"Relax," Zim said, pulling Dib back into a lying position next to him. "You weren't sleeping well, take a little more time to rest."
Dib grumbled, but couldn't argue. His sleep had been fitful, with vivid flashes of a dark future coming in his dreams. He couldn't remember if they pleased or frightened him, but either way, they had disturbed him almost all night.
Once he was slumped against his pillows, the lights on Zim's PAK flickered. Not long after, GIR came rushing into the room, holding a plate filled with toast over his head.
He flung the plate at them, but Zim was quick to snatch it out of the air before it could hit Dib in the face. A few pieces of toast still fell onto Dib, who started to pick them up and stack them in one hand.
"Good work, GIR," Zim said, reaching into his PAK and pulling out a tiny rubber pig, no bigger than his hand. He tossed it out of the room with a flick of his wrist, and GIR squealed, eagerly chasing after it, the door closing behind him.
Zim smiled and set the plate on Dib's lap. "I thought another light breakfast would be good for you," he said, looking quite proud of himself.
Dib set some of the toast he was holding on the plate, raising an eyebrow. There were six pieces of toast on the plate, in total, all soaked with butter and honey. It was a bit too much to count as 'light', in his opinion.
But Zim had clearly meant him well, and his stomach wasn't troubling him this morning, so he chose not to say anything. He began working through the toast, offering a drier slice to Zim, who slowly nibbled on it.
They were both quiet, Zim shifting and leaning against his shoulder. Dib was about halfway through his second slice when the Irken chose to speak up. "So, what are your plans for today, Dib-pet?"
Dib almost choked on his toast, and he crushed what was left in his hand without thinking. He snapped his head over to look at Zim, and the alien's genuinely surprised and worried look made him quickly take a deep breath, trying to calm his surge of anger.
"…what did you call me?" he said, voice strained with the effort of keeping a calm tone.
"Dib…Dib-pet?" Zim said. "Is it not good? I thought humans liked 'pet' names for those close to them."
"It…doesn't mean. Literally calling them a 'pet'," Dib said, having to force some words out through his teeth instead of yelling them. He was still shaking a little, but that flare of anger had calmed down to a simmer.
"It doesn't?" Zim said, tilting his head in confusion, pushing against Dib's neck with a sigh. "Humans can be so confusing about the way they refer to things."
"I…" Dib inhaled sharply through his nose, blowing air out through his lips. People usually were confusing when they talked about stuff. And it wouldn't be the first time Zim misunderstood something. "Yeah, I guess."
"So, what 'pet' name would you prefer?" Zim said, making exaggerated air quotes around the word 'pet'.
Dib grimaced a little. "I don't need those. Just call me by my name…just don't add anything too insulting to the end." 'Pet' was pretty insulting, in his eyes, and Zim should know that, too, from the way he reacted.
Zim nodded, accepting that answer…but then his eyes gleaned with something, a wicked idea. "…And would it be alright for me to call you 'mine'?" he purred, reaching up to cup Dib's chin with one hand.
Dib's face grew hot, and he quickly averted his eyes. There were butterflies in his stomach…and also a small, twisting knot. A weird alien pet, he thought for the hundredth time.
And he still wondered if that was what Zim really meant when he said things like that.
"…I…guess so," he mumbled, realizing that Zim was expecting an answer. His face was still red, even as much as he tried to calm his blush.
Zim grinned, and he let out a pleased chirp. He let go of Dib's hand to stroke a palm over his cheek, slowly pulling back. Dib turned his head away, trying to hide his embarrassment. Not that it mattered, since Zim had already seen it.
"So, human mine," Zim said, nibbling on his toast again. "Do you have any plans for today?"
Dib considered it as he opened his hand, grimacing at the honey and butter now smeared all over his hand. He shoved the remainder of the toast into his mouth, picking up another slice and trying to wipe the honey and butter off onto its edge.
"Not really," he admitted, eating the toast and wiping the rest of the condiments from his hand onto the plate's edge. "Probably wander around the base some more." His palm was still greasy, so he swiped it over the front of his pajama top.
"Hmph. I wish you wouldn't do that," Zim said, gesturing at his now mostly-clean hand.
