I'm so sorry I'm so sorry I'm so sorry! I can't believe I never updated in months…! Ever since summer actually…

So sorry so sorry so sorry! (hopefully) Will you take a cookie as a token of my sorry-ness?

Guess not… (sighs)

--

The next morning

… is he really going to go through with this?

Dib stared at the bathroom mirror with wide, frenzied eyes, shielded by his familiar glass lenses. He reached out a hand as if to stroke the glass surface.

"Am I really going through with this?" Dib wondered out loud. His reflection blinked back at him.

Why, of course you are, a voice piped up in his head. This will bother Zim, won't it? And isn't that what you want?

"Yeah, but…" And he stared at his reflection, who blinked back at him indifferently. "How would that even help me stop Zim?"

Well, the voice said, it would certainly distract him.

"But it could go the other way! It could encourage him to work even more quickly to destroy the Earth, just to have his revenge on me! Me, who bothered him! I don't want the Earth destroyed on my account!" Dib poked a finger at the mirror, eyes slightly deranged.

Hm… but what else could you do?

"Anything, besides that." Dib crossed his arms and glared at his reflection. "I am not going to pretend to fall in love with Anise. It's… weird! And… dumb! I don't even like her just as a friend!" He disregarded the fact that he was the one who came up with the idea. "And besides, I'm not exactly what you'd call an expert in love." And here he raised his shoulders in a shrug.

True that, grumbled the voice. At this, Dib narrowed his eyes at the reflection. "And what's that supposed to mean?"

Then he heard knocks. "Dib, you idiot, we have to leave! Dad's not letting me leave the house until you're with me!" shouted the slightly muffled voice of his sister.

Dib sighed. He looked at the mirror.

He was going to go through with it.

--

Dib and Gaz walked side-by-side on the gray sidewalk, Gaz grimly silent and Dib, as usual, talking energetically.

"…and then he almost blew me up! It was kind of dumb, since we were in his lab, but Zim didn't even realize that his lab and himself could get caught up in the explosion. He really is stupid. But then his funny little robot came, and…"

Gaz's fist twitched. Luckily, or maybe not-so-luckily, for Dib, there was a shout behind them. "Hey! Gaz! Wait up!"

His sister halted without even turning around. Curiously, Dib looked behind him and… winced. There was Anise, calmly walking towards them.

Do I have to start now? he mentally whined. I thought I had until skool starts, at least!

But he forced a cheery smile on his face as Anise approached them. "Hey… Anise," Dib said, awkwardly raising a hand. Anise gave him a courteous nod and stood beside Gaz.

The two girls resumed walking, leaving an embarrassed-looking Dib behind.

"It's going to be a long day," grumbled Dib after his breath.

--

Beginning of class

Miss Bitters entered the classroom quietly, her footsteps barely making a sound. She glared at the class, especially Dib and Zim, who were busy chasing each other around the room, Zim ranting something about "filthy human lies." The rest of the class were talking idly, with the exception of Anise, who was watching the pair running around the room with slight interest.

"Quiet!" Immediately, the class fell silent. Zim and Dib paused, looking at the teacher with something akin to fear.

"Zim, Dib, to your seats," she ordered. Meekly, they trotted over to their chairs. "Now, class… today you will be learning about the innards of fish. You will each work with a partner to dissect one of these fish corpses--" and here she held up a pile of dead fish on a metal tray-- "with these tools." She indicated sets of sharp, dangerous-looking instruments on her desk.

"Partner…?" Dib raised up a shaky hand. "Miss Bitters…?"

"Yes, Dib?"

"…Could I work alone?" The boy stared at his teacher, hoping against hope that she would say 'yes.'

Miss Bitters scrutinized him with beady eyes. "No." Dib looked down in disappointment. The teacher turned around, examining each metal tool, making sure that they were still sharp. "Now go find partners." Most students immediately scrambled to find someone who was relatively normal, not-at-all insane, and likely to get them an A.

Well, well, well… who do I work with? Dib surveyed the class, his mouth doubtfully twisted, when a thin arm grabbed him from behind. A voice in his ear murmured, "You're working with me."

