A/N: Hey everyone! So before we start out with this extra long chapter, I'd like everyone to go check out DreamyBear's stories. I think shes doing very good, and she even wrote a one shot about Chad, Tiffany and Chey on So Random! :)
Also, who remembers when Chad had to bathe Chey? I went ahead and commished Gingerflight on dA, and she made an excellent picture to go with it! I'll go ahead and post the link on my profile so you can all see!
So who likes So Random so far? It is alright - Sterling is an awesome actor (they all are, really!), and I love how Chad is still the butt of a lot of the jokes. xD
I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, so without further adieu...
(oh, and I still don't own SWAC or So Random for that matter... but I do own Tiffany and Cheyanne, and all the other characters I made up...
They edged closer and closer to the curtain that hid first class, and Tiffany hesitated before pulling it aside.
Nothing.
A few seconds went by before Chad spoke.
"If they didn't find them on the plane, and they aren't here, where the heck are they?"
"We never actually saw them get on the plane…" Sonny brought up.
"Why don't you try calling their phones?" Tiffany suggested.
"Good idea."
Sonny whipped out her cell phone, and hit the second speed dial, anxiously putting it to her ear. Her chocolate eyes glimmered with hope.
"Tawni is pretty!"
"What the-?" Tiffany whirled around.
"Tawni is pretty… Tawni is pretty…"
"Over here!" Chad called from a corner.
The girls hurried over to see Chad clutching the bedazzled pink phone, which looked like it had been thrown against the wall.
"Tawni is-"
Tiffany grabbed Sonny's phone and shut the call off.
"Finally!" She cried, her ears relaxing from the annoying ringtone of the blonde diva's voice. She handed the phone back.
"Try another." Chad urged.
Sonny hit another speed dial, and they waited.
"Assert your feelings, you know them to be true…" Darth Vader's voice cut through the silence, followed by his breathing, and then the Imperial March.
"Hah, cool." Tiffany smiled as she climbed up on a seat and pulled the phone from the overhead compartment.
"Grady's, I take it?" Chad smirked.
"Yup." Sonny giggled as Tiffany was quick to shut up and turn away.
Once again Sonny hit another button and they waited.
"I'm bringin' sexy back – YUP!" Chey booted the phone out from under a seat.
"Hey, I have that ringtone!" Chad blurted out, tingeing red as the girls looked at him incredulously.
"Well, that leaves Zora…" Sonny commented, her fingers shaking as she hit the young girls speed dial and pressed the device to her ear.
"At least we know they were on the plane… that's a start anyway." Chad pointed out, looking the phones over briefly.
Tiffany nudged him silent with her arm, staring intently at Sonny, once she realized that she wasn't hearing a phone go off.
"Zora?" Sonny's eyes went wide in an instant.
"Sonny!" The girl cried over the phone.
"Zora! Oh my gosh, are you alright? Where are you? What happened?" Sonny threw all the questions in at once.
"Sonny, help us! We've been kidnapped! And the others are hurt – I - I don't know what to do!"
"Where are you? It will be OK, I promise! Do you know who has you?"
"Yes… yes, it- Ahh!" Zora screamed and the line went dead.
Sonny crumpled onto one of the broken seats, instantly bawling. Chad hurried over to comfort her.
Tiffany walked over and knelt down too, listening as Sonny repeated what Zora had said through sobs.
Tiffany stood and turned, her eyes fiery with determination, as she turned to Chey, perched on one of the wrecked chairs. The look in the cat's eyes matched hers.
"Let's go." She uttered, following the cat outside.
Chad caught up to her.
"Go? Go where? We don't even know where they are!"
"That wont be hard – Sonny, give me your phone."
Five minutes later she handed it back.
"Your phone is now tracking the exact location of Zora's phone. We need to get on the road ASAP." Tiffany told them, staring down the cliff, trying to decide which way would be easiest.
"It's too dangerous!" Chad whined, remembering his adventure a little bit ago.
"Danger and I are old friends." Tiffany glanced over mischievously.
Meow! Chey called to them from further down.
She had found some large rocks jutting out of a less steep place on the cliff, and took the liberty of hopping down them to the trail they had been on previously.
"Wow, she's good at that." Sonny commented, drying her eyes as she headed over and carefully walked down the rocks. The other two followed.