"Would you rather I did it with your uniform?" Dib said teasingly. Zim growled, antennae flattening, but there was no real threat behind it.
"Well, once your human rags are put through a cleaning cycle, I'll need to check all of my biological experiments," Zim said. "If you really don't have anything to do, I think you'll find some of them quite fascinating."
That actually sounded pretty tempting. Questions were still bothering Dib, but they were easier to set aside as Zim rambled about the different specimens he had collected and made. He agreed that he would swing by after doing a little bit of exploring on his own, and Zim grinned…probably eager to show off everything he had done.
Dib managed to eat most of his breakfast before feeling satisfied, and the Computer took the leftovers away, as usual. He took a while to get ready for the day, but as soon as he was finished, Zim tossed his pajamas in with the rest of the laundry and ordered the Computer to start cleaning it.
They both left, Zim in the direction of his experiments, and Dib in a random direction with a notepad and pen in hand. Once he was at the edge of the area he felt reasonably confident in navigating, he began to draw a rough sketch of a map of the more unknown areas of Zim's base.
About half an hour later, he found a sign he could recognize and read—the one Zim had translated for him before they headed to the mall. It hadn't been too long ago. "Huh." Dib finished drawing the rough sketch of a map. Zim's base was so maze-like that he hadn't even realized he had basically walked in a circle, pretty close to where Zim was.
There was a small, short pang in his stomach. If he could only wander in circles over and over in the same place, even as big as it was, was he really free?
"…damn it," he hissed, snapping the notepad shut. Once he gave that question some attention, the rest that had been haunting him popped into his brain. There was no way he could focus on making a decent map or translation guide like this.
He looked at the sign again, then headed towards the biological experiments wing. If he could find Zim, he could try pressing him for answers again…or at least get a distraction from the thoughts plaguing him.
…only a brief one, though, he quickly vowed! Enough to calm him so he could get his thoughts in order and dig for some real answers.
It didn't take long to enter the labs, and he just needed to follow the sound of Zim's boots tapping on the metal floor to find him. Currently, the Irken was pacing along a row of large tubes filled with a pinkish fluid. Some were empty, while others had all sorts of creatures suspended in them, some of which Dib recognized and some he didn't.
Zim's antennae twitched as he approached, and once Dib was close enough, he turned to look over his shoulder. "Finished with your exploration already?"
"For now," Dib said. "…you said that you had some things here I'd like?"
"Oh, yes!" Zim moved past Dib, brushing against his skin. Dib turned to follow him, ignoring the electric feeling tingling along his skin.
Zim guided him to a large tube containing a grotesque alien creature, patting the glass proudly. Dib noted that it almost looked like a giant fish, though the head was squished flat and covered with rows of barbs. Its skin was greyish-green, with yellow protrusions along its body.
He made a sound of interest, already sketching it out in his notepad. "What is it? Was it always that color, or did it change from being in that fluid? How long have you had it?"
Zim smirked, clearly pleased with himself. "This is a…well, there's not a human word for it." He hunched his neck and made a few garbled clocking noises, which Dib realized was supposed to be the thing's name. "They attach themselves to star whales and ride them through space, eating cosmic dust and detritus."
Dib quickly wrote everything down, jotting 'star fish-parasite?' next to his drawing. Zim drew himself up taller and kept talking. "They're always about this color, but they're actually luminescent when they're alive. I picked this one up, ehhh…a few Urth months ago? I passed by a pod of star whales and decided to grab a specimen."
He frowned at the creature in the tube. "I thought I might make some modifications and improve it, but I could never really decide on what I wanted to do. And these creatures don't last long outside the vacuum of space, or in the vacuum of space without a host whale, so…there are a few limitations."
"Why can't they last long without a host? Do they feed off of it?" Dib wrote down more of what Zim had said, even as he asked questions. "Do you 'modify' creatures a lot?"
Zim laughed. "Ha! Them feeding off of star whales…no, it's just that they can't travel quickly enough through space to find the food they need if they aren't attached to a star whale. …would you like to see some improvements I've made to other creatures?"
Dib, of course, said yes, and Zim gave him a tour of some of his projects. A few were in progress, while others were ones he had made a while back before becoming bored with. He had quite a few alien creatures…but it seemed that a lot of his experiments involved adding some sort of new features to animals from Earth.
