Hey, the story is actually moving forward now! Truly a miracle! Hope you didn't mind the wait. One thing I would like to mention before you start reading is that I will be trying a new form of chapter summary. The kind where you take a part of the text and use it as a teaser? I know, how game-changing. I just wanted to see if it would look better. Now, enough about all that technical stuff, let's see how the chapter went!
"..."
There wasn't a single spoken word between them after that. Zim had moved a step back as if recoiled by the invitation. At first, he seemed surprised, but then his expression quickly turned emotionless. He just kept looking at Dib with those big red, bug-like eyes. Dib didn't know how to respond either. It was one of those impulse things that you sometimes do when nothing else comes to mind. He hadn't really planned anything to follow it up with, so he just waited for Zim's answer. But it didn't come.
They kept standing in silence as the seconds went by, the sirens dancing with the sound of the wind. They just kept standing. Then slowly, a plan started forming in Dib's head. And it wasn't long before he knew what to do.
He turned around and started walking through the woods. He had waited long enough for Zim to answer, and it seemed unlikely it would ever come. For all he knew, Zim might just have died right at that moment and would keep standing there for all eternity. But he was pleasantly surprised when he looked back to see Zim following him. Dib was still wondering what exactly was going through the alien's mind, but that seemed like something he could ask about once they had reached their destination. Or just instantly forget.
They kept walking through the woods until they reached a road. They walked past several neighborhoods. The walk took them closer to the inner city, and they soon started seeing city blocks. Zim still followed Dib, though he was a few steps behind him. He couldn't tell if he was doing it deliberately but at this point, Dib didn't care. To Zim's credit, he did walk in silence, which was starting to creep Dib out, and he seemed to be content with just following wherever Dib was going to take him. When they were just about to reach the inner city, Dib had made a sharp turn, and they would soon reach the area Dib had been thinking about.
He knew of a park nearby that had a nice little spot, hidden behind some trees. It was right up against a grey wall, belonging to some kind of building that Dib still haven't figured out the purpose of. But what mattered was that in that little spot, there was a bench, and conveniently enough a vending machine that was still being refilled for some odd reason. Dib hadn't gotten a single clue about who was doing it, but he knew it was always on Fridays. When he first found the place he considered documenting the vending machine as some kind of weird anomaly right off the internet, but he went there to avoid thinking about those things. For that little spot was nearly invisible, especially during the night, so there wasn't anyone when Dib would visit. So he would come and sit and buy a soda or something, whenever he needed a little peace. Be it from Zim, his work, his family, whatever could be stressing him. He liked sitting there. He hadn't shown it to a single living soul. Except for now.
After walking through the park, Dib found the small clearing behind a group of trees that led to the spot. He showed Zim the path, and they walked together over to the bench. Without any instruction, Zim sat down on the bench without a word, and just stared towards the trees. Though Dib theorized that he wasn't looking at anything at all. His blank expression had gone slightly sour, and his contentment from before seemed to have vanished. Dib wouldn't say that he looked utterly miserable, but he wasn't exactly enjoying himself. For some reason, that seemed to make him feel disappointed. Dib pushed those thoughts aside, and looked around, trying to find something he could do to improve the mood. That's when his eyes were locked on the familiar vending machine, its lights single-handedly lighting up the entire cement wall.
While fumbling through his pockets, Dib started walking towards the machine. Zim took a quick glance at him, before directing his attention back to the trees, trying to see if anyone had followed them. He wondered why the Dib-thing had to drag him out here, in the middle of a giant dirt patch. Was he trying to get them killed, putting them in a vulnerable position where all kinds of human scum could come and attack them? He leaned down while grumbling to himself about how stupid Dib was, trying to divert his mind from the annoying voices in his head, asking him what he was even doing here.
Dib was now standing in front of the vending machine, still pushing his hand around in his pocket, trying to find his wallet. When he finally located it, he yanked it up.