"Never thought I'd be so happy to be on the ground again!" I said, relieved as I strolled towards the SUV with Sonny. Tiffany stopped to talk to that officer again – don't really know why. She pretty much told him off earlier.
"That was pretty scary up there…" M'lady commented, tightening her grip on my hand.
"Pssh, I was acting." I tried, but the comment fell flat, as I opened up the door to allow her to get in.
The cat jumped up on her lap, purring.
I'm not going to lie here, I am worried about Sonny. I know this is hard for her anyway, but I am not sure what the outcome is going to be for the Randoms. Heck, that even – dare I say it – scares me a little. (I had to say it… I dared myself.)
Tiffany finally got in and started taking us back to the main highway. I could see she was tensed up again, her jaw locked as she leaned forward onto the steering wheel. I have to admit, I am looking at her in a whole new way now.
And no, not like that!
She saved my life. She could have let me fall… but she didn't. In fact, she very well could have fallen herself, in her attempts to catch me. She was – as weird as it sounds – my hero. You don't just find any random person out there, willing to risk their life for someone they just met a couple of months ago. So she must be considering me a friend, correct? I mean – I'm Chad Dylan Cooper – everyone should want to be my friend. But I didn't think she did. Heck, I knew that fact bothered Sonny as well – how reserved Tiffany was. I know she has had her problems in the past, but once she comes to Hollywood, we're going to change that. Sonny and I agreed on that last night, in that –horrible - hotel room… if you could even call it that.
I recalled the tensed face Tiffany even held while she was sleeping, how she lashed out in anger every now and then, mumbling something inaudible. Sonny told me this morning that Tiffany woke up twice, panting and sweating in the middle of the night.
We understand that she is private, but we want to help her… and we hope by her going to Hollywood, she will learn to relax a little. And it's Sonny's prerogative to hook her and Grady up – personally, I think she could do better than the nerd, but then again, he is nice enough and they do get along…
Ahh, Sonny… MY Sonny.
I looked over at her to see her looking scared, a solitary tear slinking down her face. I scooted closer, wiping it away with my thumb and pulling her close.
"I'm so scared, Chad…" She started, softly. "What if we never see them again?"
"We will – don't worry. And soon, we'll be sitting in the commissary – Tawni putting on lip gloss… Zora launching lunchmeat across the room… at me…" He shuddered, and she managed a small giggle. "And Nico and Grady'll be chowing-down on twelve different flavors of fro-yo… and Tiffany will probably be leading a revolution for better food in the commissary… Chey hanging off the chandelier…" Yes, the great CDC has a softer side, strictly reserved for his lady and those closest to him.
Sonny giggled, resting her head on my chest.
I sighed in contentment. For a moment, I didn't care about Hollywood… the fame… fortune… none of it mattered right now. I had never been able to see that before today…
They continued down the road, through the gentle curves and grades of the mountains. Sonny sat in the front seat petting Chey, who was sprawled out asleep on the girls lap. Chad was in the back seat leaning forward in between the two front so he could be included, however they sat in silence. Sonny had a worried, distant look on her face. Tiffany pulled out her phone (don't text and drive at the same time kids! She's a professional!), and fired off a text. Chad's phone soon buzzed.
From: Tiffany
Dude… cheer her up before it starts storming.
It was true, Sonny's attitude was seriously having an effect on things, and the silence was nearing an awkward level. Tiffany's phone buzzed.
From: Chad
Kind of hard to do back here…
She could nearly hear the sarcasm in his text. She knew he hated being back there… alone anyway.
From: Tiffany
Didn't seem to bother you when she was back there…
From: Chad
Shut up!
From: Tiffany
Hah, but seriously… what should we do?
From: Chad
Oh, so *now* it's 'we'.
From: Tiffany
Chop-chop, man, I'm driving.
From: Chad
It's not my fault you wont let me drive.
From: Tiffany
…
From: Chad
I don't know… turn on some music?
She glanced at him through the rearview with a look that said 'Really? That's the best you could come up with?', but reached forward and flicked the radio on nonetheless. Suddenly a song came on and her eyes lit up.
From: Chad
What's that look for?
From: Tiffany
Just follow my lead.
He was about to send her a retort when he recognized the song and smiled.
"I'm going to regret this…" Tiffany grumbled, before she kicked in singing dramatically.
