Zim woke up in a cold sweat. He didn't bother to glance at the clock and see what time it was - he just sat up quickly and took a few deep breaths. Ray's not human. Ray's not human. Ray's not human. His nightmares were the proof - Ray couldn't possibly be a human.
The day he had first met her had played over and over again. "Well, it's kind of hard to explain. It just makes me feel weird, and there's not much more I can say." He found himself standing in the middle of a rainfall with Ray. Both of them were holding umbrellas and staring at the rain around them.
Suddenly, Ray vanished, along with the umbrella Zim held. He dropped to the ground instantly, droplets of water burning his Irken skin. Pain shot through him, and the only thing he could do was scream. This scene repeated itself several times throughout the nightmare.
Ray had told him she was once part of an organization. Vir was her partner. She rarely ever ate, which reminded Zim of his apparent allergies to human food. She didn't ever go out in the rain. There was also the fact that she always had that black backpack...
A few minutes later, Zim had calmed down a bit and could assess his possible options in a bit of a more logical manner. What am I supposed to do? he thought, I can't just ask her if she's human...can I? I can't just...reveal to her who I really am...can I?
Maybe I can just ignore it. We can live our lives as though we're normal, and...and I'll spare her life when I take over Earth. No, that wouldn't work...I would end up telling her everything. We can't stay like this. After all, I...I'm in love with Ray. I can't keep this secret from her anymore.
When Zim finally left his room after debating for several minutes, he noticed that Gir was sitting up on a table and staring out of the window with an intense expression on his face. His tail was wagging erratically, and Zim couldn't help but wonder why he looked so entranced.
"What are you looking at, Gir?" he asked, standing next to the table the little green dog was sitting on. Gir said nothing at first, but then looked up at his master and giggled childishly. Zim was unable to prevent himself from smiling as Gir jumped up onto his head.
"Good morning, Master!" he cried optimistically, "I was just waiting for Ray!" He sprang off of Zim's head and landed on the floor, running around in circles and chasing his tail. "She just walked past, I think." Zim blinked in shock and quickly glanced out of the nearest window.
Earlier that morning, Ray had excitedly rushed up to Dib's house and personally asked him if he wanted to walk to Skool with her. "Hi, Dib!" she had told him cheerfully, "Do you, um...want to walk to Skool with me? I won't bite, I promise." She giggled lightly, although she sounded a bit nervous.
"I was just going to ask you the same thing, actually," Dib admitted, smiling, "I would love to!" Ray grinned, and the two of them began a lighthearted walk to Skool. Mostly, they were just discussing the movie, but while Ray was completely focused on their conversation, Dib's mind was elsewhere.
Something strange is happening, the ten-year-old thought nervously, I...I don't know why, but I'm starting to feel really anxious around Ray. Is this just because we're friends? I don't get it...what is it about her that's making me feel like this? The answers to his questions remained unknown.
Since Dib couldn't find the answers, he decided to forget about them and devote the remaining portion of his thoughts to Ray. She was a few feet ahead of him, skipping along as though she had never been happier. He couldn't help but smile as he walked along behind her.
As Zim glanced out of the window, he noticed that Ray and Dib had just walked past his house. He dashed out of it and onto the sidewalk, but he didn't really have to catch up to the two of them - as soon as Ray heard the sound of feet landing on the pavement, she whirled around and found herself staring into Zim's gray eyes once again. Dib stopped as well, turning slightly and wondering why Ray had just suddenly halted.
Although Ray didn't want to admit it, her heart skipped a beat when she noticed Zim. "...Hey," she began, trying desperately to keep her voice steady, "Good morning, Zim." Dib suppressed a sigh - Zim was interrupting them once again. He just wanted to have a conversation with his friend...
"Good morning, Ray," Zim replied, trying his hardest not to sound nervous, "Um...do you mind if I walk to Skool with you guys?" A part of his mind was snarling at him, telling him to shut up and walk to Skool on his own, but he had learned to ignore that fraction of his thoughts.
