Episode #2:

West Coast Story

Chad Dylan Cooper Does Not Get Tricked

It was a long day. Sonny and Chad met for the first time, the actress called a peace picnic, Chad tried to convince her to let the two shows stay rivals, and then everything ended with the game of Musical Chairs. At first, Chad couldn't believe he was actually being asked to compete in such a childish game; he hadn't played it since he was a young boy. But something about the way Sonny begged him, the way she made the bet and seemed to know exactly what she was talking about……

Well, how could he say no to that?

He had to give the girl props. As the newest member of So Random!, she wasn't just trying to make friends with the rest of her cast but also with his. He had no idea why she was trying so hard. Did it really matter if the two shows could act friendly with each other or not?

Chad didn't see a reason to become friends with the other cast. To be honest, he didn't see it ever happening. But Sonny was trying so hard to make it work out. Besides, even if he couldn't imagine being friends with her four other cast mates, Chad could see a friendship between himself and Sonny. He was Chad Dylan Cooper and would never admit to liking the brown haired girl, but there was something different about her.

It wasn't like she gave him much of a choice when it came to the Musical Chairs challenge. Not only did she offer up a bet, but she also called him a chicken. Calling Chad Dylan Cooper a chicken wasn't allowed, not even for pretty girls.

The cast of Mackenzie Falls laughed when Chad told them about the challenge. He laughed along with them and told them not to worry about losing. How could they lose a game as simple as that? Sure enough, when it was time to play, his cast was doing great. In the end though, So Random! started to catch up. Sonny was the last one left and it came down to her and Chad.

They walked around the chair, each of them keeping a hand on it, as though just touching it would be enough to win. Chad tried to keep his eyes trained on hers so he would know if she tried to trick him (how could you trick someone when playing Musical Chairs anyway?), but just like the first time he saw her, he kept looking at her hair. It was up this time, but enough of it was still down that it seemed to flow around her face as she walked, glaring at the teen heartthrob like there was no tomorrow.

Was the competition still about becoming friends? Did Sonny still want peace between the two shows or was winning all that mattered to her now? Chad didn't really care either way. Whether he was friends with Sonny or not, they had lunch together every day and he could talk to her whether she wanted to talk back or not. He didn't care about the little peace treaty. All he cared about was winning the game.

Just as the music came to a stop, Chad knew he was the winner. His body was stopped right in front of the chair, and he was getting ready to sit down when-

Sonny fell to the floor, clutching her ankle.

Chad wasn't sure what to do. His fellow cast mates stared at him, wondering why he hadn't taken advantage of the girl and won the game. Part of him wanted to sit down and claim the victory for Mackenzie Falls. On the other hand, it wouldn't be right to win just because Sonny was hurt. There was no doubt in his mind that the girl was hurt. She held her leg out at an angle, gripping her ankle. Her brown eyes stared at him, brimmed with sadness. She, along with his cast, thought he was going to take advantage and win the game.

Some things were more important than winning. Without hesitation, Chad extended his hand toward the girl sitting on the floor, offering to help her to her feet.

In the short amount of time he had before Sonny slipped her hand into his, Chad thought he saw something cross her face. Her sad eyes changed the moment she had his hand and her lips moved silently. What did she mouth? 'I hate you'? 'Sorry'? Chad had no idea what she said. All he knew was one second he was on his feet, the next in Sonny's spot, watching as she sat in the chair.

"Peace out, suckers!" she exclaimed, using Chad's own line against him.

It wasn't the first time during the game she used a line he had said to her before. To be honest, it thrilled him a little bit to hear her say his words back to him. It meant she really did listen to him. Maybe her hatred for Mackenzie Falls wasn't as deep as the rest of the So Random! cast.

Although it thrilled him for a moment to hear Sonny say his line, Chad didn't stay happy for long. He watched as the rest of the So Random! cast hugged Sonny; was that a sad look she sent in his direction?

