Carly looked at me mischievously, with the glimmer in her eyes that only showed when she was planning something that involved doing random things and me.

"What're you thinking?"

"Wanna ditch the rest of the movie?"

"I certainly don't want to watch any more of it. But where could we go?"

"Nowhere. Let's just hang out here."

"In the movie theater lobby?"

"Sam, where'd your sense of adventure go?"

"This doesn't seem very adventurous."

"It's more fun than watching Dragons and Doughnuts."

"You've got that right. So, Ms. Shay, what do you have in store for us?"

Carly motioned forward, "follow me." Shrugging, I went along with her.

"Yes, hello again," Carly smiled at the snack lady once more. "May I please have two large slushies, and five boxes of assorted candies? A small popcorn too, please." Pulling out her wallet, Carly kept smiling; ignoring the weird looks the cashier gave her.

"That woman must think I'm such a pig," she face me again, her hands piled with treats. I laughed, but I still eyed her curiously, unsure of her plan.

Carly led me over to the window, and sat on the bench in front of it, laying all of the food out in front of us. I sat down too, reviewing all of her purchases.

"So, I figured we could just eat tons of food out here. It'll be like watching a movie in theaters, except, without the movie."

As weird as her idea would sound to most people, it sounded perfect to me. Carly and I had the weirdest friendship, and we had no problem doing random things like this together.

The hour passed while we snacked and talked. It was great to hang out like this, and, she pointed out, we hadn't been doing so enough lately. There's nothing more important than best friends, and if our quasi-movie watching evening didn't prove that, then I don't know what would.

"Where'd you guys go? I know girls take a long time in the bathroom, but I'm pretty sure that no one takes an hour in there." Freddie rubbed his eyes.

"Tired, Benson?" Carly and I had made sure to get rid of all the traces of our mini-adventure before the movie ended.

"It is getting late." What a lame excuse.

"Please, Frednub; it's 9:30. You just don't want to admit you slept through the movie."

"I- You know what? If you two can spend half of the time in the bathroom, then I should be allowed to take a nap. That movie was awful."

"You have to admit," Carly said. "It still kind of was a fun night."

Freddie and I nodded. It really had been a great night, even though the movie wasn't any good.

Stumbling into my room, I wiped my eyes, unable to stop myself from yawning. I had gone back to the Shay apartment, but before long I was too tired to do much, and for some strange reason, I went back to my house.

On my way to bed, I bumped into my dresser. Turning around, I faced my mirror. I tried moving my hair around a bit so it would look more normal, before giving up, realizing I was just going to sleep anyway.

But before I continued to bed, I shifted closer to the wall, pushing aside my mirror.

I glanced down at my list, skimming through all of the entries until my eyes settled on the last one.

March 16th, 2010: My First Love (Freddie Benson)

I had added it a little while ago, but I hadn't looked at it since the realization.

Am I going to tell him or not?

So much was at risk either way. What was I supposed to do? Even though the moments right before you fall asleep aren't necessarily your most comprehensive times, it was right then that I made my decision.

What am I going to do about my love for Freddie?

The answer was clear.

DUNDUNDUN... I'm so mean. :P

I hope you liked this chapter, please comment and tell me what you think!

In case it was unclear, the "battle" mentioned in the title is Sam's inner battle (aka her decision on what to do about her feelings). Kind of cheesy, I know.

Thank you so much for reading!