Ray smiled cheerfully. "Not at all," she told Zim, "Dib and I were just discussing the movie we saw last night." Their walk resumed, and Ray slowed down to a leisurely walking speed in order to stay beside Zim and Dib as the three of them made their way to Skool.
As they walked, Zim rather abruptly noticed that Dib was giving him what looked like an angry glare. He tried to ignore it, wanting to enjoy his time with Ray, but Dib's brown eyes seemed to be shooting daggers. A stone-cold silence enveloped the two rivals as their eyes locked.
Ray paused, apparently noticing the tension in the air. "The movie last night was really fun, wasn't it?" she asked, attempting to start a conversation and lighten the mood. Dib's glare faded as he looked up at Ray and smiled. She smiled back, happy that she had at least gotten one of them to cheer up.
"Yeah," Dib responded, as though nothing had happened between him and Zim, "It was a lot of fun. I'm glad I got to see it with you." Zim watched the two of them converse, wondering what to say. He wished he could just tell Ray about his feelings for her, but something in his mind was preventing him from doing that.
"So what movie did you two see?" Zim asked, managing a small smile as Ray turned to face him. In actuality, Zim knew nothing about movies, so he highly doubted he would recognize this one's title. Whatever the two of them had seen, it would definitely be new to him.
"It was called Sweet Nightmares," Ray explained, "and it was very interesting." The rest of the walk consisted of Ray continuously alternating who she was talking to. She would either be talking to Zim or Dib - but never both at the same time. She didn't give their rivalry any more thought.
Time passed, and a little while later, Zim, Dib, and Ray arrived at Skool. The air was pleasant and cool, brightening Ray's mood even further as she skipped up to the building. Zim ran along behind her, and Dib followed, hoping he wouldn't enter the classroom completely breathless.
The three of them entered their classroom about a minute before the bell rang. Ray arrived first, but Zim followed immediately. "I'll talk to you after class, okay, Zim?" Ray asked as Zim entered the room, still full of energy. Zim nodded and sat down. Ray walked over to her desk and did the same.
Just as Dib entered the room, the bell rang and the Skool day began. He was almost counted late, but reached his desk just in time. Ray gave him a quick wave before the lesson began and prevented them from communicating any longer.
...
Class was progressing as normal for practically everyone but Zim. His walk to Skool with Ray had made him completely forget about his assumption about her. Although he could restrain himself from staring at her, he couldn't stop thinking about whether Ray was truly human or not.
The evidence of Ray's inhumanness was continuously listed in his mind. Ray doesn't play in the rain. She doesn't eat much. She was once part of an organization. Apparently, she doesn't have parents. She never stops wearing that backpack of hers. She said Vir was her partner. She doesn't have a last name.
But...does that mean Ray is Irken? Zim thought nervously, Why would she be here if that was the case? Is she here to take my place...and my mission? After all, someone has tried to do that before...but they failed. What other reason would there be for her coming to Earth?
...That doesn't sound right. Ray's acting too...well, too nice. If she was here to take my place, she probably would've tried to beat me up from the start. Plus, she's being nice to Dib, which doesn't make much sense. Of course, Ray might not be Irken at all...it's just a guess.
If she isn't Irken, how can I explain her strange behavior? Lack of family? Inhuman actions? Has she already figured out who I really am...? Just then, Zim's inner monologue was interrupted by his teacher snarling at him to pay attention. He sighed and snapped back to reality.
Luckily for Zim, Ray wasn't obsessed with whether Zim was human or not. However, she still had her doubts. She had spent so much time passing Zim's green skin off as some sort of illness, but there were just too many other incriminating facts that made Zim not human.
Ray wasn't thinking about that at the moment, though. She had other things on her mind...like how nice it was to have friends. Despite that, there were still many things she was nervous about - Zim and Dib's rivalry was always somewhere on the list. Number one on this imaginary list, however, was her crush on Zim.
