#i'll try using honey again next time but change the milk. and see what happens

[erlanmizu]

.

[milkybonya]

donut test me

order 017, anon: large honey milk tea with pudding for Junghwan

Warning: swimming/water mentions, food mentions, some angst

Summary: an enemies to lovers!au where Junghwan hates his swimmer!classmate who always skips out on phys.ed, not knowing that they do something else with that extra time. (p.s. i'm sorry if you can't swim or don't like water :( i tried to think of other things but this au was just,, not leaving my brain so please don't read if you think it will make you sad or anxious okay?? take care of yourself first!)

[a/n] hahaha get it donut test me like do not test me but donut cause Junghwan likes donuts.... okay i'm sorry bye T.T

Junghwan sits down with Jaehyuk as they eat ramen in Jaehyuk's room. Noticing Junghwan is shaking his leg and seems to have something to say, Jaehyuk encourages him to speak.

"It's just... so unfair!! Why do they always skip out on phys. ed when everyone else has to run laps and do push-ups and-"

Jaehyuk puts his chopsticks down with a sigh, startling the younger boy.

"How many times have we talked about this already? All you can talk about is this person and how much you hate their guts because they skip phys. ed... is it really that deep?"

Junghwan intakes a sharp breath of air.

"You just don't get it, okay! I'll eat somewhere else," Junghwan says, but the boy leaves his bowl of food behind and slams the front door, going on a walk.

Jaehyuk would follow behind him, but he can tell the boy needs some space to clear his head.

"I'll worry and call him if he's not home in an hour..." Jaehyuk says to himself.

Outside, Junghwan walks slowly, lost in his thoughts and trying to figure out his feelings.

When Junghwan switched schools and entered the school you had been attending, he didn't pay too much attention to you. All he knew was that you sat in the back, were quiet and often dozed off but still tried your best when you weren't asleep. You always wore a tracksuit jacket over your uniform and zipped it up all the way, playing with the zipper when you were lost in your thoughts.

Okay, so clearly Junghwan observed you a lot, but he couldn't help it! There was just something... different about you. And that annoyed him, which made you annoy him.

That's how his hatred for you began, which slowly grew and developed over time, especially when he noticed that you were never in phys.ed. That was his favourite class, and not being able to see you there, breaking a sweat like everyone else bothered him.

What made you so special that you could just skip out on phys. ed? He wondered this all the time and it made him hate you.

You were oblivious. All you knew was that this new kid was a jerk, always bumping into you purposely when you crossed paths in the hallways, always rolling his eyes at you, glaring at you when you weren't looking at him and then looking the other way when you caught him... he was weird. And rude. But you ignored him because you had better things to think about.

-

The next day, Junghwan wakes up knowing he's decided on a course of action. He'll follow you when you leave after your last class before phys.ed to see where the heck you go.

Smiling to himself as he eats his breakfast, he makes Jaehyuk, who shuffles into the kitchen sleepily to drink water, think that Junghwan has gotten over his hate for his classmate. Little does he know how very wrong he is.

At school, Junghwan does not take his eyes off you, not wanting to keep you out of his sight. You notice someone is staring at you all day, but shrug it off and continue on as you usually do, talking with your friends before and after classes, and doing your best to stay awake during them.

Before phys.ed, you leave the math class just like everyone else does, except you make a right instead of a left. Junghwan does not miss this and carefully follows after you. He watches you pull out a duffel bag from your locker.

Hm, with a bag like that, aren't they going to phys.ed? Junghwan asks himself.

But you then continue down the hall, further away from the gym. When you begin walking down a staircase, Junghwan thinks you might actually be walking to the gym, but again, on the ground floor, you walk in a completely different direction. He's completely puzzled until he notices you walking towards a door that teachers and students alike have told you to never enter. Seeing you open those doors and step inside so comfortably makes Junghwan want to call out and stop you out of fear you'll get hurt or in trouble, but he stops himself, wondering why he even cares about you.

The smell of chlorine fills the hallway, and Junghwan decides to follow after you, not wanting to lose you.

The chlorine stench is even stronger past the doors, and he can hear lockers slamming as you get changed - although Junghwan doesn't realize what's happening. He simply walks straight ahead, not knowing where he's going until he's reached the entrance of a whole swimming pool!