The first crazy thought that crossed Dib's mind was, Zim?! As such, he was about to throw the arm off, when a second crazy thought crossed his mind. Is someone actually working with me of their own free will…?

And the third was, Anise?!

He threw the arm off.

Indeed, it was Anise; she raised her eyebrows, a bemused look on her face as Dib turned around. He shrieked, "I told you, don't sneak--"

But then he stopped, remembering that he was supposed to pretend to like her. Dib growled under his breath. This was seriously going to limit things. He forced a huge smile on his face.

And so he stood for a whole of ten seconds, that stupidly huge smile on his face.

"Uh… Dib?"

He blinked, the smile disappearing. Anise was gazing at him irritably.

"Could you please stop? You are creeping me out…" And the girl threw him a raised eyebrow, sitting down in a nearby chair.

No no no, she wasn't supposed to be creeped out! How could I pretend to like her if she reacts like… this? Dib managed not to pull his scythe of hair out in frustration. Instead, he sat down, reducing his grin by a couple of inches.

"Heh… sorry about that. I'm not used to people coming up to me and actually wanting--" Dib's mouth froze, and he continued slowly, "… to… be partners… with me." Oh, god! he thought in desperation. She might think I'm pathetic! Or worse… she must think I'm pathetic!

And sure enough, Anise put up a hand to her mouth as if to hide a smile. However, she was looking down at the desk, so Dib couldn't be sure. Squirming slightly in discomfort, he was saved from the rising awkwardness of the situation by, ironically, Miss Bitters's voice.

"Zim here is going to pass out the fish specimens. One partner, however, needs to get a set of tools." And she stilled Zim's squawks of protest ("What?! You do not command me, the greatness that is Zim! And I ref-yoose to touch any of these… filthy, mackerel-type thingies!") with a calm wave of her hand and a few soothing words ("If you don't want this scalpel in your head, Zim, I suggest you start passing out the fish now.")

Dib glanced questioningly at Anise, who stared back at him blankly. After a few moments, he sighed, mumbled, "I'll get it," and got up to collect the tools.

Just in time to turn around and see Zim seemingly deep in conversation with Anise.

The Irken looked unexpectedly (or maybe expectedly) animated, his black-gloved hands all over the air and a furious look on his green face. Anise wore a slight, interested smile, one hand playing with her black hair, and, at one point, broke into amused laughter, at which Zim's furious look was replaced with a smug smirk that grew even further as Anise said something to him, moving her hands in emphasis. The fish tray lay on Dib's desk, seemingly forgotten.

Dib stared in a mix of fascination, horror, anger, and…

… possibly a tiny bit of jealousy?

He shook his head a bit and marched over, holding the tray in front of him as if it was a shield. The two looked up at his approach, and Zim immediately screamed, "You! You are working with this Anees-creature?!"

Dib felt an unexplainable sinking in his heart. However, he replied defiantly, "Yeah, so what if I am?" I wonder why he's so upset, the boy thought, about me working with Anise. Is he… jealous? Does he like Anise…?

His heart sank even further, but Dib paid no attention to it.

No one took notice of Anise, who was watching the whole spectacle interestedly.

Zim twisted his mouth at Dib's reply, and merely narrowed his eyes in suspicion at the young paranormal investigator. After a few moments, the alien turned and walked away.

"Our fish, Zim!" called Dib, resisting the urge to throw a scalpel at the slender back of the Irken.

Without turning around, Zim threw a fish over his shoulder. It hit Dib directly in the face with a wet, plopping sound. The boy gave a disgusted groan and removed the fish body, holding it by his fingertips as if it were a bomb ready to explode at any moment.

"You're probably not very good at ball sports, are you?" commented Anise obliquely. Dib looked at her, annoyed. She raised her eyebrows and added, as if to revise her previous remark, "Scratch that, you're probably not good at any sports." She chuckled as Dib's glare intensified. He held the fish away from him and, clearing a place on the tool tray, plopped it down beside the instruments.

--

Okay… was this chapter actually… good? Is it? TELL ZIM! I mean… tell me… heh…

I would gladly take concrit! Very much!