Ray wanted to tell Zim what she really felt about him, but she wasn't sure about what he would say as a response. A part of her mind wanted them to just stay friends and not anything more, but that part was soon overpowered by her overwhelming desire to tell him the truth.
Class ended a few minutes later, and most of the students immediately exited the classroom to head to the cafeteria. Ray, on the other hand, stood in the doorway and waited for Zim to be ready to leave. He got to his feet and approached her, finding it impossible not to smile.
"Hey," he began, voice wavering slightly, "Are you...are you still coming over after Skool?" Dib was standing in the corner of the room, watching as Ray and Zim walked out of the room and began their journey to the lunchroom. He followed them silently, wanting to hear a bit of their conversation.
"Unless you're busy, then I guess so," Ray answered, taking Zim's hand in hers as they made their way down the hall, "You don't mind if I bring Vir along, right?" Zim could barely manage to shake his head, unable to stop blushing. Ray was smiling, but what Zim didn't notice was that she was blushing as well.
Dib watched them, wondering what in the world was wrong with him. After watching Zim and Ray's sugar-sweet conversation, he felt a strange feeling boiling inside him that he had never experienced before. There was only one word to describe this feeling, and it was the only word he couldn't think of.
Jealousy.
...
The final bell rang, and several of the students literally jumped out of their seats to escape the horrid building known as Skool. Ray didn't follow the others just yet - she just sat at her desk for a few short moments and pondered the odd event that had occurred that day at lunch.
She wanted to come up to Dib and ask him why he had given her that look that appeared to be mixed anger and confusion, but he had already left the room. As a matter of fact, he had been the first one out the door. Dib had just wanted to get away from everything.
He wanted to go home and stay there for the entire break from Skool. The ten-year-old wasn't entirely sure why he had felt that strange emotion earlier, but he wanted to spend the break researching it. Likewise, he felt like he had no time to stop and talk to Ray before beginning his investigation.
Ray knew none of this, and felt a little depressed when she noticed that Dib had already left. Just as she got up and was about to follow him, someone tapped her on her shoulder. She turned around quickly, not expecting Zim to be standing right behind her and smiling slightly.
"Hi," he began happily, "What's wrong? You look kind of sad." Ray said nothing and left the room with Zim following her. He had the feeling that she was just thinking about what to say...after all, why would she be blatantly ignoring him? That just wasn't the "Ray" thing to do.
"It's about Dib," she confessed, sighing quietly to herself, "He gave me the strangest look earlier at lunch...without any explanation whatsoever." Zim paused for a moment, but then shrugged, not knowing anything about the odd expressions the paranormal investigator sometimes used.
"Hm...well, I have no idea what he was trying to tell you," Zim told Ray, "but I'll see you in a few minutes, right?" Ray looked up and smiled slightly before nodding. The two of them walked home in silence, unsure about what to say to each other as they approached their houses.
Ironically, both of them were thinking about the same thing - whether the other was human or not. Ray waved quickly at Zim before departing, probably to get Vir before doing anything else. Zim watched her go before entering his own house and immediately being attacked by Gir.
"Master!" he cried excitedly, "Ray's coming over, right?" Zim smiled weakly and nodded, although he found it very difficult to appear happy. Thoughts about Ray were swirling around in his head like a raging tornado, and he wasn't sure how to calm them down.
Gir squealed loudly and sprang off of Zim, running around in little circles and chasing his tail. Zim watched, even finding Gir's usual antics somewhat-depressing. A dark cloud had settled above his head, and he couldn't stop wondering if it would be right to ask Ray if she was human.
A few minutes passed with Gir just running around in circles and Zim wondering what to do. Once these minutes were over, there was a knock at the front door. Zim answered it, predicting that it would be Ray and Vir and watching his prediction come true.
