Chapter Two
The crowd, hearing that, immediately got
angry.
“Lindsay, what’s your problem? Why are you
trying to make Sarah drop out? That’s so
mean!”
“Just because Sarah’s poor doesn’t mean you
can bully her like this!”
“Lindsay, just because your family has some
L
money doesn’t give you the right to be such a
jerk! That’s messed up.”
Mark grabbed my arm, all concerned.
“Lindsay, I know you can be a little… spoiled,
but this is Sarah’s life we’re talking about.
You can’t ruin it for her! It’s just a leadership
spot, you know? It’s not that big a deal to
you.”
I was fuming.
Back then, they always told me, “You’re the
leader, so you have to step up.”
Where were they when I was pulling all-
nighters writing the business proposal? Where
was Sarah when I was groveling for funding,
drinking until I puked?
<
Now that the competition was almost over,
she wanted to swoop in for the glory, and it
was “just a leadership spot.”
“I’m not making her drop out,” I said, my
voice sharp. “And I’m the one who got the
funding for this startup. What right does she
have to replace me?”
Mark scoffed. “Lindsay, don’t act like it was
åll you. You only got the money because our
team is so great. Even if Sarah went, she
could get more funding than you.”
Sarah acted all shy and sweet. “Lindsay, don’t
pretend you can’t see how good we are as a
team. Mark is practically a financial genius!
Everyone knows that.”
Mark was loving the attention. He puffed out
Г
“Sarah’s right, Lindsay. I’ve let a lot slide in
the past, but if you try to ruin Sarah’s life, I’m
not going to allow it.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Fine. Let her be the
leader, then.”
Mark looked pleased.
“That’s the Lindsay I like. Reasonable. You’ll
have plenty of other opportunities. Sarah
can’t lose this.”
I smiled sweetly.
“Good luck with your startup.”
Sarah thought I was going to weasel out of
responsibility, and looked pissed.
L
“Lindsay, even if you’re not the leader
anymore, you’re still part of the team. The
parts you’ve already done, you’re still
responsible for them.”
I laughed, not holding back.
“Sarah, I was the leader and did seventy
percent of the work. Now you whine until you
take my place, and you expect me to do the
work? You’ve got a lot of nerve.”
Sarah’s face went white.
“That’s not what I meant. The competition is
almost over. It’s not a good time to switch
things up.”
I nodded slowly. “Oh, you know the
competition is almost over, so you’re trying to
く
steal the credit right at the finish line.”
The people around us finally caught on.
Suddenly, they were all whispering, calling
Sarah a schemer, a freeloader, a gold–digger.
Sarah started babbling explanations, but
nobody believed her. They’d all seen me
busting my butt for weeks, working late
nights and running around town.
Sarah was about to cry again, so Mark
stepped in front of her, glaring at me.
“Lindsay, Sarah’s doing this for the good of
the team. Don’t try to trash her. She’s the
leader now. She can tell you what to do, and
you better listen. If you don’t, we’ll kick you
off the team.”
