Chapter Text
"Why me? Why is it always me, when something bad happens? I just want to go out and have fun once in my life. And of course life punishes me instantly with pentapox. As if I didn't already have enough ugly scars on my body." Zuko shouts into his phone, fighting the urge to just throw it into the nearest wall.
"Calm down Zuko! You're being so dramatic. You only need to stay in quarantine for five more days. A month ago I watched you stay in your dorm room for a week straight. You're halfway through already. You‘re gonna be fine. Next time you can come along to the beach." Mai's soft, but annoyed voice breaks through Zuko's anger. She's right, Zuko can do this.
"Alright. I'm gonna stay inside.“ Zuko promises, sighing loud.
Mai hangs up after saying goodbye. She's gonna go to the beach with his sister Azula, and Tylee. That's fine, it's not like it's their 10th year they go to the beach all together. Zuko rolls his eyes annoyed. He looks out the window. At least it's getting dark already.
He sits down in his usual place in front of his laptop. During those five days locked inside, he fell in love with gaming again. There's left over piece of pizza, no annoying room mate, he has half a bottle of coke and 2 gramms of weed. Life is good. He unpauses the game to continue playing.
A few hours, which felt like less than half an hour, and half a joint later Zuko spots something from the corner of his eye. It's been bugging him for the last five minutes. On and off an on and off. It's a light coming from a window on the other side of the campus from one of the dorms. On and off and on and off and pause.
"Huh?" Zuko says as he turns his full attention to the strange pattern of light. He looks closer, recognizing someone standing by the window, hard to tell if it's a guy or a girl.
Maybe they are in danger? Zuko remembers there's a code for SOS, but of course he doen't remember it.
The light is switched on and off in a strange pattern. Short, long, short, short, pause, long, long, long and then a long pause. Zuko grabs his phone.
"Morse code" he types in just to make sure he's not going crazy. The first link brings him to wikipedia, he scrolls down to the alphabet and waits for the next sequence.
Short short short short pause short pause short long short short pause short long short short pause long long long pause
It takes Zuko two times to write it down correctly. Once he's finished he starts translating.
"Hello" Zuko smiles at his decrypted message. Thats what the patterns means. He's not going crazy. But the person switching the light must be. Are they really expecting someone to answer?
The sequence goes by a few times. Morse code is actually pretty easy. Zuko picks up his pencil, but lies it back down. He shakes his head. No he's not gonna write down a reply to send it. He opens the app store, he's gonna use an app to do that for him.
While the new application is downloading he inspects the lamp on his roommates desk. Maybe he just found the perfect tool to reply.
He sets up all his tools and waits for the light on the other side of the campus to go out the last time for the long pause.
The code on his phone is ready to be sent: ··– –··· ––– ·–· · –·· ··––··
"U bored?“
Zuko struggles, but manages to not make any mistake while producing his message. The window on the other side stays dark for half a minute. Until finally
"Quarantine sux"
Zuko can't help a big smile appearing on his face. When he puts the next message in his phone.
"Same. Pentapox?“
"Yes. 3 more days. Wbu?“
"5“
"Dang“
"Yes"
"By day 6 it's gonna be unbearable.“
Zuko sighs while trying to follow the pattern of the light with his translator. The other person seems to be good at morsing.
"Oh no.“ Zuko answers, but there's no answer.
"So. Morsing?“
Finally a reply.
"Yep. You’re the first to reply.“
"Oh I'm your first?“
"One and only.“
Zuko smiles. This is stupid. It takes at least two minutes to „read", write down, translate, write down, translate and finally „write“ back. But it is far more fun than texting on the phone.
"Tired“ Zuko writes after half an hour, feeling the weed he smoked finally wearing him down.
"Ok. Goodnight. Again tomorrow night?“
"Yes! Goodnight.“
Zuko turns off his lamp for the last time. The poor lamp must be battered by now, fortunately it's not his. Zuko waits for another two minutes, but falls into his bed once he's sure their conversation is over. He can't help the smile forcing it's way onto his lips again.
Maybe the universe isn't against him after all.