"Yes!" He said triumphantly, now searching its contents for money. In the end, he decided it could wait until he figured out what he was even going to get. Fo himself, he was just going to get a cheap orange soda like he usually did. No, the hard thing would be finding something for Zim. He started thinking about what he knew the alien liked to drink and eat. Two words were what first came to mind. Sugar, and sweet. He started looking at all the different items behind the glass, trying to find something matching the requirements. He didn't have to look long, as his eyes quickly noticed a pink and neon green can, and read its name
'SWEETBOMB: EXPLOSIVE SUGAR FLAVOR!!!'
Dib stared at it for a bit, before shrugging.
"Well, seems close enough." He muttered to himself, as he found the required money in his wallet, and put it into the machine. He punched in the numbers and waited as the two drinks were slowly pushed out. If there was something that could make this machine an unnatural phenomenon, then it was that nothing ever got stuck on the glass.
He crouched down and grabbed the two cans, and prepared to walk back over to Zim. Making sure he wasn't looking in his direction, Dib gulped loudly, before letting out a nervous sigh, hoping it would help him relax a bit. Though there was no need for it. He was only about to hand a beverage to his mortal enemy and sit down and drink with him like they were actual friends. Nothing out of the ordinary. And especially not something he was going to regret in the coming months.
Having mentally prepared himself, he started taking uneasy steps towards the alien, who was still acting very nonchalant towards the whole situation, which just made Dib more nervous than anything else. After a walk that Dib wished could have gone on for a little more, he was now standing in front of Zim, the cans still in his hands. Zim finally seemed to acknowledge Dib again, as he looked up at him and on the cans with confusion. Dib rolled his eyes and looked away from the alien, as he offered the pink and green can to Zim. He looked from the can up at Dib with a suspicious look, before snatching the drink away from the human's hand. Dib nearly had a heart attack at the sudden movement, but once he saw Zim doing nothing else than investigating the snatched object, he felt a little calmer and sat down on the wooden bench with a bump.
The distance between them wasn't too close, but Dib couldn't help but feel a little uncomfortable. The night before they at least had the distance of the height between the floor and his bed. Now they were willingly sitting right next to each other, and if the other moved a little too much to the side, they would rub up against each other.
Dib took a curious glance at the alien, realizing he was still looking at the object, probably trying to tell if it would poison him. It was also then he noticed something else.
"I think you can take those off now." He timidly said, pointing at Zim's eyes. In return for interrupting him, the alien gave him an annoyed look, before understanding what he was referring to. His expression then started softening.
"Oh." He simply replied, before taking his hand up to his eyes and pulling the contacts out, with some kind of fluid dripping from the edge. Then two pairs of metal tentacles shot out from his PAK, one taking off his wig, revealing the thin antennas underneath, and the other grabbing the contacts. Then as quickly as they came, they went back in.
Dib didn't remember when he had put on his disguise, but he had seen both versions of Zim for so long, he had nearly lost the ability to differentiate the two. But for some reason, he still preferred Zim without his disguise. He couldn't exactly figure out why, he had put it up to it being his true form. Not that his disguise really did anything to truly hideaway his alien features. But without it, he at least knew that Zim was being honest. Not trying to blend in and trying to be a 'normal' person, just being his evil and insane self. Not that those were good qualities, but it helped remind Dib that HE wasn't insane and that there was an actual alien in front of him.
After having looked at the object for a minute or two, Zim had finally decided that it didn't seem to be some kind of acid. Just to be safe, he slowly moved his claw, ready to break open the can's seal. It had taken him a few years to truly master the ability to open the container humans referred to as a 'can', but now he was able to open it better than any miserable earth creature could ever imagine. Naturally.
With a slick motion, he popped it open, the liquid sizzling inside the can. He took it up to his eyes, trying to see inside it. It had a greenish color, and the smell was very sweet. He continued studying it, before carefully bringing it up to his mouth, and letting its contents run into his throat.
Dib looked on in intense anticipation, for once worried about the idea that he might have given Zim something that could poison him. But the worry soon faded, as Zim removed the drink from his mouth. He seemed to be tasting the liquid while moving the can in a circling motion. He then moved it back to his mouth, gulping down on it with a little more eagerness than before. Once he was done, he let out a satisfied sigh, a serene expression spreading across his face together with a smile. All of which instantly disappeared when he noticed the human looking at him with a raised eyebrow. He then quickly scoffed, before looking away from Dib's face, like the human had done when offering the drink.
