The past week had been killer for Des. His new roommate had a lot of energy and had been attempting to assert himself into Desmond's life. Patton would invite him to watch Disney movies or ask for his opinion on any number of topics. Even when Des said no, he was persistent. Whenever he caved and said yes, Patton did most of the talking, but he always took the time to stop and wait for Desmond's answer. He actually tried to make their conversations an actual conversation. It was strange and Des wasn't sure he liked it.

He sighed softly as he sat down in his chair, thankful for a break from the constant chatter. It wasn't that it was necessarily bad, Patton was kind and sweet. Talking with him was much more vibrant than the sarcastic quips he shared with Virgil. Still, Desmond wasn't used to it, and even worse, he wasn't sure what to do with it. Patton was showing no sign of revealing his true colors and it unnerved Desmond. People always had another agenda, so what was Patton's?

"Don't get comfortable in your seats," The professor said as soon as he walked through the door. "This class is a semester-long group project and I have already chosen your groups, you will find seats together so that you can work together throughout the semester."

Immediately, Des was weighing his options. Normally, he would just drop a course if they were requiring a semester-long group project, he worked better alone, but this class was required, and it was only offered one semester a year. Even if he took it next year there was no guarantee that he would be able to get a different teacher. It was probably better to just get this out of the way and hope that it wasn't too dreadful.

"Alright, gather your things and come down here to get your assignments. Also grab a syllabus. Today you can get acquainted with your partners, we will cover the syllabus on Wednesday, I expect you to read through it fully."

Demanding wasn't he? Des walked down to look at the sheet with the partner pairings but he was stopped by a man who stood just a few inches taller than him. Somehow his presence was intimidating despite him looking like a nerd. His tie and glasses were perfectly straight, his hair didn't have a single strand out of place. Des wanted to mess with this man. "Desmond Amura, I presume?" He was holding out a spare syllabus.

So this nerd knew who he was, great. 'Yes.' He signed, before taking the syllabus. Confusion seemed to dance in the man's eyes for a moment before recognition settled in.

"I am Logan Indego. You and I are partners and I have heard plenty about you already." Well, at least the rumors were doing their job and keeping people away from him. "I would like you to know that I will not put up with any form of cheating or any indolent behavior. You are a part of this team and I expect you to put in as much effort as I am." Desmond cocked his eyebrow up at Logan. He knew a lot of people in this major thought he was a cheater, but indolent was new. He would have to look it up later.

"I will also put in the effort to learn basic sign language so that we can communicate more efficiently. As I stated, I am willing to put in the effort to make this work but I am expecting you to do the same. I have heard that you are clever about getting your way in group situations. I will not be pushed around and I find that kind of underhanded tactics to be detrimental to your education. If you are expecting to do anything with a degree in criminal justice you have to first show that you are above reproach."

Desmond stopped listening after that. He didn't like when people took the high road. He intended on becoming a lawyer, and sometimes winning a case meant doing whatever was necessary, not whatever was right. From the bits and pieces Des could still hear, Logan seemed to believe you could do both. All of the intimidation that Logan had had, when Des first looked him over, was gone. Now he was just another classmate who liked to hear their own voice a little too much. This was the reason why he didn't do well in group projects. People were so ready to hear themselves talk, getting a word in edgewise was difficult and it made Desmond irritable. His first few group projects in highschool had been a disaster, but he learned and he adapted. He had found ways to manipulate his groups into doing what he wanted. He would do what it took to survive.

"Therefore, I believe, if you are willing to put in the effort, the two of us will be able to have the strongest project at the end of the semester." Finally, Logan was done talking. Desmond wasn't sure if it felt like it took forever for Logan to finish talking because Logan was actually talkative, or if over the week Des had gotten used to Patton's style of slowing down and waiting for his input. It was a weird thing to get used to, especially since it wasn't going to last.

Pulling out his notebook, Des began to write quickly. He had exceptional handwriting, having gotten used to needing to write quickly and legibly. 'You already know the type of person I am, so why bother giving this speech? Do you think that you can succeed in turning me into a model student?' He gave Logan a smirk as he passed over the notebook, crossing his arms and waiting.

Logan's eyes darted over the words before he looked up at Desmond, he could almost see the wheels turning in the nerd's head. "I believe, with the proper reasoning, you can come to understand why it is not beneficial for your career if you slide by in class. The mere fact that you are taking this course means you have ambition, but ambition will get you nowhere without knowledge."

Des snickered, dramatically covering his mouth as he pretended to hold back his chuckles. Pulling the notebook back, 'There are different types of knowledge, and knowing how to manipulate someone is just as important.' Des looked at the clock, tearing out the piece of paper and handing it to Logan before standing up. Thankfully, class was over, and he wouldn't have to deal with that egomaniac for a few more days.

"I thought he was never going to shut up," Virgil said, shoving his hands in his pockets. "I mean, how long can one person go on about philosophy and ethics. I mean, other than you."

Des snickered and rolled his eyes, pulling at the straps on his backpack. There were worse people he could have been paired with, but Logan was going to make this a mildly frustrating semester. He could at least try to find some humor in it for now.

AN: Thank you for your patience everyone! I'm sorry I got it out so late. I know most authors find the first part of the book to be the most fun to write, but I think the beginning is the hardest for me. There is so much I feel I need to establish before I can really get into the story and I'm worried people will get bored. All of my author friends out there, what is the hardest part of writing a story for you?