Ok, ok, ok, I lied. I will under NO circumstances stop posting this. Just, show some loooooove, it makes going through the head ache of cleaning this up so much more worth it and makes me feel less guilty for making our beta fix up our mistakes.

Beta: LinksAngel

LOVE US!

Dib smiled. "Great then!" He pulled his arms around Zim, giving him a relaxed hug before pulling away. That felt great! To be able to hug a friend, not an enemy.

Zim blinked before smirking and saying, "That was a much better hug, Dib-beast."

"Eh? Oh, right." Dib chuckled some, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

Zim snickered at how Dib reacted and handed the human the remote.

"You make it so easy to tease you Dib." He noted.

"Hm? What do you mean?" Dib asked, turning towards the TV now, sitting criss cross.

"You just kind of walk into things. No work needed on my part." Zim said with the wave of a hand.

Dib seethed. "Yeah, I suppose... I guess that's my pride getting in the way of things." Dib rested his head on his hands.

"Aw, don't take it so personally, Dib-stink, just be glad I only like to tease you and have few thoughts of becoming friends with you." Zim said, leaning back with his arms over the couch.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm glad. Geesh." He frowned, obviously letting Zim win purposefully. He then smiled. "If you're not careful though, all of this teasing and friendship will make me TOUCH you." He threatened lightheartedly.

"You lie." Zim declared, giving Dib a 'don't you DARE' look.

"Or am I?" Dib smirked. "You can be easy to tease too, you know."

"Nuh-uh." Zim whined, pouting like a child.

Dib pointed a finger and laughed. "Yuh-huh! See?"

"NUH-UH!" Zim almost yelled, pouting harder.

"Yuh-huh!!!" Dib chuckled, holding his finger out inches away from the other's face.

Zim growled and swatted at the finger.

"How'd your arm get hurt Dib?" He asked innocently, pointing to the stitch job he did.

"I figured you'd be more conscious about it this time… and I think I was right." He looked down at his swatted finger with just small scratches. He smiled, pulling back. "But you can get teased easily too."

"If you say so, Dib-stink." Zim said, clearly unconvinced. He shifted around on the couch until he was sitting on it upside down with his legs propped up on the top and his head hanging off the seat.

Dib would watch the TV, then watch the upside down Zim, back and forth. Without asking why he was like that, he decided to copy the move Zim had done, and also prop himself upside down, if for nothing else, to mock Zim.

Zim blinked curiously at Dib before smirking, wondering how long the human could let the blood collect in his brain like that before he got dizzy and had to sit up. Turning his head back to the TV caused his wig to fall off, which he whined about, his head suddenly cold.

Dib stayed like that for a while, TV becoming much more entertaining upside down.

The boy's head started to throb unfortunately, hurting a bit. But-- Zim was still in this position, so he didn't want to stop or he'd lose this mini battle.

Zim looked over at Dib, snickering and saying, 'Your face is getting red, human."

It hurt, but he wasn't going to let Zim know that. "I'm thinking of something naughty!"

"Oh? What kind of naughty?" Zim asked, smirking wider but showing actual interest.

Dib made up something off of the top of his head. "You in a thong."

Zim deadpanned. "Meh-me in a... ...thong?"

Dib took this embarrassed moment as his opportunity to go right side up without losing due to Zim's distraction. "Why, yes. Yes indeed. A sparkly thong.. with laces and tassels."

Zim also sat up, still staring in that 'my brain's bleeding' kinda way, a small blush forming on his cheeks. "Why-why would you be picturing that?"

Dib stared, smirking at Zim until his smirks turned into snickers, which eventually led to a light laugh. "I'm joking, Zim. I wasn't imagining you in a thong, don't worry." However, just yesterday or the day before he had imagined him in lingerie, the alien didn't need to know that.

Zim sighed in relief, his antennae relaxing back into their normal position.

"It's funny, if I didn't know any better, I'd think your reaction was… almost human." Dib giggled.

Zim crossed his arms and turned his head to the side, saying, "I don't know what you're talking about."

Dib grinned. "You were blushing!"

"N-nuh-uh." Zim said, looking at Dib in disbelief.

"You still are." He snickered, obviously winning this one.

"Am not!" Zim argued, though the hot feeling in his face contradicting him.

Dib pulled his face down closer to the upside-down green one. "You are." He grinned wickedly to those disguised eyes.