"It's adequate by the painfully low standards set by this planet." He said matter-of-factly, while still not looking at the human. Which said human translated to 'it's good'.
Dib shook his head, before turning his attention to his can. He opened it up quickly and started gulping down its contents. It was the same thing he had been drinking every time he came here, so he wasn't exactly infatuated by its flavor. Still, it wasn't bad.
They both just sat there on the bench, drinking in silence. Something that Dib couldn't take anymore. He knew he had come here to avoid them screaming at each other, but he had no love for the awkward silences either. A situation that had become worryingly common these last few months. No, he had enough of the silence. He'd be damned if he was going to let it continue, even if it meant he had to have a meaningful conversation with Zim.
"...What are we even doing here?" Dib asked abruptly while staring down on the ground. Zim had nearly choked on the liquid, but that still didn't give him enough time to come up with an answer. Normally he wouldn't even give a single thought to one of the Dib-thing's idiotic questions, but for some reason, he felt the need to say something. Something that had actual meaning. Something he wasn't used to. He had no idea how to respond until he looked back down on his drink. he then lit up, before raising it to Dib's face.
"Well, it seems you took Zim to this little dirty dirt patch, to bring him a peace offering, in the form of this substandard beverage, yes?" He cheerfully explained, slowly shaking the can in front of Dib's tired face, who wasn't as entertained by this gesture as Zim was. He would argue about the whole peace offering part if it wasn't because that was the actual truth. But it wasn't the answer he was looking for.
"Yeah, I know that. What I mean is, what are WE doing here?" He said, pointing towards his chest, trying to emphasize his point. Zim looked at him, irritated, before taking the can away from Dib's face.
"We are DRINKING said beverage. I thought that I had explained it well enough for your giant pig brain to understand." He answered, pointing a claw at Dib's head.
"My head's not that...whatever I just-"
Dib was about to continue, but he had to let out a frustrated sigh first, his body slowly crumbling inwards, as he was starting to feel the weight of what the two of them were about to discuss. The alien looked on in slight concern, with no idea of what the Dib-thing was blabbering on about now.
"-...I'm just wondering what we are even doing anymore."
It was nearly the same sentence he had said two times already, but this time his words were soft and there was a vulnerability in them. Zim sat uneasy, starting to tie together that this was going to be one of those talks which involved stupid human 'feelings' and 'emotions' that he had seen so many times on the TV. He was trying his best not to puke.
"Here we are, two arch-enemies sitting together on a bench, drinking some discount soda-"
"Peace offering." Zim corrected him, as it was very important for him that the human understood that it was the only reason he had come here in the first place. There wasn't a single ounce of him that had come here willingly, and especially not because it had been Dib that had led them here. No, the almighty Zim just wanted his well-deserved offerings. Besides, why would The Dib have given him anything, if it wasn't to make up for one of his many stupid mistakes, that was all too common for his inferior species. Why else would he spend time with Zim, which he was too stupid to truly appreciate?
"-In the middle of the night, with no one around." Dib continued, deciding if he was going to stop every time Zim interrupted him, he would probably never finish.
"Why would we be doing this? Why wouldn't we just continue fighting like we usually do? Why are we suddenly okay with being near each other, without feeling immeasurable physical pain-"
"Speak for yourself, Earth-worm," Zim commented, before taking a light sip of his drink. As the human had continued speaking, his eyes had once again wandered away and towards the trees.
"-And why is it I don't feel unimaginable joy whenever I see you in pain, anymore?"
Zim's head snapped towards Dib, his eyes sharpened on the human, who continued to ignore him.
"And, and...why is it that everything has...that we have...changed." He said the last word nearly like a whisper. It was a terrible word. It should never be spoken. Especially not between the two of them. Change was the one thing that couldn't be allowed in their lives. Because that would mean they would have to question their roles, their purpose, what it even was that they were doing anymore, after so much time fighting with not a single inch of progress on either side. Yet here they were, with Dib asking that exact question. What were they even doing anymore?
