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"Do you want to get married?"
One second, Zuko was staring out at one of the most gorgeous sunsets the year had provided from the trunk of his Jeep, parked over an overpass, and the next, he was staring slack-jawed at the boy next to him.
"What?"
Sokka, on the other hand, was doing what he did best: looking sinfully attractive without putting any effort towards it and not paying his words any real attention.
The boy was looking out at the sunset instead of at Zuko and he had to stop a second just to observe him.
The sunset before them was a beautiful mixture of scarlet red, orange, and pink, and the descending sun cast a golden hue over everything it touched. It seemed as if Sokka was an angel of some sort, his stunning eyes a reminder of what the sky had looked like hours before. He was so beautiful like this--
"Exactly that, Zuko," the boy said, turning to look at him, grinning from ear to ear. "Do you want to get married?"
Zuko could only let his mouth hang open.
No one could say that Zuko wasn't confident; being a star-athlete and an openly gay arts kid, he had to be. He was also the person who could strike intimidation into the heart of anyone: but there was something about Sokka that turned his brain to mush.
At his silence, Sokka's face fell.
"Was that the wrong thing to say?"
The look of quiet shame on his boyfriend's face spurred him into motion.
"No!" He exclaimed a little too loudly and a little too quickly. Fighting back a blush at his over-enthusiasm, Zuko offered a hand that Sokka gladly took. Feeling the familiar weight in his hand calmed him. "Spirit's, I just wasn't sure we were ready for that conversation."
Zuko? Zuko had been having that conversation with himself for years. He and Sokka had only been dating for a year, but they had known each other for years.
The two met when they were 13, the summer that Zuko ran away to live with his Uncle Iroh. Sokka's family had lived down the street and he had made it his mission to get the new Ba Sing Se resident to like him. It hadn't gone well at first, what with Zuko's impressive temper and refusal to let people in, but the two became inseparable over time. They liked each other throughout high school, but it wasn't until a drunken incident last year that ended with the two of them in bed that they realized they could be together. Everyone, and Zuko did mean everyone, congratulated them on quote "getting their shit together."
"Wait," Sokka said, narrowing his eyes at him. "You're saying you've wanted to talk about this?" Zuko suspected his face was flushed because his boyfriend laughed. "Really? For how long?!"
Zuko had known he wanted to marry Sokka since they were 15.
"Oh you know," Zuko answered, awkwardly scratching the back of his neck. "J-Just a while."
Sokka laughed and scooted towards him, laying his head on Zuko's shoulder. He melted into the contact, letting go of Sokka's hand to play a bit with his hair. His hair was down today, out of its usual wolf's tail, and Zuko couldn't help but love the way he could run his fingers through it.
A content sigh left the boy. "This," he said softly, still looking out at the horizon. "This is what I want to do...for the rest of my life."
Zuko didn't even realize he was smiling.
"That'd be nice, babe." He said, leaning down to lay a kiss on his head. "It'd be real nice."
A few minutes passed in silence. "You never answered me, Zuko," Sokka said, voice nonchalant but Zuko had known long enough to hear the underlying tone of unease.
"I've wanted to marry you since we were kids, Sokka," he said. "Want a big house and a white picket fence. A couple of kids, maybe a dog or two. It'd be total mayhem getting all of us out of the house in the morning, but it would work because we all work well together."
For the next few minutes, Zuko went on and on about how their lives would be, with a few inputs from the boy in his arms. What dog breed they wanted, if they wanted to adopt or have a surrogate, what flowers were going to be planted in their garden.
"What name should we put on our mailbox?" Sokka asked, grinning so hard it must have hurt. "Noshimuri is a nice name."
"I wouldn't be opposed to taking Eetuk," he said earnestly. "But still, it'd be cool to keep the Noshimuri name. Bring some dishonor to my father by marrying a man and still keeping the name, y' know?"
The two laughed and Zuko brought the boy in closer and wrapped his arms around his shoulders, Sokka's back pressed against his chest and he placed a kiss onto his shoulder. "We could always hyphenate. Noshimuri-Eetuk?"
"That sounds perfect, babe."
They watched in silence as the sun went down, the light fading from the horizon but not from their eyes.
