The woman sighed. "That'll be thirty-six fifty-two, sir."
Zim reached for the monies and handed her two twenty dollar bills and watched the other employee stuff the purchased items into two paper bags. All the humans that worked here seemed reluctant to work at this rancid hole they called a supermarket. Dark circles made up half of the humans faces while their dull shadowed eyes barely peeked out from the lowered brows. The woman worked the cash register without looking at the buttons and handed Zim his change.
Disgusted by the humans lack of will to do anything, Zim didn't even murmur a 'thank you' and snatched his bags from a living dead human. With haste to get out of the animated graveyard, Zim took wide strides, watching the ground intently to avoid having to look at anymore disgusting humans only to basically leap into a brewing rainstorm. Surprisingly, Zim bounded back under the store's patio examining the horrible poison falling ever so dangerously.
Zim growled to himself. "I should have checked the weather reports for today. Idiot."
All the humans that were coming out of the store didn't notice the badly disguised alien nor would they care seeing as most of them are Botox filled mothers that couldn't frown if their filthy lives depended on it. Zim kept an eye out for any way to get across the city without getting hurt and luckily saw a single human with a very large umbrella heading his way out of the store. The alien dashed under the vinyl protective cover and silently shadowed the clueless human until he stopped at his car and turned to see an unexpected guest.
"Hey? What are you doing? Are you stalking me?" The human looked suspicious. "Did Vin send you? Oh, my... he sent you to get his dues. I... I don't have it on me right now, but I will get it. I... I'm working a couple of jobs that'll get him so much dough that I'll... that I'll... I'll be able to pay for a whole year!" He dropped his umbrella and fell to his knees. "Just don't kill me yet, please? I'm tryin'. I really am."
Zim felt very confused. "I wasn't sent by anyone. I just wanted to avoid the rain."
"Don't kill me. Please don't kill me." The man kept on muttering.
"I'm not gonna kill..." Zim's skin started sizzling and hissing. "Ouch! Oh, it burns!" He began running, hoping that he'd find some protection from the rain.
.*.*.
A smile crept upon Gaz's face as she gingerly held the box containing the very device that claimed to be the best GS by far and this time, she was first in line. She stayed at the mall for a while when she was challenged by an amateur claiming that he was the best in his town before he moved here and had heard about Gaz's well known skill. The poor fool never had a chance. An ambulance had to come by the mall to pick up the blabbering idiot. When they tried to take him, he resisted and fought back so harshly that the EMTs had to put him under anesthesia. As reward for her beating the kid, she had received the new game to the Vampire Piggy Hunter saga, courtesy of the stupid boy.
Despite the scary smile, Gaz was very angry at the weather, but she still walked with victory in her stance. She reached the corner where the alien had saved her. She remembered that the rain could hurt him and without thinking, she wondered if he had made it home okay. There was a lack of cars on the road so Gaz crossed the slick street and continued on her way home. The only creatures lurking about in a storm other than Gaz were hobos, feral animals, and citizens quickly making their way home. No one paid attention to Gaz as she strolled down along the sidewalk that she ran on earlier. Many of the stores she had passed were now closed in account of the heavy rainfall.
Normally, she wouldn't have a problem being alone and unnoticed, but after being saved by the alien, something felt wrong about the storm. It was when she reached a store with a fabric patio shade that she saw him slouching in a metal chair with his bags of groceries on the table next to him. His clothes were noticeably soaked and his normally lively green skin was now pale and blotchy with an odd xanthous hue.
"Hey." Gaz said quietly. Zim acknowledged the presence of the Dib-sister. "Are... are you alright?" Ordinarily, Gaz wouldn't care if anyone was in pain and/or dying, but this... being did save her earlier and she didn't like having to owe someone, much less the alien.
"Oh, yes. I'm fine. Fruity as you humans like to say."
She sat in the other chair with a slight huff. "I think you mean 'peachy' and there's no need to get all snappy. I was just asking you a question. I had no idea that you were against people asking question of you."
"I'm not!" He snapped then looked regretful. "Uh, I mean, I'm not. It's just that I'm stuck here until this pestiferous precipitation ceases to descend. At the present moment, my garb, being made of Irken materials, contributes to this persistent stinging that the binary compound poisons me with."
"You know, you could wear regular human clothes that could protect you better than your Irken fabric and help you last longer in the rain." Gaz commented, taking in mind that the alien was badly hurt, but knew that he wouldn't admit it.
Zim winced at the information. "I'd preferably not have to be any more human than I have to, so wearing human made habiliments are not an selection for myself."
