My Bully Has 100 Days to Live

Aria

Nathaniel Lee stopped beside the hallway pillar and glanced at me apologetically. “Aria, wait here for a minute, okay? I just need to use the restroom.”

I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms. “You better hurry. If you take too long, I’m leaving you here,” I warned, waving my hand impatiently for him to go.

He chuckled nervously and hurried toward the restroom while I stayed behind near the cinema lobby. Waiting around bored me almost instantly, so I wandered a few steps away until a large movie poster display caught my attention. Rows of colorful advertisements showed the films currently playing.

Curious, I stepped closer and started scanning the titles.

Almost every single one was a romance movie.

Of course. Valentine’s Day was only a few days away.

I was in the middle of reading another poster when a couple stopped behind me. Their conversation was loud enough that I couldn’t ignore it even if I tried.

“Babe, what do you want to watch?” the guy asked sweetly.

The girl giggled. “Whatever you want, babe.”

“No, you pick. Anything is fine as long as I’m with you.”

I almost gagged.

Seriously?

The cringe was unbearable. I was about to walk away when someone suddenly tapped my shoulder. I turned around and came face to face with the girl from the couple.

My eyebrow lifted automatically.

Her makeup was so thick that she looked like she had dipped her face into a cosmetics store. For a second, I wondered if she had mistaken me for a cinema employee.

“Miss?” she said politely. “You’ve been looking at the posters for a while. Is there a good movie you can recommend?”

I stared at her coldly.

“Do I look like a movie promoter to you?” I replied flatly. “If I were you, I wouldn’t watch anything. You’d just waste your money.”

I turned to leave, but she grabbed my arm before I could take a step.

“Hey! Let go of me,” I snapped.

“What’s going on here?”

The voice was calm, but it carried authority. I looked up and instantly recognized the person who spoke.

Zachary Knight.

The infamous bad boy of our school.

Everyone knew him. Everyone feared him. Zachary had a reputation for being reckless, arrogant, and cruel—especially toward students who crossed his path.

The girl beside me immediately clung to his arm.

“She’s being rude, babe,” she complained, her voice suddenly trembling as if she was about to cry. “I was just asking for a suggestion, but she started insulting me.”

I almost laughed at the sudden performance.

“Miss,” Zachary said seriously, stepping closer. “Apologize to her.”

Instead of answering, I simply looked at him.

He leaned closer, studying my face carefully. His eyes narrowed slightly.

“You look familiar,” he said slowly. “What school do you go to?”

“That’s none of your business,” I answered without interest.

His eyebrows pulled together.

“I asked you a simple question,” he said, his voice dropping into a colder tone. “Where do you study? You need to answer for what you did to my girlfriend.”

I stayed silent.

He seemed to interpret that as fear.

A smug smile appeared on his lips.

“Let me guess,” he continued. “You won’t say it because I’m right. We go to the same school.”

He crossed his arms confidently.

“You know who I am, don’t you? Then you should also know what happens to people who try to challenge me.”

I stared at him without blinking.

“So what if we attend the same school?” I said calmly. “Yes, I know you.”

A sarcastic smile slowly formed on my lips.

“You’re Zachary Knight. The one and only bad boy in our school. The famous demon who enjoys turning students’ lives into hell whenever he feels like it.”

Instead of getting angry, he actually looked amused.

“Interesting,” he murmured. “Go on. I want to hear more.”

I sighed inwardly. I had no patience for this ridiculous conversation anymore.

“Zachary Knight,” I continued bluntly. “A spoiled playboy who jumps from girl to girl. You like playing with their feelings.”

I tilted my head toward the girl beside him.

“And this one? She’s probably just another victim.”

Both of them froze.

“You hook up with them,” I added casually, “then leave them like they never mattered.”

I shrugged.

“So tell me—what number is she, Mr. Knight?”

The girl gasped in outrage.

“How dare you, bitch!” she shouted, raising her hand to slap me.

I caught her wrist before it could reach my face.

“Don’t believe me?” I asked calmly.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a familiar girl walking toward us.

A grin spread across my lips.

“Then just watch,” I said quietly. “You’ll see.”

