ZADR Orange

by PAT THE KITSUNE

Sick of his home life, Dib turns for help to the one person who has ever fully understood him and undergoes a life-changing procedure meant to help him let go. Little does he know what such a change will give rise to in the end. ZADR RAPR TAGR

20. Chapter 20

A/N: Haha! We have finally reached 20 chapters here on ZADR Orange! 8D And 99 reviews from you guys! =3 So, to celebrate this event, I'm going to be offering one you guys a request for this story. First person to review and give us our 100th review for this story will receive a picture from me of any scene they'd like me to draw from the story thus far. =3 Also, whoever catches said review will have the following chapter dedicated to them as thanks for being such an awesome reader and reviewer. Though you're all awesome in our eyes. =3 So much love and thanks to those of you who have faved or added our story to your story alert that said, let me keep you waiting no longer as we sincerely hope you all enjoy this next installment of ZADR Orange. 8D And as always, your feedback is much appreciated. =3

Warnings: Extreme OOCness

Rating: M for later chapters

Disclaimer: We do not own Invader Zim, nor any of the characters from it. We do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Zim/Gaz: Notgonnadie

Dib: Me

Professor Membrane: Both of us.

Beta: Notgonnadie

When Dib offered him the blanket, Zim couldn't help but sigh. This was not what he had actually had in mind though he accepted it still, snuggling into the warmth anyways. "Can you stay with me?" he then asked, looking up at the boy sadly, his eyes begging for Dib to lay down next to him.

"O-Of course! I-I wouldn't leave you..." Dib said quickly, kneeling down near the Irken again and leaning in to press another kiss to his forehead before resting his head on Zim's chest comfortably.

Smiling at this, Zim brought his arms up to wrap around Dib. "Thank you..." he thanked the other before closing his eyes tiredly.

Finding the Irken's neck to nuzzle his face into, Dib responded by placing a gentle kiss there.

Eyes closing all the way now, Zim finally managed to get comfortable enough to start purring again.

Meanwhile, standing in the doorway to the lab, Gaz merely watched Dib and Zim from her spot near the door. Nodding to herself when Dib started cuddling Zim, she then turned on her heel to go back upstairs and deal with Membrane.

Lifting his head from Zim's neck just as Gaz was leaving, Dib looked over in the direction of the door she had just left out of. "Zim...I'll be right back, okay? Just try to get some sleep." he said before nuzzling one last kiss to Zim's lips and standing up to follow his sister. "Hey, Gaz! Wait up!" he called after her.

Sighing yet again to himself, Zim's antennae drooped as he snuggled back down into the blanket.

Hearing Dib, Gaz turned back around to look at him. "What, Dib?" she asked, just wanting to get the encounter with Membrane over with as soon as physically possible.

"Uhm...Well, I...Th-Thank you...for helping me with Zim..." Dib thanked her before looking up from the ground towards the top of the stairs. "Y-You're going to talk with Dad, aren't you?" he then said, gesturing towards the living room.

Nodding her head, Gaz dropped her own gaze down to the ground. "He's been in the dark too long. I can't take it anymore, Dib...I think he hates you now. And me soon after." she informed him just to let him know not to expect too much from Dad anytime soon.

Entire body drooping, Dib just looked away to the side. "You know, we've tried to tell him before...But he just never listens...Or maybe...He just doesn't want to believe everything we try to tell him..." he said in a low whisper before bringing his arms up to hug himself. "I really wish mom were here right now..." his voice came out somewhat strained.

Reaching up for Dib in a very out of character show of kindness, Gaz pulled him into a light hug. "I know...I miss her too...But at least you have Zim now..." she for once was actually trying to look on the brighter side of things.

Hugging her back, resting a cheek on her shoulder, Dib sighed out somewhat contently now. "Zim's not the only one I have...I have you too...And you have me. So that's why...I'm not letting you go up there alone...Whatever you have to say to Dad, we'll tell him together...And if he rejects us both...Then I'm sure Zim won't mind letting us both stay at his base once he's feeling well enough to head back." he reassured her, not wanting her to feel as though she had to do this alone.

An uncharacteristically sad look coming to her face, Gaz sighed and pulled away from Dib. "Okay..." she agreed as she took hold of Dib's hand and the two of them finished the now less lonely trek to the living room to encounter their father.

