Page 8 of Brutal King

But Layla didn’t falter. She walked on; her head held high.

“You’ll regret the day you stepped foot on this campus,” Axel shouted. “I’ll teach you where you belong... in some small-town community college, that’s where.”

Still, she walked on without missing a beat.

“I’ll make your life a living hell!” he went on.

We walked out and as the door closed behind us, we could still hear him shouting.

“Are you okay, Layla?” I said after a moment.

“I can’t believe I did that,” she muttered. “I’ve never hit anyone in my life. I don’t know what got into me.”

“Well, Axel did give you plenty of reasons to get upset. I don’t know what got into him.”

Layla stopped walking and looked down at her clothes and suitcase, then she looked at me. “Do I really look that bad?”

“Of course not,” I said.

“But I know we weren’t late,” she said. “Oh, maybe a minute or two, but... He was so... so mean and cruel and... He called me the worst things ever, and in front of so many people.”

“Don’t worry,” I said. “I’m sure everyone takes your side. He was clearly out of line talking to you that way.”

Again, she looked at her attire then at me. “That’s Chanel, isn’t it?”

“Well...”

“I may be a hick, but I know nice clothes when I see it.”

“Layla, that has nothing to do with...”

“Your outfit alone probably cost more than everything I have in this ratty old suitcase and then some.”

I bit my lip and looked at her. “Look, none of that is important. What counts is that we’re here, we’re at the must exclusive culinary school in the world and we’re going to show them what we’re made of. If you’re here, Layla, it’s obviously because you have talent.”

“Nice pep talk, Kat,” she said with a hint of a smile.

“Come on. You know I’m right.”

“Yeah... well...”She resumed walking.

As we walked on, I thought of Axel and his unexpected attitude. He’d always been difficult but this...

And how did I look in this scenario? I tried to brush off the entire incident, but it gnawed at me.

I’d always been a good student. Not only were my grades always exceptional, but I’d always been the nice girl in class. I was the model student that teachers praise. And now, my first day at the academy and I’d been singled out with my new friend... and for what? Tardiness?

It was such a load of bull.

I hope you have a good explanation for this Axel King.

Chapter 3

Our dorm house was huge; at least a few hundreds by a hundred feet of stone walls that rose up three stories and topped with decorative trim. We entered through the main door and were instantly wowed.

The Gothic central hall at the core of the building was magnificent to say the least. The ceiling, three stories up, had three large skylights, all in pale yellow and blue stained glass. The cantilevered stone staircase, ornate ceiling, arched windows, and marbled mezzanine left us both in awe.

“I’ve seen museums that are less impressive than this,” Layla said.

---