A/N: my sincerest apologies. University deadlines had me up the wall. But I have returned stronger than ever.
I do not own these characters
Fingers
Zuko had found that a drive with Katara had been what he'd needed to clear his head of the world's worst roommate, it was easy being with her, easy to laugh, easy to lose track of time, easy to just do nothing and be content.
After, what could have been minutes or hours of, aimless driving they'd found a park in between the second and third ring, it was fairly empty, given the sun had begun to dip into the horizon and the sky was no longer the clear, cloudless blue of the day but painted pinks and oranges of the dusk, they decided to walk.
They held hands and chatted about nothing, Zuko spoke about his class that he'd only listened to half of and Katara returned with how she'd hadn't listened to any of hers but had managed to annoy the girl next to her with her pen tapping.
They found a swing set that had seen better days, Zuko had refused to sit on it, citing they'd get some kind of infection but gave in to Katara's plea to at least push her. He'd known he'd made the right decision when he heard her laughter ringing through the late summer air. It was after a few minutes of agonised squeaking from the top bar that he decided the set was probably not built to last, gripping the chain he pulled her to a stop. It hadn't taken much effort, the rusted chain hadn't really allowed Katara to go any higher than his chest height anyway.
When he did she leaned her head back against his chest and offered him a mock pout, before promptly labeling him a spoilt sport. He offered her an impassive face before leaning down to place a soft kiss on her lips, she beamed at him and his heart fluttered.
It was only after the sun had dipped below the city walls and the sky had long given over its pinks and oranges to navy blue and indigos that Zuko had suggested they eat, Katara only agreed on the basis that she paid, it was her turn. They had bickered over where to go, Zuko had purposely chosen the cheapest restaurants he could think of, the idea of her paying for him hadn't sat all that well with him, he had money, lots of it and didn't want to take from her. He hated the idea of taking from anyone, especially those he cared about. But Katara had insisted somewhere of equal value to the pizzaria, it hadn't been expensive at all considering some of the pricier restaurants he'd been dragged to.
So that's how he found himself sitting across from his pretty girlfriend looking for the cheapest item on the menu he could stomach while not making it obvious. He'd have protested more if he didn't know how important it was to her, she'd always insisted on equality, even as teens.
"You're taking a long time to pick the burger" Katara spoke first as she peered at him from over the top of his menu, her chin resting in her hand.
"What makes you think I'll pick the burger?" He returned, his eyes scanning the menu he'd read four times already. She was right, there was nothing else he would eat, he could add picky eater to his long list of character flaws.
"Because you always do" she replied as if he should have already known that answer.
"Predicable too" he mumbled to himself behind the menu before closing it and setting it down in front of him. It must have been a whole three seconds before their too happy waiter popped back up, like a magician's assistant at the end of a daring trick, to take their order.
Katara placed the order with a warm smile on her face, he was glad for it too because this waiter seemed hell-bent on building a rapport with them. He couldn't tell if the waiter's smile was genuine or that trained customer service smile he'd never bothered to master, either way, he had to commend him for his commitment to it, especially when he tried to extend whatever conversation he had been having with Katara his way and was met with his signature mask of impassivity that he had bothered to master.
A comfortable silence had fallen over them once their waiter had skipped off to deal with another customer, he supposed he preferred the pep to the prim and proper service he'd received back in Caldera. Where everything was an 'excellent choice' and he was referred to as 'Sir' by sommeliers twice his age and wearing perfectly steamed suits.
They must have hated it, serving rich brats who probably wouldn't have known the difference between a perfectly aged Merlot and a Shiraz if they had explained it in great detail or how to accompany wine with a dish. Even as Zuko thought about it he didn't know the difference either or have the first clue about pairing wines with dishes, he'd only remembered the names of the wines based on the black glass bottles that had been scattered around the floor of his mother's study. He pushed aside the resurfacing anger, he wouldn't go there right now.
Katara had begun to chat idly about one of her papers she had due soon and he was grateful to converse over something so ordinary, he'd asked her questions and listened when she spoke with passion about the impacts fast fashion was having on the globe, more specifically the toxic waste being dumped directly into the waterways and in turn effects the toxic water would have en masses. He had been so rapt in her impassioned explanations that he hadn't noticed their cheery waiter return with their food.
The conversation turned to something less terrifying as they ate, Zuko was grateful for that too, as much as he loved seeing her passionate side, the idea of drinking toxic water from clothing dye made him feel queasy. He also no longer guessed how Katara and Aang had become friends, they both seemed to share a passion for global health, he rolled his eyes inwardly at the memory of Aang lecturing him on his cars emissions not two minutes after climbing into the passenger's seat.
