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Usually, Zuko wouldn't leave his room for anything at that time of night.
Look, he loves his friends deeply, and the same applied to his sister, most of the time, but it was so late. And since he got there, he had a rule of not getting out of the room past 9PM. It just seemed like a bad idea, especially after he had a long day and was excruciatingly tired.
But honestly, he was never really good at saying no to any of his closest friends. Not when they'd been there for him when he'd been at his lowest.
So, yeah, he was going to Sokka’s stupid late-night lacrosse game.
“Hotman, are you ready?” asks Aang, from outside the bathroom, thankfully not knocking on the door.He knew Zuko hated it.
“Don't call me that,” he rolls his eyes, opening the door and exiting the bathroom “Yeah, I'm ready. Are you?”
“I'm always ready!” he smiles.
Zuko eyed him up and down.
“Where's your jacket?” he questions, frowning “It's the middle of winter, Aang.”
“I won't get cold,” his friend simply says.
“You say that every time, and every time, you get cold.” Zuko sighs.
“Not this time! Now, let's go. We have to pick up Toph on the way.”
He grabs Zuko’s arm and drags him out of their dorm room, locking the door after.
Aang was supposed to be the most patient of the group, and he usually was, unless the alternative was being late to something involving one of their friends. Zuko couldn't really complain, being the most impatient out of the group.
“Wouldn't Toph be there already? With Suki?” he looks at Aang, suspicious.
Aang averts his eyes.
“She… She wanted to come with us, actually,” he mumbles.
Zuko scoffs. He knew Toph better than that.
He doesn't say anything, though, because if he had the opportunity to have the company of the girl he had a crush on, he'd take it too.
Not that he was crushing on anyone, of course.
Aang looks grateful, but doesn't mention it as they walk towards the girl's dorm rooms. Toph is, thankfully, waiting for them at her door, with her cane in one hand and her phone in the other, as she talked to someone.
“Toph!” Aang called “You ready?”
“...I gotta go, they're here,” she says to her phone “Twinkletoes and Sparky. Yeah, I'll tell them. Bye. Hey, Baldy.”
“Who was that?” Zuko asks.
“Katara,” Toph says, and then smiles “Did you want me to tell her something, Sparky?”
Katara.
The single mention of her name was enough for his heart to beat a little faster than usual, which was probably why Toph had chosen to use it instead of the multiple nicknames she had for all of them.
As quickly as possible, he pulled himself together.
“What? No,” he forced a laugh “I don't… We barely talk.”
“I'm blind, not stupid,” she scoffed. “Can we go now? I don't wanna miss the game I can definitely see.”
Zuko sighed, but decided it was better not to argue. He watched as Toph held onto Aang's arm, as if she needed to, and then the three of them walked towards the lacrosse field.
He wouldn't say he had a crush on Katara.
Sure, she was the prettiest girl he'd ever seen, and also the smartest. She was nice even when people — Zuko — didn't deserve it. She was hardworking, persistent, talented, and good. She was everything. But Zuko was pretty certain he didn't have a crush on her.
“Zuko!” her voice reaches his ears, and he feels like melting.
Katara smiles, and it's like the sun, and the moon, and the ocean all together.
Correction: Zuko was so deeply in love with her there was absolutely no way out.
“Hey,” he chokes “You… Hi. Hey.”
He must be lucky, because Katara giggles at him, and his heart speeds up again. So fast he thinks he might die, but it would be worth it.
So fucking worth it.
“Hey to you, too,” she says “The game is about to start. We bought popcorn!”
“I love popcorn!” Aang cheers beside him, and they all head to the bleachers.
Aang goes to sit next to Katara, as that's their usual sitting arrangement, but Zuko's body moves faster than his mind, and he's next to her before he even knows it. Aang eyes him suspiciously, but says nothing.
He sits between him and Toph, then, and when Katara hands Zuko the popcorn, he hands it to Aang.
The game slowly starts, and Katara shifts next to him. Actually, she shifts closer to him, and he feels his hands shake slightly because of it.
“Are you ok?” she whispers in his ear.
Zuko feels like he might pass out.
“What?” he manages to say.
“You seem a little off,” Katara pouts, he tries not to stare at her lips “Are you alright?”
What was Zuko even supposed to say to that?
Oh! Don't worry. I just have very real, very romantic feelings for you, and it makes me not know how to act around you. It's fine, though.
He clears his throat. Turns to her.
She's wearing a sleeveless blue blouse that says “Water Tribe Pride” on it, and Zuko recognizes it as the blouse Sokka got for her a few years ago. She usually wears it when Sokka plays, saying it brings good luck.
It looks beautiful on her, as always, but it's currently freezing and he can see she's shivering a little.
“Aren't you cold?” he asks, furrowing his one good eyebrow.
“What?” Katara frowns, then looks down at her clothes “Oh! No, it's fine. Don't worry.”
Zuko? Not worried? Now, that's funny.
“Kat, you're obviously cold,” he shook his head. “Do you want my hoodie?”
A beautiful shade of pink made its way to her cheeks.
“What? No!” she nearly yelled “It's fine, Zuko. I'm fine.”
He opened his mouth to disagree, because he could clearly see the shivers, but a commotion made him turn towards the field. Sokka had scored a goal. Everybody screams, and both Katara and Suki stand up to join the screaming, and Zuko feels like maybe he should, too. But his body is currently paralyzed by the way Katara’s arm had brushed his when she stood up.
“What happened?!” Toph screams, “Did we score?”
“Sokka made a goal, I think,” Aang mutters, “I still don’t get lacrosse. It’s way too violent.”
“Sokka scored.” Katara supplies, reaching across Zuko so Toph can hear her better.
Her neck is so close to his face, he can not only see the little freckles there, but he can also smell her perfume and spirits, he’s going to die.
“Oh, ok.” Toph nods.
Katara goes back to her place, and Zuko feels like he can breathe again.
He looks at her again, and yeah, she’s definitely cold. She has her arms crossed, as if to protect herself, and her breathing is agitated. Without giving it much thought, he takes off his hoodie and gives it to her.
“What?” she frowns “Zuko, I told you—”
“Kat, please just put on the damn coat.” he says firmly.
As he expects, Katara immediately looks like she wants to argue. He knows her well enough that if he lets her, she’ll win. And he usually doesn’t mind when she wins their discussions, but right now he needs her to put on his hoodie. Because she’s cold, and not because of how he would love to see her wearing his clothes.
Katara grumbles something that sounds like a curse, but grabs the hoodie and slowly puts it on. It swallows her, being too big, but the red brings out her skin color and something in Zuko wants to grab his phone and snap a picture of that moment so he can cherish it forever.
“Thank you.” Katara mumbles.
He should feel cold, now that he’s only wearing a sleeveless shirt with the school logo, but there’s a warmth in the way he feels next to Katara, and he even forgets it’s supposed to be winter in the first place. He feels like he's gonna burst into flames.
“It looks good on you,” Zuko smiles shyly, “You should keep it.”
‘But…”
“Really, Kat,” he laughs, “Just keep it.”
You’ve been keeping my heart already, and you’ve been keeping it safe, so I know I can trust you.