A/N: Pretty much a week late, but here's chapter four! It's a little disjointed and all over the place, but it's here!
Stay tuned for the final chapter, plus some bonus side stories!
Addison moves in with her father, Dale Wells, chief of the Zombie Patrol, and her stepmother, Missy Mills, mayor of Seabrook. She learns that cheer captain Bucky is her cousin (on her mother's side!), and he lives with her father and stepmother, as he doesn't have parents of his own.
Her dad shows her to her bedroom, pastel pink and neatly organized, with books for toddlers and little stuffed animals lining the shelves. Like he hasn't touched it since she left. It both warms and breaks her heart, knowing how much he missed her.
"I know it's a little…childish," her dad says. "I haven't changed anything since you were three. We can get you all new stuff this weekend though! Whatever you want."
Addison nods her head, smiling at her father. "That sounds wonderful, thank you."
He's nervous and awkward, but Addison doesn't mind. She knows he's just as happy to see her as she is to see him. Humans just have a different way to express their emotions. She's catching on, though.
Addison and her dad both take a few days off from school and work respectively. Even her stepmother joins them! They spend time together, her parents telling her about their lives and her past while Addison gets accustomed to life on earth. They flip through old photo albums, Dale and Missy helping her put up pictures from when she was little around her room.
Bucky doesn't turn out to be as mean as she thought. He's intense, insanely passionate, and very dramatic, but she quickly realizes that he lived to entertain people. Including her. Everyday when he gets back from cheer practice, he shows her cool cheerleading moves in the icy backyard, they tumble on the trampoline, and he even bakes with her, a non-cheering activity!
Addison goes back to school on Thursday, just two days before the holiday break. Bucky drives her, and she hangs out with Zed, Bree, Eliza, and Bonzo all day.
She hasn't seen or heard from anyone on the mothership since she left school on Monday. Not for lack of trying, either. She sent A-Spen a message Monday evening, letting them know that she was okay and she would be spending a few days in Seabrook with her father. No response. She doesn't see any of them at school, which upsets her, but luckily her new earth friends have her back.
Bucky lets her hang around cheer practice, which means she gets the chance to befriend even more amazing people, and hang out with her best friend, Bree. And after cheer practice ends, Zed swings by and they hang out all afternoon, much to Bucky's annoyance.
After they get out of school for break, and all the sports practices end, Zed swoops into the gym and takes Addison out. As in, takes her out on a date. An official, real date.
She hasn't spent time with Zed since he brought her to her family's home, and his family brought pizza from Zombietown for her family and his. Their joint family dinner was amazing, as was the pizza (who knew all these different food items could combine in such rich and exciting flavors!). She can't wait to see what he has planned today.
They walk up to a small, white building in Zombietown, with a sign on top that reads, Coach's Hot Cocoa, part of the sign written on a temporary banner.
"Oh! More hot cocoa!" Addison exclaims excitedly. She really liked it the last time they had some, although then they got it from a cart on the beach.
Zed grins. He opens the door for her, letting her walk ahead of him. He follows her inside, moving quickly to stand at her side, even wrapping an arm around her shoulder as they walk up.
"This is extra special hot cocoa, for my extra special girlfriend." He winks and she giggles.
That's the other thing. She has a boyfriend! Officially, actually, has a boyfriend, who like-likes her just as much as she like-likes him — maybe even more! According to earth social norms, relationship labels were a huge deal. Bree explained it all to her at lunch the day before, which also explained why her dad (and Zed) were so shocked when she introduced him as such at dinner.
Zed walks them up to the counter, where a short and burly man with dark skin, a bushy beard and black curls covered in a pink, striped visor, greets them with a smile.
"Addy, this is my football coach. Coach, this is Addison," Zed introduces. Then, with a brighter, cocky smile, he adds, "my girlfriend."
Addison waves at his coach. "Hello! It's nice to meet you!"
He grins even brighter. "Nice to meet you, Addison. Zed's talked a lot about you!"
"Hey!"
Addison giggles, beaming. "I hope I live up to the 'hype,' sir," she jokes playfully, using some of the new vocabulary she learned from her new friends.
"I'm sure you will. Zed's not really one to open up to just anyone."
Zed clears his throat, abruptly ending the conversation. "Anyway…could we get two cinnamon hot cocoas and whatever pastries are freshest? Preferably something chocolatey and gooey… I wanna show Addy all the cool things here on earth."
"We do not have a lot of variety of food in space," Addison explains.