The water glistens before him, completely still. His mouth is agape - why is this pool off-limits?

He hears your footsteps and hides behind a rack of pool items, watching through the cracks as you walk to the edge of the pool, pat yourself down and jump in. It takes a few seconds before you surface, but as soon as you do, you begin to swim slowly.

Junghwan watches you swim lap after lap without stopping, amazed at your endurance and skill. His jaw drops as, after you rest and stretch out of the pool for a bit, you enter and begin sprinting to the other end, swimming so fast that the motion of your arms and legs are like a blur.

"So Junghwan, please report to the gym immediately. So Junghwan, please report to the gym immediately."

Junghwan looks up at the speaker where the P.A sound came from, sighs and quickly leaves the pool.

Just as you finish your last lap, you look up to see someone's back as they leave the pool, not knowing who it is.

-

"Junghwan, why did you skip phys.ed?! That's your favourite class, you never do that," Hyunsuk tells Junghwan as they sit in the school office side by side.

The school phoned Junghwan's dorm after he was absent for the first 30 minutes of class, and Hyunsuk came rushing to see what was happening.

"I'm so sorry, but Junghwan is never like this, and I promise that it will never happen again," Hyunsuk tells the admin in the office.

Junghwan winces at Hyunsuk's words, knowing that it will indeed happen again because... Junghwan wants to watch you swim again.

-

From then on, Junghwan makes 3 bathroom breaks every phys.ed class just to watch you swim. He tells him teacher he has a bladder problem - of course the teacher doesn't believe him, but knowing he's a good student, he lets him go anyway.

You start noticing Junghwan after some time but never approach him, wondering if he'll ever speak to you first. He never does, and you never have the energy to talk to him until one day when your condition is bad and you feel embarrassed that you're being watched.

You end your lap and hop out of the pool, staring straight ahead at the wall on the far side opposite you.

"Hey, come out. I know you're there," you say.

After a moment of total silence, you repeat it, but louder, until a shy Junghwan slowly shuffles out from behind the pool equipment rack.

"Why do you always come here and watch me swim?"

"I-I don't-"

You sigh, not wanting to hear a silly excuse.

"Listen I'm not going to scold you or anything cause I don't really care, but my condition is really bad today so I'm extra pissed," you say truthfully.

Junghwan stays silent before mumbling an apology.

You bite your lip while looking at him, then hop out of the pool.

"It's fine. Practice is over for me anyways," you say, but Junghwan notices that you're leaving the pool fifteen minutes earlier than you usually do.

-

On your way home that day, you feel a little bad. Things weren't going your way and you took it out on Junghwan... but then, why you care? He's always such a jerk to you and deserved it. Still, though, he looked like he really felt bad when you scolded him.

Yet you decide to treat him better if he shows up the next day.

Which he doesn't.

He doesn't show up the next day, or the day after that. You find yourself waiting for him, not being able to focus and checking the pool entrance nonstop. It frustrates you, as your practice time is being wasted. You're a swimmer preparing to join the junior national team, given time out of phys.ed to practice because the school doesn't have a swimming coach and they trust you to figure things out on your own.

Yet Junghwan is present at school - you see him at all of your other lockers. He doesn't follow you around or stare at you anymore, and it makes you angry.

As he's getting his things from his locker a few days later, you slam your fist on the locker next to his, making him jump.

"Where have you been?" you ask.

"What do you mean?" he asks back.

"You haven't been coming... to watch me anymore," you say, feeling embarrassed.

"Because you didn't want me to," Junghwan responds, laughing slightly. You don't know if he's laughing at your embarrassed state or laughing in a way where he's wondering why you would even dare to ask such a thing.

"I never said that. I just said my condition wasn't good that day," you say, truthfully.

Junghwan remains silent, staring into his locker.

You poke his shoulder.

"You better be there tomorrow," you say before walking away.

Junghwan smiles slightly when you turn your back on him, holding his arm in the spot you touched it.

-

"Junghwan!" you yell from the pool as he approaches sheepishly.

He awkwardly says hi and waves, not used to your excitement. To be honest, you aren't used to it either.

"Come closer," you tell him, and he meets you at the edge of the pool.

"Do you want to try it?" you ask.

"Try what?"

"Swimming."

He stays quiet, thinking it over in your head.

You point at him.

