Episode six opens with Sara taking a private piano lesson in the living room while Tegan does her homework. When Sara finishes the Chopin song, she asks her instructor if she can try something different and proceeds to play a melody that she created. Tegan jumps up and starts playing with her, brainstorming how the song might work on guitar.
Cut to later that day, Sara is playing guitar while Tegan sings an original song. After they finish practicing, Tegan tells Sara that she has to meet up with Maya. Sara seems saddened by this and Tegan invites her along.
Sara and Tegan walk into the record store and Maya is unenthusiastic to see Sara. Tegan says that her and Maya have work to do and Sara walks around the record store alone.
Sara, Tegan, and Maya are walking home when Phoebe pops out of a shop and greets the group. Tegan and Maya walk ahead while Sara stays behind and has a tense conversation with Phoebe. Sara invites Phoebe to hang out ‘as friends’ the following weekend, but Phoebe says that her mom is still on high alert. Sara suggests that her mom talk to Phoebe’s mom and Phoebe agrees.
Fast forward, Sara tells Simone that Phoebe’s mom caught the two of them cuddling, assuring her that nothing happened. She says that it’s okay if they were doing something, but Sara insists that it was platonic. Simone—like many well-meaning, liberal moms—tells Sara that when she was in college, she kissed a girl once. Sara reiterates that she wasn’t doing anything with Phoebe and asks her mom to call Phoebe’s mom. Simone agrees.
Sara and Tegan are recording one of their songs on a cassette when Phoebe calls and tells Sara that her mom said she could sleep over on Saturday.
When Phoebe comes over that weekend, she notices the guitar and insists Sara and Tegan play a song for her. The twins play their song “Plunk” and Phoebe is blown away by the performance. When Tegan runs off to talk to Maya on the phone, Sara asks Phoebe if they can be more than friends again. Phoebe says that she likes boys but she likes Sara too, and Sara responds that she only likes Phoebe. Phoebe kisses Sara and the screen cuts to black.
The next day at school, Sara tells Natalie, Ali, Lily, and Maya that her and Tegan started writing songs and want to share their music with the group. Sara plays their song “I’m Alive” for the group. Lily asks if that’s actually them and Ali calls Sara a musical genius. Maya suddenly walks off and Tegan follows her.
Halfway through the episode, the show switches from Sara’s perspective to Maya’s perspective.
Maya and Tegan are hanging out in front of a convenience store when an older man hands Maya alcohol he had bought for her. Maya lies, saying they forgot their ID’s. He sees right through the lie and invites them to the bar he works at, saying they serve a lot of people “who forget their ID’s.”
Maya and Tegan sit by the river, taking turns drinking. Tegan teases Maya for never having listened to Bruce Springsteen and they make plans to go to the record store. Maya tells Tegan that there’s a lot of shitty things in her life but when she is with Tegan, she forgets it all.
Maya is already at the record store when Tegan and Sara arrive. Tegan starts giving Maya a lesson on Bruce Springsteen, picking out CD’s that she might like while Maya sneaks glances at her.
After leaving the record store, Tegan is teasing Maya for her CD choice when Phoebe appears on the sidewalk. Maya and Tegan walk ahead and Maya asks if Tegan wants to come over and be there the first time she hears Bruce Springsteen. Tegan tells her she promised to do something with Sara already and when Maya asks what the something is, Tegan says it’s nothing interesting.
Later that day Maya is sitting in her room listening to Bruce Springsteen while her parents fight. She leaves the house, finds a pay phone, and calls Tegan, asking if she wants to meet up somewhere. Tegan asks if she can call Maya back and hangs up.
The next day Maya remarks to Tegan that she never called her back the night before. Tegan tells her that they were busy and “some stuff” took longer than they expected, blaming Sara.
During lunch Maya sits alone and Tegan asks if she wants to sit with the group. Maya says that she’s not feeling the group thing today, adding that they haven’t been spending a lot of alone time together. Tegan asks if they can hang out later and tells Maya to meet her in the parking lot after school.
After school, Maya joins Tegan, Sara, Natalie, Ali, and Lily in the parking lot. Sara announces that her and Tegan have been writing songs together and want to share their music with the group. After the music starts playing, Maya storms away from the group and Tegan follows her, asking where she’s going and if she liked the song. Maya tells Tegan it sucks to find out that she’s been lying and Tegan tells her she was just embarrassed. Maya accuses Tegan of using her as a filler friend when Sara and her aren’t getting along, and walks off.
Later that evening Maya goes to the bar that the older man outside the convenience store works at. He supplies her with alcohol and takes advantage of her.
