A/N: Alright. So I got a few things to discuss before posting Chapter 101 of ZADR Orange. And since I went over this back over on DA, I figured I might as well go over it here as well. In recent months, I've come to conclude that I'm really not a big fan of the Invader Zim fandom, as I'm sure you all could already gather. I've been in the fandom for close to seven years now, and it just very recently hit an all time low for me when a very close friend of mine got targeted by another girl in the fandom who continues to flame and insult her. Now mind you, my friend did NOTHING to this girl. However, being the mature one, my friend decided to just apologize anyways for whatever reason it was this girl was targeting her. My friend did NOT have to apologize, and quite honestly, I knew it would be a mistake if she did. True to what I believed to be true of this girl, she naturally refused to accept an apology from my friend because she thought she was too good to be seen taking one from the person she's been repeatedly flaming, AND she thought this would somehow "taint" her reputation if she did. That's pretty fucking sick if you ask me. And this girl claims SHE'S the mature one, when she can't even be bothered to accept an apology from somebody who didn't say or do shit to her. Pft.

Anyways, the point of my story is that I'm sick of the fandom. I'm sick of people who think they're "popular" taking advantage of other users and thinking they can get away with insulting whoever they'd like. This girl was 22 years old, couldn't spell worth shit, and most DEFINITELY was NOT the adult in that situation. Some people may know her from over on DA. She draws a rather popular ZADR comic that will otherwise remain nameless because I really don't care to promote her or her shitty comic. It's people like her though who have driven me and my friends away from the fandom. And people like her fans, who stupidly believe every lie coming out of her mouth without so much as LOOKING into the situation first, that leave me feeling like there's no hope for the future of the fandom.

Therefore, let it be known that I will be withdrawing myself from the fandom. My only reason for writing this story any longer is for my own personal amusement. Sorry if any of you find that selfish, but as a writer, my only goal is to strive towards bringing this story to some sort of completion. I don't expect people to fave, comment, support, or even like and read this story any longer if they don't want to. Of course, I've appreciated those of you who HAVE supported me up until this point, but don't feel obligated to continue if you don't want to. I'm continuing to write this regardless of what other people think because I enjoy writing about these characters and the Invader Zim universe.

I don't want drama, and I refuse to let myself be caught up in anymore confrontations surrounding the fandom. I don't think I necessarily have to consider myself as part of the fandom any longer just because I continue to post IZ literature either. Writing is, always has been, and always will be a passion of mine. What I choose to write about doesn't define me as a person. Therefore, I'd appreciate not being judged in such a way. I will admit, it WAS fun, at least in the beginning when things were less chaotic. But I think I'm ready to accept the fact that this fandom no longer defines me. I never really meant it to anyways. I'm posting for myself, and I don't really care if you people think of me as selfish for that.

For this reason, I will be stopping my responses to reviews here in the story. If you guys want to leave them, then by all means, please be my guest. I'll always appreciate feedback. Just don't expect a response back in the body of the story though. If I feel like responding back to somebody, I will do so directly via a private message. And if you guys would like any questions answered about what I see in the IZ universe that keeps me writing about it, please feel free to ask. =3 I may fill out of FAQ section somewhere in my profile for such questions since my imagination is endless and I've developed countless theories about the universe and its characters in the years I've been writing about them.

Don't consider me as part of the fandom any longer though. I write merely for fun now, nothing more, nothing less. =3

That said, I'll get to posting this next chapter now. It's your guys' choice whether you continue to follow or not. I'm not looking to gain fame from this though. Just finishing this story would be an accomplishment I'd be proud of in the long run. Especially considering how many times I've come close to just ending this story and not continuing.

ZADR Orange Chapter 101

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: Notgonnadie

Dib: Me

Enjoy. =3

Blinking a bit at Zim's description of the treat, Rose very quickly pieced together in her head what the other was talking about. "Hmm? You mean rice crispy treats?" she asked before smiling. "Of course we can get some of those. Jack and I will just stop by the store on our way home and pick some up, unless you'd prefer homemade ones. They're really easy to make also."

Eyes shining, Zim grinned wide. "BRILLIANT!" he licked his lips, thinking about the tasty treats.

Rose could only laugh a bit at Zim's reaction. "I think it's obvious now where your smeets got their sweet tooth from."

Pouting a little, Zim blushed and looked away. "W-Well...Most Irkens like sweets."