Zim didn't want to hear that word either. He didn't need change. He had never needed to change at any point in his life, and nothing has changed. It never has, and never will. He wasn't going to let this mopey human go and talk like he had changed.
"What are you talking about you sad worm!" Zim shot back, with frustration which reminded a lot of hurt, or betrayal. He had turned all of his attention to the human, his antennas were straight in the air, and it looked like any moment he would jump on the human in some strange act of denial.
"Zim hasn't changed! And neither have YOU, you stinking pig!" He yelled at Dib while pointing a claw at his chest. Dib would be lying if he said he wasn't taken aback by Zim's reaction. He knew out of all people Zim would be the most hostile to the idea of change, but he only mentioned it once. And now he was even bringing him into it.
"You're still that big-headed, stinky beast that has stopped all of Zim's genius plans, and someone which I will one day destroy for good!" Zim continued, threatening the human with a shaking fist. Dib continued looking at him with a variation of concern and worry for his self-being.
"You hear me?! You can keep talking with your sad and pitiful voice, all you want, but don't think I will ever change!"
Just as Dib was starting to get dangerously close to the edge of the bench, Zim finally sat back down with crossed arms, and with a pouty expression. Dib looked at him with disbelief, before returning to his original position. But not without turning slightly, so he was facing Zim directly. He had just gone through all of this effort to express his worry of what was going on between them, and then that self-absorbed alien spits on all of his self-discovery.
"Oh, you don't ever change, do you?" Dib asked sarcastically, though he had no desire to make it not seem like sarcasm.
Zim scoffed once again and turned back to face Dib if only so he could witness the self-assured face that he was carrying with pride.
"Of course not! One as superior as me does not need to 'change'."
Dib looked at him for a moment, before his frustration was starting to show on his face.
"Oh yeah?! Then why aren't you trying to kill me right now?!"
"I've already defeated you, so I'm not going to waste my precious time on doing it again."
"But you have-fine, then why didn't you try and sabotage my house while you were inside?!"
"Who says I didn't?" Zim answered back with a wry smile. He couldn't help but chuckle evilly at the human, as he saw how the human was thinking back to when he was last in his house, trying to see if he could remember anything suspicious. When nothing came up, he looked back at the alien, now even angrier than before. Zim pondered whether he should mention he hadn't done anything to his worthless base but found the idea of Dib looking around every corner frantically trying to find some kind of Irken spying device or bomb, too good to let go.
"I'll deal with that later...what about when you moved your plan, just because I was asking you too?"
"Oh that's simple, I didn't want to keep hearing you beg with that annoying voice of yours, Dib."
He was pretty satisfied with his answer until he saw Dib's giant head twist into a toothy grin. All of his confidence went down in the drain, as he had unintentionally let the human scum gain an advantage.
"HAH! SEE! The old you would have cried tears of malicious joy if he had the chance to see me beg!"
"SHUT UP!!! THERE IS NO OLD ZIM!!! THERE IS ONLY ZIM!!!" He yelled at Dib, who was chuckling in the same manner he had done before, upon seeing his reaction. Suddenly, Zim could feel all of his defiance wriggling away, and he just wanted to walk away.
'W-what is this terrible 'feeling'?! He started thinking to himself as Dib kept chuckling, his grin replaced by a face filled with joy, fueled by Zim's outburst.
'Why do I want to hide, I would never hide from the Dib-beast?! Wait, is this...EMBARRASSMENT?!! NO, THE MIGHTY ZIM WOULD NEVER BE EMBARRASSED!!! I WILL SHOW THAT WORTHLESS HUMAN-PIG WHY YOU DON'T LAUGH AT THE AMAZING ZIM!!!' He thought to himself.
"SILENCE!!!" He commanded as he stood up from the bench, looking down on Dib who looked at him with a surprised expression.
"YOU LIE!!! ZIM WOULD NEVER HAVE CRIED TEARS OF JOY FROM SEEING YOU BEG, AS YOU AND YOUR ENTIRE STINKING RACE ARE TOO BENEATH ME TO BE HONORED BY MY DELICIOUS TEEEAAAARSSSSS...."