"You know," Zuko said finally. "The courthouse opens around 9 tomorrow. We could skip Pakku's lecture, fuck that guy, and go down there to fill out all the paperwork. Though I don't know if there are any fees..."
He trailed off because Sokka pulled away from him, mirroring the expression Zuko had when this entire conversation began.
"What?"
Sokka's eyes were wide, like an owl's, and his jaw dropped. He looked like a deer caught in headlights.
"Did you just propose?"
Zuko's confusion only grew and it took him a second to realize his mistake. In all their talk about marriage and love and kids, a timeline never came up. Sokka must have been talking about the distant future; Zuko hadn't been.
"Oh shit."
Before he could backtrack, or apologize, or do anything, Sokka surprised him: he smiled. Smiled so big and bright that it could have made the sun look dull.
Sokka surged forward, grabbing his shirt and sending him falling backward. Zuko yelped as their foreheads collided and he hit the side of the car painfully.
But he didn't focus on that: he was too preoccupied with Sokka's lips on his and the way the boy was clinging onto him.
When they broke apart, both were gasping for breath.
"Tell me you mean it, Zuko." He pleaded, digging his fingers into Zuko's shirt. "Tell me you're serious."
He had never been more serious in his life.
"I am," He managed to say, "but Sokka. Marriage is a big commitment. Forever's a long time, and I don't want to rush you--"
"I want to be with you," Sokka said with no hesitation. "Forever isn't enough time together, but I'll take it. I want forever and more with you. I want you to be with me. "
He'd be lying if he said his heart didn't skip a beat.
"Your family would kill us," Zuko replied as the thought hit him. Sokka's family loved him and supported their relationship whole-heartedly. But they were a very traditional family and Katara would genuinely hunt them down if he didn't at least carve Sokka an engagement necklace.
"Then we won't tell them," Sokka said in a rushed tone. "Not for a few years at least," he amended at the look on Zuko's face.
Zuko stared at the boy, saw how serious he was being. Behind that smile was a look of steel determination. This was the most serious he'd ever seen Sokka.
"Just think about it," Sokka told him, a teasing smile on his face. "We can move out of the dorms, find an apartment together, start our lives. Don't you want that?"
"Fuck, babe," He whispered. "I just never wanted to do it like it this. I- I wanted to take you to dinner and and say a sappy speech and carve you a necklace and--"
"I don't need any of that," Sokka interrupted, laughing and shaking his head. "All I need is you."
Zuko was floored. He had run out of things to say and Sokka had all but shut down his argument. "Sokka... are we really doing this?"
"Better believe it, Zuzu." That grin that Zuko loved so much on his face. "But I need you to ask me before I can say yes, dumbass."
Just like that, all tension evaporated. Zuko laughed and it made Sokka laugh and all too soon, both boys were hysterical. They clutched onto each other, neither one being able to calm down.
They finally managed to calm down enough to breathe, and Zuko tried his best to get into a kneeling position without having to get up.
"Sokka--"
"Wait!" He cried out, breaking away from him to reach for the backpack he had thrown into the backseat.
"Wha-- you can't hurry up my non-planned proposal then tell me to wait!"
"Too bad!" Sokka yelled as he reached over the seat. Zuko couldn't see what he was doing, could only hear zippers and papers being rummaged through, but he got a great view of his ass so he was fine.
After a few more moments of searching, Sokka yelled out a triumphant "Aha!" and returned with a bright, wrapped package.
A ring pop.
Tearing the wrapper off, he flopped back next to Zuko, holding the candy out to him.
"You just had this in your backpack?" Zuko asked as he took it.
"What can I say, I'm a hopeless romantic. I came prepared."
Zuko grinned as he angled himself towards the boy he was ready to spend his life with.
"Well in that case," he said and brought the boy in to lay their foreheads together.
"I've been in love with you longer than I could say. I've been yours for years and I always will be. You're my happiness and my future.あなたは私の命であり、あなたなしでは私の生涯は何の価値もないと知っています." He held up the ring pop. "Will you do the absolute craziest shit we've ever done and marry me?"
Sokka grinned at him, taking the ring pop from him and sliding it onto his ring finger. "You make a mean deal, Noshimuri," he teased, holding up his hand to show it off. "Yes, Zuko, I will marry you."
