"Stupid worm baby female!" Zim shouted after he was sure she was out of hearing distance. He slumped onto the couch and stared at the muted television.
"Why do you hate Gazzy?" Gir asked innocently as it played with the toy it had been about to give the girl before she was suddenly kicked out.
"I don't hate her, Gir. But I should! She is an annoying, pesky, evil and cruel younger appendage of the Dib-monkey. And she is so infuriating!"
"Aw, I like the purple-head girl. She's pretty. And she made biscuits with me! They's got sugar all in 'em!" the robot shouted as it went to retrieve the cooling batch. It returned, setting the basket next to its master. "They're all sparkly!"
"Yes, I suppose she has some good points…but –" He was cut off by Gir shoving a biscuit into his mouth.
"You can eat 'em too! She made 'em so that you can! She asked me how," Gir whispered in awe. Zim chewed on the flaky goodness and managed to choke it down without showing signs that he actually enjoyed it. His next words ruined his stoic façade.
"That attractive dirt-child is a culinary genius!" He shouted, then shut his mouth abruptly, horrified by what he had just said about a human. "Gir. You are not to repeat a word of that, do you understand?" he demanded quite seriously.
Gir rocked back and forth as it held onto its feet, giggling inanely. "I like moose."
"Gir! This is serious! Pay attention!"
"Yes, my master!" Gir immediately stood and saluted, its narrowed eyes turning red. "Mission: do not tell the Gaz-human master's true feelings. I love Gazzy!"
"What do you mean by 'true feelings'? You stupid robot, I should just disassemble you! You irritate me!" Zim shouted. Gir hugged Zim's leg.
"Aw, don't be sad, master. You should just tell Gazzy the truth about why you can't help her."
"Never! It's bad enough that her stink-beast of a brother knows part of the reason. If she were to find out as well it would be a breach in security. I can't allow that to happen." He stood and marched to the door. "I'm going for a walk, I'll be back shortly."
Zim walked through the park, making sure to drag his feet in the loose soil with each step; leaving miniature trenches in his wake. "Maddening human females," he grumbled under his breath. This was ridiculous! Zim had tried to be agreeable, but the stubborn girl had wanted nothing to do with him, despite the signals that she had been giving off. It made absolutely no sense.
But what bothered him the most was that he cared. Perhaps he had been stuck on this rock for far too long. Maybe it was a bad idea to almost befriend some of the indigenous life. Whatever the reason he was starting to feel things he had not been aware he had the capability to experience. It was unsettling.
Wanting to help Gaz with whatever was going on to make her act so cold was also rather uncharacteristic of the normally arrogant and self-absorbed alien. He pondered over this as he walked, face tilted toward the sky. Looking at the clouds ensured that he had no idea where he was going.
A most acceptable excuse as to why he tripped over the poor girl trying to hide her existence by sitting beneath a willow tree. "Hey, watch it asshole! Oh…it's you," Gaz said warily.
Zim recovered from nearly falling and looked down at the glaring teen before him. "Yes." He began to walk away, but she yanked on his sweatshirt. He overbalanced, coming to land beside her. "What?" he asked in annoyance.
"Not so fast, space boy. I wanted to tell you that I obviously wasn't being myself at your house earlier. And I do appreciate you trying to talk to me." She shook her head. "You're probably still pissed at me, and I can understand that. But try not to hate me forever, okay?"
Zim sighed. "I don't hate you. But I do mean what I said about your attitude. I'm not going to offer you pity or sympathy simply because you demand me to."
"This isn't easy for me, you know. The whole trying to be civil thing."
"And you think it's easy for me? I was an Invader! One of the Irken elite. And now I am being forced to conform to your weak race's standards. Have you any idea how difficult this is? I'd love to see you try fitting in on an alien planet where everyone is a potential enemy, quite possibly hell-bent on having you dissected. Personally I do not wish to be torn to pieces and studied." Zim rubbed his eyes tiredly. "Would you settle for calling a truce?"
Gaz blinked. A truce? Not an unreasonable request, but she wasn't about to let him off the hook that easily. "Only if you answer me one question. What did you mean by you were an Invader?"
"Exactly what it sounds like. I have no desire to discuss such a thing at this time though, particularly not in the open." He watched as she stood up and extended her hand to him. He accepted the help and waited.
"It's a truce then." She fumbled in her pocket for a tiny metal object and tossed it to Zim as she walked away. He looked down at the lighter in his hands and grinned at the skull engraved on the front.