"Lucky for you, I don't only run the best froyo shop, but the best pastry bar too! I'll have those right out for you two."
Zed grins at the older man. "Thanks."
Zed hands coach a twenty dollar bill, which coach exchanges for more bills with smaller value. Her next set of questions for Zed will definitely involve how money works on earth. She's never lived on a planet where goods and services needed to be valued at a specific amount and traded for something equal to their worth. Mothership provided all their meals, their luma lens provided all the clothing they'd need for any climate or situation, and the library was stacked with educational books equipped to teach them everything they needed to know to traverse the galaxy.
Zed and Addison walk over to a white, circular table with chairs with pretty swirl designs in the backs. He pulls out her chair for her and she graciously takes the seat, then he rushes around and sits across from her.
"Usually this is a froyo shop," Zed says. "But since it's too cold for humans to enjoy froyo, it's a hot cocoa place. And bakery."
"What is froyo?" Addison asks.
"Frozen yogurt. It's delicious. I'll bring you back once Coach brings back the froyo."
"That is wonderful! My people created this interesting treat. It is a digestible bacterial fermentation of lactose at sub-zero stasis. I think you might enjoy it!"
Zed grins, giggling a little. "That sounds a bit like froyo."
"Really?"
Zed nods.
"That is even more wonderful! We have something in common!"
Zed smiles brighter. "It is pretty wonderful. Although I'm a big fan of Seabrook froyo, so you'll have to convince me big time."
Addison giggles. "Challenge accepted," she teases.
They share smiles. Addison takes the moment of silence to look around the room, taking in the simple decor and soft yet pretty colors all around. Despite being in Zombietown, the shop matched a lot of Seabrook's color schemes.
Seabrook ended up being a wonderful place, even more so than she expected. Her whole life, her grandma told so many stories of a place where one could find love, of perfection and joy, despite the intense shame and scrutiny put on all who looked different.
She came to Seabrook with so much hope of a better world, and despite some of the tension, she's pretty happy with how it all turned out. Zed's werewolf friends still didn't trust her or her people, but Zed constantly assured her that things would be fine. He wouldn't tell her what was going on between them, and even if it made her sad, she understood, because she didn't tell him much about what was going on between her and the Alkeri. Not that there was even much to tell.
Zed winces, pulling her out of her thoughts. He grips his Z-Band with a crushing intensity, pulling his hand off the table. Addison's eyes go wide, her jaw dropping in shock. He lets out a painful groan, squeezing his eyes shut tightly.
"Are you okay?" she asks.
Zed nods. He breathes deeply and opens his eyes, giving her a wavering smile that doesn't soothe her worry at all.
"I'm okay. Just…a Z-Band glitch."
He doesn't sound okay, and his words give little comfort.
"Are you sure? You know you can tell me anything, Zed. Even bad things." She offers him a smile. "You can trust me, Zed."
Zed stares at her for a long minute, almost in shock.
"It is like you told me: I'm here for you."
Zed smiles, slow but bright. He scotches his chair closer to her, then takes her hand under the table.
"Have I told you you're amazing?"
She giggles and smiles brightly. "Yes, multiple times!"
He chuckles lightly. "It's just a Z-Band thing, I promise. It's from something stupid I did a long time ago…but I don't do stupid stuff like that anymore." He leans over, his lips pressing against her cheek. Her eyebrows jump in surprise, but the gesture spreads a loving warmth in her chest and flutters in her stomach, heart spreading over her face.
"Oh!"
Zed grins, looking at her. "What?"
"That…gesture. It made me feel…space moths in my stomach."
Zed chuckles. The heat that floods her face burns harder, this time from embarrassment. It was probably another simple thing that she should know! She feels so silly.
"That was a cheek kiss, Addy," he explains. "A sign of my affection." Affection! She knows affections. "Like hand holding, and hugs, and cuddles. And, you know, kisses."
She beams. She knows kisses. Sleeping beauty and Snow White, true love's kiss, and happily ever after.
"I really like showing physical affection," he admits.
Addison smiles at him. "I really like your physical affection, Zed."
Zed kisses her cheek. "I really like you," he counters.
Addison giggles, leaning over and kissing his cheek. "I really like you too."
"Alright, alright," Coach announces as he walks over to them, a tray held in his hands. He stops at their table, setting the tray on the edge and begins to unload the items. "Cool it, lovebirds, before I start getting complaints about my favorite customer."
Zed chuckles in response. He lets go of Addison's hand and instead opts to put an arm around her shoulders.
