I was going to keep going with the story, but I kept coming back to Addison's point of view of this first chapter. While I do plan on switching between her an Zed, it won't always be a retelling of the same chapter. I do hope you will like it and that it gives you a better feel for this AU version of Addison.

Addison Wells wasn't having a good day. She woke 40 minutes late to her phone insistent ringing. She picked up without looking at the caller ID which meant she was on the receiving end of her mother's screeching. Addison would probably never know what her mother intended to tell her cause she spent the following 15 minutes trying to cut short a lecture about accepting a video call without her wig on which she admitted wasn't the wisest. The conversation then veered around to her not wearing her wig inside her dorm room; the dorm room she shared with Bree who had been in the know since their first year of high school. That was the breaking point for Addison who all but hung up on her mother, put on her cheerleading uniform, stuffed her white hair underneath her practice wig and ran all the way to her Tuesday 8 a.m. morning lecture.

She got there half an hour later than she usually did to find that her usual seat was taken. She swallowed a curse from the doorway as she looked around the lecture hall for a free seat. She first spotter one on the far right in the last row and internally sighed, it was a terrible seat. She kept looking, hoping for any other seat. Her heart skipped a beat when she found one. This wasn't any seat. It was right next to the tall zombie football player, Zed.

She's seen him on campus before, taller than most student with green hair acting like a beacon. While she wouldn't admit it to anyone, she found him quite handsome. He was a superstar on the football field and gossip had it that he was a great student too, doing way better than his scholarship required of him. He was always sporting an easy-going, charming smile. He'd directed it at her once and all she managed was a quick greeting and a shy smile. He hadn't answered her, so she had fled to the rest of her squad.

Bree had tried to get her to talk to him at a game or even at practice, but she'd been too nervous. Part of her had also remembered the years of lectures she'd had to endure from her parents, let alone Bucky, about zombies. College was disapproving their beliefs as she had yet to hear about any incident involving zombies since they all started college two years ago. Zombies and humans still mostly stuck to their own anyway and she didn't feel like rocking the boat.

The choice was taken out of her hands when someone snatched the seat in the last row. Next to Zed it was. She walked all the way around the room, thinking she'd be noticed but he was really distracted, looking up at the door. Maybe he was waiting for someone she thought. What if she stole their seat. Years of good manners forced her to ask first. He turned around so fast, she thought he might hurt himself. He asked her to repeat herself, rubbing a hand behind his neck and she had a feeling he was embarrassed. But he did tell her she could sit, and the professor was starting his lecture. She didn't have time to daydream about a boy.

AZAZAZ

The lecturer finally stopped for a short break and Addison stretched gratefully. She needed a break. She'd been in such a hurry this morning that she hadn't had time for breakfast. Hell, she hadn't even had time to make coffee. She missed the caffeine. She sighed and dropped her head on her desk over her folded arms.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Addison turned her head, not even bothering to lift it up. She blinked at Zed a few times. Was he concerned about her?

"Oh! Yeah. Thanks for asking." She felt her cheeks pink up embarrassingly. "It's been a rough morning," she admitted softly.
"Sorry!"
"It's fine. I'll just close my eyes for a bit."

She didn't know what to do next without embarrassing herself so she did just that. She felt him get up from his seat and relief burst through her chest. She had a boyfriend for heaven's sake, Zed shouldn't affect her this much. Her thoughts then inevitably turned to her boyfriend. She'd been introduced to Warner by some of the girls on the team. They had gone on a few dates, before he'd asked her officially to be his girlfriend. Her parents loved Warner, so did everyone else.

Personally, she thought he was a bit of a tool, but she wanted to fit in, and he was perfect in that capacity. Warner didn't seem to care that she didn't love him as long as she dressed up for his family events to look pretty on his arm and smile. He'd told her once she was the perfect girlfriend: a cheerleader, an honor student but mostly pretty and unassuming. She had to physically restrain Bree to keep her from hurting Warner when she heard about that line. Maybe she should have been more insulted, but unassuming meant people weren't looking for her flaws. She hadn't even told Warner yet. It's not like there had been a need for it. Even when they were intimate, it had felt detached and lacked passion. Her secret had always been safe even then, wig firmly secured on her head. Sex was something he seemed to enjoy but she never truly did. She had heard the stories in the squad locker room about passionate encounters or loving boyfriends. She was getting neither and wasn't that depressing? Everyone seemed to think Warner and her were the perfect adorable couple and that she was just uncomfortable talking about her life.

