"I thought Lee was sick?" Jin asked absently, finishing off her second bowl of juke.
"I'm feeling a lot better," Zuko answered, smiling warmly at her, "better than I've felt in a long time." Iroh gave his nephew a sideways glance, worried about just how much Zuko was going to say about their shared past.
"Well," Jin said, seemingly accepting the statement at face value, "I'm glad to hear it." She was seated next to Zuko at the table with Iroh opposite the two. She reached over and placed one of her hands in one of Zuko's and Iroh smiled with fatherly affection at the display. Rather than withdraw with embarrassment though, Zuko simply gave Jin's hand a squeeze.
"I'm glad as well," Iroh told them truthfully. He had been worried for Zuko's well being during his transformation. As Lady He had once told him, there is only so much the body can take. Perhaps now Zuko can turn over a new leaf, Iroh hoped with all his heart.
"Uncle," Zuko began, "would it be alright if we invited Jin to come to the grand opening of the Jasmine Dragon tomorrow?" Iroh smiled broadly.
"Of course," he chuckled at the sentiment, "she is our most valuable customer!"
"Thank you both," Jin said humbly, "I would be honored. Provided my mom lets me take the morning off work, that is."
"Well if not," Zuko told her, placing his other hand over top of hers so that he was cupping her hand in both of his, "we'll save you a seat for lunch."
"Thanks," Jin said, looking out the window and frowning, "it's getting late. I should be getting home." Iroh gave Zuko a meaningful look.
"Oh! Yes, right," Zuko spat out, "would you like me to walk you home?" This got a different meaningful look from Iroh. "I mean, it would be my honor if you allowed me to walk you home?" the question in his voice was aimed at both of them. Iroh nodded sagely at his nephew's display of chivalry.
"Thanks," Jin accepted, "I don't really know my way around this part of the city very well. I had to ask for directions about a dozen times just to find this place." Zuko smiled at that. The prospect of being lost with Jin sounded wonderful. Well, Zuko corrected himself, spending time with her will be nice, not being lost. Zuko shrugged and Jin gave him a questioning look.
"Not being lost," Zuko said out loud, earning quizzical looks from Iroh and Jin. Zuko's eyes were wide and he mumbled something incoherent before gathering his wits, "sorry. Did I say that out loud?" Jin and Iroh nodded in unison. "Uh, nevermind." Normally Zuko would have been livid with embarrassment at making such an awkward slip up but tonight he just didn't feel it. Yep, Zuko thought to himself, something's definitely different. Zuko nodded sagely to himself, causing Jin and Iroh to look at each other with worry.
"Nephew," Iroh ventured, "are you sure you're alright?" Zuko nodded.
"Are you going to be okay walking me home?" Jin asked half-heartedly. She wanted him to feel better but if she was being totally honest with herself, she really wanted to spend the time with him.
"I'm fine," Zuko looked at each of them in turn, "really, I'm fine."
Zuko and Jin walked down the brightly lit streets of the upper ring of Ba Sing Se and Jin couldn't help but marvel at the stately homes and lush parks they passed by. The streets were much better illuminated than those in the lower ring, Jin noted, so it was easier to take in the sights than it would have been had there been less light.
"Some of these places," she broke the comfortable silence that she and Zuko had been sharing, "...I don't know. Can you believe it?" Zuko nodded, he had been accustomed to palaces all his life. Jin gave him a quizzical look that showed she expected him to elaborate.
"Well," Zuko began, not sure of what to say, "I've...uh...seen some pretty fancy places...when I was younger." This caused Jin's brow to furrow.
"I thought you'd never been to Ba Sing Se before?" she mused, thinking for a moment before speaking, "oh! You must have been to Omashu, right?" Zuko was taken aback. Gah! Why don't I just give away our whole cover story? he chided himself.
"Oh, yeah," Zuko said sheepishly, "my parents took me there when I was a kid." Jin seemed to accept this and nodded before returning to look at all the fancy architecture.
"So," she began, unsure of how to broach the subject, "do you have any other family besides your uncle?" Zuko made a sound somewhere between a cough and a growl that took Jin by surprise.
"I haven't seen my father in years," Zuko's voice was far away and Jin gave him a squeeze with her arm which was around his waist as they walked. "And I have a sister," he admitted after a few moments of silence, "we don't get along. We never have."
"I'm sorry to hear that," Jin said with genuine sadness that caused Zuko to turn to look at her. He stopped walking and she stopped beside him. He pulled her into a tight hug, his arms resting firmly on her back and his cheek pressing lightly on hers. Her arms rested in the small of his back and she sighed deeply.
"Do you have any siblings?" he asked her, pulling back so he could look at her but still holding on to her shoulders.
"No," she told him, "my parents might have had another child but my dad died when I was little." Her voice was frail and Zuko saw a side of her that he hadn't seen before. He had seen her be unsure, or upset, or insecure even, but never so...down. From the time he had first met her, Jin had always bounced right back from every misstep or social faux pas. Zuko's cheeks felt hot as he remembered their disastrous first date. It was as if somebody had let all the air out of her and Zuko didn't like it one bit.
"I'm sorry," Zuko said, pulling her into another hug which she returned. "I understand what it's like to lose someone close to you. I lost my mother a few years ago."
She said nothing and they stayed like that for what seemed like hours but was probably more like a few minutes.
"Jin?" Zuko broke the silence. She pulled back from their hug to look at him, her face floating a few inches from his. "I'm sorry I made you upset."
