iCarly: A Carly and Sam Romance

Chapter 31: iShould Move On

"Sam and Melanie coming back soon?" asked Spencer as he sat on the couch and fiddled with his car keys.

"Yep, they should be here in the next few minutes," responded Carly as she ran her hands through her hair. Sam and Melanie had gone home to shower and change into their outfits for the night out. Carly was wearing black heels and a red lace dress that ended high up on her thighs. The dress had a red collar and a zipper that went from the middle of her chest to her neck.

Freddie entered the apartment wearing a light blue button-down shirt with khaki pants and dress shoes.

"Wow, you look great," Freddie said to Carly while trying to hold back his drool.

"Thanks," smiled Carly. "So do you." Carly's phone vibrated on the island in her kitchen. She walked over and looked at it. "Sam and Melanie are on the way up."

A few moments later, the apartment door swung open and revealed the two identical twins.

"Hello, hello!" said Melanie as she entered first.

Melanie was wearing a short sleeve dress that fell on a similar spot on her leg as Carly's. It displayed thick horizontal black and blue stripes. She finished off the outfit with black heels and a black purse.

Sam lit up the apartment with her outfit. She wore a sparkling, sleeveless silver dress that was low cut and came down to just above the knee. She wore matching heels and her hair was straightened.

"Hey," said Sam while looking down. She felt very pretty but embarrassed by how much effort she had put into her outfit. She hoped Carly would like it. The room was silent. Carly, Spencer, and Freddie all stared with their jaws hanging to the floor. "Is everything alright?" asked Sam when nobody responded to her.

Carly got a tingly feeling in her stomach when she saw Sam. She felt her heart rate increase as if someone was turning up the speed on a treadmill. She looked her up and down and couldn't stop staring.

"You girls look great!" said Spencer as he stood up. "Ready to go?" asked Spencer, who was tasked with dropping them off at the venue.

"Ready," the group replied in unison.

They started to make their way toward the elevator and head down to the lobby.

"You look...so... beautiful, Sam," said Carly while standing next to Sam in the elevator. "You too, Melanie," continued Carly as she didn't want to leave Melanie out.

"Thanks, Carls," said Sam who was beaming. Carly approved of the look. Tonight was going to be a good night. "I love red on you."

At the venue, the night was going well. All four of them were having a good time dancing and listening to music. Carly and Sam stole looks from one another for the first hour, each trying not to be caught by the other. Eventually, a slower song played and Freddie asked Melanie to slow dance. They left Carly and Sam in each other's company.

"I would love to dance with Carly," Sam thought to herself as she swayed back and forth awkwardly looking around.

Carly felt equally as awkward, but she didn't know why. Sam was her best friend. They could talk about anything, but she was feeling nervous around her. She also had the urge to dance with Sam, but that obviously was not going to happen.

A few moments later, Freddie's friend, Brad, approached Carly and Sam. Brad had worked on a project with Freddie last year, the "Mood Face App", which ended up exposing Sam's love for Freddie. Brad was a tall, slender, brown-haired guy. His hair was on the longer side and he wore jeans and a cardinal-colored crew neck shirt.

"Hey girls," said Brad with a smile. "You both look great."

"Thanks," both girls said collectively with a smile.

"Um, Sam," began Brad, "I was wondering if you maybe wanted to dance?"

Both girls' stomachs felt as if they were flying down a significant drop on a roller coaster. Sam thought Brad was cute but she would have been more excited at the offer if Carly wasn't around. Carly was cuter, and her love interest. But Carly wasn't going to slow dance with her. She looked back at Carly for approval because Carly would be left alone.

Carly was bothered by Brad's request. She didn't want Sam dancing with him. He was a good kid, but it didn't feel right to her. She felt as if she wanted to cry. She didn't know why. She wasn't going to hold Sam back. "Yeah, go ahead," Carly motioned with her head to Brad and smiled through the pain. Sam took Brad's hand and he lead her to the middle of the dance floor.

Sam and Brad began slow dancing to the music. He had his hands around her waist and she clasped her hands around the back of his neck while looking up at him. Not a bad view for her she thought, but it would be a better view if it was Carly.

Carly watched from a distance and felt her eyes swell with tears. She was becoming upset. "Why am I upset?" she kept asking herself. "This is good for Sam, I should be happy." The dance continued and she could see Sam and Brad talking with one another and letting out the occasional giggle while staring intently into each other's eyes. Carly was starting to dislike Brad and the night was becoming grim for her.

"You know, I was really jealous of Freddie when we tested that app on you last year," said Brad.

"Why?" asked Sam looking mildly confused.

"Because I wished you had a crush on me, not him."

"I can relate," Sam thought to herself. Thinking about how she crushed on Carly and wished the feelings were reciprocated. She laughed, not knowing how to respond to Brad's comment. Maybe this wasn't so bad. Maybe Brad would make a good boyfriend and this could be her first step to getting over Carly. Carly clearly didn't like her, so why should she wait around? She turned to find Carly across the venue standing in the same spot she had left her. Carly was staring directly at her and gave a slight grin and a low wave. She noticed Carly's eyes looked a bit watery. She knew Carly was an emotional girl and thought that Carly must be happy for her which caused her to tear up.

Sam looked back at Brad and then back at Carly once more. Carly was still staring directly at her. Her mind raced on what to do. She wanted to be strong and take the necessary steps to get over Carly, but she still had the "what if" mentality. What if Carly did like her? What if she had a chance with her? No, Carly was relieved to hear that she didn't have feelings. Stop holding on. Move on.

Sam bit gently on her lip and turned back to Brad. She took a deep breath and pulled him down while reaching her neck upward and began kissing him on the lips. Carly saw everything unfold and felt her legs get weak. She scootched over to a table to keep her balance and felt like she was short of breath. A bystander saw how uncomfortable Carly looked and came by to check on her.

"Are you okay, miss?" asked a husky boy with spiky hair. Carly didn't respond and broke down into tears as she pushed past him and made her way for the exit.

On the other side of the dance floor, Freddie and Melanie noticed Sam and Brad making out. Both of them stopped dancing and watched on while still holding onto each other.

Freddie spoke first. "Oh...my–"

"Goodness," Melanie finished.

"I can't believe this," said Freddie who couldn't take his eyes off of the scene in front of him.

"I told her to tell Carly how she felt or move on," said Melanie. "I guess she skipped the 'tell Carly' part."

Freddie turned back to Melanie. "Wait, you know?"

"Uh, yeah, of course I know," said Melanie who seemed slightly offended. "Why do you think she invited me to come visit?"

"It all makes sense now," said Freddie. "We were wondering why Sam had reached out to you knowing that she...she–"

"Doesn't really like me," said Melanie. "I was surprised too. But I think Samantha's crush on Carly has taken a toll on her and she wanted my help. I'm just glad I have a sister that wants to spend time with me now. Where's Carly?"