He was much more interested in the alien specimens, but some of Zim's Earth-experiments also caught his eye. Like the albino rats he had mutated to glow in the dark, or the collection of insects he had somehow made larger than Dib's hands…and if Zim's boasting was to be believed, would continue to grow even larger.
Zim was clearly eager to show off everything he had created, and Dib was willing to be an eager audience, listening and occasionally taking notes. Time slipped by without either of them seeming to notice it.
When Dib's stomach growled, Zim dropped the rat he was holding back into its enclosure and declared that it was the perfect time to take a break, anyway. Dib kind of doubted that, but he wasn't going to argue about getting some lunch.
Zim headed upstairs with Dib trailing behind. The elevator they took led them into the living room, where Zim all but pushed Dib onto the couch.
"I'll worry about preparing the food-things," he declared. "You can try and find something entertaining…or as entertaining as an Urth show could be."
Dib nodded, Zim went into the kitchen…and Dib's mind again shifted back to the question that had been plaguing him. The one he had tried to find an answer to last night, and the one Zim had so easily distracted him from. The ones he had forgotten to ask this morning.
He scowled, annoyed with himself. Zim being the subject of his thoughts wasn't a new thing, but this…with Zim being nice to him, it was too easy for the alien to direct his mind in the direction he wanted it to go.
He tugged on Dib's heartstrings to puppet him, and…Dib found himself reluctant to actually pull away.
That was the problem, Dib realized suddenly. He was becoming too attached to Zim, and that let Zim treat him like a…he shook his head. It might have been nice, but he needed to draw a line somewhere. Where to start, though?
…he should probably cut back on how much time he spent around Zim, loathe as he was to admit it. But right now, if he wasn't at Zim's side, he was only a few rooms away or surrounded by constant reminders of the Irken. It was too easy to let himself give into attention and not worry about what he was here.
Not that he minded all of the attention, not at all! But he needed a little time to clear his head. And…well, if he was worrying about nothing, spending a little time apart would probably make Zim's gestures feel even better.
The thought made him smile and blush, and he shook his hands as the thought gave him a burst of excitement.
"Happy to see me?" Zim said with a wide grin, walking back into the room, carrying two plates with their lunch.
Dib quickly dropped his hands, cutting off his stimming. Right, he shouldn't get too excited yet. He still had to actually put this idea into motion.
Still, he smiled at Zim, reaching out for his plate. Zim had made him two sandwiches and poured a mix of chips and popcorn on the other half of his plate. Zim sat next to him and leaned against his side, his own plate sitting in his lap.
"So, what did you pick out for us?" he asked.
Oh, right, Dib was supposed to do that. "Still deciding," he half-lied, pressing a few buttons on the remote to try and look convincing.
"Ha! I knew Urth entertainment would fail to provide," Zim said, looking smug.
"You were glued to the screen when a mockumentary came on last night," Dib pointed out. "Besides, I'm still looking." Not that he was finding anything actually good being broadcast in the middle of the day, but still.
Zim nudged his side with his elbow, then scooted closer so he could actually lean against Dib. Dib shivered a little, accidentally turning up the volume a notch instead of changing the channel, but he quickly recovered and went back to flicking through stations.
Dib started to nibble on his sandwich, still scanning through channels. Zim twitched a little as he skimmed past a pastel-colored cartoon…and Dib, curious, flicked back to it. It looked like something intended for preschoolers, or what GIR would enjoy, but Zim's antennae lifted up with interest.
On-screen, a pink creature hugged a baby blue one, squeeing happily. Zim leaned into Dib, relaxing. Dib dropped the remote beside him on the couch.
Lunch was pretty good. And while Dib couldn't get invested in the show as Zim was (the alien mumbling under his breath and criticizing the characters' actions), it made for a nice, mindless distraction.
But not enough of one that he lost sight of his newest goal.
As soon as the episode was over, Zim took their empty plates and dropped them into the sink. "So, what'll it be this afternoon?" he said. "I still have a few more projects I can show you. And oh, there's another biology lab where I have a table to dissect the strangest Urth creatures…"
"Actually," Dib said, quickly shoving back the daydream of dissecting one of Zim's alien specimens with his technology, "I was thinking of heading out this afternoon."
