Chapter 23: Dance, Dance (Part 4)

"I'm back," Azula sang as she snuck up behind Sokka, taking a seat next to him.

"Azula!" he mumbled through a mouthful of some sort of meat kebab. "Where did you go? I was worried about you!"

She couldn't help but smile. With Suki around, she didn't think he'd notice she left. "I realized I left something valuable behind." With a nudge of her head, she motioned for Sokka to turn around.

"Zuko!" he shouted, jumping out of his seat and giving his housemate a hug. "I can't believe you're here!"

He chuckled. "Azula can be quite persuasive."

"This is the best!" Sokka let go of Zuko and sat back down. "As soon as I finish my plate, we're hitting the dance floor!"

Zuko sat next to Azula. "Hey, Suki."

"Hey, Zuko," she greeted. "Looking sharp!"

"Thanks, you too," he smiled. "Having a good night?"

"Oh yeah, it's been a blast! We've been dancing up a storm. Well up until Sokka needed a food break." She laughed, looking over at her date with admiration as he stuffed his face. "You know how much he loves shoving meat into his mouth."

Zuko started choking on his own saliva.

Azula fought the urge to roll her eyes.

"You okay?" Suki asked.

"I'm… fine…" he managed.

Sokka tore the final meat cube off the skewer with a triumphant bite. "Okay!" he said, chewing. "Who's ready to dance?!" Just as he started getting out of his seat, the music faded and a slow song came on. "Aw."

Azula decided to seize the opportunity. "Hey Sokka…" She could feel her heartrate climbing. "…would you like to dance with me?"

"I would!" he grinned before turning sheepishly to his date. "Is that okay?"

"Uh, I guess," she said with a shrug, looking somewhat annoyed. However, she seemingly brushed it off, lightening up quickly. "But only if Zuko dances with me!"

"Yeah, sure," Zuko smiled, standing up and offering his hand. "Shall we, captain?"

"Afraid I'm not the captain anymore," she laughed, taking his hand. "That title belongs to Sokka now."

Zuko shook his head. "It's gonna take me some time to get used to that." He escorted her onto the dance floor.

"Well then…" Sokka grinned, extending his hand to Azula. "Shall we?"

As soon as they reached the dance floor, he gently pulled her close against him. He was quiet as they swayed to the music, but a mischievous gleam in his eye told her he had something on his mind.

"What?" she asked, grinning.

"Hm?" he grinned back.

"You're giving me a look."

"Ahhh, okay," he chuckled. "You got me."

"What is it?"

"You just…" He sighed. "You look positively enchanting."

"Enchanting?" Her cheeks went hot. "Now that's a first."

"Well it's true."

"Well, thank you," she smiled. "You look as dapper as ever. But I'm sure Suki's already told you that."

"She has. But I'm always happy to take compliments. Especially from you."

"Why me…?"

"You're a tough one to impress."

"Am I?" she laughed.

"Mhm. You feeding my ego is enough to sustain me for days."

She smiled. "I'll be sure to keep that in mind."

They danced in silence for a while. Feeling emboldened, Azula dared to rest her head on Sokka's chest. She nearly fainted as she felt Sokka rest his head on hers.

"You know," he breathed, "I am just having the best night ever. I feel as light as a feather. Even after all that meat!"

She chuckled. "I'm happy to see you happy, Sokka. I… know this semester was difficult for you."

"Yeah…" He paused. "Speaking of… I really owe you an apology."

"For what?" she asked, pulling back and looking into his eyes.

"For my erratic behavior, for making everyone worry about me, for… you know."

She shook her head. "For…?"

He sighed. "I shouldn't have tried to kiss you that night. I wasn't myself."

Her heart sank into her stomach.

"I-I mean," he panicked, his cheeks reddening, "I'm not saying I didn't want to kiss you, I-I'm just saying I shouldn't have that night."

Suddenly she felt hopeful again. The way this boy could change her emotions with a single sentence was simply unfair. "So what are you saying, Sokka? That you want to…?" The timing of her question couldn't have been worse. The song ended, and Sokka suavely pulled her into a dip.

He smirked, his face tantalizingly close to hers. "Thanks for the dance."

