Invader Zim ZADR: How did we get here?

Chapter 5: Do we have a deal?

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!

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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.