Here is yet another chapter! As promised, we get to meet Aang! Also, just to clarify, this fic doesn't really have any ships in it. Jet is just a flirt who hits on everybody in this. I hope you enjoy, and please let me know if you find any spelling/grammar errors that I missed in my editing.
As he expected, Study Hall was nothing but anxiety. Zuko spent the entire period staring blankly at his laptop screen. His attention was too scattered to even try catching up on the play, so he found his thoughts wandering to darker places. That time a month before, he would have been passed out in some random house, a puddle of vomit near by, and other unconscious bodies sprawled around him. What he would give to be there now, blissfully unaware of the world around him. And when he woke up? He'd do it all over again. His life was a non stop party. Drugs were passed around like candy, cheap beer was like water, and he wished it was still that way. Zuko wasn't an alcoholic, not the way people define one at least. He didn't have to drink, didn't go through withdrawal when he stopped. Drinking just made everything easier. It was like there was a layer, a veil, between himself and reality. He craved the freedom he had felt, instead of being caged in a school, hours spent wasting time on pointless assignments. He fiddled with the cigarette he got from Jet, barely able to keep the temptation down. He had to wait until lunch, no teacher would let him leave their class to go smoke, and he was not willing to explain to his uncle why he left class on the first day.
A yelp from nearby drew his attention from his thoughts, and he looked around to see a group of boys. Of course, it was always boys. He didn't recognize any of them, which meant they weren't in his English class. He was glad about that, he actually kind of enjoyed it and would hate for it to be ruined because some jerks were in it.
"Please, just let me go," a voice begged from somewhere inside the group, causing the boys to laugh. The situation was clear, this group had ganged up on some poor kid, probably younger and half their size. Fucking hell, Zuko really hated high school. He remembered what it was like, when he was in that situation. Of course, when he learned how to throw a punch, the bullying all but stopped. The physical kind at least.
Pushing his chair back, he walked towards the group, who were now being even less discreet about their actions.
"What? Are you gonna cry? Fucking faggot," ah yes, faggot, every idiot boy's favourite insult.
"Should've stayed in your cult," another boy said.
"It's not a cult!" shouted whoever the boys were cornering. "It's my family!"
"Family?" a different boy said in a taunting voice. "Don't you mean the people stuck with you? Incase you forgot, your family didn't want you."
Okay, enough was enough. Zuko started pushing through the group, there wasn't many, only five. Worst case scenario, he could take them. "Back off!" he shouted pushing between two of them to reveal a very scared looking boy who he didn't bother looking at.
"Who the fuck are you?" spat a brunette boy.
"Somebody who's gonna kick your ass if you don't walk the fuck away," Zuko snapped back. He was always good at looking intimidating.
The brunette boy laughed. "What, you Aang's boyfriend or something?"
Zuko rolled his eyes, "best insult you can come up with?" he asked.
Another boy leaned over and whispered in the brunette's ear. "New kid huh?" he asked after a moment, and sneered. "Let me teach you a little something. My name's Chan, and these are my friends. We do whatever the fuck we want, and you had better back off, before we do worst to you."
A smirk appeared across Zuko's lips. He may have sucked at making friends, but one thing he was good at, was making enemies. "Well Chan," he made eye contact, letting the boy see the full extent of his scar. As much as he hated it, it helped scare the shit out of people. "Let me teach you something in return. My names Zuko, and you'd best remember that, because anything you think you can do to me , I guarantee I can do worse to you."
"You think you can take me? You scar faced freak?" Chan asked, stepping forward. In the side of his vision, Zuko saw the kid, Aang, take a step back.
He shrugged, still smirking, "I don't think I could," his smirk turned into a smile, he had forgotten how much he loved fighting. It was so much easier than conventional socializing. "I know I could."
Chan lost it, taking a swing at him. One which was easily avoided. This guy obviously had no idea how to fight. It barely took any effort for Zuko to grab his arm, twisting it, before throwing the boy onto his back. With a shout, Chan got back up and ran at Zuko, who in turn, hooked his leg around the other's ankle. Causing him to fall once more.
