A/N: Keep them reviews coming, your feedback gives me life. (shout out to the guests)
I own nothing.
Lips
It occurred to Zuko, at some point during his lecture, that Bolin could fill in the gaps in words with the sound of his voice, and it didn't necessarily matter what Bolin was talking about because he seemed to have an endless knowledge of the subject matter. And if Zuko was being honest with himself, he had to admit, it was impressive.
Zuko also realised he had been right about the cause of the pen explosion because when Bolin was not chattering endlessly about one thing or another he was chewing on Zuko's pen, now Bolins pen. And despite himself, Zuko would occasionally offer a word or two about subjects he knew about.
Once the lecture was over Zuko Found himself walking with Bolin as he once again listened to the endless stream of words that fell from his mouth. This time Bolin had been talking about some hockey match that had been on the television the night before, Zuko had zero knowledge of hockey but gave a head nod or hummed to let him know he was listening.
"So what are your plans for tonight?" Bolin asked his excitement from giving his account of the previous nights game carried over into the question.
"Oh, I have plans" Zuko answered vaguely, he didn't hate Bolin but he wouldn't say they were friends either.
"Ooh. A date?" Bolin pressed. Zuko felt his chest lurch.
"No" Zuko replied a little enthusiastically, he felt a faint blush journey to his face as his fingers ran through his hair. He didn't want to talk about this with Bolin, he had only just decided that he wasn't going to switch classes to avoid speaking to him. Bolin had other ideas.
"But you're blushing" Bolin pointed out as he leaned in and gave Zuko a knowing smile.
"I am not" Zuko hit back, he had to watch this kid. He had a habit of dragging words from Zuko and Zuko wasn't one for words. Especially with people he didn't know, according to his uncle even with people, he did know.
"Are too. You like this person" Bolin said with a grin. Zuko turned to offer him a customary scowl but dropped it when he realised there was no malice in Bolins face, he wasn't making fun of Zuko, he had a genuine interest. Zuko averted his gaze away from him, he could count the people on one hand who'd ever shown a genuine interest in him. Iroh and Katara. The thought made him uncomfortable, why would this person care about what Zuko was doing? Why did he care if he was going on a date or not?
"It's not a date. She used to work for my uncle and wants to say hi" Zuko muttered.
You wish it was a date though. He thought to himself. Of course, he did. How could he not? He loved Katara and he thought he'd lost her. He had a second chance with her, he would be damned if he messed that up by trying to force her into a relationship, he'd rather have her as a friend than not at all.
"Is she pretty?" Bolin pressed, his eyebrows wiggling as he spoke.
"Yeah. She's beautiful" Zuko replied without giving it a second thought.
And she has no idea. He continued to himself.
Zuko had seen a lot of pretty girls, begrudgingly his evil sister Azula and her robot friend Mai were the two that came to mind, but he'd never met a girl who could steal his breath as Katara could.
Long unruly curls that she used to tame in a braid, although he always preferred it when she didn't and let them fall around her face, mocha coloured skin that would be unblemished save for a few freckles spread across her petite nose, large round eyes the colour of the ocean during the dawn, full lips that curved upwards at the corners, round cheeks and a jaw that delicately ended her perfectly heart-shaped face.
As a teenager, he had wondered why someone as beautiful as Katara would ever choose to date the scarred boy, a few hours in her presence had eased that insecurity. Around Katara, he never felt scarred or ugly. He just felt normal. The thought reminded him that he'd never told Katara about his scar or how he'd gotten it, she'd never asked and he never liked talking about it, not even with his uncle. Maybe he would, someday. He decided if she ever asked he would tell her. He knew if it was Katara, he'd be safe.
Katara stomped her way through the campus on a warpath, once the initial shock of Sokka's cruel words had settled, the tears that had been threatening to pour dried. Now all she wanted to do was punch him hard enough to wipe that dad look off his face. He had no right to talk about her or Zuko like that, big brother or not. She never weighed in on his relationship with Suki, even when she thought they'd rushed into a relationship.
