Dlbn: Hello, everyone! Sorry about the my super long departure, I just had no time to post since the last time I posted for my wedding.
Nbld: Working two jobs sucks, but thank god we're down to just one now.
Dlbn: Which leaves us time to post, finally! So, let's get going! We actually uploaded this onto fanfic on the 17th, but forgot to actually update the story because we were passing out cold.
Nbld: So please excuse our stupidity. Review Corner! Thank you to Zim'sMostLoyalServant and Invader Johnny for reviewing! Cake for you both!
Zim'sMostLoyalServant: Thank you so much! I figured Ense would be a little surprise twist there. I wasn't going to do it originally, but I'm glad I did. As for the Zayena part, playing with someone's heartstrings never ends well.
Invader Johnny: Thank you! Nah, Zim just lives in the moment and lets things go a they come. That van ben a good thing but it isn't in this case.
Disclaimer: I own nothing cannon to Invader Zim. All that belongs to Jhonen C. Vasquez. I make NO money off using everything canon. Anything non-canon belongs to me. I make NO money off this.
Dedication 1: I'd lie to dedicate this chapter to my friends Laura and Andrew, who tiered the knot earlier today (the 17th). Congratulations! I'm honored to have been a part of things!
Dedication 2: Happy one year anniversary of myself and my husband! We've only been married for 3 months but we've been together for a yer ago today (the 17th, when I wrote this). Happy one year, my love. Here's to many, many more!
Dedication 3: Dedicated to the release of Enter the Florpus, on Netflix as of the 16th. Prepare your bowels to be voided like never before!
000
Zim was surprised by two things that night. One, that Zayena managed to give her friends and new boy toy the slip to go to his house around ten. Second, that she greeted him with a slap to the face. His friends were all on their feet in an instant, Lahna letting out a gasp and covering her mouth with her hands. Daila was giggling a bit, despite her cousin's hushed attempts to shut her up. Sila stood there with her arms folded over her chest as Zayena glared at him, seething. No one said anything as the two stared one another down. Zayena huffed finally and tapped her foot, hands on her hips.
"I'm waiting for an apology." She commented.
"From me?" He asked. "You're the one that went and hit me."
"What the hell was up with that stunt at school today?"
"Oh, so you noticed."
"Hell yes, I noticed." She pushed past him to get off the lawn.
He shut the door behind her as she ranted to herself in angry Irken before slowing down and simply glaring at him.
"You did it on purpose." She commented.
"As did you. Well two can play at that game, Zay."
"As can I? What are you…? Oh, you mean Samuel?"
"I don't care much to know the boy's name. You're twenty-four years old. He's sixteen. What the hell do you think you're doing with him?"
"Self-preservation is what I'm doing with him." Zayena rolled her eyes and folded her arms over her chest like Sila. "Caleb is onto us. He swears he won't say shit as long as I have a boyfriend at school."
"So he's blackmailing you into cheating on me, and you're doing it to save your ass? And you don't think to warn me?"
"As if you'd give a shit! You've been blowing me off ever since the rest of your crew got here." She complained. "Like I don't even matter."
"Shit, Zayena, not this crap." He ran a hand over his antennae. "Are you really all that insecure?"
"Who the hell knows what or who you've been doing since we split. With your reputation, I think I have a right to be insecure."
"Oh, so now it's my reputation that's the issue? Let me remind you, you had zero problems with my reputation when you hopped into my bed the night we met."
She slapped him again.
"Can't handle the truth?" He chuckled. "Come on, Zayena. I told you I haven't been with anyone since we split. You said the same thing. I believe you, so why can't you believe me? And don't cite my reputation because I'll cite the day we met."
She huffed. "You have a history of cheating…"
"Far be it for any of us to get involved, Zayena, but he quit that shit when he got with you." Gabe stated. "The guy really does love you, you know. Give him a chance. Stop giving into Caleb's shit."
"She can't help it." Sila commented, waving him off. "She doesn't want to ruin her reputation with her friends. I get it. She admitted she'd throw him under the bus to save her own skin. He accepted it as fact and agreed to it. So don't get pissy, Jun, when she's doing exactly what she warned you she was going to have to do in the first place."
Zayena nodded. "She's right, you know. You said it was okay."
"You said you'd let me in on it."
"You didn't give me a chance. He cornered me yesterday about it. You were busy." She tossed a sideways glare at Daila. "And you went along with it?"
"Sticks and stones, love." Daila shrugged. "You did it to him, but you're mad he did it to you? Double standard. Don't do something to another that you wouldn't want someone else doing to you. That's rule two of the streets."
"Can you live with it?" Zim asked.
Zayena shrugged. "I did it, didn't I? Guess I can live with it." She sighed. "I would have told you sooner if you'd let me…"
"You could have texted me or called to say that you needed to talk."
"Yeah, I guess…I didn't think…"
"Clearly you didn't think." Zim huffed.
She rolled her eyes. "I'll talk to you later, alone when we can. Sam's gonna call me in a few minutes to let me know if he got home okay, and I don't need background noise from the choir."