Gaz sighed at the green being's lack of insight. "Whether you want to be human or not, wearing our clothes might help you survive better in not only water, but endure meat as well."
"Perhaps, but even if I do acquire human apparel, I can't go anyplace until this mock tempest is placid."
"What is with the vocab, Zim?" Gaz lightly laughed, something she didn't do often.
"I'm sure that Dib-stink has told you of the transmission my Tallest sent me a few years ago?" Gaz nodded. "Well, during my time here after I've been discharged of my duties, I've taken to reading what I can about the humans since I'll be stuck here until I die. All my readings have involved many dictionaries in many languages as well as history books and fiction novels."
"Really?" Gaz asked.
Zim positively hummed. "I do like to turn back to the fiction authors Terry Pratchett and Piers Anthony. The worlds each of them have created are purely wonderful and creative unlike authors of today where everything seemly is about werewolves and vampires and star-crossed lovers, much like Romeo and Juliet gone wrong basically."
"Tell me about it. When I'm not on my GS, I'd be reading, but the latest books are too romantically inclined and fantasy based. Sometimes, I'd be so desperate to read that I'd read my father's books about himself and his amazing discoveries."
"Ah. I've read the professor's books. I notice that he treats his experiments like his children and his children like experiments. I mean no offense, of course, but it seems true."
Gaz sighed. "Yeah, but Dib and I are used to it. Ever since our mother disappeared, our dad has become an annual fatherly figure. Dib and I raised ourselves pretty much."
"I'm sorry. I amazingly wish I knew what it was like to have parents, alas I was born in a tube. I had no one to at least tell me I was doing wrong." Zim sighed and slunk deeper into his chair. "I broke so many Irken laws, hurt many other beings in my deluded state of mind, and killed those I wish I didn't kill in the first place."
Gaz raised an eyebrow. "You actually killed someone?"
"Not just anyone." Zim sat up, placing his hands on the table and faced Gaz with intention. "I killed the most amazing Tallests in Irken history. Because of my stupidity, I killed them. Because of my stupidity, I attacked half of my planet during Impending Doom Part One and created fires so monumental, they were horrific. Because of my stupidity, I was sent here to have no part in Impending Doom Part Two." His eyes glittered suddenly as he stared at the wall of rain behind Gaz. "I haven't tried ridding the universe of myself, but now that I think of it." He stood up and walked to the edge of the patio cover. His contacted eyes glazed over as he passed the human. "Maybe it'd be better this way." He murmured to himself, but Gaz still heard him.
Gaz seaw the lean muscles in the alien's leg twitch in response to his brain patterns. The leg then lifted toward the storm with the point of his feet confidently pointing in the air while his heel gained height and distance. The distance look on his face also seemed calm and at ease with his decision. Gaz knew, in her head, that he was going to try to kill himself. The rain pitter-pattered on his foot and although she saw the smoke coming off of him, he wasn't retreating. He began to take another step until something in the girl's head clicked.
"Wait!" She cried, jumping out of her seat, knocking both of them unto the water covered sidewalk. She lifted herself to her hands, seeing that she had landed on top of the alien, covering most of his body with her own. "Don't go killing yourself. That is a coward's way to deal with the problems of the world and I won't allow it because if anyone is going to suffer, I'm going to be the cause. Now, I'm going to drag your pathetic body back to the table and prepare you for a painful stroll."
Zim just nodded and laid his head on the concrete despite the water burning his head. Gaz sighed as she planted her feet on the ground, taking one of his legs and pulled the alien, none too gently, back into safety. She, then, grabbed a hold of Zim's uniform and brought him to his feet.
"Take one bag and I'll take the other." She ordered while placing her GS box into the bag she's taking. Suddenly, she turned to face the alien and placed her toes up against his, forcing both of them to look into the other's eyes. "If you linger even for a moment out there, I'll banish you to the nightmare worlds where there is no hope of escaping."
"I understand perfectly." Zim replied with a straight face.
"Good." Secretly, Gaz was a little dumbstruck because Zim would be the first being to not cower before her and her 'evil eye'. "We're going to run in the rain to the next safe cover and repeat until we get to your house. Got it?" Zim nodded and clutched the bag tightly in his arms. Gaz did the same for the bag in her own arms and slightly smiled at the alien. "Ready?"
"No, but I'll survive." Zim answered.
Gaz somewhat growled and faced toward the distance, calculating about how far they had to go until the next stop. "Go!"