"We've got triple chocolate fudge brownies, gingerbread men, snickerdoodles, and fresh red velvet croissants!" Coach boosts proudly. "Straight from the oven, with some cinnamon hot cocoa to wash it down, extra marshmallows."
Zed grins at the older man. "You spoil me, Coach," he says.
Coach laughs heartily, shaking his head. "You two enjoy!"
Coach walks back to the counter.
Zed sliced her a clear jar filled with light brown liquid and fluffy white treats, which he explains as hot chocolate, with marshmallows.
"Try the cocoa first!"
Addison nods, carefully picking up the warm jar before her. She takes a slow sip, cringing at the heat, but overall…she likes it. It's sweet, a little spicy, even a hint of citrus, mixed with a creamy richness that she can barely describe. All she knows is it's delicious!
"This is amazing!" she exclaims.
Zed laughs, taking a drink from his own jar. They share the winter treats, each one with its own unique flavor profile. Addison might get some more treats to bring back to her people — hopefully they'll accept her into their community again with the peace offering.
"Do you think your coach would let me take a bunch of these?" Addison asks.
"He's known you less than a day and I'm pretty sure he likes you more than me," Zed jokes. "Why?"
"Well, I hope to bring these to A-Spen and the other Alkeri. As a peace offering!"
Zed raises an eyebrow. "Peace offering? They're still mad at you?"
"Oh yeah. Furious." She nods her head slowly.
"You guys haven't, like, talked about it? Hashed it all out? You know?"
"I think if I were to bring up our issues, it would cause great conflict. And our people value harmony! We do not 'hash it out.'" She shrugs simply, then picks up and bits into a red velvet croissant.
"Conflict sucks, yeah, but sometimes it can be helpful! It can open the door to conversations and understanding, which then leads to change and growth. I mean, you can't break down the barriers between humans and monsters without having some conflict. But look where Seabrook is now! We accept all monsters, even if it's a little scary."
Addison looks at him, still uncertain, her brows furrowed to match her mood.
Zed sighs. He turns, facing her more directly. Addison turns in her seat so they're facing each other. "Talking about your feelings is scary, Addy," he says softly. "But even if they react badly, you'll feel better just because you got it out there."
He has a point, and she knows it. Telling him she liked him a few days ago terrified her, but deep down she knew he liked her too. He cared about her and her feelings, which made the entire ordeal less scary.
"Will you come with me?" she asks.
Zed smiles. He takes her hands in his. "Of course."
He lifts one of her hands and kisses her knuckles. The space moths come back at full force in her stomach, a giddy smile spreading over her face.
After their hot cocoa date, they stop by Zed's house to grab some extra cookies, for an ice breaker. He doesn't live far from the hot cocoa/froyo shop. Zed walks her inside, calling out a hello to his sister on the couch.
"Zed! You're home!" Zoey exclaims.
Zed and Addison go into the kitchen.
"What are you doing?" Zoey asks.
Zed opens the fridge, grabbing two wrapped plates from the shelf and passing them to Addison. "Taking cookies to the aliens," he says. He shuts the fridge then turns, Addison following behind him. "Bye!"
"Those are our Christmas cookies!"
"Make more!"
Zed opens the door, ushering Addison outside while Zoey calls in the distance, "I can't use the oven by myself!"
Zed shuts the door, shrugging his shoulders. "Alright, Addy, take me to your people!"
Addison leads him to the middle of the street. She hands him the plates, which he balances in one hand, while linking his fingers through hers with the other.
"Mothership," she announces.
Above them, Mothership's cloaking panels deactivate, revealing the ship looming high above Zombietown. Beside her, Zed breathes, "Woah."
"Beam us up, please!"
The lights flash on the ship, then Mothership responds. "The zombie too?"
Addison rolls her eyes. "Yes, Mothership."
"You sure? Is this some kind of joke?"
"Mothership!" Addison exclaims, exasperated. "Please."
Zed leans closer to Addison and whispers, "Mothership kinda has an attitude."
"I heard that!"
Addison elbows Zed, who just chuckles. "Mothership, please beam us up," Addison says again.
Mothership sends down a beam; the two of them turn to blue and white light for a moment, their atoms dissipating and reforming their shapes on a transportation pad aboard the ship. Zed stumbles, his grip on her hand tightening.
"Woah," he murmurs.
Addison turns to him, smiling a bit. Hr looks around with wide eyes, his skin tinted more green than usual. "Weird, right?"
