Dlbn: Hey, everyone. Welcome to another chapter!
Nbld: Not much to go on about now, so we'll just hurry onto the Review Corner. Thank you to Zim'sMostLoyalServant and Invader Johnny for reviewing! Candy for you both!
Zim'sMostLoyalServant: And neither of them really realize the other one already knows. Kind of sad, really. Dib and Dee are two of my favorite characters to write in this fic, though Dee's a pain in the butt even to me. Glad you'er enjoying.
Invader Johnny: Nope, you're definitely not. A friend of mine was reading this and every time he saw Keef's name, he grumbled to himself in disgust ^^"
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot and some OCs. You'll recognize them. Everything else belongs to Jhonen C. Vasquez. I make no money from writing this.
000
Throughout the course of the day, it became apparent that Dib's absence from the group wasn't going to just be a short-term issue. Lahna was going to sit in his seat as he, again, joined Dee and her friends for lunch. Gretchen had politely asked her to switch so she wouldn't have to see them, and Lahna had happily agreed. Things continued as if he was just out sick for the day, but his absence wasn't unnoticed; it was just unspoken. Gaz and the others had admitted to Gretchen that they knew she liked Dib and to not worry about it. Keef had tried to assure her that Dib would come back, as he and Dee were probably only just a fling, but it hadn't helped. Melvin had tried to play the 'hey, it's not as bad as' and 'it could be worse' cards, but she wasn't having any of that either and Zim told him to drop it. The plans for the party were spoken in hushed tones so that Dee and her nosey friends couldn't hear and tell Dib. They had agreed to go to Zim's house after school to talk about it more openly. Dee had attempted to make a show out of Dib sitting with her and her friends, by announcing loudly that he was sitting with them, but the group turned a blind eye and a deaf ear to her as best they could with their own hyperactive chatter over the 'greatest thing ever to happen' yesterday. Something completely made up, but enough to fool Dee and her crew into thinking they weren't paying attention. Zim tried to ignore the hurt look in Dib's eyes as he passed them with her to get food and his sister gave him the look of death. He also tried to mask the anger that was brewing in his own eyes. Couldn't he see what Dee and her friends were up to? Couldn't he see that his friends felt abandoned? Worse of all, couldn't he see how much Gretchen was hurting? Maybe he did and just didn't care. The hurt look in his eyes offered the idea that he did care and was upset, but he could have put up a bigger fight. Or at least had the decency to tell them that he wouldn't be sitting with them. He couldn't be overly mad at the boy, as he'd tried to leave his horrid temper in the past, where it belonged, but he was starting to feel the pang of irritation build in his skull.
"I wonder how long this is going to last." Gretchen sighed.
She and the others were sitting on the school's front steps after classes let out. They were going to wait for the buses to clear and then walk to get food before going to Zim's house.
"Not long." Gaz snorted. "She seems like the kind of girl that just wants to get more notches in her belt."
Lahna chuckled, giving Zim a look that he shunned.
"You're calling her a player?" Melvin questioned.
"Basically." Gaz shrugged. "She rubs me the wrong way."
"She rubs everyone the wrong way." Zim stated. "Is there a single person here who doesn't hate her?"
No one replied.
"Thought so." Zim sighed. "I just hope Dib doesn't get too suckered in. Something bad is going to happen. I can feel it."
"Gee, thanks for the scare, Mr. Fortuneteller." Lahna chided him. "Don't say that kind of thing unless you want it to happen, a'ight?"
"A'ight, a'ight." Zim waved her off. "My apologies for scaring anyone."
"Could you sound any phonier?" Jessica wondered as she stopped to converse with the group.
"What do you want?" Zim wondered.
"Lahna, you forgot you were supposed to sit with us today." Jessica ignored him.
"Oh, yes, how silly of me. It was so hard to hear my own thoughts then Dee was rubbing it in our faces that Dib rather spend more time with her then with his friends. Sorry."
Jessica was either oblivious or just didn't catch what Lahna meant as she chuckled. "It's no worries. Just don't forget tomorrow, okay?" She wondered.
"I'll try not to." Lahna's false smile sent a shiver down her brother's spine, but Jessica didn't notice the malice it was hiding.
"Good. See you tomorrow!"
Her friends followed her off without so much as a word.
"She's the most oblivious thing in the history of oblivious things." Lahna stated.
"Don't speak too soon. Dib and Dee are coming." Zim snorted.
The couple walked down the stairs.
"Hey, guys." Dib greeted. "You're going to miss the bus if you wait around too long, Gaz."
"I'm going to Zim's." She stated, mashing away at her game.
"Oh, okay." He shrugged.
She was friends with Zim first, so he wasn't about to argue with her.
"Are all of you?" He wondered.
