Chapter Text
”Uh, Dad. Katara. Can I tell you guys something?” Sokka asks during dinner one evening. He’s not sure why he’s so incredibly nervous all of a sudden, but something about the two of them sitting on the opposite side of the table makes Sokka feel like he’s at a job interview.
”Of course.”
”Ooh, are you coming out as straight this time?”
”Katara, please let your brother speak.” Hakoda sighs, poorly masking his amusement. Almost a decade ago now, Sokka had in fact come out of the closet by starting a conversation with the exact same wording. It ’s kind of funny. Or well, it would be if he wasn’t so nervous.
”So, you know Zuko, right?”
”The guy you’ve lived with for the past seven years? I’m familiar.” Katara states sarcastically. Hakoda gives her a look, but just nods along.
”So uh, we sort of… uh.. started dating a while ago.” He gets out.
They react simultaneously.
”Oh, congratulations!”
“Are you serious??? I owe Suki money now.” Katara laments.
“You were betting on us?” Sokka asks, almost offended. There’s no trace of nervousness in his voice anymore.
“Jesus christ… YES, yes we were, you have been insufferable for the past seven years! Zuko this and Zuko that and hey guys did you see what Zuko did…” She continues. Hakoda silently gets up and leaves the room. There’s no use in going in between when they get like this, and who was he to control his adult children. He squeezes Sokka’s shoulder in quiet acknowledgement as he walks by.
“You’re one to talk…” Sokka rolls his eyes. “How is Aang? What is he up to? Has he said anything about me? Can you send me a group photo?” He pitches up his voice to imitate Katara’s.
“We are friends Sokka! Of course I want to know how he’s doing and you’re the one who happens to live with him.” Katara retorts. “And I’ve never asked if he’s said anything about me.” She adds quietly.
“And you can’t ask him directly because…?” Sokka smirks. Katara doesn’t answer, meaning Sokka has clearly won the battle. Which is important in sibling world even at the age of 24, thank you very much.
“No but, are you sure this is a good idea?” Katara asks after a moment.
“You cannot still be holding a grudge from when I first met him. He’s not like that anymore, I’ve told you this a million times.”
“No, I don’t care about that, he seems fine. I mean being in a relationship as a public figure in a country like this. Or well, that.” Yeah, they might be in Canada now, but back home things were not as easy. Katara doesn’t even have to specify being in a gay relationship. Any kind of relationship as an idol might be enough to get him kicked out of the group, and he has no desire to be the first one to find out what happens when you’re in a gay relationship and also dating a member of your own group on top of that, which is still uncharted territory for the industry as a whole.
Sokka sighs. As if this exact question doesn’t keep him up most nights. “I don’t know. Like obviously not, but I guess the only thing we can do is to see it through. Please don’t remind me of how my entire career is doomed if people find out, I’m well aware.”
“I wasn’t going to. I’m happy for you Sokka, I truly am. I’m just worried for you.”
“Thanks, I get that. I just try not to think about it.”
“Does Aang know?” Katara asks, completely switching the tone of the conversation. Sokka gives her a pointed look, but doesn’t actually say anything. He’s just thankful they’re moving on from discussing the disastrous end his career is going to have if they ever get exposed in the media.
“Not yet, I wanted to tell you first. He’s not the best with keeping secrets from you.”
“That’s true,” Katara agrees with a wistful look in her eyes.
“Haru is the only one who knows so far. I’ll tell the rest of the gang when we go back to Korea.”
“Wait, why didn’t you invite Zuko to our hangout next week? The rest of us know him and I’m sure Toph wouldn’t mind.”
“He’s going to be in Japan with his Uncle still. I feel like you’re distracting me from the topic at hand, which was your crush on Aang if I recall correctly.” Sokka teases. “He likes you back by the way.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“Okay, then don’t. Doesn’t change the facts.”
Katara changes the topic again. She should hold a class on how to do that. “Did you know that your fans already think you two are together? I believe they call it ‘shipping.’”
“So I’ve heard. Our manager showed us some statistics on that.”
“Have you seen the videos they make? It’s actually crazy. One would think you two have been in love for years.” Katara says while pulling her phone out of her pocket. Sokka grumbles something in protest about how they didn’t even get along at first, but it falls on deaf ears and under the sound of a Youtube video’s intro.
——
Transcript of Youtube video titled zukka being gayer than a pride parade by user yesssyr:
[ID: Sokka and Aang being filmed from the right side. There are staff and cameras in the background, and they seem to be in some sort of outdoor filming set. The outfits they’re wearing look like traditional wear. They are looking at something off-screen.]
