The road outside my house is paved with good intentions.

Hired a construction crew 'cause it's hell on the engine.

And you are a dreamer, and we are the dream.

I could write it better than you ever felt.
"Hum Hallelujah" by Fall Out Boy

Everything was going perfectly to plan. Katara had taken the evening off work so she could finish packing and catch a short nap before Sokka got there. She had made sure to get all of her homework done so she could spend the weekend with her dad, brother, and Suki without any distractions.

At least, it was all going well until Sokka called her shortly after 5 pm.

"Slight change of plans, Tara." Sokka was yelling to be heard over the roar of traffic in the background. "Suki and I are currently broken down on the side of the road an hour outside of Gaoling."

"What?"

"I said—"

Katara growled in frustration. "I heard what you said, Sokka! So does that mean you won't be able to come and get me?"

"Well, my car is currently smoking on the side of the road so no, I don't think I'm going to be able to come and get you." Sokka sighed. She could hear the irritation in his voice. "I don't even know how I'm going to pick Dad up tomorrow. Maybe I can call Hahn and borrow his car."

Katara pulled a face. But then she had a thought: maybe she could ask Zuko to take her down there. Maybe it was wild and crazy, but the more she thought about it, the more she realized how much she missed her dad. She really did want to see him. And things with Zuko were...going well. So they hadn't spent any time together in a non-work related capacity since the club (and they hadn't had any more Comm assignments together), but they were friendly.

And really, it wasn't like she was against spending more time with him.

"I'll call you back, Sokka," Katara said. "Let me find out if I can have a friend pick me up and bring me down there."

"Okay. Let me know." A large truck rolled by and drowned out his voice. "...waiting for the tow truck."

"I'll call you back." Katara hung up.

She looked down at her phone. She didn't think Zuko was in a class, if she remembered correctly—not that she really knew his class schedule or anything. She was also unsure about calling him. She had only ever texted him before. She opened her text app and clicked on his name.

K: Are you busy rn?

She walked over to where her backpack sat on her desk chair, packed for the weekend. She hoped he texted her back quickly. It was a long drive to Gaoling and she needed to figure out if she could get a ride or not.

Well, if Zuko can't, I can always ask Aang, Katara thought, but she didn't like the sound of that as much. And she was pretty sure Aang had mentioned a track meet he had that weekend. Her phone buzzed.

Z: What's up?

K: Can I call you? I need a favor.

Katara rocked on the balls of her feet while she impatiently waited for his response.

Z: Sure

Katara called him. The phone rang twice before Zuko answered.

"What's up, Katara?" His voice was huskier over the phone. The sound of her name on his tongue sent a tremor of heat through her belly and she forced herself to focus.

"Um, hi. So, like I said, I kind of need a favor." Katara chewed her bottom lip, suddenly nervous. This seemed like a big leap from coworkers and partner projects and kind-of friends. This was definitely wild and crazy.

She had let the silence drag out too long. Zuko cleared his throat. "So what do you need?"

"So...it's kind of a funny story." A nervous giggle escaped her. "Uh, so my brother was supposed to come and pick me up today and take me back to Gaoling for the weekend—um, which I guess you might've known since I requested today off...but his truck broke down. Normally it wouldn't be a big deal but we're supposed to pick up our dad tomorrow. He's in the Navy, and I haven't seen him in a while and I'd really like to see him and um, I know it's a really long drive but I was wondering if you could take me down there? I'll pay for your gas."

Katara took in a silent breath. She'd forgotten to breathe while she was rambling out an explanation.

"When did you want to leave?"

"Well, my brother was supposed to be here around 8 pm. We were going to drive through the night."

There was a shuffling sound on Zuko's end. "If you're ready, we could go now. We'd get there around 1."

Katara blinked owlishly. "You mean, you'll take me?"

"Yes." She could hear the amusement in his voice.

"Oh my spirits, thank you, Zuko!" She couldn't contain her squeal of excitement. "I seriously appreciate it. I'll pay your gas and get you snacks and whatever else. Like seriously, I am in your debt."

