AtLA Modern: Year 2, Gen. 1

Chapter 5

Athlea and Zuko had made their way to his car, where Athlea turned to Zuko. "So... dorm tour?"

Zuko bit his lip, grabbing an eye mask from his center console. "Put this on. I decorated it for us and you can't see, okay?"

Athlea looked at him awkwardly, her left eye twitching. "A-are you serious?" He raised his eyebrows. "You are serious." She let out a sigh, taking the mask. Zuko grinned and began to drive. "Zuko... I hope you're not hiding something from me." She looked forward and pulled the eye mask on.

Ten minutes later they arrived. Zuko got out and opened her door. "I look like I'm being kidnapped," she joked, reaching out for him awkwardly.

"Maybe I am kidnapping you."

"If I fall, I'm kicking you." She grabbed his hand and pulled herself out of the car.

He snickered and slid his arm under hers, supporting her. "I don't think you'd be able to." He led her inside and up two flights of stairs, his eyes on her, warning her of steps. 

"Isn't there a bloody elevator?" Athlea asked, letting out a sigh.

His arm under hers still, he unlocked the door. "Okay."

"What is this? The second or third floor?"

"You're very dramatic," Zuko responded, pushing her in the door in front of himself. "Third floor." He shut the door behind them and kissed her shoulder, pushing her forward for a clearer view before sliding the mask off of her face.

Athlea giggled, blinking. "I am dramatic indeed." She raised an eyebrow, blinking. "Huh..." The living room laid out in front of her had cream walls, flooring, and the ceiling, with three flat lights in the center of the room. The carpet was a pale brown. There was a couch that matched the walls, with a few pillows of slightly mismatched but similar colors on it, as well as a blanket. There was a white coffee table on a rug split with brown and white down the middle with a matching side table. On the far side of the room, there was a window with white shutters and a white piano in front of it, and to the right, a wall with a mounted TV and a white TV stand below, filled with gaming consoles and movies. "This is so pleasant and nice." She smirking, turning toward him with an eyebrow raised. "This isn't a dorm."

Zuko grinned, blinking innocently. "Oh, shoot, I must've taken a wrong turn. Come on, I'll give you the tour." Just to the right of the living room, visible once they passed the walls of the entry, there was a kitchen with white cupboards and a pale gray backsplash. There was an island that came from the far wall of the kitchen and was connected by a small cream wall of its own. On the closer side of the island, there was a table with two chairs on one side and a bench on the other, made with a pale gray wood on top and a lighter creamish brown below, all on a thick white rug. "It's small, but I think you'll like it," he said, gesturing to the table. "Here's the bathroom." He went to the end of a small hallway to the left of the kitchen and flicked on a light in the room to his right. The bathroom was fairly simple, with a white-tiled shower, bowl-style sink on a counter with pinkish tiles and a mirror over it, and a toilet with a wooden shelf with a glass door above. He backed into a door on the left of the hall, facing her and opening the door with a hand behind him, gesturing with his free arm. "City view, yeah?"

Athlea blinked a few times before stepping into the room. "Oh, wow." Eight large windows turned one wall into a glass wall, giving a great view of the city below. The bed was low with a thin white frame, the bedding white. Two cream pillows were perched on either side of a dusty blue one at the head of the bed, with two larger white pillows behind them. Across the room from the bed was a black chair with a fur-like white blanket on it. There was a white bedside table, decorated with plants and white candles, and there was a white lamp in the corner. On the wall opposite of the windows there was a large closet. "Still, not a dorm. Did you really get an apartment?"

Zuko scoffed, rolling his eyes playfully. He plopped down on the bed and pulled her closet, his hands on her hips. "I got us an apartment," he responded. "Well, if you... I want us to move in together. I mean, we practically already do, and we're engaged now." He shrugged a shoulder. "Plus it's better than the dorms. I can add your name to the lease next week if you'd like." He pulled her closer and she put her hands on his shoulders, blinking.

"No way," she said.

Zuko blinked at her words, looking away and rubbing the back of his neck. "Oh, that's--"

"Yes!" she said loudly, straddling his lap, a big smile appearing on her face, eyes shining. "I want that, yes! This is perfect, Zuko!"

He looked back at her. "Oh. Oh." He smiled, his hands sliding up her back to rest on her shoulder blades. "Great," he said quietly, smiling, leaning in to kiss her.

"Add my name on the lease!" 

"I will, I will!" Zuko promised, eyes shining. 

She leaned forward, kissing him passionately and deeply before leaning back. "Look at this view, too."

He snorted. "Looks better when it's yours, mm?

"Did you decorate this entire place by yourself?" Her blue eyes moved back to him.

" Well... no, Ursa helped me out a bit. Or--well... she did everything. But I was with her when she did it...!" He rubbed the back of his neck, then hugged her hard.

"Good." She raised an eyebrow, giggling. "It's still very nice. I love it." She wrapped her arms around him, hugging him back. "The ring and now this apartment? This is some... surprise."

Zuko smiled, kissing her neck. "That's kinda the point," he murmured. He shut his eyes for a moment, resting his head against her chest. Then he leaned up toward her again. "You like the decorations? I figured she'd do a better job than Katara, being that she knows Fire Nation better." 

"Mmm... I love it. The entire apartment." She pressed her lips together. "Let's use the elevator next time."