A/N: song to set the scene:

Way Down We Go by KALEO

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AJ's POV

Since Sarah wasn't needed for any of the recordings, she left to make sure we had everything for the impromptu movie night we were now hosting. I had stocked up the cabin before I picked up Sarah earlier in the week, but since more of the cast was coming than I anticipated we needed a couple extra things. China and Dove are finishing up the pieces of 'Night Falls' that I wanted redone, and Sofia is sitting next to me listening to the finished recording of 'One Kiss' on my iPad.

"AJ, this is really good. I'm impressed," Sofia pulls out my AirPods placing the iPad on the table behind us. "Wow Carson didn't realize you were still so easy to impress," I wink adjusting a few of the knobs on the sound board to fade Dove and China's music out. I catch Sofia trying to hide a bit of a blush on her cheeks. China steps out of the booth, so I can get Dove to record her opening narration for the movie. I give her the thumbs up that I'm recording so she can start.

"So, is this movie night a good idea?" China says softly only for me to hear. "I mean, it'll be good for all of you to bond more right? I know everyone is friends, for the most part, but this is probably the last time you'll get to work together and feel like a family," I respond back in the same soft tone not taking my eyes off the soundboard to edit 'Night Falls.' "I'm excited for you to watch the first two Descendants. I assume you never watched the first one, and my character gets a pretty badass song in the second movie," China brushes the fake dust off her shoulder. "Oh, I listened to 'What's My Name?' many times, and you're right it is a very badass song," I mimic her by dusting my shoulder off. She softly pushes my chair and walks over to the couch to grab her things. "Am I good to head over and help Sarah get stuff ready? Or do you need me for anything else?" China asks making her way towards the door. "You're good, McClain. Tell Sarah to text me if there's anything I need to stop and grab," I give her a thumbs up and turn back towards the booth and see Dove has walked out and grabbing her things.

I pause the recording and start getting to work on finishing everything. "Are we good?" Dove asks standing over my shoulder. I ignore her somewhat close proximity, "Yeah, you're good to go. I'm just going to clean it up and send it to Kenny." I hear the door click shut and look over my shoulder. It's just me and Sofia now. I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding and turn my attention back to everything. "Do you mind giving me a ride to your place?" Sofia asks coming up to sit beside me while I work. "No, I don't mind," I shoot her a tight lip smile not stopping my work.

Sarah's POV

To say I was shocked to hear AJ agree to us hosting a movie night/sleep over is an understatement, especially knowing that Dove and Sofia would be here. I will happily play the middleman and keep AJ as much at bay as I can, keeping her away from any unnecessary drama since we start filming tomorrow.

I hear the door open as I place the last few sleeping bags I found downstairs near the couch, which I assume were left by the owners for people to use. "Hello?" I hear called out. "Keep walking straight, and you'll see me," I yell back. I turn around and see China walking in with a small duffle bag. "Where shall I place my bag?" China lifts the bag off her shoulder, and I point to the area behind the furthest couch. "How was everything before you left?" I ask worried about leaving AJ alone with Dove and Sofia, but mostly Dove. "AJ looked like a worker bee trying to get everything done as quickly as she could. Surprisingly enough, Dove and her were being civil with no sharp words or glares so," she shrugs, "who knows, maybe they can at least tolerate each other enough and keep the peace." I side eye her as I walk towards the kitchen to start popping popcorn.

"This place is massive, and don't get me started on this view you have," China says admiring out the back doors towards the almost sunset in the sky. "It's a lot bigger than I anticipated, but I appreciate the effort AJ put in finding this place," I say in awe thinking about how considerate she was in renting this place. "You've got a keeper that one, Jeffery. Don't forget that," China joins me in the kitchen hopping up on the center island facing me.

