(ZIM'S POV)
The door of the bathroom closed, and the alien turned around, heading toward his closet and absentmindedly picking out a set of pajamas for himself. Zim's antennas twitched as they caught the sound of the water turning on in the other room and Zim grimaced, the thought of water burning his very own flesh. Pushing away this feeling, he shrugged out of his formal attire and carelessly slipped into his sleepwear which consisted of a dark red undershirt with the Irken logo on the top corner, and some black sweatpants that were faded to a dark grey shade.
The green extraterrestrial wandered back out of his headquarters and started through the hallways that led to various rooms holding expired and failed gadgets and experiments. Some, including the transmission room which he had never cleaned up, were abandoned, and some were more commonly used.
The Irken strayed through an assortment of rooms until he reached the elevator and pressed a random button on the wall, taking the alien to the highest floor, neighboring the room holding his ship. After the brass doors of the elevator opened, Zim let his eyes wander around the large room surrounding him.
His feet had taken him to his planetarium. The fake imagery of the stars and faraway planets were a very realistic sight and even though Zim had traveled the starry skies before and although he knew that this view as none other than Irken technology, he was still breath-taken at the sight of the beauty lay out before his eyes.
His heavy feet walked onto the glass floor, below him a vast view of his own space. Letting his eyes wander and weave through the countless twinkling stars and numerous planets, he sat down on the see-through floor and let his homesickness seep through his PAK, and into his emotions.
Never had Zim felt these emotions. He always thought he was better off without his species who cast him out of Irk. He always felt so secure about himself and his 'mission' for the Tallest. But now, Zim missed the privilege of being called 'Irken', and missed venturing out in the stars of his home. Home? He had no home now; except for Gaz. Gaz…
Pulling his skinny legs up to his chest, he crossed his arms over his knees and laid his head down, staring into the starry darkness, Zim's thoughts consumed in a depressing cycle of nostalgia.
(GAZ'S POV)
Grabbing the towel hanging beside the shower, the girl tugged the fabric around her, and stepped out onto the grey rug beneath. After drying herself off, Gaz reached for the ball of clothes she set on the counter and put on the clothes, surprised that the alien knew what her clothing size was. Not wanting to find out how, the girl pushed away her thoughts and eyed herself in the foggy mirror in front of her.
Staring at her hair, Gaz wondered if Zim had owned a hairbrush.
"Er… Com… Computer?" Gaz asked awkwardly. It was very odd talking to nothing in front of you.
"Yes?" A robotic voice droned.
"Erm," Gaz was disturbed at the thought that the computer of the house could contact you in the bathroom. Once again, she pushed away the thought and continued on. "Does Zim by… some chance, own a hairbrush and toothbrush along with some… er, toothpaste?"
Immediately, an opening broke through the ceiling, following a robotic arm with a basket holding the requested materials. "Thanks," the teen muttered.
Gaz quickly brushed her teeth and hair before trudging out into the headquarters with her formal clothes crumpled into a ball.
"Computer, what does Zim do with his, er, clothes?"
Another robotic arm popped out of the ceiling and took the teen's ball of clothing and answered, "I'll take care of it. If you're going to look for Zim, he's in the Planetarium. Once you get into the elevator, press the fourth button down."
Crossing her arms, Gaz hurried out of the room and shuffled through a group of halls until she found the metal doors. Entering the elevator, she pressed the fourth button getting the response of the doors sliding shut and being pushed up to the top of the base.
Her wet hair hung in her face as the doors opened to a room full of stars and planets. Baffled by the view, she stumbled out of the elevator, Gaz's mouth gaping in awe. Every star, every planet, every asteroid sparkled with glorious beauty. Even at unexpected moments a shooting star would fly across the room; spectacular. The gothic girl shuddered with shock and looked down to find an invisible pathway, numerous stars and meteors below. Taking an unsure step, Gaz slowly wandered through the room, gazing at the ridiculous perfection of the Planetarium. Wait…where was Zim?
The girl searched the room until her eyes met the back of an alien, sitting down on the glassy floor and staring blankly at the hologram of the stars before him. Walking over to Zim, she knelt beside him, kissed his thin antenna, and set her head on his shoulder (careful so as not to set her wet hair on his skin), looking at the beautiful scene surrounding them.
(ZIM'S POV)
Zim's memories were taken back to reality as he felt Gaz's lips brush against his antenna, sending a warm tremor through him. Setting her head on his broad, green shoulder, she folded her arms over her knees, and looked into the darkness set out before the couple.
"Welcome to the Planetarium," Zim murmured in a soft voice, "I come up here to get my mind off of things."
"It's…. Damn. It's gorgeous Zim." Gaz answered, her eyes sparkling in wonder as another shooting star fell before them. Gaz changed her position, not leaning on Zim anymore, now lying on the floor and looking up at the view above. The alien did the same, but the floor changed in form, due to his PAK connected to his back.
The couple laid in silence as they gazed at the beautiful hologram of stars scattered out all around them. Zim took Gaz's hand and entwined her fingers with his and looked at the young woman lying so close beside him. A white-hot sensation of love spread through the alien and he smiled, remembering back to when he had first met her.
It was a rainy afternoon; thunderstorms struck and rain pelted the Skool building as the dismissal bell rang. A mixture of kids poured out of the doors of the building and they soon started to sing songs of rain and thunder.
It was Gaz and Zim's Third-grade year.
A young girl with chin-length, violet hair walked out into the rain, an umbrella shielding her from the downpour. Kid's raced past her, friends giggling and screaming with delight.
An alien hidden under a tree was steaming, screaming in pain from the wet poison seeping into his vulnerable green skin. Smoke rose from his body as more raindrops fell upon the pitiful extraterrestrial, making him cry out in agony. Looking around in desperation, Zim spotted a girl wandering around with an umbrella.
Running, the alien chased after the kid, taking no note that this was Gaz, who would beat the living shit out of whoever touched her. Grabbing her, he used her body as a shield for the rain, and smiled at his victory.
The clouds broke out into a smooth sunshine, and the girl growled out a threat. The alien put her down and glanced at the child before running off, planning more attempts at ruling the Earth.
The memory was cut off and Gaz turned to look at Zim who was staring at her figure.
"What?"
(GAZ'S POV)
"Nothing… just… remembering the first day I met you. That was LONG ago…"
Zim looked away, retreating his eyes back to the starry beauty surrounding the couple. Gaz smirked and squeezed his hand, remembering the memory herself.
She remembered that she was going to beat him up for picking her up. But she never did. She didn't really have a reason to hurt him. They did, after all, grow a friendship later on.
"Yeah, pretty long ago…" Gaz answered.
Letting go of her hand, Zim held the girl close to him, getting a sharp poke in the side and a warm hug in return. It was in the Irken alien's arms a few minutes later that Gaz had dozed off into a dream filled sleep; a world where she could roam and wander with Zim, and forget the bitter reality that happened outside of her dreams.