Zuko x reader

Chapter 4

Previously on Zuko x Reader
"The moon looks beautiful tonight." You say as someone behind you says "Not as beautiful as you though." The mysterious person sits down next to on the ledge of the building. You turn to them and smile saying "It's been a while."

Mysterious person POV-

I glanced over to (Y/N), taking the weed out of my mouth for once, I think it makes me look cooler. I hear a chuckle and hear her say, "If you think you look cooler with that weed in your mouth, you are very forsaken. Your eyebrows don't do you justice either, like how are they that arched?" I deadpan at her stateman and look over to her. She seems to be struggling to hold in her laugh but the moment I turned to face her, she busts out laughing. Her laughter (more like howling like a hooligan) fills the silence of the night, it doesn't settle down in the next five minutes. I sigh, putting the weed back in my mouth. "You sure are a handful (Y/n)."

Your POV-

As I am dying of laughter, I hear him sigh but that only feeds my laughter. I try to calm myself and slowly start to stand up, my legs wobbling. I look back at him to see the weed in his mouth again with his eyebrows nudged down to make some sort of angry face? It wasn't working because his eyebrows are too arched to make that face; laughter slips through my lips. My legs start to weaken and give up as my laughter is more stable than them, making my legs give out. My foot slips off the edge of the building and time slows down. I am about to fall when suddenly time comes back to normal and I'm in someone's arms.

I looked around confused when I meet very dark brown eyes but they're more like black. I stare at him very awkwardly, ten seconds still past by and he still doesn't let go. "Um hey Jet thanks for saving me but do you mind letting me go so you can uh maybe stop breathing in my face." He's still not letting me go so I'll just continue on. "Your weed is scratching my face and it makes me uncomfortable and itchy". He finally lets go me and won't stop staring at me, I fidget nervously messing with the bottom of my robe shirt. "Is there something on my face or do you have a staring a problem? Anyways why are you here in the first place?"

Jet looks at me and suddenly snaps out of his trance. The atmosphere hit really awkward here but he breaks it by saying "I can't visit my favorite freedom fighter and by the looks of it you could need some help. I mean you did almost fall a building if I hadn't caught you, you would a splat on the ground." I scoff at his statement, "Jet I'm not a freedom fighter. I was never one. You know I don't have time for that." Jet sighs, "I know but you can't exactly run forever. One day they are going to catch you and I won't be there to save you again. I was barely able to last time."

I looked towards him with fierce eyes. "You didn't save me Jet! I was captured by the Fire Nation for 4 months. I still have the scars to prove it you!!" Jet intervenes my speaking with, "(Y/N) you know I don't want to talk about. I'm sorry I'm wasn't able to save you as fast as I could. I know it's all my fault but I don't want think about it anymore." Jet's knuckles are starting to turn white from holding them in a fist position for tightly."

I was not having it. "How can you say that? How dare you say that! You don't want to think about it but I HAVE TO. I WAKE UP EVERYDAY ONLY TO NOT EVEN GET AN HOUR OF SLEEP BECAUSE IM AFAIRD THE FIRE NATION WILL CATCH ME AGAIN. I THINK ABOUT IT CONSTANTLY, THE PAIN OVER AND OVER AGAIN UNTIL I BREAK DOWN IN TEARS. AND ALL YOU CAN DO IS APOLOGIZE?"

I hear Jet trying to mingle is way back but I cut him off again. "But (Y/N) I-"  "No. Just stop believing you can save everyone because you can't! Believe me you can't." I hear Jet scoff and shout, "Are you serious right now? You have no idea what I do! I risk my life ever single day with the freedom fighters to get back at the Fire Nation as much as I can. I have lost many good fighters to that disgusting nation. I won't let it happen it to you!" I let out a scream of frustration before Jet can continue. "Don't make promises you can't keep. I waited for weeks, weeks Jet! Jet will save me, I'm sure he'll make it top priority. Then the next week came by and I didn't lose hope. Jet will come I swear. Another week went by but I didn't loose hope. Until 3 months went by I eventually got my way out thanks to the Blue Spirit! I DONT EVEN KNOW WHO THAT IS BUT APPARENTLY THEY CARE MORE ABOUT ME THAN YOU. ONLY AFTER I GOT RELEASED AND RETURNED TO CAMP DID YOU SAY YOU WERE GOING TO SUPPOSEDLY SAVE ME!" The other freedom fighters came up to me and asked me why I took so long. At first I was confused but then I realized you didn't tell them I was captured by the Fire Nation. I was quote quote visiting the last bit of family I had-" "(Y/N) I swear it might look bad but I promise I was just protecting you." I start to laugh like a maniac. "What makes you say I believe you?