"Oh, I spoke to Sokka today" Katara spoke as she peeled the tomatoes off her burger, pushing them to the side of her plate with a look of disgust.
Great. He sighed inwardly, now he could properly look forward to that imminent threat.
"I told him we're dating, in case you were wondering," she added. He watched as she poured ketchup on the side of her plate, wondering how she could enjoy the condiment but not the actual fruit. In his own opinion, the fruit was superior in the way that it wasn't unpleasantly tangy and didn't cause an eye twitch if you over-sauced a fry.
"Did you settle whatever argument you were having?" He asked absentmindedly as eyed the condiments for paprika, he furrowed his brow when he couldn't find it, settling on black pepper instead, if there was one thing he did miss about Caldera it was the readily available spices, he liked his food with a kick and short of carrying a bottle of hot sauce around like some tourist, he usually had to eat his food blander than he'd like.
"How did you know we were arguing?" Katara asked, watching him pour an unhealthy sprinkling of black pepper onto his food, now it was her turn to wonder how he could eat food that he probably couldn't even taste due to the, no doubt, screaming of his taste buds. She wasn't a fan of anything spicy, she'd rather eat unseasoned food than anything with a kick.
"You screened his call" he replied simply, as he flicked his honeyed eyes to her. He wasn't under the illusion that her brother liked him or that he'd kept his opinions to himself, the boy could start a debate in a morgue. He'd also been fairly clued in by Aang's accidental backhanded compliment, in which he Innocently confirmed Sokka had been handing those opinions out like a politician at a campaign rally. Katara herself had confirmed her brother's displeasure at their rekindling when she'd implied Sokka would be pissed. Like the detective he wasn't, he pieced together fairly fast that they had argued and it was about him.
"He's still an idiot. But he apologised" Katara spoke with a shrug. She was right about that, he shared her opinion on her brother as far as his lack of verbal filter was concerned but if he was being honest he didn't hate Sokka. He didn't like him too much, but he didn't hate him either. He loathed to admit it, but he did have some respect for him, he was an overconfident, loudmouth but he wasn't arrogant or cruel and any shit he'd talked about Zuko wasn't anything personal. He just really loved his sister and that meant being hard on any boy who thought they were good enough for her.
He couldn't be mad at that, He'd felt that way about Azula once upon a time, even if she was always a witch, she was still his little sister and anybody who wanted to get near her had to prove they were good enough. That mentality had changed however when she had played a large part in his injury, it's hard to care about someone's dating life when you're walking around with a permanent reminder of who they are on your face. Especially when that remainder was a disfigurement that only seemed to bring that person joy.
Katara watched as something dark ran across his features, only for the briefest second before it vanished into his stoic, flat expression. She worried at her lip for a moment as she decided whether or not she should ask him, so often she'd chosen not too and she'd seen where that silence had gotten her. Hauled up in Zuko's bathroom alone with nothing but her leeching thoughts and pounding heart. She'd been so afraid of Zuko finding out about her twisted relationship with Jet, so afraid that he'd be as ashamed of her as she was of herself, that he'd want nothing to do with her.
She'd been so wrong.
Leaning across the table, she placed her hand on his, he raised his eyes to look at her, offering a warm smile as she ran circles on to the back of his larger hard with her thumb. She could see that glazed look that told her he was somewhere else again.
"Where did you go?" She asked softly.
"Nowhere good" he replied as his eyes fell on their hands, he flicked his wrist so he could encase her hand in his for the comfort of her fingers locked around his own. For a brief moment Katara thought how nice his hands were, unblemished, neat, his nails clean and tidy, his fingers long and his palm warm. Comforting.
"Do…" she worried at her lip as she tried to form the question in her mind before speaking it. She felt that niggle scratch at her again, the same one she felt as a teen, the one that told her he'd get mad if she asked. The one that always stilled her tongue wherever a question would form about him. She swallowed her nerves, the beating of her heart as she willed her tongue to form the words.
"Do you want to talk about it?" She asked finally.
"Yeah, but not here, Kat, not tonight" he replied as he turned her wrist inwards, his warm thumb pad running along the white tattoo she had gotten for him.
"Okay, whenever you're ready" she replied as she watched his thumb ghost over the delicately thin skin of her wrist. His gentle touch caused a faint blush to appear across her cheeks.