"I've paid my duuues
Time after tiiime
I've done my sentence…
But committed no criiime" She glanced over with a sly look on her face to a confused looking Sonny.
"And bad mistakes…
I've made a feeew…
and I've had my share of sand
Kicked in my face
But I've come throoooough" She suddenly held her head very high and proudly, before raising her voice to sound bad and comical on purpose on the next line.
"And I need to go on and on and on and ooon…"
Then Chad joined her during the chorus.
"We are the champions - my friends
And weee'll keep on fiiightin' till the ennnd" On 'fightin'. They both made a couple goofy gestures, straining their voices as they swayed back and forth perfectly in sync as though they had rehearsed this a thousand times… they sang normally again.
"Weee are the chaaampions
Weeee are the chaaampions
Nooo time for looooosers
'Cause weee are the champions… of the world" They gestured out to all of their surroundings, as Sonny started giggling.
Chad's dramatic side came out when he took the next verse solo.
"I've taken my bowwws" He mock bowed and popped his collar.
"And my curtain calllls
You've brought me fame and fortune
And everything that goes with it…
I thank you all" He winked at Sonny, sliding his arm around her shoulders, his other arm pulled downward in the air, turning into a fist dramatically.
"But it's been no bed of roses, no pleasure cruise,
and I consider it a challenge before the whole human race" He gestured to the world around him once more.
"That I ain't gonna loooose!" His voice raised during the next line, much like Tiffany's had when she sang it.
"And I need to go on and on and on and ooon".
Tiffany jumped back in on the chorus… they sang it just like they did before.
"We are the champions - my friends
And weee'll keep on fiiiightin' till the ennnd
"Weee are the chaaampions
Weeee are the chaaampions
Nooo time for looooosers
'Cause weee are the champions… of the world"
Suddenly Sonny jumped in, smiling brightly, and swaying back and forth in her seat with them. Tiffany began to do the drums on the steering wheel, as Chad did the air guitar.
"We are the champions - my friends
And weee'll keep on fiiightin' till the ennnd
"Weee are the chaaampions
Weeee are the chaaampions
Nooo time for looooosers
'Cause weee are the champions… of the world"
As the song ended they all busted out laughing, and Chey purred in amusement.
"Oh my gosh, that would be such a fun sketch on So Random!" Sonny gushed. "What would be some more fun songs we could do?" She asked, pulling a pen and a piece of paper out of her purse.
They continued to discuss songs and other sketches throughout the ride.
"Wake up!" Tiffany called to the backseat. She had been driving for hours and they were nearing their destination. The phone tracker had led them to a dark road in the southeastern corner of Oregon. It was night and eerily silent. They pulled over and got out.
"Are you sure this is it?" Chad asked, straining to see through the dense forest around them.
"It's where the phone took us." Tiffany answered.
"Should I try calling her phone again?" Sonny asked.
Chad answered her with a nod, as he warily watched the trees.
Suddenly a muffled cackle was heard, and Chad nearly jumped out of his skin as he screamed like a girl.
Tiffany shushed him. He glared at the gesture.
There was the cackle again, along with a wolf howl and some sort of screeching.
The gang followed the sound until they came to the base of a tall pine, where they saw Zora's phone, covered in odd stickers, but slightly broken, appearing to have hit the tree.
Sonny knelt down and picked the device up, dusting it off. She looked defeated, as she was obviously hoping they would find her castmates.
Chad knelt down next to her and placed his hand on her back.
"Hey…" He said in a soft voice. "We'll find them alright?"
"Chad…" She turned to him, her dark eyes staring at the ground with a hopeless look on her face. "Wh-what if we don't?"
"We will." He assured her, as he pulled her closer.
They glanced over to see that Tiffany was using the flashlight on her phone, and she and Chey were searching for something.
"Meow!" Chey called after a few minutes. The cat had a surprisingly good nose on her.
Her owner turned the light towards her, and her golden eyes gleamed for a moment, as she pranced around happily, meowing her little head off.
Sonny and Chad followed Tiffany over.
"What's this?" Chad asked, kneeling down and picking up a crumpled piece of paper.
"Proof that somebody doesn't care for our environment!" Sonny folded her arms, at the sight of the litter. Tiffany took the paper and carefully unfolded it.
"Looks like directions." She told them, her voice obviously calm, but with a certain edge to it that screamed 'YES!'