Zim froze, staring at him blankly. "…out?" he echoed. "Where?"
"There's a forest not too far from the edge of the city," Dib said. "It's about a half-hour walk from the edge, maybe an hour and a half from here. There are a few small signs of paranormal activity, and I have a few camera traps out there that I haven't checked in a while…"
"So…you want to take a walk in the woods, and check cameras?" Zim said. "Do you know how long that would be?"
Dib frowned in thought. "…a few hours. I'd probably have to eat a late dinner, but I could be back before it gets too dark." Even a few short hours away from the gravity of Zim's presence would have to help clear his thoughts. It had to.
And hearing the estimated time seemed to make Zim relax. Was he expecting Dib to ask to camp out there for a few days? …which was a tempting request, but Dib decided not to push his luck.
"If you insist," Zim sighed. "But I'm helping you pack to make sure you don't forget anything. And! I'm going to be giving you a ride there and back."
"Are you sure?" Dib said. "Walking around in the woods will probably be very boring and dull for you…and I can be fine by myself, it's nice and peaceful out there. I...it'd be nice to have some time alone out there."
"I know, and I know you can handle yourself," Zim said. "I'll leave you alone with your cameras and beasties, but I can at least get you there more quickly."
"Oh…well, thank you," Dib said, smiling. Zim beamed back up at him, nudging Dib's shoulder before hopping to his feet and muttering to himself about backpacks. Dib hesitated, wondering if he was supposed to be following behind, before deciding to just follow Zim and see exactly what he was doing.
Zim was tearing through the kitchen cupboards, piling snacks in his arms before hopping into the trash can. A few things he had grabbed spilled across the floor, so Dib knelt down to start picking them up. It was mostly candy bars, but there were actually a few granola and protein bars, too.
He pocketed them before turning to the fridge, opening it to take the elevator inside of it. It should still be close to where Zim entered the base.
Zim had already dashed off when he found the trash-can elevator, but Dib was able to follow the trail of dropped snacks until he found Zim at one of his workbenches. He had a large black satchel in front of him, though was currently busy tinkering with something else.
Dib stepped closer, leaning to peer over Zim's shoulder. The first thing he saw was light gleaming off of a cracked lens, and the rectangular shape in Zim's hands… "Is that one of my cameras?"
Zim flinched, but quickly turned to smile at Dib to hide his surprise. "Yes! I didn't incinerate all of them when I got them," he said. "If you give me a few minutes, I can get at least one of them working again."
"Alright," Dib said, opening the satchel to put the snacks he grabbed inside. Besides the food Zim had gotten, there were also some water bottles, a first-aid kit, and a map…though when he unfurled it, Dib realized it was a map of the galaxy, not one just of Earth.
…he knew where he was going, and it was the thought that counted. He folded the map back up and tucked it into place, his fingers bumping against a sheathed knife as he did so.
It was kind of impressive how much Zim had gotten together in just a few minutes. But, if Dib didn't stop him, he might end up packing forever until the satchel was too heavy to carry.
He took a seat beside Zim, watching him work. Zim fiddled with the first camera for a bit before grabbing another camera that looked perfectly intact, lens and all…though there was a bit of a smoky smell coming from it. It must have been the one where the insides got fried and Dib had thrown it out…he had no idea Zim had decided to keep it.
Zim unscrewed the lens from it, using it to replace the cracked lens of the first one. He continued working with it, replacing one piece at a time with working parts from other cameras…or, for the battery, popping in one that had alien writing on it.
It didn't take too long before he got the camera to turn on, and he smiled in satisfaction. "There we go!" he said. "Now, just for one last thing…"
He reached over and typed something into a nearby screen, and one of the machines on his desk whirred to life, synthesizing a purple-and-black strap. Once finished, Zim clicked it into place on top of the camera before turning and beaming at Dib, holding out the finished product.
Dib accepted it, turning it on and snapping a quick photo of Zim's alien work bench with Zim's alien hand resting on top. The camera worked just as intended, giving him a crisp, clear image. "Hey, thanks," he said, turning it back off and carefully tucking it into his packed bag.
"Something as simple as that is child's play for Zim," Zim said with a smug smirk. He leaned over to take a peek into Dib's packed bag. "Now, what else could you need?"