"Not as much as you do, Zim." Purple spoke up, having entered the room, wanting to know what was going on. He hated being ignored.

Dib tensed slightly when Purple spoke before dropping his gaze away to somewhere else. He wasn't going to say anything to get on his bad side while he was there for Zim's sake. "...Zim eats more sweets than all three of these smeets combined..." Dib mumbled loud enough for everyone to hear.

"Heyyy~ I do not." Zim said, crossing his arms and pouting. "I swear, you're all against me."

"...Well, it's true..." Dib said, resting his arms on the table so he could pillow his head in them and close his eyes.

Walking over to Dib, Zim sighed. "Well...Maybe a little true..."

Purple spoke under his breath. "More like a lot..."

"I've seen you eat way more sweets over the years..."

"Oh, come on...No sympathy for Zim?!" Zim pouted again.

"...Sorry..." Dib apologized, antennae shuddering as he brought one arm up to drape over the back of his head, the other one still pillowing his head comfortably.

Zim sighed. "It's alright, Dib..." he leaned down and kissed him.

Dib couldn't help but pull away slightly from the kiss to the head. "Ow...No more..." he flinched back, bringing up his free arm to hold his head, antennae pressed back as far as possible.

"Dib? What's wrong?"

"My head is pounding...It hurts a lot right now..." Dib said, antennae twitching uncomfortably. It had hit him so suddenly.

Zim looked confused. "It is? That's weird..." he looked to Rose. "Any ideas?" he asked.

"Well, I would assume it's his unhealthy diet at the moment. He really should be trying to eat healthier foods, even if he's not craving them. Those smeets can't live off of fast food and sugar alone. And neither can Dib."

Zim blushed. "Sorry...This is my fault..." he turned to Dib. "Want to go back to bed?"

Nodding his head slowly, Dib had by now broken down into shivers. "...I don't know if I'll be able to fall asleep now though..."

"I think we'll start you on a healthier diet tomorrow, Dib." Rose said before turning to Zim. "But for now, I recommend getting him into bed and then bringing him something warm to drink. That should help him get to sleep faster. And no sugar this time. If you need something to sweeten it up, try honey instead."

Zim nodded. "Yes, Sir!" he saluted and carefully picked up Dib, cradling him in his arms as he carried him back to the bedroom.

"Wow...You seem to have control of everything here..." Purple said to Rose.

Smiling, Rose blushed and laughed into her hand. "Oh, no. I'm hardly in charge of what those two do except for when it comes to their well-being. Anyone can tell just by looking at them that they have no idea what they're doing, so Jack and I just wanted to help them until they've gotten the hang of it themselves. But Dib's still so young and Zim is just...Well, he's ZIM. I think he's more prepared for this than Dib is but could still use some help figuring it all out. Of course...Instinct will more than likely kick in once the smeets are born..."

Nodding, Purple sighed. "Yeah..."

Rose could only smile sadly at him. "Oh, I'll bet that someday soon you'll be having smeets of your own and do a wonderful job of taking care of them yourself." she said before pulling him into a small, reassuring embrace.

Bringing himself to hug her back, Purple sighed. "I wish..."

"Oooh...Don't doubt that it will happen. Just remember what we talked about earlier and I'm sure you'll be a great parent one day."

Purple smiled a little. "Okay..."

Rose smiled back. "Just hang in there. You already have the makings for a wonderful parent. I can tell. Maybe you could even give Zim and Dib some advice while you're staying with them. I'm certain they could use all the help in the world right now. Just think of yourself as...an uncle of sorts."

"Hmmm." Purple thought about it and grinned as he pictured several little smeets running around, calling him uncle Pur. "Just call me Uncle Pur!" he exclaimed.

Rose grinned wide. "You see?! That's the spirit! And you could think of it as...Well, let's just say practice for when you have your own. Prove to your mate that you have what it takes to take care of a smeet!" she said encouragingly.

"YEAH! That's what I'll do!" Purple grinned wide, feeling confident now.

Down in the bedroom, meanwhile, Dib trembled in the bed as Zim laid him down, his eyes squeezed tightly shut. "I-I'm sorry...I'm sorry..." he was breaking down now. He didn't know what was wrong with him today. As much as he wanted to blame hormones, it felt like something more than that.

Worried about him, Zim rubbed Dib's back gently. "It's okay, Dib. You can't help feeling bad. Are you alright?" he asked.

