The first week at Gotham University progressively got better. Brynn managed to arrive to the rest of her classes on time and befriended a few new students. Her other professors were decent in her opinion, though Mapps still had it out for her.

On Thursday, Professor Mapps gave them a quiz over the reading they had been assigned the night before. The words on the paper blurred together as Brynn stared at them. There were just a few minutes left and she still had half a page left. Nervously, she chewed on the cap of her pen, trying to decide between letters B and C.

What are the four main ideas of Psychology? The next question read. She tried to list them off in her head but could only remember the first three. She drummed her fingers on the desk, trying to pull the last reason from her memory.

"Time's up," Professor Mapps said suddenly. Students dropped their pens and stretched their arms over their heads, loosening their muscles. Brynn attempted to answer the question, scribbling furiously. Mapps walked over and snatched the paper from her. The movement caused her pen to draw a thick black line across the paper.

"Time's up, Miss Kiley," Mapps said gruffly. He examined her paper and frowned. "Did you read the assigned pages last night?"

Brynn's cheeks flared up in embarrassment. Great, now he thought she was an idiot. "I did. I highlighted things I thought would be important and even reread the section. I guess I just don't understand it that well."

Mapps clucked his tongue. "I suggest you try a different method of studying. I can guarantee you it will be difficult to pass the class with test scores like these."

Brynn's jaw dropped slightly at his remark. What else was she supposed to do? Her method of studying had allowed her to get A's and B's in high school, so why should it be any different in college?

After Mapps had collected all the quizzes, he dismissed the class. Within no time, the room emptied out, leaving Brynn with Professor Mapps.

"Professor Mapps," Brynn said, making her way over to his desk.

"Yes?" he asked, not looking up from the quizzes. Already he had managed to fill a page with red ink.

"Is there any way I could get extra help? Failing isn't exactly on my list of things to do."

Mapps put his pen down. "I'm afraid my schedule is too busy and I would not be able to review the material with you. However, I would suggest finding a tutor."

"Could you recommend one to me?"

"I'll let you know tomorrow. In the meantime, I suggest going over the notes we've taken in class."

Brynn nodded. "Thanks, Professor Mapps."

The man went back to grading his papers. "No problem."

She left the room, her legs feeling like lead. To be honest, she had no idea how she was going to pass Psychology. The material was confusing and there was just so much to remember. Brynn desperately needed to find a good tutor or she would probably be forced to drop the class.

Now that she thought about, Brynn wasn't entirely sure why she was taking the course. She had no interest in going into the medical field, despite her father's pleas. Her father was a successful doctor at the city hospital and had managed to convince Cadence and Conrad to go into the medical field. With his youngest daughter, he was having no such luck.

Her next class did not start for another half hour, so Brynn decided to head for the library. She might as well go over her notes and try to understand what they were learning. She made her way through the campus, her heavy backpack causing her back to ache. Surprisingly, the campus was quite empty at the moment and Brynn did not have to fight her way through crowds to get to her destination. After a short walk, she pushed open the doors to the library and was greeted by the musky smell of textbooks.

Other students occupied the library, some copying sections out of there textbooks, others typing on their laptops. Brynn scanned the room, trying to find a seat. In the back corner, she recognized the young boy who sat next to her in Psychology class. His nose was buried in their thick Psychology textbook. Brynn walked over to where he was seated. Maybe he would be nice enough to explain what they were learning.

Brynn startled him when she dropped her heavy book on the table. He looked up at her with annoyance, clearly unhappy that she had disturbed him. Brynn smiled apologetically as she sat down in the chair across from him.

"Hi," she said sweetly, "I'm Brynn. We sit next to each other in Psychology."

The boy did not reply. Instead, he continued to stare at her, his shockingly blue eyes studying her face.

"I was just wondering if you wouldn't mind going over the reading assignment from last night. You seem to know what you're doing and I could use the extra help," Brynn explained. She made sure to bat her lashes while she spoke to him, hoping the seething look would leave his face. She had no such luck.

The boy shut his text book and folded his hands on top of it. He smirked at her as he began to speak. "I know your type. You're a pretty girl, a C average student, I'm assuming. I was watching you take the quiz in Mapps today, saw how you struggled and barely knew the material. Now you're beginning to realize just how overwhelming the work load truly is. So what is your solution? Become all buddy-buddy with a seemingly 'loser-type' like me. You'll be polite, perhaps even flirt a little. You'll try to convince me that I am something 'special' and lead me on. And as soon as you have your A, you will just throw me to the curb. Don't try to deny it. I've witnessed it hundreds of times with fellow classmates and yet have never fallen victim to your type's tricks. So no, I'm not interested."

Brynn sat back, dumbfounded by his harsh words. What was that all about? "Stereotypical much?"

"No," he replied. "Just ahead of the game."

With that, he stood up and strutted off. Brynn watched him leave, wanting nothing more than to follow him and start an argument. The kid was a complete asshole. What made the matter worse was that he looked to be about fifteen. Brynn had just been told off by a freaking kid.

Brynn huffed and stuffed her things back into her bag. She was too angered by his words to even try to focus on her notes. Brynn left the library, praying that she would never have to deal with him again.

. . .