He nods. "Oh yeah…"
Addison giggles. She steps off the pad, pulling him with her, ignoring the flashing red lights coming off the pad they'd just stepped off.
"Thank you, Mothership!" Addison calls as she leads him out of the room.
"That's why you're my favorite, Addison!"
"This ship is alive?"
Addison nods. "Mothership is an AI created to help guide us through our search for Utopia. They also act as a…authority figure, for our people." Addison whispers the last part, although she knows Mothership can hear her. So, she adds loudly, "Whom we all love."
"It's who, Addison-Dear!" Mothership chimes.
Zed eyes her, looking slightly terrified. She gets it.
From behind her, she hears someone shout, "Beware!"
Addison drops Zed's hand and spins around, but before she can even think, Zed pushes her behind him, crouching down and shielding her.
"Intruder!" A-Spen, A-Li, and A-Lan all round the corner. Allie stands at the front, armed and ready to attack, while A-Spen tracks the intruder on their luma lens.
A-Spen stops A-Li before she can attack. "Zed? And Addison?"
Addison smiles nervously. "Um, hi, guys."
A-Li drops her defensive maneuvers, while A-Spen breaks into a wide grin. "Addison! You're back!" They rush forward, pushing past Zed and throwing their arms around Addison.
A-Spen pulls away, but A-Lan takes their place, then A-Li, all of them hugging her tightly.
A-Li wipes a tear from her cheek (she's crying?! Because of Addison?) and speaks first, "And Zed, right? Seabrook High football star?"
"Uh," Zed straightens up and answers awkwardly, "yeah."
A-Li clears her throat and crosses her arms, putting on her 'menacing' face. "Addison seems to trust you, so I guess we will not vaporize you."
"Uh, thanks?"
A-Spen turns to Addison, grabbing her shoulders. "We got your message about your earth family. Then you stopped coming to school…we figured you moved on. That you…did not need us, not want us."
"Your absence really opened our eyes to how much we appreciate your presence, Addison," A-Alan says. "It is nice to have you back."
Addison blinks slowly, still not quite believing what's happening around her. They actually missed her. They missed her! Even though they spent almost her entire life reminding her she didn't belong, that she'd never be one of them, making her feel like…like crap!
"Um, th-thank you," she says. "But we need to talk. To…" Addison glances at Zed, who gives her an encouraging smile and a thumbs up. "To 'hash out' our relationship, and sort through our differences. That way, we can have a better and stronger relationship, and understand each other more clearly."
The three of them stare at her, stunned. Zed slips his hand into hers, through, giving her a squeeze that keeps her standing tall.
"That sounds like it will cause unwanted conflict," A-Li says slowly.
"It will," Addison says. "But it will allow us to grow stronger as…friends! As a family!"
A-Li presses her lips in a firm line, but looks at A-Spen, who frowns, thinking it over.
"Um, okay. We can go to the control room."
They lead the way, A-Li and A-Lan following behind them as usual. Addison gives Zed's hand a gentle tug, pulling him along with her as she follows the three of them.
A-Ali looks back at the two of them, eyeing them up and down. She turns back around and Zed and Addison share a confused look. Their confusion only lasts a second because A-Li then asks, "What are you carrying?"
"Oh, we brought cookies. As a peace offering!" Zed says with a smile.
"An olive branch, of sorts," Addison adds.
The two of them smile. A-Li frowns, her brows furrowed, dissatisfaction clear on her face. "You earthlings are so strange."
"You love us! Us monsters are charming." Zed winks at A-Li, who huffs, her markings growing pink while she hurries off.
They enter the control room, the entrance sliding open. A-Spen leads the way to several divets in the walls that function as seats from time to time. The three alien leaders sit; Zed moves to sit too, but Addison pulls him back, silently urging him to stay by her side.
He gives her a soft smile, squeezing her hand in response to her unasked question.
"You hurt my feelings, frequently. You make me feel excluded and less than because I have a human father. I used to think I deserved this treatment because I am different. But after spending time here on earth, I was shown that…people like me. All of me. Friends treat each other with respect. There may be some lighthearted, good natured teasing, but overall friendship is kindness and love."
Addison looks at Zed, who smiles and nods.
A-Spen stands. Their antennae and markings glow a soft grey. Addison's doesn't recognize the color or what emotion it might represent. Maybe discontent? Or just a general sense of…dullness?
"Addison, we are not friends. We are your family." A-Spen states. "We…I was too blinded by my search for perfection to stop and remember to care and appreciate those around me. Including you." They pause, giving Addison a sad half smile. "Experiencing emotions is difficult, but it helped me see and understand that the way we've been treating you is not right. On behalf of all of us, I am sorry."