Smiling and holding her hand tightly as they made their way up the stairs, Dib could feel his smile falling away upon entering the living room where Membrane was sitting and waiting, hunched over in a dark corner of the room, seemingly deep in thought. Looking over at Gaz one last time, Dib took in a deep breath before standing up straighter, deciding it would be best that he spoke up first since his father already hated him and nothing he said could really make the situation any worse than it already was. "Dad..." he addressed Membrane confidently.

A little surprised, Membrane seemed to jolt out of his thoughts before looking at his two kids and then away from them, a little embarrassed now. "Yes, Dib?" he began in a surprisingly calm voice.

Glancing back at Gaz momentarily, Dib returned his gaze to his father when she nodded back at him to continue. "G-Gaz and I both think it's about time the three of us sat down and had a talk about a few things." he continued, trying not to let the shakiness in his voice get to him.

Now seeming quite shocked that his kids seemed to think they could take such control over the situation, Membrane continued to gaze down at the ground with wide eyes. "And why is that?" his voice remained just as calm as it had been a few moments prior.

Feeling now as though his father weren't really taking this conversation seriously, Dib narrowed his eyes on him a bit. "Because like it or not, we're YOUR kids and the least you could do is hear us out for once in your life rather than just running away because mom died." his voice held a hint of hatred in it now.

Looking shocked yet again, Membrane deadpanned before looking away, still ashamed. "What is there to say?" he really didn't want to be having this conversation with his kids.

His look softening a bit, Dib replaced it with a more annoyed look now. "Nothing...We've already said everything we've wanted to say to you before...All we're asking is that you actually listen and believe what we're telling you." his own voice had grown quieter now.

But Membrane could only shake his head as he went to stand up. "I have work to do." he wasn't about to listen to another word of this conversation.

Frowning at this, Dib then let out a bitter laugh. "I knew it...Even when the proof is standing right in front of you, you still run away from it...and us...Maybe you and mom should have never had us if you hated us so much..." he scoffed, turning away slightly with his arms crossed.

Turning on Dib, Membrane for the first time yelled back at him in a truly angry voice. "NOW LISTEN HERE! I LOVED YOUR MOTHER! ALL SHE EVER WANTED WAS CHILDREN! WHY WOULD I NOT HAVE GIVEN HER WHAT SHE WANTED?" he exploded, his fists shaking in rage as he had wanted to blow up on them for so long now but had been doing his best to keep his composer.

Taking a few steps back with Gaz behind him, Dib stood his ground, scowling back up at Membrane. "You know, for a genius, you really are stupid. Maybe because this isn't just some game you can give up on just because the other person 'playing' with you left! What do you think we are? Just two failed experiments you can throw aside and neglect just because things didn't go according to plan?" he screamed back at Membrane, the fact that his father saw them as just that causing his temper to rise more and more.

Glaring back at Dib, Membrane turned yet again as though to leave. "I DO NOT HAVE TO EXPLAIN MYSELF TO YOU!" he didn't want to admit that Dib was right.

Squeezing hard on Dib's still currently three-fingered hand, Gaz then stepped up to face him herself. "THAT'S BECAUSE YOU CAN'T, ISN'T IT?" she wanted the truth from him.

Deadpanning again, Membrane then turned his glare down on Gaz. "Get out..." his voice was eerily quiet.

Afraid of what Membrane might do to her, Dib stepped in between him and Gaz. "I don't see what mom ever saw in you..." he met Membrane's glare with a glare of his own.

His glare growing even harsher on the two, Membrane retorted with a similar response. "I feel the same about you." he said, no longer having the patience to deal with either of them anymore.

Smirking back at him, Dib continued to back away with Gaz a few more steps. "Yeah? Well at least we won't die alone like you..." he said, also prepared to just leave so he wouldn't have to deal with his father any longer.

Fists clenched, Membrane glared at them as they backed out of the room. "Get out of my house." he demanded in a scarily quiet voice. "Take your freak." he pointed towards the lab. "And any other worthless objects you have and leave...NOW!" he then pointed his finger out the door.

"Fine! We'll happily do just that!" Dib screamed before turning to storm out of the room with Gaz, stopping at the bottom of the stairs and turning to face her. "Go ahead and get anything you think you'll be needing from your room then meet me down by the front door. I already packed everything I needed yesterday. I'm going down to the lab to get Zim then we're out of here." he said before turning to head down into the lab but then stopping himself, turning back around to head on up the stairs.

