Disclaimer: I do not own SWAC, Disney, or anything else copyrighted.
Sonny was released from the hospital a few days ago, one day after she had been admitted. Connie was definitely disappointed in her daughter, and, like Sonny, wasn't surprised that she relapsed. She, of course, hoped that she wouldn't, and as was going to help her daughter get back to a healthier weight once more. Sonny was now on vacation, as was the rest of the So Random! cast, so since she got home, she and her Mom spent time together.
It was in the middle of the afternoon one Friday, and Sonny stared at her phone. She hadn't received any phone call or text from Chad. She wondered how he was doing. Her Mom was currently at work; she was a nurse and had the night shift that night. She was sitting on her couch, now watching TV, when there was a knock on the door. Confused, she got up and walked over to the door. She opened it, and was very surprised to find Chad standing there. "Hey," she softly said.
He smiled at her. He seemed tired, almost exhauted. His eyes weren't quite as sparkly as they normally were. His hair and clothes were also slightly disheveled. "Hey," he murmured. "Can I come in?"
She nodded and quickly stepped aside. She shut the door behind him as he walked into her apartment and asked, "So what brings you here?"
"I... I want to ask you something, Sonny."
She nodded and looked at him curiously. He looked at her, biting his lip slightly. "Will you come with me?" he suddenly blurted out.
She tilted her head, furrowing her eyebrows together. "Where?"
He stared at her for a moment before saying, "Oh! Sorry, um..." He sighed and looked at her couches. "Let's sit down?" She slowly nodded and walked over to her couch. He sat down on the other side of the couch and said, "So, I've decided to go to a rehabiliation clinic out of state. I'll be going to one in Colorado, close to Denver. It's a program specifically for people my age..." He sighed. "I'm not asking you to join me in the program... this is mostly for alcohol and drug users... but, um, will you come with me out to Colorado?"
She continued to look at him for a moment. She was pretty shocked; true, she believed him when he said that he wanted to get better, but she hadn't expected him to act so suddenly, and that made her happy. She smiled at him and nodded. "Yeah."
He beamed and leaned forward and tightly hugged her. "Oh, Sonny..."
She laughed as she wrapped her arms around Chad, resting her head on his shoulder. "Oh, Chad..."
"We can do this, Sonny," he murmured, referring to his drug and alcohol problems and her latest anorexia relapse.
"Mom's helping me," she said. "And Tawni's been sending these..." She paused. "...interesting texts. They're supposed to be nice." She shrugged. "And I'll be thinking of you," she softly said into his ear.
He hugged her tighter. "Thank you, Sonny. For believing in me, for actually pushing me to get help."
She nodded as they looked at each other. Suddenly Chad leaned forward and their lips met in a soft, gentle kiss. It wasn't how either of them imagined their first kiss together, but now that they've done it, they wouldn't have it any other way. They each broke the kiss, their foreheads meeting as their bodies, their faces, still remained close to each other.
"I'm definitely going to miss this," Sonny murmured, looking into Chad's eyes and smiling softly.
Chad chucked, his chuckle low and deep. "Well, we'll have to make the most of our time left together, now won't we?"
She softly giggled. "Now, now, Chad, let's not get too ahead of ourselves. Let's just sit here and... I don't know. Sit. Talk. When are you leaving?"
"Two days."
She silently nodded, her hands reaching down and grabbing Chad's. "How long will you be gone?"
"Six weeks. That's how long their main program is, and that's how long I hope to stay there. If I can go after that, then I'll move back here and stay in an outpatient program."
"You've thought a lot about this."
He nodded. "Mom, Dad, and I have talked a lot these past few days. I even got to talk to Alex some more."
She smiled. "You never realized how close he lived to you, did you?"
He shook his head. "I didn't. I'm glad he was there, and I'm glad you contacted him."
She shrugged. "I knew he would want to help."
"How did you find out about him?" he asked, leaning against the back of the couch.
She quietly laughed. "Well, it took me a long time, but... well, first, I called your parents. It took me a while to find their number. I told them my plan, about the intervention, and they said they wanted to help. They told me to contact Alex, but they didn't have his number. Finally, they called me back with his parents numbers, who told me his number, and... well, I'm sure you can figure out the rest."
He smiled, shutting his eyes. She smiled at him, also resting against the back of the couch. She started rubbing her hand through his hair. "You look... kinda ruffled today, Chad."
"Apparently, I'm detoxing," he murmured, sighing. "Or, something like that. I... I did a lot, Sonny. I really didn't realize how much I used until now. It... It's weird. I'm having more trouble sleeping. My body feels... weird. Almost like it's craving for more, and I... I can't..."
