Sonny was awoken several times that night from strange noises in the house- this was just one of those things she absolutely hated about sleeping somewhere else. The loud ticking of the grandfather clock downstairs in the living room; the creak of the uneven floorboards under Jack's old cat Jack Jr.'s heavy steps; the wind blowing through the drying leaves outside. It didn't matter how many times Sonny twisted and turned, how many different positions she took on the bed, sleep was just not coming to her.

Her guitar gleamed in the light from the moon, sitting on the chair in the corner of the room. Sonny wasn't aware quite how long she had been looking at it, but after what she assumed was over an hour, she got up off the bed and quietly tip-toed over to her guitar, sweeping it up, and tip toed the rest of the way out of her room, down the stairs and out onto the back porch.

Taking a moment to sit cross-legged on the stairs and revel in the soft breeze and unusually warm evening, Sonny thought about moments just like this before, from years ago. Looking out across the lawn, she didn't see the long dark shadows of the trees, but a soft light shining through them, the sun setting over the horizon.

"Come in please, Sonny! It's time to get ready for bed. You are not being a great influence there, Sean, letting her frolic around on the dirty ground," came her grandmother's voice from the kitchen window. Her father laughed beside her, picking the grass and throwing it into Sonny's hair.

"It's not dirty, ma! It's covered in grass. Besides, it's still light out and Little Miss Sonny here is having a ball, isn't that right?" and he looked over at her, his eyes shining, reflecting the free spirit that he was.

"That's right daddy!" she had cheered, clapping her hands and throwing her own little handful of grass at her father.

It was moments like this, the moments where her father and her had just hung out, despite any problems that had arisen, or were sure to arise soon. The moments where he laughed and held her, where she couldn't resist the smile coming onto her face, like just at that precise moment where she started strumming on her guitar, a grin lazily splayed across her face and with nobody else around. She started humming to herself, her notes winding themselves around the notes being emitted from the instrument resting in her lap.

After many changes and listen throughs, Sonny found herself with an amazing melody. However, as much as her heart had elated at the sound of the song and as much as she loved how it reminded her of those simpler times, she knew it wasn't the sound the studio would be looking for. It wasn't upbeat and catchy, something her fans would want to get up and dance to. It was from her heart, yes, it was personal and wonderful- for her.

Placing the guitar beside her, she pulled her knees to her chest and put her head down on them, taking a deep sigh and breathing in fresh air- something very rare in LA. She hardly noticed the footsteps coming towards her.

"You're up pretty late, huh?", came Caleb's voice from next to her. Instead of lifting her head to look at him, she just turned it slowly, her eyes drifting shut from sleepiness and a small smile on her face.

"I couldn't sleep."

"I heard you playing. It was really nice," he said, nodding his head to the guitar. "You a songwriter or something?"

"Kind of. You ever hear of the show So Random?", she asked silently, closing her eyes, but disallowing herself to fall asleep.

"No. Is it a band or something?", came his reply, shrugging innocently.

"Nope. It's a comedy sketch show. But, we sing sometimes. And I am the songwriter for the show. See, since we've introduced the musical numbers, the viewers expect it. Plus, we've gained attention and upped our ratings. But, the past few weeks have been.. harder than the others," Sonny said, opening her eyes slowly and feeling surprised when she saw Caleb staring back at her.

"Harder how?", he asked, mirroring her pose, their bodies forming a 'T'.

"There have been.. issues. I don't know quite how I can explain them. My boyfriend has become more distant lately. I am not quite sure why. And the stress and pressure I've been feeling, paired with the questions I have for him about our relationship has basically stumped my song writing ability."

"So.. that's why you're here, right? You wanted to get away from that stress and write? Does your boyfriend like the idea of being here in a house with a man and his son?", laughed Caleb, shaking his head and coming back to meet her gaze.

There was a pause of silence where Sonny wondered what exactly Chad would think when- or if- she told him. She couldn't picture his reaction and that shook her a little. Would he be angry? Or indifferent? Think it was a good idea for the sake of the show? Or for her own sake?

"I haven't told him yet. In fact, he's not exactly sure where I am right now."

"You mean to tell me, you are so worried about your relationship, but you didn't talk to him about your questions and concerns? You left without talking?", and at that, he shook his head again, this time in.. anger? "Girls.. I mean, you all want us to communicate, and then things go awry and instead of talking about it, you run off and expect us to come to you, to pick up all the pieces without your help?"

"Hey now! I know that what I did might be a little sketchy, but don't be taking your anger about some girl out on me!", Sonny whisper-yelled. She scratched her forehead and turned to face him full on. "Look, I know I shouldn't have run. I know talking might have been better. But, I almost feel lost. I needed to go somewhere familiar. So, I came here."

Silence passed between them again, a silence filled with confusion and regret and littered with fatigue and frustration. The two of them had their own thoughts and inquiries, both would remain unanswered and empty for the evening.

"I'm sorry for taking all of that out on you. Long story," Caleb shrugged, moving to stand. He offered Sonny his hand, which she took to help pull herself out of her position on the squeaky steps. "We will leave it to another day though, another evening full of confessions."

Sonny laughed, brushing off the seat of her pants and followed him inside. "To another night then."

Sonny's dreams for the rest of the night were full of mixed messages. Some were dreams she'd had before, containing scenes from her past, often visited on the nights where she allowed herself to remember. Some were of strange occurrences, most of which contained trains and arriving on time. Sonny wasn't one to often believe in dream analysis, but she knew that her unconscious was trying to tell her something. What that something was, that's what she wanted to know.

When she awoke the next morning, she realized she needed to do multiple things: she needed to call Chad, to talk to him like Caleb had told her to do, like she knew she was supposed to; she also needed more time. Pulling out two pieces of paper from the desk across the room from her bed, she sat down and addressed one to Chad, and one to Marshall and the gang back at the lot. And then, she began to write.

a/n: I hope you like it. I promise Chad will be in the next chapter. :) Please read and review!