Bow Down To Your King

Chapter 7

JULIA POV

Zeke was part, if not the sole reason why my name was on that fucking list.

Who was going to argue with the king?

For all I knew, the "game officials" could just consist of Zeke and his brainless, giggling lackeys.

So, the next day after the list was released, on my way to American Lit, I was thinking of all the ways I could make his life a living hell like he just made mine.

Unfortunately, I came up with nothing of substance. At least, nothing that wouldn't immediately blow up in my face.

Shredding all his clothes would quickly become my problem, and probably just help him win.

Dropping a bucket of ice water on him?

That would basically turn into a wet T-shirt contest. No, thanks.

Plus, I was trying to stay away from the truly violent things, to keep myself off of my father's shit list.

That's it, I thought, maybe I'll call his dad and tell him what Zeke is up to.

Was that too cruel?

If someone called my father and snitched, I'd lose my shit. But that was what landed me at St. Anne's in the first place.

No, I had to figure this out on my own.

I slid into my seat, smirking as Zeke walked in but still avoiding eye contact. I had to stay out of trouble but that didn't mean I had to make life easy for him.

Maybe I could just mildly inconvenience him all semester.

He stopped in front of me with his hands in his pockets. Did he really think I would be intimidated by him?

The longer he stood there, the angrier I got. I was in his "seat", so what?

It didn't compare to him putting a target on my back for the hell of it.

I hated him. I hated the way he walked into the room like he owned the place, winked at Professor Anderson, and high-fived the front row on his way to me.

It made me sick.

The bell rang and eventually, he walked away. Thank god.

After that, I pretended to pay attention to Professor Anderson's announcements.

We had an exam coming up in a few weeks, don't forget about the paper due on Friday, except for Zeke because he's the king and rules don't apply to him.

She didn't say that but I read between the lines.

When I glanced to the second row, his feet were kicked up on the chair in front of him. The guy who used to sit there moved at Zeke's request within seconds.

Clearly, Zeke had become accustomed to being treated like royalty. His class participation could be summarized in a few, snarky quips. All of which wasn't as funny as he thought they were. I bit my tongue and scribbled notes in my binder, dreaming of my freedom beyond St. Anne's walls.

***

The next hour and a half were unbearable, mostly because I could feel Zeke watching me, planning his path into my panties.

Which would fail even if I wore them.

I gathered my things as soon as we were dismissed, hoping to disappear down the hall before my temper could get the best of me or he could catch up.

I couldn't avoid him forever, I knew that. But what could I do to prevent him from ruining my chances of getting the hell out of St. Anne's?

If my dad heard that I was even remotely involved in the kind of unsavory behavior that "embarrassed" him in the first place, I'd be at a military college before my brother could slip me a fake passport.

While I was busy pushing that nightmare out of my head. , Zeke rushed to my side.

"Hey," he said, matching my steps.

I glanced at him, barely stopping to give him the 'fuck you' once over before continuing to walk out the door.

Unfortunately, he followed me.

"You know," he said, "I'm starting to think you don't like me."

Shocker.

"I don't." The words were sharp, pointed.

"Why not?" he asked as if it wasn't obvious.

"Let's start with the fact that you put me on that stupid point guide." I stomped ahead, hoping he wouldn't bother to follow me. He did.

Zeke rubbed the back of his neck, "You know about that?"

Am I not supposed to know about that?

"Well, it usually takes a while for word to get around."

I scoffed.

Disgusting.

I kept walking; he caught up.

"It's a compliment," he claimed.

Rage filled my vision, "Being a part of your sick little game?"

"After only being here for a week, yeah."

Oh, thank you, thank you, your highness, for putting me on your hit list after being on campus for less than a fortnight.

"I'm the top prize. I had three complete strangers come up to me on my way to class today offering to show me around," I scoffed as if we didn't all know what that meant.

He didn't flinch.

But he knew, he had to have known.

"Just leave me out of it, okay? We'll call it even." Even though we were the farthest thing from even. I couldn't afford to get sucked into his madness.

Before I could storm off, Zeke stepped in front of me.

Then he stared at me, his eyes fixated on mine, "I don't think I can do that, Julia."

"Why not?" I asked, already seething.

Zeke placed his hand over his heart, "Because," he said, "I think I'm falling in love with you."

I watched his fake-serious expression contort into a smile.

I groaned, "Get over yourself."

"I'll get over myself when you get under me," he stepped forward, just enough for the smell of his cologne to wash over me.

My eyes widened, "Keep dreaming."

"I do," he said, in a fake wistful tone, "every night."

I tightened my grip on my binder, "Gross."

"One day you'll love me back."

"Yeah, well, your dick better be fucking massive to make up for your rotten personality," I spat.

Zeke frowned, "Are you saying my worth is tied to my dick size? That's kind of fucked up, don't you think?" My face fell, just for a moment, and he smirked.

I growled and turned away before my day could get any worse. Halfway to my dorm, I ran into Katie.

"Are you okay?" she asked, struggling to keep up with me.

"He's going down," I said, not caring who heard me, "And I know exactly how I'm going to do it."