Once they had finished eating and Katara had paid the bill, despite Zuko's insistence that she didn't have to pay, they climbed back into his car and headed back to campus. It was already after nine by the time he pulled up outside her dorm, again she had beaten him to her door and had exited the car before he had. They clung to each other like usual, her arms wrapped firmly around his middle and his draped protectively around her shoulders, their body heat mingling. A gentle kiss and a promise of a goodnight text later had Katara heading back to her dorm, the remnants of her night adding a skip to her walk.
"So, I see you succeed then" A pretty girl with large brown eyes spoke, her voice containing her giggle as she pulled Katara's attention to the semi-circle sofa she and another girl were lounging across.
"Yeah, captured him," Katara replied with a smile as a faint blush spread across her cheeks.
"He's cute" the girl replied as she leaned her arm against the back of the sofa.
"How about you? Did you get that callback?" Katara replied, remembering the conversation she'd had with her the day before. Katara had tried to move their brief conversation along knowing Zuko was waiting for her, but she had remembered her saying she had met someone and was hoping he'd call her back. What she couldn't remember was if the girl had given her a name.
"Yep! The same night actually, his roommate had stayed out so we had privacy, he even bought us take out" she replied, her brown eyes sparkling with what Katara assumed were the memories of her night. She wondered if she gained that look whenever she thought of Zuko, that soft affectionate smile.
"Meng! It's starting!" Her friend called, pulling both her and Katara's attention to the large flat screen that adorned the wall. With a wave and a smile, Katara headed back to her dorm. Part of her was half expecting to see her brother leaning against the door frame and the other was expecting to see him sitting cross-armed on her bed. Instead, she was greeted with a worse sight.
"God's, what in the hell Hahn?" Katara gasped as she threw her hands over her eyes. It was too late, she'd already seen more than she wished she had. Upon entering the room Katara was greeted with a mostly naked Hahn, she'd never been so relieved to see a pair of underwear in her entire life.
"We thought you were staying out, Kuruk." Hahn drawled, his words dripping with his amusement.
"At least put some damn pants on!" Katara spat back as she lingered in the doorway, not necessarily knowing what decorum dictated when walking in on her roommate's half-naked boyfriend. Part of her wanted to turn around and run but the other half of her realised she how awkward her running away would look.
"What's- Katara!" Yue gasped in the loudest voice she'd heard her pretty roommate use. At least Yue had the decency to sound as embarrassed as Katara was feeling. "I thought you would be out a little longer," she added.
"Is it safe yet?" Katara groaned in response.
"I'm covered," Hahn spoke in his usual arrogance.
"We need like a code or something," Katara mumbled sheepishly as she dropped her hand and turned to Yue. She kept her eyes focused on her roommate's. The image of a sprawled semi-naked Hahn wasn't something she'd be able to free herself of anytime soon.
"I'm sorry Kat-"
"Don't like what you see, Kuruk?" Hahn interjected cutting across Yue. Katara levelled her eyes on Hahn, her face flat as she did her best to imitate Zuko. She was realising the more time she spent around Hahn the less she liked him, and it wasn't like she held him in any form of high regard, to begin with.
"I've seen better" Katara replied as she turned back to Yue who she was originally speaking with.
"What? Not pale and angry enough for you?" Hahn added as he leaned back in Yue's bed, one arm behind his head while he flicked through his phone.
"Is he staying?" Katara asked, ignoring his comments.
"Well-"
"I am, which means you and Roku are free to glare at each other all night," Hahn added. Katara felt that bubble of annoyance in her gut, she already knew Hahn and Zuko didn't get along all that well so she wasn't massively surprised that Hahn would make comments. No, she was more annoyed by the fact that she had been talking to Yue and not him, yet he was the one talking for her.
Katara flicked her eyes to Yue, she didn't seem to mind all that much. Something about that irked Katara more, she had hated it when Jet, or even Sokka, would speak for her, make decisions for her and decide everything on his own. She was more than capable of speaking for herself and so was Yue. She let out a huff of frustration, this wasn't her fight. Hahn wasn't Jet and she wasn't Yue, if this was how their relationship worked then Katara would have to deal with it.
"I guess I'll give you guys some privacy" Katara spoke, forcing her annoyance to stay out of her voice. Yue had told her she and Hahn were high school sweethearts, by Katara's estimations that would make their relationship about three-ish years old, and it wasn't like Yue or Hahn had anywhere else to go to be together so, for her friend, Katara would deal with it. She supposed she could ask in their group chat if she could crash with someone, it wouldn't be the first time she'd slept on a floor anyway, whenever she and Sokka would move to new towns they'd spend the first few nights on the floor before their beds were built.