Realizing he was still on the floor, Chad scrambled to his feet quickly, shouting, "You tricked me!"

"No," Sonny replied, bringing her hands to her face so she could brush her hair away in what she probably thought was an imitation of Chad. "I was acting."

Chad deserved that one. He'd made fun of her acting earlier, although he really had no business to. He hadn't watched an episode of So Random! since she joined the cast and therefore was judging her acting by her conversations. He wasn't right to make fun of her and he realized that as he offered her a spot on Mackenzie Falls.

He wasn't surprised when she said she was going to stay on her show in Chuckle City (once again, she used his words). He pretended to be hurt by her decision, but since the game was over, the cast of Mackenzie Falls was leaving. With one last look at Sonny, Chad followed them out of the room.

Sonny was a lot smarter than he'd given her credit for. No, she hadn't tricked him into thinking she'd hurt her ankle. She was only doing an amazing acting job. No one had ever tricked Chad Dylan Cooper and in the future, no one was going to.

For the first and only time, Sonny Munroe got the best of Chad Dylan Cooper. He would make sure the incident would never be talked about again.

Well, he would make sure of it after his end of the bet was completed, anyway.

***********

The cast of So Random! gathered together. Sonny was still new and trying to make friends with everyone. Things had been going better since she'd led them to victory in Musical Chairs. As the five of them sat in the props room, she couldn't help but smile along with them. For the first time, they were watching Mackenzie Falls.

Even though she'd never say it out loud, Sonny was happy to have an excuse to watch the show rivaling hers. Not only did she want to know what the big deal was about Mackenzie Falls and why everyone on it seemed to think they were better than the rest of the world, but she wanted to see Chad Dylan Cooper in action.

Chad Dylan Cooper, the boy who thought he was the greatest actor on the face of the planet. Sonny sighed every time she thought about him. She'd never met anyone so conceited in her life.

"He's always been like that," Tawni Hart explained to Sonny once. "We've never really had to deal with it until now though."

"What do you mean?" Sonny had asked, looking as confused as she felt. "I thought Mackenzie Falls and So Random! have been fighting since the two shows starting filming."

"They have," Tawni replied, nodding her head. "Lately, Chad's been talking to us a lot more than usual. He's not always as annoying as he has been since you arrived."

The conversation had confused Sonny. Why would Chad start bothering her cast more since she had arrived? It didn't make any sense. It wasn't like he liked her or anything. He was Chad Dylan Cooper, the heartthrob of millions of girls all around the world. Besides, most of the time when he talked to her, it was just to degrade her.

If he wasn't talking because he liked her and yet he usually left the So Random! cast alone, why was he acting different now?

Sonny was forced to stop thinking about Chad and his reasons of being annoying when Mackenzie Falls came back from commercial break. She wouldn't have noticed the show was back if she hadn't been staring at the screen. When his blonde head appeared, she was forced to pay attention. She was always forced to pay attention when she saw him.

"'Look, Portlyn, summer's almost over and once fall comes back to the falls…I need to be free.'"

Chad wasn't lying about being a good actor. He wasn't as great as he made himself sound, but as Sonny watched the scene, she let her mouth hang open. He made it seem believable, like the conversation was really happening. She was actually getting caught up in the moment.

As the scene continued to play, Sonny had to force herself to not get too caught up. This was a one time thing. She wasn't going to start watching Mackenzie Falls every week. Not only would she get too much Chad that way, but her own cast mates, who she was finally starting to get along with, would probably shun her. No, she was watching the show for one reason, and one reason only.

Ok, two if you counted the fact she wanted to know what was so special about Mackenzie Falls. One if you counted just the reason the whole So Random! cast was watching the episode together.

"'Shh,"' 'Mackenzie' said, and Sonny shushed her thoughts, knowing the moment was about to come. "The time for talking is over because..." Chad turned his attention directly to the camera. "So Random! is on. It's my favorite show."

