Chapter 12: From Sonrise to Sonset

Chad's P.O.V.

"You mean the show So Random, the one filmed here," I stammered.

Crystal grabbed her book from my hand, still smiling but looking a little surprised. "Um, ya, that would the one," she said.

"Oh."

"So, wanna show me around?" she asked, smiling at me.

"Um, sure," I replied. Little did I know the mess I was getting myself into.

Sonny's P.O.V.

I stared straight at the TV screen as Skylar ran through each of the channels for the fifth time. I couldn't concentrate on anything but the information he had just shared with me. One question kept coming to my mind, 'what would happen to him if Silvia died?'

"Sonny," Skylar began, his voice barely above a whisper. "I was hoping I could talk to you about something else."

"Anything," I replied.

"It has to do with Jay..."

"I think I already know," I said, interrupting him. "It's pretty clear that he's not very nice to you."

Skylar shook his head and returned his attention to the TV. "Don't tell my mom."

I wanted to say that she already knew, but I knew that that would only hurt him more. I nodded my head and sat silently as he returned to flipping through the channels.

I knew it would make Skylar upset, but as soon as I got the chance, I confronted Silvia. I announced that I knew about her illness and I made sure to tell her how much her son was suffering because of her actions. I expected her to retort with some stupid excuse about how she was doing her best. Instead, she collapse onto the couch and broke out into tears.

"Don't you think I know that?" she practically screamed. "What else am I supposed to do? If I die, Skylar will end up in a foster home! He'll be all alone!"

"So it's better to leave him with somebody who's going to torture him?" I asked, not in any way understanding her logic.

"With Jay, he'll still live in the same home, the same town. He'll go to the same school with the same friends. He'll receive everything I leave behind, and he'll be able to continue his life as normally as possible," Silvia replied. "In a foster home, what will they do? Will he be sent across the country, across the world? Will the family be poor? Will he be able to make any new friends? And what if they mistreat him anyway? In what kind of circumstance would he be in then?"

I wasn't sure how to respond. Of course that would be horrible, but what's to stop Jay from taking everything Silvia leaves with Skylar. What's to keep him from moving across the world and dumping Skylar somewhere while running off with Silvia's money?

I shook my head, unable to say a word. Instead, I left Silvia to her crying.

Chad's P.O.V.

I showed Crystal around the whole studio- the filming sections, the dressing rooms, the bathrooms, even the storage areas. With everything I told her about the history and fun we'd had at the studio, she simply asked me to tell her more. I guess I didn't much mind showing the new girl around, but every time she flipped her fiery red hair and did her flirtatious giggle, I felt like I was betraying Sonny, even if I did continuously remind Crystal that I had a girlfriend and wasn't at all interested in her. I think those words only made her want to try harder because her attempts didn't let up.

When we ran into Marshal and Tawni on the tour, I was more that ecstatic as I found myself able to shake Crystal off of me and into their care. Tawni flashed a smile, flipped her blonde hair, and returned to pretending that she was the only person in the room. Marshal started up on a long story about how he had first started working at the studio. Crystal smiled and nodded seeming intrigued. I couldn't help smiling too as I made my escape.

I walked into the cafeteria and took a seat at one of the Mackenzie Falls' tables. The place was pretty much deserted, and that actually made me pretty happy. Since going to my own dressing room would only drag my costars to start raving about whatever useless nonsense they were interested in today, it was nice to be able to find some peace and quiet inside the cafeteria.

"There you are." I looked up to find Crystal walking up to me. She pulled out the chair across from me and took a seat. "Why did you abandon me?"

"You looked like you were having fun," I mumbled, definitely not happy that my silence had been shattered.

"Hello, I was acting," Crystal replied. "I'm pretty good. That's why I managed to get the part."

'Sonny's part,' I thought to myself. However, as I sat there and Crystal dove into an account of her hometown, I didn't voice my opinions. I managed to keep quiet about the fact that she was annoying me, and that her presence did nothing but make me think of Sonny and how much I missed her. 'Sonny,' I said in my mind, 'please come home.'

Sonny's P.O.V.

I went back into Skylar's room to find him sleeping. He was so mature for his age that sometimes it was hard to remember that he was in fact just an eight-year-old boy. Of course, when I remembered, I wanted to cry. He was just a little kid and yet his life was falling apart. Any day, his mother might leave him for good with a man who beat him.

I thought back to my home. i thought about how I had been raised by two loving parents that would never have done anything to hurt me. They would protect me and try to please me like good parents. How could Skylar- my brother- have ended up in a life quite so different from the one I had known.

I sat down on the edge of his bed and allowed my thoughts to stray to my mother. How I missed her! I knew I would have to stay for a few days more, but if I could, I would have run to an airport at that very moment and taken the first flight back home. I missed being able to talk to her about my problems, and even just sitting there with her when I was upset.

And that led me to thoughts of Chad. I had never been in love before, but if I had to guess, I would say that this was what it feels like. That feeling of wanting nothing less than to be away from him. Knowing that every second I could spend with him, whether in person or simply chatting online, was a moment to be treasured. Being able to entrust my secrets in him and knowing plain and simple that he could entrust his secrets in me. It was that feeling that I missed more than anything else. It was that feeling of love that I had for Chad and for my family that I knew Skylar was unable to experience, and that alone was enough to make me cry.

Yay, I actually finished writing this by my personal deadline. Anyway, please REVIEW. Like, seriously, review.