Opening scene (Scene One):
Condor Studios
So Random Prophouse
Wide shot of piled cardboard boxes filled to the brim with random objects, from rubber chickens to the beloved sarcophagus from the old "Mummy" sketch.
Pans to the So Random cast, each dismal member loosely holding an open-flapped box of personal belongings.
Nico: "Well, I guess this is it."
Grady: "Yeah. I'm gonna miss this place." (Looks to couch, being carried out by movers.) "Remember how we sat in that couch playing video games, devising ways to trick Sonny into doing our homework?"
Tawni: (Makes a strange choked-up sound.)
Zora: "Tawni, are you crying?"
Tawni: (Sniffs and turns around.) "What? No! I would never let my makeup run in public. Contrary to popular belief, this- doesn't just happen." They all turn to look at her in disbelief. "I mean, yeah, Sonny is gone now, and so Mr. Condor canceled our show, but I'm still young and beautiful. Someone's gonna see all this and want to put me in a starring role ASAP. Take a good look, people. Next time you see Tawni Hart is on a movie screen!"
No one is amused. Nico, Grady, and Zora hang their heads in a kind of sadness. It's contagious; Tawni retreats into silence. They're all thinking about one thing: Sonny Munroe.
Grady: "Has anyone, you know, heard from her?"
Zora: "I've heard things."
Nico: "What kind of things?"
Zora: "Things a girl could only hear while slithering through the studio via the air vents next to Mr. Condor's office. But listen, you buffoons. If word about this gets out, it could ruin her more than the end of her career already has. Keep it on the down low, got it?" They all fervently nod and take a step in to create a covert circle. "The girl had secrets she never told us about. Her seemingly petty breakup with Chad sent her into a deep, dark place. She claimed she was seeking professional help, and that's why Marshall let her go."
Tawni: "So it's Chad's fault our show went kaput? Great. I knew he was trouble right from the beginning. I bet he planned our demise ever since Sonny got here!"
Chad Dylan Cooper enters.
Chad: "I heard my name. Which one of you relapsed into watching the Falls this time? Last night's episode was epic. Mackenzie was mysteriously pushed off of the falls. Made for a historical cliffhanger. Get it? Because he fell off a cliff- or did he?" (Dramatically.)
Nico: "No one has, Chip. And there's no way you heard us talking about your evil plan to destroy our best friend all the way from the Falls. Especially not over the sound your ego makes when you talk."
The remaining So Random cast members all laugh spitefully, and then sigh, remembering this would be their last jab at their preppy competitor.
Chad: "Fine. So maybe I was eavesdropping behind the door because maybe I felt like saying sorry."
Grady: "For what? Sending Sonny into a depression? Well, sorry ain't gonna cut it, buddy." (Jabs Chad with index finger.)
Chad: "No, for being a jerk all these years. You Randoms aren't that bad after all."
His eyes suddenly grow wide with alarm as he realizes what has been revealed.
Chad: "Whoa, back up. What happened to Sonny?"
Nico: "You did, man."
Chad: "What are you dorks talking about?" His face is riddled with genuine concern and a sense of panic.
Zora: "Your little ruse to get Sonny to leave So Random and cancel our show worked. Happy? Ever since you ruined that forbidden romance, Sonny Munroe's heart has been irreparably broken. You digust me."
Chad: "No...That can't be possible. I never thought...I thought she would be better off without me. I...don't..." His eyes blink, hard. When they open again, everyone can see his glassy blue eyes brimming with saltwater. He shakes his head slowly. "What can I do?"
Nico: "Nothing." (Hopelessly.) "We don't know where she is right now."
Grady: "And she changed her phone number."
Zora: "Or disconnected it entirely."
Tawni: (Finally starts wailing.) "I should have bought those comforting lessons I found on Craigslist! Then Sonny would still be with us!"
Grady: "I'm not sure that would have solved the problem."
Nico: "I'm not even sure that's legal, either. Probably best you didn't buy them."
Chad: "Still, there has to be a way to fix this."
Zora: "Good luck, Pooper. The only way that's going to work is if you figure out where Sonny is, convince her to talk to you, and fix her broken heart. Pretty sure that's an impossible feat, judging from what I've read on the Internet, combined with my vast experience dating 13 year old boys."
He springs up suddenly, as if with an idea.
Chad: "This is the only time I'll say this, so listen up Randoms. I'll miss you. Take care. See you after I find Sonny."
The group says a collective "awww."
He runs out of the prophouse.
Group rumble begins.
Audible is:
"He's out of his mind."
"Just crazy!"
"I always thought he was cool."
"What about me?"
"Yeah, man, you're the coolest dude I've ever met."
"You guys are freaks...but I guess I love you all anyway."
"I didn't know Tawni COULD love."
"Surprises come in all packages."
"Speaking of packages, my last Cocoa Moco Cocoa shipment should be here."
"Typical Tawni Hart. I'm actually going to miss all of you."
"Group hug?"
"Are those CHEESE SHOES? Don't come near my new pumps."
"Well, I didn't know your shoes meant more to you than your friends."
"Ugh...fine. Come here."
Scene ends as the cast is gathered in their final group hug. Except it's not the same without Sonny. They know it can never be the same- but at least, is there a chance to be together again?
No one is hopeful as they each part ways, giving up the notion of finding Sonny. Everyone but the only person not on So Random, their enemy since they first lost the Tween Choice Awards to Mackenzie Falls, the antagonizer, the ex-boyfriend of the girl they lost because his inflated sense of sense led to the tragic end of everyone in his wake.
Chad Dylan Cooper hurriedly turns in his scripts permanently to the head of Condor Studios and devises to get Sonny Munroe back if it's the last thing does.
Author's Note:
This is a trailer of sorts, a preview to what I believe to be more or less the trajectory of the show, given what we now know.
Sidenote: In this story, Chad never joins the show So Random. I thought that was contrived and desperate of the SWAC writers in the first place, anyway.
I apologize for the inconsistent stage notes and descriptions. It's a mix of story and script because I haven't yet figured out how I want to deal with the telling of the plot. At first I was imagining that I was the sole continuation of the TV show but realized a lot of the details were better told through traditional narration.
Please leave a review if you are intrigued enough to continue reading so I know if I should publish the rest of the chapters. Do people even read these anymore? It's been such a long time since the end of Season 2. I'd be satisfied with no readers, in which case I would simply write these for my own sake and not for fanfiction.
