Andrea stood at the doors of her university and took a deep breath in. This is it she thought this is the culmination of all the effort I put in all those years at school. This is where I make my dreams happen! She clutched her books and looked sideways towards her roommate and friend Stacey and gave her a nervous smile.

"Don't worry" said Stacey grabbing Andrea's hand and entering the building, a huge smile plastered on both their faces.

~

A few months later

Andrea sat in the cafeteria with her burger and coke. She sat with the people she usually sat with at lunch which included Ryan and Sarah. The two were bickering over something as usual. Probably over some Shakespeare play or the other thought Andrea glancing at them and looking around. She spotted Stacey a few tables away and smiled at her as she caught her eye.

When she entered university Andrea had hoped it would be different from high school. But it in was people's natures to find others of the same temperament and Andrea was mildly surprised as to how quickly everyone fell into their respective groups and it was the same routine all over again. But it was a different atmosphere somehow. It had been a no brainer that Stacey and Andrea did not belong in the same group of people at all. They were still roommates and were nothing short of best friends but they hung out with different people at Uni. Stacey with the popular kids and Andrea with her own quirky group that could hardly have been called a clique. They held no grudges, it was a mutual understanding between them.

"Hello! Earth to Andy." said Sarah waving her hand in front of Andrea's face. She blinked in surprise and focused on the face in front of her. Sarah had big hazel eyes a crop of messy blond curls and a lithe figure. She wasn't overly thin but was fit. Ryan had dark brown hair paired with green eyes, glasses and a slim yet tall figure. She looked down to find that Sarah and Ryan had not only finished their bickering but also their lunches too while she was left with a whole burger to finish.

"Do you want that cuz it looks quite appealing to me." said the ever hungry Ryan.

"Yeah, sure." she said pushing her tray towards him and finishing the rest of her coke.

Sarah shot him a look.

"What?!" he said between bites "One cannot simply refuse the irresistible call of an uneaten burger!" Andrea smiled.

"What's going on?" asked Sarah with a growing look of concern on her face.

"Nothing, just thinking" she replied.

"About?"

"Life" she said vaguely.

"Anyway, we've got to be in class in ten minutes so we better leave."

"But I don't think Ryan's finished yet" said Andrea turning to look, only to find him gulping the last bite of the burger.

"You were saying?" he said flashing her a cheeky grin.

They left without further ado.

~

When Stacey opened the door to the apartment she found Andrea sitting on the couch. Stacey had long straight blond hair that reached the middle of her back and blue eyes. She was the kind of person that made whatever dress she was wearing look good. Even a pair of beat up dungarees and she'd have the boys drooling. Andrea was a different kind of pretty, with chocolate brown hair and matching eyes. She was slim without having to put an effort just like Stacey. But looks hardly mattered to her and hence her choice of friends and lack of guys in tow.

"Whatcha doin'?" asked Stacey.

"Reading for the lit quiz tomorrow." she replied looking up from the book she had been previously poring over, "How was your day?"

"Couldn't have been better." she said dropping the keys on the table next to the door and plonking herself on the comfy chair. She grabbed the remote and switched on the TV. The two bed roomed apartment they had been renting wasn't big but it suited their needs just as well. Besides, the pay was reasonable and the landlady was a big old dear. She loved the girls like they were her own daughters.

"Guess who asked me out?" said Stacey.

"I don't know." said Andrea looking up trying to conceal her curiosity.

"I'll give you three guesses" said Stacey smiling.

"Oh come on!! You know I hate that! Just tell me already!" she said now making no effort to hide her excitement and curiosity.

"You know how I told you that I liked Dylan? Yeah, so he comes up to me today after French and starts talking to me normally like any friend would and then suddenly he asks whether we could hang out sometime. Like so totally out of the blue. And of course I said yes. And so that is how I ended up with a date this Friday." she said simply.

Andrea smiled with glee. "I knew he'd ask you!"

"You couldn't have possibly known that!"

"My woman instincts said he would and he did!" she said with a mischievous smile. Stacey rolled her eyes.

"You're lame. Anyway, I really like this one and I hope it works out." she said contemplatively. "The real reason I told you this is because I need a companion on Friday and I was hoping you'd come along."

"What?!" Andrea said completely thrown by her request, her eyes widening in shock.

"Please and you won't even have to be a third wheel because I'll ask him to bring one of his friends along and you two could go out for that evening and it would be like a double date. Except I wouldn't know who he was bringing so you would be on a blind date essentially."

"What?!" Andrea said again words failing her at that moment. "Why not ask any one of your other friends? Besides I have work to do."

"Oh come on take a day off! You deserve it! Besides most of my friends are in a committed relationship. And you're the only one I told about my secret crush on Dylan. The others only know he asked me out. That's it. Please don't say no." said Stacey beseechingly, doing her best imitation of a puppy dog face.

Andrea contemplated her decision for a few minutes with a perplexed look on her face.

"Alright I'll come but mind you I'm sure I'll regret it." she said grudgingly.

"I'm pretty sure you won't!" she said with a self-assured look.

"You can't possibly know that!" she replied indignantly.

"My woman instincts say otherwise" said Stacey winking at her cheekily.

~

Friday

"You ready?" asked Andrea sitting on the couch.

