Chapter Text
It was the day of the parade. Zuko was supposed to be meeting Aang and the others downtown, but instead he was sitting in a brunch cafe sipping a mimosa and waiting for Yura. The last two weeks had been nothing short of amazing. Sokka had been persuaded—by Katara, no less—to revise the schedule to allow for more break time, and Yura had spent most of it with Zuko. Not a small amount of this ended up in Zuko’s bed, but they still went out on dates as well.
But Yura was very secretive about the time he didn’t spend with his cousins or Zuko. That was fine. Zuko trusted him, and it’s not like he needed to know every single thing Yura did. But he was getting anxious as well. Yura and Nanouk would be returning to Alaska in two days, and they hadn’t talked about what that would mean for their relationship. They hadn’t really talked about their relationship at all, in fact. Zuko assumed that they were dating, but no commitments had been stated. There just didn’t seem to be the need; it was obvious how much Yura liked him, and Zuko increasingly felt the same. Thus the worry.
Yura arrived as Zuko was finishing his mimosa and sat down, winded.
“Sorry, that took longer than I thought,” he said.
“That’s okay,” Zuko replied. “I ordered your salmon bagel, it should be coming out soon.”
“Aw, babe!” Yura said, scooching over to kiss Zuko on the lips.
Their food arrived in short order, but Zuko found he wasn’t as hungry as before. Yura noticed, quickly scarfing down his bagel.
“So what did you want to talk about?” Zuko asked as he finished.
“Okay, so you know that Nanouk and I are supposed to leave in a couple of days, right?” Yura said.
“I’m aware. What do you mean ‘supposed to’?”
“So. I sort of got the impression that you didn’t mind big grand gestures,” Yura said. “But I’ve been wrong about this stuff before.”
“Yura…” Zuko said, trepidation fighting hope in his throat.
“I’ve been thinking. I like being with you, Zuko. A lot. For a lot of reasons, but if I listed them we’d miss the parade,” Yura said. Zuko chuckled despite his nerves.
“I’ll get those from you later,” he said.
“That’s hot. Don’t distract me,” Yura said. He burped. “Excuse me. So, you’ve probably been wondering what I’ve been doing the past week.”
“Is this relevant?”
“It is! It’s the key point,” Yura said. “I’ve…been job hunting. Here. In the Twin Cities.”
“You have?” Zuko didn’t dare breathe. Did this mean…?
“Yeah. Zuko, I want to be with you always,” Yura said. “Or, for a long time, at least. I don’t want to say goodbye. So I thought, if I could find a job here, then I could quit the ship and bum off Sokka for a while until I could find my own place, and we could maybe…become boyfriends. For real. If you want to?”
“Of course I want to. Yura!” Zuko felt himself tearing up. “Why didn’t you say anything? I would’ve helped you!”
“I know, babe,” Yura said. “But I didn’t actually need any help. I found a job pretty easily. It’s not much, but it’s something. I haven’t told them for sure if I’ll accept it, because I wanted to know what your answer would b—!”
Zuko kissed him, tasting salmon and cream cheese on his tongue. Yura melted into it. They broke apart, breathless and smiling.
“Yura, I want to be with you, too,” Zuko said. “But I’ve got a better idea. Instead of bumming off Sokka, why don’t you move in with me?”
“You mean it?” Yura asked. “Are you sure?”
“I’ve got plenty of space,” Zuko said. “And I have savings. If it’s too small with all of our stuff, we can move into someplace bigger.”
“I mean, I know speed is kind of our thing, but this seems fast even for us,” Yura said.
“Moving in doesn’t have to mean ‘forever and for always’,” Zuko said. “If later you decide you want to have your own place, I’m not going to be hurt. You just have to tell me first.”
Yura’s face scrunched up in thought, and Zuko could almost hear the gears in his mind whirring and grinding.
“Besides, would you rather stay with Sokka?” Zuko asked. “By yourself? With no Nanouk to rescue you from his schedules?”
Yura pondered for a moment.