Aang: “Oh wow, I didn't think he could actually pull off that hair!”
Sokka: “I know, he seriously looks like a prince.”
[ID: The camera pans to show what Sokka and Aang are looking at. It’s Zuko, who is listening to a staff member who is explaining something to him. He’s wearing long hair extensions that go down to his back, as well as a similar outfit to the other two.
The camera turns back to Sokka and Aang. Aang is now getting his face aggressively dabbed by a makeup artist, but Sokka is still looking at Zuko. Text that says ’The face of a man who just saw his manhwa crush in real life’ is edited next to Sokka’s face. The clip changes.]
[ID: Sokka is sitting in front of a white wall. The video is vertical, and his instagram username is at the top left corner. He seems to be looking down at the chat.]
Sokka: “A TMI?” [He thinks for a second and then leans out of the frame. He leans back holding a small plushie keychain of a wolf. It sort of looks like someone tried to draw a wolf from memory and made it into a keychain.]
Sokka: “This morning Zuko walked into my room, gave me this and left without saying a word. I haven’t seen him since.” [He reads the chat again.]
Sokka: “Why would he do that? I don’t know but it really scared me. I thought it was a dream at first” [A vine boom and an emoji that’s raising an eyebrow are edited onto the screen along with text that says “I also regularly have dreams about my platonic best buddy.”] “but turns out it wasn’t sleep paralysis or anything like that, it was just him.”
[ID: He puts the plushie on his shoulder, and keeps reading the chat. A text saying “i need you to know he kept it there for the rest of the livestream” is edited onto the screen. The clip changes.]
[ID: All six of the guys sitting in front of a light blue background in two rows. There are two jars labeled “truth” and “dare” respectively on a table in front of them. Sokka, who’s sitting on the right side of the front row, reaches into the jar of dares, and pulls out a slip of paper.]
Sokka, reading: “Hug the person on your right while maintaining eye contact for 10 seconds.” [The text is also edited onto the screen. He turns to face the person on his right, who happens to be Zuko. Sokka gives him an apologetic look, and they both lean in awkwardly for the hug.]
[ID: A timer counting down from ten shows up in the corner of the screen. They’re both holding back a laugh, at least partly due to Sokka wiggling his eyebrows. When there’s a second left on the timer, Jet, who is sitting on Zuko’s other side, pushes the back of Zuko’s head in an attempt of making the other two kiss. Instead of kissing, they hit noses so hard that the mics they’re wearing pick up the sound it makes. Everyone looks a little shocked, and both Sokka and Zuko are rubbing their noses. Sokka immediately looks behind the camera.]
Sokka: “That still counts as 10 seconds, right?”
[ID: everyone starts laughing, including the staff behind the camera. The clip changes.]
[ID: A video of Hahn vlogging in selfie-mode. He’s explaining something to the camera. In the background you can see Sokka and Zuko sitting in two armchairs facing each other. They seem to be comparing hand sizes.
The video is edited so that Hahn’s speech becomes muffled, as the editor zooms into a close up of the two incredibly pixelated figures in the background. A pink overlay appears, and romantic music starts playing. The clip changes.]
[ID: Someone shakily zooming the camera in on Sokka, who is laying down on the floor on a thin mattress with his eyes closed. One can assume that he’s sleeping. He’s wearing performance clothes, and based on the surroundings he seems to be backstage at a music show waiting room.
A pair of legs can be seen stopping to stand next to him and pretending to stomp and jump on top of him. The camera shakes as whoever is filming starts laughing. The person stomping on him, revealed to be Zuko as his face is now in view of the camera, sits down and lays down so that he’s using Sokka’s stomach as a pillow. There’s a cut in the video, and the next clip is of both of them asleep, still in the same pose. The clip changes.]
[ID: All six of the guys sitting on a couch. There’s a small table in the middle with a bunch of cards on it. Zuko leans forward and picks up a card.]
Zuko, reading out loud: “What’s the last message you sent to the members?” [He thinks for a second and chuckles as he remembers.]
Zuko: “Last night, to Sokka, and it said “come look””
Sokka: “He didn’t even have anything to show me! He just called me over to turn off the lights because he was too comfortable in bed. And it was two in the morning!” [Haru, who is sitting next to him looks like he has just solved a great mystery.]
Haru: “Ohhhh! That’s what the yelling was about.”
Zuko, deadpan: “Oh no, that was when he attacked me.” [Sokka looks betrayed.]
Sokka: “Liar. I only yelled because he bit my arm.” [No one seems surprised by what they are hearing.]
Jet: “Well did that make you turn the lights off?”