Addison drops Zed's hand and surges forward, throwing her arms around A-Spen neck.
That's all she's ever wanted to hear.
Things with the aliens calm down after that. Addison lives with her earth family still. She brings her Alkeri friends around to meet all her new friends. The aliens themselves spend more time on earth, learning and adapting, although somewhat slowly.
And things between Zed and Addison keep getting better. With school out, they hang out pretty much everyday, whether it be going on walks, or to the library, or even just sitting at one of their houses and watching movies. Instead of Christmas movies, Addison wants to watch princess movies.
She and Zed cuddle on the couch in his basement, going through Bree's collection of animated movies one by one over the course of their winter break. Sometimes, Zoey joins them, but she always sits on the floor and always leaves a little over halfway through the movie.
Several days before Christmas, Zed, Addison, and Zoey decide to make more Christmas cookies, seeing as the aliens ate all of the Necrodopolis's first batch of cookies. They go to Addison's house, her stop mom having a fully stocked kitchen with all the proper ingredients and tools they'd need, unlike at the Necrodopolis house, where they kind of just figured it out each time.
Zed would never get used to hanging out in the chief of Z Patrol and the mayor's house. He never sticks around long enough to run into either of them — even though both of them come back early to see Addison. Zed makes himself scarce for the much needed family time. But today, both the chief and mayor are stuck in council meetings until late into the night, even going as far as giving Bucky money to order food, which he took some of and gave the rest to Addison with the instructions to "figure it out, baby 'cous."
Baking cookies isn't typically a three person job, so Zed sits back and supervises, which mostly includes making sure Zoey doesn't make a mess and explaining everything to Addison while he helps her mix all her ingredients.
"Zoey, pour your bowl into Addy's," Zed instructs.
His sister eyes him warily. "A please would be nice," she complains.
Another thing: Zoey has been a lot more snippy lately. Zed and his dad chalk it up to preteen angst. She usually mellows out with food or desserts, sometimes even Christmas movies, so Zed doesn't worry about her too much.
"Can you pour your bowl, Zoe, please?" he emphasizes.
She smiles, somewhat sarcastically, doing as asked. Zed grabs the bag of chocolate chips, ripping it open and pouring it into the main bowl as Addison stirs.
"We do not measure those?" Addison asks.
"Nah, you put as many chocolate chips as your heart desires," Zed says. He sneaks a few from the bag and holds out his hand to Addison.
She picks up a few pieces, popping them in her mouth. Zed watched her slowly chew, then her eyes closed, the markings on her face and ears glowing a soft yellow, even her antennae standing at attention and dancing with excitement.
"Mm! Zed, this is quite delicious!" she exclaims. "I think chocolate is my favorite thing on earth. Chocolate, and you, of course!"
Zed smiles brightly. Heat spreads up his neck. Addison says such sweet things to him, but he's still not used to having someone so openly…like him! At least, romantically. Past girlfriends were never as affectionate as Addison. He really loves it, though, and spending time with her, and really everything about her.
He chooses to ignore whatever his last thought was implying, instead grinning and saying, "Chocolate chips are the best! Everyone loves them!"
"Except werewolves!" Zoey chimes.
"Right, except the werewolves."
Addison tilts her, confused. "Why not? Chocolate chips are delicious!"
"Werewolves are allergic to chocolate, duh!" Zoey states, shaking her head.
Addison's antennae droop downward, her yellow fading to dark blue. "Oh…"
"Zoey, go be snarky somewhere else," Zed says.
She huffs and rolls her eyes, stomping off and grumbling about, "I'm gonna go watch tv where people like me." The statement doesn't even make sense.
Zed gives Addison a soft, reassuring smile, and explains, "Werewolves are allergic to chocolate, and silver hurts them. But we don't have any silver in Zombietown, and the shops and restaurants always list their ingredients. Mostly so people know when they're getting brain substitutes…" He chuckles softly. "The wolves hate all the guts stuff, but are big on meat and bones and stuff."
"You speak very fondly of the wolves. Have you guys resolved your issues?"
Zed scoffs. "Nope, no way. There's no way any of them would talk to me."
"But…difficult conversation can lead the way to change and resolution," she says. "That was your advice to me, and it helped my people and me greatly."
