Love Without War

Chapter 2

Zuko lingered awkwardly outside of Sokka's house, unsure of whether or not he should knock. Sure he'd been the one to offer Sokka a temporary place to stay while living in the fire nation, but that sure didn't make this visit any less awkward.

Before he could debate for much longer, the door opened.

"How long were you planning on standing there?"

Zuko looked away, "I was going to knock eventually, I just wasn't sure if you were home."

Sokka rolled his eyes, "You once barged into my tent in the middle of the night to ask about my dead mom and you're worried about that?" He shook his head and laughed, "I saw you through the upstairs window, come on in."

The two walked inside and Sokka pointed Zuko in the direction of the kitchen. "Want some tea?"

Zuko blinked in surprise, caught off guard by the question. "Tea?" he asked warily.

Sokka shrugged, "Yeah, I've been trying to learn recently. You know, cause you like tea."

"Oh," Zuko said dumbly. He cleared his throat and put on an awkward smile, "I'd love some tea."

Sokka grinned, "Sweet, I just finished making some when you showed up and it would have been weird if I was the only one drinking it."

He shoved Zuko into a chair and walked over to the kettle, leaving Zuko to smile softly to himself.

Moments later, Sokka had poured out two cups of tea and he slid one carefully over to Zuko. "Enjoy."

Remembering his own first attempts at making tea, Zuko braced himself for the worst, ready to lie. But was pleasantly surprised when he found the tea not only delicious, but strangely familiar. "Did my uncle teach you to make this?"

"Yeah, do you like it?" Sokka asked, his own tea untouched. "It's probably not as good as his but..."

"It's amazing," Zuko said, a hint of admiration in his voice. "When did you start learning this? It took me ages to get it right."

Sokka smiled and finally took a sip as well, "Just over a week, but I had a good teacher."

Zuko shook his head, "I always forget how smart you can be." He paused, "Wait, a week? But we haven't seen each other since the start of this month. Have you been hanging out with my uncle more than me?"

"You're always so busy with firelord stuff," Sokka said sheepishly, "And I was going to the tea shop every other day anyway."

Zuko faked a look of disbelief, "I can't believe my uncle is more popular than I am."

Sokka laughed, "Why are you here anyway?"

Zuko spluttered for a moment, nearly choking on his tea. "Right, that," he coughed. He set the cup down and fidgeted with his fingers, "I had a question actually."

"Alright, well spit it out then," Sokka said, putting his cup aside as well.

"Don't rush me," Zuko snapped, making a face. "It's kind of a weird question and it's not easy to ask." He bit his tongue to avoid rambling any further. That was more than he'd wanted to share already.

Sokka laughed, "Oh come on, you're one of the bravest people I know, how bad could it be?"

"You think I'm brave?" Zuko asked, caught off guard by the backhanded compliment.

"Sure, you stood up to Ozai first out of our friend group, and by yourself too," Sokka said nonchalantly. "That's tough, especially cause he's your dad."

Zuko blinked, unsure of how to respond. "Ah," he said dumbly, "Thanks?" He shook his head, "No, wait, you distracted me. My question. Uh."

He fought to keep his breathing under control. His mouth felt dry and uncomfortable but he couldn't bring himself to drink some more tea lest he choke on it. "I like you," he blurted at last.

"That's, not a question?" Sokka said slowly.

"I mean, do you like me?"

"Sure. Now I do, we all do."

Zuko gritted his teeth, "But not like a friend?"

"Right, uh."

"Will you go out with me?" Zuko insisted. A voice in the back of his head urged him to give Sokka some time to think, but he found that once he'd started speaking it was hard to stop. He wanted an answer and he needed it now.

Sokka drummed his fingers on the table, "I don't know what- I mean, Zuko-"

"Oh forget it," Zuko blurted, his face red and feeling uncomfortably hot under the collar. "This was a bad idea, I'm sorry, I asked. Thanks for the tea, but I should get going." He shot to his feet and turned for the door without waiting for a response.

Sokka leapt up after him, one arm outstretched to grab at Zuko's sleeve, but his fingers closed on empty air. "No wait," he called, "Zuko. I just-" but Zuko was already gone.

With a cry of frustration, Sokka collapsed back onto this chair. "Idiot," he groaned, tapping himself on the head before burying his face in his arms. "Too much thinking again. Less planning, more doing, Sokka!"