"You're wearing your phys.ed clothes already. Just come in in those," you say.

Junghwan flashes you an awkward smile and he leans to the side, showing he's still not sure.

"I'll help you," you say, smiling up at him.

"... okay," he finally agrees.

He enters through the shallow end of the pool, complaining about the cool temperature of the water as soon as he dips his toes in.

"It's really cold!" he yelps.

All of his squirming makes him lose his balance, and you reach out to hold his hand so he won't fall. Both of you are so focused on making sure Junghwan gets in the pool safely that you don't even pay attention to the skinship. Or your hearts that are racing so quickly because of it

"Careful, careful down the ladder," you say.

He winces as he gets lower in the water until eventually his feet touch the bottom. He giggles and it makes you smile.

"So... what do we do first?" he asks you.

"Well... learning how to float is the most important thing. The way I learned was, I laid on my back like a starfish and my teacher held me from underneath until eventually I could do it without them having to hold me.

"On my back? I'm a little scared," Junghwan admits.

"Look, I'll show you first," you say, floating on your back and demonstrating.

"You just make it look easy," Junghwan says with a pout, but you firmly shake your head.

He gives in with a sigh and leans backward on your hands which hold him up.

"Ahhh the water in my ears sounds so weird!" Junghwan points out, laughing widely.

"You're doing great," you mumble, smiling down at him and moving a strand of hair out of his eye.

His eyes look away and his hands turn into fists as he feels your touch. He feels... loved. And warm even though the pool is so cold.

"I'll move my hands away slightly, see if you can try to float. It's all about relaxing, trusting the water. Don't get tense and don't hold your breath," you say as you slowly move away your hands.

But Junghwan's body reflexively stiffens and he begins to sink until you quickly hold him up again.

"Are you okay?" you ask, your eyes wide with worry.

"Yeah... cause you're here," he says a little shyly.

After teaching a boy you previously disliked for no real reason how to kind of float in water, you realize that all of your practice time has gone to waste, so you quickly sprint a few laps to make up for it as Junghwan watches you from the deck. He dries off his hair as he does so.

-

The next day, you tell Junghwan to join you again, but he shakes his head.

"You need to focus on your swimming, [y/n]."

"But-"

"I'll only come in for five minutes if you can do 40 laps in 20 minutes," Junghwan says.

Before he even finishes his sentence, you dive in and swim at a steady pace to finish it in time, and of course you do. You are a hidden star athlete after all.

When Junghwan joins you this time, he fills the place with his laughter as he tries to chase after you while running in the water as you swim away.

"Please just let me get you once!" he begs.

So you run with him and you chase each other around the pool until Junghwan tells you your five minutes are up and you have to practice again. You catch him as he says this though, wrapping your arms around the boy's waste and making him blush and stop talking mid-sentence.

Every day passes just like that, with the two of you exchanging nothing but small smiles and nods in class, but spending phys.ed together in the pool, Junghwan cheering you on as you train and you doing your best.

"You'll watch me at my swim meet, right?" you always ask Junghwan as the date begins to near.

"You know I will," he tells you each time.

And when the day finally comes, he's there in the bleachers, watching you walk up standing tall and looking confident despite feeling like a nervous wreck inside. You search for his face and find him, smiling and sending you a small wave.

It's all you need to remind you to breathe as you step up on the block and await the cue to get ready, then go. You dive in smoothly, dolphin kick for as long and far as you can before surfacing and beginning to sprint.

Not focusing on any of the lanes around you, you give it your all and just enjoy the feeling of you moving swiftly through the water as Junghwan cheers you on, and boy does he cheer you on.

He yells so loudly that it drowns out everyone else, and after you touch the wall on your final lap and raise your head, you can hear his booming voice yelling that you've done a good job.

The scoreboard confirms this, as you've come in first, and all you can do it smile down at the water, knowing your hard work paid off.

From the bleachers, Junghwan is ecstatic that you've come in first. He keeps wanting to turn to everyone around him and tell them that you're his s/o and you came in first... but you're not his s/o and now he doesn't even know what's wrong with him - why does he want you to be his s/o? Wait... he wants you to be his s/o?

When you're able to meet Junghwan for dinner at a fast food place later - your first meeting outside of school - he seems dazed and nervous. You keep asking him if he's okay as he fidgets with his hands, and all he can say is 'yes'... but something is clearly on his mind. So you wait for him to speak up first instead, and he does.