Aang: “Yeah I’m in suspense.”
Sokka: “Of course not! I left them on and left the door open too so he had to get up.”
[The camera zooms into a close up of Haru who is very animatedly mouthing “I want to move out” at the camera. The clip changes.]
Read more…
——
New instagram post by user @socks.a
[ID: A carousel of 5 pictures. The post is captioned “O canadaaaa”.]
Picture 1: [A portrait of Sokka laughing. He’s wearing a knitted hat and a thick looking jacket. The picture has been taken at a lower angle to show the colorful sunset behind him.]
Picture 2: [A mirror selfie of Sokka wearing the same winter jacket as in the first picture, this time with the fur-lined hood pulled up. His face is only visible from the eyebrows to the bottom of his nose, as he is wearing a neckwarmer up to cover his mouth. His expression is a little displeased, but still a bit amused.]
Picture 3: [Two bowls of seaweed soup on a wooden table. If you press the picture, user @_tararok is tagged on the other bowl.]
Picture 4: [A blurry selfie. Sokka has the hood of a hoodie up, and his hair is down and covering half of his face.]
Picture 5: [Sokka laying down starfished on the ground. He’s wearing ice skates, but it’s unclear if he has fallen or if he’s laying down on purpose. He seems to be laughing nonetheless.]
—
New instagram post by user @_tararok
[ID: A carousel of 7 pictures. The caption simply says “chaos.”]
Picture 1: [Katara sitting in a cafe. She’s wearing a thick sweater, and holding a massive mug that’s been topped with whipped cream and marshmallows. She’s smiling and looking down at the cup.]
Picture 2: [Same setting as the first picture. She’s now laughing, and there’s whipped cream on her nose.]
Picture 3: [Four polaroids on a table. They’re all of Katara in front of a dark background, wearing a sparkly blue dress. Each picture is a different pose.]
Picture 4: [A pink smoothie spilled out on concrete. The plastic cup on the ground still has some liquid in it, and the lid is right next to it with the straw still in the lid. There’s a logo of a store on the cup.]
Picture 5: [A picture taken in selfie-form, however her head has been cropped off. She’s showing off a cropped white t-shirt that says “white boy of the year” on it in black block letters.]
Picture 6: [A colorful sunset. The sky takes up most of the photo, but there are some trees and roofs of houses silhouetted on the bottom of the image.]
Picture 7: [A professionally taken picture of Sokka and Katara in front of a neutral background. They’re pictured from the waist up, in an abnormally distant hug pose but with their cheeks smushed together. They’re both putting on awkward smiles and wearing matching white shirts. From what can be seen, it looks like they are also wearing the exact same blue jeans.]
——
Minji @mlovely
they all seem so happy<33 please stay on vacation as long as you can
[ID: Four images. The top left is of Zuko and Haru in a dimly lit restaurant. The wall behind them is full of overlapping posters that are mostly in Japanese. It looks like they were trying to pose seriously, but couldn’t help but burst out laughing. The top right is of Aang and Jet, posing with Aang’s pets. Momo the cat is sitting on Aang’s shoulder, whereas Appa the dog is sitting between them like another person. Both of the guys are holding up peace signs. The bottom left is of Sokka laying down on the ground with ice skates on and the bottom right is of Hahn, sitting next to a fireplace, wearing a big sweater and smiling at the camera while holding up a peace sign.]
2.1k likes 72 comments 1.6k retweets
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sammy @sukkafrvr
of course katara is asking for attention by posting Sokka on her ig
47 likes 304 comments 19 retweets
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dana @teeheelee
bffr girl she didn’t even tag him
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ivy @zukkatruther
zukka crumbs from the end of year shows!!
[ID: Three pictures of Zuko and Sokka. The picture on the left is of them sitting down in a crowd. Zuko is whispering something in Sokka’s ear, who’s grinning widely. The top right is of them walking on stage to receive an award. They’re both smiling, and Zuko has his arm around Sokka’s shoulder, while Sokka is tussling Zuko’s hair. The bottom right is a picture of two silhouettes, that seem to be Sokka and Zuko based on side profiles and general vibes. Sokka is walking forward determinantly, and dragging Zuko behind him by the wrist.]
794 likes 44 comments 476 retweets
——
13.26 / 1.26pm
Zuko: hey
Zuko: i can’t sleep, wanna call?
Sokka: sure give me a min
Outgoing video call to Zuko…
“Is everything alright?” Sokka asks as soon as the call connects. Zuko’s in a dimly lit room, his hair is adorably fluffy, he’s wearing his glasses, and Sokka is suddenly overcome with the realization of how much he misses him. They haven’t been calling much, mostly just texting due to the time difference.