Apparently, the initial shock had subsided, because the rest of Chan's friends joined the fray.
"Hey!" Aang shouted somewhere nearby, "leave him alone!"
His voice was lost in the fighting. It was obvious that the five were not used to somebody who fought back. They must have assumed their intimidation would always be enough. Quickly, Zuko grabbed the arm of one boy, and threw him into another, knocking both down. Chan ran at him again, and he jumped to the side to avoid it. In the split second it took for him to recover his balance, somebody had thrown a fist at his face. The punch landed just under his cheekbone, and barely packed the strength he was used to in street fight.
"What are you, a seven year old girl?" he asked, punching back. The boy hit the floor with a bloody nose. The two he had thrown down earlier were getting back up. They were unsteady on their feet, but would recover enough to fight in a moment. Zuko turned to focus on Chan, who was getting ready to attack again. Before he could, Zuko grabbed his shoulders, and slammed his head on his knee. He let the boy crumble as he heard a booming voice; the principal.
"What is going on here?!" looking around, Zuko realized they had drawn a crowd. The rest of the kids in the class were standing in a circle, parting for the principle like the red sea. Aang stood next to him, looking worried.
"Mr. Seng!" Chan said, pushing himself up. "This kid just attacked us!"
Mr. Seng raised his eyebrows, and looked between the two. "Office, now," and snapped, "all of you."
Zuko grabbed his bag and followed the group, his bubble successfully popped. He loved fighting, nothing felt better than putting people in their place, but of course, he always got the worst of the punishment. He was a freak after all; nobody ever believed a word he said.
The walk to the office was long, and only served to let his anxiety build. No doubt, Zuko would get in hell on his first day. How would he explain it to Iroh? If it was his dad, he would no doubt receive one hell of a beating for embarassing him, he wondered how his uncle would react. He didn't seem like the type who would hit his kid, or whoever he was taking care of, but he also didn't seem like the type who would be okay with fighting.
Once at the office the boys were sent to the nurse who was just to the right. Zuko was seated outside the principal's office while he talked to Aang. A moody looking secretary sat typing at a computer. After about ten minutes, Chan and his friends walked into the office. Zuko stood up, if they wanted a rematch, he would give it to them, in front of a staff member or not.
Before anything could happen however, they were interrupted.
"You know, if you're going to fight, you'd best do it off school property." Everybody turned to see Mrs. Sato, Zuko's English teacher. One of the boys opened his mouth to speak, but she held up her hand, silencing him. "Save it," she told them, "whatever excuses you have are for Mr. Seng to hear, not me." She looked at Zuko and shook her head before leaning against the wall.
A moment later, the door to the principal's office opened. Aang went to sit next to Zuko while Mr. Seng motioned for the boys to enter, once they did, he closed the door behind them.
An awkward silence fell over the room before Mrs. Sato spoke, "fighting on the first day? I must say Zuko, I'm impressed." she smiled at him before looking at Aang. "Are you okay?" she asked him.
Aang nodded. "Yeah," he told her, looking uncomfortable, "Don't worry Asami, I'm fine."
She didn't look convinced. "Maybe you should go home, I'll call Korra-"
"I told you, I'm fine. I don't need to go home," he grumbled before adding "and please don''t tell Korra."
Zuko tried to ignore the conversation, although he couldn't help but wonder what the connection between this kid and his English teacher was.
She sighed. "Maybe you should swap back to home school-"
"No!" he cut her off. "It isn't a big deal Asami, I promise. Just some jerks being jerks."
"I just think it would be best-"
"No."
"Okay," she held her hands up in defeat before turning back to Zuko. "Thank you for standing up for him," she told him.
"Uh, no problem," he replied.
She nodded, sending Aang another worried look before leaving. Silence once again settled over the room as Zuko stared at a wall. He didn't really feel like talking, the knowledge that any minute he would be punished was weighing him down.
"Hey um," Aang said, ignoring the fact that Zuko wasn't looking at him. "I know Asami already said it, but seriously, thanks."
