SilverRogue: Here it is, the final chapter. As soon as I finish this, I am
free of this fic FOREVER!!!
Nightshade: And I'll be free of forcing her to sit down and write it.
Wednesday: Weallhopeyouenjoyedthestory,becauseSRworkedreallyhardonitandstuff!
"-az? Gaz! Oh thankgoodne- No! Don't go back to...."
"-ome on Gaz! You've gotta wake up!"
Gaz opened her eyes fully, trying to remember where she was. Dib's glasses were a few inches from her face, and his expression was one of mixed relief and sadness. Judging by how red his eyes were, he probably hadn't slept very much for the past few days.
"Hi Gaz" he said softly, looking at her with troubled eyes, "Can you hear me?"
She tried to answer, but a mask over her face and a tube running down her throat made this impossible. Instead of speaking, she squeezed Dib's hand as best she could.
"We escaped, Gaz," he said, smiling sadly. Suddenly Gaz's mind was flooded with memoried of being kidnapped by Zim. Dib had done it! ....but where was she, and why was he acting so depressed? She was laying down on a bed, but it wasn't her own... and the whole room as a whole was too bright to be her room. She heard a beeping noise in the background that vaguely reminded her of heart monitors she had seen on TV, but it was going much too slow and the beats were irregular.
"You've been in the hospital for about a week" Dib said, managing a brave smile, "and your heart monitor has been driving me even crazier than I already am."
Gas closed her eyes. That slow irregular beeping HAD been a heart monitor. But how could that be her heart? It was so slow and weak.... only people who were going to die had heartbeats like that.
That's when it hit her. It all fit together. She knew why Dib was acting so sad. She was very sick or hurt or whatever Zim's lazer had done to her. She felt like she'd been cooked from the inside out.
She opened her eyes and looked at Dib, who was handing her a pen and a notepad.
"You might be able to write, I'm not sure," he said, not quite meeting her eye, "But that way you can talk back to me, sis."
Gaz took them gratefully, though she was unsure of what to say. Finally, after a few minutes of thought, she scratched in "What kind of shape am I in?" It was extremely difficult to write, so it went agonizingly slow..
Dib read it and sighed. Looking at her through his glasses, he whispered "How honest do you want me to be?"
Gaz wrote as quickly as she could manage: "Tell me the truth."
Dib's voice was shaky as he replied to her. "Whatever Zim did caused extensive damage to your system... not just one system... all of them... and..." Dib's voice broke. He looked at the ground, trembling. Gaz could tell that he was trying not to cry. After a few seconds he resumed talking. "The doctor said that the odds are... are..." For a second Gaz thought Dib was going to have to fight off tears again, but he regained his composure "one in a billion."
Gaz looked at Dib, not wanting to believe it. It was over. She was going to die. It took a few seconds for that to sink in. No more pizza. No more GameSlave. No more yelling at Dib. If only she'd helped Dib just once, this nightmare would have never happened. a thousand different times where Dib just needed a little help to defeat Zim flashed through her mind.
She sighed. Somehow, it didn't matter to her anymore. Nothing was really that important, was it? After all, she felt so relaxed, almost as if she didn't even have to breathe anymore. The irritating beeping noise of her heart monitor had drawn out in one long "BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP." Gaz was dimly aware of Dib shaking her and calling her name, but she could barely hear him. He seemed so distant and far away...
Gaz could feel a cool hand on her forehead. She opened her eyes and saw her mother smiling at her slightly, surrounded by an aura of beautiful white light. Gaz was confused for a second, but then she understood. She nodded her head and her mother took her hand and led her out of the room.
Feeling as though her body was unnecessary anymore, she left it there next to Dib.
SilverRogue: *little Gir-style happy dance* I'm done! I'm done! I'm done!
Wednesday: YAAAAAAAY!Wefinallyfinishedthisnastybadoldtimeconsumingangststory!
Nightshade: As you can see, it's a relief to ALL of us to have this story complete. However, SilverRogue is going to be working on another multi- chapter fic, Ransom.
SilverRogue: I am?
Nightshade: Yes. And it WILL have longer chapters. OR ELSE!
SilverRogue: *gulp* Can I still have cliffhanger endings?
Nightshade: *sigh* I suppose.
SilverRogue: YAAAAAY!!!
Wednesday: YAAAAAY!!!
