A/n:

Yeaaaaaaaah... I know it's been years. I know! I'm so sorry XD.

Well, something I never thought would happen has happened. Enter the Florpus dragged me back into the show and I realised just how much I've missed these two idiots.

I will finish this story, I made a promise to myself when I started it I would. Thank you to everybody that has reviewed and stuck around. I just need time to remember and flesh out what I had in mind so this chapter is quite short in comparison. :) My writing style has probably changed again but I'll try keep true to what I originally intended. :)

Enjoy!

Chapter 31

Dib's P.O.V

"SHIT!" I cried out, the car hitting me and knocking me to the ground. Thankfully the driver hadn't been going too fast and I heard the vehicle screech to a halt as he slammed on the brakes.

I groaned, holding my head before sitting up, slightly dazed. The car door opened and the man stepped out, approaching my side.

"You ok man?"

"Yeah..." I grunted. He helped me up and pain flared up my ankle as I stepped forward slightly. "I gotta go."

"I think you should go to a hospital. Get in, I'll take you," the driver responded, looking at my ankle.

"No," I told him. "I'm fine honestly."

"You can barely walk," he commented. "Get in!"

"NO!" I cried. "I gotta get to Zim! He's in danger!"

He stared at me, before shrugging. "Okay. Not my fault though. You refused help."

I just scowled at him but didn't have time to worry about him at the moment, holding my leg as I hobbled onwards towards the cul-de-sac where Zim's base was located. I just hoped I wasn't too late and that I got to him in time. I could barely see what I was doing as tears laced my vision. After what seemed like an eternity, I reached the door and banged on it.

"ZIM! ZIM OPEN UP! PLEASE!"

No answer.

"ZIM!" I shrieked in despair, only to end up falling forward and flat on my face when the door opened suddenly.

"HI MARY!" GIR screamed at me.

"GIR... where is Zim?" I asked the robot. "Please... it's urgent."

"Mastah's in his base. He's REAL mad."

Fuck.

I let out a sigh of relief though. Zim was still here. I wasn't too late.

"I need to get to him. Now GIR."

"Okeydokey!"

Zim's insane robot inside led me inside, climbing into a trash can in the kitchen. I followed him feeling slightly claustrophobic. I'd been down here before, but when I was younger and helping Zim stop Tak's mission to drain the Earth of its molten core. Of course back then I'd been much smaller and could travel through the base with ease, but being older now it was different and I found myself ducking to avoid my head being hit multiple times. A brief thought crossed my mind that Zim would tell me it was because my head was too big and I wanted to scowl, but I pushed the thought back. Thinking of him right now scared me more than anything because I had no idea how he was going to react to me.

But I needed to get to him.

The elevator completed it's descent and I found myself back in that same area I'd been in years before. A giant Irken Military insignia glowed on the computer screen. I stared up at this as GIR stepped aside and pointed with his tongue sticking out of his mouth. Swallowing, I looked over.

The Irken himself was staring at me, sitting on his base chair with a leg crossed. One contact was still in and his wig was askew. One of his antennae was firmly pressed down across his face.

I shuddered.

"Z-Zim..."

"What the hell do you want, Dib-shit," he sneered.

I rushed towards him but was met by a PAK leg aimed directly between my eyes. I froze.

"Zim I-I–"

"SILENCE!" he screamed so intensely that I found myself backing away from him in fear. He edged closer to me.

"I trusted you Dib!" he screeched. "I trusted you and your gargantuan head! I thought we were friends! I thought you LOVED me!"

"I DO ZIM! I DO LOVE YOU!" I screeched back at him.

"THEN WHY?!"

I couldn't stop more tears from overflowing. "It's not what you think... p-please..."

He sneered at me and I felt his PAK leg press against my forehead, digging in.

"Then what is it, Dib."

"I... just wanted to see you."

He stared at me for a few moments, but then I cringed again when he screamed.

"LIES!"

"I'M NOT LYING ZIM!" I screamed back at him. "BUT YOU NEED TO LISTEN TO ME!"

"Get out."

"NO!" I roared, forcing his PAK leg aside and while he was shocked from that sudden move, I grabbed his shoulders. "ZIM, LISTEN TO ME! YOU'RE IN GRAVE DANGER!"

He stared at me furiously. "Unhand me before I vapori–"

"I'M BEING SERIOUS NOW!" I screamed. For the love of God he needed to listen to me. I didn't care what he did to me, as long as I made him understand. I shook him.

"You saw that feed because my computer was tapped. They SAW you Zim and they are coming for you, right now!"

He stared at me but I saw his expression change to one of fear.

"Who Dib? Who is coming for me?"

"...The Swollen Eyeballs."

He looked confused. "Who?"

"THE AUTHORITIES!"

At that, true fear plastered his face and he pushed me away. "They are coming for Zim?!" he cried. "No...! How... HOW?! HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE DIB!"

"I..." I froze, but he slapped my face.

"HOW DO THESE EYEBALL HYOOMANS KNOW DIB?!" I fell backwards as more of his PAK legs shot out and he pinned me to the floor. "IS THIS YOUR DOING?!"

