It seems obvious to me too that Zib was (and is, to some extent) in love with Mitzi -- maybe this is my romance goggles, but he just treats her like an old lover. "The sleepy-eyed little girl I found in Georgia." And Atlas by all accounts was no dummy, so, yep!

I bet Zib was not a consensual nickname. As someone cursed with a Zibowski-esque last name, trust me, you're really lucky if Zib's the worst you got.

You should make that plot theory post :)