I finally found time! Oh yeah, I feel like I've accomplished something. I've got new ideas for this story too, but I have to express them in future chapters, because if I randomly started talking about one of my ideas now, you would all be confused and it would not make any sense. Just the heads up, haha. And I hope to update Smile soon, for any readers who read that story, and possibly an Annie/Finnick one-shot for THG fans. Just to tell you what I've been working on lately!

Anyways, enjoy this next chapter!

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Sonny's POV

"I- I think I love her."

It's lunchtime, and too often I've been depending on a can of Coke to get me through the morning, so instead, I switch to a small cup black coffee with a container of frozen yogurt on the side. I even put multi-colored sprinkles on it to spice up the look a bit. As a take a sip of my drink, I look up at Grady who's twirling an engagement ring in his hands. "That's so sweet, Grady. And I'm sure Mel feels the same," I smile.

Mel, his girlfriend of three years solid. Well, as of tonight.

Tawni, twirling her hair and taking a bite of her fluffy, pink yogurt urges Grady to spill. "C'mon, tell us the deets! Tell us the deets!" she giggles. "Like, when are you going to propose?"

"Well, tonight's our three year anniversary as most of you know…" Grady starts, looking at Tawni specifically (as Tawni is quite the matchmaker). "And I figured, why not propose tonight? It's not exactly a foreign idea, I mean, we've talked about settling down together, what our future is going to be… I just think that maybe tonight's the night."

"That's my homeboy," Nico chuckles as he gives Grady a fist bump.

"I've got to make this perfect, though," Grady says. "I'm taking her out to that one sushi place on Ventura Boulevard. I've heard it's legit. I've already got reservations."

"Mm," I say in agreement, but I don't push it. I know the place well: the sushi place that Chad took me out to on our first date. "It's pretty expensive."

"We would know," the rest of my cast is a chorus of mumbles. I almost laugh, because only now do I remember that they had to pay the bill, but I refrain from it. Chad is the last thing I need on my mind at the moment, and really, I don't want to complicate things.

"Anyways, you'll do great, Grady," I say. "She'll love it."

"Thanks Sonny," he smiles at me.

"No problem," I say as I finish eating the rest of my yogurt. I look up at him and smile. At least one person in our group will get that happily ever after.

We're supposed to be coming up with at least five new sketch ideas for the upcoming season, but being our age now, it's hard to think like a kid again and appreciate the slapstick humor that So Random! is known for. Plus, every time one of us does come up with an idea, it's either not good enough or we've already done it. So, it usually leads us to talking about our personal lives and sleepless nights trying to come up with one good idea. As if we didn't have enough on our minds already.

For me, I guess it's not too complicated, just exhausting. With my mom back in Wisconsin, I'm supposed to sell her (or our, I guess I should say) old, run-down apartment and move closer to the richer side of town, where more movie jobs are, and if I'm interested, a promising Fine Arts college.

Yes. Selling an apartment in a horrible economy, a cheating boyfriend (who though I've called it off many times, thinks we're still together), lack of interest in my job, and a possible fake relationship with a guy I haven't spoken to for almost as long as I could remember. Simple, right?

I debate whether I should tell them about Chad and me. I mean, I guess I will have to eventually and explain myself, why I'd rush into a relationship so fast after Danny cheating on me and all. Why did I agree so quickly in the first place? Was it because of the pressure of Mr. Condor? Being self-cautious because I was around Chad? Maybe because I just wanted to show Danny that I was much more than a piece in his little game?

I don't even know anymore.

"Ahem," I suddenly hear. I can't tell who it is exactly, but by the strong smell of freshly grilled steak, I have a sneaking suspicion of who it is. His voice is much lighter and polite today. "Would it be too much to steal Sonny away from you for a moment?"

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Pooper?" Zora's voice pipes up, still skeptical about 'the enemy'. The sound of it surprises me, because this is really her first comment in the entire conversation we've had. She often does this: makes me think she's non-existent until she speaks.

I'm surprised at how much self control Chad has when he says in a nicer manner, "I hope for it to just be a moment, if you don't mind."

Zora's about to talk again, but Tawni speaks before she can start. "Actually," she looks at all of our cast mates. "We were just leaving." She stands up taking her frilly, bedazzled pink purse of hers and flipping her curly blonde hair. When no one follows her, she stares at everyone else in her naturally intimidating way, and one by one, my cast starts leaving.

"But I'm not done with my burger!" Nico argues, but Tawni says once again, "We're leaving." And that's the end of it. My whole cast gets up from our table and heads to the doorway.

I get up ready to follow, but I feel Chad's grip on my arm, not too tight but definitely firm enough for me to stay. I can't seem to take my eyes off Tawni though: I stare at her in disbelief. "What are you doing?" I mouth.

