Hey guys! This is my first fanfic EVER! Please read and review :)

Gotham Academy was considered one of the best high schools in the nation. Known for churning out future leaders, the school had a rigorous curriculum, endless facilities, and an overall reputation that placed it in the Ivy League of high schools. Students who passed through its doors had an automatic advantage in the battle for college acceptances, and some of the most successful people in the country had attended the school in their youth. Gotham Academy was unmatched in the quality of its education. Unfortunately, it was also unmatched in its cost. Artemis Crock experienced this first-hand after she enrolled at Gotham Academy. Even with her Wayne scholarship, which paid the whole of her tuition and the cost of her textbooks, she was not immune to the ridiculous expenses of the school.

The first instance of this was when she bought her first school uniform. The students of Gotham Academy were required to buy their uniforms, accessories included, from the school store. Artemis had stared dozens of deranged criminals in the eye without a twitch, but found herself feeling a new and unique sense of horror while looking at the prices on the unflattering school apparel. She ended up spending the whole of her savings on the uniform (the $30 knee socks had made both her soul and wallet hurt), and hoped that it would be the worst of her costs. Her hopes were crushed during the second week of school in her last period History class. She had taken her assigned seat and watched as the teacher walked in carrying a stack of papers. While passing them around, the teacher informed the class of an overnight class trip to a battleground from the Revolutionary War. Artemis glanced down at the permission slip that was handed to her and gasped. Unfortunately, this caused her to choke on a bit of her own saliva and sent her into a violent coughing fit. When her coughs had subsided (with some helpful back patting from a freshman named Dick Grayson who sat next to her), and the horrified stares of her classmates had dispersed, her teacher continued and told them that this was a mandatory trip and they would be tested on what they would learn. Artemis felt her eye twitching as she looked down at the permission slip again, to the number with too many zeros and came to a realization: she needed a job.

She went home that day and began her research. She first looked up online job listings and found nothing suitable for her. Everything seemed to require prior job experience and Artemis had none, seeing as she couldn't exactly put down her work with the team on a resume. She found one job that only required talent in archery, but just the thought of Batman's reaction if she displayed her archery and endangered her secret identity and, in extension, the team successfully swayed her from that path. After spending another hour looking for opportunities online, and learning that the minimum wage in Gotham was a mere $7.25, she found nothing and decided to continue her job search outside. She went to the one place she knew most people her age went to find jobs: the mall. She targeted her favorite stores first, lured by the prospect of employee discounts, and found that none of them were hiring. She then made her way down to the food court to meet the same fate. Artemis almost gave up then, but mental images of socks and too many zeros gave her the determination to keep going and she made her way to every store in the mall. She was rejected time after time, going until she reached a store called "Game Heaven", with a sign in the window that said "Help Wanted". Under normal circumstances she would have skipped this store, but her looming expenses made her swallow her pride and go in. She walked through the store, breathing in the smell of nerds while looking for the manager. She soon spotted him, in a uniform that was slightly different than the other employees, and went over to him. She noticed that he seemed to be quite young, appearing to be no older than nineteen. He was very tall, but too skinny for it to be attractive, with a freakishly large Adam's apple and big frizzy hair that kind of made him look like a Q-tip. Artemis walked up behind him, and pausing slightly, said "Excuse me."

He turned to her, his nametag proving that he was indeed the manager and proclaiming his name to be "Otak U.". He stared at her in a puzzled manner for a moment and swallowed hard, causing his Adam's apple to bob up and down, before speaking. "May I help you with anything?" he asked.

"Yeah, I saw the Help Wanted sign outside." said Artemis

"So?" said Otak, his features perplexed as he stared at her as if he were trying to solve a difficult equation.

Artemis instantly became annoyed. Why was he looking at her like she was a freak? "So I want a job" she growled through gritted teeth.

"Here?" said Otak, acting as if she had just asked for a cheesecake rather than a job.

"YES!" shouted Artemis, her temper flaring up at his stupidity. "HERE! I want a job here!". She abruptly stopped her outburst, realizing that she had probably lost her chance at the job.

"Okay! You're hired!" said Otak, in an enthusiastic tone that surprised her. "It's just that hot girls like you never even come inside, much less want to work here!"

"Uh thanks" said Artemis shyly, her previous annoyance with him vanishing. He was actually kind of nice now that she understood him, and he didn't look that much like a Q-tip from up close. Maybe we can get along, thought Artemis.

"You're welcome!" he said. His pleasant smile slowly intensified to a leer as he looked at her up and down.

Or maybe not.

"You're really hot. Do you have hot friends? Do you like anime? What's your favorite game?" he said in a rushed tone. With each question, his eyes seemed to pop farther out of his head. A manic expression suddenly crossed his face and his frizzy hair seemed to crackle with electricity. "Will you go out with me? Will your hot friends go out with my friends? What's your gamertag?!" he practically yelled.

Artemis stepped back, frightened by the Q-tip's newfound insanity. "Uh, I gotta go" she blurted, walking out of the store as fast as she could. The fresh air outside of the store cleared her panic and she slowly made her way out of the mall. She decided that she could continue her job hunt tomorrow, since it was the weekend, and began to wonder where else she could find a job. As her thoughts drifted to whether or not Batman would actually be that mad if she took the archery job, she was approached by a pretty girl in a navy blue t shirt and denim shorts.

"Hello! Would you be in interested in working the floor at Abercrombie?" she asked. "We absolutely love your look! You'd be perfect for the job!"

The idea that she was being offered a job took a moment to sink in. When it did, she almost cried with joy. An actual job! She would probably just have to restock things and organize clothes, nothing that would be too difficult. It seemed perfect. "I would love to!" she said.

"Great! The interview is tomorrow in the store" said the girl, pointing behind herself to the big store labeled Abercrombie. She handed Artemis a piece of paper. "This paper has the time of the interview. Just bring it with you tomorrow and they'll tell you where to go."

"Thank you!" cried Artemis as she walked away, smiling at her luck.

Tell me you guys think and if I should continue writing! Any constructive criticism is welcome, but please be nice :) Thank you!