"I-I don't know...I don't know...I don't know..." Dib repeated over and over again, his antennae falling back and shuddering. "I don't know what's wrong with me...It's like I can't breathe a-and..." he shuddered as he felt something prickling at his skin uncomfortably.

"Dib? Dib, what's wrong?" Zim asked, his worry increasing. "What's happening?" he asked.

Shivers running up and down his body, Dib could only breathe out heavily, sweat building and rolling down his skin. He didn't know what was happening to him. He felt nauseous but for some reason excited at the same time, like he expected something to happen.

Zim looked at him terrified. "I-I...We need help. Come on...I don't want to leave you alone...M-Maybe Rose will know what's happening..." he said.

"No...I don't want to go back up there..." Dib shrunk back in the covers, holding his hands over his antennae. "Can't you just go back up there and get everybody to leave and then come back to bed? I...I just want to try and sleep it off..." he said as he felt his face flushing.

Zim watched Dib nervously. "O-Okay...I'll be really quick, okay? I'll only be gone a few minutes. I promise." he started backing away slowly, worried something would happen if he left.

His shivering continuing until the other had nearly left completely, Dib peeked his eyes open enough to watch Zim back his way out of the room. Then, as fast as it had hit him, it was gone and he could breathe again. "What...?" he panted out slowly as he tried to catch his breath again. "What happened...?" he swallowed thickly before bringing a hand up to hold his head. "Was it...Was it because of Zim...?" he asked himself once he was completely alone.

Zim rushed up the stairs as fast as he could. "Everybody out!" he shouted, waving his arms. "Dib wants to go to bed and wants everyone to leave!" he exclaimed.

All of them jumped slightly at the demand before looking back at Zim.

"W-Well...Alright then...B-But is everything okay?" Rose asked, noticing the look of panic on Zim's face.

"Does this mean you DO want me to stay over at Tak's base instead?" Purple then asked, blinking down at Zim confusedly.

"Uhh...Everything's fine. He's just tired. And, no. There's a spare room upstairs that you can stay in."

"W-Well...Okay then...I'll just go have a look for myself then." Purple said before leaving to find his room on his own.

"I guess we'll get going too then...We have to get the house ready and stop by the store to get a few things anyways...B-But please call us if anything comes up..." Rose said, sending Zim a slightly worried look. "Otherwise, we'll see you tomorrow for dinner..." she said.

"Oh, Zim. If you'd like to go out and get a ring for Dib, show up a little bit early though. We don't want to head out too late otherwise the stores might close. Is 3:00 alright with you?"

"Three is fine." Zim smiled a little as he started backing away. "We'll see you then."

Rose smiled back. "Alright. We'll be waiting. Take good care of Dib and the smeets until then." she waved before making her way to the front door with Jack to leave.

Waving a little as they left, Zim smiled before rushing back down to Dib.

Back down in the bedroom, Dib was sitting up in bed, waiting for Zim to return to see whether the other being around him caused his body to react the same way.

Panting heavily, Zim entered the room. "Okay, Dib. I sent everyone home. Are you feeling any better?" he asked.

Staring down at his own hands at this point, Dib lifted his gaze up to look at Zim. "Y-Yeah...I am, actually...I-It's like it-" he cut himself short as Zim approached, his body tensing back up suddenly and an indescribable heat rippling through his body from his head to his toes.

"Dib?" Zim came back to the bed and sat down next to him, feeling his forehead. "You're burning up...Dib, something's wrong." he said.

"Mmm..." Dib's antennae fell back at the other's touch. "I-I'll be fine...I-I just want to sleep..." he said, eyes squeezed tightly shut as he laid himself back down, a wave of heat washing over him like fire under his skin and his face flushing when Zim took a seat next to him. Surprisingly enough, the headache that had accompanied his discomfort earlier was beginning to leave.

Running a hand through Dib's hair, Zim nodded. "Okay. I'll be here for you, Dib-love." he kissed him gently. "Sleep well." he said.

His antennae twitching at the small kiss, Dib could only nod in response. It felt so strange to him, this feeling he was having. It wasn't what he could describe as unpleasant but rather satisfactory in a way, being so near Zim in that moment. He wanted to feel the other's touch despite how sensitive he was to it.

Zim smiled sweetly. "I think I'll take a nap with you." he slid under the covers and pulled them up over Dib.

A/N: And there you have it for Chapter 101. =3 Until next time~