THE OBVIOUS
by Madame Bomb
Zuki Week – Day 7 (April 4th)
Prompt: JASMINE DRAGON
Rating: T
Summary: Everybody knows.
"You're in love with her, you know that, right?"
The statement, said so matter-of-factly, blindsided Zuko like a charging moose-lion. He whipped around to face the man standing in the kitchen of his uncle's tea shop, his mouth agape.
"What?" he asked, stupidly, fumbling with the kettle he'd come to refill for more tea.
Sokka crossed his arms over his chest and then glanced at the closed door to the shop, where he could hear the rest of their friends laughing and talking and catching up after spending months apart. They didn't see each other much these days and it had been good to hang out here in his uncle's home.
Or so Zuko had thought until Sokka had followed him into the kitchen and blindsided him.
"You heard me," Sokka said, stepping forward. "Suki. You're in love with her. Don't deny it."
The blood drained out of Zuko's face.
"Uhh..." He didn't know what to say. He thought perhaps he should try denying it, but that would mean lying through his teeth. He'd never been a very good liar, and besides, what would be the point? Sokka was right.
He was desperately, painfully, in love Suki and had been for a long time.
He'd thought that no one knew. He'd thought that he'd been very good at hiding it. Suki didn't seem to realize it, or at least he didn't think she did. Just because she smiled at him and laughed with him, and they spent long hours sparring and talking late into the night didn't mean anything. She was his friend.
A friend that he was in love with.
"Sokka, that's... Uhh..."
But Sokka snorted, holding up his hand. "Look, don't bother denying it. It's pretty obvious how you feel about her, Zuko."
Zuko put the kettle down on the stove carefully and turned back to him, rubbing at his neck, feeling nervous. He had no idea what was running through Sokka's mind at the moment.
"I didn't think it was."
"It is," Sokka laughed, which was a good sign. Right? Sokka wasn't about to punch him for all but admitting he was in love with his ex-girlfriend if he was laughing. Right? Zuko hoped he was right. "I know you too well not to see the signs, Zuko. Your heart is in your eyes whenever she walks into the room."
"And how do you feel about that?" Zuko asked cautiously, eyeing Sokka, and the boomerang hanging from his belt with a wary respect. "She's your ex-girlfriend, Sokka."
Sokka nodded. "She is. And I still care about her, but..."
"You and my sister are dating," Zuko pointed out heavily. He still didn't understand how or why his sister and Sokka had started dating, and he didn't want to. But his sister had seemed happy, for once in her life, and knowing that Sokka had moved on from his relationship with Suki had helped Zuko not feel so guilty about the way he felt about her.
That hadn't meant he'd made a move yet. He'd wanted to give Suki time to get over the breakup, but then he'd never gotten the courage to do actually do anything, not even when he was sure she'd moved on. Now he was afraid he'd waited too long.
Or worse, that she didn't feel the same way that he did.
"Yeah," Sokka said, a half-smile on his lips. "And I'm happy with Azula."
"I can't pretend to understand the two of you."
Sokka snorted. "I don't get it either, but the heart wants what the heart wants. I know that better than anyone, Zuko. And your heart is in your eyes right now, man. How long have you felt this way about her?"
Zuko made a face, grimacing. "If I answer that you may punch me."
But Sokka shook his head, looking amused. "Yeah, that's what I thought. You are really not good at hiding it, Zuko."
"I don't know about that," he said darkly, glancing at the closed door. He could hear Katara and Azula arguing over the pai sho game that Iroh had started. Katara and Azula didn't get along, but they'd been trying on this visit. Zuko had a feeling fire and water would be flying soon, but he trusted Aang to keep the peace.
And if not Aang, then Suki would step in. She was always such a calm, steadying force in his life, the rock he'd always needed to keep his hothead firmly planted on the ground. She was perfect for him, and he wanted to tell her that, to scream it maybe.
But he couldn't.
"I don't know how Suki feels," he said miserably. "I don't think she knows."
Sokka surprised him again, bursting out laughing. "You really aren't the most observant guy in the world, are you, Zuko?"
"Uhh..."
"Look, it's not my place, but I'll just say this: I know Suki. I want her to be happy, and I know for a fact that there is no one who would make her happier than you would. Even if you are a clueless idiot who can't see what's right in front of his face sometimes."
"I'm not clueless."
"Then tell me why you haven't made a move on her yet, when she keeps looking at you like she's two seconds from climbing into your lap?" Sokka said, sarcasm dripping from his voice. "And don't think I like watching my ex make goo-goo eyes at my best friend. I don't. It's just hard to ignore. So... Not that you need my permission, but if that's what's been holding you back, then you have it. Please date my ex, Zuko."
