A/N: Thank you for the kind words. I'm really happy with the response this story is getting so far. Just to let you know, at some point, this story's rating will change to Mature. I will let you guys know before that happens.

Full disclosure: I own nothing but the narrative.

Hair

If it was possible to feel everything and nothing all at the same time, it would have perfectly summed up how Katara was feeling at that moment. The golden-eyed boy she thought she'd never see again, stood before, looking every bit as much as the boy she loved while looking nothing at all like him at the same time. Apparently, he was as much of a contradiction now as he was two years ago.

Handsome. Was the only word her brain could manage while she tried to process the idea of him standing before her. Her eyes taking him in, like if she didn't commit him to memory she would lose him again.

He was taller now, not that she'd expected him to just stop growing, but he had always been taller than her anyway. She had liked that about him, she could safely tuck herself into his side and rest her head on his shoulder as she had done, many many times before.

He was broader now too, no longer the tall lanky boy who opted for slightly too big t-shirts and sneakers, he'd grown in muscle mass. She could see the muscles pull under the alabaster skin of his outstretched arm as he lowered it to hang awkwardly at his sides.

And while she was on the thread of picking out the difference in his appearance, she noticed his hair was longer now too. It never used to be, he'd worn it shorter, not to the point where he was bald but enough hair to style. Not that he ever bothered styling his hair, even now she could see from the raven locks, he more or less just ran a comb through and called it a day.

His bangs hung loosely in front of his eyes, his hair running to just under his ears, the damaged ear hidden beneath the mess of silken hair. It was then she realised why he had let his hair grow out, his identifiable scar was less pronounced. Not that she'd ever given the scar much of a second thought other than to wonder how he had gotten it or if his sight had been affected- questions she'd never asked and he'd never spoken about.

She knew it was something serious, she remembered all the nightmares and times he'd woken up screaming and clawing it at like it was removable if he just dug deep enough, but she'd never pushed it. He never liked talking about his past much, and the small snippets she'd get from uncle Iroh only ever painted a picture of pain and sadness. She never wanted to make him talk about it, she'd always wanted him to come to her. Maybe he would have if they'd had longer together.

And even though the question has always clawed at the back of her mind it sure as hell wasn't going to be the first thing she asked him after two years apart. So she didn't, instead, her brain reached for the most non-offensive thing she could muster.

"You've gotten taller" fell out of her mouth at a surprisingly higher pitch than she'd used talking to anyone else ever.

"Oh, right. Yeah, a little" he replied almost as awkwardly as she had, she felt a hint of embarrassment stain her cheeks.

Smooth move, Katara, real smooth. She thought as she clung to her bag strap a little tighter than necessary.

Zuko ran his hands through his hair as he kept his eyes on her. She'd spoken and broken the heavy set silence between them and that had allowed for the shock to dissipate enough around them for him to at least gain some control of his chaotic thoughts. His head had gone to complete madness once he'd met her oceanic blue eyes, not that he'd ever been any good at telling his own emotions apart to begin with.

Unless he was feeling volcanic rage or just light searing anger, he usually had a difficult time identifying what it was that he was feeling. If he had to give a name to the emotion currently swirling around in his gut he'd have said confused.

Katara, his first love, Katara was standing not two feet away from him looking every bit as beautiful as she had done when she'd left. Albeit, there were some differences in her appearance. For one she'd only managed to grow a handful of inches… in height anyway.

She was far curvier now than she had been the last time he'd held her, not that she'd ever been a plank of wood, but her chest had grown bigger and her hips wider. He loathed that he'd noticed that about her first, but the last memory he had of her was holding her tightly in his arms. Her smaller petite body crushed against his taller broader one.

Pulling his thoughts out of the gutter he decided it was best to focus on another aspect of her appearance, her hair. Her hair had always been one of his favourite things about her, it used to be as wild and as untamable as she was, he used to run his fingers through it to gently untangle some of the madness she'd slept into it.

But now it was straight, perfectly so, as if she'd had it done by a professional. It ran down her back and over her shoulders like a glossy sheet of tempered chocolate. The two strands of hair that she'd pull behind her ears, permanently creating loops across her forehead, were also gone replaced by a chopped side fringe. It looked nice, he supposed, but he missed the absolute mayhem of her bouncy curls that would go frizzy in the rain or the humidity.

His eyes landed on the familiar blue ribbon of the choker she'd always worn, the smooth cool blue of the carved gemstone still balancing in the hollow of her neck, at least she still wore that. He couldn't ever remember a single time she'd taken it off, not even when they'd gone swimming in the lake or when they'd…

He forced his brain to focus again, his eyes still lingering on the necklace. He'd always wondered why she wore it so religiously, the blue did always create a mesmerising, sharp contrast against her mocha skin but he had long since figured the reason was never for vanity. She'd always seemed protective of it, and at times he'd seen her staring off into the distance with the gem resting between her pointer and middle finger. He'd never asked her about it and she'd only ever mention vaguely that it was a precious family heirloom. He wanted to know, he wanted to know everything about her, but he'd never found the time to bring it up.