She waited patiently and was happy when they had proved her initial fears wrong. Suki and Sokka were great together and even after a year of dealing with her brother Suki still looked at Sokka with all the flutters of a new relationship. She would have been lying if she had said she wasn't envious at first, she had wanted that. Her last boyfriend had been awful to her and knowing what having a good boyfriend had felt like only deepened her envy. Even arriving at the campus and meeting Yue, she and Hahn we're good together too, he doted on her but still gave her her space.
Arriving at her dorm room she flung her door open, the force causing it to ricochet off the wall behind it and rebound against her, she let out a cry as the handle collided with her side. Immediately cursing Sokka's name as she entered nursing the collision sight, she knew that would bruise.
She buzzed around her room throwing open her drawers and wardrobe as she went, the hangers of her clothes screeching against the bar with the force she was using to look through them. Nothing. She had nothing that she wanted to wear, all her clothes were built for comfort over style and for once she regretted her practicality.
Huffing she threw her arms over her chest and slumped onto her neatly made bed with a soft thump. Great. Not only was she in a bad mood but she was going to her date dressed as a student-teacher.
Not a date Katara. Remember that. The thought slipped into her head as unwelcome and as unasked for as Sokka's opinion on Zuko. She felt herself scowl at the thought.
"Stupid Sokka" she mumbled as her eyes scanned the devastation that had become her and Yue's dorm room. She grumbled again as she lifted herself from her bed and began to pick up after herself, she had nothing remotely cute to wear anyway and her makeup skills only extended to mascara and lip balm, a side effect from growing up in a male household- households- with no girlfriends to teach her how to apply it properly.
"Damn Tara, you must have just missed the hurricane" Suki spoke from the doorway.
Katara raised her head to meet the large grey eyes of her brother's girlfriend. Katara felt her temper flare, it was her fault Sokka had uncovered her plans, to begin with, or at least as far as Zuko was concerned.
"If you're here to tell me that Sokka was-"
"An ass. Sokka was a complete ass" Suki cut off before taking a few steps further into Katara's room, scanning the carnage of clothes and shoes spread out all over the floor.
"You can say that again" Katara mumbled as she continued to pick up her varying array of t-shirts and jeans. She huffed looking at them, not a single dress or skirt in sight.
"I did. Made it clear. So did Yue" Suki laughed as she threw her thumb behind her, as Yue entered the room. Katara felt a little guilty as Yue's eyes scanned the mess, normally their room was spotless. Both Katara and Yue had been military brats in their early childhood so keeping a clean house were in their DNA.
"Yue did?" Katara asked her eyebrows raised in shock, she flicked her eyes to her usually silent and introverted roommate.
"Hell yeah she did, Oh Tara you should have seen Sokka's face! We should start calling you Ice Queen!" Suki bellowed as she wiped a tear from her eye. Katara smiled as Yue gave a gentle shrug in response, a smile at the corners of her lips.
"Thanks" Katara mumbled, feeling slightly embarrassed for being mad at Suki. Even as his girlfriend she had no control over Sokka's mouth.
"That's what girlfriend's do" Yue offered softly as she crossed the room to sit on her bed. Katara felt her anger lessen as Suki took the seat next to her on the floor.
"Now, let's get you ready for your not date" Suki smiled as she began digging through the clothes scattered around her. Katara felt the tears stinging the corners of her eyes, this time she allowed herself a single tear before wiping it away. She'd never had girlfriends before, especially not girlfriends who would support her. She felt a warmth spread through her chest as she averted her eyes from Suki and Yue, who were in conversation over what would be the best choice of outfit for Katara to wear.
Fifteen minutes later had Katara sitting at the chair of her desk with Yue styling her hair into a high ponytail while Suki worked at her make-up. The girls were laughing and making jokes about school, their friends and even their boyfriends.