Gaz and Zim plunged into the storm and pelted along the sidewalk with determination. Gaz's violet hair became heavy with water and stuck to the sides of her face and her forehead as her own clothes were weighing her down. She became very conscious on how mush faster the alien was running than her. Although, Zim was having problems of his own. His clothes were wet from his first attempt to make it home in the rain and they were beyond soaked, sticking to him worse than glue did. Occasionally, water droplets landed directly on his eyes and temporarily blinded him, forcing him to base where he was running by his using other senses even though he couldn't focus very well with his antennas hidden under the damned wig.
They sighted an outdoor coffeehouse with it's tables covered by oversized pastel colored umbrellas. Zim smiled at the vision of safety while Gaz frowned at the fact that she'd have to get out of the rain that she desired so. They made it to a table, heavily breathing and collapsed into a couple of chairs next to each other.
"I have to say... that this has to be the... most fun I've had... being in danger." Zim stated between breaths.
"Then you haven't been in danger much." Gaz stated back knowing very well that he had been in many a fight with her brother who was a very good opponent although she'd never admit that to Dib. He had a big enough head as it is.
"Maybe I should spend more time with you." Zim said absentmindedly.
Gaz jerked her head to face Zim. "What?"
Zim lowered his head. "Nothing. I said nothing."
In truth, Gaz heard what he said and actually liked that he even mentioned that possibility. No one wanted to really spend extended time with her in fear of saying or doing something wrong and getting sent to the respected nightmare worlds. Gaz placed her bag down to wring out her hair, just so she can have an excuse to move around. Zim was silently berating himself for even saying anything to her, but what was puzzling him the most was that she was here helping him from a slow and painful death. When they were younger, she wouldn't have given a crap about him and now? Now she's actually caring or... was it just because he saved her life first?
Either way, he couldn't think too deeply about it. His skin hadn't been this harmed in years and the pain was getting to his head. The already blurry environment was even blurrier in Zim's vision. The only thing he could see clearly was the outdoor table, his grocery bags, and the human girl. When they had to run again, he'd have to stick closer to her than he was sure she wanted and for some odd reason, he couldn't get his dream out of his head. What would the girl have to do with him? Gaz quickly got up to shake out her hair despite the fact that they're going back out into the rain. She flipped her head back and noticed that Zim is staring at her.
"What?" She snapped. Zim's trance was broken at her harsh word and adjusted his gaze to his lap. "We're about to break for another area. Get ready." She grabbed her bag and turned to the sidewalk again.
Once she turned, Zim quietly sighed, gathered his bag, and stood just behind Gaz. She could feel his presence and counted down from three. At the word 'go', they leaped back into the rain, dodging falling rain drops. All around them, the city was unusually quiet and still as if the world wanted the two running creatures to be solitary as the next safe point was coming up to them. All of a sudden, Zim blindly stumbled and grabbed unto Gaz's hand; she stopped running to catch him by his shoulders, both of them dropping the bags. She pulled him to his feet only for him to slip on a puddle and cause her to fall backward toward a building wall. He was being pulled along by Gaz's firm grip. Once Zim regained his balance, he sighed contentedly, and discovered that Gaz was very close and very warm.
Gaz saw this, too, since she couldn't really look anywhere but at the tall alien. Her back was up against a wall and her arms were resting on his shoulders. His own were, thankfully, on the building wall although they are on either side of her, shadowing her curves. They could hear the other breathing from the exertion of running, but each being could feel that it was probably not just that. Gaz had never allowed any being this close to her and in all honesty, it was rather nice especially in the rain. With Zim, his society didn't allow close personal contact with anyone, but at that moment, he didn't understand why it was not allowed; it was positively enjoyable, despite the rain, which was blocked by the building at the moment.
Gaz couldn't help but be curious about Zim and pulled her arms in to bring him closer to her. When she could feel his hot breath brush her face, she gently slid her eyes closed, and lightly pressed her lips on his. Zim didn't have any idea what was going on while the girl touched him, but his entire body felt renewed and oddly relaxed. His feet inched closer to the wall, forcing himself to be closer to the human as his hands slid against the wall until they came into slight contact with Gaz's sides. He heard the human hum and felt the sound vibrate against his own lips while she idled her arms farther around his neck and slithered her hand under the wet wig, gripping one of his antennas with desire.
Something terrible and great coursed through the alien as the feeling of his most sensitive parts of his form was touched and tugged. His hands abruptly gripped the girl's waist, pulling her all the more closer to him adding to Gaz's own desire as she lost her breath from the move. She pulled him to her again using her open mouth to attack Zim's with her slick tongue. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she could hear her brother screaming at her about how this was such a bad idea, that she shouldn't be fraternizing with the enemy, but that just made her all the most excited to continue this curiosity of hers.