I have had enough trauma already but of course you decided to add more to 'add the sprinkles on top'." "More trauma?" Jet asked. "I'm sure you are just exaggerating like the drama queen you are. Now get up we don't have time to dilly dally, it's raining we should have some cover before it gets worse." No response. "Hello? (Y/N) you in there?" I can't take this anymore, even if we aren't close he needs to know what I'm feeling, why his lying caused such pain in me.

"YOU KNOW HOW MANY TIMES I HAVE TO LIVE WITH THE PAIN OF BEING ALIVE? BEING THE ONLY SURVIVOR OF MY FAMILY! I DON'T WANT ANYONE ELSE TO DIE. I CAN'T IT ANYMORE! I'M ALWAYS RUNNING AND DO YOU KNOW WHY? IT IS BECAUSE I AM SCARED OKAY? NOT ONLY DO I RUN AWAY FROM THE FIRE NATION, I RAN AWAY FROM MY FAMILY. THEY NEEDED MY HELP AND I JUST LEFT THEM THERE TO DIE. I CAN STILL HEAR THEIR CRIES, MY DREAMS ALWAYS ARE AS LIT AS THAT NIGHT. I WILL NEVER FORGET WHAT I DID TO MY FAMILY."

I turn away, not being able to face Jet anymore. Tears start to spill from my eyes as the sky cries as well, almost with me. Jet looks down in shame, he hesitates before whispering in a gentle voice "(Y/N)."  "When I waited for you, and you never came I thought maybe this is what my family felt like. What my mother felt when she saw me running. She didn't want me to go and leave her behind. I was a coward and I couldn't do anything to stop them. I did the only thing I could run. It's for my good, I repeated that over and over until somehow the guilt stopping growing inside. It never last forever. Is this karma? Is this what Fate wants me to feel?"

Silence fills the night with only sound being the pitter patter of the rain hitting the ground. The only thing I can hear right now are my thoughts. "I left them there... I left them there to die like you. It's all my fault. I should have died with them! I scream but I can't hear anything. My voice is silent. It is like someone has taken away my ability to speak.

I start to break down, my legs once more falling to the ground with tears spilling out my eyes like waterfalls. My vision is blurred and my head is pounding like there's construction going on inside. Someone is shaking me violently, word are falling out of their mouth but I don't hear them. I can only hear my heart pounding in my ears. I just want to sleep, I just want it to end already. When will the world stop making me suffer?

My thoughts have come to a stop when Jet hugged me. Moving my head to his chest, I hear a racing heartbeat, it beats so fast but it's calming. My hearing comes back, but I don't hear anything but the rain falling. I hug him back with all my force, which isn't every much because the crying took a lot of my strength.

"It's not your fault. Don't blame it on yourself, it was the Fire Nation who took your parents away. Please don't hurt yourself like this, don't shut me out. I know what you are going through and it's driven me down the wrong path many times but I promise I won't ever leave you again. So please believe me! I swear on my parents." I looked at him in shock, I knew his parents were dead and to swear on them... I know that Jet really means it now. My tears run freely now as well as Jet's.

The rain is pouring heavier than before but Jet still hasn't left. My tears are were still pouring just like the rain but not once did Jet leave or move. We are still hugging with no care in the world about getting soaked. No words are being spoken because they don't need to be anymore. We have both experienced something in the past that well isn't exactly pretty. All though it will take a while to learn to trust him, I'm sure I'll be willing to but I won't forget that memory ever.

After a while, my crying stops and no more tears can fall out anymore. Jet goes back a little to look me in the eye, sniffing a bit before he ask "Did you let it all out now? No more tears alright. Remember I'm here with you." You sniffle a bit and square him in the shoulder, "Oh shut up." You smile as he gets up and lends you a hand. I look out to the horizon to see the sun is starting to rise. It's time for a new beginning, no more running and no more crying. The wind blows in my hair as I stand tall and proud. Nothing can knock me down.

"You know with your eyes puffy from crying and your cheeks puffed out like that you look like a chipmunk struggling to breathe." My head snaps towards Jet and he books it, with me chasing after him. "I was having a good moment Jet but of course you had to ruin it and hey your eyes are puffy too!" "Calm down! I was just getting back at what you said to me earlier! It's not my faul-". I see Jet slip straight into a puddle mid-word and I can see him waiting for me to laugh. Instead he looks at me through his wet hair with a confused look as I offer a hand to him.

"It's time to get up Jet there's a lot of obstacles we have to do through but I'm sure in the end it will be worth it ." He looks up at me, grabs my hand and puts a smirk on his face. "You are right Princess but before all of that, we should probably change clothes. I'm freezing." Suddenly a breeze hits us and we are both shivering. I laugh once more before making our way down the building, waiting for the next adventure.