"Oh, Tall, dark and mysterious is gonna be wishing this was a date," Suki said as she dusted a light nude glitter across Katara's lids.
"Indeed" Yue agreed, with a gentle smile as she placed a hand on Katara's shoulder. "You look beautiful," she added.
"That's Yue speak for hot, Tara" Suki grinned as she added a gloss to Katara's full lips.
"Do I?" Katara asked shyly as she looked at her friends from beneath her black coated lashes.
"Hells yeah, girl. See for yourself" Suki spoke as she pointed to the body mirror hanging on the wall.
Katara felt nervous as she stood up and walked to where Suki had pointed, she felt her stomach churn as she took a deep breath in and stepped in front of the mirror.
Katara felt her breath hitch as she looked at the girl staring back at her. The first thing she noticed was that the girl looked feminine, a white, sleeveless blouse with ruffles at the throat, her mothers necklace sitting in its usual place, tucked into dark denim skinny jeans and a pair of pretty dolly shoes that narrowed out her feet. The second thing she noticed was that this girl was her, the wide blue eyes all but confirmed it. She had to admit, even she looked pretty but more importantly, she felt pretty.
"Tooooold ya'" Suki sang as she threw a smile towards Yue who returned it. Katara felt a smile erupted across her glossed lips as she turned to beam at her friends, before throwing her arms around both girls.
"Thank you" she whispered as she fought to keep the lump from choking her, the overwhelming feeling of warmth spreading through her body. Was this what she had been missing in her teenage years? She resisted the urge to cry as Suki and Yue returned the hug, Even Katara knew crying now would undo all of Suki's hard work.
"Your welcome" Yue spoke softly as she patted her back. Breaking apart from the girl's Katara took a step back.
"But, Tara. We are so going clothes shopping tomorrow. You need to add some variety to your wardrobe" Suki added with a pointed finger and an attempt at a stern voice before her face split into a smile, her straight white teeth on display.
"But-" Katara began to protest about wasting money on clothes and how she had a carefully planned budget sheet for the semester before Suki cut her off.
"No time to protest, you have a boy to leave speechless" Suki chimed in as she began to push Katara towards the door.
"But the mess-" Katara threw over her shoulder as she eyed her clothes still laying all over her bed and the floor.
"I'll make you a deal, I'll clean it for all the details later" Suki spoke as she managed to push Katara into the hallway, passing her bag and phone as she did. Before Katara had a chance to protest any further Suki closed the door on her.
Katara stood for a moment speechless in the hallway as she stared at the tan colour of her dorm door. Her moment of disbelief was promptly broken by the sound of her phone buzzing in her hand, wide-eyed she took off towards the library.
Once Zuko had managed to shake himself of Bolin he stopped by his dorm to drop off his bag and grab his keys and wallet. He doubted his uncle would make him pay for anything but he wouldn't let Katara pay either. He sighed deeply when he heard the loud obnoxious voice of his irritating roommate and his henchmen.
It didn't take Zuko too long to cross the campus to the library, the boy's dorm he was living in was relatively close in comparison to the girl's dorm, assuming Katara lived in the girl's dorm and not the co-ed dorm. The thought gave him pause, at least he hoped she didn't. Hahn was an animal but he knew some guys could be worse still, at least the all-girls dorm had key card access and you had to sign in, he pushed the thought from his head, asking her would not end well at all.
As always Zuko arrived earlier a lesson he was taught by the only true parental guardian he ever had, uncle Iroh. Iroh had always told him it was better to be early and wait then late and apologise, he also told him this accounts for all matters in life. He eyed the time on his phone. He only had to wait for ten minutes and from what he remembered Katara was always pretty punctual. He knew four o'clock was early but he did not want to spend time in his dorm with Hahn or risk running into anyone he knew and be forced into a conversation. Plus, this way he and Katara could eat together if she wanted too that was.
"Zuko!" He heard her voice before he saw her, he was right, as always Katara was right on time. Turning his head to greet her he felt his heart leap forward and his breath abruptly stop inside his throat.
