


Choosing is Overrated

by Spectator101



Category: iCarly
Genre: Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2009-03-22
Updated: 2009-03-22
Packaged: 2013-08-12 23:13:27
Rating: T
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,116
Publisher: www.fanfiction.net
Story URL: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4940314/1/
Author URL: http://www.fanfiction.net/u/1190796/Spectator101
Summary: It all started when Carly and Sam stumbled upon a very racy video of Spencer, Drake Parker—yes, the Drake Parker—and his manager Josh Nichols. And the next thing Carly knew she was kissing Freddie with Sam’s eyes on her. Carly/Sam/Freddie threesome





	1. Part I

**Title: **Choosing Is Overrated.

**Pairings:** Cam, Carly/Freddie/Sam threesome and mentioned Drake/Josh/Spencer threesome.

**Rating**: PG-13 (just for a steamy kiss or two and inappropriate video watching.)

**Disclaimer:** I don't own iCarly or Drake & Josh.

**Summary:** It all started when Carly and Sam stumbled upon a very racy video of Spencer, Drake Parker—yes, _the_ Drake Parker—and his manger Josh Nichols. And the next thing Carly knew she was kissing Freddie with Sam's eyes on her.

**Author's Note: **I wrote this a while ago but never had the guts to post it here. Don't be too harsh on me! It's my first iCarly fic. Also, in this world Drake Parker is a rock star and Josh is his manager.

_Part I _

When Carly thought about it, she wasn't sure why she was all that surprised. It was _Sam_ after all. Between her state of utter panic and her state of shock as she actually went along with it—Carly vaguely realized that she should have really expected this. She should've known as soon as they watched that stupid video things would change.

But no matter how many times she told herself that, she still couldn't believe that this was _actually_ happening.

And she would always refuse to admit what _this_ was exactly.

-x-x-

There was always something about her older brother's room that made her friends always want to poke around and see what was inside. To Carly it was nothing special, just a little messy, and always dim either because the light was broken or Spencer never changed the light bulb. He had his reasons or maybe he had no reasons at all—Carly never bothered to ask why, she just accepted things as they were.

But to her friends, Spencer's room was cool and mysterious. Carly didn't see any mystery. She knew her brother was interesting but there was no secrecy surrounding him. Carly was pretty sure she knew everything there was about Spencer. Everything.

"Oh, what's this?" Sam asked, holding up a shoe made out of clay.

"Sam," Carly said, giving her tired look, "We're supposed to be finding videos of us as kids, not random stuff my brother made."

"But it says made it china," Sam said in her _duh_ voice. Carly made an annoyed sound as she took the shoe away from her. Sam just shrugged and continued to rummage through Spencer's room.

After placing the shoe back on her brother's dresser, Carly turned around and found Sam with the other clay shoe, swinging it around in one hand with a silly smile on her face.

Carly laughed, "Come on," she said, taking the other shoe from her and dragging her to the box of videos on the floor. She tossed the shoe on her brother's bed and knelt down to the wide box while Sam plopped down next to her.

"You really think Spencer has videos of us when we were little?" Sam asked, taking a chunk of video tapes and setting them on her lap.

Carly shrugged, "I think so," she said, then she looked uncertainly at the box, "Actually, I'm not even sure." She wasn't even sure if she was supposed to be looking through Spencer's videos.

They wanted to get clips of themselves as kids for their webshow. Sam thought it would funny to dub their kiddie voices with their older voices and make random statements. And then they found themselves in Spencer's room trying to find videos of when they were just tiny Carly and tiny Sam.

"Hey, he has DVDs," Sam said excitedly, pulling out so many discs that they all slipped and slid onto the floor, some rolling away from them.

Catching one DVD just before it rolled right under the bed, Carly looked at the scratched disc curiously. Her brother's handwriting was barely legible as it read 'Night in L.A.'

"Whelp, I'm hungry," Sam announced, getting up and brushing her jeans.

"Wait! We just started," Carly jumped, "At least help me get all the videos in the living room so we can watch them."

"We can do that later, come on," Sam begged, "I'm feelin' beef jerky time and you know I like it when you feed me it."

"I'm not feeding you _anything_ again," Carly said sternly, "You almost bit off my fingers last time," she looked down at her poor fingers as if remembering the incident.

"I said I was sorry," Sam pouted. "Come _on_," She was practically bouncing in place.

Carly sighed as if she was being put upon, but then she felt herself smile as Sam pulled her up to her feet.

She honestly didn't know when this sort of relationship she had with Sam started.

During the last year of middle school, Sam went through this weird phase of keeping her hair straight. All of sudden Sam would spend time every single morning straightening her hair. It had been a month maybe two before Carly once mentioned that she missed Sam's curls. Carly didn't even realize Sam had really listened to her until the next day when Sam came through her door like always, yet, this time she had her hair all curly again. It was as if nothing really changed but everything did change and it all happened at the same exact time. It was one of those weird things they never talked about but they both knew it happened. And it always remained between them.

At least, that was what Carly thought. And when Carly had realized just how much she had thought about it—that one incident that Sam seemed to never show any signs of remembering—Carly started to feel things that you just weren't supposed to feel for your best-friend, your _girl_ best-friend.

Then when high school started, everything that Carly wouldn't normally notice started becoming really hard to ignore. Like Sam leaning on her, hugging her, placing her head on Carly's shoulder, sleeping on her, any small touch, brush of hands or clothes—Carly was acutely aware of it all.

And then one day out of the blue Sam kissed her, it was random and short and in the middle of a crowded hallway at school. Sam just kissed her and then mentioned something about Carly's lip gloss tasting good before walking away.

And all of a sudden Carly was in a relationship with her _girl_ best-friend.

Carly Shay had herself a girlfriend.

"Hey, what's that?" Sam said, startling Carly out her thoughts. Sam was looking down at her hand.

Carly blinked. "What?" She looked down and noticed the disc in her hand. "Oh, I don't know," she said, twirling the disc in her hand slowly, "It must be something Spencer filmed or something."

Sam took the disc from the other girl, looking at it curiously, "Hm, let's watch."

"I don't know, it doesn't have anything to do with us, so let's just put it back," Carly said reaching for the disc but Sam leaned back and the disc was out of reach.

"Wait just a second," Sam said, leaning even further back as Carly stretched to get the DVD.

"Sam, just give me the—"

"Hold on, I just wanna know what's in it," Sam was already heading into the living room, leaving Carly standing in her brother's room, alone.

"Sam!" Carly yelled. Then she sighed, picking up the box of videos and following the blonde.

Sam was already on the couch, chewing on beef jerky as the video started playing. Carly dropped the box by the couch. She looked at Sam and heaved another sigh but Sam didn't seem to notice, so Carly just resigned and sat next her.