"Maybe you can put a frown on Roku's face," Hahn spoke again. This time Katara glared at him, she got they didn't like each other but she'd have thought Hahn would have had the decency to not take continued digs at her boyfriend. She'd concede she probably earned the first one but the last two were just uncalled for.
No wonder he hates you. She thought inwardly. The thought of slapping his phone out of his hands crossed her mind before she decided against it. That wouldn't help anyone, especially Zuko who was stuck with Hahn for now.
Then it occurred to Katara he wasn't stuck with Hahn at all, he had a bedroom at his uncle's house with an amazingly comfortable bed and a large TV. He also had a car and a bike so it wasn't like he couldn't travel through the city easily. She shook the thought from her head, she'd ask him about it later.
"Actually, I was going to stay with my brother" Katara hit back, she wasn't sure why she felt the need to explain it to Hahn of all people, but the idea that Hahn thought about what she and Zuko got up to, or didn't currently, made her skin crawl.
"Guess that explains why he's such a miserable bastard," Hahn laughed as he finally spared a glance at the glaring Katara. The heat in her gut only intensified at the smugly satisfied look on his face. Maybe slapping that phone out of his hands wasn't a strong enough reaction, maybe she'd get the message across more clearly if she rammed it down his throat.
"Hahn, please. Zuko is Katara's boyfriend" Yue spoke as she turned to Hahn, her back to Katara. For a moment the couple stared at each other before, to Katara's surprise, Hahn conceded.
"I suppose you're right babe" Hahn spoke.
Katara felt herself physically flinch. Babe. She hated that pet name. Hated it. Jet would call her babe whenever he wanted something from her, he would run his long calloused fingers down whatever bare skin he could touch and ask her for whatever favour he wanted. A majority of the time he was asking for sexual favours and despite how much she knew she'd hate herself for it, she'd comply. Now that pet name just left a bad taste, she never wanted to be called babe again. She felt her stomach flip, on the odd occasion Suki and Sokka would refer to each other as babe but that was rare and even then she'd feel her skin itch.
"I'll go stay with Sokka'' Katara mumbled, feeling the sudden urge to flee. Quickly she threw some clothes in a bag, not sparing a glance at either Hahn or Yue. If she had thrown a look over her shoulder she would have caught Yue flinching under her brother's name. With that, Katara bolted out of the room, Sokka stayed in the co-ed dorm, a five-minute walk from her own. She didn't stop or bother to call ahead, Sokka had used her room at his convenience and now he could return the favour.
Signing herself in and bolting up to his room she slammed her fist against the door. It hadn't even occurred to her that Sokka might not be in his room or he might have Suki staying with him, or even potentially one of his many, many friends. She was relieved when Sokka swung the door open in a fit of rage before settling his eyes on her, she could see past him into his room, she was relieved to see it was empty of anyone else.
"Wha-? Katara, are you insane?" Sokka sputtered as he stared dumbfounded at his sister.
"I need a place to crash for the night" Katara spoke as she threw her arms over her chest.
"Well funnily enough there Tara', you have a very adequate dorm room of your own" Sokka quipped as he leaned against the door frame, his arms folded over his chest.
"I can't stay there. Yue has Hahn over" Katara spoke as she levelled her eyes at her brother's, for the briefest of moments Katara watched something run across Sokka's face, something quick and unrecognisable. She cocked her eyebrow at him. Zuko had a habit of pulling micro-expressions too, the quickest flash of something nobody else could catch, except her. And Katara knew Sokka a lot better than she knew Zuko, if Zuko was the fine print then Sokka was the heading.
"What was that face?" Katara asked as she mimicked her brother's defensive stance.
"What face?" He replied in a half mock half trying to play it off. Katara just stared at him, she knew Sokka was a talker, he couldn't resist it. Her big brother loved the sound of his voice and she knew given enough silence he'd have the urge to fill it.
"Stop looking at me like that" Sokka spoke as he stuck his chin out in defiance.
Katara continued her vigil. If Sokka was going to continue getting involved in her business then she'd start getting involved in his.
"I just don't like Hahn alright? The guy is a-"
"-Jerk?" Katara offered as she tilted her head at him.
"Yeah. He's a jerk" Sokka sighed as he looked at his feet.