Zuko couldn't help it, turned to look at Aang, who was smiling sincerely. He hadn't really gotten a chance the first time he saw him. Aang was small, both short and scrawny. No wonder those assholes thought he'd make an easy target. But Aang's size wasn't the only odd thing about him. He was bald, and instead of hair, he had a blue arrow tattoo, similar tattoos were on both of his hands.
"Anytime," Zuko told him before looking away.
"I'm Aang by the way," he said excitedly, obviously intent on making conversation. "I mean, I'm sure you already knew that, but a formal introduction is also nice. Plus, I never got your name."
"Zuko.' he responded shortly.
"Well, nice to meet you Zuko. Were you in the study hall block too? You're new right?" he asked, "Katara told me a new boy was in English. She's in Asami's AP class, it was you right?"
That caught him off guard a little. Who was this kid? He was far too friendly for somebody who almost got their shit beat out of them.
"You wont get in trouble," Aang continued. "Mr. Seng knows I've had issues with them in the past, and I told him what happened. It helps that Asami will vouch for me too."
Zuko but nodded, not really believing him.
Aang seemed to catch on. "I'm serious, you were standing up for me, you won't get in trouble."
"How do you know her?" Zuko asked suddenly. Aang looked confused. "My English teacher," he clarified
"Oh yeah, you're new," he blushed, "sorry, forgot. Anyways," wow this kid likes talking, "She's family. Well, not blood family. She's married to my older sister."
What the hell was this place? At his old school, a teacher would never get away with being gay, let alone if the student's knew it. The parents would throw a fit, his father included.
"She and Korra met while Asami was still in school."
"So," he began, he couldn't help it, "she's-"
Aang cut him off. "Gay? Yeah. Well, bi technically. They both are."
"And your parents are like, okay with that?" he eventually asked.
"What?" Aang asked, apparently confused. "oh, yeah. I don't have parents. Neither does Korra. Well, I do, but not really. She was my foster sibling, but we're still close. Gyatso, our foster parent, doesn't care at all. He's thrilled that Korra found somebody who cares about her as much as Asami does."
That was a lot to take in. One thing was certain though, this kid did not care about what people thought of him, or his family. Especially considering most people probably knew he was a foster kid, it the bully's comment about not being wanted was anything to go by.
"So did you just move here?" Aang asked him, changing the subject.
Zuko nodded, suddenly feeling very awkward talking about himself. "Yeah, I'm just staying with a family member for a little while."
"Oh cool!" he replied. "Who are you living with? I mean you don't have to tell me, but maybe I know them. I know a lot of people in town."
"My uncle," Zuko answered, although he wasn't sure why. "Iroh."
"You're Iroh's nephew?" Aang asked, there was something in his tone of voice that Zuko couldn't quite place.
"Yeah?" he asked confused. "know him then?"
Aang nodded. "The entire town knows him! He owns the tea shop a few blocks away. He plays Pai Sho with Toph!"
"Who?" Zuko asked. His uncle was popular? He knew Iroh was known to most of the adults in town, but the kids too?
"Toph, oh yeah, sorry," he apologized again, "I keep forgetting you're new. She's a friend of mine. You know, you should come sit with me at lunch! You can meet her, and the rest of my friends! I'm sure they'd love you. I know Katara already wants to meet you. We usually take up a table in the back of the cafeteria."
Was this kid serious? Zuko remember the cigarette he had in his pocket. "Thanks for the offer but-" he looked at Aang. The kid looked so hopeful. Something about his face made him not want to disappoint him. Besides, if he went out smoking, he'd probably have to talk to that Jet kid again, and something about him made Zuko incredibly uneasy. He sighed, "Sure, why the hell not?"
History class passed without incident. The teacher introduced him as a new student before moving on with the lesson. Nobody really paid attention to him, which was better than being the center all attention, although he was still sure people were talking behind his back. He fucking hated that feeling.