"Trying to help you!" she mouths back. Before I can protest, she winks at me in a flirty way, her eyes darting from me and Chad, then leaves. Sometimes, I can really hate that girl and her matchmaking skills. Of course, Tawni was devastated when Channy broke up and all, and I know she'd be overjoyed if we got together. Even if it's not real… But, Tawni will be Tawni. I sigh.

As I sit back down, I feel Chad's hand let go of my arm and I watch as he sits in front of me, his fancy gold tray containing steak, rolls shaped like roses, a side mashed potatoes with melted butter on it, a separate small bowl of some fancy red sauce I can't exactly identify (cranberries?), and a small plate of chocolate truffles. Definitely much for a show 'on its last leg'. I must've been drooling or something, because Chad says, "Take some, take whatever you want." He says it so casually, like we're regular friends or something, that it almost stuns me.

"I'm not hungry," I insist. "I just had some coffee and fro-yo. I'm good." Of course, that's the time when my stomach decides to make the sound of a dying whale, which makes Chad smirk and lock me in his deep blue eyes. "You know you want some."

"Y-you sure?" I stutter. Because that's me, cool as a cucumber.

He shrugs as he pushes the tray more towards me. "Of course, half of it is for you anyways. You can't live on frozen yogurt and coffee forever, Munroe." I snap back into reality as his eyes drift off from mine and to his utensils.

"Eh," I say. "It's not too bad."

He chuckles when he says, "Really, Sonny? Really?"

I'm hesitant as I take one of the small, rose shaped rolls and carefully bite it. Mm. Freshly baked. I go in for a quick second bite as Chad starts cutting his steak. "Do you mind?" I ask as a pick up his spoon and look at his mashed potatoes.

"Go ahead," he says. "You need to put the sauce on it, though. Get the full effect."

I take his word for it as I get the sauce on my spoon and pour it carefully on the potatoes. When I taste it, I realize it isn't cranberry, but a sweeter and richer fruit. A taste that makes me feel all tingly in my mouth, and it's pleasant. "What is this exactly?" I ask.

As Chad wipes the steak sauce from his lips, he explains. "Remember the Loganberry smoothies? Same stuff. Only available one fortnight a year."

"It's good stuff," I say.

"Mind if I try?" he asks.

"Go ahead, it's your food," I say, leaving the spoon in the bowl and pushing it towards him.

"Hah," he says, while he takes a bite of the mashed potatoes. "You can have the rest of the steak, too. Brenda gave me enough for the both of us after all."

I smile, "Well, thank you, Brenda. Because of her, we have quite the feast." Even though it's probably nothing compared to most Mackenzie Falls meals.

Pretty soon, I find myself eating the last creamy chocolate truffle. Out of the corner of my eye, I see the Falls' table without its leader at the head of the table. That did leave the question, why is he here? I guess my question will be answered soon, because Chad begins the conversation as he pushes the tray to the side of us. "So, um, Sonny… we need to talk."

"Right. About last night—" I start, but he interrupts me.

"I'm perfectly fine with the fake-dating thing, I'll say. But I think that we should start by catching up and becoming friends, you know. Telling each other of current events and all," Chad says. "I mean, I want to make this as realistic as possible, and it wouldn't be very believable if I know nothing about you. You know, some lunches together, maybe some nights to just hang out, go watch a movie… not a date per say. Just hang out as two friends… if you get what I mean."

I try to process his words. When I can't find words to say, Chad continues. "And, you know, these could be in public or private: whatever you find comfortable. I mean, I don't want to put pressure on you or anything, and if I do anything wrong ever, just let me know and we can give it up, and we'll go back to our old ways. It's not going to be like this forever, but for the time we are going to do it, we might as well make the best of it, right?"

I've forgotten how good Chad could be with words. "Wow" is all I can manage to say. Then I add a little more, after my brain has absorbed all this information. "That's… very smart, actually. Mature, actually. And I completely agree. I think we should begin fresh."

"Fair enough," Chad says. "Hey, I'm Chad Dylan Cooper. What's your name?"

"Sonny Munroe."

"Nice name."

"Thanks."

It only takes a few moments to realize how silly it is and start to laugh. Even if we haven't communicated in so long, we still know each other, in ways that some of our friends wouldn't dream of. And I guess to be introducing ourselves in front of the other after sharing a meal and having the past that we've had… it's just not right. "Okay, new strategy," I say. "Questions."

"Well then, I guess I'll start easy," Chad says. "How's the Funny Hut?"

Easy question. Easy answer. I guess it's best to take baby steps for now. "It's been better," I admit. Grady may be proposing tonight, but that's about as much excitement we've had."

He smiles, genuinely, probably happy that someone is doing something outside of the studio other than begging for a job. "Congrats to him them. Mel's the lucky girl, isn't that her name? Waitress at that little outdoor restaurant?"

"Correct," I say. "They make a cute couple."

"Sure," he agrees. "Though I haven't been around either one to know exactly, but okay. I guess they're a good pair. Mel has always struck me as the open-minded, intelligent one, the one who always is honest and somehow knows everything. Grady is very free with his life, kind of careless and naïve. Like Mel keeps him stable and Grady keeps her life more exciting. Like they need each other."

