☆ yellow ☆ (zukka AU)

chapter 29

zuko's POV (time skip - spring break)

"finally we're here!" sokka sighs and throws all the luggage he was carrying on the porch.

it took us forever to drive all the way to ember island, and we're all extremely exhausted, mostly because of the unbearable heat. it's a lot hotter than in our home town.

the good thing is, the whole gAang is here and, additionally, i encouraged toph to invite her girlfriend, june, as well. this way, besides hanging out as a group, each of us can enjoy some quality alone time with their partner, on a private beach, which is a few dozen meters away from the house.

"sparky, hand me the keys" toph says. "if i don't lay down in a soft bed right now, i'll murder someone"

i chuckle and hand her the keys, but it was a poor choice, because she starts walking in the opposite direction from where the lock actually is. june grabs her hand and turns her towards the door.

"i think it would be better if i did it" i suggest and she throws me the keys back.

"ugh, i can't see shit on this wooden porch and it's so frustrating! i can only tell where y'all are by the sound your annoying voices" toph stomps her foot against the ground angrily.

her girlfriend tries to encourage her and makes sure to let toph know that we're all there for her if she needs anything. the blind girl, of course, says that she doesn't need any help and that she can take care of herself.

i step in front of the door, introduce the key in the lock and twist it to the right, until it makes a click.

"i need to take a shower ASAP" katara pushes me aside and enters the house, followed shortly by aang.

she got pretty angry on our way here. she mumbled whenever her brother would take a wrong turn, which would result in sokka urging her to drive in his place if she wasn't pleased with how he did it. aang was there to make sure they didn't slit eachother's throats, trying to calm them down. toph and june would just share a pair of headphones, listening to music and ignoring all the arguing. meanwhile, i decided to just admire the scenery by looking out the open window and letting the wind blow in my hair.

"screw this" i hear sokka say and i turn my head when i'm about to get in the house.

he takes off the beige t-shirt that was glued to his body because of the heat, then starts untying his shoelaces. he throws away his sneakers like he doesn't give a shit about them, and then he begins running towards the sea, making the sand jump after each step he makes.

without any warning, a smile paints itself all over my face and i soon follow his lead, taking my shoes off, but i leave my shirt on. the burning sand against my bare feet feels so welcoming, and it's like i'm running on cotton candy, because there are no pebbles or seashells, it's just smooth sand.

"wait for me, you idiot!" i shout after sokka and he turns to face me while he's running.

the soft breeze is making the hairs that escaped his ponytail make a weird dance around his face, and the way his caramel skin looks like under the sunshine is just breathtaking.

when i get to where he is, sokka grabs my hand, and we just start running around like 5 year old kids, laughing like we just escaped a mental facility. he doesn't let go of my hand for even a second, and as i sense the salty air filling up my lungs, i feel freedom taking over my body.

we both start yelling excited sounds, spining around with our hands thrown in the air, but at some point, i stumble on my own feet like the clumsy idiot i am, and i fall to the ground. because our hands were still linked, sokka soon follows me, and we burst into laughter.