Snapshots

5. Summer

Summer lives in a constant state of confliction.

It was stupid to audition as a soloist for Dancemania. She knows that now. She regrets it.

She spent the first decade of her life moving around the world wherever her parents' work took them, and when they finally settled down in Toronto, she was always moving around to different dance studios with Miss Angela.

The Next Step is the first place that ever really felt like home. Her team wasn't just her team. They were her friends, her family. She'd thought putting her choreo up against Richelle's in a vote would be fair. And it was fair, she supposes. She'd known there was a chance Richelle would win. She just never guessed that the entire team would vote against her.

Something about standing there, completely alone, seeing all of her friends turn their backs on her- it hurt, more than anything has ever hurt before.

She thought she was justified in auditioning as a soloist because she was hurting, but then she walked into that audition to come face to face with her teammates and knew in that moment that she had put all of her friendships on the line with this one decision.

It wasn't worth it. Obviously.

It seems like no matter what she does these days, she can't get anything right. She's too nice. She's too worried about what other people will think of her. She doesn't want to hurt anyone's feelings.

She's on a path to self-destruction, and she desperately wants off but can't seem to find the exit.

B-Troupe is her chance to start over, to be a better dance captain, a better teammate, a better friend. They're welcoming and accepting and full of exciting energy. Summer quickly grows to love them and tries her hardest to do better by them than she did for A-Troupe.

And yet, as much as she enjoys being on B-Troupe, it's just not the same. She misses A-Troupe. She misses catching up with Amy while stretching before rehearsals. She misses movie nights with Kenzie and discussing the latest episodes of Supernova Superstar with Piper. She even misses tutoring Kingston in math so he can keep his grades up.

A-Troupe was the first team that made her feel like she was a part of something really special. And she ruined it.

There's no one to blame but herself.

She tries not to sulk though, tries to hold her head up and get through the days where it takes all her energy just to get out of bed in the morning. She spends her mornings working on schoolwork in the kitchen with her dad and her afternoons leading B-Troupe through the Nationals routines. She's surrounded by people she loves, and yet, she's the loneliest she's ever been.

When she walks into The Next Steep that afternoon, Summer hesitates when she notices Piper sitting at one of the tables. The two of them haven't spoken much since A-Troupe moved ahead with Dancemania and Summer joined B-Troupe. In fact, Amy's the only one Summer's talked to since then, the two of them occasionally grabbing tea and Amy filling her in on everything she's missed. They never say it out loud, but Summer's fairly certain the only reason Amy sticks by her is because she knows how lonely it is to make a decision you regret and lose everything important because of it.

She hesitates to approach Piper, but her friend gives her a small smile when she notices her. "Hey Summer."

Two words. That's all it takes for Summer to push aside the doubts constantly weighing her down these days and sit with her friend. They smile awkwardly at each other, and Piper wraps her hands around the mug of tea in front of her. "Uh, so how's B-Troupe?" she asks.

"It's good. They're really great," Summer answers simply.

Piper nods, taking a sip of her tea. "That's cool about you guys going to Nationals. Are you excited?"

"Yeah, it's nice to have something to work towards." The unspoken words hang between them: "Since I betrayed the team." She clears her throat then asks, "Um, how are Dancemania rehearsals going?"

Piper shrugs, staring into her tea as she mumbles, "They're fine." Her demeanor says otherwise. Amy told her all about Miss Angela's return to the studio, and Summer can only imagine that would be difficult for Piper, given their history.

Before she can comment on it, however, Finn arrives, pulling out the chair next to Piper and saying, "Sorry I'm late. Heath was predicting the odds of a zombie apocalypse, and I couldn't get away." He leans over, placing a kiss on her cheek without a second thought.

It catches Summer off guard. It shouldn't, but it does. She knows they're dating now, and not even because Amy told her but because Winnie did. At this point, everyone at the studio knows, not that anyone was that surprised.

Finn finally seems to notice Summer as he pulls away from his girlfriend, and his face brightens at the sight of her. "Oh, hey Summer! How's it going?"

She smiles and tells him she's well, and he grins as Piper asks, "Why were you and Heath talking about the zombie apocalypse?"

"It's more likely than you think, Pipes," Finn says, growing serious. "Heath has a whole survival plan. You should really ask him about it. It might save your life someday."

She gives a tight smile, gazing at him so endearingly that something in Summer's heart pangs and she has to look away. Meanwhile, Piper's saying, "Well, I have other things to worry about until then. I'll let you protect me if it comes down to it."

It's sappy- so incredibly sappy- and Piper's not a sappy person. Once again, Summer's completely caught off guard.

This is the first time she's seen them interacting as a couple, and it's strange, not because they don't belong together but because they do. It's like nothing's changed between them and everything has changed all at once.

Summer figures she should just be happy they finally figured things out. She always suspected there was something more than they cared to admit between them.

She feels a little awkward sitting with them, like she's interrupting a date or something, so she quietly excuses herself.

"Oh, you don't have to go," Piper tells her, "You should stay. We miss you."

Summer smiles sadly and murmurs, "I miss you guys too." She takes a shaky breath then adds, "But I've got rehearsal soon. I'll see you around."

They accept this, not fighting her on it any further. She pauses in the doorway, glancing back to them. They're holdings hands now, and Piper's holding her mug of tea up to Finn's nose as she tells him something with a rare mischievous grin. Finn laughs at whatever she said before taking her tea and sipping from it like it's his own.

It's oddly domestic and natural, like they've been together for years instead of a couple of weeks. It sends another pang to Summer's heart, and she forces herself to turn away and leave The Next Steep without another look back.

She tries not to think about Henry too much these days. She misses him sorely but knows in her heart that it was the right decision to break up with him. He's with Amy now. They got together around the same time as Piper and Finn, and their relationship caused more shock waves throughout the studio and in Summer's heart.

Amy and Henry are her friends. She loves them, and she's happy that they're happy. But Henry's the one thing Amy doesn't bring up around her, and Summer's grateful because she may be happy for them, but she's not ready to hear the details of their relationship just yet.

She realizes now that her relationship with Henry was probably nothing more than a rebound for him. It hurts. She wishes she had meant more to him because he had meant more to her.

She longs to mean as much to someone as Piper means to Finn. Maybe one day, she'll figure things out for herself and find her happy ending. In the meantime, she's just happy for her friends who already have.

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A/N- Don't mind me, just trying to salvage what season 7 did to my girl Summer...