"Listen, [y/n], I know this may be really weird because... we don't even properly know each other yet, and I'm worried I'll ruin our friendship if I say this and it doesn't go well but... it's taking over my mind and I can't just forget about it anymore. [y/n]... I've realized that I like you and I want to date you."

Your silence causes him to keep rambling.

"I want to call you mine... like even at the meet I just wanted to tell everyone that you're mine and you won but-"

You put a piece of chicken in his mouth and he blinks at you.

"Let me answer, dammit. Sure, I'll date you. As long as we get to see each other outside of phys.ed class and outside of school," you say, looking down and eating so Junghwan won't see your excited eyes.

Junghwan laughs, poking your knee with his finger under the table.

"Of course we'll see each other outside of phys.ed and school..." he says, giggling to himself with joy.

Later, when he tells Jaehyuk that he's dating the person who he hated for skipping phys.ed, you can bet Jaehyuk teases Junghwan to no end. Why? Because he saw this coming. Of course he'd fall for you, because Jaehyuk knows who you are. You're the school's star athlete, known for using phys.ed time to train. Of course innocent little Junghwan, who very rarely hates anyone, would end up falling for you, hard. And he does, of course.

[rolandtowen]

three times Zuko comes into the Jasmine Dragon coffee shop, and one time Sokka leaves with him. Set in the Neurodiverse Zukka AU, but can read as a standalone.

*banging pots and pans together* "Come over here and get yall Neurodiverse Zukka!"

Read it on Ao3 or under the cut!

TW: discussions of skin picking and implied child abuse

i.

When Sokka pulls into the parking lot of the Jasmine Dragon, he is unsurprisingly the first car there. Being a freshman in town means getting the worst pick of shifts at local businesses. Sokka was hired on to work the opening shift, which means he wakes up at the ungodly hour of 5am to open the shop before the first round of sleep-deprived college students comes in. The pay isn't bad, Mr. Iroh is an incredibly fair man,

The bell on the door jingles on his way in, and he flips several light switches on, watching as the coffee shop slowly comes to life. He busies himself with getting the beans for the day grinding, pulling his first shot and dialing in the expresso. When he takes a sip, the espresso is spot on for the day, which is a relief. Having to make adjustments as customers start filing in is a nightmare.

Today's brew is floral and citrusy, so he decides to make himself and iced lavender latte - with oat milk, of course, because he's gotta do it for the gays - and he spends the next 20 minutes setting out pastries and fiddling with the display cases, making everything look perfect.

At 6am sharp, Sokka unlocks the front door and flips their sign to open, before retreating behind the bar to nurse his latte. Not even five minutes later, the door bell jingles, and Sokka sees a flash of dark hair, face obscured by a pile of textbooks and binders. The figure runs into one table, and then another, and Sokka is rushing out from behind the counter. He gets there just before textbooks go toppling everywhere, his hands taking a firm hold of the top bundle. As he pulls the books into his arms, he sees the face behind them.

Breathtaking golden eyes.

And.. a massive burn scar.

"Hi!" Sokka says, "I'm the barista on shift today - my name's Sokka." He would reach his hand for the other man to shake, but for the stack of textbooks in them.

Golden Eyes smiles.

"I'm Zuko, Zuko Sozin," he says, setting his remaining textbooks on the table by his side. Sokka follows suit.

"Hey, I think I've seen you before - are you taking Piandao's Intro to Biology class?"

"Uh, yeah - yeah! You sit a few rows in front of me." Zuko laughs. "Your doodles are uh, something alright."

Sokka knocks him good-naturedly on the shoulder. "I gotta keep my hands busy for my brain to focus." He looks down at the stack of books on the table. "What on earth are you studying, to have that many books?"

"Uh, Biology and Chemistry double-major, Pre-Med track." Sokka's eyes widen. "It's really not that much! I got a bunch of stuff out of the way with AP credits."

Sokka raises an eyebrow.

"Okay, it is a lot - but I'm really passionate about it. I want to be a doctor."

"Well, Dr. Sozin, what can I get started for you today?"

"Can I get a iced matcha, with a lot of honey?"

Sokka raises his other eyebrow. "A doctor with a sweet tooth?"

