AN-For the purpose of this story, there was NO Sam & Cat after iGoodbye.

….

Freddie sat in the back of the van that he had been a passenger in for the past six hours, looking out the window and struggling to keep his eyes open. Before he had gotten into the van, he had spent the last twenty hours hopping from plane to plane, barely managing to get any rest in along the way.

"We're almost there, Agent Benson," the driver said front. "Another ten minutes should do it."

"Great, thanks," Freddie yawned. "And, um, you can call me Freddie, you know. I'm not on duty any more."

"Of course," the driver nodded.

"So where are we, anyway?" Freddie asked. "No one did tell me where I was moving to…they just gave me my plane tickets."

"We're in New Jersey, Agent Benson," the driver replied. "Trenton, to be exact."

"Trenton…" Freddie repeated. "Well, I guess this is home now."

For the past ten years, Freddie had been cut off from his friends and family as he worked with a secret government agency overseas as a computer technician and specialist. This was his first time back in the United States since he left.

It was rough, at first, getting used to the idea that he basically had to leave his entire life behind him, but he loved what he did there. He had access to some of the most confidential databases and he sometimes felt as though he were in the old spy movies he liked to watch. It was certainly a step up from the calm life he had been used to for so long.

Though there were times when he found himself missing his old friends.

He missed Spencer's sculptures, he missed Carly's kindness, and he missed Gibby's Gibbiness.

Most of all, though, he missed Sam. She was the one who crept into his thoughts almost every day, the one who he urged to sneak a phone call to most.

He sighed as he rested his head against the window, thinking back to one of the last conversations he had had with her…

…..

"Wow," Sam said as she sat next to Freddie on the windowsill of his fire escape, staring at the letter in his hands. "So it's official?"

"I've been asked to be apart of one of the top government services in the country because of my paper on rerouting data lines," Freddie nodded, still not believing the news he had just received.

"So is this like, the CIA or something?" Sam asked.

"It's a branch of the CIA," Freddie explained.

"Wow, who would've thought nerdy Freddie Benson would be a secret spy," Sam grinned.

"I'm not a spy," Freddie said, rolling his eyes. "But I would be an agent."

"Hmm, I guess they just hand that title out nowadays," Sam said jokingly. She looked back at the letter. "Seriously, dude, I didn't even know you were interested in this sort of thing."

"To be honest, it's never really crossed my mind," Freddie told her.

"Then how did you get this?" Sam asked.

"I told you, it was that paper I wrote for my MIT application," Freddie said. "About rerouting data lines to get information from neighboring servers in order to get access to competing information. Somehow one of the officials from this organization got his hands on it and called me a couple of weeks ago and set up a webcam interview. I just didn't want to say anything until I made up my mind. But, well, I did."

"So you're gonna do it?" Sam asked. "Like, for sure?"

"I am," Freddie nodded.

"Dang," Sam said, raising an eyebrow. "That's some news…when you told me you had something to tell me earlier I figured you had lost one of your lame Galaxy Wars figures again."

Freddie laughed.

"So…how's your mom taking this?" Sam asked.

"Not well," Freddie said heavily. "It took her forever to get used to the idea of me going across the country to MIT. Now I have to leave the country…"

"Wait, what?" Sam frowned. "You're leaving the country?"

"Yeah," Freddie mumbled. "That's, um, what I really wanted to talk to you about. I-I have to move overseas for this position."

"Where?" Sam asked softly.

"I don't know," Freddie said. "I don't find out until I board my plane. And-And even when I do find out, I'm not allowed to disclose my location to anybody."

"Oh," Sam said. "Are you allowed to call or anything?"

Freddie shook his head. "No."

"Ah," Sam nodded. "Well, um, I guess that's smart…if you're with a secret service organization, it shouldn't be easy to find you, right?"

"Right," Freddie agreed.

"Well, um, congratulations then," Sam smiled, patting his shoulder. "This is huge! We should celebrate or something! When do you leave?"

"A week from Friday," Freddie told her. "That's when I start training."

"We can have a party at Spencer's place," Sam continued. "And maybe Carly can fly back from Italy. Although she was supposed to already be back to graduate with us last month…I guess she's really enjoying herself."

"Hey," Freddie said gently. "You-You going to be okay here by yourself?"

"What? Pfft, I'll be fine!" Sam said. "Mama can take care of herself."

"It's just got to be weird…" Freddie shrugged. "First Carly moves to Italy and now I'm leaving the country too."

"Yeah," Sam sighed. "But, hey, we all knew we were gonna go off in different directions someday, right? Besides, I won't be sticking around Seattle too much longer anyway. I'm going to culinary school in New York in a few months, remember?"

"That's right," Freddie nodded. "That's big…what do you think you'll do there?"

"I dunno," Sam said. "I want to sort of open a restaurant or something. I mean, what else can I do with a degree from culinary school? Build houses?"

"You'll open the best restaurant in the country," Freddie told her. "Anyone as passionate about food as you will do great in the business."

"Well maybe you can swing by when your done being a secret agent," Sam grinned. "Wait…how long are you gonna be gone? A year?"

Freddie looked down at his lap. "Try ten."

"Ten years?" Sam exclaimed. "For ten years you're just gonna be gone? Off the map? Exiled?"

"Basically," Freddie told her. "That was the minimum number of years I could commit to when I took the job."

Sam rested her chin on her knees. "That's a really long time."

"Tell me about it."

The two were silent for a few moments.

"Good thing your such a nub," Sam said quietly. "Maybe I won't miss you so much then."

"Good thing you're a blonde-headed demon," Freddie smirked. "Maybe I won't miss you so much."

The two stared at each other before wrapping their arms around one another.

As they sat there, Freddie took a moment to appreciate just how much history the two of them had on this fire escape.

They shared their first kiss here. When they broke up, this was the spot they went to so they could enjoy each other for a few more hours. And now this was where they were going to say goodbye.

"Hey, ten years will end eventually," Freddie said when the two pulled away. "And when it does…I'll find that restaurant of yours and order us some fried chicken to share."

"I don't share, Fredwad," Sam grinned. "But I'll hold you to that deal."

"I might have to bring my mom with me," Freddie said. "After not seeing me for ten years she might just handcuff us together."

"Now that's a nightmare," Sam cringed.

"Sure is," Freddie laughed. "Sure is."

…

"Your new apartment has been set up for you already," the driver said, snapping Freddie back into reality as they turned down a street, the few stores that were still open glistening underneath their lights. "If there are any concerns, Peters said to give him a call."

"Okay," Freddie said sleepily, still looking out the window, watching the shops pass. "I'm sure the place is fine though. I'm not picky."

Suddenly, Freddie's eyes caught sight of a red neon sign in the distance. He squinted, trying to make out what it read.

"Puckett's Country Cooking…" he read.

And then suddenly, a surge of hope rippled through him.

"Hey, can you stop at that restaurant, please?" Freddie asked the driver desperately.

"Are you hungry, Agent Benson?" the driver asked.

"Starving," Freddie smiled as he turned into the parking lot.