The way Chad speaks is so fluent and smooth, even with his voice a little rougher and mature than it was when he was seventeen. If I didn't know him, I would say he was Grady's best friend. "I guess it's like that with every couple," I point out. "One always is protecting the other and brings out the best of each other."

"Exactly," he agrees.

It's only then that I realize what a real trick this will be. Never mind the awkwardness, what about just pretending anyways? I mean, Chad and I had been 'in love (shall we say)' once upon a time ago, but that was such a long time ago when we didn't have to pretend. But making it look believable or else? I have to think about the cheesy teenage girl sitcoms about girls supposedly being in love, or The Twilight Saga and how Bella always felt incomplete without Edward, or how in The Last Song movie, Miley Cyrus started falling in love with Liam Hemsworth. This'll be a real act.

I decide to change the subject. "So how is it going at the Falls?"

He slightly hesitates, but gives me a direct answer. "Not very good exactly. Still fighting for another season. Just broke up with Chas, but it was a publicity stunt, nothing major and we're still friends. Most of us are trying to find new jobs in the meantime. I, for one, might even to go college," he chuckles at the thought. "I've been auditioning for movies recently, going for more adult roles. I can't be a seventeen-year-old rich kid forever."

"Unless you're Edward Cullen," I say, and smile slightly. "What do you plan on studying? In college, I mean?"

At first, he cocks an eyebrow, wondering if I really want to know, but doesn't answer himself and tells me anyways. "Well, I love to act, no doubt, but rather than being in front of the camera, I wonder what it's like being behind it, calling the shots and all. I'm pretty handy with a regular camcorder I guess, and most of the Mackenzie Falls stars have YouTube channels, so it's not a foreign concept. If I got my hands on a real camera with every function and all, the high tech ones that you need a truck to carry… that would be amazing."

"I'm sure you could get into a college like that. Especially with your experience," I say. "After all, you directed your movie, didn't you?"

He chuckles at this too. "Hah, I was just a kid, doing it all for fun and games. I guess that would help me get into a college, because of experience, but it's still not the same. I have a YouTube account, not that I post videos regularly, and there aren't many things for me to film and post that would be use to anyone's time. Except for maybe promoting Mackenzie Falls."

"Hmm," I say. Seems like we're both in similar situations after all. Even if Mackenzie Falls has remained successful for about six more years than us, and doesn't have to suffer a lunch that just screams 'stomach flu' all over your plate. "So you said that you went out with… who's Chastity?"

"Excuse me," Chad says, starting to explain something. "It's Chloe. Her real name's Chastity. We usually call her Chloe because it helps us stay more in character. Actually, we call basically everyone by their on-screen name, which could be a little confusing sometimes."

"Oh," I say, feeling a teeny bit bad for calling his cast by their wrong names all this time. "Weird, why don't they call you Mackenzie?"

"Please. I'm very versatile and talented. You don't need to call me by my stage name to get a spectacular performance out of me. I'm Chad Dylan Cooper, the—"

"Greatest actor of our generation," I finish his sentence, laughing. And he laughs with me, which assures me that he's been joking about the talent and all, meaning he's not as stuck-up as he was just a few years ago when we first met, which I can't decide whether I like or not.

"See how good we'll be? Like all good couples, you can already finish my sentences," he chuckles.

I smile. "I guess you're right."

I guess this conversation wasn't half bad, avoiding the touchy topics was a definite good idea. No Danny, nothing of our past relationship, just a brand new, fresh start. So I continue, "I guess we've dropped the enemy part of 'frienemies', have we?"

He considers this. "No, I hate you," he says playfully. Then his voice is normal again, with warmth. "I guess so. Friends, then?" This time, it's him who holds out his hand for me to shake.

I lift my hands from my lap to close the deal. "Friends. I guess we have a lot to catch up on, then."

"I'd guess so," he says. "First thing's first, what's your number?"

I struggle as I get out a scrap of paper in my purse and scribble down my number, hoping it's legible. Chad rips the paper in half, keeping the half with my number and writing down his own number, then handing it to me. "Here," he says. "We'll have to get together, soon." Suddenly he checks his watch, then the empty Mackenzie Falls table. "Excuse me, but at the moment, I should be getting to rehearsal."

"I probably should be on my way too," I say, as I watch him getting out of his chair, I grab my purse, get up, and scoot in my chair. "Nice talking to you though."

"You too, Munroe," he smiles, right before he leaves.

Once he leaves, I immediately take out the scrap of paper with his number on it and automatically take out my phone, ready to add a new contact.

That's when I realize I never deleted his number in the first place.

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So… that's it! As always, thanks for reading, because I really appreciate that you guys still read my stuff, and tell me what you think by reviewing below! I hope to be writing more soon! Thanks guys!:)