He chuckled. "Don't worry about it, Katara. I've been wanting to get out of here for a while."

Katara frowned as she thought of something. "What about work?"

"I'll call Haru. He owes me a favor."

"Will you drive back tonight?"

"Don't you need a ride home?"

Katara pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Yeah, probably. If my brother can't get his car fixed by Sunday."

"It's a pretty long drive. I can just rent a hotel room." She heard the familiar sound of the Challenger start up. "Then I'll just drive us back on Sunday."

"I mean, are you sure?" Katara asked. She had already worked it out with Zuko to have the night off. "I don't want to disrupt your weekend. I can always call someone else—" But who else was there? Aang was busy, and she really didn't know Yue or Keiko well enough to ask. If Zuko backed out on her, she could kiss Gaoling goodbye.

"No worries." She heard the tick-tock of the turn signal. She didn't like the thought of him driving and talking on the phone and she frowned. "Give me thirty minutes to throw some things together and I'll pick you up."

"Okay. Text me when you get here. And seriously, thanks again."

"Will do." The line disconnected.

Katara hurried to text her brother, relief washing over her.

K: Found a ride. I'll be there around 11 tonight.

S: Ok, let me know when u get in. But u need to get a motel. Ur check-in isn't until 9 am tomorrow.

Katara sighed, and sent a quick reply. She could probably cancel the reservation Suki had made for her, and just find a new motel down in Gaoling. The tourist season was mostly over, so it couldn't be that hard.

She walked over to her backpack and unzipped it, inspecting the outfits she had packed. Jeans, tank tops, and one nice blouse for the family dinner tomorrow night. Katara looked at the outfit she had on: black Capri leggings and an old t-shirt.

Thinking quickly, and doing so before she lost her nerve, Katara yanked her shirt off over her head as she walked over to her dresser. She pulled out a light blue off-the-shoulder crop top and a pair of denim shorts.

Perfect, she thought with a small satisfied smile.

Zuko was leaning up against the side of the Challenger when Katara stepped outside. It wasn't as hot today as it had been lately, but the late-September sun was still warm on her skin.

She walked over to him with a grateful smile on her face. "You are seriously a life-saver right now," Katara told him as he opened the trunk for her backpack. "I would've been so crushed if I didn't get to see my dad. Did you get everything with work taken care of?"

"Yeah, I got Haru to cover for me. Jin was already coming in for your shift, so it's fine." He closed the trunk and went over to open her door. "No big deal."

Katara slid onto the seat, feeling the warmth of the leather against her skin. At least this time it wasn't scorching. "Well, I really do appreciate it."

Zuko smirked down at her. "You're welcome." He then shut her door and walked around the car.

Then he was climbing into the seat beside her, the smell of his cologne filling the air. As Katara breathed him in, she realized she had just signed up for an eight hour drive with Zuko...twice.

Zuko turned the car on and connected his phone to the Bluetooth. He glanced over at her. "You wanna be in charge of the music?"

"Sure. My brother never lets me pick the music. He has this stupid rule where driver picks the music and shotgun shuts his cakehole." Katara thought her imitation of Sokka was pretty decent, and she caught Zuko's amused grin.

"Well, I think that shotgun should be in charge." His voice changed into an impression of a rigid safety instructor. "It's very important for the driver to keep their eyes on the road. Safety, after all, is of the utmost importance." His smirk widened, and Katara couldn't help but chuckle.

"Says the guy who talks on the phone while he drives."

Zuko was still wearing a half a grin as he said, "Bluetooth is a thing, you know."

Katara blushed slightly and felt sheepish. "Right. I didn't even think about that."

He held out his phone and Katara took it. It felt a little weird to hold his phone in her hand. Personal. He had his Apple Music opened. She clicked on Songs and scrolled for a moment.

"Any requests?"

"Play whatever you want."

With that, Zuko turned the engine over. He put his hand on the back of her headrest to back out of the parking space. Katara kept her eyes on the phone. She pressed shuffle. Sweater Weather started to play.