She was softly rubbing his arm. "I know the feeling." She sighed before saying, "When I was first admitted into the hospital for... for anorexia, it was almost as if my body was mad at me. They basically forced me into eating. I don't like throwing up, and bulimia never worked for me, but... but I felt physically sick, as if my body was trying to make me physically ill so those foods would get out of my body."
"That's awful," Chad painfully said, opening his eyes and looking at Sonny sadly. He then compared her situation to his; well, he thought about each situation. "Mine's probably going to be a million times worse..."
She shrugged. "Let's hope not. It was awful, Chad. I've never felt that way in my life, and I never want to experience something like that again."
"What about now?" he asked her. "How do you feel?"
She sighed. "The only reason I dropped weight was because I had a lot of stress going on. When I get really stressed out, I usually just focus on the matter at hand, and unfortunately, eating became something that wasn't a priority. I had a lot going on-"
"And I just added to that..."
"Chad," Sonny sternly said. "I'm not going to lie - those words did hurt. A lot. They affected me slightly, but that was after I started to relapse." She smiled softly at him and said, "I forgive you, Chad. Please don't forget that."
"How? How could you forgive me?"
She paused for a moment. "Because I knew the real Chad, the one I'm looking at, was still in there. I knew that those drugs, the alcohol, whatever, had made you say all those things."
Chad started to shut his eyes once more and muttered, "Sorry to break this serious moment, but..." He yawned. "I'm actually a bit tired."
She laughed and snuggled close to him. "I can tell. Try to rest some tonight, Chad. We've got packing to do tomorrow."
---
Their trip to Colorado was a quiet one.
At the airport, Chad was accompanied by his parents. His Mom continued to hug and kiss him, something he could return only so much, and his Dad hugged him once, giving him a few words of wisdom. They also thanked Sonny for going with their son to Colorado, and for helping him out so much. Once they were all done saying their good-byes, Chad and Sonny dropped off their luggage and made their way towards security and their gate.
They got there a little over an hour early, and neither of them were too hungry, so they just sat down in two chairs a little bit away from other people. Sonny wrapped her arms around Chad's torso and rested her head on his shoulder. Chad wrapped an arm around her shoulders and rested his head on top of hers. "You have no idea how much it means for you to be here right now," he murmured.
"I'm glad you asked me along."
He nodded. Pretty soon, they were boarding their plane. They decided to get first class seats; they got a little more privacy in first class. They sat there in silence most of the plane ride. They continued to rest against each other, trying to get as much rest as possible before they landed. The plane ride was about two hours, and each agreed that their time in the air felt less than that. Once they had landed, they quickly got off the plane and headed over to luggage, where they found their bags and headed towards the exit. They took a taxi from the airport to Chad's recovery center, which was about 45 minutes away from the aiport. They continued to mostly sit in silence, but they held each other's hands during the taxi ride.
Around 45 minutes later, they arrived at the facility. It was a nice big building, mostly white on the outside. Chad and Sonny stepped out of the taxi, Sonny explaing to the driver to wait there while Chad got his suitcase out of the trunk. Sonny walked over to him and smiled lightly. "Ready?"
He shrugged. "I guess."
Together they walked inside and over to the receptionist desk. "Hello," she said.
"Hi," they said.
"You must be Chad," she said, looking at Chad, who nodded. "Good. I'll have Dr. Johnson come out, and she can talk to you about your stay."
Chad and Sonny nodded, and waited as the receptionist walked off. Sonny reached over and placed her hand lightly on Chad's back. She noticed he was shaking slightly and said to him, "It's okay, Chad."
Chad didn't say anything as the receptionist and a doctor walked up to them. "Hello, you must be Chad. I'm Dr. Johnson," she said, reaching her hand forward. Chad nodded and took her hand, shaking it. She looked at Sonny and asked, "Will you be joining him?"
"Oh, no, I'm just here to drop him off," Sonny joked. Dr. Johnson laughed lightly, and Chad cracked a small smile.
"Well, thankfully for you, these are visitor hours if you wanted to stay for a couple of hours," Dr. Johnson said.
Sonny and Chad looked at each other. Sonny nodded and said to Dr. Johnson, "Sure."
"Well, first, I need to talk to Chad privately about his stay here and such," the Doctor said. "But, you can stay out here in the lobby until all that's over with. It may take up to half an hour."
"That's fine, I'll wait," Sonny said.
"Okay, Chad, if you'll follow me this way..." Dr. Johnson said, starting to walk off.
Chad looked at Sonny nervously and shrugged. Sonny gave Chad a smile and a tiny wave. Chad smiled slightly in return before walking off. Sonny sat down in one of the chairs near the side wall and picked up a couple of magazines in front of her. A little over a half an hour later, she got up and used the bathroom.
