bars and stars
Summary: Momo messes up. Again. Pabu decides he needs some cheering up. [Momo/Pabu] Set during chapter 10. Requested by spiritypowers
There were a lot of things Momo wasn't very good at. Sword fighting, cleaning, not messing up, came to mind first. And most recent of all was flirting. It had been in a bar in Yun-Ho and there had been a really cute guy at the bar (not quite as cute as Pabu, but still pretty cute) and Momo had tried and failed to flirt with him. The guy had looked both awkward and amused, and not in a good way.
Momo hung his head after the guy left hand in hand with someone older and surely much more experienced later on, staring into his beer. He barely even looked up as Pabu slid onto the stool next to him. "Rejected?" the redhead guessed. Momo nodded. "Tough luck Momo. That really sucks."
"What about you?" Momo said, trying not to sound miserable, even if the idea of Pabu going home with someone just made him feel worse, which he knew was selfish and stupid, because he and Pabu were just friends, but...Was it okay to be jealous when it was just a crush?
"Nobody's caught my eye," Pabu shrugged, their eyes meeting for a moment, green into brown, before Pabu turned away and called to the bartender for a beer. He took a long drink. "Wanna head back? I know I'm kinda tired."
"Yung'll kill us if we interrupt Captain and Jinora's night," Momo shrugged. Yung had given them all a very stern warning before entering the bar: no one was to head back early unless it was an emergency. "But we could just go for a walk, if you'd like to."
Pabu smiled at him. "Yeah. I'd like that a lot."
Momo's heart lifted. "Okay then." Momo finished off his beer and then pushed himself away from the bar and slid off to the stool. Pabu grabbed his own drink and brought it along with them as they stepped out of the stuffy, loud bar and into the cool, quiet night. It was a pretty cloudy night, the street lamps illuminating the streets, the golden glow distorted on the shifting sea only a few feet away as they left the bar and rounded the corner.
Where they were going exactly, Momo didn't know, but he honestly didn't care. It wasn't often that he was left completely alone with Pabu and he was going to appreciate it. Maybe this night wouldn't be such a bad one after all. Besides, they came and knew their way around Yun-Ho enough that it was practically impossible to get lost. (Although, given his luck, who knew: he'd probably find a way.)
Pabu finally stopped walking at one of the piers, relatively empty of boats, and plopped down on the deck. Momo sat cross-legged beside him.
"I wish we could see the stars," Pabu said, glancing up. The clouds hadn't cleared at all.
"Me too," Momo agreed. "My mom loved them a lot."
"Do you miss her? Your mom?" Pabu asked softly. Momo glanced at him, but he was staring steadfastly at the horizon.
"Yeah," Momo admitted. "A lot, sometimes. But I have Appa and that helps a lot. And the crew. And you."
"I'm not just part of the crew?" Pabu's deep brown eyes gleamed with amusement, and this time he did look back at Momo, who flushed.
"Well, you are, but you're also...different?" Momo tried weakly. "A good different. A really good different. Am I rambling? Appa says I ramble and I probably am and I'll shut up now-"
"No, don't," Pabu placed his hand over Momo's for a moment. His fingers were calloused and warm. "I like hearing you talk. What you have to say. And I like being a good different too. It makes me feel special and...I think that you're really special too."
Momo's eyes crinkled. "Even though I'm a screw-up?"
Pabu shook his head. "No. Sometimes you screw-up but that's not who you are. You're Momo, and I like you a lot just the way you are." His hand on was still on top of Momo's and part of the younger boy wanted to properly hold his hand, but was also worried that if he moved, Pabu would take his hand away.
"Me too," Momo said happily, blushing furiously. "Er, I mean I don't like myself a lot, I like you - I - well, er you know what I mean right?" Pabu always seemed to, and this time was no exception as the redhead nodded, grinning, not in a teasing sort of way, but in a you-make-me-smile sort of way. Momo let out a small breath of relief. "Good. I think that's why I'm so bad at flirting. I just can't get my words out."
"If you wanna practice flirting, you can practice with me," Pabu offered.
Momo's cheeks burned. "With you? Oh, uh...okay."
Pabu nudged Momo's knee with his own. "Go on. Even if it's really cheesy. Like your cheesiest pick-up line. I'll give you an example. You like girls and boys right? So if you're flirting with a girl you can say 'want me to drop my anchor into your ocean' and stuff like that."
Momo started cracking up. "Oh my God, that's terrible. I cannot believe you just said that." Momo gave him a playful shove. "Besides, I don't think pick-up lines are really my style. I wanna have a real connection with someone, you know. Like what Captain and Jinora have."
"Even though they refuse to admit it," Pabu said with a grin. Momo turned away, still laughing. "I've never seen two people more in denial about their feelings for each other before. They're fighting like hell against it."
"Yung's got a bet going," Momo said. "I think I bet on the wrong thing though. I said that Jinora was going to kiss Captain first."
"I think you made the right call," Pabu smiled. "You're pretty smart. And your sword fighting's gotten way better too. You need to give yourself more credit."
"I don't know about that," Momo said softly, glancing back the way they had come, thinking of his complete failure at the bar. "You know, I've never even kissed someone before," he confessed, his blush deepening.
"Really?" There was no hint of laughter in Pabu's voice and Momo felt a rush of gratefulness. "Not even a peck? On the cheek or anything?" Momo shook his head. Momo thought Pabu was going to say something when he glanced across the sea, towards The Waterbender. Through the dim glow of the street lamps he could make out the silhouettes of some of the crew: people were going back to the ship. "We should probably head back."
"Oh, right." Momo bit back disappointed, although what exactly he was disappointed about he wasn't sure. He did know that Pabu had saved this night from being a disaster. In fact, he had enjoyed it immensely, and he didn't really want it to end. But Pabu stood up anyway and offered Momo a hand to pull him up, who took it gratefully, his hand lingering in Pabu's before he let go.
They were the last two back to the ship, and Momo yawned as Pabu pulled open the door that led below decks with only a small creak. "Hey, Pabu?" Momo forced the words out before his courage could desert him. Pabu gave him a puzzled look, and Momo shut his eyes before he leaned in and kissed Pabu's cheek, quickly pulling away. "I had a really fun time tonight, so thanks," he said hurriedly.
Pabu slowly grinned at him. "Of course, Momo. See you tomorrow?"
Momo grinned back at him. "Yeah."
He fell asleep with the stupidest smile on his face and couldn't even answer when Appa asked why.