"Well let's go!" Sonny cried, racing off towards the SUV, dragging Chad by his wrist. Chey was happy to bound after them.
"Ugh… make me run…" Tiffany grumbled, before she raced back.
They were back on the road in a flash; Sonny was sitting up front, reading off the directions. It wasn't too terribly long before they had entered a very small town, oddly enough, with a large warehouse right on the edge... which is where the tattered piece of paper led them too. The renewed hope they had felt dimmed a bit at the reality of the situation. Just what exactly were they getting themselves into?
"Look, there's a car parked over there!" Sonny pointed.
A dark van was backed up to the building, near an open loading dock. Chey jumped up on the dashboard for a better view.
"Can't we call the cops?" Chad asked. "You're going to get us killed…"
"Where's the fun in that?" Tiffany asked innocently, as she shut the headlights off and drove around the building. "Look for some way in."
After a couple of minutes they saw an open window. Tiffany parked and they walked over. The window was sort of high up, so they scooted a trash can over and used that to hoist themselves in.
Tiffany led the group. Chey was on her shoulders staying alert, her ears flickering back and forth at every minute sound. Sonny and Chad were downright terrified.
The inside of the building was pitch-black. In the pale light coming from the windows they could see the outlines of large crates piled all around.
"Should we find a light?" Sonny whispered.
"No, then they'll know where we are…"
"We need to get out of here." Chad urged.
"You're such a baby."
Chad jumped in front of her as she tried walking away.
"I'd rather be a baby – which I'm not, by the way – than insane!" Chad cried, much louder than he should have.
Tiffany slapped a hand over his mouth.
"Will you shut up? You're going to give us away!" She hissed. He glared at her.
Suddenly there was a shout, and the group ducked just in time to avoid being hit with a large object that was sent sailing through the air.
They hit the ground, hiding behind one of the crates.
All was quiet, aside from their heavy breathing.
After a few moments, Tiffany motioned to Chey, and the cat went slinking around the corner.
"Tiffany, I – " Too late. She had followed the cat and was crawling silently through the building, hiding behind crates and such.
"C'mon Chad!" Sonny whispered, sneaking around him, after Tiffany.
The black cat crept stealthily throughout the warehouse, using her tall ears and keen nose to search. She blended in to the shadows perfectly, and kept her eyes narrowed to diminish her eye-shine, should someone see her.
She had it!
The cat raced silently across the concrete floor, stopping only when she had the crate in plain sight.
"Hurry up!" A tall dark figure grumbled.
Cheyanne's ears pinned and her teeth bared in a feline snarl, but she kept quiet. She knew that voice… she hated that voice.
Tiffany had been following the cat closely when she suddenly took off.
"Chey!" She called in a whisper.
No use. She hurried off in the direction she thought the cat went.
When Tiffany disappeared, Chad stopped and sat back.
"What's wrong?" Sonny asked him, cautiously looking around before she sat down too.
"This whole thing is wrong…" Chad started. "She's going to get us killed. Sometimes I seriously think she's lost it."
"She's just trying to help us find my cast mates." She reasoned.
"I understand that, but we should just hire some cops or detectives to do this or something. That's their jobs."
"I think we're in this too deep now…" She told him, before she continued on to find the others.
The cat watched as another dark figure pulled something over to the large crate.
Tiffany came up behind Chey at that moment. "There you are!" She whispered, catching site of the shadows near the van.
The dark figure stepped into the moonlight, revealing itself to be dressed in all black from head to toe. No features could be sorted out. It also revealed that it was dragging a human… towards the tall side… hands tied behind it's back… barefoot… and the pale light revealed sparkling objects on its clothing, however the burlap sack over the person's head hid who it was. It also appeared to have duct tape or something over its mouth, for it let out a few incomprehensive squeals here and there as it stumbled around in a poor attempt to get free.
Sonny and Chad came up behind them at this point. Tiffany put a finger to her lips in a stern movement, before nodding to the scene before them.
The two dark figures grabbed onto the sparkling one, hoisting it up and tossing it inside of the crate. It squealed fearfully and landed with a thud as a few pained groans were released from the crate. It was obvious that there was at least three other's in there.
Chey's eyes widened as the other three collectively gasped.
"Get in!" The taller of the dark figures cried, as the two hoisted the crate into the van, slammed the door shut and sped away, as two more dark figures rushed in different directions.
