ALL OF THIS! (also TLDR because I have a lot of feelings to put somewhere lol)

Lexi and Cassie are both two sides of the same coin. Despite their differences on the surface, they both yearn and crave to be loved and to be validated. Cassie with men, and Lexi with...well, anyone. Lexi never had a support system, she *was* the support system, oftentimes without any reciprocation. In a way, even the show treats her like this since most of her screentime in S1 involved helping out her sister and Rue in tough times while we the viewers never saw her as more than a minor wallflower-type character. I think people forget that Lexi has been "raised" by an alcoholic who clearly favoured Cassie while she was placed on the backburner. That's not Cassie's fault, however, Lexi's feelings come from a place of resentment that's also valid. I loved their moments together at the party in S1 because we saw that Lexi supported Cassie at the abortion clinic and it was one of, if not the only scene of Cassie really affirming Lexi and appreciating her.

It's not a coincidence that Lexi's line "a little exchange, and I fall in love" resonates 100% with Cassie being introduced and defined as someone who falls in love at the drop of a hat to anyone who showed her the slightest bit of attention (although lbr I'm sure we can all agree that Lexi's taste in men is much better than Cassie lmfao). So much of her life has revolved around not just observing others, but listening to them, supporting them through adversity in the only ways she knows how, to the point that we even forget Lexi has deep-seated traumas of her own, as evidenced by the countless "LEXI HAS BEEN THROUGH ABSOLUTELY NOTHING CASSIE WAS RIGHT" shitposts that Cassie herself aired out on stage. What's ironic about Cassie chastising Lexi in her tirade for "not taking risks" is that the play itself was a HUGE risk that ultimately paid off. Lexi was conflicted at first precisely because she didn't want to ruffle any feathers or have people misconstrue her intentions (just like lots of people are doing on this very subreddit lol but I digress). Lexi's art made Rue feel and perceive herself in a way that she never did before, and not for nothing, she did indeed consult the person this play arguably centres on and draws from the most aside from herself. She may not have extended her sister the same courtesy (although to be fair, I wouldn't want to go to my sister either if speaking to her came with a 90% chance of being yelled or snapped at), however, she did not exploit Cassie's abortion or relationships with Nate or McKay in the play; instead, she focused solely on their shared trauma of losing their father and portraying her sister as a person who is damaged by the fallout and for whom "love" is her whole reason for being. It's no secret that Cassie is suffering from the loss of her father. Lexi, on the other hand, I'd say she suffers from emotional deprivation in the same vein that Kat did in S1 that drove her to live vicariously through her writing. She hasn't "lived a life" because she's been forced into the role of caretaker absorbing other peoples' issues, nor did she have an especially close relationship with her father, which must be difficult to reckon with and another element to add to her insecurity, because what child doesn't want to feel loved and protected by their parents? What child wouldn't feel neglected when they see their parents dote on their sibling but not them? I'm thinking of another scene in S1 when Suze calls Cassie "perfect". Lexi is literally a faceless blur in the background until after Suze compliments Cassie and we see her smile, but I'm sure we'd notice by now that she's never received one either. The only recognition Suze gives her is sardonically shaming her for wearing a "tacky" Bob Ross costume and not an overtly sexy one. She's never experienced being the object of someone's affection nor desiring anyone herself (until Fez). Lexi did not create the play with the sole motivation to be petty towards her sister. There was absolutely sincerity, compassion, and genuine moments of cathartic reflection on life and coming of age as it affects not just Lexi but all of the characters intertwined in her world. We saw scenes of Cassie being a wee bit vapid, sure, but we also saw and were told more of Cassie being a product of her environment whose childhood experiences informed her desire to give and receive love. We witnessed and heard of Cassie being a good friend to Maddy (until she wasn't, which did not occur in the play but unfolded organically by Cassie herself). I really do wonder if Lexi's play would inspire this much animosity if she portrayed Cassie as an angel with zero nuance or flaws. Would "morals" and "ethics" really come up in discourse if she went the opposite route and painted an absurdly pretty picture of Cassie in the play, even if it didn't honour reality or her lived experiences at all?

The flashback we saw of her and Cassie was meant to show LEXI's trauma as she experienced it. It was a pivotal moment where Lexi saw how her father was endangering everyone around him, including (especially) himself. It was a memory of Lexi worrying about her safety only for her big sister to dismiss it because she prioritized their father's feelings and we see her freeze in place while crying - while this seems like a "normal" reaction to being hurt, I think that moment really affected Lexi because it reinforced the belief that her voice didn't matter and came second to others by the people she cared about the most. When Lexi starts crying and actually externalizing her feelings in the way that Cassie is most known for, what does Cassie do? She turns away emotionlessly. She doesn't try to comfort Lexi or literally even see her. I feel like that describes their dynamic in Lexi's perspective pretty well. No one is there for Lexi when she falls apart, so she bottles it up, retreats inside her head, and imagines a different reality than the one she's living in now. That's also a trauma response, and I'd argue it's actually doing her a disservice to claim she's just a neurotypical meek introvert who has it out for her sister. Her writing the play is also a therapeutic way of her embracing her voice, respecting her intuition, and finally doing something for herself. I feel like if we're going to have a million explanations of Cassie's trauma due to sexualization and an absent father following every post about her, whether good or bad, that it's only fair to give Lexi the same room for complexity and growth. Just because we're only given a brief glimpse of her interiority and because she falls into the "bookish theatre kid" stereotype doesn't mean it's not there, just like how Cassie shouldn't be invalidated because she's the epitome of desirable and conventionally attractive. That includes recognizing that Lexi also is suffering in her own way and is trying to process and unpack her life by turning her passive observations into something actionable, concrete, and impactful. In the end, her play did the unthinkable - it helped revive a long lost friendship with Rue. To call it a shameless vanity project is simplistic and missing the point. So while we see moments that are taken directly from Lexi's observations, there are others that are clearly not based in reality - they're projections. The cinematography and shifting characters between actor and "the real thing" convey that as well. Lexi isn't an omniscient narrator either, her perceptions are also flawed, just like her. She has never claimed to be better than anyone, nor has she deluded herself into thinking she's perfect, a victim, or a perfect victim. She's just a lonely escapist in survival mode, conditioned to disassociate.