---
Chad walked down the hallway, stretching. He had gotten his luggage checked, and, of course, there was nothing illegal in there. Dr. Johnson commented on that, saying, "Most patients who come here have a little bit of something on them, so congratulations for being one of the few who didn't sneak anything in." Dr. Johnson also explained the program to him, and told him they would start sending him to Narcotics Anonymous meetings in a few weeks. He walked into the lobby and just stood there. There was no one in there... where was Sonny? He plopped into a chair and bent forward slightly, shakily running his hands through his hair.
"Chad?"
He jumped up and spun around. "Where were you?!"
"The bathroom..." she murmured, looking down.
He reached forward and gave her a big hug. "I'm sorry..." he murmured into her hair. "I thought you left..."
She laughed softly. "Oh, no. I had to pee. Sorry for worrying you..." she said, wrapping her arms around him. "How was it?"
He shrugged, still holding onto her. "Simple. She checked my bag, and nothing was in it. She told me what to expect, and... that was it."
"What's going to happen when you're here?" she asked, resting her chin on his chest slightly as she looked up at him.
"Regular group meetings at first, plus individual meetings with a couple of doctors, including Dr. Johnson. Then I'll start going to NA meetings once they give me the okay, which is hopefully in a few weeks."
She nodded. "Let's walk around here."
He nodded and took her hand. Together, they walked mostly around the outside of the building. "It's so cold..." Chad muttered, his hands now in his pockets.
"I love it!" Sonny happily said, twirling around on the snowy grounds. She stared up at the sky and smiled. Suddenly, snowflakes started falling around her. She gasped and said, "Chad, look! Snow!"
He laughed. "Yep." He looked at her and said, "I haven't seen real snow in years..."
"Really?" she asked, looking over at him.
He nodded. "The last time I saw snow..." He thought about it for a moment. "The last time I saw snow was about five years ago. Alex, his family, and my family spent the holidays in New York City."
"Ooh, I bet it's beautiful there during that time of year."
He nodded. "That was such a fun trip..." He sighed and looked down.
She walked over to him and wrapped her arms around him in another hug. "Maybe we'll go to New York one day. Or maybe you and Alex could go back."
He nodded. "That would be nice," he softly said.
She looked up at him and smiled before leaning up and quickly kissing him on the lips. "C'mon, Chad, don't be too down while I'm here, let's have some fun in the snow!"
He laughed and said, "Okay. What are we going to do?"
"Make snow angels, of course!" she said, plopping down on the snow. She then started to make her snow angel.
He laughed, staring down at her. "I think I'll pass on that. I'll just watch you make yours instead."
She giggled and finished her snow angel. She got back up and said, "All done!"
He looked over and grinned. "You are a bundle of energy."
"You aren't the only one who hasn't seen snow in years," she told him. "Remember, I used to live in Wisconsin. It snowed there every winter, and I loved it. Of course, LA doesn't get any snow, so..." She shrugged.
He linked his arm in hers and said, "Let's go inside."
She stayed close to his side as they walked into the building. The receptionist, who was sitting at her desk, stood up when they walked in. "Excuse me!" she said. They turned to her, and she said, "Sorry, but visitor hours are about to end in ten minutes."
"Okay, thanks," Chad said, smiling at her before turning to Sonny, who was frowning. He frowned and said, "Well..." He stopped; he didn't know what to say.
She turned away, tears filling her eyes. "I, uhh..." She didn't know what quite to say either.
"Sonny, this isn't good-bye," he softly told her, using one hand to tilt her face towards him. "We'll see each other again. And, during the hours I can use my phone, I'll call you. And I'll e-mail and text you, too. We'll still keep in contact."
She quickly nodded before latching her arms around his neck and hugging him, her body so close to his. He wrapped his arms around her waist and tightly hugged her. "Keep smiling, Sonny."
She nodded, letting out a tearful laugh. "For you, Chad."
"And for yourself," he told her. "I don't want, or need, to come back to find you had more problems."
She nodded. "I promise I'll get better," she softly said.
He smiled softly. "Me, too."
They looked at each other and leaned towards one another, giving each other one long, passionate, final kiss. They kissed each other for a good minute before moving back slightly, their foreheads resting against each others, their bodies still extremely close.
"I guess I'll go now," Sonny murmured, stepping back. "See you later, Chad."
He smiled, his hands at his side. "See you in a while, Sonny."
A/N: Aah!!! Sorry about not updating in a few days! I was a bit busy, and then I had a bit of writers block... I hope you all liked this chapter. And yay for reaching 55 reviews! I'll make it easier for you all this time - let's reach 60 reviews! Haha.