The rest of her classes dragged on that day. After the incident in the library, Brynn had been left in a sour mood, snapping at anyone who tried to speak to her. The scene replayed in her mind again and again. The image of the boy's smirking face haunted her. Every time she thought about him, Brynn angrily tugged at a piece of her hair.

Classes finally ended and Brynn wanted nothing more than a smoothie from the campus's cafeteria and to be left alone. Outside she was greeted by sunshine and warm weather. How unfitting for her mood.

Luckily the cafeteria was not that crowded. Brynn purchased a mango smoothie and took a long sip. Instantly, she felt better and her mood began to lighten up.

As she took long sips of the smoothie, an arm wrapped around her shoulders. Brynn nearly choked at the sudden touch and wheeled around. Standing before her was Dominic Langston, a tall blonde boy whom she had met while touring Gotham U.

Brynn jokingly punched his shoulder. "Hands off, creep."

Her friend smirked at her, his pale green eyes mischievous. "That's no way to greet a friend."

"Yeah, well most people don't enjoy being groped by their friends either."

Dominic smiled like a Cheshire cat. He leaned back against a table and crossed his arms over his chest. "Where have you been all week, Brynnigans? I've been looking everywhere for you."

"Why does everyone insist on calling me that?" Brynn asked. "And I've been busy lately. Let's just say Psychology is eating me alive."

Dominic gave her a pained look. "Ew, Psychology? I bet that's a blast."

"Far from it. You have no idea how badly I want to drop it. And to make matters worse, I'm stuck next to some bratty know-it-all. I asked him for help today and he went off on me, saying he knew my 'type' and that I was just going to use him. Can you believe that?"

Dominic chuckled softly and wrapped her up in a hug. Brynn hadn't realized how badly she had missed her old friend. Dominic always managed to put her in a good mood with his jokes and easy-going attitude. He was such a carefree, happy person and seemed to put those around him in a good mood.

He ended the hug and looked her in the eye. "Don't let some punk get to you. If he's giving you a hard time, let me know. I'll have to inform him that I'm the only one allowed to give you a hard time."

Brynn rolled her eyes. "Thanks, Dom."

He ruffled her hair despite her protests. "Any time, Squirt. And don't make plans for this weekend. I'm getting a group together Saturday night for a little game of beer pong and it's going to be pretty awesome if I may say so."

Brynn laughed. "We'll see. I'll talk to you later, Dom."

"See you around, Kid."

. . .

On Friday morning, Brynn walked into Psychology 101, still half asleep. She dropped her books on the table and scowled when she saw the boy. He paid no attention to her, caught up in his notes.

Before Brynn could sit down, Professor Mapps called her over to his desk. When she reached him he handed her a small sticky note.

"What's this?" Brynn asked in confusion.

"The name and number of your new tutor," Mapps replied.

Brynn looked down at the tiny green piece of paper. Jonathan Crane. 555-8728. The name sounded familiar but she couldn't put a face to it. Brynn looked back at Professor Mapps.

"Who is he?"

Professor Mapps pointed behind her. She turned and realized his finger was pointing in the direction of the brat who sat next to her.

Oh God, no.

Brynn dropped her voice so only Professor Mapps could hear her. "Him?"

"He had the highest score on the quiz yesterday and actively participates in class. Mr. Crane understands the material and willingly agreed to help you," the professor explained.

"Professor Mapps, you don't understand. I can't work with him. There's no way."

"And why would that be?"

"The kid hates me!" Brynn exclaimed.

Professor Mapps sat back in his chair and frowned at Brynn. "Well, I suggest you two work out your differences. You wouldn't want to fail the course, would you?"

Brynn huffed and walked back to her seat. She jabbed the boy, Jonathan, in the shoulder with her index finger, causing him to look up in surprise.

"You're tutoring me?" Brynn asked dully.

"Against my will, yes," Jonathan replied, adjusting his glasses.

Brynn let out a bitter laugh. "What is your problem? I've never done anything to offend you and was nice to you yesterday."

Jonathan remained calm as he spoke to her, his light blue eyes piercing into her skull. "I guess you could say I am not exactly fond of people like you."

"Then why are you tutoring me if you think I'm such a bad person?" she snapped.

Jonathan shrugged. "My reasons are of no concern to you. I'm free tomorrow morning at ten if you wish to review the notes. Otherwise, good luck finding a new tutor."

Brynn scowled at him. Jonathan was really starting to anger her with his stereotypical remarks. He did not know her, so who was he to judge?

Professor Mapps started his lecture before Brynn could say anything else to Jonathan. She tried her best to focus on what Mapps was saying, but found herself to be distracted by her anger. Out of the corner of her eye she watched Jonathan scribbling notes into his notebook. He put his pen down and looked up, causing Brynn to quickly look away.

Something about him made her feel slightly uncomfortable. She wasn't sure why, but she felt as though there was something much more sinister hiding behind the frames of his glasses, studying Brynn's every move. The thought caused her to shudder.

Brynn blocked Jonathan out of her mind. She could only hope that after tomorrow the material would make sense to her and she would never have to speak to him again.

. . .

A/N: I hope everyone enjoyed Chapter 2! I'd like to give a shout out to ShatteredMirrorReflection, corbsxx, and Solstice White for reviewing! Feel free to leave any advice in your reviews, they help out a lot. Chapter 3 will be up shortly.