Without You

Fried Chicken

"Sam!" Freddie yelled walking into their apartment. "Honey, I'm hooome!  Where are you?" He frowned when he didn't see her on the couch watching TV like she usually did. He walked closer and saw a note on the table.

Hey Baby. Out with Jade. Do not touch the TV I am in the middle of binge watching Criminal Minds. Be back in time for dinner. Fried chicken.

Freddie sighed and rolled his eyes. He loved Sam, but after a month living together was becoming harder. She was showing no effort to get a job that would help him pay the rent and she demanded food, but didn't help buy it.

Freddie crumpled up the note feeling annoyed and walked across the hall.

He knocked on the door and Beck opened it. "Hey, man, nice timing. Jade's out with Sam. I need someone to runs lines with." He smiled holding up a script. "My professor wants this whole page memorized by tomorrow."

Freddie shrugged. "Sure. I have no plans anyway. My girlfriend is gone. I'm not allowed to watch television. I have to edit a video for class, but I have some spare time to help you."

Beck nodded. "Thanks." They walked over to the couch. "Edit a video? What kind of video?" Beck asked curiously.

Freddie shrugged. "Oh, it's nothing interesting. It's just a short video. I'm supposed to add sound effects to it." He chuckled. "I've done more for iCarly than I've been doing in class."

Beck nodded. "I see. Doesn't make it any less interesting though. If it's something you love doing than put your all into it, even if it's just a short. Honestly, I've done harder plays at Hollywood Arts, but I still wanna know all my lines for this one. I mean it's Juilliard, and it's only the first semester. I want them to know this is easy for me so they challenge me next semester. But if I don't give it my all because it's just one page they won't see what I'm made of, ya know?"

Freddie looked at Beck and smiled. "Wow. That made perfect sense."

Beck nodded. "So, uh, I was gonna rehearse with Jade, but she's not here. Do you mind reading the girl part? I have to learn the guy's part." He said trying not to make things awkward.

Freddie shrugged. "I don't mind. Got another copy?" He chuckled hoping he wouldn't have to read off Beck's.

Beck pulled a rolled up paper out of his back pocket. "Yeah, ignore the, uh, little hearts. It was for Jade."

Freddie took it and nodded. "Sure."

"Okay, uh, top of the page starts with her. I mean you. The-The girl part."

"Right! Yeah." Freddie looked down and cleared his throat. "I can't, uh, sound like a girl. Not since puberty."

"That's fine."

"Okay, uh." He cleared his throat again. "Braden, I have to tell you something. Something about Devon."

Beck took a deep breath and got into character. "What about her?"

"She's not who you think she is-"

Beck cut Freddie off as it said in his script. "What do you mean? Of course she is, she's my girlfriend. I love her."

"She's not the girl you met at the masquerade. She's not the girl you fell in love with that night. I am."

Beck looked up from his script with a shocked look on his face. "What?"

"I'm the girl in the dark purple mask. I'm the one you danced with. I'm the one you kissed under the stars."

Beck frowned. "You're lying to me."