Keef shrugged. "I might for a bit…"
"We're going to study for the English exam for tomorrow." Gretchen stated, her voice dripping with something that Zim couldn't name. "Gaz is coming for the free food."
Gaz nodded, continuing at her game.
"Free food?" Iggins wondered. "Count me in. Damn it, Gaz!"
She chuckled darkly as the game emitted sounds of pain from out of Iggins' system.
"Oh, alright." He stated. "Wish I could join you, but…" He looked to Dee, who was holding his hand rather tightly.
"We have plans." She announced with a grin that was too big for the statement. "Dinner and a movie. Oh, it's going to be so romantic."
Zim put a hand on his stomach. "I think some romance of my own is going to end up on your shoes." He stated.
Lahna giggled, but Dee looked disgusted. She pulled away from Dib.
"I'll wait for you at my bus stop, sweetie."
"Alright." He smiled and gave her a quick peck on the lips.
She happily bounded away, skirt bouncing at her knees.
"Can you not make jokes like that near her, Zim? She's…"
"Sensitive?"
"She's getting annoyed."
"Well sorry. I'd hate to upset the Queen Dee." Zim's words were dripping with venom, but only Lahna seemed to catch it. "Look, I'm not going to change how I talk around her just because it's 'just what she was telling you about'. Sorry that she doesn't like it, but the world doesn't revolve around her."
"No, it doesn't but…"
"But your world does…" Gretchen muttered, looking away.
"Huh?"
"You don't even tell us you're not going to sit with us at lunch?" Gretchen wondered. "You don't hang out before homeroom, you're always all over one another, and you act like we don't exist half the time. Ever since you two got together yesterday, Dee is all you care about…"
"I didn't…I don't…"
"Save it, Dib. She's right." Gaz snorted.
"Look, I don't mean to push you guys aside. I'm sorry you feel that way, Gretch, really, I am. But you guys have replaced me too…"
"Me?" Lahna wondered. "I'm just a seat filler. I'm not here to replace you."
"She's the new girl, Dib, cut her a break." Melvin stated.
"I didn't mean to be rude, I just…" Dib sighed. "Can we talk about this later? Dee's waiting and…"
"Yeah, we can put our important conversation and our lives on hold for Dee." Zim sneered.
"Thanks, I knew you'd understand." Dib rushed off to the blonde.
"What just happened?" Keef asked.
"Dib out oblivious-ed the most oblivious thing ever." Zim stated.
Gaz huffed. "And second place officially goes to…"
"We should give out trophies for this shit." Zim sighed, running a hand through his hair.
"Zim, language. I'm surprised at you." Keef scolded. "I expect that kind of thing from Gaz, not you."
"Bite me." Gaz ordered.
"N-No thank you, I'm good."
"He's a vegetarian." Zim snorted.
"Alright, I think we can walk now." Lahna stated, stretching. "I'm hungry as hell."
"That's because you didn't eat."
"That's because the food was shit."
"Bring a bag lunch." Gaz stated. "I do. That slop is disgusting. I don't know how any of you tolerate it."
"Zim brings a bag lunch, too." Keef objected.
"I think our digestive systems are just so used to it that we can make it through it." Gretchen offered.
They all stood up one by one.
"I'd hate to see what your digestive systems look like." Gaz shuddered.
"Have your dad take an x-ray." Zim joked.
She rolled her eyes. "I'm sure he'd love to do that and then experiment on all of you to see what makes you immune to the radiation poisoning that I'm quite sure gets into the food."
"I'd rather not be an experiment, thanks." Zim argued.
The group laughed, carrying on the conversation as they walked down the street and switched topics as they went.
000
Zim felt bad for his little sister. Sitting on his couch, looking more like a frightened twelve-year-old than the hardened gangster she'd spent her life trying to emulate. It was disheartening, in a way, that she could go from not taking any nonsense and taking names to curling up on his couch wrapped in a fluffy robe and an even fluffier blanket. She seemed nervous of any little thing that went by outside, and even a bit spooked by Gir on occasion. She'd played it cool while their friends-minus Dib, of course-were over, but he could tell that even Gaz was a bit suspicious of how she acted. He swore to whatever celestial being guided the universe that if he was able to go home by some fluke, the first thing he'd do-and maybe the only with the security there and his branding as a fool-was haul ass to the station and give a nice ass whopping on the bastard that had hurt his sister; the kind he normally saved for when Caleb was being a dick and needed a good jaw punch to shut him up. And dislocate his jaw…again.
"Say, Lahna?" He wondered.
"Yeah, Junior?" She replied. "What is it?"
"Are you sure you don't want to move in here? The others don't need to know."
"I don't know…I mean, I'm fine on my own and…"
"Don't bullshit me, Lahn." Zim scolded. "You're skittish as all hell."
