Dlbn: Hello, everyone! Its been a majorly busy month, but now its time to settle down and get to updating again!

Nbld: Online classes have come to a close for me (I got A's in both!) and I just started a manager job at my old job that I left for a crappy one, so I've been pretty busy.

Dlbn: Plus Halloween, which is also my brother-in-law's birthday and his anniversary with my sister. Not to mention court stuff for my son and bull for my best friend, so its been hectic.

Nbld: So let's get to going to another chapter. Hopefully I'll be able to get back to a normal posting schedule again, but not sure. I'm doing a sleep study next weekend, so I might not update again until after. Review Corner! Thank you to Zim'sMostLoyalServant and Invader Johnny for reviewing! Halloween-Birthday cake and candy for you both!

Zim'sMostLoyalServant: You really can't. First, its disrespectful and rude, and second, that's one of his students being attacked. Not cool at all. Dib goes through points of highs and lows in his personality, really. Hopefully personality isn't as deceiving as it could be.

Invader Johnny: Only way for him to find out is to keep moving forward.

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot and the plethora of OCs that I won't name here. Anything non-canon to Invader Zim is mine, but everything canon belongs to Jhonen C Vasquez. I make NO money off writing this.

Dedication: I'd like to dedicate this chapter first to my sister and my brother in law for starting their hormones this week! The first step towards being their true selves has begun, and they've both been able to at least once use the appropriate bathrooms for once. Congrats, guys, and happy birthday bro-bro!

Dedication 2: This chapter is also dedicated to my best friend Meg. She's in a really tough place right now and has finally managed to ditch her abusive, controlling boyfriend so she can do what's right by her kids. I'm rooting for you, girl!

000

Zim met Chase at his house as he had agreed to, without much fuss from the girls at being left behind. He didn't feel like lying to them, so he'd come clean and told them Chase needed to talk but that he was sworn to secrecy. It was a bit of a lie, he knew, but they didn't have to know that part. He knocked on the door three times. It opened and Chase pulled him inside quickly.

"No one followed you?" Chase asked.

"The girls know I'm here, but I told them other than that, my lips are sealed." Zim replied.

"Thanks."

"So, what is it?"

"Want something to eat?"

"No."

"Drink?"

"No."

"Turn the heat up? Turn it down?"

"Chase Sangre." Zim rolled his eyes. "Everything is fine. Stop being flaky and just talk to me, man. We're blood here."

"Alright, alright." Chase sighed. "Can we go in the kitchen? There's…um…someone I want you to meet…"

"Seriously?" Zim rolled his eyes. "All this shit over you having a friend over? For real?"

"It's more complicated than that…come on." Chase didn't lead him, just shoved his hands in his pockets and expected him to follow.

Zim shrugged and did what he asked. Another young man around Chase's age sat at the kitchen counter, reading a book. He adjusted his glasses with one hand and turned the page with the other before reaching for a cup of tea.

"Ahem." Chase cleared his throat. "Damian."

The man looked up, smiling sheepishly. "Sorry, I didn't hear you come in." He replied.

"It's fine, Damian. Zim Haven, my cousin."

"Oh, Junior, right? I've heard a lot about you." He extended one hand and shut the book with the other one.

"Nothing good, most likely, if you know me by that name." Zim shook his head. "Nice to meet you." He looked at Chase. "So why the secrecy, dude?"

"Well…er…" Chase wrung his hands and looked at his feet.

"You don't have to do this, you know…" Damian assured him.

"No, I'm tired of hiding this shit from my own blood." Chase hugged himself and shook his head. "Damian's my fiancé, Junior…"

"Oh." Zim cocked an eyebrow. "Congratulations."

"Thanks…" Chase's blush deepened as he looked up at Zim from underneath his false, shaggy bangs. "So…you…um…that's all you have to say…?"

"What?" Zim asked. "You expect me to put on some big show about you being gay? Dude, I don't care. Whatever you're into is whatever you're into. I don't give a shit either way, no offense, Damian."

"None taken. I get what you're saying." He smiled gently.

"You remember how I told you I had a friend who's dad was a cop, but they kicked me out after a while?" Chase asked.

"Yeah? This him?"

"Yeah…er…"

"Dad kicked us both out. Had nothing to do with Chase overstaying his welcome. He…sort of walked in on us…"

"That's just mortifying."

"You're telling me." Damian laughed, rubbing the back of his neck. "I guess he wasn't expecting it, since he just kind of stood there and stared at me for a while."