Now didn't seem like a good time either. Two years away from the girl who brought him comfort in a time when he'd so desperately needed a win, he'd have been damned if the first thing he asked her was about her important necklace. So like her before him, he didn't. Instead, he reached into the bedlam of his head for something that wouldn't rile her temper.

"Your hair… it's different" slipped out of his still dry mouth as he mentally slapped himself for commenting on her appearance.

"Oh. Yeah. I had it chemically straightened. It's, erm, more manageable this way" she replied as she played with the ends of her hair. Part of him eased at the same flustered awkward response she gave. At least it meant he wasn't the only one feeling out of his depth.

"It's… nice" he replied as he shuffled from one foot to the next. Feeling smaller in the walls of books than he probably should be at over six foot.

"Thanks. I'm still trying to get used to it" she spoke in a quieter voice than she had done before. She worried at her plump bottom lip and he had to resist the itch in his long alabaster fingers to reach over and gently free her plush lip from its pearly white cage.

Instead, he ran the same fingers through his hair stopping them at the bottom to tap on the back of his neck. This time it was her turn to resist the urge to lean over and brush her fingers along his jawline, she noted it was more pronounced now, sharper and more defined. She worried harder at her bottom lip, he'd only gotten more handsome in their time apart. Could she tell him that? She used to tell him how handsome he was all the time with great ease but telling him that now seemed different. Awkward. He used to smile then and give her some lame response or just shake his head, now she wasn't sure what reaction he'd give her.

But then again, he'd complimented her hair right? So would it have been so bad to return the compliment? She began to tap her fingers against the pleather strap of her purse, the light pitter-patter sounding louder in the small silent space between them.

"How's uncle Iroh?" She spat out finally. safe ground, uncle Iroh was always safe ground. Zuko loved his uncle a lot even though he'd complain about his cryptic manner of speaking or how often he'd forced him to drink tea. Zuko had never been a fan of tea and would often refer to it as hot leaf juice much to the ire of his gentle uncle. Katara fought the smirk that was tugging at her lips at the memories.

"He's good. He sold the old shop and moved up here, he has a new shop in the commercial tier" Zuko spoke with more enthusiasm than he had done about anything else. Katara felt her chest tug at the lightness in his raspy voice. He always spoke of Iroh with such love and admiration, the same way Sokka would speak of their father. It always warmed her.

"That's great, so I can pay him a visit soon?" She asked, she was pleasantly surprised that her voice had dropped the awkward stammer.

"You should, I think he'd be happy to see you" he spoke, a ghost of a smile on his kissable lips. His words caught in his throat before they could spill out.

Like I am. He finished inside his head.

"Will you show me?" She dared "Where the shop is, I mean?" Her fingers, still tapping against the strap of her bag.

"Yeah... I'll take you there anytime you want" he rasped.

The silence fell over them again, Gold meeting blue as they both tried to communicate a thousand missed words to the other. Each wanting to tell the other how much they missed them or what the last two years had been like without the other person. He wanted to tell her how desperately he had wanted to speak to her and she wanted to tell him how much she'd missed his comforting embrace.

But they didn't. They didn't dare. It had been a little over two years since they'd last laid eyes on each other and two years since they'd both spoken to each other. A lot can change in two years and neither of them was sure of how the other had, not yet at least.

He knew, from the tugging in his chest, that he still loved her. She had been his best friend before she had been his girlfriend and he knew he craved that close friendship more right now and she knew, from the pulling in her chest, that nothing had changed for her. She still loved him, maybe she'd never stopped. But college was a whole different ball game to high school, she'd only just started and was finding her feet, she knew she loved him but what she needed more right now was his friendship.

"How's Sokka?" He asked after another drawn-out silence. Sokka was always a safer bet than asking about her father. Katara loved her father, no question, but she'd always carried resentment towards him. She used to talk about how his job had cost her a normal life, how she'd never really had any friends because of all the moving. On one level, he could empathise with that. His father had stopped him from having a normal life too, but that was where his sympathy ended.

Hokoda was a decent man and he was always good to Zuko. He'd never mentioned the rumours or his reputation and had always made a conscious effort to be nice to him. Zuko could say with one-hundred percent certainty that Katara would never have received such a warm welcome from his father. She'd have been greeted with not so thinly veiled racism and the elitism that always came from ten seconds of a private conversation with Ozai Sozin.

His blood boiled in his veins at the thought, he hated that man with a burning, searing passion. He felt his jaw tighten and freehand clench before he reminded himself of what his uncle had said about breathing through the fire. So he did. Ozai only had the power he gave him, he wasn't fourteen anymore, he wouldn't give him any.

It took him a moment to calm himself, to let the calming breaths quell the fire inside his veins, he wasn't a kid anymore. His thoughts must have been displayed on his face because Katara hadn't replied, instead she just watched him with those all-seeing eyes. Concern, not pity, spread across her delicate features.

"Zuko?" She asked softly, this time she didn't stop herself from reaching out to him. The gentle pads of her fingers made contact as she gently pushed some of the bangs out of his eyes. He didn't stop her, instead, he found himself leaning into her touch.