The screen was dark and for a moment Carly thought the video was too scratched up to work but then she heard voices.

One voice whispered, "Is it on?"

"I know how to work a camera, you know," Another voice replied.

They heard shuffling, clicks, then after a moment a sigh, "Let me have look at it."

"_No_," the annoyed voice said, "Alright, I got it."

"Come on, give it here."

"No, Drake, Let go."

Sam perked up at the name and Carly looked confused.

The screen was now blue. It was fabric, royal blue and shiny. And then the shot zoomed out and revealed it was pair of boxers, a guy _in_ a pair of boxers.

"What are you—d-don't get a close up of that!" The annoyed voice said. He was shifting his feet, and covering his boxers with one hand.

"Hey, that's why we're making this, right?" The voice was silky.

A disgruntled sound was made in response while someone else in the background started sniggering.

Suddenly the scene was shaking. The camera was making jerky movements as it was shifted around. Finally it settled. The only thing the girls saw was a bed, empty and made, inside a dimly lit room covered in really tacky wall paper. It must have been a motel.

Suddenly, a vaguely familiar guy, head full of dark hair, bright blue-green eyes looked into the camera, his whole head taking up the screen. He looked a little peeved as he poked the inside of his cheek with his tongue.

"He's cute," Sam mentioned, leaning forward.

"Yeah," Carly said, trying to figure out who he was. He looked so familiar but she couldn't place a face with a name.

They heard hushed voices behind the camera, and then the silky voice whispered, "Get him to relax a little."

Sam edged closer to the screen on the couch, Carly watched her from the corner of her eye before turning to the screen, curiously watching this man.

There was a steady flush rising in his cheeks but they couldn't see anything but his face, his eyes were turning bluer and bluer and his lips parted. He looked down and then he shut his eyes tightly.

Carly blushed. _What are we watching?_

"Relaxed?" The silky voice said slyly. And Carly was so curious. Who was the guy filming this? What was her brother doing with this video?

"Uh huh," The dark-haired male sounded dazed as he looked back at the camera with clouded blue eyes.

Suddenly another face came into the screen as it zoomed out, someone with a lot of brown hair, kissed him, and then he gave a cheesy smile to the camera when he turned around.

Both girls gasped in unison, "Spencer."

"Maybe we should stop watching this," Carly said, becoming nervous as she watched Spencer pulling this other familiar man on the bed.

"Wait, I just wanna see who the other guy is," Sam said, placing her hand on Carly's arm just as Carly was about to get up. Sam wasn't even looking at her. She was so focused on the scene, and Carly reluctantly let the video keep playing even as she nervously bit her lip.

Spencer looked slightly younger and his hair was a little longer, Carly figured it was only a couple of years ago. He was lying back on his elbows, ankles crossed, on the bed. "Hey we gonna do this or what?" Spencer said with silly grin. The other man jumped off the bed and began pacing back and forth.

Sam let out a laugh, "Man," she said shaking her head with wonder and amusement, "Does Spencer always wear those socks?"

Carly was about to say something but then she found herself watching the video as someone started speaking again.

"Am I the only one who thinks this is a bad idea?" The dark-haired man said, standing beside the bed awkwardly, "Like a really stupid, idiotic idea—"

Spencer was smiling at the camera or more like the person behind the camera, exchanging a conspiratorial look. And finally, a slimmer, slightly shorter male stepped in front of the camera, his back the only sight of him. Only in a pair of ruby red boxers, he reached up and kissed the reluctant man.

"Drake Parker?!" Sam screamed. She was screaming and shaking and giggling while Carly sat still and silent, shocked beyond belief.

The sight of Drake Parker next to him, Carly instantly recognized the other man, "Josh Nichols?" And suddenly, images of Josh Nichols with Drake Parker flashed through her mind, pictures of both males after concerts in magazines, sitting next to each other in award shows, paparazzi following them into cars and limos and restaurants. And Carly realized she never made the connection. She was so busy looking at Drake Parker, yes, _the_ Drake Parker that she never noticed his manager. She never thought twice about how they were _always_ together—how Josh always remained in the background.

Carly's eyes bulged, "Oh…my….god…"

Drake was winking at the camera, and then Josh was kissing him, and her brother…her brother was watching them on the bed with a sly sort of smirk.

Sam was jumping up and down on the couch, squealing and making gibberish noises. She was jumping so much that even as Carly sat completely motionless, eyes wide and mouth agape, she was bouncing Carly along with her.

As soon as Drake and Josh landed on the bed, practically tackling her brother, Carly jolted off the couch."Okay" she announced, "We are not watching this!"

There was no way she was sitting there and watching her brother sex it up with two other guys—no matter how incredibly hot Drake Parker may be or how good his manger looked shirtless. She paused for a second until her brother started moaning and then the DVD player was shut off with one forceful click.

"Oh come on," Sam moaned. She flopped on the couch sideways, her legs dangling off the edge of the couch and her arms still at her sides. She looked like a rag-doll tipped over from its sitting position.

Carly stood in front of the TV, biting the inside of her lip. She had her arms folded over her chest, her foot tapping against the floor repeatedly.

"Car-_lay_."

Carly turned her face away sharply. She was not being persuaded by Sam's silly old woman voice.

"Carrlayy," Sam wringed out, "_Carrrllllaayy_."

Carly rolled her eyes but finally looked at Sam, still feeling agitated. Sam was still lying on the couch but her arms were now thrown haphazardly on either side of her, her long blonde curls flowing over the edge of the couch.

Her head lolled on the couch cushion, "Carls, please, for the love of god, just turn the thing back on." When Carly wouldn't budge, Sam sat up, her lips pulling into a smile, "You know you want to."

Carly gasped, "If you think I'm going to sit there and watch my brother _doing_ things," She gestured wildly, "Think again." She clicked on the DVD player but to Sam's disappointment it was only to retrieve the disc.

"This," She held the disc in the air briefly, "Is going _back_ where we found it," Carly said firmly.

"Oh no," Sam wailed. She jumped off the couch and Carly was already running back into her brother's room. "Wait! Carly, wait!"

"What?" Carly twirled around in a huff.

"Come on babe," Sam said.

"Don't you _babe_ me," Carly said and Sam frowned. "This isn't like you asking me to buy you extra ham or not telling Freddie you put that exploding ink pen in his backpack."

"Hey, I never said not to tell Freddie that," Sam interjected.

Carly groaned in exasperation. "I am not watching this," she said firmly.

"Okay," Sam relented sadly, "We…won't watch it."

"Good," Carly sighed in relief, allowing herself a smile.

"But you should probably put it back where we found it," Sam said, nodding over to the box of DVDs and video tapes next to the couch.