"Yeah, but the wolves aren't very open to change," Zed says. "Especially Willa, and she's the leader! When they make a decision about something, nothing will change their mind. Hopefully they'll mellow out and just learn to deal with it." He shrugs, popping a few chocolate chips in his mouth. "Worked last time."
He looks at Addison, who maintains a frown, but doesn't say anything else on the subject.
"After we put these in the oven, we can make sugar cookies. My mom has a great family recipe for them!"
"Emphasis on the family!" Zoey shouts from the other room.
Addison smiles in response to Zed, continuing to stir the cookie mix while they wait for the oven to preheat.
Letting the wolves stew and get over whatever grievance they have at the moment typically always worked. They weren't very open to change and Zed didn't have a ton of free time to act as the middleman for every person or thing that pissed the wolves off. Plus, they're mad at him, for being nice to the aliens. He's not apologizing for that.
But with the wolves not talking to him, and Zed honestly too uncaring to break the ice, his and Eliza's annual Christmas party would only be humans and zombies. Or, well, zombies and the humans who weren't afraid to party in the half collapsed old power plant. The aliens probably aren't scared of a condemned building…
"Hey! Me and Eliza throw this killer Christmas Eve party every year," Zed says to Addison. "You should come! Invite anyone you want, too, it'll be epic!"
Addison turns her head to him and grins. "That sounds fun! Of course I will be there, Zed."
Zoey comes running back into the kitchen. She stops in the doorway, crossing her arms. "She can go but I can't?!"
"You're twelve, Zoe. Maybe when you're in high school, whatever cool zombies throwing the party will let you go."
"Ugh!" Zoey groans, stomping off.
"Are you sure you cannot talk to the werewolves?" Addison asks. "Maybe they will be willing to listen. People can surprise you."
"Not them. Trust me. But they'll come around."
Probably, at least.
Christmas Eve rolls around several days later. Zed meets Addison at the Unification Gate. He's seen aliens beaming down over the past few hours and helps them find their way to the power plant. Mayor Mills lifted the monster curfew earlier in the week, but Zed still warned everyone to be discreet as the power plant is still a condemned building they can't party in.
A few years ago, the building was scheduled for demolition. Once they discovered the moonstone underneath it, the demo was delayed, but not before part of the building collapsed. Since then, no moves have been made to either rebuild or completely destroy it, leaving the old eyesore standing on the back of Zombietown.
Addison skips along the sidewalk. For the first time since they'd met, she's wearing a pink, Seabrook-styled dress with long sleeves. It flares out at her waist but stops mid thigh, the rest of her legs covered in plain silver leggings and her signature silver boots. Her blue and white hair is pulled back in two braids, several loose curls falling in front of her face.
She stops in front of him with a giddy smile, her antennae dancing and her markings glowing a soft yellow. She's excited and happy. He's getting a lot better at deciphering her emotions from her markings. "Merry Christmas Eve, Zed!" she exclaims.
Zed mirrors her grin. "Merry Christmas Eve, Addy." He reaches a hand out and she slips her palm into his. "You ready?"
"Yup! Although I am a little worried. Bucky says zombie parties can be crazy."
Zed fights the urge to roll his eyes. Bucky isn't even invited to zombie parties anymore. He's a well known snitch, despite throwing his fair share of parties when the chief and mayor are out of town.
Zed leads the way into Zombietown. "Don't worry, you're gonna love this," he assured her. "Eliza and Bonzo DJ, we have tons of snacks — human and werewolf safe, and hopefully alien safe too."
Addison giggles. "Lucky I am part human, then!"
"You already love zombie food. And probably human food. I assume that's what you eat with your parents, at least."
She nods her head. "My stepmother is a great cook. Her and my dad make dinner together pretty much everyday. It is quite sweet."
Zed smiles. Addison adapts to everything so quickly, it makes him kind of jealous. A good kind of jealousy. She befriended him and all his friends within days of being on earth, she blended into her family life within hours. Even his dad and his sister love her like she's family!
"It's cool you guys get along so great," he says. "I was scared you and your dad wouldn't get along, 'cause he sucks."
Addison giggles. "You two have a complicated relationship. He brings it up very often."
Zed raises an eyebrow. Her dad hates him. It's nice to know the feelings are reciprocated. And that Chief Wells is probably pissed beyond belief knowing Zed and Addison are dating.
"He thinks I'm trouble, I think he represents a shitty institution," Zed shrugs. "But I promise to be nice to him. He's not too bad."
Addison beams up at him. "That is very sweet of you, Zed. Although I do not think we will be having family dinners any time soon." She says the last part with a cheeky smile that makes Zed laugh at her joke.