Zim, on the other hand, couldn't think while the human girl tugged on his antenna. It was like trying to think past a heavy dose of sleeping medication, but he could still take in everything around him. The rain was still falling with a more hurried pace, the occasional lightening split the sky, rolling thunder glided across the city, and the girl before him was in no hurry to run again. His hands explored the outline of Gaz's body without making her mad about lack of personal space, which Zim thought is ironic because of their present distance to each other.
Suddenly, something clicked in Gaz's head. She didn't let people close to her for a reason. She pushed Zim away from her and into the rain. Smoke rose up from his body as his face looked very confused. She ignored him as she picked up both of the dropped bags and walked to the dry patch of the city. At first, he didn't follow, but eventually she heard him slowly follow her. For once, she felt sorry that she made someone upset, but she couldn't let him know; the closer she could get to him could only end up with him in serious danger.
In this area, there weren't any chair or tables, just benches, so Gaz placed the ripping paper bags on the bench, keeping herself looking away from the alien. The memory of her first kiss already seemed like a long time ago, but she had to stop it. Zim shuffled his feet to stand behind Gaz.
"What was that?" He asked softly.
Silence for a moment. "What was what?" She clipped.
"What happened back there? What was that?"
"That is called a kiss, idiot. Don't you know what that is?" She said with forced anger.
"I may have been here for a few years and read many novels about romance, but that, back there, wasn't like I've read. The books haven't done that human sign of affection any justice. I just wanted to make sure it was what I thought it was."
Her head turned slightly to the side so that he could see her profile. "Yeah, well, now you know." She quickly turned back.
Zim was very bewildered by her sudden anger. "Have... did I do something wrong?"
No. She said in her head. You did everything so right, but I can't risk you getting hurt. She sighed and thought of a lie. "Yes, Zim. You did something you shouldn't have."
"What did I do?"
'Nothing!' She screamed inside her mind. "That's for me to know."
"But..."
Gaz interrupted. "We're about to go again. Do you want to carry a bag?"
Silently, Zim grabbed a bag, still wondering what he did wrong. Gaz shot off in the rain, unannounced, leaving Zim behind. Zim zoomed forward with irritability at Gaz's sudden mood change. He tried to catch up with her at first, but she was very fast; at least, she was until she slowed down when she had gone past her limit. At this point, Zim took to running beside her until the next dry area at a bus stop. She placed her bag down and thought about how much longer they had to go until they reach Zim's base.
"Good news. We only have to run once more until you can be safe in your 'house'."
"That's great." Zim said, not really caring about getting home. "What is your problem?"
"I don't have a problem."
Zim growled and gripped the infuriating girl by her upper arms to pull her up to him. "There is something wrong with you. At first, you didn't have a problem with even talking to me. Is it just because I saved you earlier today?"
"It's not just that." Gaz replied. "You appear broken and tired. If anything, you may be lonely."
"Lonely?" Zim barked. "I live with Gir, Mini-moose, and another Irken. I'm not lonely."
Gaz looked down. "I'm lonely, too, you know. I may live with my brother and see my father every now and then, but I'm still lonely." She met Zim's eyes. "Just because you live with other people doesn't mean you can't be lonely. I guess the only difference between your loneliness and mine is that mine is by choice."
"Why by choice?" Zim softened his grips on her.
"I... I don't want to say." Gaz looked away to her side, trying to get away from Zim's hold all together.
"You wanted to help me, but you don't want to help yourself?"
"I can't help myself. I'm already lost in my own nightmare world. I have no way out."
"What about the kiss we just shared? Did you feel lonely then because I know I didn't." Zim whispered.
Gaz took that in and smiled. "No. I felt happy." A frown quickly replaced the smile. "But I can't. The last time I was close to someone, she died."
"'She'? Do you mean your mother unit? What happened?" Zim inquired.
Gaz realized what she almost gave away and twisted herself out of the alien's hold. "I can't tell you. Just... just get your stuff and run. You can make it home well enough on your own from here."
Zim gathered his ruined bags and almost turned to leave when he shifted his things to one arm and caught Gaz by her waist. "I'll see you again and we'll talk about this, okay?"
Gaz slowly nodded until Zim pressed his lips to hers and left just as quickly as he had saved her. "I'm going to send you to the nightmare world for that!" She yelled after him as his figure slowly disappeared into the distance.
She turned to leave for her own home when she realized that she had no choice to see him again. He had her new GS.