"Oh, yeah, the box" Carly said, she had almost forgot to put back the box of videos. Then she glanced at Sam, who looked back at her innocently. Sam was being suspiciously helpful, Carly thought. But then she pushed the odd feeling away as they headed back to the living room.

Suddenly, at sound of Spencer's voice in hallway, Carly looked at the door in fear. "Oh god the box!" She said, panicking.

"I got it," Sam said, calm as ever. She grabbed the box and shoved it behind the pillows of the couch. Then she sat down with the pillows at her back and smiled winningly. "Problem solved," She said just as the door creaked open.

Spencer was walking right in and Carly quickly noticed the DVD in her hands. So, she awkwardly hid it behind her back, still standing beside the couch.

"Hey Chicky-doos," Spencer smiled at the girls.

Carly's eyes widened. "Hi!" She squeaked. Spencer didn't notice his sister's odd behavior as he walked past them.

Carly twisted around so that the view of her back remained hidden as her brother crossed the living room. Sam grabbed Carly's arm and pulled her on the couch before the girl ended up twisting herself up into one of those weird looking licorice candies. The DVD fell safely between both girls.

Relieved, Carly felt her heart rate start to calm until Sam said, "Hey, Spence," she was smiling widely and Carly looked at her aghast. _What is she doing?!_ Without even looking at Carly, Sam's smile seemed to get brighter as if reading her thoughts.

Spencer halted just before he entered the kitchen, turning half-way to look at Sam, he said, "Yeah?"

"Nice socks," she said, shooting Carly an amused look while the other girl shoved her face in her hands with a groan.

Looking down at his shoes, his eyebrows knitted together, seeing as there was no way a person could see his socks unless they could see though his jeans or shoes. Then he looked back up at Sam, eyebrows still knitted together in confusion. "Uh, thank you, Sam," he said politely, cocking his head to the side when she giggled. He walked into the kitchen, glancing down at his shoes ever so often.

Carly watched Sam giggle until her face turned red. She had a feeling she wasn't going to hear the end of this.

-x-x-

"How come he named the video 'Night in L.A'? You think they were in L.A?"

They were in the iCarly studio. Next to Carly, Sam was lying upside on the bean bag chair, making her tee shirt ride up her belly. It made Carly's glance last longer than she intended.

"For the last time, I don't know, Sam. I don't know if Spencer made porno movies, and I don't know if he worked as a male stripper, and I don't know if he visited L.A, Okay?" Carly said tiredly.

"How long ago you think that video was made? Maybe it was when we were in middle school, or even—"

"Sam," Carly held her hand up, "Please, just drop it." She was on her laptop, mindlessly browsing websites and wasting time until the third member of the iCarly crew arrived.

Sam shifted beside her until she was right-side-up again, leaning her head against Carly's arm, "You mad at me?" She pouted.

Carly glanced down. Sam was looking up at her through her thick blonde lashes, and Carly smiled slightly, "No, I'm not mad, it's just…I'd rather not talk about my brother and his—well, what may have done in his past."

"Even if it's really, really hot?" Sam asked. Her blue eyes were lit with amusement and a little hope.

Carly laughed, "You may think so, but I don't."

"Don't what?" A third voice said.

Carly and Sam shifted a little away from each other as Freddie entered. He went straight to his station, checking over his video camera, computer, and other things that Carly knew never changed because he always checked them over and over again.

"Nothing!" Carly said quickly. She shot Sam a warning look just as the other girl opened her mouth.

Freddie glanced over at the both of them, looking strangely shy, "I wasn't interrupting something was I?"

"What?" Carly said, surprised. Freddie raised his eyebrows, and Carly mumbled, "No." She ducked her head and slid down on the bean bag chair so the laptop covered most of her face. Sam frowned as she watched Carly look away awkwardly.

"Oh, please, Benson, you know you wanted to catch an eyeful," Sam shot out. She leaned back, crossing her ankles, with an amused smile on her face.

Freddie glared at the blonde, "I'm just trying to—"

"I need chicken," Sam announced, interrupting him, and then she got up leisurely to walk out of the studio.

Freddie rolled his eyes, throwing a quick glare at the door she passed through before going back to his computer.

"Hey, how come you're late?" Carly said, moving to sit in the chair beside him.

Freddie looked around uncomfortably before he blurted out, "David, from third period, asked about you." When Carly looked blankly at him, he clarified, "He asked me if you were… available."

"Oh," Carly said lamely, "What did you say?"

"I told him you were, uh," he glanced briefly at door Sam just exited, "Seeing someone else," he said. He wasn't looking at her. His gaze was fixed on his laptop screen. Carly had a feeling he was just avoiding her.

Ever since Freddie had found out about her and Sam's relationship, he had been strangely protective of them both. And that surprised Carly because she was sure he would be upset or jealous or even angry. She didn't expect him to say _nothing_.

"You didn't have to do that," she said quietly. "I'm a big girl, I can take care of myself," she laughed a little as she said it. It was habit she had whenever it became awkward or tense. She couldn't help it.

Freddie just smiled at her, a soft sort of smile that seemed to be more sad than happy.

She didn't know how to feel when Freddie got like this. When he gave her that sort of smile she knew _he_ was supposed to be who she loved. She knew he was the type of guy she should be dating. It was as obvious as the plot of a cheesy romance movie. But it was never enough. She felt like this feeling she had with Freddie was never enough to actually become love. There was always something missing.

But Freddie never pushed her. He was too good of a guy for that. It always made Carly feel guilty even though everyone always said he had gotten over his crush on her. Because when he looked at her like _that_ she knew he never really did. His face would get all serious and his eyes would silently scream _why don't you love me? _And he would smile as if he already knew he was fooling himself.

It always broke Carly's heart. She didn't even know when it started to affect her this way. She never used to get upset with herself for not loving him back.

"Well, I'm back," Sam said loudly, "Missed me Fred-o," Sam knocked his head over with a big bag of potato chips as she passed them.

And then this always happened. Freddie's focus would turn away from Carly instantly. Sam appeared, so he would forget about Carly as he argued with Sam. And their arguments had this flirty undertone that Carly wasn't sure she was comfortable with.

Carly didn't know why she wasn't happier that he wasn't focusing on her anymore. She didn't know why she wasn't more relieved.

It confused the hell out of her.

-tbc-


	2. Part II

_Part II_

The idea was like a bright light that had just erupted in Sam's mind. It was like the glow from inside of a refrigerator when you opened it in the middle of the night—Sam couldn't just turn away. It was so brilliant.

But the thought didn't occur to her until a few days later. After Sam suddenly realized—Oh, how could she _not_ have noticed it before?—how much Freddie liked watching Carly and her. As strange as it sounded, she didn't fully understand the clarity in her mind until the end.

