zk week - day one
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title: happenstance
summary: "I think it was fate." he says. She grins at that. "And what is fate, if not a series of random encounters, aciddental bumps and spilled coffee?"
rating: T
word count: 1.775
notes: I'm a little late for the party, but better late than never, right? This didn't turn out the way I wanted, but it's my first time writing this pairing (and also my first time writing fanfiction), so I guess it isn't too bad. I didn't proofread, so feel free to warn me if you find any typos/mistakes!
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i. once is happenstance
The wind whispers in Zuko's ears, blows his hair in front of his eyes and he is reaching blindly for the front door of the café when she crashes against him. All air leaves his lungs, and when he breathes again, deeply, he smells the ocean. He hears a faint 'Oh, La, I'm so sorry!' and turns around to face the stranger, but she's already running, a blur of cobalt blue sweater and black skirt, trying to reach the bus in time. It's one of the girls from his college - Katara, that's her name. He sees her, ocasionally, hanging out with her group of friends between classes. Her brother, a bald kid, a blind girl and a pretty athlete. They seem like an okay group, but Zuko never tried to approach them.
But then again, he doesn't really approach anyone.
He stares for a moment too long, listening to the sound of her boots crashing against the puddles on the street.
Zuko turns around once more and the glass door closes behind him.
(But the smell of the ocean lingers.)
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("You shouldn't just sit around and wait for things to happen to you, Zuko." Iroh says, as he pours tea for both of them and sits cross-legged in front of his nephew. He then takes his cup in both hands, lets the herbal scent engulf him. Takes a sip and gives a contented sigh. "Happiness is often the result of a coincidence, but coincidences only happen to those who happen to be in the right place at the right time."
"What does that even mean?!"
But Iroh just smiles at him over the rim of his teacup, that infuriating smile of his - like he knows a secret and Zuko doesn't.
The boy thinks of angry amber eyes, of speaking the wrong thing at the wrong time, of his father's fist coming fast towards his face. The purple bruise around his eye seems to burn.
He sets his teacup down with a loud clatter.)
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ii. twice is coincidence.
Zuko can only watch in horror as the coffee cup he was holding slips from his fingers and lands right on the chest of the brown-haired girl. The liquid, a few shades darker than her own skin, spreads through the white fabric of her shirt.
She stares at it with wide eyes, mouth forming a perfect "o".
"Damn it, I'm so sorry, let me just-"
He rackes his brains looking for a solution, a way out of this embarassing situation ('why do I always put myself in embarassing situations?'). He starts to raise his hands in order to somehow try to clean her shirt, but then stops himself, because that would mean touching her chest - and that would be so improper - what the hell was he thinking -
He panics.
It must show on his face, because suddenly there is a gentle hand on his shoulder.
"Don't worry about it, I'll just ask my brother to bring me another shirt. Might as well give him something to do, right?"
She smiles at him, not only with her lips but also with her eyes, and Zuko can't help thinking what a beautiful colour they are, a deep shade of blue, rich, entrancing.
The colour of the ocean.
"Hey, you're the guy I bumped into the other day, aren't you? Sorry about that, I was in a rush."
"You don't need to apologise, I'm the one who just spilled coffee on you."
"Well, I guess I just have to spill a cup of coffee on you too and we're even!"
She laughs, and it's intoxicating, because he finds himself smiling a bit, for the first time since he left his house and came to live with his uncle.
"I'm Katara, by the way."
"Zuko."
He turns around, starts picking up her books from the floor, but the movement makes the left side of his face visible through the curtain of shaggy black hair.
He hands the books over to her, blushes when their fingers touch, and starts walking away quickly.
Three seconds later, he trips.
There's a strangled laugh. Zuko looks back, face turning bright red, the corners of his lips turning upwards ever so slighty in something that is not quite a smile, but could be, if he tried hard enough. He manages to reach the exit without tripping again and she manages to hold back her laughter.
She doesn't ask about the purple staining the pale skin around his left eye.
(Even though she wants to.)
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("So, Pouty is in a good mood today. How unusual." June teases later that day, sitting on the counter while he sweeps the floor of his uncle's teashop. She swings her long legs, making the heels of her shiny black boots hit the wood, and the thump-thump-thump is getting on his nerves.
He scowls.
"Don't you have work to do?"
She smirks at him, snatching one of the wine bottles. "Already did."
"Stop drinking our beverage!" He holds her wrist with one hand, takes the wine bottle with the other. "We should have fired you already!"