As soon as the truck started up, Tiffany was off like a rocket, Chey racing ahead.
"Come on!" she called to Sonny and Chad.
They were quick to follow her orders as she raced toward the loading dock doors only to have a large crate dropped from above them. It had been hoisted by a tall machine. The group skidded to a halt, their eyes scanning rapidly for some way out.
"There!" Chad cried, rushing the group in the new direction. They were quickly on track again towards the open loading dock. Suddenly a loud gunshot rang out, the bullet zipping past them and imbedding itself into one of the crates.
Sonny screamed in fear, as they ran faster.
"After them!" One of the men shouted, as they pursued the group.
Thinking quickly, Sonny slammed her fist onto the button that dropped the loading dock doors, which came slamming to the ground just as they cleared it… the men were trapped inside.
Sonny, Chad, Tiffany and Chey continued, however, as they raced towards their own SUV.
Sonny didn't take her eyes off of the van as they quickly got in and sped down the road in the direction the van had.
"Good thinking back there, Sonny." Tiffany commented in a huff as they climbed in.
"Thanks." She grinned proudly.
Chey let a long, angry hiss, realizing that they couldn't see the van anymore.
"I still think we should call the cops!" Chad told her as they drove around looking for the van.
"No, we are too deep into this now." Tiffany told him grimly.
"There!" Sonny cried, pointing.
Tiffany floored it, catching up to them very quickly as Chad tumbled backwards due to the sudden acceleration. Tiffany smirked at the sight of his feet flailing in the air through the rear-view mirror, but there was no time for laughing.
"Watch it!" He snapped, fixing his hair as he sat back up.
They decided to make the bad guys think that they had lost them, so they shut the headlights off and distanced themselves a bit. It was a dangerous move, seeing as they had passed many deer crossing signs.
The night dragged on… they followed the van into the country, through the winding wooded roads. The moon was high in the sky, and lit the road well enough to where they didn't miss the headlights much.
Suddenly the van made a sharp turn and drove up the hill to an old abandoned farmhouse.
Tiffany parked the SUV near a wooded area and the climbed out, sure to stay well hidden in the shadows as they snuck up to the edge of the tattered building. They watched as the two figures they had seen in the warehouse got out and headed inside the building.
"We'll stay here for the night, and then we can get back on the road in the morning."
"Ugh, I don't want to stay in there." A feminine voice sounded disgusted.
"Don't worry, baby, a few hours of shut-eye and in the morning those pathetic Randoms will be floating in the ocean."
Sonny gasped silently, looking at Chad fearfully.
They went inside the shack. Tiffany motioned the other two to stay quiet, as she pressed her ear to the building. As soon as she heard snoring, she nodded them forward.
The doors were locked to the van.
"We need a wire hangar or something…" Tiffany told them as they searched around.
Chad noticed an old, tattered barn set back a bit deeper into the woods, and led the way. There was a hole on the side of the building, and he walked through, using his cell phone to light up the ground.
Suddenly something caught onto his foot and he fell with a thud. Rolling to his back quickly, ready to face off, his cell phone revealed a piece of chicken wire. Perfect.
He returned to Tiffany, who bent the wire up and threaded it through the top of the door.
It took awhile but she was finally able to hit the unlock button. They went back to the cargo area of the van and quietly opened the double doors. The crate was large, and solid.
"Now we need something to open this." Sonny whispered.
"Maybe there's something in the barn?" Chad suggested.
The two went to look.
There was a noise in the box.
"Shh!" Tiffany scolded. "You guys have to be very quiet… we're going to try and get you out of there." She half-whispered.
Chad came running back with a hammer.
"We can pull the nails out with this." He said a bit winded as Sonny caught up.
"We'll have you out in a minute, guys!" Sonny comforted.
"Chad, go call the cops… tell them where we are, but not to turn their sirens on." It was time, Tiffany decided as she pried the first nail out.
Chad nodded and went off a distance to make the phone call. He didn't want to wake up the bad guys with his voice.
Tiffany pried the second, third and fourth nail out before Chad came back.
"They're on their way…" he whispered.
Tiffany sped up the process and nearly had all of the nails out, when they heard sirens roaring in the distance, approaching quickly.
"I told them to be quiet!" Chad fumed.