Everyone around Sonny started cheering. She joined in, wanting to fit in with everyone. She joined them in clanking their cups of yogurt together and shouting insulting things at the TV about Chad.

Deep down, beneath her smile and shouts of joy, Sonny felt guilty. If she hadn't tricked Chad by pretending to hurt herself during the game of Musical Chairs, things would've been a lot different. He wouldn't be the one admitting So Random! as his favorite show. So Random! would be admitting their favorite show was Mackenzie Falls. Because of her not so nice trick, no one would ever know who really would've won the game.

Which show was the real loser?

The guilt started eating away at Sonny and she knew something had to be done about it. As the rest of her cast continued their celebration, she got to her feet, throwing the rest of her yogurt away.

"Why'd you do that?!" Grady exclaimed, making Sonny jump about a foot in the air. She didn't think anyone was watching her. "If you didn't want the rest of your food, you at least could've offered it to me!"

"Oh, sorry," Sonny apologized, not really paying attention as she made her way toward the door. "Well, I'm getting tired. I think I'm going to head home."

"You're leaving already?" Nico asked. His voice sounded sad.

"Let her go if she wants, Nico," Tawni said, rolling her eyes. "She stayed and watched the show with us. And look on the bright side, I'm still here…And I'm still pretty!"

Everyone sighed loudly except for Tawni, who always seemed to be in a good mood after telling herself how pretty she was. Sonny didn't stay long enough to hear anything else. She had to leave before she changed her mind about what she knew she had to do.

It wasn't her first time going to the set of Mackenzie Falls, but it was her first time going at night. Would Chad even still be around? Of course the show wouldn't be filming right now, as it had been last time she showed up. Would anyone be on the set or would everyone be gone?

Mackenzie Falls was quiet. There was a janitor mopping one of the stages, but he didn't hear Sonny since he had earphones in. She walked past him, not needing his help to find what she was looking for.

Chad's door had a huge golden star on it that read CHAD DYLAN COOPER in all capital letters. Rolling her eyes, Sonny raised her fist, ready to knock. Before she could do it, her arm fell back to her side. What was she doing here? Chad didn't need an apology from her. What was done was done. There was no use in talking to him.

Her fist rose into the air again. Yes, there was a reason to talk to Chad. She'd tricked him during the game, and even though he'd done worse things to her, letting her mistake go without saying how sorry she was would be just as bad as he was.

If there was one thing Sonny Munroe wasn't, it was Chad Dylan Cooper. No way was she going to slip down to his level.

With a determined look on her face, Sonny pounded on the door.

"Come in," his voice answered.

Sonny pushed open the door enough to let herself in, shutting it softly behind her. The room was bigger than the dressing room she and Tawni shared, and her mouth fell open at first, but she shut it quickly. She wasn't here to complain. She was here to apologize.

Chad was sitting on a stool so he could look into a huge mirror with lights surrounding it on all sides. Had she really expected anything different? When she didn't say anything, he moved slightly on his stool, trying to see her reflection. He turned to face her, surprise on his face.

"Sonny," he stated her name, as though both of them didn't already know it. "What are you doing here?"

She put her hands together nervously, twining them and untwining them, as she took a deep breath. This was going to be harder than she thought.

"I came to talk to you about the other day, when we played Musical Chairs-,"

"Forget about it, Sonny. I lived up to my end of the bet. It's done."

He turned his back to her again, facing his mirror. When her reflection continued to stand in his room, glancing at the floor, he sighed loudly before turning to face her.

"Is there something else, Sonny?"

"I'm sorry."

The two words seemed to hang in the air, floating there, lingering, instead of traveling straight to Chad's ears. Sonny avoided his eyes, keeping hers firmly on the ground like she was stuck in some sort of trance. It was his voice that finally broke the silence.

"What?"