"Hey." Ray began shyly, staring down at her feet. While Gir and Vir played together as though they had known each other forever, Zim and Ray found themselves caught in an awkward silence, each one thinking of the same question and being unable to ask it.
...
Hours passed. Ray paced continuously, her expression distant. Zim watched her, standing a few feet away and wondering what was on her mind. They had spent what seemed like hours saying nothing, but at that very moment, Ray finally broke the silence, shattering it like glass.
"Zim..." she murmured softly, "I...I have a bit of a confession. You see, I'm...I'm really nervous about how our friendship is going." She stopped pacing, staring right into Zim's gray eyes and wishing she knew what to say to him. Why couldn't she just admit her true feelings for him?
"Same here," Zim responded darkly, "As a matter of fact...I'm really nervous right now. I feel like there's some sort of question I should be asking you, but...oh, I just don't know." Ray's eyes widened slightly, but then her expression became a depressed, gloomy one.
Gir and Vir had chased each other into another room, and were now jumping around on Gir's bed. However, they were silent, wanting to hear a bit of Ray's conversation with Zim. As soon as they heard Ray begin, they both stopped jumping and their ears perked up, eager to listen.
Ray took a few steps back and found herself staring out of the nearest window. When she spoke again, her voice sounded faint, as though it was fading away like the memories of an amnesiac. "Zim," she almost-whispered, "...have you ever had a secret that you couldn't tell anyone?"
Zim froze, unable to speak. He couldn't believe Ray had just asked him that. Oh, no, he thought, This is bad. This is really bad. Ray figured it out, didn't she? She knows, doesn't she? Oh, no...no, this can't be happening. She hasn't...she doesn't...oh, no...
Ray stared into Zim's eyes once again. They were filled with nervousness and anxiety...the same emotions she was feeling. She had thought, if she was going to tell Zim any of her secrets, the one she would tell him would be that she had a crush on him. She hadn't expected her heart to steer her off in this direction.
Zim stepped closer, trying to erase his fear with the idea that everything would be alright. "You've figured it out...haven't you?" he asked her, voice wavering, "You know the truth...don't you? The...the otherworldly truth..." Ray looked slightly confused, taking one of Zim's hands in hers.
"I have no idea what you're talking about, Zim," she murmured, "Are you okay?" Zim blinked in shock - he hadn't expected this. He decided that there was no turning back now...it was time to ask. The question that had been eating away at his consciousness for the past twenty-four hours finally surfaced.
"Ray, I have to ask you the question," Zim muttered, unable to avoid Ray's dark-eyed gaze, "Are...are you human?" Many emotions surged through Ray's mind as he asked her this question. She gave in, feeling like a ceiling that had collapsed in on itself. However, she responded with a touch of humor.
"Oh, I don't know..." she remarked nonchalantly, "...are you?" Her expression suddenly became serious again. Ray let go of Zim's hand, facing him head-on with a surprisingly dark stare. Zim had no idea what was going on, finding himself too scared of what was about to happen to respond.
Ray opened her backpack and removed what looked like a can of spray-paint without a label. However, instead of spraying it on a surface that needed to be painted, she sprayed it on herself. Zim watched in shock as her pale skin tone became a light green and her ears and nose appeared to vanish completely.
She pressed what seemed to be a hidden button on her backpack, which rather suddenly turned a lovely silver color. The large spots that now covered the backpack glowed with a strange, pink light as her outfit grew sharper...stronger. It transformed into a uniform Zim was all too familiar with.
A pair of antennae stuck up from Ray's cascade of dark hair and twitched slightly. She removed her contacts, revealing a pair of ruby-red, Irken eyes. Zim was paralyzed - it was like staring into a mirror. Her red eyes were the same as his own.
Ray was gone - standing in front of Zim was a full-fledged Irken invader with long, dark brown hair. Black began to creep into his field of vision, although he didn't know why. Invader Ray watched as Zim staggered a bit, collapsed onto the floor, and passed out.