It was initially his idea to feel her face the way she had felt his once before. In fact he had been toying with the thought for a long time (ever since the gang met in Ba Sing Se for the annual celebration of the end of the war a year ago. It was then that Toph overheard two young girls whispering to each other about how Fire Lord Zuko would've been gorgeous if it wasn't for the monstrous scar on his face. She didn't care about his face, or anyone's face for that matter, but it did spark her curiosity and the next thing she knew she was pulling his wrist and leading him away from their friends to his room. She really couldn't care any less about his complaints and questions, "Toph, whatever you're trying to do, don't you think it should wait until tomorrow? Or at least until the end of celebration?" but who was he to stop the greatest earthbender in the world when she had already set her mind to do something?).
Zuko nervously kept telling himself that this opportunity had to be seized and around 3 hours into the party his curiosity to know what it felt like to learn someone's face palpably proved to be stronger than his worry about what Toph might think of him. He moved from the corner of Iroh's tea shop where he had been sulking alone for hours and approached Toph grabbing her wrist and leading her away from the party.
Hence there they were sitting on his bed with his hands awkwardly hovering above her static face. He took in the image of her features one last time before closing his eyes and in that moment he couldn't help noting how she looked like a porcelain doll with her face so motionless. The instant he placed his fingers on her skin she twitched and he wondered if that was because of the heat radiating from his fingertips ever so shamelessly, deceitfully. He really tried to control the temperature of his body, but it was undeniably hard with her sitting so close to him, and him being the most nervous melodramatist the world had ever seen. So it was simply natural that a blush had paved its way all up to Zuko's cheeks and he breathed in (he could swear that the fluster was audible in his breathing, but then again, how did that matter when Toph just knew every slightest change in his heartbeat and breathing pattern and.. he really didn't want to continue that train of thought), he put his fingers back on her face maybe a little too abruptly because he could feel her body tense up next to him.
His fingers were still for a moment and then he brushed his thumbs against the gentle skin on her cheeks. He was surprised to realize how tender it actually was (though, he had to admit that her skin wasn't so much soft as it was just less crusty than his own). Her features were defined but in a very delicate manner and it was strange to think that he had never noticed that before. He did, but never in such a sensible way. He could always see her pale green eyes, her lips, but he never really knew them.
Toph felt strange. Intrigued. She wasn't used to being studied this way and she felt her privacy violated in the most unusual manner. She twitched and fidgeted with her fingers but, she had to admit that in a very twisted way it was funny; Zuko's reactions were. She could feel how nervous he was and how hard he tried to stay concentrated. Every single moment of his apprehension brought a wave of irresistible enjoyment and excitement (a little bit of his touch might have had something to do with that, too, but she would never admit that and not like Zuko had to know anyway).
Every now and then Zuko had to fight an urge to open his eyes and the longer he tried to stay focused on picturing Toph's features in his mind the harder it was getting. He could feel her soft breaths; the warm air caressing his skin soothingly. He liked how he could see her face so vividly even in the darkness of his closed lids, outlining every bump and scar. His body was tense trying to keep his touches feathery (and that was the only reason, he kept telling himself, hoping somewhere in the back of his mind that the more he repeated this statement the truer it would get in the end).
When he brushed Toph's bottom lip her heart had stopped. She could swear it did. She could swear he felt it, too. And she could also swear that he deliberately paused his thumb for a moment, and then continued stroking her lips, lingering on a little longer than he should have because For Agni's sake, just move away already.
Zuko hated himself for being unable to move his finger away from her lips, but it didn't matter because he had already tarried on them for far too long to claim it an accident. They were just so soft and round and silken and… oh.
Before he knew it his eyes were open and he was brushing his lips against hers.
Her mind went vicious. She almost felt like she could earthbend the entire Planet. And she could. She knew she could and so did he and that's why a second later he pulled away and stared at her in sheer horror. He was to die, no doubt.
"This is not exactly a part of the deal, Sparky," how did she make her voice sound so even was a mystery to her.
He thought frantically about a response that would be dignifying enough to excuse this… brush of lips (because that's exactly what it was and he did not just kiss Toph. As if that would ever happen, right?), but then it was already too late to respond without seeming slow. And so he didn't. Silence could be dignifying, too, right?
Toph sighed tiredly. It was strange to see any sign of exhaustion in her (or was that confusion? Astonishment, maybe? Agitation?) because it was so human, and she was always so wild.
"I'm sorry," he said. What was it that he was sorry for again? He couldn't recall because he was certainly not sorry for that… brush. Of lips. If anything, he was just happy to still be alive.
"Yeah. Of course you are," she said somewhat sadly and he dwelled on the inkling. Did it upset her that much? Did she not like him that much? He didn't know why the thought made him feel so discontented. He thought he didn't want to know.
Toph stood up and walked over to the door. And just before leaving she turned around to look in his direction, and said,
"Your voice doesn't have a scar, Princess," the gentleness in her tone surprised both of them, "You're not scarred to me."
She closed the door behind her leaving Zuko alone to ponder over the meaning of her words.
The next morning Toph was the first to leave Ba Sing Se and Zuko had already started his countdown till the next anniversary because he needed answers. (And maybe, just maybe, some more brief brushes of their lips, but he would never admit that, and not like Toph had to know anyway.)