June clicks her tongue in disapproval. "That's why you can't find a girlfriend. No girl wants to be around a rude jerk."
He lets go of her wrist, feels the heat on his cheeks and a caustic remark on the tip of his tongue, but Iroh's chuckle makes them stop.
"Well, who knows? Fate is a funny thing. You never know how things are going to work out." He says, taking the bottle from Zuko's hands and pouring the liquid in three small glasses. "Just remember to keep an open mind... and an open heart."
He doesn't have to look to know June is rolling her eyes.
But something about Iroh's words engulfs him like smoke, seeps through his pores and reaches into the back of his mind.
Zuko takes his glass of wine and downs it in one gulp.)
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iii. three times is fate.
"I didn't know you worked here."
He turns around too fast. His elbow hits something soft. He hears a muffled grunt and almost drops the tray filled with teacups.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."
Zuko sets the tray on a nearby table, starts to rearrange the cups to keep his hands busy. "It's alright, it's just - I'm not used to having people visiting me here." He looks down.
"Oh." her voice is soft. "That's a shame."
They stay silent for a moment.
It's late afternoon. There are still a few costumers enjoying the place. A girl sits alone on the table in the corner, teacup in one hand and a large book in the other. There's a couple on the table by the window, holding each other's hands and laughing quietly. Iroh is playing pai sho with one of his many white-haired friends. Nobody is really paying attention to the young duo.
"It's a good thing you didn't spilled tea on my clothes, though." she finally says, narrowing her eyes. "Or I might think you're bumping into me on purpose."
He looks shocked. His eyes widen - even the swollen one - and Katara fights back the urge to laugh.
"I'm not, I swear!"
"I know, I was just making a joke."
He looks visibly relieved, and runs a hand through his hair. "You're not very good at joking." he mutters.
She smiles at him, a perfect row of bright white teeth. "Well, humour is usually my brother's thing."
Then June is setting two cups of coffee on the table, flipping her dark hair over her shoulder. "Here, Pouty. It's on the house for you and your girlfriend."
The muscle in Zuko's jaw twitches. Katara's face is a bright tone of red.
"She's not -"
"We're not -"
But June just waves their complaints off, all leather and swaying hips while she walks away. "Yeah, yeah, whatever you guys say."
They drink in silence after that.
The warmth of the cup in his hands is nothing compared to the warmth on his face, and he probably would be plotting a way to get back at June for embarassing him if Katara's eyes weren't so distracting. They were like waves, pulling you in and taking you away.
"I guess - ah..." He starts, getting up and retrieving his tray. "I should probably get back to work."
"Oh." She looks at him for a second too long, and he can't tell if it's his imagination or if she really looks a bit disappointed. "Okay. Thanks for the free coffee."
She turns around to leave.
He looks around the room, and his gaze meets Iroh's. He can almost hear his uncle's voice, clear and loud in his head.
Happiness is often the result of a coincidence.
Remember to keep an open mind...
and an open heart.
She is reaching for the door when he calls her name.
"Katara?"
She turns around. Sees insecurity and hope fighting inside him. Waits patiently for the result.
"Yes?"
"See you tomorrow?"
The girl smiles at him once more, a perfect row of bright white teeth. "Sure."
(Observing from the far left corner of the room, Iroh smiles too.)
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(Katara runs her thumb over the skin under Zuko's left eye, inspects what is left of the fading purple stain.
"See? I told you." She says, letting her hand drop until it found his. "Bruises heal."
"Took forever." He scowls, leaning forward and standing inches away from the mirror. "And it's still a bit purple near my nose!"
"It takes longer for some people, but bruises always disappear eventually." She says, dragging him away from the bathroom and ignoring his complaints. "And what did you expect? You're just too pale!"
He makes an undignified noise and frowns at her. "I am not!"
But she just laughs and sinks into the bed, pulling him with her.
Zuko stares at the ceiling for some time, then looks at their entwined fingers.
"Such a coincidence, isn't it?"
Katara props herself up in one elbow to look at him.
"What is?"
"That of all people, the two of us ended up together."
She snorts. "It's not like we had a choice, we just kept bumping into each other."
He laughs, and wonders briefly: when did laughing become so easy?
Of course, he already knows the answer.
"I think it was fate." he says.
She grins at that. "And what is fate, if not a series of random encounters, aciddental bumps and spilled coffee?"
For a moment, he swears he can hear waves crashing against the shore, washing everything away.)
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notes: I'll be posting days 2 and 3 tomorrow. thanks for reading!