Chapter 46: Group

A minute later, the professor entered the room. He was very tall, towering at 6'5" (195cm), and slim, with a narrow face and blonde hair. He walked in with a large cup of coffee with "Best Teacher" written on it in bold letters."Bonjour, mes étudiants!" He greeted, "I am Professor Oliver Bacri, and I am excited to teach you microeconomics this semester!"

His accent was thick.

He raised his coffee cup and took a confident sip. He then set his coffee down and clapped his hands together. "Now, let's get started."

"Microeconomics..." he started, moving energetically around the front of the classroom. "It looks at how individuals and businesses make choices, how they use resources, and how these decisions affect prices and production."

He pointed to a student in the front row who had a steaming cup of coffee in front of her. "For example, if you decide to buy coffee instead of tea, that is microeconomics. Your choice affects the demand for coffee and tea."

"The first idea we look at in microeconomics is scarcity." he said, taking another sip of coffee to punctuate his thought. "Think of it like ziis: you have a limited amount of money or time. How do you decide to spend it?

He smiled. "Imagine a hamster running on a wheel. It can sprint all day, but it's not getting anywhere... It's all effort and no progress. We have to make smart choices with our resources, or we'll just be spinning in circles like that hamster."

Then Professor Bacri launched into a more complicated explanation. His hands moved up and down enthusiastically as he paced from one side of the room to the other.

Then he talked about how each additional unit of a good consumed brings less satisfaction than the one before it. "It's like pizza!"—"The very first slice is magnifique; the second is still good, but by the fourth or fifth, you might not want any more."

The passion was there, but he made grammatical mistakes and his rapid pace left some students confused.

A girl in the middle row raised her hand hesitantly.

Bacri paused and nodded at her.

It was hard for her to find the right words, but she asked what marginal utility meant in daily decision-making.

"It is very simply," Professor Bacri responded, waving his hand as if brushing away the confusion and then repeating the concept using simpler terms, drawing fervently on the blackboard.

As the lecture wrapped up, Professor Bacri sank into his chair, clearly fatigued. "We will be forming groups for a project," he announced wearily. "Please create groups of five pehrsons by next week. If there is anyone left, I will assign them to groups myself..."

"You can go now. I will give the topics for the projects on the next lecture."

I looked down to see Alex holding out his hand across the table. "You in?" he asked.

I glanced at his face. "Sure," I replied. "But there is no need for handholding."

Alex chuckled. "Smart. We wouldn't want anyone getting the wrong idea."

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I turned to Raheem, who was packing his stuff. "Raheem, want to join our team?"

Raheem turned rapidly to look at me. "How do you know my name?" he asked, eyebrows creased in surprise.

"I waited behind you in the library for quite a bit of time."

"I see..." he muttered, then glanced between us skeptically. "So you want me to join the two of you?" He thought for a moment, then shrugged slightly. "Let it be. But if you guys are going to slack off, I'm going to report you."

"Don't worry. I will carry you if needed."

"What about the rest of the team?" he asked.

Alex grinned. "I think we should balance out the gender ratio in our group."

"And I think you should stop talking, Alex," I said.

"Hey! That's not cool..." Alex started to protest.

"Alright, let me go get the rest of the team," I said, standing up and walking over to where Sam was seated.

He was talking with Mia.

"Sam! Do you mind joining my group for the project?"

He suddenly jumped in his seat, "Jeez, you scared me," he said, as he readjusted and looked in the general direction of where I stood. "I mean... Why not. I'd love to join your team." he said.

Mia, who has been listening, leaned forward, "Do you know him, Sam?"

Sam turned his head slightly. "Yes, he's a smart guy," he glazed me.

Mia then turned to me. "Do you have another spot on your team? Sam is the only person I really know so far, so if I could join too, that would be great."

"That's actually perfect," I told her. "We've got Raheem and Alex so far. So with you and Sam, the team would be full."

"I'm Jack, by the way." I added.

"Mia."

By this time, Alex and Raheem had walked up to us.

I looked over at them, "Alright, let's form a group. I can vouch for Raheem; he practically lives in the library. And Alex..." I glanced at Alex, raising an eyebrow. "...do you have any useful knowledge?"

Alex looked offended at my skepticism. He straightened up: "I'm really into geopolitics and monetary policy, and I study laws too."

Raheem looked genuinely surprised. "Oh, really?" he interjected.

Alex frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?" he asked defensively.

Raheem held up his hands innocently. "Nothing, man. Nothing."

Suddenly, Matt, the slightly overweight blond with the Mexican ringtone, cautiously came up to us.

"Hey, guys," Matt began, looking around at us. "Is your group full already, or are you looking for someone?"

I turned to him, hesitating slightly. "Unless someone decides to desert, we've already got five."

Matt's shoulders slumped a little. "Hmm... I see," he murmured quietly. With a disappointed nod, he turned and quietly walked out of the classroom.

'I accomplished what I had set out to do... I hope that he won't destroy someone elses life in place of Mia's.' I thought.

"Alright, there's a two-hour break before calculus. How about we go to the Dining Hall and talk?" I suggested.

Raheem's eyes lit up "That's a... good idea," he said, adjusting his bag.

We gathered our things and left the facility.

I noticed Sam speaking quietly with his bodyguard, who had been waiting patiently outside.

They exchanged a few words, and then Sam nodded before catching up with us.