Ember Island [ON HOLD]

03 S

I couldn't figure out why Zuko was acting so weird, but I decided he might have just been tired. He was the Firelord, after all. I brushed it off, because, well, he shouldn't be mad at me, right? I hadn't done anything to tip him off. Maybe he was upset about the bed thing. I mean, it's not ideal, but we're friends! It won't be weird!

I lost my train of thought as I laid my eyes onto the table. My mouth started watering as the spicy smell of the fire sauce hit my nose. Katara and Aang were seated on the right side of the table, and Toph was on the left. I sat next to her, leaving the head of table spot for Zuko. We all waited patiently, because we had an agreement in our group to wait for everyone before we started eating.

It was my least favorite rule.

Nevertheless, I sat at the table, joking around with Aang. It was good to hear everyone laugh.

"Ready to eat?" Zuko's voice said from the hallway. He entered the dining room and sat at the head of the table.

"Are my eyes blue?" I joked, staring down the noodles. Katara giggled.

"You might want to feed Sokka before he resorts to gnawing on the table!" She said, earning a laugh from Toph and Aang.

"Hey hey hey, I can control myself. Ladies first!"

"Always the gentleman, Sokka." Toph said, smiling as she reached for the noodles. We passed around the bowls, laughing and catching up on silly things. Aang drizzled the tiniest amount of fire sauce into his bowl and mixed it in.

"How can you live part time in the Fire Nation and not like spicy food?" Zuko asked, spooning a hearty amount of sauce into his bowl. Aang scowled from across the table.

"Hey, I've got a sensitive tongue!" He replied, sticking said sensitive tongue out at Zuko. He did the same. Katara rolled her eyes.

"Boys please! Eat your food." She said, her "mom voice" (as I like to call it) popping out. The two boys laughed and shoved their faces with Fire Noodles. I was already on my second serving, the spice practically numbing my mouth.

As I took a break from my noodles to chug some water, I looked to the head of the table. Zuko wouldn't meet my eyes. I am always the big talker, and I always have a conversation with everyone. Every time I tried to engage with him, he just grunted in response and stuffed his face. It was upsetting me; I didn't like when people were mad at me!

We had polished off the bowl of noodles and were sitting around, talking. Toph yawned, followed by Zuko. I couldn't help but follow suit. Katara and Aang noticed, and gave each other a look.

"Why don't you all get ready for bed? Katara and I can do the dishes." Aang said, standing up and gathering his plate.

"Are you sure? We can totally help." I replied, not wanting to seem lazy. Katara smiled.

"Yes! We've got it. You guys look tired, you should wash up and go to sleep." She said. Toph stood up and walked away.

"Don't have to tell me twice. See you people in the morning!" She laughed, hopping up the stairs. Zuko and I followed, not saying a word. I followed him to our room, where he promptly shut himself in the bathroom. I sighed, getting more and more frustrated with him. What was his deal?!

I heard the bath start and decided maybe he was just having an off day. Everyone has those. I left him alone and sat on the bed, taking out my Wolf Tail. My hair fell around my face, and I used a comb I found in the nightstand to brush it out. I was probably due for a trim.

I pulled my pajamas out of the drawer and changed my clothes, stopping when I heard a creak. I whipped around, searching the room for whatever had gotten in. I looked to the bathroom and saw Zuko's eye peeking out of the crack.

"What?!" I snapped, dropping the shirt that I was holding in my hand. He slammed the door shut, and I buried my face in my hands. What is going on between the two of us? I fell back on the bed, sprawling out like a crab. I stared at the ceiling, desperately searching for an answer. Maybe I had touched a nerve today. I'll just apologize and move on.

Zuko slipped through the bathroom door, wrapped in a towel. He looked at me for a second and I got the hint, scampering into the bathroom to brush my teeth. I stared at myself in the mirror, practicing my apology.

I slowly opened the bathroom door.

"Zuko?" I said, making sure he was dressed. He didn't say anything, so I walked in the room and sat on the bed, facing away from him.

"Zuko look. I don't know what I did, but if I somehow offended you, I'm really sorry. You're my friend and I don't want to fight with you. If you're really that upset about the bed thing, I can sleep with Toph. I'll just, like, make her be okay with it." I said, pushing my hand through my hair. I heard Zuko sigh.

"No, it's not you. I'm just... uh... worried about being gone. From the palace. For this long. Yeah." He stuttered, shifting around uncomfortably. I knew he was lying, but I know if he had an issue with me he would have said so. I just rolled onto the bed and laid my head down on the pillow. I'll try again tomorrow.

"Goodnight, Zuko." I tried, fully expecting no response.

"Goodnight Sokka. See you in the morning."