“At this point, I think that some people intentionally misunderstand.”

A TikTok where he posted the official crowning was even removed after being reported by so many critics.

“I think a lot of people were coming to report it just because they were really upset,” says Zachary. “I am definitely so much tougher of a person because of that experience, because I did get death threats [sent] to my house.”

Zachary also expressed his continued pride at having won the title and become the first ever male homecoming queen in the state of Missouri,

“I definitely thought that it was going to be one of the other guys at my school because he was just so popular,” he told PEOPLE. “It was really nice. I was excited about it.”