A loud crash and a shout resounded from inside the house. Tiffany cursed under her breath, shoving the hammer into Sonny's hands. She immediately took over yanking the nails out.
"Chad - go around that way." She motioned as she headed off towards the house.
The door swung open, crashed against the house and promptly fell off of the building.
The taller of the two appeared in the doorway, shotgun gleaming in the moonlight.
"Get away from there!" He shouted, aiming the shotgun in Sonny's direction.
"Sonny, look out!" Chad cried, blowing his cover.
The gun swung around in the blonde-haired actor's direction and Chad froze like a deer in the headlights.
"Hey!" Tiffany shouted.
Again, the gun swung in her direction, but she kept walking towards the shadowy figure, staring down the barrel fearlessly. She heard a click, and then the gun fired.
A/N: Would you guys have killed me if I would've ended it there? :3
Not a second before the firearm went off a streak of black flew forward, knocking the gun to the side. The bullet shot off into the trees.
Chey was now attached to the guys face, howling and clawing with fury. He screamed in pain, before dislodging her and tossing her aside. The poor cat hit the wall of the house and fell to the ground with a sickening thud.
"CHEY!" Tiffany cried, before whirling around and throwing herself at the man. "How dare you!" She screeched in a rage, tackling him to the ground, though he was about three times her size.
She hit him in the face as hard as she could, before he overpowered her, rolling over to where he was on top of her.
He held her down by her throat, fumbling in his pocket, he drew a knife.
Chad raced over, hitting the guy hard in the side, and knocking him away. The knife skittered a couple of feet away. Tiffany coughed a couple of times before she was back on her feet. Chad was holding him off well enough, so Tiffany jumped up on the guys back grabbing his mask and tearing it from his face before he knocked her off.
"You!" She hissed, her voice dripping with venom.
The guy laughed.
"What's wrong Tiffany? Don't want to see you're old friend?"
"Jake?" Chad cried in surprise.
"Sure thing, pretty boy." Jake laughed.
Suddenly footsteps were heard as the smaller of the dark figures stepped out of the house.
Tiffany edged towards that one, dangerously.
"So who's this then? And why did you kidnap the Randoms?" She asked, seething.
"Oh, you might not know her, but Chad does." Jake told them. "Go ahead, sweetheart. Show your pretty self off."
"Gladly." The figure spoke, a mischievous laugh after her words, as she pulled her mask off.
"Portlyn?" Chad yelped in surprise.
"Now to answer your next question, frankly, Hollywood is sick of you, Chad. You don't deserve your fame, or your place on Mackenzie Falls for that matter." Jake spoke before Portlyn continued.
"This trip worked out perfectly. You fell for little miss ball of sunshine, so by getting rid of the Randoms, we could hurt you both. No So Random, no Sonny. No Sonny, no CDC. No CDC, no Mackenzie... and, of course, no Mackenzie leaves room for me to take your place."
"No!" Chad gasped.
"How does Jake fit into that?" Tiffany asked.
"Jake-y and I made a perfect alliance. We knew that you three would become friends. By bringing the Randoms down, we bring you all down. He was here to make sure the plan fell into place." She smiled up at Jake who leaned down as they shared a sloppy kiss. Chad and Tiffany made a face.
"In return," She started after they were done playing tonsil-hockey. "I'm his ticket to fame. You're looking at one of the new stars of 'Penelope Falls'. You know, after Penelope does off with Mackenzie and takes over the water company."
"No!" Chad cried.
"And after your rejection, the least I could do is tear you down." Jake said towards Tiffany.
"And this is how you plan to accomplish it?" She yelled, continuing on with a few choice names afterwards, she pointed at Chey. She wanted desperately to run to her best friend's side, but knew that Chad could not handle these two by himself.
"Please, you have always needed to get real friends. Trust me, its better this way." He told her.
Tiffany once again knocked him to the ground with a screech. He easily pushed her aside, reaching for the knife. As soon as she headed toward him again, he lashed out, slicing her face from the outer corner of her right eye to her chin. Her glasses were knocked to the ground.
Portlyn rushed over to assist, but Chad grabbed her, pulling her back, restricting her movement.
"Please, Chad, I know you want me and all, but this is not the place."
"What?" He let go of her, disgusted. "Why would I ever even think of you like that?"
"Don't lie, Chad…" She told him, edging closer, toying with his shirt.