It started when they had finished their webshow for the week. Carly hugged Sam like she usually did and Sam for some reason found her eyes looking off in Freddie's direction. She wouldn't have bothered to keep her gaze there except she noticed that Freddie was staring at them. His video camera on his lap as if he was in the middle of setting it down but froze at the sight of them. And when Sam squeezed Carly one more time before letting her go, he cleared his throat and looked away quickly as if he hadn't been staring at all.

And the look in his eyes was anything but jealousy. Sam smirked as the possibilities bubbled happily in her mind.

The video of Drake and Josh and Spencer replaying in her mind, she doubted anything was impossible. Who said three was a crowd? She thought. It didn't look like Freddie would mind, after the way she caught him blatantly staring at them.

Throughout the week, the memory made her smile goofily, sometimes laughing at random intervals through out the day. She just couldn't _believe_ it. Freddie-boy was totally ogling them. Little Freddie, with his video camera and Kakki pants, wasn't as innocent as he appeared. But he wasn't so little anymore, was he? He still wore the Kakki pants and plaid shirts, except now he was tall, lanky, and the shirts fitted nicely over his chest. He was getting to be Spencer's height. The boy had certainly grown.

Sam wasn't sure what to make of her observations.

Suddenly she heard giggling. Carly and Sam were sitting on the couch, doing their homework. Well, Carly was doing her homework while Sam mostly watched television and ate. With her notebook abandoned on her lap, Carly was watching her with an amused expression. Then she giggled again.

"What?" Sam said. Watching Carly laugh always made Sam smile too, and when Carly kept giggling Sam ended up chuckling a little. "What is it?"

"I just saw your face change into a million different expressions," Carly said finally. "First you were smiling, then you looked confused, and then you frowned." Sam hadn't realized she was so deep in thought and laughed at herself. Carly kept watching her, dark eyes shining in bemusement. "What's up with you?" She asked.

"Nothing," Sam couldn't help the smirk still plastered on her face as she thought about Freddie the closet perv.

"Oh, something is definitely up," Carly laughed. She poked Sam on her side, causing Sam to laugh at the assault. "Tell me," Carly said, poking her with each word. Then Carly halted. "Did you do something illegal?" She asked worriedly. "Oh, wait, you did something horrible to Freddie!"

"I didn't do anything!" Sam insisted. Then she paused for a second. "Well, not that I _know_ of, anyway," she carefully amended.

"Hm, alright," Carly said, going back to her notebook.

"Whoa, so, you believe me?" Sam said, so surprised her eyebrows went up.

"No," Carly replied automatically, eyes still on her notebook.

Then Sam eyebrows lowered, "Huh? So why aren't you asking me a million questions right now?"

"Whatever it is, I'll find out sooner or later," Carly explained calmly, "Because I'm pretty sure I'm involved somehow." This made Sam really laugh and caused Carly to look at her strangely.

"You know me so well," Sam said as if explaining. Then she leaned over the opened textbook on the couch between them and kissed Carly on the lips.

Carly kissed her back, a smile on her lips. "What was that for?" She laughed.

Sam just shrugged, and resumed watching television. All the while, she was aware of Carly's curious eyes still on her. She was staring at her like she was trying to figure her out or something. Sam never understood why Carly tried so hard to figure out something that didn't need to be figured out. Then she felt the warmth of her gaze leave her and heard the rustle of pen to paper as Carly went back to her homework.

In the hall, they heard Spencer talking on the phone. Finally he hung up with a brightly said "Bye!" and walked into the living room, looking happy to see them. He swung over the back of couch and landed beside his sister.

"Watcha guys doin'?" Spencer asked cheekily.

"Homework," both girls replied in monotone, even though Carly was the only one with a notebook and textbook out. Sam was still watching television, her head now resting against Carly's shoulder.

"I don't want to interrupt," his voice dipped low at the last word as he waggled his eyebrows in that obvious way that Carly always found embarrassing. But she never said anything about it, instead she endured it with a blush and a fond roll of her eyes at her brother's teasing.

"But I just wanted to tell you guys I'm going to L.A for a week," he announced casually.

The complete silence after that statement was only tangible to Carly and Sam.

They both sat up, instantly locking gazes. Carly watched in horror as Sam's face slowly lit up, her grin stretching impossibly wide. Oh, no, Carly thought, don't say—

"L.A? You say?" Sam leaned in eagerly awaiting Spencer's response. Spencer nodded, looking lost as he glanced between Carly's stricken face and Sam's sudden bright smile.

Sam looked as if she was suppressing the urge to explode in undignified squeals. Before this got out of hand, Carly decided maybe it was best to get Sam away from her brother. "Um, Sam? Can I speak to you?" Carly said, abruptly latching onto Sam's arm and gently pulling on her to get up.

"Wait," Sam nudged away from the brunette, still intent on finding out more about this place Spencer was suddenly headed to, and _who_ he was meeting precisely. And maybe more about _what_ they were going to do, together.

"NOW!" Carly gritted out. It was her attempt at subtly yelling but Spencer jerked in surprise anyway. Carly practically dragged the other girl over him, so Sam had to leap over the side of the table as she was hauled into the kitchen.

Once they reached the safe distance of the kitchen, Carly decided it was the best time to whisper harshly. "Sam!" Carly crouched down so that Spencer couldn't see them.

"Whoa, woman," Sam said, still wobbling from the mad dash to the kitchen and then Carly pulled her down to her level.

"Don't say anything about the video," Carly whispered the last word so low that Sam was sure she just mouthed it.

"Wha?" Sam said, still disoriented. Then she sat on the floor, folding her legs Indian style, she smiled up at Carly. "Oh," She said, reaching into her back pocket and pulling out a scratched up DVD, labeled 'Night in L.A.' "You mean this?" She said.

Carly's eyes became huge as she waved her hands around in shock. "You—you—where did you get that?!" Carly sputtered.

"In that box I told you to put it in."

"Give me that!" Carly snatched the disc from her and Sam shrugged, unbothered. It drove Carly insane.

"Keep it. I made copies," she replied.

"_What?!_" Carly yelped. "How can you—"

"Uh, guys?" Spencer called over. Carly leaned up, peering over the counter, she saw Spencer standing awkwardly as he leaned over the table to glance at the girls. "This is no time for hanky-panky," he said, "I have to give you the list of people to call in case of emergencies."

Carly quickly stood up straight. "There is no hanky-panky going on in here!" She said indignantly.

"What the hell is hanky-panky?" Sam said, straightening up too, beside Carly.

"Because if there was hanky-panky going on, it certainly wouldn't be in the kitchen," Carly continued, her voice getting higher and higher as she tried to explain, "I mean, not that there is any, of that, going on."