"I'm okay, Kat. It's nothing" he replied. His voice a low murmur, he kept his honey coloured eyes on her as he watched a thousand questions flash across her face before she settled on acceptance. He watched her mouth open as if to say something when a loud voice forced it to shut.

"TARA! there you are! We've been looking everywhere for you-" a girl with short brown hair yelled, too loud for a library, before appearing around the shelf at the end. He watched Katara's brows knit together before she removed her fingers from his face, he noted she didn't pull them away or retract them like she'd had an electric shock, and whirl on the girl.

"Suki! were in a library" Katara hit back only a shade of a fraction quieter than the girl called Suki.

"Stop yelling then" Suki replied as she gave her a shrug and took a few steps closer to where they were standing. Zuko flinched as her grey eyes landed on him, a brow cocked before she turned back to Katara whose back was now to him.

"The guys are looking for you, Aang is especially curious," Suki said with a twitch at the corners of her full lips.

The hell is Aang? Zuko thought to himself as he eyed the intruder curiously.

"Alright, I'll meet you over there in a minute" Katara sighed as she gave Zuko an apologetic smile over her shoulder. He felt himself relax.

"No can do, Sokka will kill me if I tell him I left his precious baby sister in the books with a dark and mysterious stranger," Suki said as she threw her thumb followed by her grey eyes back over Zuko, he raised his eyebrow at her.

"He isn't a stranger. He's my friend. Actually..." she turned to face him fully now, a smile across her face, he fought the smile that was trying to force its way onto his face. "...He's Sokka's friend too" she finished.

"Are you lying to me, Tara'? I think I know all my boyfriend's friends" Suki teased with a nudge of her elbow, Zuko watched as Katara rolled her eyes at the girl- Sokka's girlfriend.

"I'm not lying, Zuko is a friend from one of the towns me and Sokka moved to" Katara huffed as she folded her arms over her chest.

"Yeah, Friends" Suki scoffed as she dragged out the vowels, before giving Zuko another once over. Zuko felt a light blush stain the uninjured side of his face before his hand was back in his hair. He guessed Suki had seen Katara brush his hair out of his eyes, either that or she could hear the pound of his heart when Katara took a step closer. Either way, he supposed he had nothing to hide.

"What does that matter?" Katara sputtered as she brushed some of her now straight hair out of her face, a faint pink dusted across the dusky hue of her cheeks. Zuko had always thought Katara looked prettiest when she was blushing. He also couldn't stop the unsolicited twang of pride in his stomach at being recognised as one of Katara's boyfriends. Ex-boyfriends.

Who is the Aang guy? He found himself wondering again.

"You're right it doesn't really" Suki sighed before a smirk spread across her face. "But you're still blushing," she added with a light giggle as she nudged her shoulder.

"Shouldn't you be trying to suck Sokka's face off?" Katara hissed incredulously before peering at Zuko from under her long thick lashes. He wanted to laugh at her flushed face. From what he remembered of Sokka's goofy personality, this Suki seemed to be a surprisingly good fit for him, if not a little bit too pretty for him.

"I wish. PDA is not permitted on these premises" Suki replied as she eased herself into a relaxed stance. Zuko noted from her strong posture she must have some form of combat training, possibly martial arts, she stands the same way he does, albeit her feet are more firmly planted on the ground.

"Anyway, bring your boyfriend with you, if he was Sokka's friend I'm sure he'd like to say hello too," Suki said with a wave of her hand.

Both Katara and Zuko glanced at each other before quickly looking away, each of them the same colour as the red textbook they were about to fight over. His hands scraping through his raven locks and her plump lip back between her teeth.

"Do, erm, you want to come over and say hi?" Katara asked, it had taken her several tries to clear her throat and form the words before she had managed a semi-coherent sentence.

"Urm, I guess. I should. At least…" he stammered as he also tried to clear his throat. "You know, say hi to Sokka" he finished.

"Okay" Katara replied as she glanced at him again through her lashes, her blush still staining her cheeks. He felt that flutter go again as he tried to keep his eyes on her but instead finding the window behind her equally as interesting.

"Great! Let's go! If we leave them alone too long Toph might bully Aang into dropping out" Suki chirped as she threw a wave over her shoulder. Katara gave him a small smile before turning to follow her friend.

"Wait Kat!" He called before he could actively rangel in his volume control. The girls both turned to stare at him, He felt himself shuffle under their eyes, he cursed himself for his awkwardness. The other girl, Suki, had a smirk on her face that Zuko didn't want to decipher right now.

"Do you still need the book?" He asked softly as he leant his head toward the shelf.

Katara felt her heart pound, he'd remembered even though she'd forgotten about the textbook. She replied with a nod of her head and watched as he reached up to grab it for her. She did still love this boy. He handed it to her with a small smile before dropping his hands to rest in his pockets. She returned the smile as she dropped her eyes to the textbook.

She stared at the title for a moment before realising she had completely read the title wrong, she didn't need this book for any of her classes.

"Thanks, Zuko" she replied as she clutched the book to her chest. She'd never tell him that though.

"Alrighty, let's go," Suki said with a grin from ear to ear before she once again led the way.

A/N: Please R&R.