Been Here All Along: Scars
Disclaimer: I don't own SWAC.
Sonny and Tawni walked to the first hotel they could find: some floozy hotel across the street from a Cuban restaurant on 8th Street. Tawni got them a room as Sonny splayed out on the couch in the lobby, the lack of sleep hitting her all at once. As they reached their room, 128, Tawni turned around to look at Sonny, who was too tired to talk. Without saying a word, Sonny immediately threw herself on the bed. Tawni laid down next to her, flipping through the channels aimlessly.
An hour passed and Tawni decided to check up on the crew after seeing that 'So Random!' was replaced with a re-run of 'High School Diaries', a new show being aired on the same channel as her show.
"Hello?" Tawni asked.
"How's she doing?" replied Nico, not his usual self.
"She's dealing. Hasn't done anything that drastic."
"Good," Nico started. "Have you found Chad?"
"No," Tawni replied. "But he has to be here somewhere." After a pause, Nico broke the silence.
"Grady knows where Chad could be crashing."
As night fell, Tawni went across the street to the restaurant, all of the thoughts she'd just heard running through her head. She wasn't really paying attention to the waitress, so she got them some pizza and spaghetti to eat. Looking around the restaurant, she noticed that it was a busy restaurant. All the tables were full and she couldn't even hear her thoughts with all the buzzing in the café.
"Where is he?" Tawni asked desperately to the news Nico had just given her.
"Grady's cousin is friends with Chad's uncle, Max Cooper. His uncle lives in Hialeah."
"No way. Does he have an address?" Tawni quickly scribbled the address on a napkin and hung up, with newfound hope illuminating her.
After ordering, she waited and grabbed the first pizzas that appeared and left. She crossed the street with a few people that recognized her, took a few pictures, and kept going her way. By the time she arrived at the hotel, Sonny was sitting in the bed looking like death. Her eyes were hollow and she looked very depressed. The sight hurt Tawni.
"I brought some pizzas, hun." Tawni said.
"Thanks. I was kinda hungry." Sonny replied.
"I know. I just wish we didn't have to miss Meatball Monday with the guys." Tawni achieved her goal, as Sonny chuckled.
Meanwhile, Chad had just finished ordering a pizza and sat staring at the street. It was packed. Along this street were a few stores and boutiques he'd never shop at, and across the street was the hotel he was staying at. Hey, it was cheap and low-key, and they had free adult movies. What more could a guy want?
Truthfully, he was at that hotel because someone had told him that Sam enjoyed the restaurant he currently sat at. He heard that many celebrities frequented there, and he swore he saw Tawni at one point. Of course, that left him wondering if Sonny had in fact followed him.
He would have called her that night to make sure everything was okay. He would've sung to her again until she fell asleep. He would've sat with him in silence if she wanted to. But he couldn't. And it's not a pride thing, or anything of that sort. Simply, he dropped his phone. In a puddle.
Chad grabbed the pizza and left, crossing the street to his hotel quickly. He was completely focused on what he should do next. He was thinking about how ridiculous he was acting, and if he should go home. As he crossed, he heard a noise and turned to it. The last thing Chad remembered was an ominous yellow light, brighter than the sun, staring right at him, and a wave of numbness taking him over.
It was midnight, and Sonny had drifted back to sleep. Tawni, on the other hand, was on a laptop she had rented from the hotel and was checking out her next steps. One option was to hop on a plane back to LA and forget about everything that was happening. Another much more possible plan was to enlist the help of many of Tawni's A-List celebrity friends and find Chad before it was too late. And the third plan was to get back to Sam, explain what was happening, and work together.
Nah.
Tawni looked up from the computer screen to see a few flashing lights and hear a whole orchestra of sirens. Curiosity got the best of her, so she made her way to the window to see what had happened. She saw a body being carried away. The person was wearing jeans from American Eagle or the sort, as well as a gray shirt with the Condor Studios logo on the top left corner.
As if that wasn't enough, the hair jumped out at her. Even though it was bloody and dirty, that beautifully tousled blonde hair belonged to one person. To the one person they came here looking for. To the one person that meant life itself to Sonny. To the one person that, despite all of their bickering, Tawni had grown to love.
It belonged to Chad Dylan Cooper.
"Sonny! Wake up!" Tawni yelled as she shook Sonny rapidly until awakening. She dragged Sonny to the window and showed her the scene, although the body was gone. Sony looked at Tawni with fear in her eyes, and silently. asked the one question she was dying to know. Tawni nodded and grabbed her purse. Sonny quickly pulled off her sweaty shirt and grabbed a new one. As she raised her arms, Tawni noticed marks on Sonny's wrist.
"Sonny...what's that?"
The story's reaching the turning point. There's no turning back on it now! I hope you enjoy this chapter, and expect the next one in about 2 weeks…all depends on how much time I get. And now is where I get stumped. I don't know what'll happen next. But hey, you never know!
Follow me on Twitter for constant updates on when I'm writing (and you might even get a shout out in the story!): _michaelgomez_
Thanks to MirandaKPerry for motivating me to write! This chapter is dedicated to you!
Signing off, Wizardly Vampirefied