*A/N New St. Berry fic! This is AU I suppose. What would have happened if Rachel and Jesse had met in middle school, at summer camp, before they were rivals? We shall see : ) Please review and let me know what you think!*

I leaned my head against the cool glass of the bus window, watching the scenery whiz by. I could barely contain my excitement. I was on my way to Broadway Bootcamp, the most prestigious fine arts camp in the Midwest. It was all I could do to keep from screaming with excitement. My first year of middle school had been tough. In elementary, I had never quite fit in, but it wasn't until sixth grade that I'd truly felt alone. Everyone seemed to have their own clique, a place where they belonged, while I was just the weird girl who sang all the time. But, for four weeks, I was going to be surrounded by people that were just like me, people that loved performing as much as I did. We pulled up to the camp and I couldn't get off the bus fast enough. I grabbed my bags and spun around, taking in every detail of the campground. This was going to be amazing. I was so busy looking around in awe, that I wasn't paying attention to where I was going. I ran right into a firm, slightly taller body.

"Sorry," I said. When I saw who I'd run into, my jaw dropped a little. He was absolutely gorgeous. He had brown wavy hair and the most beautiful green eyes I had ever seen.

"It's ok," he replied. He smiled, and I melted. "Just watch where you're going next time." He didn't say it in a rude or condescending way; his tone was more teasing and (dare I say it?) flirty. I automatically felt the blood rush to my cheeks.

"I-I will," I stuttered, before turning and walking away. Looking back over my shoulder, I saw that the boy was still looking at me. I whipped my head back around and blushed even deeper. He was obviously older and very good looking. Guys like that had never paid any attention to me other than to call me names or knock my books out of my hand so I wasn't really sure how to handle it. I smiled. I could get used to that attention though.

I didn't exactly hit it off with my bunkmates. I had expected them to be girls like me, girls who were viewed as losers because the athletes and the cheerleaders didn't understand the meaning of talent, but these girls were more like the cheerleaders than the choir nerds. I had very enthusiastically introduced myself as "future Broadway star" to which they all dissolved into a fit of giggles. I frowned. This was not how I wanted to make my first impression. I didn't have a chance to remedy the situation, however, because just then the bell rang, signaling it was time for dinner. The five girls I was going to be sharing a room with hurried off together, linking arms and laughing like they were the best of friends. I crossed my arms around my chest self-consciously and walked to the mess hall alone.

The lunch lady piled some unidentifiable slop on my plate. I grimaced.

"Is this vegan?" I asked. The woman snorted before turning to serve the next person in line. I looked down at the tray morosely, as my stomach began to grumble. Basically the only thing I could eat was the slice of wheat bread. I sighed.

"Do you want my bread?" a familiar voice asked. I looked up to see the boy I had run into earlier standing before me. I just stood there in shock, mouth agape. His brow furrowed at my lack of response. "Vegans do eat bread, right?"

"Y-yes," I said once I found my voice. He held out the slice and I tentatively took it from him. My hand brushed against his and I sucked in a breath. The boy just laughed. "Thanks," I said quietly.

"You're welcome," he replied. "I'm Jesse," he said, sticking out his hand. Finally I snapped out of it.

"I'm Rachel Berry," I said, taking his hand and shaking it firmly. "Remember that name, because I'm going to be a big star one day." Jesse laughed again.

"That's what everyone here says," he pointed out.

"Well, for me it's true," I said defensively. He looked at me appraisingly.

"Maybe," he said. "See you around, Rachel." With that, he turned and sat at a table with his friends.

"See you Jesse," I replied, liking the way his name felt on my lips. "Jesse," I whispered again.

I had a feeling these next four weeks were going to be good.