A slow song was playing when Jet and Mai arrived. Jet's eyes immediately scanned for his friends. First he saw Suki dancing with Zuko, which caused him to do a doubletake since he didn't expect to see Zuko there at all, then he saw Katara dancing with Haru, which stung a little but he was glad to see her having a good time, and then his eyes landed on Azula and Sokka…

He stood in place, his feet frozen to the ground as a feeling of dread slowly washed over him. Why did he suddenly feel like coming back to the dance was a mistake? Everyone seemed so happy without him…

"Hey," Mai said coolly, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You can still ask her to dance, you know."

He laughed softly, shaking his head. "I think that ship has sailed."

"I wasn't talking about Katara."

He shot her an incredulous stare. "For the last time, Azula and I are just – "

"'Just friends,'" she finished for him. "Yeah, we've all heard that before."

"Because we are!"

"Keep telling yourself that," she said in a holier-than-thou tone.

He groaned.

She smiled. "Wanna dance?"

"Huh? You and me?"

"Yeah, why not?"

"Because you'd rather be dancing with Ty Lee…"

"Yeah, well Ty is over there taking selfies with some cute freshman." She rolled her eyes. "I think her name is Jin."

Jet looked over to where Mai was gesturing. Ty Lee was in fact taking photos with a pretty, pigtailed brunette. "Hm. She is cute."

She glared at him. "I need a distraction, not a kick to my confidence."

"Alright, alright," he said, escorting her onto the dance floor. "She's got nothing on you anyway."

"That's better."

The song was nearly over by the time they started dancing. Mai looked gorgeous in her sleek, formfitting dark red dress, and she danced surprisingly well for someone who allegedly hated dancing, but Jet felt… absolutely nothing. It was strange to not feel any sort of flame slow dancing with the girl he had crushed on since he'd laid eyes on her. Even as the song ended and he gazed into her yellow-brown eyes… there was nothing. Huh.

"Thanks for the dance."

"Yeah, you too – "

"Now go apologize to Katara," Mai demanded.

Jet acknowledged her with a determined nod then went off to find the date he'd abandoned. Fortunately he was able to spot her quickly and pull her aside as she was stepping off the dance floor.

"You're back," she said with a half-hearted smile.

"I'm so sorry for leaving," he apologized, offering her the bouquet of paper flowers.

She instantly brightened up. "Jet… this is so sweet! Did you make these?"

"Yeah," he chuckled. "Mai taught me."

"I figured you had some help," she smiled. "So… is everything okay with Azula? I saw her come back to the dance. With Zuko!"

"Yeah, she's fine. I was worrying for nothing. A-And I was able to convince Mai to join us too!"

"No way!" she grinned. "I don't know how you two pulled it off, but I'm really happy you did."

"So does that mean… you forgive me?" he squeaked.

"Of course I do!" She threw her arms around his neck and gave him a big hug. "I'm just glad the whole group is here now." She let him go. "Now let's get everyone together and take some photos!"

Cramming the group into the tiny photobooth was no easy feat, especially with Suki adding one more to their number, but somehow they managed. Azula generally didn't care for change, and she especially did not want to spend additional time with Suki, but after her slow dance with Sokka, she didn't dwell on it. Come spring semester, Suki would be gone. Sure, maybe it would take Sokka some time to get over her, but Azula had been plenty patient thus far… she could wait a little longer.

A warm glow filled her cheeks as she examined the photo reel. Sure, she and her friends looked absurd with their wacky poses and silly faces, but… well, ignoring Suki, these were her friends, her true friends who had been there for her, the ones who comforted her on Ember Island and didn't judge her after her confessions, the ones who worked as a team to fix the broken glass dragon because they understood how much it meant to her. Who knew what would happen after graduation, but no matter what, she would always carry these memories with her and look back on her time at BSSU with a great fondness.

The rest of the dance went off without a hitch. The friends spent most of the remaining time dancing in one big group. Sometimes it was just the ladies. Sometimes it was just those who actually enjoyed dancing. Everyone was in such high spirits. But eventually the DJ announced the final slow song of the evening, and, one-by-one, couples paired off and broke away from the group.

First Sokka and Suki. Then Zuko and Mai, for appearances. Then Azula watched some handsome freshman in a wheelchair ask Ty Lee to dance, to which she enthusiastically agreed. And finally she saw Jet approach Katara.

And Azula was left all alone.