"It's not your fault," she admitted, struggling to maintain eye contact, "I guess...I guess I haven't stopped and faced how it makes me feel. It's stupid but maybe I thought that if I just ignored it then it would go away." There were tears in Jin's eyes now and she blinked them away furiously. Zuko felt his heart breaking in his chest and he felt the overwhelming urge to say something to make it all better. But what can I say? he wondered, his mind racing frantically for some piece of common ground that he could use to relate to her, to help her understand that what she felt was normal and it was alright.
"Before we came to the city," Zuko began, his voice tight and tense. Jin looked up at him intently, her curiosity about his past temporarily overcoming her sadness. Zuko faltered under her gaze and he wasn't sure he could continue until Jin reached down and took both of his hands in hers, giving them a firm, comforting squeeze. "Before we came to Ba Sing Se," Zuko began again, steeling himself, "my uncle and I had been travelling for a few years, three years actually, and all of that time I was searching for something. You see, well, my father sent me away and he told me I couldn't come home until I found...this thing. The whole time I was looking for...this thing…" Zuko stumbled over the words, trying his best to censor anything that would give away who he really was before he said it, "I thought that finding it would be able to win back my father's love, that it could restore my honor…" Jin's eyes were fixed on his and it made him swallow, his throat suddenly very dry as memories of the North Pole, of the chase that ended with his uncle being struck by lightning, and of the suffering he had seen that had been caused by his father's war came rushing to the forefront of his mind.
"Did you find what you were looking for?" Jin asked hesitantly, her voice barely a whisper. Zuko choked out a humorless laugh.
"No," he admitted, "all that time I thought...I knew...that finding this thing and restoring my honor was my destiny." Jin frowned but Zuko gave her a warm smile that surprised her. "But since we came to this city, I've taken a step back from it all and I think that my destiny might be what I make it. Maybe, maybe it's here. With you."
Jin's eyes went wider, which she didn't think was possible. She began breathing quickly and her jaw locked up. Her legs felt weak and wobbly and her arms went slack, only Lee's firm grip on her hands holding them up. She felt something in her chest, something that crushed all the life out of her and a layer of cold sweat was forming on her skin.
"I love you!" she yelled so loudly that Zuko flinched and a few people stuck their heads out their windows to see what was going on from the nearby buildings. She didn't care. The crushing feeling in her chest became worse and she had no idea how she was still standing in the intervening seconds when Lee said nothing and it felt to Jin like she was hanging on the ledge of a high cliff, waiting to fall.
"I love you too," Zuko said, his voice sounding half relieved and half surprised with the understanding of what the drastic changes he had been feeling over the last week had been leading up to. I'm in love, Zuko thought giddily. What? the more rational part of his mind tried to cut in, you are the Crown Prince of the Fire Nation! You do not get giddy! But that voice was drowned out as Jin leaned forward, tilting her head upwards, and her lips pressed gently against his.
Her lips were soft and warm and Zuko could feel the heat of her breath as she breathed a deep sigh from her nose. He reached up and cupped her face in one hand, running his fingers along her cheek gently while his other hand ran through her jet black hair.
Jin's head was a rush of emotion. All the bad feelings, the hesitation, the uncertainty, that had been there just seconds before had evaporated and been replaced by a rush of lightness. She felt as if she could fly, like there was nothing she couldn't do. So she had kissed him. His lips were dry and slightly cracked but they were also warm and supple and she found herself kissing him harder. He ran a hand through her hair and his fingers brushed lightly against her cheek and down her jawline and it caused her to shiver involuntarily, a chill running down her spine despite the warm night air. She ran her hands along his back and across his firm shoulders, pulling his as close as possible. I'm in love, she thought giddily. But you barely know this guy? the more rational part of her brain tried to chime in, what about his past? There's so much you don't know. She blocked out the voice in her head firmly, whatever, whoever Lee was, all that matters is who is here and now.
The kiss lasted for what seemed like only a short time to the two lovers but in reality it lasted for nearly fifteen minutes. They only stopped when the some wise guy called from a nearby building with the suggestion that they 'get a room'. Embarrassed but still elated, they continued on their walk.
To be continued…
Author's Notes:
It happened! I hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. Sorry it came out a few hours later than usual, I worked late last night.
So I think this story will go up to the end of 'Crossroads of Destiny', which means there will still be a few chapters to go between now and then. Next chapter will be the grand opening of the Jasmine Dragon, with one key difference. See if you can guess what it will be ;)
I just wanted to thank all of you for your continued support and readership. It makes me so happy to be able to share this story with all of you and 'Our Most Valuable Customer' has reached nearly 2000 views! :D that's actually incredible...I wouldn't have believed it if I didn't have the traffic stats in front of me.
Please let me know what you liked and didn't like about this chapter since it's only my second time writing a big 'I love you'/first kiss scene, the first being in 'Six Weeks in Ba Sing Se' (shameless self promotion :P ), and I'm not sure if it came out exactly right. As always, please offer any suggestions you would like to see in the rest of the story and more importantly what you don't want to see :) speaking of which...
Reviews:
Anonymous Rex: Thank you so much! :) I'm glad Iroh's backstory didn't come across as too melodramatic or rushed since I put a lot of information into such a short flashback!
Kiyoky: Thanks for your support :) I will definitely see what I can do about writing Iroh's backstory in my next big fic!
bunkeepanda: Thanks! :) posting 2x/week has been tough but I think it's good practice for any writer to get into the habit of being able to keep to regular updates! You read Six Weeks in Ba Sing Se?! Awesome :D I'm glad you liked it! I hope you like how I brought Jin back to the story this chapter.
ZukoWithHair: Thank you :) I'm glad you liked it better than Ch7 despite, like you said, little happens plotwise. I actually did leave Jet out of the story since keeping track of so many characters is tough and I didn't want to distract from the main story. There will be some pretty radical changes that Jin's presence will have next chapter! Just wait and see ;)
