𝗙𝗢𝗥𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗥 & 𝗔𝗟𝗪𝗔𝗬𝗦, 𝐦. 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐨

¹⁶

the silver coated car swerved in front of the house and honked a few times for good measure before the engine was cut off and the keys were unhinged.

9 year old azula dalton eagerly stepped out of the car, stretching her small limbs with an overly content grin etched onto her face. she hadn't stopped smiling since she first sat down in the car a few hours ago and she didn't think she was going to anytime soon. her blonde shoulder-length hair was straightened to perfection and even after multiple hours in the moving vehicle, not a single strand appeared out of place. her kaki trousers were paired with a small white top and trainers. the miniature bag of clothes in her hand was clutched firmly as she glanced at the house she would be residing in for a couple of days.

her pondering was cut short when her uncle and aunt came bustling out with their daughter very close behind. the little girl immediately ran to her favourite relatives and engulfed them tightly. they returned the embrace with many words of exclamation and the brightest welcome they could muster. azula pulled away and shifted to her cousin hope, whom she bought into an even longer hug with more excitement than should be allowed.

hope smiled into the hug and ruffled her cousin's hair softly, "zoo! i missed you so much."

azula beamed at the nickname before she responded, "i missed you too, so much. it's been forever."

forever was quite the exaggeration; they had seen one another only a day before hope moved to boston. nevertheless, the time apart still felt like an eternity and both participants relished in the fact that they were together again.

after minimal greetings (or goodbyes) to azula's parents and promises that their daughter would be cared for, the group made their way inside the house.

azula insisted on a tour of the house and hope delivered it more than willingly. she showed her every minute detail including the little spots she had yet to show anyone else.

azula's favourite place was the garden and hope could not blame her. the flowers were blossoming beautifully and the tree stood tall and fierce towards the edge of the very green grass.

after the tour, the cousins collapsed onto the couch with snacks sprawled out on the glass table nearby. hope let her phone rest in her lap and moved it around in her hand to simply have something to do.

"this is so weird, i never thought you guys would move to boston," the youngest of the two pointed out truthfully.

"neither did i but here we are," hope smiled a little.

"have you... seen any of your old friends?" azula questioned carefully, her uncertainty evident through her hesitation.

"yeah i have actually, we've all been hanging out like we used to," hope responded with a fond look in her eyes.

it was clear azula wanted to ask more, that there were questions at the tip of her tongue that she felt too afraid to ask. despite her age, azula knew when to not press on matters and was intellectual enough to have questions form in her mind at an incredibly fast rate.

"yes even matt," hope answered the unasked questioned and azula turned to her with slightly wide eyes before her expression softened and she let out a small, contagious laugh.

"will i get to see him?" azula mused with excitement bubbling up inside of her.

how could hope say no to such a pure soul? she definitely had to fix things with matt and let azula see him or her heart would genuinely crack. hope nodded her head at the question and beamed at the look of pure excitement that captivated her younger cousin's face.

"i go there often or they come here so you can come too," hope reassured and giggled a little when azula let out a huge yawn.

"i'm so tired from the car ride," azula yawned again, this time causing herself to laugh at her inability to get her words out.