Zim opened his mouth as if to say something but nothing came out. Finally had growled, and pouted for lack of anything better to do.

Dib just smirked and turned his attention back onto the black and white channel on TV. Hours slowly crawled by until hunger slowly stripped Dib of his comfort, causing a distressful groan.

"You know, for a famous paranormal investigator you house looks very... normal." Zim noted, turning his attention back to Dib.

"What, were you expecting me to just have all of my rare findings just hanging around on the walls or something? No, no, I keep all of those in a separate room… My own, small personal collection." Dib explained, standing up and going towards the kitchen.

Zim sat up, his antennae perking up curiously, his wig left forgotten on the ground. Zim then followed Dib into the kitchen, asking, "What are you making?"

"I'm making soup. Wants some?" He mumbled nonchalantly, looking in the cabinets.

"Sure," Zim said, following Dib around the kitchen to watch what he did.

Dib took two cans of tomato soup, and took it to the wall can opener. "Later tonight, I might make a margarita. Want to try one of those as well?" He asked as the metal chewing device grinded away the lid of the can.

"Sure." Zim said, antennae twitching at the annoying sound the can opener made.

Dib plopped the liquidy tomato into bowls before putting one in the microwave, turning it on. "Alright. Just don't get drunk off of it. I may know how humans react but, I'm a little worried about you."

"Zim will be fine." Zim said, waving a hand nonchalantly.

'It's not you I'm worried about.' Dib ran a hand through his hair until the 'ding' went off on the microwave. He pulled the hot soup out and set it on the counter, sliding it gently over to Zim and fetching him a spoon.

"There. You shouldn't have any reactions to this." He then put his own cold bowl in the microwave.

"Ok," Zim said, sitting down on one of the kitchen stools and poking at his soup before taking a spoon full.

Dib turned and watched Zim's reaction to the soup carefully, awaiting feedback.

Zim looked confused for a moment, not entirely sure what to think.

"I like it." He said after a while.

The microwave dinged. "Good." He said, making it unclear on what he was 'gooding' about purposefully as he pulled his own bowl out and sat it across from Zim with a spoon.

Zim ignored this and took another spoonful, swishing the soup around in his mouth before swallowing it.

Dib calmly blew on his own soup before putting some in his mouth. With every sip the silence did creep over him, making a little uncomfortable, though he wouldn't show it.

"Zim, after the planner comes here tomorrow, would you like to go shopping with me- so you can pick out things that you can eat?"

"Ok," Zim said, nodding a little.

"Okay." The air seemed to grow staler and staler to Dib as he sipped on his soup. The bowl emptied on the table, Dib let out a hearty sigh.

"Something wrong?" Zim asked, pushing away his own empty bowl, his antennae perking up curiously.

Dib stood up, picking up their plates and taking them to the sink. "No, not really. It just seems as though we've got nothing to say. It's kind of lonesome." He answered, pouring water in the bowls before walking out of the kitchen.

"I... don't know what to say. I'm not very good with relating to other people if you haven't noticed." Zim said, following Dib.

"Really? They seem to relate with you, better than me." Dib replied, starting up the stairs and checking back to see if Zim would follow.

Zim did follow, oddly enough just wanting to stick to Dib at the moment. "Then maybe you should tell me more about yourself, give me something TO relate to instead of the annoying whiney kid who used to chase me around with alien sleep cuffs."

Dib coughed nervously into his hand, pulling over to his room. "That was one time, Zim. One time! But... what would you like to know? I'm… pretty boring." Dib looked tiresome at the med table he forgot to retract after Zim stitched up his arm.

"I know you are." Zim said, walking over to the table to examine a few things. "Just, tell me about what your life was like before the mighty Zim came, what did you do, why do you have an interest in hunting aliens? Things like that."

"Let's see…" Dib flopped back in a laying position on his bed. "I was one of those nerds who were always in their studies… and... I would read up the best I could on aliens and big feet and nessie, and... well, I guess you could say I over obsessed, much like I do today... But, I guess after Mom died, that's when I came mainly obsessed with the paranormal." He let out a drawn out sigh escape his lips. "Dad spread a rumor after Mom died that I was insane, and eventually it hit the ears of normal adults, and those adults told their kids, and 'Hey! Guess what! I got stuck in the class with the insane boy! Man his head is huge.'" He rolled his eyes.

Zim picked up a small surgical knife to examine, looking at Dib to see if he could possibly sneak it out of the room and hide it in the bathroom, just in case. "So, you were, like, never happy? Huh?"