"Dance with me?" Jet asked through a suave grin, offering Katara his hand.

"I'd like that," she smiled, placing her hand in his. But then she grew tentative. "But first I need to know…" She looked away for a moment. "Do you… like me?"

He froze. "L-Like you?"

"The way I like you…?"

"Uhh, I-I, uh, well, that's, that's – "

She shook her head, taking back her hand. "That's what I thought."

"I'm sorry…"

"It's okay," she whispered. "But I think I'm gonna ask Haru to dance. If you don't mind."

"N-Not at all."

She nodded, smiling weakly at him. "Thanks for being honest."

He watched her walk away. But before he could start feeling bad about hurting her feelings, a new problem surfaced. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Azula at the table grabbing her coat.

"Hey!" he called, rushing over to her. "You're not leaving, are you?"

"Why would I stay?"

The sadness in her yellow eyes pierced him in a way he couldn't describe.

"It's not like anyone's asked me to dance…"

He smiled warmly at her. "Would you like to – "

She scoffed. "I'm not a consolation prize, you know!"

"I-I know – "

"You're only asking me because Katara rejected you!"

"No." He lowered his voice. "I'm asking you because I want to dance with you. Because there's no one I'd rather dance with than you – "

"Because I'm you're only choice," she muttered.

"Azula. Stop being so damn stubborn and dance with me." He took the coat from her grip and set it back down on the chair before reaching for her hand.

"Fine," she acquiesced, taking his hand. "But only because I don't want to look like a total reject."

"Fine." He led her onto the dance floor and placed his hand on her waist.

In turn, she placed her hand on his shoulder. Her posture was rigid at first, but soon she relaxed into it.

"Hey," he said softly, staring into her eyes. "I'm… I'm sorry for staying behind with Mai earlier. I didn't mean to – "

"I know why you did what you did." She paused, momentarily breaking eye contact. "And I also understand why she chose to confide in you rather than me. Knowing what I know now."

"Knowing what you know now?" he smirked. "And what would that be exactly?"

"I think you already know what I know," she smirked back.

"What is it that I know then?"

"Why don't you tell me?"

He chuckled. "Let's just say that… I may have some insight into Mai and Zuko's… friendly arrangement."

"I think we're on the same page," she smiled.

He returned the smile.

"I'm glad you were able to convince Mai to come to the dance."

"Same to you with Zuko."

"It wouldn't have been the same without them."

"We make a good team."

She blushed. "If you say so."

He pulled her closer to him, and to his surprise, she laced her arms around his neck and pulled him in even closer. They would have been cheek-to-cheek had it not been for the height difference. With their bodies flush up against each other, they continued to sway slowly to the music. He could feel every breath she took. It seemed like no time had passed at all when the song started to fade.

He pulled back to try to time the end of the song with a dip, but the beckoning look in her eyes made him freeze in place. He watched her eyes flicker to his lips and then back up to meet his gaze. His heart started to beat rapidly. Was this all in his head or… did she really want him to kiss her?! Slowly, he brought his hand up to her cheek. But before he allowed himself to possibly get carried away, two firm hands cupped his shoulders.

It was Sokka.

"Hey, you ready to head back home?"

"Y-Yeah," Jet stammered as he and Azula quickly separated themselves. He hadn't even noticed the song had ended and the lights had brightened. He tried to read Azula's expression but found it impossible to interpret.

"Let's go!" Sokka grinned mischievously. "Dibs on the shower!"

Azula was in a daze as her tired feet carried her back to her dorm room. She tried to keep up with the conversations with Ty Lee, Katara, and Mai on the way back, but her mind kept drifting to everything that happened that night. Her friends coming together to mend the glass dragon, Zuko's confession, slow dancing with Sokka, whatever the hell just happened with Jet…

It took her a moment to realize something was different about her room. There was a foreign object on her pillow. A blue paper rose. Just like the ones Jet made for Katara. She picked it up and rolled her eyes.

"Did you put Jet up to this?" she asked her roommate.

"No," Mai replied. "That was all him."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Why…?" And why did this stupid paper flower suddenly seem like the most beautiful object in the room?

Mai gave her an all-knowing look. "Why do you think?"

"I have no idea."

"Spirits," she sighed. "For someone so smart, you really are dense sometimes."