"Agreed. Now, are you going to let me stay here?" Katara asked, feeling tired. "Or I could see if Zuko is still awake…"
"No! You can stay" Sokka cried, before moving aside to let her in. Katara smiled inwardly, she was never going to call Zuko, as much as she wanted to stay with him again, She knew he liked his space and the dorm rooms only had single beds. She'd wondered how exactly Hahn and Yue were going to sleep in that small bed but pushed that thought aside when the image of Hahns scantily clad body entered her head.
"I'm surprised it's clean," Katara said as she eyed her brother's room, part of her was shocked she had expected to have to sleep between a pile of unfolded laundry that had been unceremoniously dumped on the floor and an old pizza, the other part of her was just relieved.
"You're sleeping on the floor" Sokka spoke as he closed the door behind her, before returning to whatever he had been doing on his laptop.
"Mind if I shower?" Katara asked absentmindedly as she scanned the decorative posters he'd hung on the wall, some from video games she recognised as the ones Zuko used to play, others of bands she heard blasting through her bedroom walls as teenagers and some from Sokka's favourite hockey team 'the southern raiders'.
"Knock yourself out" He replied without sparing his sister a glance.
By the time Katara had showered and dressed for bed Sokka had already climbed into his, a spare pillow and some bedding laid out on the floor for her, as he tapped away on his phone. Plugging in her phone charger for her now-dead phone, it had been at less than half charge all day, she climbed into her makeshift bed for the night.
"You didn't turn off the light" Sokka mumbled from his bed.
"You turn it off" Katara replied as she rolled over to present her back to her brother.
"I graciously offer my room to you in your time of need and this is how you repay-"
"Alright! Gods, just stop talking" Katara grumbled as she threw her covers off and lumbered to the wall, cursing Sokka under her breath as she went.
"You're the best Sis" Sokka half sang as the room was bathed in darkness.
Katara wadded her way back to her makeshift bedroll, successfully avoiding both a chair and the end of Sokka's bed, annoyed she'd now have to refind her comfy spot before she could get any sleep. As soon as her head hit the pillow she felt the vibration from her phone, slapping around the floor until she was able to find it, she lifted it to her face, the light from the small screen illuminating her face and the wall behind her. She heard an annoyed huff from her brother which she chose to ignore.
She found an involuntary smile spread on her face as she saw her one-worded text from Zuko. 'Goodnight', she let out a small scoff as she typed her reply, deciding to extend her own by a word. 'Goodnight, Outlaw', she typed before closing her phone and snuggling into the pillow Sokka had provided her with. Closing her eyes as she waited for sleep to take her.
"Katara?" Sokka's soft voice breaking her away from the space between being awake and falling asleep. She hummed her response, too tired to give him words.
"Do you remember the first time we ever moved?" Sokka spoke into the darkness between them.
"The creepy house with the creaky stairs?" Katara replied as the memories of the house they'd first lived in after their father's discharge flooded her. It had been old and could creak at night sometimes and it had been away from the street so when it was nighttime the house would be in total darkness. For a nine-year-old Katara, the house had scared her.
"That's the one" Sokka spoke, his voice thick with a suppressed yawn.
"What about it?" She asked as she rolled over to face her brother. Even in the moon bathed room, she could see the blue of his eyes.
"I was just remembering the first night we moved in when you begged me for a sleepover in your room because you were afraid of your closet" he snickered, his eyes sparkling.
"That's not how I remember it" Katara spoke, her eyebrow cocked at him. "I remember being afraid of the monsters you told me were in my closet," she added.
"You mean there weren't any!?" Sokka gasped, the rustling of his blankets belaying the dramatic gestures he was no doubt making.
"Guess you and that old boomerang you had scared them all away" Katara shrugged as a soft smile formed on her lips.
"Always will little sis" he replied with a grin as he rolled onto his back, his arms folded over his stomach, his eyes fixed to the ceiling.
"If I run into anymore, I'll let you know" Katara replied with a yawn as she turned her back on her brother.
"Promise?" The sincerity in Sokka's voice, the shift from his light-hearted teasing to serious tone had startled her.
"Y-yeah Sokka, I promise" Katara replied as she threw him a glance over her shoulder. He had turned his back to her.
"Good" he replied in almost a whisper as he shuffled himself more into his pillow. "Night, sis" he added through a yawn.
"Goodnight Sokka" Katara replied equally as softly as she laid herself back down. Pulling her blanket up to her chin, she closed her eyes and let sleep take her.
At least she knew if any monsters were lurking that night, she'd have her big brother to protect her.
A/N: please R&R