"Celeste dear, we knew you could do it!" Mina cheered as she hugged her daughter. Yung joined in and hugged her too.
"That's my girl." He said proudly. Celeste just smiled at her parents, thankful for their support. The other teenagers ran up to her in the hallway. Zula leaped onto Celeste and hugged her!
"Celeste you did it! We've just made $500!" Zula showed liveliness. Then Katara, Sokka and Aang swarmed around her.
"Congratulations Celeste." Katara said.
"Yeah, you were great!" Aang came in. Zuko walked up to them and stood back a few feet. He just shoved his hands into his pockets and waited his turn to speak to Celeste. He didn't want to make it look like he was over zealous. Celeste walked over to him after her crowd parted and smiled up at him. He just hugged her again, gratefully.
"Great job out there." He said loud enough for the both of them to hear. She looked up from his shoulder and grinned with a small giggled.
"I was so nervous! My knees were shaking and my throat was dry!" She informed him, still beaming.
"But you sounded great."
"You're best show yet." Zula put her two cents in.
"Well, we'll let you kids have your celebration. It's getting late." Mina spoke to her daughter.
"Yes, your mother and I are going to go home. Here's some money." And Yung handed her a twenty dollar bill. Celeste stuck it in her purse. "Where will you all be going?"
"Out for pizza." Zula replied.
"Okay, be home no later than half past 10." Yung told Celeste.
"Will do." She said.
"Have fun and drive safely." And Yung and Mina walked off.
"Geez, I never knew your father had such an ugly scar." Sokka spoke up. Celeste just looked at him.
"It's only decoration." Zuko spoke up for Celeste, making her smile at him again.
The group walked out to their cars. Zula had been dropped off by her father, and Celeste came with her parents, so the two girls rode with Zuko. Zuko was a bit testy on giving his hated sister a ride, but he decided to do it for Celeste. Sokka drove Katara and Aang, so they went together. Both cars left for a pizza parlor, with Sokka leading the way to a place he knew about. Things were quiet in Zuko's car. Zuko saw no reason to talk to his sister, so Celeste sat there and listened to the radio. Zula was the first to break the silence. "Only twelve more days until the state Jingle Jam. I want you to practice everyday after school, Celeste. We'll do it at your house, okay? I want you to be perfect for the state competition." Celeste just nodded and continued to listen to the radio. Zuko wondered why Celeste took orders from Zula. Was she that patient?
The group arrived at a pizza parlor and walked inside together. They found a booth and took a seat. A waitress came over and took their order. Zula insisted on Celeste getting water to restore her voice, so she agreed again. The others got soda and all together they ordered two pizzas. One with extra cheese and the other with pepperoni. The teens had a great time, talking and laughing up a storm. Celeste stayed quiet most of the time, and Zuko wondered if something was wrong. They caught each other's eyes and she smiled to assure him that she was fine. "Excuse me." She said and she got up and walked into the bathroom. Zuko didn't speak much while she was gone; instead he waited for her to return.
When she came back, she looked terrible! Her eyes were red and watery and she had bags under her eyes. Zuko knew something was wrong, but once again he didn't want to seem over passionate and kept quiet the best he could. She sniffled a lot and rubbed her eyes. Zuko grew concerned and had to ask her if she was okay. "Celeste, are you feeling okay?"
"Just tired." And then she looked down at the table. "I'd like to go home." Zuko, Zula and Celeste left in Zuko's car and he took them home. He dropped off Zula first.
"I'll tell Father you said hello." Zula said to her brother and left. Zuko bowed his head and drove off. Now Celeste grew worried about him.
"Zuko, is everything okay?" she asked.
"Yeah, everything's fine." He said and then they were on their way to Celeste's house. Both of the teenagers knew that there were some secrets between them, and they were both curious to find out what.