New Student (Zukka fic)

Part One

Zuko squeezed the steering wheel anxiously, a pit dropping in his stomach. He had no reason to be so nervous, yet an uneasy feeling was eating him up inside. He hadn't felt this nervous since his first day of kindergarten. What was wrong with him? He put his head back and gave out a long sigh.

"You deserve to be here. Otherwise, you wouldn't have even made it past the application process. You passed the test, your finances have been taken care of, and there's nothing to be so worked up over," he reminded himself, making him feel a little better. He gawked at the enormous building in front of him, and his confidence wavered. He'd been sitting in this parking lot for ten minutes to calm himself down, and it hadn't exactly worked.

Suddenly, his phone ringed loudly, and Zuko saw it was a call from his uncle, probably just checking in on him. He took a deep breath, and answered the phone.

"Hey, Uncle."

"Zuko! When was the last time I heard your voice...a few months ago? It's rude to ignore your poor dying uncle."

Zuko laughed. "Uncle, it's only been a few hours. I couldn't pick up the phone while I was on the road, you know that."

"Hmm...well, I suppose you're off the hook. Did you arrive at school yet?"

"Yeah...I thought I was nervous before, but now that I'm actually here, I feel like I'm going to vomit. I could really use some calming jasmine tea right now. Speaking of which, did you find a replacement tea server yet?" he asked, abruptly changing the subject to tea.

Iroh let out an exasperated grumble. "Not at all. The young man I just interviewed made the coldest tea I've had in my life. No one fits the job quite like you do, nephew."

Zuko's stomach ached. "Maybe this was a bad idea. I should've stayed with you at the Jasmine Dragon, and-"

"Zuko, I'm going to stop you right there," Iroh replied flatly, cutting off his nephew. Zuko immediately hushed. "This has been your dream for as long as I can remember, and I am not going to let you give up before you even walk inside. As much as I miss your company, I manage perfectly fine without you. I don't want you to ever give up your dreams on my behalf, so stop hyperventilating and be the beautiful young prince you were always meant to be."

Zuko smiled, a warm feeling rising within him. His uncle always knew what to say to lift his spirits. "I suppose it won't be so bad. Even if it is, it's still a thousand miles from Azula, so that's a bonus." That last bit sent a chuckle from Iroh.

"Goodbye, Zuko. Do well!"

"I will. Bye Uncle." Zuko hung up a second before his uncle did, and looked out the window. His uncle was right; he couldn't back out now. He lifted himself out of the car, a red Volkswagen Beetle. With a grunt, he started lifting boxes from the trunk and backseat. He was late, and he didn't expect anyone to be there to help him, so he was surprised when a girl came up to him and took a box out of his hands.

She was pretty, with pale skin and a bob of auburn hair. She had wide violet eyes, that went well with her dark makeup look. Her outfit consisted of a white band t-shirt, a green and black checkered skirt, fish net tights, and pair of clunky combat boots. She had a kind of skater girl aesthetic.

"Oh, thanks. I didn't expect anyone to still be out here at this rate," Zuko remarked politely, trying to make conversation.

"Yeah, good thing I ran into you! I was just grabbing something from my car. I can get it later, though."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, this is more important. My name's Suki, what's yours?" she responded.

"Uh, I'm Zuko. Do you happen to know where room 406 is?" he asked shyly.

Her eyes lit up. "Oh, cool! You're Sokka's roommate!"

His face contorted in confusion. "Who now?"

"Oh, sorry. Sokka's been my friend since high school. Don't worry, he's a great friend!" Suki exclaimed, her hands tightly grasping the box. Zuko felt a wave of relief at hearing this, because he had been worried about who his roommate might be. He'd heard enough roommate horror stories from his uncle to be concerned.

They made their way to the campus, and Zuko gasped with wonder. The university was the most beautiful sight he'd ever seen. The whole building was metallic, and was shaped like a humongous auditorium. Curved windows covered almost every inch, letting light bounce off onto the perfectly manicured grounds.

"Wow," he gasped.

"I know, it's amazing," Suki exclaimed with a slight skip in her step. "Sometimes I can't believe a place like this actually exists."

They walked through the humongous front door, and traveled up the stairs all the way up to the fourth floor. Zuko scanned the doors until he finally came to one that read the numbers 406, and Suki knocked on the door for him.

.................................................................................

"Well, Sokka, what do you think?" Katara's excited voice rang through his phone. Sokka gazed around the bare, stucco dorm room. 

"It's a little drab, but I think when I start unpacking my stuff it'll start coming together. Do you think my Captain Boomerang poster should go on that wall, or this wall?" Sokka asked excitedly, pointing at the different walls  and moving the phone around so Katara could see.

"Mmmm...The wall to your left. Is all this space really yours? What about your roommate?" 

"All mine! These dorms are really spacious, so we each have our own spaces. As for my roommate, they're running a bit late but I'm sure they'll be here soon. Even if I don't like them, I can still talk to Suki, because she lives across the hall," he explained. He brushed open the curtains, and was greeted by an incredible view of the campus.

"Oh, wow! Check out this view, Kat!" He turned the phone in the other direction to show her the stunning picture.

"Oh, it's beautiful!" she exclaimed. "Hey...who's that guy walking with Suki?"

"Huh?" Sokka peered down and noticed Suki and another guy carrying boxes up to the building. He was handsome, with his flawless complexion and defined cheekbones. His eyes were liquid gold, and his messy hair was as black as night. He had a strange red scar that covered the left side of his face, yet that somehow made him more attractive. He wore a plain red t-shirt with a black leather jacket, and a red scarf on top. He had a pair of ripped skinny jeans and red sneakers. "He doesn't look half bad," Sokka noted internally.

"I don't really...oh, wait! I think that's my roommate! Suki was going out to get her headphones, and she must have run into him."

"He seems interesting," Katara remarked.

"Yeah...maybe he'll want come with me to this rager that's going on in a couple days!" Sokka replied, an idea sparking inside him.

"Sokka...you told me this wouldn't be a repeat of high school. We both know the only reason you got in was because you scored so high on the aptitude test. I don't want you flunking...again," she reprimanded, a nervous tone filling her voice.

"It's just one party, Katara. Don't worry, I'll be responsible!"

"Promise?"

"I-" All of a sudden, there was a knock on the door.

"Oh, that must be my roommate! Sorry, I can't be rude! Call you later, bye!" he said hurriedly, with Katara protesting in the background.

"Wait, Sokka-"

He abruptly hung up the phone, and swaggered over to the door. He took a deep breath, and turned the knob.