Zim had leaned down to Dib, so their heads were only a few inches apart while he was hissing the last word out of his mouth. Dib tried his best to not go into a laughing fit, as Zim's spit was raining on his face. But he didn't. For he noticed something strange. Something on Zim's face. As Zim had leaned down, he saw something pink covering the alien's face. He had wondered if it was the same, as when humans get red when they're mad. He then remembered something else that could make someone's face turn red.
'Wait...is Zim really...BLUSHING?!! HE'S NEVER DONE THAT BEFORE! At least, I don't think so?' Dib started thinking, his head nearly spinning from the discovery. He didn't know why, it wasn't exactly something groundbreaking. He just never considered Zim as someone who could blush. It was...unusual.
As Dib's face was covered in panic, Zim considered his job done. He thought it was weird that he didn't need to say more things, but he shouldn't overestimate The Dib. He was only a human, after all. So with a satisfied nod, he sat back down, occupying himself with drinking the last drops from the human beverage. Dib kept looking at him, his panic replaced by an earnest attempt to look calm and neutral. Which failed miserably. Luckily for him, Zim was too distracted with squeezing the last drops out of the can. Literally.
'...Yeah, haven't changed my ass. You've become...nearly enjoyable to be with. Whether you...or me, like it or not' Dib thought before an idea came to him. Something that had been floating around his head for a while.
"Okay, you can keep denying it-"
"I don't deny anything!" The alien angrily interrupted, before returning his attention to the now crushed can in his hand.
"...Right, but I have an idea, which I think you should at least consider."
"Eh?" Zim asked, giving Dib a confused look while holding the can upside down over his face.
"I was thinking...what if we-" Dib suddenly started coughing violently, feeling his throat closing up, as the words were making their way up to his mouth. He then felt years of fear, anger, and frustration making their way around his neck, like a pair of hands choking him for even considering giving Zim this offer. And to lend a helping hand was his denial, which was sitting in the background, cheering his negative emotions on as they were slowly suffocating him.
Zim placed the can at his side, as he looked at the human, genuinely worried, as he believed it was having another stroke.
"What's happening, human? Did your fragile heart give in, or is your gigantic head finally collapsing in on itself?" He felt like he should be happy, but he felt a slight concern over not being the one who was causing the Dib-beast pain. After all, what was he going to do if that weak creature suddenly died on him? He had put himself through all the effort to walk to this place, and now his only source of entertainment was having a heart attack, or whatever humans get when their inferior biology inevitably fails them.
"Blink once if you're about to die, and blink twice if you just FEEL like you're about to die."
The suffering Dib blinked twice, while he was trying to physically push all of his worries and negative emotions out of his body. Zim wiped a few drops of sweat off his forehead.
"*Whew*...Well then, carry on!" He cheerfully said, sounding a bit encouraging.
"*Cough*...I'm fine! I'm fine." Dib managed to say, as he failed in dispelling his emotions, and instead pushed them back down to where they came from. He was sure that it wasn't anything to worry about or something that would come back later.
"I don't care." The alien apathetically answered back with an irritated look, just so that the human didn't think he had at all cared about his well-being.
"I know..." He answered back just as apathetically. Dib wasn't going to let Zim one-up him in the 'act-like-I-don't-care' apartment. He took a deep breath, as he came to grips with what he was about to say. Even Zim looked at him with a sense of suspense.
"What if we made a kind of...deal?"
The alien looked at him, first surprised then confused. His antennas were laying low, and he was tilting his head to the side. His mouth was halfway open, but no words or sounds were exiting it.
"I know, just wait and listen!" Dib quickly said, hoping he could prevent another outburst from Zim. When he was sure that the alien was going to stay quiet, he continued again, after a quick cough to clear his throat.
"I was thinking that since we spent so much of our time and energy on antagonizing each other at skool or...really, anywhere else whenever we see each other." He let out an awkward chuckle but stopped as soon as he saw that Zim had changed expression, and was now looking at him with one eye squinting, the other observing his every movement.