"I guess…I just…" She shuddered. "What happened there…for the first time…I was truly afraid for my life…I mean…what would have happened if the guard decided he liked…that…enough that he didn't want me being sent off? What if he came here with me or followed me or some shit?"
"He'd get one fucking hell of an ass beating." Zim growled, sitting next to his sister. "You have nothing to worry about with me around, alright?" He brushed her left antennae out of her eyes for her. "I'll protect you."
"I know…I just don't…I don't know…it will take time, Junior…"
"I know it will. Take all the time you need." He shrugged one shoulder. "But in the meantime, maybe being at my place will make you feel a bit safer."
"I'll think about it…can I stay the night tonight?"
"Lahna, you can stay the night whenever you want."
She gave him a smile. "Gracie, Aiyies…"
"What are brothers for, hm?" He pulled her into a hug with one arm around her shoulders.
"Well, in Dib's case, pissing off your sister to the point where she wants to strangle you with your own socks."
Zim frowned. "Dib is a special case…"
"In more than one sense of the word."
He laughed. "I guess that's a fair statement." He slid down on the couch. "I'm worried, y'know?"
"That he's gone for good? If he is, then fuck him." She shrugged. "That's how things work, right? You cross me, you can go to hell?"
"You cross me, you get your ass kicked so you never forget not to do so again."
"He's a teenager, hermanino."
"Ya sea." He nodded. "But we'd both be lying if we said he didn't deserve it."
"I'm sure the police would love that."
"I'm a teenager here. Who's gonna call the police anyway? His father isn't around much, mother's gone, and Gaz would kick his ass if he tried."
"Don't mean Dee wouldn't try or convince him to try, you know…she seems the type to do anything to get the people she doesn't like out of the way."
"Now you see why I'm worried." He ran a hand down his face. "Shit, I could use a damn drink…"
"So, get a damn drink."
"I don't keep booze in my place. Too tempting."
"I hear ya." She licked her lips. "But if you really need a drink sometime, I just so happen to have credits left."
He laughed. "I'll keep that in mind, hermanina."
"I miss Seoul." She leaned her head on his shoulder. "I mean, it's a rat infested-slum hole, but it's our rat-infested slum hole. Riot and Covert? We were on top back in the day. Top dog, take no one's shit cuz no one was stupid enough to give it ta us."
"Except the police." He sighed. "I miss the gang, I do, but I don't miss all of it."
"I bet you miss kicking Caleb's ass and dislocating his jaw six times."
"Four that I admit to."
"Right, almost forgot." She rolled her eyes.
He only clearly remembered sending Caleb to the hospital with his jaw four times. One he knew Caleb had faked and blamed him just to get him into trouble, but the other one could have happened when he was so drunk he forgot the next day. He'd go through frequent periods of that as a kid; drinking to the point of either blacking out that night, or completely forgetting everything the moment he woke up sober. It wasn't a good life, but it was his, and a part of him did miss it.
"But shit, I mean…I don't know." She sighed. "I miss my friends…they probably think I'm dead by now…"
"I miss mine, too." Zim nodded. "I think about my old gang back home a lot, actually. Wonder what they're up to, what I'd be up to if I was there with them…"
"Drinking, pill popping, and taking home some random bar slut for a one-night stand that you regret in the morning but act like you don't give a flying shit."
"Nah, I'd probably get back with Zayena, honestly."
"For real? Man, you really liked that broad, didn't you?"
"You're starting to sound like Sila." He sighed. "But yeah, I think I was in love with her." He leaned his head back on the couch. "Stupid asshole father kicking me out…had I not moved in with gram, I would still be with her."
"Probably." Lahna shrugged. "Sila misses you too, you know. She ain't gonna say it cuz she's too hard to, she thinks, but there's always this sadness about her when anyone mentions you. Hell, it could be her that mentions you, and she'll still get all mopey."
"Yeah, she's always been a major hard ass." He chuckled. "Ense was convinced she had a thing for me."
"She might have." Lahna shrugged. "I mean, you guys were best friends for forever, so it wouldn't surprise me all that well if she caught some feelings for ya."
"The one person in the universe I don't need having feelings for me is Sila frigging Massy."
"One person?" Lahna pretended to inch from him. "Damn, bro, I didn't know you were into that shit."
He laughed, grabbing her and pulling her close. "Get back here; I didn't mean that." He laughed. "She's the only broad I'm not related to that I respect enough not to hook up with. And, trust me, I spent enough nights at her place and in her bed enough to have tried something. But neither of us did cuz neither of us felt that way."
"Are you trying to convince yourself or me?" Lahna cocked an eyebrow. "I'm sorry, Hi-may, but I'm not sure I'd buy what you're selling. It's low quality."
He laughed. "Lahn, I ain't never sold a thing in my damn life that wasn't of the highest quality…and straight outta Sila's basement."
"Nice." She laughed. "I missed this…"
"Same here, sis, same here."