"So, how are feeling about AJ and Sofia being on good terms? We haven't really talked about break or anything since we got here," China asks. I place the next bag of popcorn in the microwave and turn to face my friend. "It's hard, but AJ and I have talked about everything that happened. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy that they're getting along and that we can do these things without the heavy tension like the first couple of weeks, but I have this feeling in my gut that something is either going to happen or has happened that AJ's not being fully honest about," I state crossing my arms to hug myself. The self-doubt had been creeping back up recently, and as much as AJ has been showing me more affection than before the break, I can't shake that feeling. "Sarah, you don't need to worry too much alright? Both Sofia and AJ are the types of people who would never hurt someone intentionally or hide things from people. What's got you so in your head?" China gives some helpful insight, but also asks an important question that I haven't even talked to AJ about. "Come with me," I start walking upstairs with China hot on my heels.

~~

I grab the notebook from AJ's nightstand and hand it to China. "This is what has me so in my head," I point to the notebook, and she flicks through the pages. "Is this AJ's diary?" China inquires looking up from the book with raised eyebrows. "No, it's her song book. I guess basically her diary, but she's been writing more recently. The song that caught my attention was 'Sweetest Thing.' To me it sounds like a song about Sofia, and I don't know, maybe I'm just making shit up in my head, but they have history China! How do I top someone who has known AJ since she was thirteen? I feel like I'm with a totally different person than who wrote that song," I say flustered plopping down on the bed dramatically.

I glance to China from my position on the bed and see she's still reading. "Have you talked to AJ? Has AJ talked to you about this song?" China asks putting the notebook down exactly where I grabbed it from. "No, I'm scared she'll get annoyed with the constant worry of her leaving me for Sofia," I sit up looking at my friend for reassurance. "Talk to her. Don't bring up the worry. Just ask her if she's been writing since you've noticed the notebook out more. Ask her to play one of the new songs she's written. Sarah, that girl loves you and I'm sure she'd move mountains for you if she could," China pulls me into a hug, and I hear loud knocking coming from downstairs. I glance at the clock on the nightstand and see that it's time for everyone to start getting here. "We should head downstairs. Everyone should be getting here by now," China pulls me out the bedroom door and closes it behind us.

~~

Everyone is here, except Sofia and AJ. "Where's our last two at?" Brenna asks standing next to Cameron and China with me in the kitchen. Everyone else is scattered throughout the large living room area, and luckily Booboo and Dylan had some extra sleeping bags so now there was enough for everyone. "That's a good question, where is my best friend?" Cameron looks at me and then down at my phone signaling me to call her. "We're here!" I hear come from the front door. "They're here," I look at him smugly and hurry to the front of the house to tackle my girlfriend. "Finally!" I yell jumping into her arms like I didn't just see her four hours ago. "I'm sorry, princess. Lost track of time editing the last two songs and Mal's narration for the film," AJ's eyes dart to Sofia, who's nodding along in agreement. I look up into AJ's eyes and she looks flustered and a bit sweaty like she ran here instead of drove.

"It's okay, you're both here now. Now we can start this Descendants movie marathon to prepare you for tomorrow," I wrap my arms around her neck pulling her in for a quick kiss. "Can I change really quick before we start?" AJ asks and I pull away. "Of course! I'll get the projector set up along with the movie," I peck her lips so she can quickly rush upstairs to change.

AJ's POV

Sofia and I hustle out of the building to my car. I lost track of time, and Sofia wasn't much help either talking to me the whole time. "I can't believe we're leaving so late," Sofia gasps at the time on the dash of the car putting her seatbelt on. I look at my phone and have five texts from Sarah and few from China and Cameron. "We'll be fine! You needed to stop by your hotel first, right?" I ask looking over at Sofia for confirmation. "Yeah, and I'll be quick. I promise," she puts up three fingers doing scout's honor. I chuckle shaking my head at her antics. I pull into a spot close to the doors of her hotel and unbuckle my seat. "What are you doing?" She asks as we exit the car. "I'm going with you to guarantee you move faster," I smirk following her lead through the hotel.

~~

Sofia opens the door to her hotel room, and I get brought back to five years ago all over again. The clothes laying everywhere. The one messy bed. The make-up she had set up on the small desk with her make-up mirror and light. Sofia snaps her fingers in my face bringing me back to reality. "You good?" She asks looking at me concerned. "Yeah, sorry. Honestly, I got transported to five years ago. The night our lives changed," I wander over towards the giant window overlooking the street. I feel arms wrap around my waist and Sofia's head against my back, "I'm so sorry." I hear her whisper and turn in her arms holding her close to my body. "It's alright. I forgave you, remember?" I try to make light of the situation. "No amount of forgiveness will ever erase what happened," Sofia looks into my eyes as she states her words as truth.

