Ch. 10: The Day After

Gaz opened her eyes and saw the light from the morning sun shine on the rest of her room. She looked at the clock and saw that it was ten to seven. She readjusted her position and felt something soft against her. She turned and saw Zim looking at the ceiling.

"Zim?" Gaz whispered.

"Morning," he said.

"What? What the-"

"Nothing happened," Zim said. Gaz sighed in relief and relaxed. She finally realized that she hadn't even taken her clothes off from the night before. She wiggled her feet and noticed her shoes were the only things that she had bothered to slip off. "Are you disappointed or something?"

"What? No. I just promised not to do anything until I was married," Gaz said.

"That's a good promise to keep," Zim said. He shifted and hugged Gaz as they both laid on their sides.

"Thanks. Did you even sleep?" Gaz asked in hopes that a conversation would wake her up.

"I'm not sure. The last thing I remember, I was watching you sleep."

"Creeper."

Zim lightly flicked Gaz on the forehead. Gaz gently kicked him in the shin in return.

"Ow!"

"That didn't hurt."

"And?" Zim asked. Gaz smiled. "I'll have to draw you again. The lighting in the last picture wasn't nearly as beautiful as this."

"I'll have to repay you for that, by the way."

"No need."

Gaz kissed Zim and then looked at the clock. It was seven. She snuggled up against Zim and then as a thought struck her she tensed.

"What about Dib?" Gaz asked. "He doesn't know you're here. If he finds out.."

"I'll leave after you do," Zim said reassuringly.

"...I guess that'll work. It's too bad we have school today. I would've loved to lay here all day," Gaz said.

"At least we have about forty minutes before we have to go. It's a twenty minute walk to the school from here."

"Isn't that why you usually take the bus?" Zim asked.

"Yeah," Gaz said sleepily. She started to doze off in Zim's arms after a what felt like a few minutes of silence and then heard a knock on her door.

"Gaz? C'mon, we have school today," Dib said through the door. Gaz's dolls woke up and got ready to attack Dib if he dared to pick the lock.

"I'm getting up," Gaz said. She heard Dib walk down the stairs.

"I forgot to mention that I like the dolls. When did you modify them?" Zim asked.

"Way back when I was little. They're supposed to eat human flesh. Dib has always run away fast enough, though. They've never tasted it," Gaz explained.

"Then I suppose I wouldn't appeal to them?" Zim asked.

"No," Gaz said with a tired chuckle. "Just stay up here until you hear the door shut. Wait about five minutes, and then unlock it from the inside. After you open it, don't forget to lock it again like you did last night so it stays locked for the day."

"I will," Zim promised. He kissed Gaz on the head. "It's seven fifteen."

"I don't want to get up," Gaz said stubbornly.

"I don't want you to," Zim said. "But you have to."

"I know," Gaz said. She uncoiled herself from the sheets and stood up. She ordered her stuffed animals to sleep and then set them back on their shelves. She picked her clothes out and then headed to the bathroom to change and shower.

~(*)~

Gaz had tried her best to not seem tense while she and Dib left for school. She saw Dib lock the door, and then they started down the street. She had to resist the urge to look back after they had turned the corner. Dib started to talk about the Mysterious Mysteries he had seen the night before, and Gaz drowned him out as usual.

~(*)~

Zim waited for five minutes after the door shut and then opened Gaz's door. He peered down the hall, and carefully walked down the stairs as he fixed his disguise back on his head properly. When he reached the house door, he unlocked it and stepped out. He locked and shut it again behind him. He began to walk briskly down the sidewalk.

~(*)~

Throughout the day, Gaz was actually eager to get to detention so that she could see Zim. Because she was younger, and therefore in a lower class than her brother, she didn't have any classes with Zim or Dib. She was nervously playing her Game Slave in her last class before lunch when the bell rang. She was the first out the door.

Outside, the younger children were playing on the jungle gym and the swings. Older students were either leaning on the side of the building or under trees. Gaz spotted Zim leaning against a brick wall across the school's courtyard. He was separate from any other students and was standing under the shade of an oak tree. Gaz walked over to him and leaned against the wall beside him.

