A bit of sparing, perhaps?

Have my back and I'll have yours

Sokka woke up the next morning, his mind rested as well as his body. It was kind of late already, as there was no one else in the common space but him. So everyone must've went to their occupation for the day.

He didn't have any nightmares, though he did have a dream about flying. He remembers being in the clouds, the wind brushing through his hair and the simple feeling of being free. There was nothing stoping him from breathing the fresh air and letting it stay in his lungs, nothing stoping him from screaming through the roof either. He felt great when he was flying, because even if he wasn't completely in control, he still felt okay with it.

He was now eating a moonpeach that the others had bought from the market, meanwhile he contemplated the list of things he could do today. There were swords, spend time with Zuko, maybe ask Teo about another cart race and go swim in the lake. He judged that the two first things were obviously a priority and could be done at the same time, or even including the last thing which could be a fun thing to do.

He finished his moonpeach and headed for the firebending spot in order to wait for Zuko to be done with his training and then they could head for their business. He grabbed his sword on his way. When he arrived, he was surprised to see Katara also waiting there, looking at the two boys training.

"Hello there." He said as he sat down beside her. She waved at him and gave him a bright smile, "Looking at your boyfriend?" He teased.

Katara rolled her eyes, "I could ask you the same question." She said, grinning and looking pretty proud of her joke.

Sokka felt his cheeks turn the same colour of the peach he had just eaten and the look on Katara's face did not help him from feeling the embarrassment. He frowned, only making her break into a vibrant laugh.

"You okay there?" Aang said, drawing his attention to them. Zuko also turned and looked at Sokka, but didn't say anything and nor did his face.
"Yeah we're fine. Katara just made an hilarious joke." Sokka squinted back at Katara.
"What was it?" Aang asked.

Katara stopped laughing, her eyes full of tears. Suddenly she looked at Sokka, then back at Aang, and then back at Sokka who still had knifes in his eyes, "It's was uh- Be-bet you couldn't even do that !" She said, a forced smile now on her face. Sokka was grateful nothing else got out.

"Not really funny." Aang shrugged.
Zuko loudly sighed, "We don't have time for jokes we need to keep going! Else you'll never be able to defeat my father in time."

Well Sokka could just ask him now then, "Zuko could we practice after that?"
"Sure. But go and get warmed up already. I'll join you later." He answered, and then went back to firebending.

Sokka shrugged and left for the sparing place. After their brief sparing session and diner, they haven't gotten the chance to talk. And honestly, Sokka didn't even know if he wanted to talk. Meanwhile yes, he did want to talk to Zuko. About anything, like his day, his dreams, or just things they would usually talk about. But he didn't want to have that talk yet, or maybe even ever? He sure could just sweep it under the rug and act like a best pal for the rest of their days. Eventually it would pass, and Sokka was a good actor -he thought- so yeah, no need for this conversation.

He removed his scabbard from his back and started the stretching. From the neck, then shoulders, to arms and legs without forgetting the ankles.

He liked being around Zuko though, that he knew, even if it was just in a friendly way or if they would have to be in silence for a while. Because Sokka enjoyed the silence with him as much as he liked the moments where it was all chatter.

Sokka had always felt like he needed to talk. Always needed to fill up the silence between two people or more. Maybe it was in order to avoid things being awkward, or just plain weird. It took a while for him to get used to silent moments with the group. Katara was the only exception as they grew up together so of course sometimes it would be quiet, even if it didn't last long.