"Oh," Sam said, realization in her voice, "You mean sex." Then she looked straight at Spencer, "Don't worry, me and Carly are not having sex in here," she said seriously.

"_Sam_," Carly muttered through her teeth as she smiled awkwardly at her brother, knocking Sam with her elbow.

"I said, we're _not_ having sex," Sam enunciated loudly as if the other girl was deaf. Carly rolled her eyes.

"Ladies," Spencer used his rare grown-up voice, and Carly knew he was trying to say something serious. "I need to give you this list," he said, pulling out a wrinkled paper from his back pocket.

"Okay," Carly reluctantly agreed, shooting Sam a 'zip-it' look which Sam glanced blankly at.

Sitting back on the couch, Carly had to keep interrupting Sam's inappropriate questions as Spencer went over all the arrangements, phone numbers, what-if scenarios that progressively got more and more ridiculous. And when Sam finally got bored asking questions, realizing Carly wouldn't let her get a word in edge wise, Carly wondered about her questions. She wondered about all the other times Spencer had visited his friends in other states and cities. Were they different friends? Was it just Drake and Josh? When else did he go see them and she had no clue? Question after question left Carly more and more worried as she realized she didn't know her brother as well as she thought.

_Who exactly was Spencer Shay? _

-x-x-

By the elevator there was a single suitcase with bright paint splotches on the tan colored fabric. Freddie walked into the apartment like he always did, flopping down on the chair adjacent to the couch as he watched Carly and Spencer whizz by the staircase and hall, checking things off a long list of things Spencer shouldn't forget.

Sam was on the couch with her feet on the coffee table, ankles crossed and her hand on the remote.

Watching the constant change of the channel, Freddie looked irritably at the blonde. "Do you mind just picking a channel?"

Awaiting some snarky response back, he was surprised to hear nothing but Spencer yelling frantically for his tooth brush and Carly heaving a pained sigh somewhere in the hall. Turning to Sam, he found her looking back at him.

"Why are you staring at me like that?" Freddie said, eyeing Sam strangely.

She gave him a weird smirk-smile that either meant he was doomed for some sort of pain or she had a twisted idea that involved him.

Swallowing thickly, Freddie backed against the chair, "...Sam?" Watching her closely, he felt uncomfortable as her gaze, blue-eyes steady and heated, locked with his own. He couldn't explain the rapid patter of his heart as he stared back, unwilling to lose this odd staring contest.

Then she chuckled to herself, turning back to the television and flipping the channels like she had been doing before. The moment gone, Freddie felt lost for a minute, but decided to keep it to himself, not willing to bring up the weird moment. Something told him it might lead him into dangerous territory.

Meanwhile Carly had her head backed against the wall beside the bathroom, worrying her lip as she weighed the options of confronting her brother about his mysterious trips or letting it go all together. She heard a commotion of bangs and the pattering of what sounded like everything in the medicine cabinet falling on the sink and floor. Lifting off the wall, Carly stepped into the bathroom.

"Where would it _go_?" Spencer cried. His chin was propped up on the sink as he sat on the lid of the toilet next to it. Pills from old prescription medicine, creams, and bottles littered the floor around him.

He looked hopeless.

"Uh, Spence?" Carly sat on the edge of the tub.

"What's up Kiddo?" Spencer mumbled sadly, "Seen my toothbrush anywhere?"

"Did you—I mean, you ever think you know someone your whole life but then maybe you don't know them like you thought you knew them, so then you question everything you thought you knew about them?" Carly blurted out, "You know?"

"So, I'm sensing this isn't about my toothbrush," he said slowly, lifting his chin off the sink. Then he noticed Carly's look of distress. "Hey, what's going on?" He asked concerned as she slumped with a sigh.

"I think…I," she shook her head, as if trying to figure out how to _say_ what she wanted to say. Spencer was looking at her all big-brotherly, kind eyes and ears-open. She was never good at hiding things from him. "What do you do if someone you know really well is hiding secrets from you?" She asked. "It's like I don't them anymore or something," she said softly.

"That doesn't mean you don't know a person," he said, "Everyone has things they don't want other people to know."

"But why keep a secret from me?" Carly asked desperately.

"Well, do you tell every single thing about your life to Sam for example?" He inquired.

Carly sat up, feeling angry. "Yeah, of course I—"

"Even about Mar mar?" Spencer innocently mentioned, "Your stuffed elephant, the one you hid under your bed to protect you from bed monsters."

"I," Carly's mouth closed. Looking at her brother defeated, "That was low," she muttered.

Spencer gave her wicked smile. "It's natural for people to have secrets if they feel uncomfortable talking about it, people need their privacy, right?"

Carly sat there, thinking about Spencer's words. Well, okay, she hid that particular piece of information from Sam but she didn't actively go out of her way to hide it. It happened way before she met Sam. She was only three-years-old. But, reluctantly, Carly smiled, he was right. Even if he had secrets or relationships with people she didn't know about, it didn't mean he was a different person. Spencer would always be her big brother. He would always be creative and fun and caring and always there for her.

There was just one thing bothering her.

"Do you feel comfortable telling me things?" Carly asked.

His mouth opened as if he was about to answer instantly but then he stopped, eyes averted and filled with confliction.

"It's okay, you don't have to answer that," Carly said quickly. She hated to see her brother struggling to answer something she knew wasn't right of her to ask, so she said, "But I want you to know you can tell me things, if you ever want to."

"I know," Spencer smiled. Glancing at the mess he created on the floor, he gave Carly a sheepish look. "Help me clean this up?" He asked hopefully.

Carly laughed. "Sure."

x-x

The three of them had watched Spencer leave, disappearing with a wave as the elevator door slid down.

Carly felt the tinge of sadness as she realized she would be alone for the week. Well, except for Mrs. Benson checking in on her everyday. As displeasing as that was she could understand her brother's reasons for that decision.

She turned around and found Sam already in the kitchen and Freddie lounging on the couch. She smiled a little, feeling less alone.

As if aware of her gaze, Freddie turned to look at her, giving her smile, "So, what are you gonna do now?" He asked.

"No adult supervision for a week," Sam said behind her, walking out of the kitchen with bottle of juice in one hand. She had a smile on that Carly knew was caused by the trouble-making ideas brewing in her mind.

"Spencer trusts me," Carly said responsibly and a nod of her head. "So, whatever you're thinking, you can forget about it." Carly had a resolved look, so Sam shrugged as she flopped on the chair. Sam knew which battles to pick.

"Why don't we work on the next iCarly?" Freddie suggested, sitting up, he looked excited. "I was working on this new lighting technique that could—"

"Yawn," Sam interjected. "Me and Carly have things to do, so, get out."

Freddie seemed to deflate before he quickly reverted to giving Sam a glare. It was the glare he reserved specifically for when she threw less than nice comment his way.