He leaned forward and pressed his lips to Zuko's.
The two melted into one another, their bodies coming together like puzzle pieces as they kissed, hands running through hair, and moving in the way that only those who truly knew each other's bodies could.
Just as the kiss increased in its intensity, Sokka pushed Zuko back. It was enough to break them apart but only to where Sokka's lips still brushed his.
"We need to get out of here."
A needy whine came out of Zuko, and Sokka raised an eyebrow at him. Carding a hand through Zuko's hair, he laughed. "Zuko, we're gonna need a bed for what I want to do to you."
He had never gotten up so quickly.
Sokka laughed as Zuko tugged him out of the Jeep, both running for their respective seats the second they slammed the trunk shut. The moment they got in their seats, their lips met again, this time far more passionately
This time, it was Zuko who forced himself to pull away: if he didn't, there was no guarantee he wouldn't fuck Sokka right then and there.
"Not here," he muttered, faintly surprised at how low with arousal his voice had gotten.
"Gon' be able to drive, Zuzu?" Sokka teased, and it took so much of his self-restraint to not take the boy right then and there over the console.
"You bet your sweet ass I can drive."
Soon they were making their way through Ba Sing Se, on the way to the university and their dorm.
It hit Zuko that as they were driving towards their dorm in all reality, they were driving towards the future. Towards their future. Forever and more, Sokka had said.
Zuko floored it.
Epilogue: 5 years later
13 boxes, 4 trips, 2 hours, and one bag of McDonald's later, Sokka and Zuko Noshimuri-Eetuk flopped down on their couch with a sigh.
All around them were unopened boxes and copious amounts of wrapping paper and littered legal papers they'd have to sort through, but right now, they just wanted to take a break.
It had taken a lot of time, effort, sweat, and work but the two had done it. They purchased their first house together. Zuko couldn't believe this was his life now. He had gotten his degree, was married to the love of his life, and was now a homeowner. It seemed like a dream, one that he didn't want to wake up from.
"Who knew owning a house would be so much work," Sokka complained, groaning dramatically and crashing his head into his husband's lap.
Zuko rolled his eyes but proceeded to play with his husband's hair nonetheless. "You aren't even doing any of the heavy-lifting, asshole. You're letting me do all that."
Sokka grinned up at him. "Aw, but babe, watching you break a sweat gets me all hot and bother--"
"Don't you dare... finish that sentence."
Both men looked up to see Katara with a box in her hands, glaring at the two of them. The two were grateful for her help in them moving in, but damn if she wasn't the most dramatic of the three.
Sokka winked at his sister whereas Zuko huffed out a laugh. "Katara, I've been with your brother for a few years. I'd think you've gotten over it by now."
"I'm aware of your sex life," Katara huffed, and Zuko wasn't sure if it was because of how heavy the box was or if it physically pained her to think about their sex life. "I just don't want to hear about it."
"Imagine how I feel," another voice snorted. "I can only hear them." The boys rolled their eyes as everyone else made their way in. Though they had initially refused, their friends were adamant in helping them move in. Toph and Suki made their way in, both handling their boxes, whereas Azula just walked in with coffees for all of them.
Sokka and Zuko laughed at Toph's comment, not paying Azula any mind. They were so focused on one another that they didn't notice her pick up a framed document on the counter.
"Oh, Zuzu...what is this?"
The two men froze the second they saw the frame Azula was holding and both sat up so quickly they nearly knocked into one another.
"What?" Katara asked, putting her box down and making her way over to where Azula stood. Suki and Toph did the same and Suki let out a gasp.
THIS CERTIFIES THAT ZUKO NOSHIMURI AND SOKKA EETUK WERE LEGALLY WED ON THE 16TH OF SEPTEMBER IN THE YEAR 2019 IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK.
Zuko had been so busy with getting things in the house that he had completely forgotten about hiding their marriage certificate. He turned to look at Sokka and saw that his husband was looking at him too. Without speaking or even meaning to, they reached for each other's hand and interlocked their fingers. When they looked back at their friends, they pretend to not notice Katara's look of homicidal rage.
"So, uh, funny story..."