I get lost in her brown eyes feeling them pull me towards her. Before I can stop myself, I feel her breath on my lips. "AJ, we shouldn't," she silently protests. I pause my actions and pull away. I clear my throat and drop my arms to let her finish packing. "I'm sorry. I got lost in the moment," I sound flustered. "It's okay. We both were, but we're not going to hurt Sarah because she makes you happy," Sofia states zipping up her bag for the night. "Please don't do that," I say walking towards the door. "Don't do what?" Sofia asks stopping short of the door before I open it. "Don't pretend you're okay with my relationship. I've known you for years, Sof. I can tell when you're lying. You're a good actress, but I know the real you," I cross my arms standing in front of her.

"You think you know me. I've changed a lot, AJ. Last I checked, you missed five years, and I had a lot of growing up to do," Sofia sounds frustrated now. I rub my hands over my face and put my hands up in the air surrendering. "You're right, and I apologize," I say. "We're different people now, who have faced things we hadn't before. Just, don't put on this brave face about my relationship with Sarah cause we both know if the tables were reversed, I'd have a hard time seeing you with someone else even if they made you extremely happy," I state grabbing the handle to leave, mostly to stop myself from saying anything else. "It's hard to see you happy because it's not with me, but I'm happy for you. You deserve it, as much as you think you don't," Sofia quickly says brushing past me out the door.

~~

For most of the ride to the cabin is quiet, until Sofia finally decided she needed the silence broken, "Have you really not watched the Descendants movies?" I glance over and chuckle. "Do you blame me?" I ask before looking back at the road. "Actually, I followed the press you guys did for the first movie, but it became too hard. I listened to some of the songs though. I mean, what kind of music person would I be if I didn't listen to movie soundtracks?" I shrug smiling at my own answer. "I won't fault you then if you sing along to the movies," Sofia playfully shoves my shoulder as we pull up to the cabin. "Wow lots of cars. How much you want to bet we're the last two?" I inquire with the brunette next to me. "Collins, you do realize that we both know we're the last two here," she smiles at me. "It was worth a shot to win at least once," I return the smile getting out of the car. I grab my bags from the backseat as Sofia grabs hers and we quickly walk to the front door trying to avoid the icy patches forming on the ground.

I open the unlocked door and yell into the house, "We're here!" I hear bare feet making their way towards us. I lock the door behind us and turn to my girlfriend's arms wrapping me in a death grip, "Finally!" Sarah yells away from my ear, which was much appreciated. "I'm sorry, princess. Lost track of time editing the last two songs and Mal's narration for the film," my eyes dart to Sofia, who's nodding along in agreement. Sarah looks up into my eyes searching for something. I know I look a bit disheveled and sweaty, but that's only because the heater in the car was blasting and we hustled as fast as we could from the studio to Sofia's hotel to here. "It's okay, you're both here now. Now we can start this Descendants movie marathon to prepare you for tomorrow," Sarah wraps her arms around my neck pulling me in for a quick kiss. "Can I change really quick before we start?" I ask feeling Sarah pull away. "Of course! I'll get the projector set up along with the movie," she pecks my lips again before I quickly rush upstairs to change.

Sarah's POV

The movie marathon was fun but ended all too quickly. It was weird re-watching a movie from what felt like a lifetime ago and seeing us all look so young was crazy. AJ seemed to enjoy both movies, and her favorite character seems to be a toss-up between Uma and Carlos, which shocked no one since China and Cameron were her two closest friends.

"Anyone up a for a game?" Dove grabs everyone's attention. "What kind of game we talking?" China answers with a question. Good idea cause I don't think Dove's games are ones I'd like to be apart of. "How about 'Never Have I Ever'?" Dove inquires to the group. A majority of us were of age, but AJ was very adamant about being inclusive to everyone and we did have a few younger cast mates who were eighteen or twenty, so no alcohol was present tonight. Also, we had the first day of filming tomorrow and none of us want to be hungover. "I'm down," I hear AJ say under me. She was currently sitting on the floor leaning against the sofa in front of me.