Dib reached around him, brushing against his side to zip the bag closed. "I think that's plenty," he said. "It's just going to be a few hours hike, not a camping trip."
"You're sure?" Zim said, giving him a look. "You never know what could happen in just a few hours. What if you ran into a violent beast bigger than you?"
"I can run pretty fast, and I can climb trees," Dib said. "Plus, you already gave me a knife. I've never run into trouble in this forest that I wasn't able to get myself out of."
"Well…if you're sure." Zim stood up and began to head towards the hangar. "The Voot should be able to get you there in just a few minutes…though you may need to give me some directions."
Dib nodded, shouldering the packed satchel (and from the weight, being very thankful he had stopped Zim from adding anything else), and following aloud behind him.
Once they were in the Voot (both in the pilot's seat, with Zim in Dib's lap), Dib questioned why they were flying out in broad daylight. Zim assured him it wasn't a problem, accelerating straight up until they were hundreds of feet above the city.
"There," he said. "Anyone who happens to be curious enough to look up won't get a good view, and will mistake my superior craft for an inferior human one."
"Huh." Dib leaned forward to look out the windshield. "Is there a reason your ship doesn't have a disguise? Or some kind of cloaking device?"
Zim opened his mouth…then closed it, frowning. "…enough questions now!" he said. "Where's this forest you're so interested in?"
Dib pointed the way, watching how Zim used the controls in curiosity. The Voot was fast enough that they arrived at the woods in minutes. They scanned it from above until Zim found a clearing not far from the edge, swooping down into it. They were far enough from town that Dib wasn't concerned about them getting spotted at this point.
They landed, skidding a few feet forward before coming to a halt. Zim opened the windshield and stood up, holding onto Dib's arm as he stepped out. Dib adjusted the satchel on his shoulder, taking a deep breath of fresh air. It always felt great to come back out here.
"Okay, I'll meet you back here a little bit before sunset," Zim said. "Right here. That sound alright?"
"Good plan," Dib said with a nod, looking around to memorize the clearing. The rivet the Voot had made would help with that…
"And if you aren't here by the time it's dark, I can do a flyaround! And even leave turn on some ship lights so you can spot me, and you just have to flag me down."
"Sounds fine."
"…do you want signal flares? I think I have some signal flares in the back—"
"Zim," Dib said, cutting him off. "I'll be fine, seriously. I basically spent my childhood in these woods, and I've almost never gotten seriously lost. I'll be right here before sunset…barring something unexpected happening."
"…well, alright." Zim leaned down to peck Dib's cheek, making him shiver, his face turning pink. "Have fun, Dib-thing."
"I…thank you," Dib stammered. "See you in a few hours."
Zim nodded, slowly pulling back before sitting and closing the Voot's windshield. He soared into the air, turning back towards town. Dib paused, watching the ship disappear before he turned and started to walk deeper into the woods.
Well, first, there was a tall hill nearby that he always walked up to get the lay of the land. He started hiking up…thinking about what he meant to Zim as he moved upwards.
Maybe he was dwelling too much on what Gaz had said. She had only been trying to get under his skin, and he clearly had more freedom than she thought he had. After all, Zim let him wander into the woods alone, without any sort of restrictions.
That thought put more of a skip in his step, and he smiled serenely as he made it to the top of the hill and looked around.
It was a pretty nice day, and he did have quite a way to walk before finding any of his camera traps. A couple of minutes of walking and relaxing before wrestling with the burning questions surely wouldn't hurt. He had a few hours, and he was probably blowing things out of proportion anyway.
So, after making sure the camera was secure on his chest, he headed further into the woods, in the general direction of where he had a camera set up.
A few of the cameras he had placed were now missing…or he had misremembered where he placed them. Either way, he wasn't getting anything from them, and he noted that he'd need to put trackers with them in the future. This time he'd remember that idea when he got back, and he'd actually use it, because it was too good to be forgotten again!
And on the bright side, he did find one camera where he had left it, though it was slightly askew. He took it down and put it in his bag, wondering what sort of pictures he was able to get. Hopefully, Zim had a machine somewhere in his base compatible enough to get images from the camera…
Was he relying on Zim too much? For…everything, really? The thought made him pause in place, even though he was tempted to shake it off.