"Actually, on second thought, there is something else I need to grab from my room." he corrected himself before following Gaz up the stairs and bolting down the hallway to his room, returning to the lab a few minutes later with a clean pair of clothes. Finding Zim curled up under the blanket, his eyes closed as though he were sleeping, Dib reached forward a hand to give Zim a small shake. "Zim...Zim..." he needed the other to wake up.

"Mmmm?" Zim mumbled as if he had been asleep that entire time. "What's going on?" he asked, pretending not to know, though he really had heard all the yelling upstairs as if it had all been happening right in front of him, causing him to feel bad, making him think this had all happened because of him. But he couldn't worry about that right now as all he wanted in that moment was nothing more than to quickly get Dib and Gaz away from the creature known as Membrane.

"We're getting out of here. And Gaz is coming with us. Do you think you can sit up enough to put these on?" Dib asked, placing the clean, dry clothes in front of Zim.

Sitting up with a small wince and taking the clothes from Dib, Zim merely nodded his head. "Are you going to be okay?" he then asked, looking up at the human worriedly.

Still in a fairly bad mood to say the very least, Dib nodded his head slowly. "I will be once I get you, me, and Gaz out of this fucking place..." he said before noticing Zim having some difficulty getting the clothes on. Just wanting to leave as soon as possible, Dib quickly helped him into them before nuzzling him apologetically. "I'm sorry to be rushing you so much when you're still hurt." he kissed Zim lightly.

But Zim could only shake his head, no. "No, we need to leave now." he agreed, jumping off the table and stumbling into Dib as he wasn't quite ready to do that just yet but knew they must leave. "L-Let's go." he said before wrapping his arm around Dib's shoulder for support.

A/N: And there you have it. Your weekly update of ZADR Orange. Now, I know what you're all thinking. But please don't bash Membrane too much in your reviews, guys. He may seem like an ass now, but that's only because he's in quite a bit of shock at this point in the story. Believe it or not, we DO have future plans for him that don't portray him in quite so bad of a light. Though that won't be for a while still. So until then, just look forward to Chapter 21 next week and have a great rest of the week. =3 Now, let me take this time to respond to those of you who reviewed.

To Casykirby: Glad to hear it. =3 And, yes. Gaz IS gay. You'll see who for a little later on in the story. Wouldn't want to ruin the suprise for you, after all. X3 Anyways, we're glad to hear you enjoyed last weeks chapter so much and its...ahem...graphicness. XD Though trust me, we plan on getting MUCH more graphic in later chapters. XD So until then, here's the next chapter for you. And we hope it brightens your day today! 8D

To Watermelondrea: Yesh! X3 We certainly do love Gaz oh so much in this story. Really, she's not a bad character at all in all this. She's just very overprotective of Dib. As for Membrane, I think that's a line you should have saved for this chapter. Lol. XD Awesome new acronym. Though, when I first read it, I thought it said something else completely different. Because I don't always read all the letters in words before I say them to myself, I thought it said EAT (I only read the EA at first) and then NEW YORK CITY (because YNC decided to rearrange itself in my head as NYC. XD) Same thing happens when I see the word "Muffler" I usually see it as "Muffin" instead because I don't take the time to read the entire word. XD

To lillybean queen of the i ocean: YAYZ! Something new! I WIN! 8D Glad to hear you adore it so much then. X3

To Invader Ang: Lol. XD I was wondering where you'd gone. But I figured you'd pop up again sometime soon, as opposed to some of our OTHER readers who seem to have just fallen off the face of the Earth since two chapters ago. Hmm...*Shrug* Must have said something to offend them or something. -_-; But oh well. I'm glad to see we haven't lost you as a reader yet. 8D And don't worry. Otherwise, you've been a very loyal reader and reviewer so far. So you are forgiven for not reviewing last week. XD Anyways, yes, poor Zimmeh isn't feeling all too well at the moment. But just give him a few more chapters and he'll be feeling better again soon. XD And, yesh. The inuendoes in this make it all the more worth while. XD As for lesbian Gaz, I honestly have a REALLY hard time seeing her in any straight relationships, given most of the males on Earth are complete morons. (Save for Dib, of course and only a very few others) But oh well. She'll find love soon enough in this story. Or at least something close to love. XD I'm certain your sick obsessions are closely related to my own. XD And, yes. Some chapters come out fairly short. But really, I DO measure chapters out to be relatively the same length when I ficafy them. It's just hard to tell at some points. We're glad to hear you're enjoying the story so much still and hope you enjoy today's update just as much as previous ones. =3

