P.E

CLAIRE'S POV

"I hate Zane," I muttered, clutching my bag tightly as I walked down the hallway in school. 

"I hate Zane Ravenscroft." I repeated like maybe saying it enough times would change the fact that he was my mate or somehow make him disappear.

But that was the only way I could let out the anger still boiling inside me from what he did. Or maybe I was just losing my mind after he walked in on me naked and proceeded to humiliate me in the worst way possible. 

I paused, suddenly thinking. Should I change dorms? There were three dorms for werewolves: Ember, Raven, and Howl. I could find a way to move to either of the other two and be free from his torment. But how? 

He was resident coordinator and knowing him, there was no way he would easily let me change dorms. I exhaled, and continued walking to my locker. 

"You're so easy." His words echoed in my head and I closed my eyes, forcing it to stop. But it didn't, instead getting louder with each step.

"How can he say that when he tempted me?" I snapped, only realizing I had said it a little too loud when other students turned their heads towards me in the hallway, giving me questioning looks. 

I muttered a "sorry" and just hurried to my locker.

Immediately I unlocked it, I dumped my bag inside, sighing and rubbing my forehead. I couldn't keep torturing myself because of Zane or I would lose my mind. Besides, I didn't try to seduce him so I wasn't guilty. He was. 

He had walked in on me while I was bathing. That wasn't right. He'd known I was in there but he entered anyway. He was the one who made it look like he was going to kiss me. 

"Yet he turned it around and made it look like I was the desperate one?" I asked no one in particular, slamming my locker shut. 

I did act a little desperately though, I admitted to myself and then leaned my head against the locker door. "What do I do?" I muttered. 

Straightening, I adjusted my P.E. uniform which I was wearing before glancing at others around me, noticing how theirs were big and free. Meanwhile, mine clung tightly to my body. For some reason, most of my clothes felt smaller than I remembered. Did mother really fill in my correct size, or did she make a mistake?

Still thinking, the bell suddenly rang, and everyone started moving to the field for P.E. I simply followed them, feeling a bit anxious since it was my first time. 

I had read in the handbook that P.E. contributed to our grades so we had to take it seriously. 

There were many rules like werewolves, vampires, and Faes training differently to avoid injuries or conflicts. And for each group, we would be paired in twos for a duel, and our performance would determine our score.

I sighed, praying I'd be paired with someone lenient or at least not too strong. 

When I reached the field, my eyes widened as I took in the number of students present. Carnemore had over 3,200 students, but this was the first time I was seeing them all together. 

I turned to the vampires standing under the pavilion in their dark blue uniforms, which somehow matched the paleness of their skin. Faes gathered at the far right of the field in green, while werewolves were on the left in red shorts and shirts.

"Gather around everyone!" A voice pulled me back to the present. I turned to see werewolves gathering, with Zane standing on a podium holding a clipboard. Oh no. My heart pounded. 

He couldn't be in charge of P.E. He just couldn't be.

I moved to the back of the crowd, hiding behind other students who were muttering in displeasure as I pushed through them.

"Hey, watch it!" One big girl hissed, shooting me daggers.

"What's she doing?" another girl whispered to her friend as I tried to find a good spot to hide away from Zane. 

It was bad enough that things were complicated between me and him because of the mate bond. And as if that wasn't enough, I now had to hide from him because I was ashamed of what happened between us in the bathroom. 

"I don't need to go over the rules, do I?" Zane's voice boomed, his deep voice echoing. There was a sudden chorus from everyone as they yelled out, cheering and waving. 

One thing I couldn't deny. He knew how to run Carnemore. I listened as he continued. 

"You lose today, 0 points. You win, 10 points. It's important you understand that this contributes to your grades at the end of the semester." His eyes scanned the crowd. "Now, I know you must have received your partner's name and info already, so get paired up, stand before your designated captains, and duel!"

The cheering was loud again, but my heart was pounding as I looked around. Partner's name? I didn't receive anything.

Everyone started to move at once, pushing and gearing up for the duel. I swallowed, realizing this was more serious than I thought. P.E at my old school was just a couple of exercises we did. Why was the air here so different? 

Still watching, ten captains stepped out, including Zane, and took their positions behind a drawn line. Everyone started partnering up immediately, reminding me I was still confused and yet to figure out what I was doing. 

"Who is my partner?" I whispered, wondering if it was random selection. Could I just pick anyone? 

"Claire Hunter," A deep voice called from behind me as I was still looking around. I turned and my gaze fell on a boy. For a moment, I thought he was a grown man from his size. 

He was over 6'4" tall, about 230 pounds, and very hairy like he hadn't shaved in ages. 

"You're Claire Hunter, right?" he asked, stepping closer, his feet thudding loudly.

"Yes," I gulped, eyeing him warily. "Why?"

I didn't want to think about the possibility. He could be looking for me for an entirely different reason. 

But his answer was exactly what I dreaded. 

"We got paired up," He replied. "Didn't you receive my profile yesterday?"

I stepped back involuntarily, my body freezing up. "No, I didn't."

He smiled. "I'm Evan." He said, extending his hand. It was stained with what looked like ketchup and I scrunched up my nose. "I was surprised when I got your profile. I don't usually duel girls but don't worry, I'll take it easy on you." He rambled, not minding I didn't shake his head or the mortified look on my face. 

My eyes raked his frame again, trying to be sure I didn't imagine his size. He looked the same, like he could snuff the life out of someone by just falling on them. 

I shook my head. No amount of easy could work between me and this boy. I turned and breathlessly ran to the first captain I saw.

"Excuse me," I said, trying to keep my voice calm. "How can I change my partner?"

The boy cocked an eyebrow as he looked down at me. "Why?"

"I got paired up with some Evan boy," I answered, gesturing behind me, trying not to look. "Look at him, there's no way I would survive that."

The captain looked shocked as he saw who I was pointing at. "That's strange." He said, looking like he was thinking. "Evan is usually paired with Chris because of body size." 

"Then how did I get partnered with him?" I asked desperately. "Something has to be done or I would lose my bones."

"You know what? You should speak to Zane. He's in charge of pairing." He said dismissively, pointing at Zane. 

I turned and followed his fingers to where Zane stood, the corner of my lips twitching. Even though Zane wasn't staring at me or smiling like he used to whenever I was suffering, I knew he did this. 

There was no way he didn't do this on purpose. Everytime he was in charge of something, he found a way to make me miserable. This Evan boy was my last straw because how could I possibly duel someone 3 times my size? 

"Please can you help me?" I turned back to the captain again. "Zane won't…"

"Look, talking to you is social suicide and people are watching," He snapped. "Figure your shit out and leave me alone."

I blinked, surprised at his words. Normally, it wouldn't have hurt me but the manner he spoke. 

Clenching my fist, I walked back to Evan, who looked more than happy to see me again.

I wish I felt the same way. 

"Seems it's you and me." I told him, accepting my fate because begging Zane was out of the question; I knew he wouldn't help me.

He had obviously taken his time to think of ways to torture me and came up with this brilliant plot. 

What did he hope for? That Evan would slam into me and break my ribs? Crack my skull and call it an accident? Whatever it was, I wouldn't let him win.

"Who's our captain?" I asked Evan. 

"Zane," He replied, shaking his head. Of course, it had to be him. "Quite unfortunate. He's very strict but don't worry, this will be fun." He added. 

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at him. Fun for who? 

"Next!" Zane's voice sounded and I turned. "Claire Hunter and Evan Wash."