"Kind of?"

"Don't worry, I won't rat you out to your dentist. An iced matcha with extra honey?" Zuko nods and Sokka smiles. "You got it, doc."

ii.

Sokka falls into a routine at the Jasmine Dragon. He opens the shop every morning, and every morning of the fall semester so far, Zuko Sozin comes in at precisely 6:05am. Zuko will order an iced matcha with honey, and sits at a table by the window with his laptop and at least two textbooks open at all times. Then, at 11:50am - Sokka guess he has a class that starts at noon - Zuko leaves the shop, always making sure to throw his spare change into Sokka's tip jar.

He's so beautiful.

On a slow day, Sokka comes out from behind the safety of the counter and works up the courage to ask Zuko if he can study with him. Zuko looks shocked at first, but his lips quirk up in a smile as he gestures for Sokka to sit in the chair across from him, moving his textbooks to make room for Sokka's one book and laptop.

"What are you studying, Sokka?" Zuko appears to be genuinely interested.

"Oh, uh, social work, with a concentration in mental health." Sokka waits for Zuko to laugh at him. It never comes. He looks up at him over their laptops.

"That's really cool."

"You think so?"

"Yeah! I mean, some pre-med majors can be really pretentious, really dismissive of mental illness, but um - not me. I don't really have that luxury." Zuko laughs, as though at a joke with himself. "What's the Intro to Biology for, then?"

"Not all of us got our common core out of the way with AP credits, like some nerd I know." Zuko smiles at that, and looks back down at his laptop screen.

Sokka pulls his keys from his pocket and starts fidgeting with the stim toy he keeps on his keychain as he reads through his latest assignment for his Mental Illness and Society class. He bought it on Etsy, relieved to find a neurodivergent-owned shop after scrolling through a lot of stores that just seemed to be hopping on the 'trend' of selling fidget toys. He flips to the next page in his textbook, popping the buttons back and forth in a steady rhythm. He remembers Zuko's sitting across from him and stops abruptly.

"Is this annoying? Do you want me to stop?"

Zuko just cocks his head. "Why would I get a say in what you do? It's kind of your shop, right?"

"Um, to be polite?" Sokka laughs. "And you would be surprised how many customers I get who think they get to tell me what to do." His eyes settle on the half drunk latte in front of him. "It's not really my shop either, I just work the early morning shifts so Mr. Iroh can sleep in. If you ever get to stay past noon sometime, you'll see him come in. You can't miss him, short guy, talks in riddles. He's older, a war vet I think - I just get that impression from some of the stories he tells me. But anyway, did you want me to stop fidgeting?" Sokka looks back up to meet those golden eyes.

Zuko glitches for a second. "Oh! No, no, go for it - if it helps you to study, I'm all for it."

Sokka smiles, and looking at the way Zuko keeps picking at his cuticles gives him an idea. He digs into his backpack and pulls out another stim toy, an acupressure ring. ""Do you want to try this instead of maiming your hands?"

Zuko hesitantly holds out a hand and Sokka drops it into his palm. "You don't have to."

Sokka scoffs. "I know I don't have to - I want to. Come on, I wear it on my thumb sometimes -" and suddenly he's taking Zuko's hands into his and getting very close to Zuko's face. Zuko can smell espresso on his clothes and Sokka's hands are so warm against his. Calloused, sure, but warm. He holds Zuko's right hand gently, pressing the spiky ring onto his thumb. "And you can rub it back and forth with your pointer finger and it gives you that kind of prickly sensation that you get from skin picking, just without the skin picking." Sokka pulls his hands away and Zuko immediately misses them. "Give it a shot, tell me what you think."

Zuko tentatively rolls the ring over his thumb. Huh. The cute barista's right, the acupressure gives him that same prickly, scratchy feeling that picking at his nails and cuticles does. "Wow," he says, "I think you've converted me."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Then keep it, I've got a thousand more where that came from, ADHD perks."

Zuko instinctively opens his mouth to protest but the words die in his throat.

"You, you have ADHD?" He stops rolling the ring across his thumb.

"Yup." Sokka's lips popped on the 'p', and he turned to the next page in his textbook. "And I'm pretty sure you've got some spicy stuff happening your brain, too. But you don't have to tell me."