"Please don't make me say it again," Sonny begged, finally meeting Chad's eyes. Like on her first day at the studio, Chad felt a spark pass between them. He shrugged it off. "Look, Chad, I'm sorry for tricking you during the game. If I would've stayed true and played fair, there might've been a totally different outcome. Now we'll never know who the real winner was and…and…I'm sorry."

By the end of her speech, Sonny looked as though she was about to burst into tears at any second. Chad didn't understand. Did she really think he was mad at her? Did it matter if he was?

"Really, Sonny? Really?" It was all he could think of to say. It worked; Sonny met his eyes again. "You don't have anything to apologize for. You were acting, not tricking. No one tricks Chad Dylan Cooper."

That line got a smile out of her. An idea forming in his head, Chad stood up from his stool, grabbed the bottom of it, and pulled it to the middle of the room. Sonny watched him, questioning his motive but not saying a word. If he wanted to explain it to her, he would.

Sure enough, Chad let go of the stool and stood on one side of it so he was facing Sonny. He could feel the smile on his face, but he tried to hide it as he explained his idea.

"If you feel so bad about the first round of Musical Chairs, let's play again."

Sonny looked back and forth from the stool to Chad's face. Slowly, the same smile he could feel on his lips overtook hers as well.

"What's the bet?"

"There's no bet this time. Whichever of us wins officially works on the best show at Condor Studios. Deal?"

He extended his hand across the stool. Taking a few steps closer, Sonny slipped her hand into his.

"Deal," she confirmed. Then, as she remembered the rules to Musical Chairs, "Wait, how are you going to do the music and-,"

Chad clapped his hands. The lights on his mirror turned off, a disco ball lowered from the ceiling, and music started playing through the room. Sonny seemed astonished at first, but she let her mouth close again as she looked at Chad, shaking her head.

"You Mackenzie Falls people don't know how good you have it," she said. Without giving him a chance to remark, she asked, "How is the music going to stop? If you just clap, then you can do that anytime you want and I'll be the loser for sure."

"The music doesn't stay on until I clap again," Chad replied. "I always used to forget to turn it off, so now it's on a timer. I don't know how long the timer's set for. I've never paid that close of attention. When it shuts off, it'll be a surprise to both of us."

The answer seemed to satisfy Sonny. She was smiling cockily as she said, "Are you sure you're ready for this, Cooper?"

"Bring it on, Munroe."

With that, they started circling the stool.

It was a long game. The stool was small and Chad and Sonny were both starting to get dizzy after walking around it so many times. They kept their determined looks on but didn't talk to each other as they had during the first game. Everything had been for show then, to prove to their casts they really didn't like each other. There was no one to prove anything to now. It was one against one in a contest no one but the two of them would ever know about.

Finally, the music stopped. Neither teen realized it at first, their ears so attuned to the noise, but when they snapped out of their trances, they both lunged for the stool at once. Unlike the chairs they played with before, the stool had no back and wasn't as sturdy on its legs. With two teenagers clawing at once, the stool had no chance. It fell to the ground, bringing Chad and Sonny with it.

Chad and Sonny both landed on their backs, the stool thudding between them. Chad looked over at Sonny; Sonny looked over at Chad. She was smiling, a smile just like the first one he'd ever seen her give. She was trying not to laugh.

"I guess this means we both work on the best show," Chad said, returning Sonny's smile.

"Fine," she agreed.

"Fine," he repeated.

"Good."

"Good."

Laughing softly, Sonny climbed to her feet, offering Chad a hand. He took it, letting her help him up even though he easily could've done it alone. They both picked up the stool. Once it was back on its feet, Sonny headed toward the door, opening it quickly. She stopped long enough to face Chad one last time.

"So, we're good?" she asked, tilting her head slightly to the side.

"Oh, we're so good," he replied.

Sonny smiled, giggled in an extremely girly way, and exited the dressing room. It would be a night neither Chad nor Sonny would forget anytime soon.