A/N: Later, Zim seems fine and then sees Dib and starts crying… This is not an error, I'm implying that Dib reminds Zim of how bad he feels… Enjoi!

Zim's POV

I stepped outside for a second, to see what the weather was like. I shivered. Too cold. I went back inside to get a jacket or a hoodie. I looked over at Gir, who was laughing loudly at some humans killing each other on TV.

"Gir?"

He didn't answer.

"Gir!"

Still no answer, but I went on.

"I'm going out for a while. I'll be back in an hour or so."

"'Kaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay…"

I pulled on my black hoodie and went out the door.

I looked up at the sky. The sun was getting low, and I guessed that there were maybe three more hours of daylight. I hung my head, the way I saw so many human teenagers do when they walked. All around me, things were happening. Young children laughed and played in piles of dead leaves; women laughed or argued with one another; men blasted country music from their garages and tried to fix their bicycles or cars. I felt a bitter tear slide down my cheek. Stupid humans and their disgusting habits. They deserved to be destroyed. I could do it if I wanted to… Who cared if the Tallest didn't need me?

A ball rolled over to be and bumped against my leg.

"Hey, Green Boy!" squealed a girl with brown pigtails. "Can you throw me my ball?"

I picked it up and threw it as hard as I could in the girl's direction, and she caught it.

"Thanks, Green Boy!" The girl then seemed to notice my mood. "What's wrong, Green Boy? You look sad!"

"My name isn't 'Green Boy', little girl!"

"I know, Zim, but I like calling you 'Green Boy!'"

"Why is that?"

"'Cause you're green, and I like green, and I like you!"

"Oh. Thanks, I guess."

She waved to me as I passed by, and for the first time since I met her, I actually waved back. It had been a long time since anyone told me they liked me.

After about ten more minutes of walking, I found myself on a familiar street. This was where Dib and Gaz lived. I stopped in front of their house. A flood of memories came rushing back to me. I remembered the few times I had come here for help. I remembered the time Dib and I worked together in his lab… If he hadn't let me work there, who knows what might have happened. I never repaid him for that. The one time he had asked me for help, I refused.

Why did I feel guilty? He was my enemy. I wasn't supposed to help him.

Suddenly, the front door opened. I turned and sprinted down the street, and I didn't stop running until I reached the park.

I looked around. A band was playing under a pavilion in the center of the park, and there was a fairly large group of people watching them. There were children playing with a Frisbee near the tennis courts, and a couple of teenagers were walking hand-in-hand near the soccer field. The only place completely void of people was the playground. I headed over there.

I climbed up to nearly the top of the jungle gym and sat there, leaning my forehead against one of the metal bars. No one could see my face up here. No one could see that I was crying.

Why did it have to be this way? Why couldn't I have been given a real mission, instead of being sent here? There was an infinite number of "whys" running through my mind. I was heartbroken.

I looked over to the pavilion, where the band had started playing a new song. The guitarist was playing some calm notes that sounded good. I hopped down from the jungle gym. I wanted to hear the rest of the song.

I found a spot near the back of the crowd, next to a large, beefy man who looked proud. He might have been related to one of the musicians.

The lead singer-a boy, 18 or 19 years old-began singing.

"It's down to this… I've got to make this life make sense. Can anyone tell what I've done?"

That somehow spoke to me; it was like someone had written the song to describe how I felt.

"I miss the life, I miss the colors of the world. Can anyone tell where I am? 'Cause now, again, I've found myself so far down, away from the sun that shines into the darkest place, I'm so far down, away from the sun again… Away from the sun, again."

I sat there, listening intently. That song had to have been written for me! Every word fit my emotions perfectly. Unfortunately, it was over too soon. Hearing that song encouraged me. It made me think, hey, things aren't that bad!

I smiled and wiped a tear from my eye. I turned to walk away, and found myself face-to-face with Dib.

Dib's POV

Zim turned around and looked at me. He was obviously surprised to see me. I don't know what I expected him to do-yell at me, shove me out of his way, or ignore me altogether. I didn't expect him to cry, which was what he did.

He hung his head and closed his eyes. He began breathing heavily through his teeth. Then he covered his face with his hands and just shook.

"Zim…" I wanted to comfort him, but I didn't know how. I had never been confronted with the prospect of having to comfort my enemy, but he looked to helpless… A scrawny, short guy who needed a friend.

I hugged him. It was definitely the most awkward hug ever, but he didn't seem to mind. He just cried into my shoulder while I tried to ignore the weird looks we were getting. It went on for about ten minutes before he broke away.

"D-Dib?" he stammered.

"Yeah?"

"Don't… Tell anyone I was… You know."

"Heaven forbid."

"And if you do I'll… Destroy you!"

I grinned.

"Understood."

He smiled back.

"See you at Skool…" I said.

"Yeah… See you, Earth-boy."

I began to walk away. Weird how I was is worst enemy, and now I'm his best friend.