Zed leads her through the rubble of the power plant. The other side of the building has a more direct entrance, with stairs down to the lower level, but he takes the familiar, less used path of destruction. He helps Addison over piles of bricks and debris until they reach the empty ground floor, full of steel poles and downed, powerless wires.
"This seems…dangerous," Addison says wearily.
"It's a little…destroyed. But I promise, you won't get hurt." He won't let it happen.
Addison looks at him and smiles. Zed hits the button on the elevator. The giant, heavy metal doors of the elevator slide up and open. Zed steps inside, followed by Addison, then Zed hits the button to the lower level. The doors close, but before Zed can lean back against the wall, Addison grabs his extended wrist.
He tenses, his own eyes glued to the red skin and black, swollen veins under his Z-Band. Most days, he keeps the permanent skin irritation hidden under a long sleeve shirt or jacket. But he rolled up his jacket sleeves hours ago while setting up, and now Addison could see everything.
She stares at his skin for several long, agonizing seconds, then looks up at him. Her antennae droop back over her head. "Zed? Are you…okay?"
He chews his lip. He doesn't want to worry her, especially not about something so stupid from so long ago, something she can't do anything about.
Addison drops his wrist and pulls her hand from his grasp. He doesn't get a chance to panic about her pulling away, because the next second she puts a hand on his shoulder and smiles softly. "You can trust me, Zed. I promise."
Zed takes a deep breath. He can trust her, he knows it.
"I did something stupid, a few years ago. I messed with my Z-Band so I could win football games. It was stupid, and dangerous, and I learned my lesson, I swear."
Addison frowns, her eyebrows dressed together. "But it still causes you pain?"
Zed nods slowly. "Yeah. The doctors say I did, um, permanent damage to my arm and…heart." Addison's lips part in surprise. "But it's okay now! They gave me a new Z-Band, one that we don't have to hack to zombie-out, so we can do it safely now. And, besides a few instances, I'm okay."
"Zed…" She moves in front of him and rests her hand on his chest, over his heart. "I am so sorry. I do not fully understand the pain you've experienced, but…I wish I could take it away. I can tell this is something that weighs heavy on your soul."
Zed sighs. He tilts his head forward until his forehead rests on top of her head. He hasn't told her the half of it, yet he already feels lighter. He lifts a hand and wraps it around hers, giving it a soft, appreciative squeeze. He loves her, and her kind, understanding heart, and her unwavering support and everything about her.
"Someday, Zed, I would love to learn everything about you, even the things you find difficult to talk about. But it is okay if that day is not today."
He nods his head, holding her hand tightly.
The elevator comes to a screeching halt, the doors slowly opening. Slowly, the two of them separate, watching the doors slide open, the loud, base-filled music flooding the space.
Eliza's fog machine is in full effect, adding a smoky, creepy vibe to all the colorful black light decorations in the room. Colorful twinkling lights hang from the rafters all around, with green garlands to support them and fake snowflakes looming over the dance floor.
"Woah!" Addison exclaims.
She steps out of the elevator, her head slowly turning as she takes in all the sights and sounds. Her antennae stand up, glowing bright yellow, while her tail swishes behind her excitedly.
Zed greets the few humans and zombies he sees as he follows behind Addison. Dozens of people already crowd the dance floor, with more still coming in, and more still to come. Up at her custom DJ booth hanging from the suspended scaffolding, Eliza bops her head along to the music, playing around with all the lights and special effects she brought out for the night. Zed knows Bonzo is across the room in his own booth, putting his music background on full display with hit after hit of great songs.
Before they get too far into the room, Addison turns around, her mouth spread wide with a grin. "Is it always like this?" she shouts over the music.
Zed grins. "More or less!"
She tilts her head back, looking around at all the decorations. Behind her, in the colorful flashing lights, Willa and her pack walk through the room. The wolves, who Zed thought would never be seen anywhere near him or the aliens. Wyatt grins behind her, while Wynter bounces around with every step. Willa even wears a Santa hat, and despite her stoic, angry expression, Zed knows she's a little happy about all the holiday cheer around.
Willa catches him watching her and walks over to him with purpose. All the wolves, save Wyatt and Wynter, disappear into the crowd.
Zed steps toward them. Addison turns around and spots the wolves, peeking up with a shocking amount of excitement. "Oh, they came!"
Zed looks at her curiously. "What?"
"You said I could invite anyone," she explains. "And since you were not talking to your friends, I did!"