"Sam," Carly scolded.

"I need to tell you something," Sam muttered to her, giving her a meaningful side-glance before she turned to Freddie and commanded him to leave with a poignant point to the door.

About to argue, Freddie got up but then his anger left him as he looked at both girls. Hesitating for a second, he seemed to settle on a small smile, eyes averted and awkwardly scratching the back of neck. "I get it. You guys want to be alone, I'll, uh, go…now," he said, making his way toward the door.

"Wait!" Carly said, guilt weighing her, "You don't have to leave, we—"

"No," Freddie said softly, shaking his head. "It's okay, I'll see you guys later." He looked as if he was trying really hard to keep the smile from falling off his face.

Damn, now Sam felt bad. Without thinking, she said, "Thanks," and then she shut her mouth. She couldn't believe she just _thanked_ Freddie. Refusing to look at him, she leaned down on the chair and looked at her sneakers. She knew he was probably looking at her surprised or happy or whatever.

"No problem," She heard him say. His voice was warm and light in that way where she could imagine him giving her smile, a genuine one.

As soon as the door closed, Carly turned to Sam. "That was really mean!" She said. "You can't just kick Freddie out, he's our friend, and he probably feels—"

"We should be in a threesome with him," Sam said.

"—left out, and sometimes I know we want to be alone but we shouldn't just…" Carly paused mid-sentence. Then her gaze lifted upward as if she was trying to think.

Sam took a swig of her juice as she waited for Carly to—

"WHAT?!!" Carly screamed, eyes bulging out as she stared at Sam, shocked.

Sam covered her ear with one hand, wincing, "Ow, woman, my ear drum."

"Did you just say what I think you said, or am I hearing your voice in my head?" Carly said, breathing hard, "Because if you said _that_ then I rather be crazy!"

"Congratulations," Sam peered up at her from behind the bottle, "You're not crazy," she gave her what she hoped was her winning smile.

Carly paled.

"Okay, so maybe it's … a _little_ crazy," Sam admitted.

Carly was sputtering, "A little?!" Her arms waving around.

"Why not?" Sam said, suddenly with a spark of conviction. She stood up, pulling on Carly's hand until they both sat on the couch, together. Carly was watching her like she had gone insane. "We're already together most of the time, right?" Sam said, "And you said we shouldn't leave him out."

"That's _not_ what I meant," Carly said, feeling her throat dry. Because this was just too much to handle—all her thoughts were circling around that video and then her guilt for actually maybe liking Freddie more than she should. "It's not even realistic! I mean, do you see Valentines Day cards in the 'for your significant _others'_ section?!" She argued.

"Hm, that's not a bad idea, there could be a market out there for those," Sam nodded, "I like the way you think, Carly Shay." She grinned.

"Oh, I can see it now," Carly groaned. She sat up straight, mocking herself in a convenience store, "Um, can I get a card for the two people I'm in a threesome with?" Her voice overtly sweet and innocent.

"What's the big deal about Valentines day, anyway?" Sam grumbled. "It's just some lame holiday."

"Hey!" Carly exclaimed. "We are going to celebrate that holiday, missy. I've only been in three relationships my entire life and they all ended way before February, so, we're celebrating it, end of story!" Carly said sternly, poking Sam in the shoulder hard.

"Alright, alright, jeez, I'll get you a steak," Sam said, rubbing her sore shoulder. All Sam did was try to share an idea and all of a sudden she was getting abused. She had no idea how the conversation veered off course. "I thought we were talking about me, you and Freddie, not getting some cards," She muttered.

"It's crazy!" Carly said, "You actually think Freddie would—that we could all just be together like that, things don't work that way."

"Yes! He would," Sam argued, "He would totally go for this!"

Carly rolled her eyes, "Okay, explain," She said, scoffing, "I'd like to hear this."

"Alright," Sam sighed heavily, "I never told you this but…" taking a deep breath and looking directly at Carly, Sam blurted out, "Me and Freddie kissed."

Carly blinked a few times, a blank expression on her face. "I know."

"You know?" Sam echoed in shock. "Since when?"

"Last year, Freddie told me," Carly said, nonchalantly. "Something about not wanting to ruin his chance to be with me, coming clean and all that." She waved her hand around as if it were all old news.

"That good for nothing weasel," Sam growled. "It was supposed to be a secret!" She shook her head, fisting her hand as she got angrier and angrier, "When I get a hold of him, he'll be _so_ sorry."

"Some secret," Carly said dryly.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, _you_ just told me right now," Carly said.

"Never mind about that," Sam shook her head, starting to get exhausted.

Carly folded her arms over her chest. Pursing her lips, she refused to face Sam.

There was silence. And then Sam watched as Carly glanced down, head probably filled with thoughts. Over-thinking everything.

Sam was caught off guard when Carly looked up at her with an indefinable expression. Sam felt worried because she couldn't remember Carly being like this. Unreadable and distant. "Why are you bringing this up?" Carly asked. She looked down at her hands, tugging on her fingers, "Is it because we're not like…enough?" It was so frustrating, Sam thought, when Carly wouldn't look at her because it only meant that Sam was causing her to feel unsure and scared. "Isn't the two of us, enough?" Carly asked her, finally lifting her head. She was gazing at Sam as if she was holding back something, and Sam really wished she knew what was going on in that head of hers.

"Do you like Freddie?" Sam asked instead.

Carly's eyes widened as if she had been caught. Sam had noticed things. It wasn't in her nature to be so observant but she found herself collecting all these small memories when she watched Carly. Like the way Carly would brush her hair out of her eyes again and again without even realizing it. Or the way she would always look surprised when Sam had kissed her for the first few times. And sometimes the way Carly would look at Freddie with gentle eyes, sometimes filled with longing. Sam noticed, but it was strange because she didn't feel betrayed. When she figured it out, she wasn't as upset about it as she should have been.

She guessed, it would've been pretty hypocritical of her if she had been.

"No—I mean, I," Carly bit her lip, hesitating long enough for Sam to _know_ and know for sure.

Sam gave her a wry smile, "I'll admit Fredward's not all that bad-looking," and seeing Carly laugh, things didn't seem as heavy anymore. "But if you _ever_ tell him I said that, I'll kill you," Sam said seriously.

"So, you're saying we should be in a threesome because we both have a crush on Freddie?" Carly said, disbelieving. She wanted to dismiss the idea like it was nothing but a random thought Sam's brain just happened to pop out.

It wasn't just a random idea. Sam had watched the video several times, and past all the skin and lust there was something there that felt… complete. Each of them all added something to each other. All three of them fit together perfectly.

And as much as she hated to admit it, Freddie had already become a big part of her life just as much as Carly was and she knew Carly felt the same.