To Vithian: We certainly hope not. =3 Though we hope it doesn't kill you either. ^^; Can't read if your dead, after all. If the addiction is strong enough, hopefully it will hold you over through Chapter 39 when we get to it. That's the chapter we expect to lose people at. But anyways. Membrane really isn't THAT bad of a character. I've actually written two other ZADR stories where he's NOT an ass at all. It really just depends on how people portray him in their writing. I can work either way with him. Now, don't go getting your hopes up too high. He's leaving for a long time in this story. But he WILL be coming back at a later time. Like it or not, he IS an important person in Dib's life and as such will have to be given a second chance at some point in the story. Besides, he plays kind of an important, secondary character role in all this more towards the end of the story. He's not what I would call cruel in this story. Just in a state of shock. He'll come around though. And staying focused on one story is how I get things done. Though honestly enough, I do get easily sidetracked. ^^; But I promised myself not to get sidetracked when working on this story. We're too far in. The only thing that could possibly prevent me from finishing this would be my own death. Or Notgonnadie's death. But so long as there's still air in our lungs, we shall continue! Besides, it's too much fun for either of us to give up on. XD In fact, I'd say this story actually distracts me OTHER stories I should be working on. But how could I stay focused on anything else when there are so many opportunities to torture both Zim and Dib in this story? XD Zim falling in the pond water was only just the beginning. From here, the torment we put them through only continues to build. So hopefully you'll continue to find enjoyment in the evilness of our minds. (Evil laugh) XD Thanks for reading and reviewing. ^_^

To SuperSaiyanKiri: Lol. XD Oh, really? We weren't exactly going for a cuteness overload in that last chapter, but if that's what you're looking for, just wait until future chapters when we're actually TRYING to pull out that element in our writing. XD I'd say Chapter 26 will satisfy that need when we get to it. XD But anyways. Yes, oh so gay is Gaz. Honestly, could you see her hooking up with any of the males on Earth though? No? I didn't think so! She's too smart for that. XD As for Membrane, you just gotta look for the right stories. I've written at least two other stories where he's not a homophobic ass wipe. And read a few others. And really, in this story, he's only that way in the beginning. We have plans for him in the future where he's less homophobic than you would think. He's just in a state of shock at the moment. But, he'll get over it. XD Lol. You know, I was actually watching that exact episode on TV when I first read your comment. XD It was perfect timing. Anyways, we hope you enjoy this update for now. =3 And hope to hear again from you soon. =3

To Illisandria Carthain: Lol. XD I'm not sure if that damn is a good sign or not, but I sure do hope it is. XD It was actually a pond Zim fell into, but same difference, I guess. A body of water. There. Let's go with that! XD And, yes. Poor Zimmeh is hurting very much still. He'll pull through it though in a few more chapters. =3 And the reason we're not doing DA updates any longer is because the people on DA don't take the time to read my author's notes and give proper credit where it's due. They either credit one of us and not the other or they just plain don't give credit at all when they post fanart for it. So that's why we started the website. Besides, DA actually REMOVED our preview images, so the website is the only place you'll actually be able to FIND said preview images. And, if you look in my ZADR Orange Fanart Contest journal, you can also find all the pieces made for the story linked there as well. So don't worry. They're still there. DA just sucks because they won't let us post the artwork with the chapters. The website has a special fanart section though. So fear not. We wouldn't make a website for the story without including a section for the fanart. =3 As for your weekly question, I'd have to say Zim lurves Dib very, very, VERY much in this story. His only problem is actually getting that point across to Dib because he has his doubts at time. I don't think it can be put into a number. It's basically infinite in this story. So thank you for the cookie. (Noms on my half) And we hope to hear again from you soon. =3 But who am I kidding. XD We ALWAYS hear from you. You've been one of our most loyal readers since practically the beginning. XD So much love to you. (Hugs)