Sokka's approval should have put him at ease, but it didn't. Instead, his stomach tightened with worry.
"What if she doesn't feel the same way that I do?"
Sokka rolled his eyes and then clapped him on the shoulder. "She does. Trust me. She does. If you don't make a move soon, I'm going to lock the two of you in a room together. And believe me, everyone would back me up. We've all been watching the two of you since we got here. You could cut the tension with a knife. Man up and do something about it."
"Like what?"
"If you need me to tell you that, then you're more hopeless than I thought," Sokka said, grabbing a sweet cake off of the counter and taking a massive bite. At Zuko's lost look, he swallowed and sighed exasperatedly. "Kiss her, you dingus. Before I beat some sense into you."
And he reached out, tapping his fist against Zuko's chin with a wink. Then he whirled and walked out of the kitchen, leaving Zuko standing there like an idiot. Which was exactly what he was.
Hands shaking, his stomach roiling, he grabbed the kettle and filled it with water. He could have heated it with his Firebending, but he needed a few minutes to recover his scattered thoughts. He put it on the stove, and lit the burners, and then stared into the flickering orange flames, lost in thought.
He didn't hear the door open, but he smelled the soft, subtle perfume—jasmine and honey—that had been haunting him for so long. He turned to face Suki, framed in the doorway. He wondered if his heart was in his eyes like Sokka had said.
"Suki..."
"What's taking you so long?" she asked, glancing at the kettle on the stove. "You've been gone for ages."
"I..." he started, staring at her, his heart banging hard in his chest. She was beautiful, her big blue eyes on his, and her red lips turned into a soft smile. She walked toward him, cocking her head at him in question.
"Do you need some help?"
"Yes, I do. All the help I can get," he whispered, his eyes on her lips. Then, before he could think better of it and before his courage failed him, he reached for her. She didn't look surprised, not even when his hand caught here. Her gaze softened in understanding immediately and excitement lit up her eyes. "Suki, I, um...I..."
She kissed him, throwing her arms around his neck and lifting up on her toes. Zuko staggered, taken off-guard, though he shouldn't have been. Not when he'd seen that look in her eyes. He caught her, his arms around her waist.
And then...
Time had no meaning all of a sudden. He was kissing her, lost in her, his hands in her hair, on her back, around her waist. She moaned into his mouth, the sweet taste of her filling him up. He couldn't get enough. He never wanted to stop.
Suki was kissing him and that meant that Sokka was right. That she felt the same way that he did, and some part of him had known that, but he'd been so afraid that he was wrong, so afraid that she'd break his heart...
He should have known better.
They finally broke apart when the kettle on the stove let out a loud whistle. He took a ragged breath and reached over, taking it off of the flames with a little growl of impatience.
"Sorry," he said to her, feeling heat beneath his skin as he looked back at her. Suki's eyes were huge, her lips parted. She looked dazed as their eyes met.
"Zuko..." Suki started and then she giggled, the sound soft and heady. Her hands smoothed down his chest. "I thought you'd never do that."
"Me too," he said and then he kissed her again, pulling her against him. Her arms slid around his neck again, but their lips had barely met again when there was a sound from the door. They broke apart, their eyes going to the open door, where all of their friends and family were framed, grinning at them.
"Well, it's about time," Azula snorted and walked away.
"Awww..." Katara said, hands clasped to her chest, looking touched.
"Go, Zuko!" Aang grinned.
Zuko's eyes flicked to Sokka, however. He was smiling ruefully and as their eyes met, Sokka gave him a thumb's up and a nod of approval. Then he followed his girlfriend, leaving Zuko to avoid the looks the others were giving them.
"Uhh... Do you guys mind?" Zuko asked, as Suki laughed a little, obviously as embarrassed as he was.
"Let's get back to our game, shall we?" Iroh said, pushing the others aside. He glanced back at Zuko and winked, then the door closed shut, leaving Suki and Zuko alone in the kitchen again.
He looked down at her, still standing in the harbor of his arms. She looked up at him and bit her lip. He wanted to say a thousand things to her, to tell her how he felt, but he had a feeling she already knew.
He'd been both oblivious and obvious the entire time, after all. Everyone had known how they'd both felt. Everyone but him.
He tipped her chin up, looking her in the eyes for a long moment. Then he kissed her again.
Obviously, there was nothing more to say.
(end)