Willa smiles as she approaches (actually smiles, something she only does sincerely for her wolf pack and Eliza on occasions). "Addison! Hey!" she greets.
Addison skips forward and hugs Willa, then Wyatt, then Wynter.
What. The. Hell.
"What — When — Huh?"
Addison hangs around Wynter's shoulders, grinning with the overly-excited werewolf.
"Your girlfriend came around the wolf den a few days ago," Willa says. "And…she's kinda cool."
Zed raises an eyebrow, still confused as to how any of this ever even happened.
"And…" Addison urges.
"And…I'm sorry for being a close-minded jerk," Willa says. "If you wanna be friends and date the scary aliens, then I won't stop you. The aliens aren't as…threatening as I assumed."
"At least Addison isn't," Wyatt says.
"You're great!" Wynter says to Addison.
Willa nods her head. "Despite being the chief's secret kid," she points out.
Zed nods his head slowly. So Addison went to the wolf den and convinced them to give the aliens a chance. He doesn't know how she managed that or even found the wolf den, but he's relieved that the whole stalemate has come to an end. He really loves her and everything she does, how she always manages to befriend everyone, how genuinely kind she is.
"I'm sorry, for being a dick about everything," Zed says. "We're friends. We shouldn't be rude to each other just because we disagree."
Willa nods her head in agreement. "Good." "Now enough with all this mushy crap now. Where's the drinks?" She tilts her head with a sarcastic smile.
Zed laughs. He points them over to the drink stand, run by Kelsi, a cheerleader, and Ezi, the president of the chemistry club. Addison lets go of Wynter and goes back over to Zed, while Willa, Wyatt, and Wynter head over to get drinks.
Once they're gone, Addison stands in front of Zed with a shy smile. "I know I overstepped, but I thought that, maybe, if they got to know me they would see that we truly meant no harm," she explains.
"I'm not upset or anything," Zed says. "I'm just surprised. Willa isn't ever that nice."
Addison smiles brighter, looking at something over his shoulder. "She is being very nice right now. Look, she is even bonding with A-Spen!"
Zed turns slightly and sure enough, Willa is at the drinks table, talking and smiling like an idiot with A-Spen. Stoic, scary Willa, with the leader of the aliens! He hates to say it, but it is truly a Christmas miracle.
Hours into the party, after mingling with all their friends and talking to countless different people who Addison quickly added to her friend group, Zed leads the two of them away from the commotion of the crowded party. They go deep into the power plant, to Zed's favorite hidden location. The only room that hadn't been even a little destroyed by the partial demolition, a place with original zombie murals and soft orange lights that decorate the entire space in lieu of actual plants.
"Woah…" Addison breathes. "What is this place?"
"It's a Zombie Light Garden." Zed climbs up onto a downed machine's platform. He holds a hand out for her and she takes it, letting him guide her up onto the platform.
"Where are we going?" she asks.
Zed stops. He listens to the gentle beat drumming through the halls, the warped melody coming from the other room.
"Can I have this dance, Addy?" he asks.
He carefully placed his hands on her waist, pulling her closer. Addison sucks in a breath, looking up at him with wide eyes.
"I have never danced before…"
"I'll show you."
Zed gently guides her arms up until they wrap around her next. He puts his hands on her waist again, tilting his head down to look at her.
"Just move with the music," he says softly. He sways a little, taking small steps that she carefully matches.
It takes a few minutes, but they quickly fall into a comfortable motion, swaying and moving to the quiet music in the room. The Zombie Light Garden casts a beautiful golden glow across her face and soft smile. Everything about her mesmerizes him. From her beautiful eyes to her kind heart, and her funky space boots.
"Addy, I —"
"Zed —"
They both speak and stop at the same time, then burst into a fit of giggles.
"You go first, Addy," he says.
She nods slowly. "Zed, um," she stops and takes a deep breath, then says, "gar garziga."
He blinks, shocked, but a smile quickly spreads across his face.
"I—Wow, gar garziga, too. It's — that's exactly what I was going to say to you too. I love you, Addy."
She smiles brightly. "Did I pronounce it correctly?"
"Amazing. It was perfect. You…" He pauses, his heart pounding but slowing all at once. He stops dancing, stops everything and just looks at her. He looks in her big blue eyes, his eyes flickering down to her pink lips momentarily before he goes back to taking her all in. "You're perfect," he says softly.
Then, he closes the space between them, softly pressing his lips to hers. He hears and sees fireworks.