Addison groaned into her arms. She was pathetic. All of this because Zed had asked her if she was okay. It was decided. As soon as class ended, she was grabbing a coffee before practice. After that, she would be able to finally have a shower and could hide from the rest of the world to her heart's content. She just needed to make it a few more hours.

A soft thump made her lift her head. Her eyes widened as she took in the paper cup in front of her. It smelled heavenly, a perfect mix of sweetness and bitterness. She turned to look at Zed, trying to hide her amazement.

"You seemed like you could use it?" She blinked at him. "I mean, don't feel like you have to drink it or anything. I mean I got a little sister, and I wouldn't want her to accept a drink from a random guy – I'd probably kill her if she did. Um, that's not the point. I just… You said you've been having a hard morning, so I just thought maybe you'd appreciate it? It's a salted caramel latte. I hope, I hope you like those? You don't seem like a black coffee kinda girl, more like sweet – not that it's a bad thing if you do or that I know you… huh, just, like, you don't strike me as the pumpkin spice kind of girl – you know cause that's just basic, right… Oh fuck! You probably love it though, right? I've seen the cheer squad social media pages… I don't mean that you're basic or anything. I'm sure you're great, but… Oh my Z, I'm just going to stop talking."

Addison couldn't help the giggle that escaped her. He suddenly looked so awkward that she couldn't help but smile at him. He was such a nice guy.

"Thanks Zed!" She whispered as their professor requested their attention once more.

She turned back to her computer, missing the smile of wonder on Zed's face as he realized she knew his name. As class started again, she tried to focus on the material, but she kept drifting back to Zed's words. She was certain he was an amazing big brother. And he'd been right, she wasn't a fan of pumpkin spice. While the majority of the squad was hooked on all things pumpkin spice, Addison thought Zed was right. It was kind of basic. She'd rather have fall flavours like apple, pear, caramel or chai. He'd unknowingly picked the perfect coffee for her. She brought it to her lips, that first sip cheering her up instantly.

AZAZAZ

Before she knew it, the class was being dismissed and students around her started packing their stuff. She quickly dumped her stuff in her bag, reaching over to lay a hand on Zed's arm before he left. He startled at first before staring at her. He glanced back at her hand before setting his eyes on her face. Realizing she was still holding his arm, she dropped her hand and hoped her embarrassment didn't colour her cheeks.

"Oh! I just wanted to say thanks again for the coffee. I really needed that. It was very kind of you, Zed," she said, smiling softly.
"You're welcome." The boy in front of her paused, rubbing the back of his neck. "Ok, so I feel terrible because you know my name, but I don't know yours."

Addison couldn't help herself and giggled. He looked sheepish again and she couldn't resist the possibility of teasing him.

"Well, you're the football superstar, I'd be a terrible cheerleader if I couldn't read the signs."
"You're not!" He was quick to rush out. "Not that I'm a stalker or anything. Just, I've seen you at games?"

Addison's heart quickened. He had noticed her before.

"I'm pretty sure a stalker would know my name."
"So I guess you'll have to tell me before I turned to the evil side of stalking?"

His comment made her snort in a very unladylike fashion, a habit that caused her mother and Warner to look disapprovingly at her more than once. She knew she was blushing furiously when she answered him.

"We wouldn't want that. I'm Addison!"

She held out her hand, hoping he'd take it. She didn't know why, but she knew she wanted to touch him again. He looked at it for a second and Addison panicked at the thought she'd misread the situation. Maybe he was just being nice, maybe he didn't really care. As they looked at each other, an annoyed voice suddenly called her name. She dropped her hand and turned around to face her cousin. He was looking more irritated with her than usual, who knew what she had done this time.

"I have to go, I'm sorry. I guess I'll see you around, Zed," Addison apologized.
"Yeah." Zed breathed out.

She wanted to stay a little longer, but she knew better than to make her cousin wait any longer. She hurried through the aisle to meet up with him, apologies already falling off her lips. He huffed and turned on his heels, expecting her to follow. Before she did, she turned around to sneak a glance at Zed, but he was already packing the rest of his things. She had to be realistic, he didn't like her…

The next chapter probably won't be as quick to write, but I hope you enjoyed this one. I'll be getting there soon enough! Thanks for reading (and commenting if that's your thing)
Lots of love, Anne