"Who first?" I ask looking around at everyone. "I'll start," China chimes putting her finger on her chin thinking of how to start. Please keep these tame. Please keep these tame. "Never Have I Ever...rode a motorcycle," China says and a few of the cast take a sip of their drinks. I see Booboo, Thomas, and I look down seeing AJ taking a sip too. "When did you ride a motorcycle?" I ask my girlfriend, who I've never seen on a motorcycle. "I had one when I was in England for a bit. I've thought about getting one when we get back to LA from filming. Haven't decided yet though," she shrugs nonchalantly. Huh, I wonder what else I don't know. We're all going to learn some new things tonight.

Several more people went, and we covered a few fun topics. AJ threw out the 'Never Have I Ever been on TV' and everyone took a drink, except her. It was now Cameron's turn, "Never Have I Ever...gotten a tattoo." We all see Dove, China, Dylan, Booboo and Thomas take a drink. They each have at least one. The other person to drink did not surprise me at all. AJ has several tattoos, and I can only imagine the collection will continue growing. "AJ, how many tattoos do you have now?" Thomas' thick accent comes through his question.

She stands up and moves to the front of the room so everyone can see. "These three are obvious, but I have six," she points to the ones on her forearms and then lifts her arm to show the inside of her upper arm. "Do they have any meaning behind them?" Zachary asks. She points to her left forearm first, "This is Arya Stark's sword needle. I love her character on Game of Thrones, so why not." Next, she points to her right forearm with the rainbow pulse, "This one is for the Pulse shooting that happened in 2016." She lifts up her arm to show off the inside of her upper arm, "This was actually the first tattoo I got. It means: 'I protect my family'." She looks over at Sofia and smiles. "Sofia actually came with me to get this one, and I thought she was going to pass out from the needle," the room chuckles. "It looked painful. Who can blame me?" Sofia puts her hands up in surrender.

AJ pulls the collar of her shirt away from her neck to show the next tattoo, "This one is Spanish for Live My Life. It's also my favorite Marc Anthony song." "AJ, when did you get that one? I don't ever remember seeing it," Cameron asks his friend. "I got it a few months into me living in England," I see AJ glance at Sofia who's suddenly become very interested in her nailbeds. AJ pulls the right sleeve of her shirt up to show the next tattoo on her tricep, "This will probably be the last one you all get to see cause my last one is on my ribcage, and no one gets to see that, except Sarah." She winks in my direction. "So, this tattoo is probably my favorite. The marigold being pollenated by a bee," she shrugs her sleeve down and goes to sit back down at my feet. "What's the tattoo on your ribcage?" China asks as AJ takes her cup back from my hands. "Oh, it's lyrics to a song. Nothing too crazy," AJ blushes a bit and I lean forward kissing her cheek. "What's the song?" Sofia asks and AJ's head shoots in her direction. "Oh, uh a song from Hunchback of Notre Dame," AJ shrugs playing with the lid of her cup.

"Let's spice these 'Never Have I Evers' up a bit," Dove says from Thomas' lap. If I didn't dislike Dove so much, I would find their relationship cute. "Never Have I Ever...drunk-dialed my ex," Dove's eyes were focused on AJ. I notice her hesitate to take a sip, and when she finally does, I look utterly confused as to what Dove is doing. I bend forward to whisper in her ear, "Babe?" "I'm fine," she's short with me. Well, this game is taking a turn for the worst. "Never Have I Ever...been engaged?" Dove shoots another question, and it's apparent she's targeting two very specific people in this room.