Chad would not hit a girl, but saw Jake lying behind Portlyn as Tiffany pummeled him.
He walked towards her, causing her to back up.
"Alright, fine…" He started, as if he were to continue on, but soon she stumbled and fell backwards over Jakes foot.
Unfortunately, the thud that resounded when Portlyn fell, distracted Tiffany, and Jake knocked her down.
As Tiffany fell back and Jake stood up, Chad kneed him in the gut as hard as he could, before punching him square on the jaw. As Jake bent over, he grabbed Chad's foot, pulling it out from under him. The actor fell with a loud thud, his head spinning from the force that it hit the ground.
Tiffany hit him from the side again, getting slashed on the shoulder and then once again on her back. Her face was still dripping with blood. She stumbled once as he circled her.
"Are you ready to give in yet?" He asked her, twirling the blade in his fingers, his voice sickly sweet. Noticing a shiny object on the ground, he stepped down hard. The crunch of Tiffany's glasses resounded through the night.
Portlyn suddenly kicked her in the back, and as she stumbled in pain, Jake hit her and she fell to the ground, her head spinning. She was still as she glanced over to see Jake laughing, swinging his leg back to kick Chad, who he had just slashed and knocked down.
In an instant Tiffany leaped up, grabbing his leg, and pulling it. Jake fell forward, Chad rolling away just in time as Tiffany kicked her nemesis. Jake let out a yelp as she yanked the knife from his hand and tossed it away. Portlyn jumped on her back again, causing her to stumble to the ground. The celebrity grabbed onto Tiffany's dark brown hair and yanked on it.
"Oh seriously? This is a cat fight now?" Tiffany asked sarcastically, unimpressed. Portlyn growled at her failure to hurt the other girl, who had had enough by his time, and in a swift move was still able to knock her opponent away and jump to her feet. She was prepared to attack, when she heard Chad yell in pain.
"Chad!" She cried, seeing Jake stab her friend in the shoulder. She rushed over in an attempt to attack Jake, only to have the knife turned on her.
The police pulled up right about then, leaping out of their squad cars, guns ablaze.
"Put your hands where we can see them!" An officer shouted.
Chad had barely taken three steps, when he saw Portlyn and Jake were both attacking Tiffany, and she was simply taking it. For once she just looked broken. Chad's eyes followed her locked yet blurry gaze, and landed on the motionless cat. He knew Chey was Tiffany's everything. In an instant, he forgot about his injuries and rushed over, yanking on Jake's shoulders, forcing the larger boys attention to himself, rather than her.
"Pick on someone your own size!" Chad shouted, wishing Jake would take the advice, and find someone who really was his size. The distraction was enough for the police to jump in, and soon they were dragging Portlyn and Jake off to their squad cars.
Tiffany stumbled forward and fell to her knees at the feline's side.
The world seemed to disappear as Tiffany slowly picked up the little black cat, cradling her in her arms.
"Cheyanne… Cheyanne, my baby… please… please don't leave me.." She pleaded, sobbing uncontrollably, as she buried her face in the soft, black fur. "Y-you're all I've got… please… Chey… wake up… come back to me…" She begged, shakily stroking the soft fur.
Back at the van, Sonny struggled to get the last nail out, and when she did, she was fast to pull the top off. She first laid eyes on her cast mates as the shot went off. All of them jumped, the girls screaming.
Tawni was closest to her. She yanked the burlap sack off of her head, tearing off the duct tape off of her mouth.
"Ouch!" The blonde screeched as Sonny continued untying her wrists.
It was then that she heard Tiffany yell out Chey's name.
She stopped, afraid to look, and tearing up when she saw what happened.
Tawni rubbed her wrists before hugging Sonny.
Sonny was taken back, to say the least.
"You came!" Tawni sounded happy… weak, but happy, as tears of relief rolled down her face.
"Of course, Tawn, but it's really Tiffany you should be thanking." She told her as she began to work on Zora.
The girl whimpered until she was free, when she went to clutching her arm.
"Zora, are you alright?" Sonny asked, concerned.
"I-I think my arm is broken." The girl squeaked.
Just then an ambulance pulled up behind them… it had been a bit behind the police cars.
Paramedics rushed over.