Dib's eyes stayed glued to the ceiling. "I'm always happy, what are you talking about? I love what I do. It wasn't you who changed my mood towards anything; if anything, really, I think you made me happier cause it gave me more motivation to do what I love."

Zim slipped the knife quickly into his glove and said, "Thanks... I guess."

Dib shrugged. "My motivation on chasing aliens is simply that I cant let Earth go to the dogs, so to speak."

"Despite how badly everyone treats you?" Zim a said, glaring at Dib.

"Yeah, actually." Dib answered, a bit begrudgingly against Zim for hitting the topic.

"Why?" Zim asked, leaning down and putting his hands on either side of Dib's head as if to prevent him from escaping. "I could offer you so MUCH MORE than these pathetic humans could. You're wasting your talents on this FILTH."

"Why would you waste your talents on me?" Dib asked, trying to avert the question, feeling heat climb onto his face, and his heart feeling an uneven stutter.

"Because you are not like the other humans. You are intelligent. And not just the knowledgeable kind either. You actually have some SENSE." Zim said eyes wide. "You and me, we could rule the world. All you have to do is turn you back on the planet that turned its back on you."

"Earth didn't turn its back on me... They thought their treatment towards me were necessary due to the rumor I was insane. It's acceptable, and I don't care about all that..." Dib whispered. "And… anyway, I thought we weren't going to talk of our responsibilities..." The human tried to swallow down his blush, failing miserably at the Irken's strong words of encouragement.

"I can't help it. I'm programmed for loyalty, I have to think of my empire first and having you on my side would be VERY beneficial." Zim said, sighing and slumping down on the floor.

Dib pulled himself up, and looked down below on the ground. He sadly looked over to his stitches, the thick plastic wire adding up with what Zim said. "So… when you helped me last night... it was part of you're plan? You have a plan?"

"I already told you why I helped you last night. I felt bad for scratching you. And no there is no plan. This... marriage is all I've been able to think about." Zim said, picking at the seam on his pants.

"And what do you think of it?" Dib asked nonchalantly, trying his best not to perk his voice in interest.

"I think it's stupid, and I hate being used like this." Zim said, almost sadly.

"Yeah. I guess I sort of get that." Dib pulled back on the bed once more, out stretching his arms, and leaving a sigh.

"Of COURSE you do." Zim said, crossing his arms.

Dib nodded. "My dad wants to use me, so I used you. I'm sorry. That's the way it works."

"If you say so." Zim said, not in the mood to fight.

Dib rolled onto his stomach, resting his head on arms. "Why are you so emo? I'm back you know, so you don't have to be…"

Zim shrugged, saying, 'It's just become a habit I guess. Since I got taller my minds become clearer and, I don't know, I guess I just realized I should be miserable, so I am."

"Wrong… If you're miserable then you're miserable. You don't have to make yourself even more miserable! Just make yourself happy like I am. Find a hobby you enjoy or something."

"But there's nothing on Earth that I enjoy doing other that trying to conquer it."

"You said you liked tinkering…" Dib retorted softly.

"Yes but your human technology is so far behind its only fun for a little bit before I start getting frustrated." Zim said, laying his head on the bed behind him.

"Then make something knew." Now Zim was making DIB frustrated.

"Maybe," Zim said, tilting his head a little to look at Dib.

"You sit on that for a while. I'm going to go to bed." Dib said, crawling up to his pillow, comfortable with sleeping in his clothes today. He took off his glasses, giving him a blurry vision of the alien. "Tomorrow we have that wedding planner thing so…" he shrugged. "Brace yourself."

Zim stood up and brushed himself off, saying, "I'll head to bed too then."

Dib yawned, sinking into his bed. "Good… night then…" He turned over the blanket on his shoulder, already closing his eyes and letting his guard down.

Zim just stared at Dib for a moment, about to consider it but instead shook his head, muttering a, "'night." Before walking out into a hall. He quickly went into the bathroom and opened up the cabinets under the sink, sticking the knife he stole from Dib there before going back out and into his own room, sighing as he shut the door behind him.

Dib tossed and turned in his sleep. A nightmare lurked in his dark world of dreams, hissing and churning his mind, licking him with a deep poison causing Dib to break out in a sweat as he tossed and turned till morning.

Zim: Me

Dib: The Almighty Smallest!