She understood how Carly felt—it was scary as hell to even think about an idea like this. It was bizarre. But Sam was never one to doubt any of her actions because it might be weird or abnormal. She knew when to trust her instincts, even if it might land her in trouble or worst. Life would suck if you constantly ignored what your heart was screaming at you to do. Sam thought that would be a pretty painful existence.

But Carly felt insecure. She was starting to doubt everything in their relationship. She couldn't help asking what was missing in her that wasn't enough for Sam?

"It's crazy," she said, this time with less force. Looking away from Sam's intense blue eyes, hopeful, vulnerable and unreal—Carly couldn't stop the thoughts running through her mind, a million miles per hour.

Suddenly the door creaked open and the air felt still and cold. Carly looked uncomfortable, barely restrained panic in her eyes as Freddie came through the door.

Fantastic timing, Sam thought sarcastically.

"Sorry, I forgot to get my camera, I'll go," Freddie assured them, quickly jogging up the stairs.

Watching him go up the stairs, an idea occurred to Sam. She looked at Carly then, drawing closer to her. "I wanna show you something," Sam whispered.

Sam was climbing on her lap. Carly looked up, shocked, her chest seizing up as she felt the inside of Sam's thighs press against the outer ones of hers. "W-what are you doing?" Carly asked. "Freddie is just—"

"First, I'm gonna relax you," Sam murmured, interrupting her. Her hands on Carly's shoulders, her thumbs pressed gently on her collar bone, "So, relax," Sam instructed softly.

Carly's face felt hot. And she had that jittery feeling she usually got when she drank _way_ too much peppy cola. Sam watched her dark brown eyes get hazy, long curled lashes drooping down half-way. And then Sam knew she was doing _something_ right.

Smirking to herself, Sam ran her fingers through Carly's long inky black hair. Smooth and silky, she let her fingers run down the strands brushing against her neck. "Second," she whispered, "I'm going to show you that he _does_ like to watch us like this."

Carly was watching her silently, stunned. Sam felt the same warmth she had become familiar with when Carly stared at her sometimes. This feeling, looking directly at Carly, having her look at her like she was something amazing—it was really new. And Sam thought it felt pretty incredible.

Suddenly, they heard a thud. Carly twisted under Sam to turn half-way and look at the staircase behind them.

Freddie had tripped on the staircase—a set of stairs he had stepped on maybe a million times before. His cheeks were scarlet as he stared at them for a long moment. Trying to regain his balance and stand up, he attempted to grasp the banister but failed several times. And it was only because his eyes kept travelling to Carly, then Sam on Carly's lap, again and again. And then he was stuttering something that sounded like "Bye!" and "See you later!" as he rushed out the apartment, barely holding onto his camera.

Sam watched the door slam close, a barely restrained chuckle escaping her lips.

When she looked down, she saw Carly's eyes had that faraway gaze, widened a degree and unfocused. Sam watched her, trying not to fidget on her lap as a little worry crept into her thoughts while Carly remained silent.

Then Carly finally uttered, "Oh, my god …you're right." She was dumbfounded.

And Sam smiled in triumph.


	3. Part III

_Part III_

In the few minutes before Freddie arrived, Carly had the urge to bolt.

Sam had talked her into talking to Freddie about this whole relationship thing…Carly had hard time saying threesome. With one text, Freddie was already on his way to her house, coming back from some mother-son outing with Mrs. Benson.

Then she felt Sam's eyes on her. "Why don't you put on something, I don't know, more," Sam waved her hands around, "Seductive or something," She said.

Carly folded her arms over her chest, a petulant pout on her lips. She was wearing a pink and black graphic t-shirt and dark-washed jeans. It wasn't like she looked like a hobo or anything. "What is this? Some kinda porno movie, we're just going to talk to him, that's it." Then her gaze flickered over Sam's fitted Capri pants, her slim waist and curves looked a little more on display than usual. "Tell me that's not what this outfit is all about," Carly gesturing to Sam's pants with an almost gasp.

Sam shrugged, eyes travelling toward the staircase, "You still have time to put on that mini skirt, the black one," she mentioned innocently.

Heaving a sigh, Carly made her way up the stairs, making a mental note that Sam liked her in a mini skirt.

That was when the door opened, much to Sam's surprise.

Freddie walked in. The air was still awkward between them after he had seen her on Carly's lap. But it was more of an unexpected shyness on Freddie's part. Sam just thought it was funny.

"Where's Carly?" he asked, his gaze swept over her fitted Capri pants.

Sam smirked. "She's upstairs," she said simply.

As they stood around for a long moment, neither one of them willing to talk—_what is she doing up there?_ Sam thought, getting impatient. She looked over at Freddie, who was glancing up at the ceiling, as if that was the only safe place he could stare at while enduring this long wait. _Oh, this is ridiculous_, she thought. So, since Freddie was already in front of the couch, she pushed at his chest, shoving him down on the couch. "Sit," She ordered.

He gave her startled look, sprawled on the couch. "Engh! Sam!" He shook his head, fingers raking through his hair.

She may have _possibly_ pushed him too hard, she thought, his head probably hit the back of the couch.

"Sorry," she muttered, she didn't sound apologetic but the mere word made Freddie blink in shock as he silently watched her.

That was how Carly found them when she finally came downstairs. Sam standing over Freddie as he lay on the couch, holding his head and staring at Sam like she was an alien.

And then Sam smiled at the sight of her.

Freddie looked between them, slowly sitting up, and confusion knitting his eyebrows together as he gazed up at them.

He felt his throat dry when he noticed Carly's mini skirt, and he bereted himself for being so pathetic. He needed to get over his crush on her. And he refused to acknowledge the way Sam looked—shutting his eyes briefly before he glanced around, swallowing thickly. "So, what did you guys want?" He asked.

Sam was sitting next to him. Her arm brushed against his while Carly sat on his other side.

He didn't know what this was all about. But he was feeling unusually nervous, more than he ever had when he was with both girls.

Sam's fingers were on his collar, sliding down the buttons on his striped shirt, she was staring at him in that same heated way from before, blue-eyes bright and unnervingly focused on him.

Okay, that was it.

Something was up. First Sam was being too nice to him and now, she was getting him uncomfortable. He sat up stiffly, glancing at her warily. "What are you playing at, Puckett?"

"I know you've been feeling left out, Benson," was all she said.

He leaned back and felt Carly's leg brush against his. He turned and found her watching Sam's fingers, eyes wide.

Sam leaned in close to his ear. "I know your secret," she said. He backed away from her hastily, feeling overwhelmed, he jumped up but Carly's hand landed on his knee.

And that was when the world stopped.

Carly's lips were pressing against his, softly moving over his lips—he froze. His body tingling with heat, and shocked.