"You didn't bring your lunch?" Zim asked.

"I ate during my last class," Gaz said. "The teacher doesn't teach us anything new, I haven't bothered to pay attention all year and I'm still passing."

"You're one of the more intelligent humans," Zim said. "That's one of the reasons I'm drawn to you."
Gaz fought a blush and looked up at the clouded sky. "Did anyone see you leave my house?"

"I believe no one saw," Zim said. "I locked the door just like you said."

"Thanks," Gaz said. She looked around the courtyard and saw some kids shooting them glances and others whispering as they did so. Gaz flipped a majority of them off and they distanced themselves further from her. Zim looked down at Gaz.

"Was that necessary?" he asked.

"I don't care," Gaz said. She readjusted her back pack and slid down the wall until she was sitting. Zim sat next to her. "Can I come by your house again? I want to learn more Irken."

"I'm not objecting," Zim said.

"I'd punch you if you did," Gaz said sarcastically. Zim smiled and elbowed Gaz in the arm. She elbowed him back and stuck her tongue out at him. "How far did we get last time?"

"You learned ten characters," Zim said.

"That isn't much," Gaz said. She leaned against Zim and started to toy with her shirt's fabric.

"Where's the Dib-stink?" Zim asked as he scanned the courtyard.

"He's probably waiting for me in the lunch room," Gaz said. "If he comes out looking for me, I'll send him back in."

"He won't go," Zim said.

"He'll go whether I force him to or not," Gaz said. Zim smiled again in despite of himself.

"The bell rang," he said.

"What?" Gaz looked out to the courtyard as Zim started to stand. Students were filing inside the school. Zim helped Gaz up. He handed her a slip of paper and they both entered the school in seperate entrances to their own class halls. When Gaz sat in her next class she saw the phone number on the paper and smirked as she added it to her own phone's contacts list.

~(*)~

"I can't come," Gaz said on the phone.

"Is Dib-stink making you stay home?" Zim asked.

"No, it's family night. We had already this week, but it was pretty lame, so we're going out again to make up for it. Usually, some families spend one night a week together as a way of bonding because they're too busy the rest of the week," Gaz explained.

"We don't have these on Irk," Zim said.

"You don't have families on Irk," Gaz said. When she got no response she sighed. "Sorry."

"It didn't offend me," Zim said.

"Uh-huh. Anyway, it was Dib's turn to pick and he chose a movie. A paranormal one, of course. I'll be listening to him spout mistakes about the movie the entire night after we see it," Gaz said. She opened her closet and started sifting through which jacket to wear.

"Ignore him as I'm sure you usually do," Zim said.

"I'm planning on it. I'm not even going to watch the movie. I'll just be sitting in my seat with my Game Slave on," Gaz said as she tossed a possible jacket choice on her bed. "They can toss me out if I'm distracting people, I'll happily leave."

"You could come then," Zim said. Gaz heard Gir scream in the background and sighed.

"I don't have a license," Gaz said. "If I get pulled over I'll get jailed, and my dad would ground me for weeks," Gaz explained.

"I'll pick you up," Zim said.

"I'd appreciate that, but only if I get kicked out," Gaz said. She took out another jacket and laid it next to the first. She judged them and picked up the first.

"I understand," Zim said. Gir screamed again and Gaz noticed it was significantly closer. She then heard a bang.

"Did you just kick him?" Gaz asked as she put on her jacket, holding her phone between her ear and her shoulder. When she had one sleeve securely on, she switched the phone to her other ear to put on the other sleeve.

"Possibly," Zim said. Gaz smiled and shook her head as she buttoned her jacket. There was a knock on her door.

"Gaz! It's time to go!" Dib shouted. Gaz held the cell phone away from her.

"I'm almost ready," Gaz said. She put the cell phone back to her ear. "I have to go."

"I heard," Zim said.

"I'll see you at school tomorrow. I love you," Gaz said.

"I love you, my queen," Zim said. Gaz smiled as she hung up her phone and stuffed it and her Game Slave into her jacket's pockets.