Tawni was badly cut, and couldn't walk well due to the loss of blood, so they carried her in with a stretcher. They also helped Zora with her broken arm. Nico had a few bruised and broken ribs and a nasty cut on his face. And Grady had a large bruise on his forehead, as well as some nasty cuts and a sprained knee.
Sonny saw Tiffany fall to her knees by the cat. As soon as she saw that, she left the others and raced over… she was after all, the only one who was left unscathed.
"What happened?" She asked as she ran up behind Chad.
He turned to look at her, and she saw the extent of his injuries as he stumbled a bit.
"Oh my gosh! Chad, are you alright?" She asked, grabbing onto him to support him.
"I'll be fine." He told her, a bit raspy as his injuries began to catch up with him… his adrenaline settling. Blood dripped from his hairline, his once perfect hair a bit matted in the area of the cut. He had a black eye and a nasty bruise on his opposite cheek. A bit of his shirt was cut and stained in blood from the knife that had stabbed his shoulder, and his leg was also cut and bruised up.
Sonny saw Chey, lying limp in Tiffany's arms, and hugged Chad tightly, burying her face in his chest. Chad's breath caught in his throat, as he held Sonny close, watching the scene before him.
Grady limped up behind them, not saying a word.
"Chey…" Tiffany sobbed, completely broken. She sniffled, struggling to her feet; she caught sight of the three celebrities standing before her.
For a moment she froze, staring at them. Tears continued to stream down her bloodstained face, as her eyes – normally so emotionless, revealed just how broken and helpless she felt, she was visibly shaking as well, being very careful about the feline in her arms still.
She stumbled a bit, before she stepped forward a few feet. She couldn't help but stare at Chey, her heart was shattered beyond repair as she stood there, wavering a bit in pain.
Grady could not help it anymore, but stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her comfortingly, though the motion surprised even himself. She sobbed harder than she ever thought she would, especially in front of people, as she cradled the cat close.
Sonny began to visibly sob, and even Chad felt a few tears trickling down his face before he broke down as well, burying his face into his girlfriends hair.
They stood there for a long time like that.
Suddenly a vibration broke through their sobs, and everyone went silent.
There it was again.
"CHEY!" Tiffany cried through her sobs.
"Mew?" The cat said meekly, her sparse purrs gaining in volume and speed
"You're alright!" This time the tears were those of joy, as Tiffany repeatedly kissed the cats head. Sonny and Chad came rushing over to pet the little cat as she purred meekly.
"I can't believe it!" "You're alright!" A chorus of happiness filled the night.
"Ahem" Someone cleared their throat from behind them.
Turning around, slowly, with Sonny still in his arms, Chad saw a couple paramedics standing there.
"We need to check you guys over." The man said, motioning towards the ambulance. "We want to make sure there are no internal injuries… and stop the bleeding."
Glancing over, they saw Chey as well.
"We'll take care of the cat too."
That was all Tiffany needed to hear as she limped towards the ambulance. She was in pain, and a lot of it, but Chey was her first concern.
"You guys need to get looked at too." She called back over her shoulder.
On the way there, Tiffany glanced over to see Jake, eyeing her from the back of a police car.
Sonny caught up to her.
"Sonny, would you mind taking Chey for me?" She asked. "I have some… unfinished business to attend too."
"Of course." Sonny smiled, carefully taking the delicate cat from Tiffany's arms.
Tiffany watched her and Chad walk off (well, he sort of hobbled) and turned to the cop car, limping over.
"So you never said…" She spoke in a harsh tone. "Why did you do this?"
"Even when you're so badly injured, you're still so mean!" Jake feigned hurt, smirking.
"Answer the question." She hissed.
"Come here." He told her after a second.
She reluctantly took a step.
"Lil' closer."
She took another step.
"Little more…"
She leaned down.
"Mooooore…"
"Answer me!" She shouted.
"Because," He stated, not phased. "If I can't have you, no one can."
She reeled back in disgust, nearly stumbling when she was reminded of her injuries.
"So you did this because you were – Jake, how could you be jealous? Who would you be jealous of? You're the one who ditched me, moron."
"But I loved you." He said in a sickly sweet voice that made her want to hurl.
"You are no better than the dirt beneath my feet." She growled through her teeth, turning on her heels as she walked off. Out of the corner of her eye, she had seen a police officer strolling towards his squad car, but thought nothing of it other than 'good riddance'.
That is, until the two loud bangs rang through her ears.