"One minute!" called Stacey from her room.

Andrea had dressed simply in denims and her grey turtleneck to along with her usual pair of converse. She turned to see Stacey entering the hallway. Stacey had dressed up in a leopard print dress accessorized with a black clutch and silver dangling earring and a long chain. Her hair was let down, her bangs covering her forehead partly. Andrea's jaw dropped down when she saw her.

"It's not too over the top is it?" she asked Andrea worriedly.

"You make me feel underdressed!"

"I told you to wear a dress didn't I?"

"Too much effort for some random guy." She said shrugging dismissively. Let's go said grabbing her keys as Stacey put on her coat.

Andrea had insisted on driving to the place. She pulled up outside the diner they had agreed to meet in. They walked in to see a blonde haired boy waving excitedly at Stacey. She smiled back at him and approached his table with Andrea close behind her. They both took their seats opposite the two boys.

"Hi!" said Dylan brightly. "How was your day?"

"Good" replied Stacey. Andrea just smiled.

They continued talking while Andrea zoned out of the conversation. She leaned back onto her chair closely observing the boy seated opposite her. He had jet black hair put up in a quiff, brown eyes and slight stubble. She vaguely remembered him from Dylan's group of friends at Uni although she wasn't sure what his name was. He was hunched over his mobile intently staring at the little white screen.

"What would you like to order?" asked Dylan.

"A strawberry smoothie." said Stacey.

"A slushie is fine by me, thanks" said Andrea feeling it obligatory to order something even though she wasn't remotely hungry.

The boy seated opposite her finally looked up and said "I'm fine, thanks"

"Okay" said Dylan turning to the waitress to place their order.

"So who is your friend?" asked Stacey sensing that Andrea was clearly not going to be the first one to strike up a conversation with him.

"This is Zayn." said Dylan. So that's his name thought Andrea to herself.

He looked up a slightly vacant look on his face and said "Hi."

"And this is Andrea" said Stacey making the introduction for her friend but Zayn wasn't paying attention anymore his eyes once again captivated by whatever the palm sized screen had to offer.

Their order came just then stopping the current thread of conversation. Stacey and Dylan continued their dalliance, oblivious to their surroundings.

Well two can play this game thought Andrea looking at Zayn and pulling her phone out. There was nothing new on it. She sighed. Or maybe not said a small voice in her mind. But she wasn't the one to give up.

At that time Stacey and Dylan got up. Dylan paid the bill while Stacey looked at Andrea and said "We're going outside for a walk. You two continue enjoying yourselves."

Andrea only smiled back uncomfortably while Zayn didn't even bother looking up. Yeah I'm having a ball she thought sarcastically.

Speak to him! Stacey mouthed to Andrea while the latter just shrugged in response. They left soon after leaving her and Zayn alone. Well this is awkward she thought. She looked down at her phone.

'Hey! Sup'?' She texted Ryan knowing that Sarah wouldn't be very sympathetic about her antisocial skills. But there was no reply. Gah! Ryan you little..

"Do you want anything else" interrupted the waitress.

"No thanks" she said. He didn't bother looking up or replying at all. The waitress went away. for that matter, he seemed least bothered about the people around him.

Okay, I guess I got to start a conversation. "So.. Sup?" she asked.

He looked up about to reply when, "Oh wait it's your hair" she said before he could say anything, making a lame attempt to crack a joke.

"Amusing" he said drily before going back to his phone.

"So what are you looking at?" she asked, trying to make conversation again.

"Stuff" he said vaguely. She sighed mentally. Okay I'm making a serious attempt here the least he can do is talk back properly!

He then took something out of his pocket. It was a pair of earphones. The nerve this guy had! Well he certainly wasn't interested and I have better stuff to do. Better leave while I got some of my dignity left. She got up and stuffed her phone inside her pocket.

"Thanks for the lovely evening" she said sarcasm dripping in her voice hoping he'd get the hint. She turned around to leave not giving him a chance to speak when she tripped. It was like everything happened in slow motion then as she fell forward almost falling face first as the waiter near her swerved back with his tray to avoid falling with her. But there was no one catching her to break her fall as she fell ungracefully with a thud. She pushed herself up, aching all over.

"Are you alright?" he asked. He was next to her trying to help her up.

She refused his help standing up by herself, her face red from embarrassment. So much for dignity she thought bitterly.

"Yeah I'm fine no thanks to you" she said before storming off not giving him a second look.

That was unfair said the nagging voice at the back of her mind. She knew it was but at that moment she wasn't feeling particularly righteous. I mean if it hadn't been for his apathy I wouldn't have gotten up. Okay I wasn't expecting so full blown romantic evening, it was a blind date after all, but the least he could have done is make conversation. I mean, am I that repelling? she thought as the mental battle raged on in her mind.

But it still doesn't make what you did right.

She sighed knowing it was true. For a moment she considered going back and apologizing.

Screw it he probably doesn't care. She unlocked the car and got in.

And besides I'm pretty sure I won't ever have to speak to him again.

~

A/N

Okay first chapter's up. So what do you think? Any idea why Zayn behaved like that? Any opinions on the chracters? Let me know =) And remember this story is based in an alternate universe. Vote, comment & follow. =)