No, he had avoided thinking about this too much…and the whole point of coming out here was to be alone with his thoughts!
With a huff, he headed to the nearest clearing and found a log to sit on, crossing his arms and leaning back against a nearby tree trunk. So he was going to actually think about this…but what to think about first?
…what else, but Gaz's parting words? The ones that had been haunting him for days? Have fun being a weird alien pet or whatever Zim sees you as.
Did Zim really see him as a pet? He kind of…fussed over Dib a lot. And saying he wanted Dib around didn't necessarily mean Zim wanted him as an equal. The affection…Dib blushed, heart doing a backflip in his chest. That, and his feelings about it, was the core of everything, but just thinking about it too deeply made him worried…more worried than even Gaz's words made him.
Best not to think about it right now.
Zim's answer yesterday had been very unsatisfactory, even non-existent. Dib scowled, scratching the soft bark of the log under him. It was so stupid of him, to get completely and totally distracted by Zim like that. Even when he was sweet, he could be such a little jerk.
…then again, maybe the distraction had been unintentional on Zim's part? Sure, 'my human' was a vague answer, but Dib's question was maybe a little too vague. Especially compared to the pressing, burning question that had made him ask that.
Zim wasn't great at picking up on small cues. Maybe…the problem was that Dib hadn't been direct enough with his question.
"Huh." Dib sat up a little, shoulders relaxing. That…was a nice thought. If he asked Zim point-blank about this, he'd get the answer he wanted, and he wouldn't have to worry about this at all anymore!
Maybe he…wouldn't like the answer. What if Gaz was right?
The thought almost made him wilt, but he quickly shook it off. Better to actually know and hear if right from Zim than just…wonder and worry! Besides, if Zim told him, to his face, that what Gaz said was true…well, it would hurt, but that would just make it easy for Dib to break things off and get away!
And even if Zim tried to lie, he was terrible at that, Dib would see right through it! Dib perked straight up, feeling energized at the newest idea.
The plan was easy—meet with Zim before heading back. Ask him, point blank, if he just saw Dib as a pet. Get an answer, have his burning questions addressed, and then there would be no more worrying about it.
He reached into his bag, pulling out the water bottle Zim had packed him. Dib noticed that it had a moth drawn on it…it made him smile before he took several large gulps out of it.
Zim…seemed genuine, in a lot of what he did. Like he really cared about Dib, and not just keeping him around as an amusement. It was a relaxing thought and made him feel more confident in his plan…knowing that the answer was probably no, Zim didn't see him that way.
Then they could both laugh at how wrong Gaz was all the way home, curl up in Dib's nest, and Dib would enjoy a peaceful night's sleep…
Dib smiled, putting his water bottle away as he stood back up. Plus, the walk he was taking right now showed that Zim…well, maybe it wasn't proof that he didn't see Dib as a pet, but he hadn't tried to be controlling by shooting down Dib's request to go by himself.
He adjusted his camera and bag and set off into the woods again, this time to just wander forward until he found anything unusual he could look into. He was already feeling better, even with the slight worry about what answer Zim would give…
But that was easy to shrug off for a little while longer as he continued forging a new path through the undergrowth.
He had only found regular signs of wildlife so far, but Dib was still sure he was going to find something today. Now with the worries pushed fully out of his head, and with a plan in place, he could almost feel it…the sense of something otherworldly, something paranormal lurking nearby.
Sure, his sense usually wasn't quite as reliable as finding some actual, physical evidence to track, and of course, it wouldn't be enough to make anyone believe him, but that sense was right some of the time!
So, he kept his hands clasped around his camera, moving forward slowly and carefully scanning the undergrowth and the tree trunks around him. Nothing of interest yet, but he felt more confident in something being around when he headed into a darker part of the woods, where the tree branches were thicker.
A branch creaked overhead and behind him. Dib immediately whipped around, pointing his camera at it, but there was nothing there. The branch was shaking though, so something was just there…it must be close.
Dib slowly turned in a circle with his camera at the ready. He heard another creak to his right, a few feet away, and he ran in that direction. The leaves rustled as the whatever-it-was tried to dart out of sight.