“What happened to ‘hello, how are you?’” Zuko asks. His voice is a little raspy. “Can’t a man just call his boyfriend at three in the morning for no reason?” He jokes.
“Nah, not allowed.” Sokka jokes back. “But I guess I assumed something was up since you couldn’t sleep.” He explains.
Zuko chuckles. “Oh, nothing like that. We are staying with one of Uncle’s friends and you would think old men go to bed early but no, they’re out there loudly chatting it up. They were singing earlier too.”
“Interesting. I’m afraid I might be the loud singing one here.”
“You’re the loud singing one everywhere.” Zuko retorts. He sounds slightly annoyed but affectionate at the same time.
“Hey!” Sokka protests. He doesn’t have an argument, because Zuko’s not exactly wrong about that. There’s a moment of silence.
“Tell me about your day, I’ve just barely woken up.” Sokka says to break the silence.
“Isn’t it like one thirty over there?” Zuko asks.
“Yes, and I have my first and only vacation I’m gonna have all year and I’m taking full advantage of it.” Sokka states. He’s exaggerating and they both know it, but Zuko doesn’t mention it. The lack of breaks and constant overworking are topics they talk about enough already, and if prompted, both of them could go on a rant about at a moment’s notice. Now is not the time for that.
“Well, it’s not like I’ve done much today either. I had food and went on a walk and had some more food and then we went to see a play and got noodles for dinner after.” He explains. “So in conclusion, I am going to be absolutely fucked when we go back and they’re gonna make me go on a diet again.”
Sokka sighs. “Same here, except they’re not gonna make me do shit if I have anything to say about it.” He looks at Zuko’s scar on the call, which is currently uncovered. He doubts that the company is gonna try to make Zuko do anything for some time, not after the scar incident a while back. “What play did you go see?”
“Love amongst the Dragons. We used to go see the original actually good one when I was younger, and apparently this one was some highly praised modern version, but the characterization was so off it was practically unwatchable. I almost walked out.”
Sokka can’t help but chuckle. He sounds so serious. “I keep forgetting you’re a theater kid.”
Zuko rolls his eyes. “We sing and act cute for a living Sokka, how could you forget?” He pretends to sassily flip his hair, but it’s not long enough for that. “I was made for this.” Sokka bursts out laughing.
“Would you say you were… born this way?” Sokka asks, and now it’s Zuko’s turn to laugh.
“I guess so.”
“Wait, speaking of being gay, I told my dad and Katara about the two of us.” Sokka says.
“Well, what did they say?”
“Dad was just dad and Katara, well, she bullied me and then showed me some fan videos of us.” He pauses. “I seem to talk about you, like a lot.” He can tell Zuko’s blushing even in the dim lighting. It’s really cute. Sokka would do anything to be able to hug him right now.
Sokka’s face lights up as he gets an idea. “We should watch those videos together! It would be really funny.”
Zuko looks horrified. “No! I will die, I can’t handle looking at myself like that.” Sokka laughs at his response.
“I knew you would say that, which is why I will do it by myself in the comfort of my grandmother's house.” He jokes.
“Ah yes, the most ideal place to look at videos of what have been deemed your gayest moments.” Zuko chuckles.
“Wait, what time are you coming back on Saturday again?” Sokka suddenly asks. It’s currently Monday and he’s flying back home on Wednesday. Less than a week before he sees Zuko again.
“Our flight should land around two I think.”
“Okay, great. We should have another gaming night since Haru isn’t coming back until Sunday, right?”
“For sure. I also think I should go to sleep soon, they seem to have stopped talking, at least for now.”
“Oh, right. I forget that it’s like almost four over there.”
“Yeah, thanks for chatting with me.” Zuko says with a slight smile.
“Anytime dude! I’ll call you once I’m back home and we are in the same timezone again.”
“You better. It’s crazy that this is like the longest we’ve been apart since we met.”
“Oh wow, you’re right. I’m taking you with me next time we have a break.” Sokka jokes, but it’s only partly a joke. He’d love to bring Zuko to Canada one day, even though he would probably just complain about the cold the whole time.
“Alright, I’ll hold you to that.” Zuko’s still smiling. This is definitely Sokka’s favorite look on him, although every Zuko is his favorite. But there’s something special about the glasses and the tired smile and even the visible scar that only a few people get to see. Sokka can’t help but smile as well.
“And I’ll let you go to bed now and go shovel some snow like I’ve been requested to do. I’ll call you on Wednesday.”
“Bye, I miss you.”
“I miss you more, good night.” I love you.
——