Nightshade: Goddess... I'm surrounded...
Nightshade: And I'll be free of forcing her to sit down and write it.
Wednesday: Weallhopeyouenjoyedthestory,becauseSRworkedreallyhardonitandstuff!
"-az? Gaz! Oh thankgoodne- No! Don't go back to...."
"-ome on Gaz! You've gotta wake up!"
Gaz opened her eyes fully, trying to remember where she was. Dib's glasses were a few inches from her face, and his expression was one of mixed relief and sadness. Judging by how red his eyes were, he probably hadn't slept very much for the past few days.
"Hi Gaz" he said softly, looking at her with troubled eyes, "Can you hear me?"
She tried to answer, but a mask over her face and a tube running down her throat made this impossible. Instead of speaking, she squeezed Dib's hand as best she could.
"We escaped, Gaz," he said, smiling sadly. Suddenly Gaz's mind was flooded with memoried of being kidnapped by Zim. Dib had done it! ....but where was she, and why was he acting so depressed? She was laying down on a bed, but it wasn't her own... and the whole room as a whole was too bright to be her room. She heard a beeping noise in the background that vaguely reminded her of heart monitors she had seen on TV, but it was going much too slow and the beats were irregular.
"You've been in the hospital for about a week" Dib said, managing a brave smile, "and your heart monitor has been driving me even crazier than I already am."
Gas closed her eyes. That slow irregular beeping HAD been a heart monitor. But how could that be her heart? It was so slow and weak.... only people who were going to die had heartbeats like that.
That's when it hit her. It all fit together. She knew why Dib was acting so sad. She was very sick or hurt or whatever Zim's lazer had done to her. She felt like she'd been cooked from the inside out.
She opened her eyes and looked at Dib, who was handing her a pen and a notepad.
"You might be able to write, I'm not sure," he said, not quite meeting her eye, "But that way you can talk back to me, sis."
Gaz took them gratefully, though she was unsure of what to say. Finally, after a few minutes of thought, she scratched in "What kind of shape am I in?" It was extremely difficult to write, so it went agonizingly slow..
Dib read it and sighed. Looking at her through his glasses, he whispered "How honest do you want me to be?"
Gaz wrote as quickly as she could manage: "Tell me the truth."
Dib's voice was shaky as he replied to her. "Whatever Zim did caused extensive damage to your system... not just one system... all of them... and..." Dib's voice broke. He looked at the ground, trembling. Gaz could tell that he was trying not to cry. After a few seconds he resumed talking. "The doctor said that the odds are... are..." For a second Gaz thought Dib was going to have to fight off tears again, but he regained his composure "one in a billion."
Gaz looked at Dib, not wanting to believe it. It was over. She was going to die. It took a few seconds for that to sink in. No more pizza. No more GameSlave. No more yelling at Dib. If only she'd helped Dib just once, this nightmare would have never happened. a thousand different times where Dib just needed a little help to defeat Zim flashed through her mind.
She sighed. Somehow, it didn't matter to her anymore. Nothing was really that important, was it? After all, she felt so relaxed, almost as if she didn't even have to breathe anymore. The irritating beeping noise of her heart monitor had drawn out in one long "BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP." Gaz was dimly aware of Dib shaking her and calling her name, but she could barely hear him. He seemed so distant and far away...
Gaz could feel a cool hand on her forehead. She opened her eyes and saw her mother smiling at her slightly, surrounded by an aura of beautiful white light. Gaz was confused for a second, but then she understood. She nodded her head and her mother took her hand and led her out of the room.
Feeling as though her body was unnecessary anymore, she left it there next to Dib.
SilverRogue: *little Gir-style happy dance* I'm done! I'm done! I'm done!
Wednesday: YAAAAAAAY!Wefinallyfinishedthisnastybadoldtimeconsumingangststory!
Nightshade: As you can see, it's a relief to ALL of us to have this story complete. However, SilverRogue is going to be working on another multi- chapter fic, Ransom.
SilverRogue: I am?
Nightshade: Yes. And it WILL have longer chapters. OR ELSE!
SilverRogue: *gulp* Can I still have cliffhanger endings?
Nightshade: *sigh* I suppose.
SilverRogue: YAAAAAY!!!
Wednesday: YAAAAAY!!!
Nightshade: Goddess... I'm surrounded...