I cringed. "I... never wanted this. Please! This was way back before, Zim when we hated each other! For years I was part of a secret organisation because I wanted to expose you! B-but it's not like that anymore! I promise I really do love you! Please listen to me!"

He stared at me in shock.

"T-they are coming after me because I refused to give them evidence. I left them, but they are taking matters into their own hands. It's why that feed was on, they h-hacked my computer! I swear to you I'm telling the truth!" I sobbed.

He scowled. I curled up in fright when he let out a scream of rage and started smashing things around the base.

"Master. You need to calm down." I jumped as I heard a booming robotic voice above me. After a few moments I realised it was his computer.

"Y-YOU LIED TO ME DIB!" Zim screeched, ignoring his computer. "How am I supposed to trust you now?! I don't know what to believe!"

"I didn't lie!" I cried. "I really didn't! I just went about things wrong and I regret ever being part of that stupid organisation! I deleted everything!"

His eyes narrowed at that. "...deleted everything?" he repeated darkly.

I sighed. "I had a lot of videos of you. Five... five years worth. I deleted them all."

He looked so furious I thought he was about to kill me there and then. I wasn't prepared for him as he ran at me, punching me hard in the face and I fell backwards against the cold floor, groaning. Pain exploded throughout my skull and I wondered if my nose was broken.

"Y-you... you STUPID HYOOMAN!" he screamed. "Did these Eyeball people get those videos too?"

I was about to shake my head but I honestly couldn't answer that. I had deleted those videos straight after I'd seen that message, but if they'd tapped my computer, who knows what else they might have done? They could have tapped my computer beforehand and got those files. I wouldn't have known being at skool. The tapping was a drastic measure but then again I hadn't taken them as serious as I should have.

I paled as this realisation dawned on me. I realised there was a very likely chance they'd got those files before I deleted them and then decided to tap my feeds to confirm what they'd seen.

I felt blood pool under my hands. "Zim, I need to get you out of here. Now."

He sneered. "I'm not going anywhere with you, Dib-shit."

I felt my blood turn to ice. "Zim, please... we can deal with us later, but if I don't get you out of here right now you're going to die. They don't mess around. They'll capture you and do an autop–"

"JUST LEAVE DIB!"

"Zim, please!" I cried. "I can't lose you... I can't! I'll d-die without you! You have no idea how much need you and how much you changed my life. I love you!"

He stared at me wide-eyed at that before he sneered at me. I flinched as he pulled a gun to my face.

"Leave. I can look out for myself."

"Not against them! You'll be overpowered! Please listen to me!" I cried brokenly.

"Dib, I don't LOVE you," he snarled and I felt my world collapsing. I was losing him.

"I thought I could trust you. I let you in after everything that happened but you still did this. Kept this from me. Not anymore. First My Tallest, now you. Nobody likes Zim and I will not be used again."

"I WAS NEVER USING YOU!" I wailed at him. "I'M NOT THAT PERSON ANYMORE!"

"Computer, remove this monster from my base at once."

"NO ZIM!" I roared at him but reeled back in shock when he fired the gun at me. The plasma only just missed my head and grazed my shoulder and I locked up in deep shock. I could feel my skin burning. Behind me something exploded but I barely registered it.

At that moment, I realised there was nothing I could do. No amount of pleading or begging would make Zim listen to me. He'd just tried to kill me.

The one I loved the most had just tried to kill me.

And then I finally realised. As I looked at the Irken, I saw nothing in his eyes. Despite being defective, at the end of the day, Zim was still one of them. An Irken. A soldier.

A soldier that came from a race hell-bent on galactic conquest and domination. His species did not care about others. They were raised to exterminate. Wipe life from planets and expand their notorious Irken Empire. And despite Zim was no longer a part of this, he was still one of them. He was still a megalomaniacal alien. Even if he did have emotions and pain, he was a still a threat. Not being bound to the ways of his Empire, he acted on his own accord and who knew how far he was actually willing to go if he was even trying to kill me.

I'd been intimate with this alien. I'd seen him at his most vulnerable. But I was also taking a massive gamble. He could have easily killed me back then and I wouldn't have been able to do a thing about it. By trusting him, I'd been essentially toying with my own life and putting it into HIS hands. I'd been willing to give up everything by doing that – my father, my sister. Only I hadn't seen that because I'd been too obsessed with him. Too obsessed with wanting him to be mine and when I'd gotten him, I'd become greedy. I'd placed love into a being I'd only assumed felt the same about me without even considering what he actually was.

He was dangerous. A superior being. I had no chance against him and I never would.

And I saw this in his gaze. It was the gaze of a notorious Irken Invader. Not the gaze of an alien I thought loved me.

As this settled in, I picked myself up wordlessly. The computer went to latch onto me, but I put a hand up and simply walked back to the elevator in a daze.

Zim kept the gun aimed at me and that cold, unfeeling expression followed me as the elevator ascended.

I knew this would probably be the last time I'd ever see him.

I heard GIR scream out after me, but then everything went quiet. The deafening silence accompanied me as I left the strange green house.

Only this time, I did not look back, hobbling away.