A Hand to Hold (Zuko x Reader)

11. Sick?

Your face twitched after feeling something tickling your face, eyes opening soon after. The first thing you saw was your hair, your hand brushing it out of the way to clear your field of vision. But what you saw after that made your eyes widen, your cheeks turning bright red. Zuko slept on the table beside you, his head turned so it was facing yours. You knew that you had rested your head on the table while Zuko had left to use the bathroom, guessing that he had come back and found you asleep. But you didn't know why he would choose to sit right there, the idea of him watching you sleep being embarrassing. But even though you knew it was embarrassing, you took the opportunity to look at him now that he was sleeping.

You had already established this in your mind, but Zuko was a very handsome boy. His dark hair was neatly pulled back in a bun at the top of his head, only a few loose pieces falling out around his face. His skin was also very smooth, making you want to touch it now that you had the chance. Looking around the room, you swallowed the lump in your throat as you thought it over. And eventually decided that you should go for it since you had the chance. You weren't hurting anyone by doing it.

Taking a deep breath, you reached out and let your hand slowly approach Zuko's sleeping face. But right as you were about to make contact, the sleeping Prince began to stir. You pulled back immediately, watching as his eyes fluttered open to look at you.

"Are you okay?" he asked, noticing that you looked a little shocked. You nodded quickly, wanting to find a way to casually hide your blush. Spotting the food tray on the table, you started packing everything away and picked it up.

"I'll take this back now," you told him, already beginning to make your way towards the door. But right before you could, Zuko called out to you.

"Wait," he said, standing up and beginning to approach you. Hearing his footsteps, you worried about what was going to come next. You knew that Zuko wouldn't hurt you, it was your uncertainty of what would happen next that frightened you. Knowing that you would have to face whatever it was, you turned to look at him. At this point, your face had calmed down a little, now only having a light pink hue to your cheeks opposed to the dark red colour it sported before.

Taking the spot right in front of you, Zuko looked you directly in the eyes. He was close, the two of you only having the tray separating you. It was his hand that caught your attention next, following it with your eyes as it neared your face. Not know what he was doing, you braced for whatever it was. But you were surprised to feel Zuko's finger only lightly brushing your face.

"You had some crumbs stuck to your cheek," he pointed out as he brushed the rest of them off. Knowing that the contact would set your face off again, you were quick to turn around as soon as he was done.

"Thank you, I'll get going now," you said quickly before hurrying out of the room. As you headed back to the kitchen, you needed to take a break to decipher what had just happened. Crouching down with your back to the wall, you placed the tray on the ground and let out a long sigh. But even though you continued to breathe deeply, you couldn't seem to calm your rapidly beating heart. Nor could you settle your heated cheeks, confusing you as to why you were feeling like this.

After spending a while trying to calm down, you eventually gave up and picked up the tray again. Beginning to walk to the kitchen, you couldn't get everything that had happened with Zuko out of your head. Letting out some quiet laughter, you kept walking.

"Maybe I'm coming down with something."

-----------------------------------

The next day when you woke up, you thought of the events of the previous day and were met with the same symptoms. Your heart beating rapidly in your chest and your face felt extremely hot, making you wonder if you had gotten sick. You weren't sure what else could be causing such a reaction, staring up at the ceiling as you thought about it. Hearing the sound of your bedroom door opening, you sat up and let your eyes lock onto Nuo as she entered. Noticing your daze, she waved her hand in front of your face to get your full attention.

"What's up with you?" she asked, placing a tray with your breakfast on the chair beside your bed. After not coming to any other conclusions about your condition, you knew that the only explanation was that you were sick.

"I think I'm sick," you told her, properly sitting up in bed. Hearing your words, Nuo approached and sat on your bed to press the back of her hand to your forehead.

"You don't feel too hot, did something happen yesterday?" she asked, thinking that you might've crossed paths with someone who was ill. But her question only reminded you of what had happened with Zuko on the previous day, making your face heat up exponentially.

"Yesterday..." you whispered as all of the memories hit you, making your heart rate speed up. The closeness with Zuko, the way he gently touched your cheek to wipe the crumbs away, sleeping next to each other. With each recollection of yesterday's events, your face got hotter and hotter.

"Oh my, maybe you are coming down with something," Nuo pointed out, pulling her hand away from your beet-red face. But then something else came to mind, if you were sick then who would be the Prince's attendant. Attempting to get up, Nuo stopped you.

"Back into bed, Miss. If you're sick, you should work on getting better," she scolded. You looked up at her desperately, feeling like you would get in trouble if you weren't able to complete your job.

"But what about my job? Who will attend to the Prince if I'm sick?" you asked, wanting to know what would happen since you weren't there. Nuo noticed your worry, chuckling as she pets your head.

"Don't worry, dear. I'll let Xiaoli know you're unwell and she'll take care of it," she assured, making you feel a little better.

"So, I won't get in trouble for being sick?" you asked, wanting reassurance. Nuo nodded, letting out a small amount of entertained laughter.

"Of course not, now I've got to get going. But if you need anything then just let me know, I'll come back and check on you later," she said, offering a kind smile before she left. Now it was just you, laying alone in your tiny bedroom. Heaving a sigh, you sat up and picked up your breakfast to start eating. You didn't necessarily feel sick but what you were experiencing was odd. Anytime you thought about Zuko, you were filled with this strange feeling you were struggling to decipher.

Needed to get a chapter out since it's been a while, hope you enjoy it :)