The rain pelted relentlessly off the top of Violet's head. It was a terrible day to have to walk home. The water puddled up in huge pools along the poorly-kept neighborhood sidewalks, soaking her jeans each time she was forced to step in one. She found herself staring wistfully at the cars going by. Hoping impossibly that she would recognize someone, or be recognized, and offered a lift back to her crummy, off-campus apartment.

She'd missed the bus by five minutes. Four minutes and thirty-three seconds, if she was being exact, and she knew exactly where those four minutes had gone. But if she hadn't caught Professor Wilkins as he left his office, she would never have secured the extension on her criminology paper. She needed that extension. She needed these credits to move forward with her degree. Criminal Justice had seemed like a sure thing when she was signing up last May, but now she wasn't so sure. It was only October and she was already drowning in papers, required reading, and syllabuses as long as her arm, filled with names and concepts she'd never heard before.

Liking detective stories did not prepare her for college.