As a member of the Academic Decathlon team with Daric, Virgil and Han, the team practices at Daric's house with the practices devolving into drinking parties. After Daric mistakenly thinks he is going on a date with Stephanie, the group gets intoxicated and arrives at a party, where they are accosted by a football player who mocks them. A fight results in Daric pulling out a gun, stopping the fight. At school the following Monday, news of the fight spreads around school and the group's notoriety increases. They gradually expand into more dangerous scams, such as the theft of computer parts from the school and eventually selling drugs. They become users themselves, with Ben developing a heavy cocaine habit. Ben feels increasingly conflicted as he feels stifled by the expectations that others have of him. On his birthday, he wakes up with a nosebleed as a result of his cocaine use, which scares him into changing his life. He tells the group that he wants to quit. Daric agrees with him, adding that their operation has become a full-time job. Daric presents a gun from the three of them to Ben for his birthday.