She looked different than how he was used to seeing her, she had swapped out her plain t-shirt and worn-out converse for a white top, which created a stark contrast against her darker skin, and flat shoes. But it wasn't her outfit that caught his attention the most, it was the bright smile on her face, he could see it more clearly with her straight hair pulled back. In short, she looked radiant. Like the sun itself was shining for her.
"Hi Kat" was all he managed to force out before she approached him. Once she was close enough he was able to see that she had some glitter on her eyelids that brought out the blue in her eyes, and some soft pink colour on her lips that made them look more irresistible than they already were. He swallowed hard as he took her in.
"Are you ready to go?" She asked sheepishly as a faint pink colour flushed her cheeks, he couldn't be sure if it was makeup or not but she looked pretty regardless. He really should have just asked her on a date.
"Um, yeah. Yeah. My car is round here" he spoke as he fought with himself and his urge to stare directly at her lips.
"I didn't know you could drive" Katara spoke with an arch of her brow as she fell in step next to him.
"Yeah, My uncle taught me" he replied softly, the memory of his calm uncle gripping onto the dashboard, his knuckles white, as he tore through streets on his lessons always brought a smile to his face.
"So which one is yours?" Katara spoke breaking his trip down memory lane, he realised he must have gone quiet again after answering her question. Again he cursed himself for his inability to get a conversation going.
"Ah, this one" he spoke as he crossed the parking lot.
"Holy shit! This is your car!?" Katara called from behind him, he turned to see her wide eyes flick between his car and him, he drove a black 2017 Chevrolet Camaro, all things considered, it wasn't a massively expensive car, not considering what Azula drove.
He eyed her suspiciously before it dawned on him she had no idea about his family, he never told her. The whole time she had known him he had gone by Zuko Roku, his mother's maiden name, even his uncle had gone by Iroh Szeto so no one knew their real last name. Sozin.
Even when they'd both lived in Crystal Bay as teens he had done a pretty good job at keeping those articles from her, those that knew about them were too afraid of him to have told her anything and chances are if they had she wouldn't have believed them anyway. The fact that they were even dating had been shocking enough to the small town that anything about his vague past had been forgotten.
You've got a lot of explaining to do, Sozin. The voice in his head spoke as he flicked his eyes between Katara and his car. He did not want to start their dat- night - with him unloading his whole messed-up family drama on her.
"It was a graduation gift" Zuko rasped as he walked to the passenger side of the car, he unlocked the car before offering her the seat. She stared at him for a moment longer, he wasn't sure if she was going to climb in or not.
"Some gift" she gasped, much to his relief she slid into the passenger's seat. He closed the door before sliding into the driver's side. The scent of delicate jasmine floated over to his nose and he felt his own nerves relax.
A silence fell over them again for the second time as he pulled away from the curb, he caught Katara running her fingers along the dashboard of the car, her eyes taking in the leather interior. He felt that muscle in his jaw flex again, his mouth drawn into a hard line.
How would he explain it to her without digging too deep into his past? His family had money. Both sides, Ozai Sozin and Ursa Roku had wealth. The Sozin side of his family was a long line of politicians and world leaders and the Roku side of his family were businessmen. But he couldn't explain that without having to explain how he'd come to live with his uncle who owned a tea shop, even though he resigned himself to tell her if she asked, the conversation was too heavy for the moment.
"The city is amazing" Katara spoke from the passenger side. He hadn't noticed how long he had been quiet or that Katara was no longer inspecting the inside of his car. She hadn't asked and hadn't pried. Part of him was grateful. That was a conversation for another time.
"Yeah, it is" he replied with a smile as he spared a glance at her awestruck face, the wonder in her eyes causing his heart to squeeze painfully inside his chest. She was too important to lose.
A/N: Please R&R
Please don't lynch me. The not date is next, it's going to be a longer chapter than normal so I didn't want to include it in this already long chapter.