"You listen to The Neighborhood?" She quirked her brow at him.

Zuko looked over at her and smiled lopsidedly. "Why are you always so surprised by my taste in music?"

"Because it's never what I expect," Katara answered bluntly as she set his phone in the holder on the dashboard.

"Well, I sincerely apologize for always surprising you." He offered her a playful grin. "What kind of music do you expect me to listen to?"

Katara grimaced, a little embarrassed. "Well, to be honest, when I first met you I thought it would be like, deathcore and metal."

"I do listen to a few metal bands, but not many," Zuko told her. "Though, I've got to admit, your music tastes took me by surprise too."

"Oh really? What sort of music did you think I listened to?"

Zuko pursed his lips. "Definitely girly music. Taylor Swift. Demi Lovato. That kind of thing." He looked over at her, grinning. "I definitely did not expect Fall Out Boy to be in your repertoire."

Katara laughed. "Well, you can mostly thank my brother for that. He has a very...diverse taste in music. I'm sure you'll find out when you meet him."

"Meet him?"

Katara looked over at Zuko, who suddenly looked quite uncomfortable. She had totally forgotten he had kind of already met Sokka, her first day on campus. And she had conveniently forgotten to remind her brother of that fact.

"I mean, if you want to. No pressure."

Zuko nodded. A heartbeat later he had recovered, and was back to his collected self. "I mean, from what you've said, your brother is a little...protective. I don't want to get the third degree."

"Oh no, I get it," Katara said with a laugh. "Sokka is definitely over-protective. It's like he forgets I'm a grown woman."

Zuko glanced her way. She saw his eyes trail the length of her body for the briefest moment before they returned to her face. "I don't know how he could forget." He swallowed. "I mean...you're in college, for crying out loud."

A blush rose in her cheeks and she looked away. "I know, right?" Katara shook her head to clear it. "But that's how big brothers are, I guess. Sokka swears it's in the job description." She held up her hands to do air quotes and deepened her voice in a mocking impression of her brother.

Zuko chuckled again, and Katara felt a pleasant warmth slide over her. He thought she was funny, and that did funny things to her heart.

Zuko drove through the Tiers toward the wall. Traffic was heavy; people were rushing toward the walls for one of the last nice weekends of the season before the cool weather of fall settled in. Zuko expertly drove the Challenger through the stop-and-go traffic.

Katara liked the ease with which he drove: one hand on the steering wheel, the other resting palm-down on his thigh. She could see the curve of his bicep and the way the sleeve of his white t-shirt strained against it.

She wondered—and, admittedly, not for the first time since she had met him—what Zuko looked like without his shirt on. From the way his shirt hugged his chest she could tell he was in very good shape. She wondered if he had abs, or a V-line, and if a trail of dark hair disappeared into the waistband of his designer jeans…

Katara distracted herself from those thoughts by leaning forward to grab his phone to pick some new music.

"Do you wanna listen to Fall Out Boy?" Katara asked, a tad more earnestly than she meant to.

Zuko's eyes flickered to her face. "Yeah, sure. Like I said, play what you want."

Katara went to the Artists and found what she was looking for. She hit shuffle. Heat rose in her cheeks when the first song to play was Thnks fr th Mmrs, and she quickly skipped it.

"What's wrong with that song?" Katara looked up to see Zuko smirking crookedly at her. "Do songs about sex make you uncomfortable?"

Katara gaped at him, her brain trying to compute the fact that he had just said the word "sex" to her, while her cheeks burned hotter. But then she managed to recover when he noticed how amused he looked at her response.

"Ha, you're funny," she said sarcastically. "To answer your question, no, they don't. But you told me to play whatever I want, and I just don't feel like hearing that particular song right now. Is that alright, or do you want me to go back to it?"

Zuko chuckled. "No, no, it's fine. You're in charge."

Katara settled deeper into the seat as her blush deepened. All of that hadn't really been necessary, was it? She was beginning to realize that this may be a longer trip than she was prepared for.