Hello! These are my first steps in writing. Unfortunately, I'm not a native English speaker, so I desperately need a Beta.

Except for the first two weeks, this summer must have been the worst of her entire life.

Lindsay was sitting behind the counter in her father's store. She had offered to work for him, partly out of guilt for skipping summit and partly because she was simply willing to help...but she was regretting it now. When she offered her help, she had prepared herself for boredom and her father having complete control, but she had totally forgotten one little thing. Nick was working in the same place.

They barely spoke to each other except a brief "hey" and "see ya later". There was so much tension between Nick and her, so many silent questions and unspoken things, and Lindsay was afraid that one more deep conversation may just ruin their fragile friendship forever. That was something she didn't want.

So she just observed while pretending to read a book or ringing up customers. Lindsay was astonished by Nick's achievements. He didn't smoke weed anymore, he had a job, his drum lessons... and he finished the year with at least C+ average. Otherwise, he'd be in some army camp now. All of this made Lindsay proud of Nick. And at the same time, it made her feel miserable. All these great things Nick had accomplished because of Sara, not Lindsay. Of course, he used to like her, he was obsessed with her, even dedicated a song for her (though Lindsay didn't hear his performance). But for Sara, Nick did so much more. He changed for the better. Lindsay was almost sure that he truly loved Sara.

And it was mutual. Lindsay saw Sara every day. Nick's shift ended before hers and Sara came to the store to meet her beloved boyfriend. It seemed... sickeningly sweet to Lindsay. If Nick really had started dating Sara to make her jealous, mission accomplished. But he had just moved on... and Lindsay had to do the same thing. She turned a page, trying to focus on formulas.

The shop doorbell rang and Lindsay threw a quick glance at the door. It was Sara, of course.

"Hi, babe," Sara murmured, and gave Nick a peck on the cheek. "Have you finished for today?"

"Yeah, sure," Nick answered, somewhat hesitant. "Just... just wait a minute, I'll be right back, okay?"

He went to the back room, leaving Lindsay and Sara alone in an awkward silence.

"So... how was your summit?" Sara asked. Lindsay didn't know if Nick had told his girlfriend about what really happened, but she didn't want to find out.

"Oh, it was cool. I'll never forget about those two weeks," Lindsay replied.

"Lucky you! You should tell me about everything someday at school," Sara said, giggling.

"Yeah... right," Lindsay nodded. The last thing she wanted Mr. Rosso to hear about was how she lived as a Deadhead for nearly two weeks It was the last thing she wanted any McKinley teacher to find out about.

"Oh, we better go," Sara said as soon as Nick returned. "Bye-bye."

"See ya, guys," Lindsay said with a weak smile. And after they'd left the store, her smile faded completely.

Why did Sara visit every day, acting like that? To mock her? Or to be sure Nick wasn't still in love with Lindsay?

"No, no, no," Lindsay said to herself. Watching them through the window, she could see that Sara's admiration didn't just stop after the two had left the store. "She just shows her love this way, that's all."

Lindsay also paid attention to Nick. He looked ashamed and awkward, like he wanted to be somewhere else. Maybe Sara's affection disturbed him?

"Did I look the same way when we were dating?" she wondered, observing how uncomfortable Nick was. The thought made Lindsay sick.