Notice Me
00. Intro
Ty Lee drew attention to herself in any way she could manage. When she was at school, she was the sun and everyone else revolved around her, or so she hoped. It was frustrating, therefore, when the one person Ty Lee wanted to be noticed by most didn't even seem to know she existed.
That was not true, of course. Azula noticed Ty Lee exactly seven times.
01. Fairy Tales
The first time Azula noticed Ty Lee, they were in English class, in the middle of studying fairy tales. It was supposed to be a treat from the teachers, but it wasn't.
They were divided into duos to write their own fairy tale. Azula and Ty Lee were put together, and Ty Lee was thrilled. She didn't know that she had a crush on Azula at the time, but she did. The feelings that bounced around inside of her made her crave those gold eyes on her, but she didn't attribute them to love.
Azula stared at her. Ty Lee didn't know if she should stare back or not.
"Watcha thinking about?" Ty Lee inquired. She tried to keep her voice bright.
Azula smirked.
"I'm wondering what your Barbie doll is wearing, since you appear to have borrowed her clothes," she said matter-of-factly.
Ty Lee turned her attention to her textbooks for the first time all day.
02. Candy
The second time Azula noticed Ty Lee, it was the Friday before Halloween. Outside of the high school, in the cold autumn chill, Ty Lee handed out candy. She wore cat ears and she loved the way nobody passed by her without noticing or taking a piece.
She was impossible to ignore.
"Is that poisoned?" Azula called from across the way.
Ty Lee blushed and smiled.
"You're the first person who's said that all day!" she shouted.
Azula smirked.
"I take it that as a yes . . . or are you more of a razor blade girl?"
Ty Lee forgot how to talk, and she talked a lot.
Azula walked away without taking any of the candy.
03. Cosmos
The third time Azula noticed Ty Lee, they were at a cosmic themed dance. The lights were bright, the music loud, and the decorations all inspired by outer space. Ty Lee wore neon; Azula wore indigo.
"How do you dance with somebody you're into?" Ty Lee asked her friend loudly over the music.
"You don't know how to grind?" Her friend laughed.
"No!" Ty Lee shouted over the music, glittering with excitement about learning how to do it. The lights made it hard to see, but Ty Lee could see Azula beneath the glowing star stickers on the other side of the room.
"I'll teach you," her friend replied, grabbing Ty Lee's wrist.
Fifteen minutes later, Ty Lee took Azula by the hand after her lesson and moved quickly so that Azula couldn't run. Ty Lee knew Azula must have declined a lot of offers tonight.
It was pretty hard for Azula to ignore Ty Lee tonight.
04. Hot & Cold
The fourth time Azula noticed Ty Lee, she was shivering in a cold classroom after entering from the hot hallway.
Ty Lee tapped on her back.
"Do you wanna borrow my sweater?" Ty Lee now knew why she wan ted Azula to notice her.
She used to think it was because she wanted to be noticed by everyone, and Azula resisted. But she understood these days that those butterflies were romantic in nature.
"No. I don't wear things that cheap." Azula met her gaze for a moment.
That was the end of it.
05. Dragons
The fifth time Azula noticed Ty Lee, Ty Lee had approached her in the hallway.
"I like your necklace," Ty Lee said. She expected no response, so she was enthusiastic when she got one.
"Oh. Do you want it? My uncle seems to have never realized that I got over my dragon phase," Azula calmly said.
"I couldn't," Ty Lee said, but Azula was already unclasping it and handing it to her anyway.
Ty Lee thanked her and began to walk away. Azula dropped her phone, it made a loud crack, and Ty Lee picked it up. It was unscathed, if a bit dusty now. As she handed it back to Azula, she noticed that the background was a blue dragon.
Ty Lee ran.
06. Festivals
The sixth time Azula noticed Ty Lee, they were under a pagoda at a festival.
"They should have kissing booths?" Ty Lee complained to her friend at the school carnival. She looked up and saw Azula at a picnic table with Mai. She was on top of it like it was a throne and that was thrilling to look at.
Ty Lee looked at Azula so often, and she thought maybe Azula had been looking at her more lately too.
"Who'd you kiss at this dumb carnival, huh?" her friend asked.
"It's not dumb. I was on the planning committee." Ty Lee smiled; she did love parties. Even if this one was imperfect. She glanced over her shoulder at Azula but she looked away when she saw that Azula had noticed her and was watching. "I wouldn't kiss anybody in particular."
Her friend shrugged.
Azula overheard.
07. Paradise
The seventh time Azula noticed Ty Lee, it was raining. Ty Lee had no ride home and a useless math text book over her head. She was calling and texting all of her sisters.
She saw Azula walking out to her car and was certain she was going to be ignored again.
But she was wrong
"Do you want a ride?" Azula offered.
Ty Lee jumped up and nodded, slinging her bag over her back.
Her destination will be Hell, because in the car will be paradise.
In there, she had Azula's undivided attention. And maybe even a kiss goodbye if Ty Lee played her cards right.
Azula was looking into her eyes. Ty Lee couldn't help but smile.
Because finally.