"...So I just thought, what if instead of that...we did...NOT do that?" He slowly explained, realizing that he maybe should have given himself a little more time to prepare. Which he saw that Zim also probably thought, as both of his eyes were now squinting.
"W-what I mean is...that since we can sit here without trying to poke out each other's eyes, then why couldn't we do the same everywhere else. And instead, wait with the poking, until when either of us comes up with a plan or a scheme. Then we can continue fighting like we usually do."
Zim was still squinting at Dib, wondering if he should even consider THINKING about this offer.
"And how should I know that you will keep your word, and not just stab Zim in the back?" He asked, not exactly convinced by Dib's awful performance.
"Well if you stopped trying to take over the planet, then you would have no reason to worry."
There was a moment of silence between them before Zim broke out into hysterical laughter, with tears running down his face. Dib was sitting with an annoyed look, waiting for it to be over. Which could take either a minute or ten hours.
"Oh-oh you-" Zim was interrupted by himself, as he burst into another laughing fit, trying his best not to choke on the laughter. Once he was starting to quiet down, he finally continued.
"Oh...You're funny, Dib. I'm definitely going to keep you as a personal entertainer once I enslave this planet."
"Lucky me," Dib replied sarcastically, wondering if Zim was just trying to avoid answering if he was going to accept the deal or not.
"But seriously, what do you think? I know we have...never been on the best of terms. But maybe this could be a chance to get a bit of peace, and maybe not hate every moment we spend together. Don't tell me you wouldn't like to not worry about me coming out of the bushes and throwing water at your face. Besides...It's not the same anymore." Dib returned to his quiet, and soft tone, as uttered the last words. He didn't know what he meant by those words. They just rolled off the tongue.
For some reason, the soft tone he talked with kept making Zim take the stupid human seriously. He hated it. And he hated him. But he couldn't make himself just ignore the offer. Which didn't matter, for there was no reason for him to accept it. It was the human who was finally starting to get tired from dealing with Zim's genius schemes. Zim could easily outlast the human, so he had no reason to care about how much Dib was annoying and tormenting him. He was after all tougher and had more endurance than the weak Dib. But then he was hit by an idea.
'Maybe...if I accept his foolish request, it could give me a chance to get closer to him, and from there figure out how he has managed to make me incapable of ending his pitiful existence! Yes, he would never expect it. Then I would finally be able to end him once and for all, and take over this garbage planet!' He thought to himself.
That was all he needed. A single reason to accept the offer. Maybe he didn't want to admit it, but he should have realized that something was wrong, if he was so willing to accept Dib's request for peace, even if it was just a part-time thing. He didn't know what it was, but somewhere deep inside him was something that told him that there was something special about Dib. Out of all the stupid humans on this pathetic planet, THIS ONE was the one he should stay close to. Be close with. If he found out what it was, he would rip it out as soon as he could find it. Such things belonged only to the Tallest. But since he has never questioned a single thought he has had, maybe he would never find it. And maybe he would be grateful for that one day.
Dib took his hand out and held it in front of Zim, who had been lost in his thoughts for a little while now. He didn't know why he felt the need for a handshake. It just felt right.
"What do you say...Space-boy?" he asked, with a playful smile on his face. Zim who had been taken out of his trance muttered an insult under his breath, and looked at the human's stinking hand for a few seconds, before looking up at Dib with a suspicious look.
"...Fine!" He said aggressively as if he had been forced to agree.
Dib kept looking at him with the same smile, inviting him to shake his hand. In return, Zim rolled his eyes, and with a tired expression, he grabbed it and shook it, before yanking it back. Dib kept smiling.
"See? That wasn't so hard."
"Shut your mouth, Dib-stink."
One more technical thing, and then you can leave. I'm trying something new so that it's easier to tell when the characters are thinking to themselves. If you noticed then...well, then it worked. Thank you for reading until the end, and sticking with the story. I'm pretty sure it won't be long before the story starts picking up. I won't promise that the difference will be that big, but some more impactful events are definitely prepared, heh heh. Hope to see you when we reach that point!