The Fallen Invader

Chapter 3: The Coat

Zim avoided me the next day at skool. No pranks this time, he just went about his business, quietly moving from class to class.

I wanted to put the events of the previous day behind me, and surely he did too, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't stop thinking about everything that happened. In my attempt to uncover the reason behind Zim's mysterious behavior, I only ended up even more confused.

For the first half of the day, I debated whether or not to approach him. Then at lunch, I noticed the usual crowd of people picking on him. Only this time, he wasn't even bothering to scream empty threats at them. He just sat there, taking it. After a while, it got to be unbearable to watch.

I got up, marched over to the table he was sitting at, grabbed him by the wrist, and dragged him to the table Gaz and I were sitting at. We earned a few mocking snickers, and Zim didn't look too pleased, but he didn't resist.

"What's he doing here?" Gaz asked with a groan. "Yes, what am I doing here, Dib-stink?" Zim asked, equally annoyed.

"It's no fun to watch you get taunted when you're being so pathetic. What is up with you? You're acting even weirder than you were before."

"It's none of your business. And I don't need you to rescue me from the drooling Earth-monkeys."

In a desperate attempt to end the conversation, he started shoveling food into his mouth, only for him to spit it out all over Gaz.

"Dib. Make him leave. Now."

"Oh no, I was just leaving anyway! Zim can see when he's not wanted!"

Taking his tray of inedible cafeteria food, Zim left our table. Of course, Gaz tripped him as he walked past her, and he landed face-first on his tray. After screaming about beans for a few minutes, he got back up, stuck his wormy little tongue out at us, then left.

The rest of the day was pretty standard, though I noticed Zim nervously gazing out the window at the rainstorm taking form outside during history.

After skool ended for the day, I found him standing in the doorway, continuing to stare at the rain.

"What? Did you forget to bathe in paste today?" I asked. "The forecast didn't call for rain. The filthy weather drones lied!"

I debated whether or not to explain how weather predictions work, but I decided against it. He wouldn't listen to me, anyway.

"So, you're just gonna wait it out?" I asked. "Yes."

The rain only seemed to be picking up. From the looks of it, he was about to be stranded at skool overnight. Not even Zim deserved that.

I took my coat off and plopped it on top of his head. "Gah! Dib, what is the meaning of this!?"

"You can use it to keep the rain off. Just give it back to me tomorrow, okay?"

"Zim does not require your help! Take your stinky jacket back!"

Before he could try and give it back to me, I made a run for it. It was honestly kind of hilarious how disgusted he was every time I tried to help him.

By the time I got home, Gaz was already seated on the couch, immersed in her Game Slave.

"Where's that dumb coat you always wear?" She asked, barely glancing up from her game.

"Oh, I leant it to Zim so he could go out in the rain."

"You two being friends is weird." She stated.

"We're not friends! It's just... I kind of owe him! He saved my life the other day, you know. Well, after almost accidentally killing me, but, you know how it is."

"Uh huh. I give it a week before you guys start having sleepovers."

I didn't want to admit it to Gaz, but she did kind of have a point. Not that I had any intention of hanging out with Zim outside of skool, but there was definitely a shift in our relationship. A weird, confusing one. We weren't quite enemies anymore, but we definitely weren't friends. It was some odd midpoint.

Though I had to admit I was a little annoyed when he didn't show up to skool the next day, meaning I wouldn't be getting my coat back right away.

Thinking it over, it was odd that Zim was absent, since he usually only skipped skool when he was scheming something, and he hadn't done that in years.

Unless...

This was all part of his plan. He was trying to gain my trust so he could get his evil little claws on my personal belongings and harvest my DNA for some horrible experiments.

No. Not on my watch.

As soon as skool was over, I marched straight over to his base and kicked the door open. "I KNOW WHAT YOUR PLAN IS, ZIM!!!"

What I found was Zim sitting on the couch with GIR, wrapped up in my coat. He quickly threw it on the floor when he saw me. "Agh! Dib! What are you doing here!?"

I picked my coat up off of the floor. "I thought you were... Never mind. I'll just take this back now, since you weren't in skool today. Hey, wait, if you weren't scheming, why weren't you in skool today?"

Zim glared at me, but he didn't have to answer, as his violent coughing fit spoke for itself.

"You're sick? I didn't even know you could get human illnesses."

"I'm not sick. My PAK took on water damage from the rain yesterday. It's currently in the process of repairing itself, but until that process is complete, I experience symptoms similar to your common Earth cold. I should be fully recovered by tomorrow morning."

I noticed him start to shiver, looking pitiful as ever. Clearly he was using my coat to keep warm. I held it out for him, and he just glared at me with disgust.

"Oh come on, Zim, I saw you with it. You can give it back tomorrow, just swallow your pride and stop looking at me like that."

With that, he snatched it from my hands and hissed like a cat, then wrapped himself up like an angry little burrito.

"What is it, human? Why do you still torture me with your presence?"

I chuckled. "Sorry, it's just, you look really funny right now."

"GET OUT!!!"