I slowly began counting.

“Five… four… three… two…”

Confusion spread across the girl’s face.

“One.”

“Hey, sweetheart! What are you doing here?”

The voice came from behind Zachary.

He turned around immediately—and the shock on his face was priceless.

“Who’s that girl?” his so-called girlfriend demanded angrily.

I didn’t bother staying to watch the rest of the drama.

But before leaving, I stepped closer to Zachary and leaned near his ear.

“You’re mistaken, Mr. Knight,” I whispered. “Don’t mess with me.”

His jaw tightened.

“This isn’t over,” he said quietly.

I smiled.

“Oh really?” I replied. “Because I haven’t even started yet.”

“Consider that a warm-up.”

Then I walked away, leaving the chaos behind.

My phone started ringing the moment I turned the corner. I pulled it out of my pocket and answered without checking the caller ID.

“Yes?”

“Where the hell are you?” Nathaniel’s irritated voice exploded through the speaker.

I didn’t answer. Instead, I looked up and spotted him standing across the hallway.

I jogged over to him.

“Where did you disappear to?” he asked suspiciously.

“Hell,” I replied casually. “Come on, let’s go.”

Nathaniel narrowed his eyes at me.

“I don’t like that smile,” he muttered. “Something tells me you caused trouble.”

“You’re overthinking,” I said quickly. “Let’s just eat. I’m starving.”

He shook his head before ruffling my hair.

“You’re impossible.”

Despite everything, we both laughed.

The next morning at school, Nathaniel insisted on walking me toward my department building.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to walk you all the way to your classroom?” he asked again for the third time.

“Yes,” I groaned. “You’ve already asked me that five times.”

He glanced at his watch nervously.

He had an 8:00 AM class.

It was already 8:05.

“If you escort me any further, you’ll be even later,” I pointed out. “Just go.”

He sighed.

“Fine. But text me after your class.”

“I will.”

He finally ran off toward his building while I continued walking down the quiet hallway alone.

Students filled the corridors, chatting, laughing, and rushing to their classes.

Everything felt normal.

Until it wasn’t.

Without warning—

ICE-COLD WATER poured over my head.

I gasped as my entire body froze. My clothes clung to my skin instantly.

Slowly, I lifted my head.

On the second floor balcony above me stood a group of boys.

And right in the center of them—

Zachary Knight.

One of his friends held an empty bucket.

The realization hit instantly.

My blood boiled.

I ran toward the stairs without hesitation.

Students stepped aside as I stormed up to the second floor, ignoring the whispers around me.

When I finally reached them, Zachary and his friends were already walking toward my direction.

He looked incredibly pleased with himself.

I stopped directly in front of him, my fists clenched.

“Why did you do that?” I demanded.

He tilted his head innocently.

“Do what?”

My patience snapped.

“I’ll ask again,” I said sharply. “Why did you do that?”

“Oh,” he said, laughing. “You mean the cold water?”

He shrugged.

“I didn’t pour it.”

Then he smirked.

“But I did tell him to.”

I turned to the boy holding the bucket.

“You poured it on me?”

“Yeah,” he said arrogantly. “What are you going to do about it?”

I ignored him and looked back at Zachary.

Then I laughed.

Confusion flashed across his face.

“What’s funny?” he asked irritably.

“You’re pathetic,” I said.

His expression darkened.

“If you wanted revenge, why didn’t you do it yourself?” I continued calmly. “Why order someone else to do it?”

I stepped closer.

“Are you that weak?”

Silence spread across the hallway.

“So the famous Zachary Knight is actually a coward.”

Some students nearby started snickering.

Zachary shot them a glare, instantly silencing them.

“You don’t know who you’re dealing with,” he warned.

“And neither do you,” I replied.

Then—

I punched him.

Straight across the face.

Gasps echoed through the hallway.

Zachary stumbled back in shock.

“I’m not one of your victims,” I told him coldly.

“You picked the wrong person to bully.”

I leaned closer.

“You want to play games with me?”

A slow smile spread across my lips.

“Fine.”

“I’ll play.”

Then I turned around and walked away, leaving him standing there—stunned and speechless.