"Damian was with me when I got arrested. He protested, so they hauled him off, too." Chase explained. "We were banished together and he asked on the way here."

"So, what, you wanted to hide it so you can get out of anyone throwing you an engagement party? Because that's only going to work so long." Zim folded his arms over his chest, smirking.

Chase shoved him playfully. "You're a dick."

"You would know."

"Dude!"

Zim laughed. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I couldn't resist." He shook Chase by the shoulder. "Lighten up. I'm not going to bite your head off. I mean, for fuck's sake, I'm friends with Keef. Without Dib, he's my best human friend. If I gave a shit, I wouldn't bother with him."

"Yeah, I guess so." Chase rubbed the back of his neck. "I just never really came out to anyone before, you know?"

"And you decided to come out to me? I'm touched."

"You're my cousin." Chase shrugged one shoulder. "And seeing how you handled it with Keef…I don't know, it just made it easier. I don't like hiding this, I don't, but it hasn't exactly been met with acceptance so far, and you've seen how it's being handled by the school."

"Yeah, but this isn't the school; this is the streets. We handle things differently here, you know this." Zim replied. "Besides, what kind of a dick would I be if I had a problem with it? Lahna and Ense wouldn't care either. We're family. We're just glad to be together again, and together includes you."

Chase hugged him. "Thanks, Junior…" He muttered. "I know you try to be this big old hard ass gangster, but you're not as bad as you pretend to be."

"It's how I survive." Zim replied, hugging Chase back and patting him on the back. "Adapt, change, protect yourself. That's how I lived before the military, and that's how the military trained me to be. Being banished doesn't change my hardwiring."

"Yeah, I know. Put on a front, be someone you're not to protect the person you are from disaster." Chase shrugged. "I guess I do that too, in a way…being in the closet and all. Unlike Dame. He's out."

Damian shrugged. "I just don't see the need to hide it. I'm in love with who I'm in love with. People don't like that, that's not my god damn problem."

"I was starting to wonder if you were a Seoulian or not. Now I think I have an idea."

Damian laughed. "I'm not a Seoulian, but we did live there for a while when dad was being transferred departments, but not enough to consider it anything. I'm from Shi'Nae. Originally Yusen."

"Small world." Chase stated. "That's where my parents and I first got separated. Look at that. We were fated to be together." He laughed.

"Damn straight." Damian pulled him from his cousin to give him a kiss on the temple.

"Dame…"

"It's cool, man. I don't care, remember?"

"Right." Chase laughed. "But…you do seem worried about something."

"Got a note in my locker." Zim fished it out and gave it to his cousin.

He and Damian crowded close to read it. Zim couldn't help but smirk. His cousin seemed to quite comfortable with being with him, despite being afraid to come out. Foolish.

"Who's this from?" Damian asked.

"My money's on Dib." Chase offered.

"Yeah, mine too. My money is also on this being a trap that I'm not going to be stupid enough to walk into."

"A trap? You think his friends are going to go after you?"

"If not one of the teens, then Caleb. Who knows who of his merry band of miscreants is here that we didn't know about. He's pulled this shit before."

"Gang bullshit, got it." Damian replied, taking off his glasses and setting them of the counter. "If you think it's a trap, don't go. Simple."

"But if it's not a trap, I could miss out on something I wanted to know."

"Like who did that to Keef's desk." Chase offered.

"Right." Zim nodded. "That's the only thing Dib promised to tell me if he found out. For once, he feels bad."

"Holy shit, he has a conscience. Who would have thunk it." Chase rolled his eyes. "Tread lightly, cos. I don't want to see you get hurt just to get a bit of information you could get another way."

"And even if you get the information what, good will it do?" Damian wondered. "You're not going to beat up a kid, and it's not like administration will do anything."

"No, but Keef's parents are coming Friday to personally see to it that this is being handled. They don't take too kindly to someone tormenting their son like that."

"You know, if all those kids had their parents get on the district's asses about this shit, something might actually get done. There's strength in numbers, but as long as the school thinks you guys are keeping silent, they won't do anything."

Zim nodded. "I don't think anyone but Keef has told their parents. And Gretchen with the one incident. I mean, I've told Gram, but what is she going to do?"

"Nothing." Chase shrugged. "She can't. Ense could but no one knows you're related, and he's not going to risk his job with that. He already risked it once helping you prank Torque and his friends that one day."

"I don't want him to do anything stupid." Zim replied. "We had an exit strategy for that."

"As long as you're certain." Damian nodded. "This can't go on forever. But for now, what are you going to do about the note?"

"I have an idea."