Eventually, the lunch bell rang, signalling a forty minute escape from classes. Zuko gathered his belongings and pushed through the crowded hallways until he reached his locker. He was starting to regret agreeing to sit with Aang and his friends. He didn't know any of them, and the cafeteria was always so busy in his old school, no doubt it would be the same here. He really hated being around people, it made his anxiety go through the roof. They always judged him, or said cruel things behind his back. He already knew he was a fucking freak, he didn't need to stares and comments to reminder him. Besides, it wasn't like Aang would actually miss him, he was probably just inviting him to be nice. A thank you to the new kid who stepped in. That was it, it was just pity. Nothing more. And as soon as Zuko got there, he would be shunned and ignored. Why would anybody actually want to hang out with him? Why would anybody try to get to know him? Didn't they know he was a freak? That he was nothing but a worthless, stupid, fucked up, ugly, freak? He hated himself. Fuck he was having another anxiety attack wasn't he? He was shaking. There were too many people. They were watching him, they had to be. He couldn't breathe, and he was shaking. He felt dizzy. Why did he have to be such a fucking freak? What was wrong with him? He had to stop, he wasn't weak. Why did he have to do this? It's just lunch, god was he really that fucking stupid? He felt like he was dying, his stomach was turning. It was like his insides were discomposing. It was too much. He hated school. He fucking hated every goddamn moment of school. He had been standing at his locker too long, somebody had to be looking. The entire hallway was probably looking. Staring at the new kid having a fucking melt down over eating lunch with somebody. If Azula saw him, she'd make fun of him, make sure everybody knew what a freak her brother was. He couldn't let that happen, he couldn't let anybody know. He was fine, he was fine, he was fucking fine. He was crying like a stupid child but he was fine. Breathe. Breathe. Deep breaths. Breathe. Fuck. He couldn't do this. He was shaking and crying and he couldn't fucking breathe.
He reached into his backpack to get his phone. He had to text Iroh. He couldn't do it. Fuck. His hand brushed a bottle of pills. Anti anxiety meds. His uncle must have thrown them in. fuck fuck fuck. He wouldn't look at the hallway, too many people; judging, staring. Too much, too much. He texted Iroh.
I can't do this, please can I leave?
He waited. No reply. It had only been thirty seconds but why didn't he reply? Was he mad? That's it, he was mad. Mad that Zuko was too weak to even last a single day at school. He wanted to die. He tightened his grip on his locker, using it to steady himself before he passed out. He had to fucking breathe but he couldn't. Fuck. Breathe. Breathe. I can't. Fucking breathe goddamnit. I can't breathe, I can't breathe. Fuck it. He grabbed the bottle of pills. Throwing his pride to the wind, he opened the bottle. Don't look. Don't look at the people staring. He slipped one under his tongue like he remembered the doctor telling him to do. He was so weak. Fuck.
His phone buzzed.
I'm on my way.
Relief. He could leave. Fuck Aang, and Chan, and Jet, and everybody else. Fuck high school and anxiety and everything. The pill was dissolving in his mouth. It would take fifteen minutes to work. He didn't know if he could survive another fifteen minutes. He was dying, that was it. His body was shutting down. He still couldn't breathe, and hadn't moved from his locker. Iroh was coming. He could leave, but he couldn't calm down. Fuck. He hated anxiety. He was such a child. His phone buzzed again, how much time had passed?
Outside.
He slammed his locker closed and kept his head down. There were too many people, still to many. He still couldn't breathe. He pushed through the front door, fresh air hit his lungs. It helped, but it didn't stop. Fuck. He walked as quickly as possible to Iroh's car before opening the door and slamming it shut behind him.
"Zuko whats-" Iroh didn't get a chance to finish before he closed his eyes and let out a sob.
And there you have it, Zuko met the far too happy foster child named Aang. Also, I guess I lied in the first authors note, there is one ship that is in this, and that's Korra/Asami. You have no idea how long I debating on whether to make Korra younger or older than Aang. In the end, I wanted her married to Asami. Well, I'll see you next update, and *spoiler alert* he meets Toph.