He kept following the creaking and rustling…until there was suddenly a loud crack and a scream. An old branch broke off and fell to the ground, with Zim thudding right on top of it.
Dib stared at him in shock. "…Zim!?"
Once he recovered from the shock of the sudden fall, Zim grinned up at him, innocently leaning his cheek against his fist, elbow propped on the ground. "Heeeey, Dib," he said. "…fancy meeting you here!"
"How long have you been following me?" Dib asked, crossing his arms.
"Following you?" Zim forced out a laugh. "That's…that's nonsense! I am merely…scouting out a potential location for my next plot."
"In the same forest I was hiking in," Dib said. "And somehow, in this whole forest, you just happened to run into me."
"Yes! Exactly! What a big, amazing coincidence!" Zim stood up and dusted himself off. "But, now, we should really get going, continuing our separate searches and all that…"
"No," Dib said sternly before he could leave.
Zim grinned at him brightly. "Excellent idea! We should go together. Always so smart, my human."
"What? No, I mean, 'no, you're not leaving'." Dib crossed his arms and glared, and Zim began to look a little nervous. "Zim, I told you that I wanted to be by myself, and you followed me anyway!"
"…coincidence," Zim mumbled. "And you were alone for most of your walk, weren't you?"
Dib crossed his arms and glared at him. Zim still looked nervous, but now he was also pouting. "Is it so wrong to want to make sure my human is staying safe?" he said. "You came out here to look for vile, dangerous beasts. I just don't want you to meet your end when you find them!"
"I can handle myself," Dib spat. "I handled facing you just fine for years, didn't I?"
"You did, of course, you're very strong," Zim said, quickly nodding. "But I need to keep you safe, my Dib-thing!"
"You just wanted to spy on me, didn't you? Make sure I wasn't running away! Because you don't trust me at all, do you!?"
"No! I mean, yes, I do trust you!" Zim said. "I mean! I never thought you would leave! I trust you, Dib, I just wanted to make sure you were alright!"
Dib gave him a skeptical glare. "It's true!" Zim protested. "I gave you your rooms and let you go wherever you want in the base because I trust you! I've been able to relax against your side at night because I trust you! Haven't I done enough, been enough that you can trust I'm telling the truth?"
"You're only nice to me because it's convenient for you!" Dib snapped. "Because if you act nice, I'll let you do whatever you want. That's the…the only reason…you care about me…"
His voice trailed off slowly, the words familiar and sour in his mouth. He stared blankly at Zim, feeling as though the world was starting to be pulled out from under his feet.
"Dib, I'm not like humans. Not like your family," Zim said in a soothing tone. "I really want you by my side…"
Ah. Dib realized why this felt so familiar. He glared, taking a few steps back. "No," he said coldly, shaking his head. "No, you're not different. You're just like them."
"…Dib?" Zim took a few steps forward, but Dib just kept backing up.
"You don't actually care about me," Dib said. "You just like having your enemy surrender to you over something so small. To treat me as some sort of pet to just…just gloat about how you won!"
Zim reached out for him, but Dib was already several feet away, and kept increasing the distance between them. He only stopped when he bumped into a tree, and he quickly dug his fingers into the soft moss that covered its trunk.
Zim's antennae twitched, his gaze shifting for a second as he realized that Dib had backed himself into a corner. "It's not like that," Zim said, holding out his hand. "Let's just go back home, alright? Enjoy a nice meal together, put on a movie…you can use me as a pillow again, even."
Dib relaxed, as though considering it, his hand still balled into a fist behind his back. Slowly, he began to inch forward, and Zim smiled at him brightly, encouragingly…
Once he was close enough, Dib's hand whipped out, throwing moss and flecks of bark right into Zim's eyes.
Zim screeched in shock, reeling back. He then yelped again, this time in pain, and reached up to try and rub everything out of his eyes.
Dib whirled around and sprinted deeper into the woods, leaping over roots and ducking under branches. He ran until he was panting for breath, his heart pounding in his chest, and even then, he kept moving forward, weaving through the trees.
He didn't know where he was going. He just needed to get away from everything, from everyone. He had to.
And if he kept running, he could believe his face was only wet from sweat, and that his aching heart was only from the exertion.
