iCarly: A Carly and Sam Romance

Chapter 21: iWatch the Sunrise

The sun hadn't risen yet the next morning and Sam was already up and about. She barely got any sleep. Her mind was racing all night. She thought about her cute moments with Carly from the prior night and wished they'd go on forever. In turn, she also thought about Griffin's behavior. This kid had something up his sleeve. Sam didn't know what he was going to pull before the trip ended.

She stood on the balcony in a white t-shirt and mint green dolphin shorts looking out into the the dark blue sky. The waves gently crashed onto the shore of the empty beach. It seemed to be getting slightly brighter by the minute. The sun was going to rise soon.

"Hey, what are you doing up so early?" Carly asked Sam as she made her way onto the balcony in her pajamas (pink workout shorts and a grey tank top). Sam didn't expect anyone else to be up and jolted at the sound of Carly's voice.

"Jeez, Carls," said Sam who had a hand placed over her thumping heart. "You didn't have to scare me like that. I didn't think anyone was up."

"I can't remember the last time you were up before noon," Carly joked as she let out a small giggle.

"Is anyone else up?"

"Nope, Griffin is still passed out and Freddie and Gibby both have their doors closed," mentioned Carly who was now leaning on the balcony overlooking the beach with Sam. She pulled out her pear phone and opened the weather app to check when the sun would come up. "Oh my god, the sun comes up in four minutes," began Carly who sounded excited. "C'mon, let's get down to the beach and watch it."

Before Sam could process what was going on, Carly grabbed her hand and started leading her through the hotel room to the front door. The girls slipped on their flip-flops and made their way down to the beach.

"This looks like a good spot," said Carly as she claimed her seat on the edge of the water. The waves crashed just softly enough that she was in no danger of getting wet. Sam took a seat next to her.

Both girls stared off into the distance, waiting for the sun to make its appearance. Sam's mind was still racing about last night. The biggest thing on her mind was what had happened after they went to bed. She knew Carly and Griffin slept together. She was hoping that nothing happened besides sleep.

"So," began Sam, "How was last night?"

"What do you mean?" asked Carly with a confused look that was still fixated on the sky.

"You know what I mean," said Sam who playfully nudged Carly with her elbow. "Did anything happen between you and Griffin last night?"

Carly smiled and started making circles in the sand with her fingers. Even though Carly's response came in about a second, it felt like an eternity to Sam. Her body tensed up while she was waiting for Carly's answer. She was hoping nothing happened between them. She didn't want to hear that Carly took the next step with Griffin, but she had to know if she did.

"I mean, not really," said Carly. Sam's body loosened up in relief. "I mean, we made out for a bit but nothing else." Sam winced at the thought of Carly kissing Griffin. "He did try to take it a bit further, but I'm not ready yet."

Sam wanted to scream with joy. She was delighted to hear that Carly wasn't willing to let Griffin in her pants. While this was a good thing, Sam wanted to gauge where Carly's head was at. She meshed very well with Griffin and was always happy to be around him. Did she think it was too soon, or is there something else that held her back?

"How did he react when you stopped him?" asked Sam. "Was he mad?"

Carly's cheerfulness was declining by the second. "He seemed a bit annoyed. He tried to reach down there but I told him I wasn't ready," said Carly as she stopped fiddling with the sand. "He turned over to face the other way without saying anything and then he fell asleep."

Sam felt bad for Carly. She could tell his reaction bothered her. But selfishly, she was happy Griffin finally slipped up, even if slightly.

"Oh, look," said Carly who was pointing straight ahead, "the sun's coming up!"

As the girls sat on the sand, the sun slowly started to illuminate the sky. Carly regained a smile as the growing rays bounced off her cheekbones.

Sam turned her head towards Carly and was immediately no longer interested in the sun. Carly was the only thing she wanted in her sights. They may have taken dozens of pictures the night prior, but Sam wished she could have one more of this very moment. She loved these intimate moments with Carly. She wondered how things got to this point. How a girl who has been her best friend for years was now her true love. She wished she could go into the future and see what it holds. To see if Carly was the one standing across from her on her wedding day. But for that to happen, Sam needed to make moves. Carly wasn't going to magically be her girlfriend one morning. If she made her move right here, right now, would Carly be her girlfriend for tomorrow's sunrise?

Sam bit down on her lip as her heart pulsated rapidly. She wanted so badly to taste Carly's soft lips for the first time.

"It's pretty, isn't it?" asked Carly as she gazed into the sunrise.

"Not as pretty as you," said Sam without hesitation. Her eyes grew wide as she realized she said that aloud. She meant to keep that to herself.

Carly turned towards her with a gleaming smile and chuckled. "Sam!" she began. "You're so sweet. What has gotten into you?"

Sam tried to play dumb. "What do you mean?" she said with a nervous laugh.

"I don't know," said Carly as she shook her head. "You've been saying really sweet things to me lately. Don't get me wrong, I love it, it's just not the Sam I know."

Carly was right. The Sam she knows didn't have a crush on her. Sam tried to think of a response. She felt like she was in a deep hole and there was no way out of it unless she exposed her love. Maybe this was the moment. They were all alone, no one else was around. The mood was right. Sam was ready to risk it all. She turned her body to face Carly, took a deep breath, and prepared to deliver her feelings.

"There's something I've been wanting to tell you," Sam began as she fought against her nerves.

Carly turned towards her, ignoring the almost fully risen sun. "What is it?" she asked, looking a bit nervous and unaware of what was going to be dropped on her.

Sam bit down on her lip again and stared at Carly. Did she really want to say this right now? Was this going to ruin the whole trip? Would Carly break her heart in an instant? Well, she was about to find out.