GalaxyDancer's "Crush"

Chapter 07: Uninvited Guest

Author's Comments:

Oh, God . . . this chapter begins something so insane that you couldn't even IMAGINE what chapter 8 is going to be like. Well, uh, until you read it, anyway. You remember how Zim pretty much fried Lin at the amusement park? Well it certainly wasn't enough to kill her. You know, for someone who's been electrocuted almost to death, she's taking this pretty well.

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The next day, the children had to return to school. It was extremely boring. But not so much that today was another "normal" day. No, today, things were slightly off. Just slightly. And using the word "slightly", I mean horribly different than usual.

Dib was walking to school by himself, his eyes scrolling over the papers he had found on Zim's doorstep. Last night he had pasted them back together to make them what they once were: full-sheet pages of Irken words that he didn't understand. His computer could have translated them if they had been in computer-compatible format, but paper didn't exactly fit into any of the disc drives.

"Hmm . . ." he said to himself, thinking out loud, "I wonder what it all means." Then a funny thought crossed his mind and he snickered. "Maybe it's a letter to that girl he likes. But then, why would it be in Irken? Then again, maybe it's something more valuable, like a message from his leaders or something." He turned a corner. "If I can just translate this, I can use it against him, whatever it is. Maybe it's even some sort of instructions for how to get in his base without activating the security system!"

He stopped walking and looked down at the little girl sitting on the curb staring at the ground. She was picking petals off of a flower with a dreamy expression.

Dib was about to leave, seeing there was nothing interesting about her, but he suddenly heard her say, "Zim loves me, Zim loves me not. Zim loves me, Zim loves me not . . ."

"Hey," said Dib to the little girl, "I'm not trying to be rude or anything, but are you talking about Zim, the alien?"

Lin looked up at him with big, adorable blue eyes. "The alien?" she asked. "Oh, I know no Zim the alien. But I do know a Zim, the sweetest boy in the entire world! Yesterday, he took me to the amusement park, and we rode rides and ate ice-cream . . ."

Dib looked slightly confused. "I only know one Zim, and he's an evil alien out to destroy the Earth! Just tell me this: is he green?"

Lin sighed and plucked off another petal, staring mindlessly at the bald flower. "Yeah," she sighed. "He's so pretty . . ."

"I KNEW IT!" cried Dib to himself. "Zim has a crush on an Earth girl!" He looked back at Lin, who snatched up another flower from the grass and started picking off its petals as well. "Unless . . . he just wants to use her for his next evil plan!" Dib's eyes widened. "But what would he want with a puny little girl . . .?" Dib continued walking to school, wondering what diabolical schemes Zim had up his sleeve.

Lin giggled as she plucked off the last flower petal. "Zim loves me!" she cooed.

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Gir was staring at a toy pig. He was just laying on the sofa upside-down, staring at it in front of him. There seemed to be no rhyme or reason as to why.

Zim was down in his lab, working on adjustments to his Pak to make sure only he could remove it. He had been at it since yesterday, but wasn't the least bit tired because he was wearing a micro-pak, rather a miniature temporary energy supply "Personal Aid Kandrona". It was the size of any computer chip, and was simply plugged into one of the slots revealed only when his actual Pak is removed. It could keep him running without the true Pak for almost forty-eight hours, so he was fine to continue working.

The doorbell suddenly rang, interrupting Gir's empty thoughts. "Aw, man!" said Gir to the toy pig. "I gots ta answer the door now, Pig." Gir got up and zipped on his costume, then hopped to the door and opened it, revealing who it was.

Lin stood at the door with a huge smile on her face. She was holding the same flower from yesterday. She blinked.

Gir squealed with joy. He wasn't sure why the girl was here, but he was excited because it had to be something important.

"Hello!" said Lin sweetly. "Are you Zim's cute little puppy?"

"Suuuure am!" answered Gir. "I like waffles!"

Lin giggled. "Can I come in, talking dog? I wanna give something to Zim. He forgot it yesterday."

Gir stared for a little while, thinking. It was hard for him to think. It always hurt what little bit of a mechanical brain he had. "Uhh . . . yes!"

"Thanks!" said Lin, and walked into the living room with Gir. They both sat on the sofa waiting for Zim to come in. Lin was very excited. She just knew Zim would be happy to see her. After all, flower petals do not lie.

Down below in his lab, Zim had just completed the final adjustments on his Pak. He sighed. "Finally! It's done! Now I'd like to see that Lin creature try to pry it off my back!" He reached behind him and pulled out the temporary energy disc, then set it on the table. He smiled. Picking up his Pak, he said, "I sure am amazing." He laughed slightly at himself. He put it where the disc had been and it reattached itself to him mechanically with little cords that connected with the plugs on him.

Feeling no need to get on his disguise because it was likely nobody was going to be spying on him for a while, Zim hopped in the "elevator". It took him up.

Lin was still smiling. Gir was watching television. They were both sitting on the couch.

"Gir," said Zim, getting both Lin's and his robot's attention. The circle on the floor stopped moving upwards and he stepped off. "The upgrades on my Pak are complete. I feel we will no longer have to worry about-" Suddenly he saw her. The girl he hated more than anybody can hate a person.

"Hi, Zim!" said Lin cheerfully, her eyes closed. She got up off the sofa and ran over to him. "You forgot your flower!" After hugging him, she took a step back and showed him the giant flower she had kept for him.

Zim pushed her back, causing her almost to lose her balance. It was a direct insult.

"What's wrong?" asked Lin, staring into his big, red eyes. "You're allergic to flowers?"

Zim growled. "How DARE you come into MY house, sit on MY sofa, and even get NEAR ME?" He took a step towards her and pushed her again, making her peep. "Go away! I don't care if you know my secret, just go away!"

Lin's eyes lit up. "You have a secret?" she asked, curious.

There was a pause. Zim realized that she was blind to the fact that he was Irken, though he was standing right in front of her with bright pinkish-red eyes and a pair of antennae. But now he had done it. He said something about it, automatically thinking she noticed.

"Uh, no," he lied. "Never mind. Just go away!" He pointed to the door.

Lin tilted her head and smiled. "But I'll be good," she insisted. "I'll sit on the sofa with your talking, green dog and I'll be quiet. You won't even know I'm there!"

Zim thought about this. Perhaps he was being a little harsh on the deluded Earth girl. "Well . . . I suppose it couldn't hurt. As long as you STAY OUT OF MY WAY!"

Lin giggled. "I sure will!"

Gir squealed. "Dancin' monkeys!"