Breaking away from Freddie, Carly's eyes fell on Sam and her breath hitched. Sam's eyes were dark and glittering, and Carly was sure she had never seen her like this.

Freddie looked dazed as he gave Carly a goofy smile. Carly let out a nervous breath, watching Sam's lips quirk up, deviously, it was such an unfamiliar expression. And it was undeniably sexy.

Carly couldn't believe she was actually going along with this. No, that she might actually be enjoying this.

Freddie noticing Carly's stare, turned to follow her gaze. Shifting on the couch, he jerked back, forgetting Sam was there right next to him. Suddenly, Sam pulled Freddie closer, her hand griping his neck as she kissed him hard. Carly's eyebrows shot up. She heard Freddie's undignified squawk of surprised and then a groan. Carly felt hot as Sam's eyes fluttered open and watched her.

Letting go of Freddie, Sam smirked, and Freddie gasped, looking wide-eyed and red-lipped and so confused.

Then he passed out.

"Oh my god, Freddie!" Carly shook the limp boy by his shoulders. He was motionless on her lap. Carly looked up at Sam in panic. "Oh god, we killed Freddie!"

Sam slapped his head. "Benson!" She yelled. Then she groaned in irritation. "The idiot," she muttered, "Always has to ruin everything," she scowled, sitting back with a huff.

"Aw," Carly said, looking down at the unconscious boy, "He's cute with his mouth all open," She giggled. Then she glanced at Sam, who sat beside Freddie's slumped form with her arms folded over her chest and angry pout at her lips. Carly started laughing, "Sam, what did you expect? This _is_ Freddie."

Sighing, Sam relented in a smile, "I don't know, I guess we'll figure it out, or something," she said.

Carly nodded, "We're really abnormal people," she said, smiling fondly at Freddie. Then she looked at Sam with amusement dancing in her dark eyes. Sam laughed and pulled the other girl into a kiss.

Suddenly, below them, they heard a pained groan. Carly and Sam looked down and found Freddie shifting on Carly's lap, his eyelids fluttered open. Lifting his neck to look straight up, his eyes became huge as Carly and Sam hovered above him. "Carly? Sam?" He croaked.

Sam gave Carly another devious look and before Carly knew it Sam was kissing her again.

Freddie's head dropped back on Carly's lap, and when Sam let go of her, Carly found him unconscious, again.

"Yeah, we'll work on it," Sam conceded.

-x-x-

Freddie dreamed of two blurry angels, one brunette and one blonde, looking down at him, their faces surrounded by light that was blinding. They exchanged mischievous looks as they watched him.

He blinked. Once. Twice. And then the blurriness soon focused. Most of the light was replaced by the familiar walls of the Shay loft, nothing left of the brightness except for the ceiling light blub glowing above him.

"Someone's awake."

"So, the moron finally decided get off his lazy butt."

Freddie didn't need such great deduction skills to tell whose voice belonged to whom.

His fuzzy thoughts soon sharpened as memories flooded back to him.

Carly had kissed him.

Sam had kissed him.

Sam and Carly had kissed each other right in front him.

Consecutive moments that occurred right after the other except for the blank spots in between where he was sure he had been knocked out, completely.

Wait. Carly and Sam did…_WHAT?!_

He shot up and blinked rapidly as his head became light again, spots of white blurring his vision for a second. His eyes darted around until they landed on the very two girls he had been thinking about, looking back at him from behind the couch.

Both girls kept shooting each other looks before Sam sighed and went around the couch and sat beside him. Freddie sat up further when Carly made her way around the couch as well, and sat on his other side.

Feeling the hazy heat from the blood rushing to his face, he knew he was blushing but he couldn't bring himself to get over the thought of both girls being so close to him after they had…kissed…and him…and each other…He laid back on the couch, feeling his head light and dizzy again.

Carly cleared her throat, and Freddie's eyes lowered to look at her, his head still on the couch. Her lips were pursed as she looked directly at Sam, trying to convey some silent words that Sam seemed not to understand at all.

Giving up, Carly sighed. Freddie lifted his head off the couch, feeling his nerves jittering as she looked back at him.

"We were wondering," Carly began, a soft smile playing at her lips as she glanced at Sam beside him.

Freddie swallowed thickly, before repeating slowly, "We…?" He jerked as Sam's shoulder bumped into him. It was only a light nudge to get his attention but he looked over at her apprehensively anyway.

"Yeah, me and Carls decided we want you to be our boyfriend, you know, so we'd be a threesome," Sam said plainly.

Her words ran through his brain, over and over again, and each time his eyebrows rose higher and higher. The idea seemed like this vague _thing_, like a joke, like something inconceivable. But it had always been the three of them for so long. Lately, he had been feeling this emptiness in the center of his chest when they would go off together more and more—he wanted to be with the _both_ of them. He wanted the _both_ of them. And that thought scared him.

This was so wrong. This was not real. This couldn't happen.

His heart was hammering in his chest and he was afraid he would stop breathing if he didn't heave in another long breath.

"You do know what a threesome is, right, Benson?" Sam's voice broke his thoughts, sharp but teasing. Freddie looked at her in surprise. She had one eyebrow up as if she was challenging him to a bet, smug smile and all. A spark of boldness came over him like it always did when she'd look at him like that. It was inevitable.

"Wait," he said, calmer as he glanced back and forth between them. He settled on looking at Carly. She was watching him expectantly, waiting for him to speak but instead he leaned in and kissed her softly. Like a test, he was eyeing her to see if it was weird. If it was uncomfortable or not. She just looked at him surprised and he wanted to laugh because of all the times he had wanted to kiss her he didn't think it would be like this.

And when he turned to Sam, she was looking back at with that same challenging expression on her face. His lips quirked up, before he leaned in and kissed her too, soft and short, almost as if he was afraid—second-guessing himself. Sam stiffened at the abruptly short kiss.

He leaned back on the couch, eyes on the ceiling, as both girls glanced at him unsurely—tension between them—Carly fretting as she bit her lip and Sam's smug smile wiped off. The moment of indecision was achingly long and painfully silent. And Sam had the urge to punch Freddie in the stomach for making them all go through this.

Until, a slow grin stretched across Freddie's face.

"I think I'm gonna like this," he said finally.

There was amusement in his voice and Carly gave Sam the biggest smile she had ever seen.

It wasn't until then that the clarity of it all swept though Sam's mind. It was so easy. She wanted to laugh.

The three of them on the couch, they sat together like they always did. Except, Freddie pulled Carly under his arm and Sam rested her head on Freddie's lap, while Carly ran her fingers through Sam's long curly hair slowly. It was like nothing changed but _everything_ did change—and it all tumbled right on top of each other.

It was simple.

This felt _right_.

And that was all there was to it.

The End.


End file.