"Dove, it's common knowledge Sofia and AJ were engaged. We're not all new to this group," Mitchell throws her way trying to ease the growing tension. "Mitch, it's fine. She wants to play dirty, I'll play along," AJ reassures him standing up. "Never Have I Ever...snooped through someone's stuff," she stops halfway never breaking eye contact with Dove. Dove is the only one to take a sip of her cup. "How'd you know?" She smirks at AJ smugly. "I'm not stupid, and no one here is either," she turns to look at everyone taking a deep breath. "Right after I left, I got insanely drunk cause who doesn't after a breakup," everyone mumbles agreeing. "Did I stupidly drunk call Sofia? Yes, but she didn't answer," she pauses looking directly at Dove. "Dove answered the phone, and that's what drove me to leave the country. I changed my number. Deleted social media. I disappeared," she turns back to all of us. "If you all will excuse me, it's late and we need to be on set ridiculously early. Don't stop playing on account of me, but I'm tired," AJ rushes out of the room up the stairs, and I keep my eyes planted on her the entire time. Not even noticing everyone's eyes on me.

AJ's POV

I shut the bedroom door and fall onto the bed. I was fighting the tears from falling and trying to push the sound of Dove's voice from my head. She pushed Sofia over the edge a few days ago, and now she's pushed me to my breaking point. I've never been that vulnerable in front of people, and just spilled one of the many things I never wanted to admit about what happened to me after the break-up. Did I suffer? Of course! Did I hope Sofia would answer the phone apologizing and telling me to come home? Every day. I let out a silent sob pushing my face into my pillow.

"Knock, knock," I hear the door open but don't acknowledge whoever just entered. I feel the bed dip beside me and a hand rubbing my back. "AJ?" Sarah whispers lying next to me. "Alex?" She says a nickname I haven't heard in years, mostly because most people don't know that my full name is Alexandra. I peek my face from the pillow turning towards her. "Oh, babe," she pouts at my tear-stained face and pulls me towards her. I bury my face into the crook of her neck, and the tears just fall. I feel Sarah rubbing small circles under my shirt trying to calm me down. "Shhh, it's okay. I'm here. I'm right here," Sarah whispers.

I pull back and wipe the tears away with my hands. I sit up and turn my body to face Sarah. "Everyone still here?" I whimper out still trying to contain my breath from my sobbing. "Yeah, they decided to clean up and go to sleep. Are you okay? Want to talk about it?" Sarah takes my hand and rubs circles on my palm. "Where do I start?" I scoff out. "How about with if you're okay?" Sarah looks at me with the softest eyes. "I'm okay. I just haven't talked to anyone about those first few days after we ended everything. I pushed that person deep away when I left for England and came back trying to maintain that same façade. The person who didn't hold on to grudges. The person who didn't let others dictate my feelings. I guess Dove found a crack in that exterior bringing up that old version of me," I fiddle with the hem of my shirt not wanting to look at the pitying look Sarah was giving me.

Sarah hooks her finger under my chin forcing me to look at her. "You don't have to hide anything from me. I love who you are now, and the person you used to be only helped you become who you are today. Do you need to talk about anything else?" Sarah's scanning my face looking for any hints on my mood. I feel completely drained, and like life becomes so much more difficult after I feel happier. I shake my head not finding any words to say. "Did you like the movies at least?" Sarah cracks a smile trying to get me to relax. "They were alright. Audrey definitely not your finest moment as a character, babe," I crack a smile chuckling. "Yeah, she's a bit of mean girl but," she flicks her hair over her shoulder, "who doesn't love a mean girl sometimes." I raise my hand scrunching my face up a bit. "I definitely don't like a mean girl. I prefer a girl with a big heart who loves everybody," I move my hand up to Sarah's cheek and softly rub it with my thumb. "Thank you, and I'm sorry if I ruined the night," I lean forward and kiss Sarah's forehead. I pull her into my lap and lean back against the headboard. "You didn't ruin the night, Dove did," Sarah turns her head to kiss my palm. "Did I mention that I'm in love with you?" I smirk trying to lighten the mood with a Descendants song. Sarah shoves my shoulder, "So corny." "It's true though," I continue to rub her cheek. "My love for you is ridiculous," we both chuckle. I kiss her forehead, "But seriously, thank you."

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Songs mentioned: 

Night Falls by Dove Cameron, Cameron Boyce, China Anne McClain, Dylan Playfair, Sofia Carson, Booboo Stewart, Thomas Doherty

What's My Name by China Anne McClain

Did I Mention? by Jeff Lewis & Mitchell Hope