"How are you so open about it?"

Sokka's hand stills around the fidget. "My parents never treated me like I was deficient in any way - my brain just works differently, which means I have trouble with some 'normal' stuff. But I also strengths in areas that others don't have naturally. Accommodations aren't anything to be ashamed of."

"Sounds nice." All of the levity drops out of Zuko's voice.

Sokka levels a look at Zuko. He lets his eyes flit to the right side of Zuko's face and the scar there. He's seen it so many times, and the burns look so concentrated, almost... intentional. His stomach churns at the thought. The scar's old... and Zuko's at college now, he has to be safe - he has to be.

"Like I said, you don't have to tell me." Sokka's hand starts to fidget with the buttons again. "But I have it on good authority that I am a good listener."

"I'll... I'll keep that in mind." Zuko looks down at his hands, fingers rolling the ring back and forth against his thumb. "Thank you."

"Anytime, doc."

iii.

Somehow, fumbling through their collective social awkwardness, they manage to swap numbers.

At the end of the fall semester, Sokka texts Zuko for the first time.

S: hey, im gonna be a few minutes later. don't worry, im still coming.

Z: okay. thank you.

When Sokka finally pulls into the parking lot fifteen minutes late, he sees Zuko waiting outside the door, sitting on a bench, head buried in one of his chemistry textbooks.

"Hey," he puts his keys in the door. "You can just come in while I open, it won't take too long."

Zuko follows him inside, and he closes the door against the chill.

"You didn't have to text me," Zuko says, like it's a question.

"I wanted to," Sokka starts flipping on light switches. "I know you've got your routine, and I didn't want to stress you out when it got messed up."

"Why would that matter to you?"

"Um, I don't want you to be stressed? I kind of care about you."

"You... you care about me?" Zuko stands in the middle of the coffee shop, unmoving.

Sokka smiles. "Yeah, I think I do."

"Why?"

"I think we could be friends?"

"Oh." Zuko's face falls for a second - what Sokka has come to understand is his 'processing' face - and he looks back up a second later. "I think we could be friends too."

"Friendship with a barista has great perks, you know." Sokka laughs as he starts up the grinder. "Although the perks of a social worker friend aren't too bad either."

"How's that going? With your first semester ending?" Zuko sits on a stool at the bar and watches Sokka putter around behind it.

"Well, I'm going to pass Intro to Biology, not for lack of trying on Piandao's part - I swear he's trying to weed out all the humanities kids. It isn't even a weed out course!" He polishes an espresso glass furiously. "How are you doing?"

Zuko chokes. "Oh, I'm - I'm fine, you know it's a hard class and all -"

"You're getting an A, aren't you?" Sokka squints at him from behind a bag of coffee beans. "Curve breaker," he scoffs.

"Hey, it's not my fault that I'm, what did you call it? A 'burnt-out gifted kid with people pleasing tendencies'." Zuko crosses his arms and huffs at the memory of that conversation. Sokka had read him like a picture book. And it was not fair for one person to be that good at emotions.

"You are correct, I did indeed call you that." Sokka pulls the first shot of the morning. "And it looks like I was right."

"You know what you said the other week, about being a good listener?"

"Sure do," Sokka takes a sip of the espresso, swishing it around in his mouth before spitting it out. "What's on your mind?"

"Well, if we're going to be... friends, I just think you'd want to know that - I'm autistic." Zuko stares at Sokka searching his face for any cues about what the next words out of his mouth will be, waiting for the facade of friendship to drop. He furiously rolls the acupressure ring up and down his thumb.

"Okay, that's great!"

"...what."

Zuko's hands freeze and he squeezes the ring against his skin, feeling the pressure increase.

"That's great, I'm glad you felt safe enough to tell me that. I kind of guessed your parents weren't as accommodating as mine?"

Zuko laughs something sour. "No, no they were not." He looks up in surprise as Sokka puts an iced matcha, extra honey, in front of him. "You're right though, I do feel safe here. I feel safe with you." Zuko looks down at the acupressure ring on his thumb, softening his grip. "You could have totally ignored me, but you didn't. Or you could've been mean about my quirks - but you weren't. Why?"

"Well, for starters, you tip well." Sokka smiles and leans across the counter, bracketing Zuko's elbows in with his own. "But you're also a really great guy - you're passionate, you want to make people's lives better, and you're also like, really beautiful."