"Watch it, missy." Sila ordered.
"Sorry." She didn't sound it. "See you, Junior."
He didn't say anything as she left. The others slowly settled down, but the tension was thick.
"That was awkward…" Gabe stated. "And I've seen plenty of broads throw a fit cause you screwed around on them…"
"Yeah." Zim flopped down on the couch. "I don't know what the problem is…"
"Here's a hint. It's blonde and has a loud mouth." Lahna rolled her eyes. "You know how Jessica acts like they're best friends, even though they've known each other maybe two months now. She's getting in her head. One of these days she's going to wipe you out of her life completely."
"And I'll have no one to blame but myself, since I should have seen it coming." Zim sighed. "I know. Still blows."
"You're starting to move on from being friends with Dib and what he did. Maybe it's time to start moving on from Zayena…" Aila spoke slowly.
"You know as well as I do that I'm right; he's in love with her." Gabe stated.
Zim's phone buzzed and he grabbed it from his pocket to see who messaged him.
"He can't just call it quits so easily."
"Apparently, she can." He tossed the phone to Sila. "Fuck this shit. I need a drink."
"You alright?" Lahna asked.
Zim waved her off as he reached the staircase that led to his elevator. Sila waited until she heard the elevator descend before looking at the text.
Until this all blows over with Caleb, I think it's best we go our separate ways. I'm sorry, Junior. We're over. Xoxo Zayena
"She dumped him via text." Sila complained, handing Lahna the phone before the youngest Haven on Earth could rip it from her hands.
"For real?" Lahna complained, groaning. "Oh, he's not going to recover from this. He's going to be on the war path."
"Caleb better be ready. Zim's going to gun for him first now that he knows he put the idea in her head."
"Personally, I hope the little fucker isn't ready. This is bullshit." Sila muttered. "You see the look in his eye? Jun's broken."
"I think we should go and let you two handle him." Gabe stated. "Want me to call Ense or Chase?"
"I'll call my brother." Lahna stated. "Chase can stay out of it for now." She left the room.
"Make sure he's okay, okay?" Daila told Sila. "I feel awful."
"You didn't do anything."
"When he asked me for help, I didn't say no."
"No one says no to Junior. Don't beat yourself up."
Daila smiled as Gabe led her and her cousin out the front door to go home.
"Oh, and if Junior does go battle it out with Caleb, you let me know so I can sell tickets, a'right?"
"A'right." Sila waved him off.
He closed the door behind him as he left. Sila groaned, digging her palms into her eyes. She stood and rubbed the back of her neck, going to the elevator to make sure the idiot didn't hurt himself.
"What floor did he go to?" She asked the computer once inside the elevator.
"Fourth basement level. I think he went into his room." The computer monotoned back.
"Send me to fourth. I better make sure he don't drink himself into a coma."
"At this point, a coma might be the best thing to happen to him." Computer sighed. "His life is falling apart again."
"Except this time, Gram isn't here to pick up the pieces. I am."
Silence answered her as she began her descent to the fourth floor. Lord, give me strength.
000
Sila found Zim face first in a pillow on his bed. He didn't seem to notice that she had come into the room, so she didn't say anything; instead choosing to just stand there and watch him. He stirred after a moment, lifting his head slightly to glare at her.
"You gonna speak or stare like I'm part of a sideshow?" He asked.
"Hey, don't take your relationship problems out on me." She snapped. "Snap out of it, Jun."
"Sorry, sorry." He groaned, pressing his face harder into the pillow. "Why do I feel like a mopey teenager?"
"Because you're mopey and pretending to be a teenager."
He rolled his eyes. "Thanks, Sils. You always know just what to say."
"I try."
Silence took over.
"Look, you're gonna bounce back from this. You always do. She was just some cheap lay. And now you're done with her."
"She wasn't just a cheap lay. She's Zayena…I was in love with her, Sila…"
"I'm aware." Sila nodded. "She showed her true colors tonight. All she cares about is self-preservation. She doesn't give a damn about you. It made her feel good and got her laid. Now she's got friends, a self-esteem boost, and Caleb breathing down her neck, manipulating her every move. There's nothing you can do about that. We considered the option of her betraying us, and it's sadly come to fruition."
"Fruition? Look at you, using all these big words now."
She rolled her eyes. "Glad you feel good enough to be shooting shit with me, Jun."
He laughed dryly. "Yeah, I guess. You always know how to cheer a fucker up, you know that?"
"Only when it's you, asshole." Sila chuckled. "Still need that drink?"
"Yeah. Where's the others?"
"Lahna's calling your brother in case you get all suicidal on us, and the trio went home."
"Great. Make Ense worry. Just what I needed."
"Hey, with how things are going, he has a right to worry about you; we all do. You lost your best friend, your girl…what's going to be next…?"
"I didn't lose my best friend." Zim smirked. "You're standing right next to me."
"Don't get all frigging sentimental on me, Jun."
"Sila, I make no promises on that front."
"That's it; we're bringing out the booze and shutting you the fuck up."
Zim laughed as Sila left the room. "I like the sound of that."