"A Supergirl Arises From The Abyss" by tooshoes
Review by Edward J. Cunningham
http://www.thevalkyrie.com/stories/supergirl/sgarise.txt

Many of the Supergirl stories in this gallery seem to either be straight
adventure stories or sexual fantasies. This story by tooshoes is a
little different. It's about the culture shock Kara faces as she enrolls
at Metropolis University as "Linda Lee." (I should issue a disclaimer: I
am more familiar with the newer Matrix/Danvers Supergirl than the
traditionalKara/Lee. I do not believe this will affect my judgement.)
Kara isn't Supergirl yet, and doesn't revel in her new powers--she still
feels tremendous guilt over surviving the destruction of Argo City. 
Indeed, even if Kara's command of English were perfect, and she fitted
in perfectly with the students at Met U., her powers at this point are
more of a hindrence than an asset. Voices flood her brain since she
cannot "turn off" her superhearing. Closing her eyelids does not stop
her x-ray vision. After failing to reach her cousin Clark Kent at work,
Kara crushes the receiver in her hands. Fortunately, a Chinese exchange
student from Thailand named Ge Hun Si befriends Kara and a romance
quickly blossoms. The story ends optimistically.

I must commend tooshoe's use of characterization. He (or she) isn't
interested in what it feels like to bench press a Subaru or fly over the
Empire State building. Instead,
tooshoes emphasizes the loneliness and isolation Kara feels on this
strange, new world. At this stage, Kara's powers only get in the way of
her trying to make contact with other people. Anyone who can remember
adjusting to high school or college can easily place themselves in
Kara's shoes, and the reader quickly roots for Kara to make friends.
Fortunately, the story isn't all gloom and doom--tooshoes leavens the
story with a good deal of humor. I also felt that the love scene between
Kara and Si was very sensitively written. To conclude, this is a very
good story that relies on more on character than on  plot. If you're
looking for major battles, you won't find them here, but I give this
story a 5 out of 5.