“So my choices are,” he said. “Crash with my neurotic cousin who unabashedly interferes with my sex life, or with my hot boyfriend who is always dtf. Hm.”
“You’re an ass,” Zuko said, laughing.
“You love me, though,” Yura teased back.
“Obviously,” Zuko scoffed. “So? What do you think?”
“Yes,” Yura said. “I’ll call the company and tell them I’ve accepted the job. And then I guess I need to phone Gran-gran and tell her to have my dad ship my stuff to your place.”
Zuko kissed him. A few people in pride colors at a nearby table saw them and whooped. They broke off, blushing.
“I assume Nanouk knows?” Zuko said.
“Yeah,” Yura said, rubbing the back of his neck. “I talked with him about it, and he basically gave us his blessing.”
“Then he’s probably told Azula,” Zuko said with a groan.
“Why is your sister so scary?” Yura asked.
“She thrives on drama,” Zuko replied, checking the time and standing up. “Come on, we’re gonna be late.”
They left the brunch place and hopped on the light rail towards downtown. The crowds were out, so they had to fight their way through to the street corner that Aang and the others had staked out. Toph was there with a case of “LaCroix”, and she passed one each to Zuko and Yura when they arrived.
“Bout time you showed up!” she said. “The parade’s about to start!”
“Traffic’s a nightmare right now,” Zuko said.
“What took you so long, anyway?” Aang asked.
“Well, Yura asked to meet up for brunch to talk about some things,” Zuko said.
“Oh? That sounds important,” Katara said, taking a swig of “LaCroix”.
“Yeah, so we were talking and we decided—”
“I’m moving to the Twin Cities!” Yura interrupted, pulling Zuko into a side-hug.
“Oh my god, Yura, that’s amazing!” Katara said.
“Yeah, and Zuko and I—”
“We’re dating now,” Zuko said, cutting him off. “Officially.”
“Yay!” Aang clapped. “Congratulations!”
“Dang, Sparky, you picked yourself a slab of meat this time, didn’t you?” Toph said, feeling Yura’s arm. “Maybe Sokka should’ve gone to the gym more.”
“Hey, fuck you, Toph!” Sokka called over from where he was talking with Suki and Ty Lee.
At that moment, music from up the street signaled the approach of the floats. The crowds surged forward to see, flags and banners waving wildly. Nanouk sidled over to them, sipping on a “LaCroix” of his own, Pride shades firmly in place.
“Congratulations, you two,” he said. “Yura, I expect to be your best man at the wedding.”
“Nan, come on,” Yura said. “It’s a little early, don’t you think?”
“You’ve been dating for less than a month and already moving in,” he said, taking another sip. “I estimate a proposal in six months followed by a short engagement. You’d better bring him up to Alaska if you want Gran-gran’s approval, though.”
“Zuko met Gran-gran,” Yura said. “She likes him!”
“No, she doesn’t,” Zuko said with a sigh.
“She doesn’t?”
“Nope. Not since I’m the great grandson of the founder of Sozin Oil,” he said. “You didn’t know?”
“I forgot you’re secretly rich,” Yura groused.
“I’m disinherited,” Zuko said. “Azula’s the one who’s secretly rich.”
“And you! Why are you friends with her?” Yura pointed at Nanouk.
“Drama,” Nanouk replied, taking another sip. “Besides, the tribe needs allies.”
He sauntered off to join the others. Yura shook his head in disgust.
“I’m seeing my best friend in a whole new light,” he said. Zuko fidgeted a little.
“Would it bother you, if your tribe doesn’t accept me?” he asked.
“They will,” Yura replied, flashing him a confident smile. “I’ll make them accept you. Nobody gets to tell me I can’t be with my man. Not nobody, not nohow.”
Zuko’s heart swelled, and he pulled Yura in for a deep, passionate kiss. The floats drove past, but they barely noticed until Toph crashed into them looking for the cooler. Laughing, they joined the others dancing to the music, secure in the knowledge that this time they could relax. There were no looming deadlines. There was no time limit. They could just be together, happy and in love, for as long as they wanted, and face the challenges of life hand in hand.