More Than Friends // zukka

Omashu

After four days flying over an ocean and not being able to move around much, Sokka finally set foot onto dry land again. His butt hurt from sitting around so much that he enjoyed walking again. Even though he hated long walks.

"Oh sweet, sweet land!" he said, kissing the dusty ground beneath him.

When they arrived in Omashu, everything Sokka wanted was something to eat that wasn't dry bread and seal jerky. They headed to a local restaurant for dinner and Zuko ordered him a big steak with potatoes.

"You're the best, Fire Lord!" Sokka said, his mouth filled with hot potatoes.

"I'm just happy to have someone to share things with..." Zuko admitted.

"Yeah, it's nice sharing things with your friends!" Sokka agreed and saw Zuko frown.

"You - er - you think we're friends?" he asked carefully.

"Of course, Zuko. Of course I'm your friend!" Sokka said sincerely, reaching out to grab Zuko's hand.

The Fire Lord looked up and Sokka saw gratitude and happiness in his tired eyes. They were like honey, moving and sucking him in, making him feel sticky and warm. Realising he still had his hand on Zuko's, he pulled back and felt himself flush red. But Zuko looked confused.

"Why did you let go?" he inquired, curiosity in his voice. "It felt nice, didn't it?"

"Well, friends don't exactly hold hands, ya know? Especially two males...."

But Zuko's frown only grew, and he reached out to grab Sokka's hand again, sending shivers of excitement down Sokka's spine. He felt goosebumps creeping up his arm from where Zuko had touched him.

"Well, I don't care! You're my first real friend and I'll do whatever feels nice with you."

A big lump appeared in Sokka's throat when Zuko said this. For some reason, he got really excited about doing whatever felt nice with Zuko. And he wondered what would feel nice besides holding his hand... That's when Zuko's voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Shall we walk around town for a while before we go to sleep?" he suggested.

"I'd like that, yes. The lights look so beautiful..." Sokka pointed out.

"Check please!" Zuko called the waiter and paid for their dinner.

As the two young men left the restaurant, the fresh evening air greeted them, and yellow and orange leaves were blown lightly around the little houses around the street. When Zuko's eyes found Sokka he smiled to himself. Sokka, who was taking in the early autumn atmosphere, took deep breaths of crisp air and turned to look at Zuko. A lazy smile accompanied the look of pure happiness and spirit of adventure on his face.

The Fire Lord felt like he had been caught doing something that he shouldn't do, but he didn't mind. He liked seeing Sokka happy and relaxed. Yet he blushed when Sokka's eyes met his own. They were incredibly blue - had they always been so blue? He felt like was staring into a deep ocean of excitement and love.

"Where do you wanna go?" asked the other boy, looking away.

Zuko could've sworn that he saw the Water Tribe boy blush slightly. But he could only focus on how pretty the dark haired boy looked in the orange light of the evening. Strangely, he had never really taken the time to look at anything or anyone around him and just observe without judgement or purpose. But Sokka seemed to draw Zuko in like an ocean whose deep waters wanted him to dive in.

"I - I don't know. I've never had time to look at Omashu before..." he admitted when he remembered that Sokka had asked him a question.

But when he looked around he found himself surrounded by a circle of trees standing at the edges of a round place in the middle of little townhouses. A golden shine encased the round place, emitting from the orange and yellow leaves slowly falling to the ground and swaying in the wind.