Zuko feels his cheeks flush. "You really think that?" His fingers still against the fidget again, but he doesn't feel the need to press it into his skin. He's captivated by Sokka's words. Surely, Sokka couldn't actually mean -

"Oh, yeah. Every bit." Sokka brushes his hand against one of Zuko's, the one with the fidget ring. "Can I hold your hand?"

"Yes, please, yes." After weeks, Sokka's hand is back in his, and Zuko thinks he's going to implode. "Can, can you hold both of my hands? With both of your hands?"

"Of course," Sokka's positively beaming, grabbing Zuko's hands and running his thumbs across his knuckles. "Now you're absolutely allowed to say no to my next question, and there are no hard feelings."

"Yes?"

"Can I kiss you?"

"Fuck yes."

The iced matcha is forgotten.

+ i

Sokka's feet hurt like hell. Mr. Iroh had called in him to work a double on Friday, and since he doesn't have any classes on Fridays, he foolishly agreed.

It won't seem so foolish once you see the paycheck, he reminds himself. He and Zuko have a deal. Zuko pays for his medical school with his job shelving books at the University library, and Sokka pays for their tiny apartment by caffeinating all of the other broke college kids in town. By some miracle, they seem to be able to make it work. Zuko graduated into the medical college a year early, which helps with tuition costs, and of course his brilliant boyfriend got all kinds of scholarships.

Sokka is indescribably proud of him.

The door bell jangles just as Sokka is wiping the crumbs off the last cafe table. "Hey, we're starting to close up for the night, so it'd better be a to-go order," he calls over his shoulder.

"Even for me?"

"Zuko!" Sokka drops his cloth immediately and spins around, pulling Zuko into a hug. Zuko taps the small of his back when he's ready to let go, and Sokka lets him go, beaming. "You came to visit me at work?"

"More like I picked up your favorite soup dumplings from Haru's across the street and thought we could walk home together?" Zuko shrugs, gesturing to the brown paper bag in his arms. "How's that sound to you?"

"Baby, that's just what I needed today." Sokka picks up his cleaning supplies. "Okay, I just need to put all of this away and then we can lock up and go home, how's that?"

"Great," Zuko smiles at him. "I may have also picked up some more Doctor Who DVDs from the library," he smirks.

"Oh, you trickster!" Sokka yells from the kitchen, before appearing again. "You used my one weakness, pork soup dumplings, against me in order to get your nerdy way."

"Oh, big talk coming from the guy who watches astronomy documentaries for fun," Zuko laughs as Sokka leads him out of the shop, switching off the lights and locking the door behind him. "If it were up to you, we'd be watching Cosmos all weekend, and I can only take so much of Neil deGrasse Tyson explaining the peculiarities of the moon."

"Hey, the moon is cool!"

"You are correct, the moon is very cool. It's freezing, because it's a rock. In space. With no atmosphere. Or life." Zuko deadpans, earning a light punch on the shoulder from Sokka.

"Fine, you get Doctor Who tonight, but Saturday is going to be all PBS Nova, baby. Brace yourself." Sokka takes Zuko's free hand into his as they start the walk home.

"Well, as long as you're there, I'm happy."

Notes:

fidgets in this work were inspired by those from shop StimBox

[shiro-0197]

aw shiro, my love, don't worry about it!! i only hope you're okay and safe :d please only reply when you're free, and don't feel bad about it!! >:(

my day yesterday was okay, i've just been relaxing, and studying occasionally. went out to explore a nearby town too, it's so pretty there. and much colder (since it's a highlands) of course!! Today was great too. I bought doughnuts (they're amazing?? I love doughnuts), and I had instant ramen, but it was SO spicy I nearly died. (Three bottles of water later, because someone finished all the milk in the household *cough* me *cough*) and I'm still just reeling. Sucks having such low spice tolerance HAHA. I'm listening to some old school hip-hop rn, while typing this out :D how were your two days?

here are some i'll be using to teach english :d and that would honestly be much appreciated, he's getting on my last nerve rn. (I included the first few, what do you think?)

thats such a priceless feeling i so totally agree. you're so precious 🥺🥺 i'm sure they're prouder thank you imagine. you're so dedicated!! i'm sure all that extra research you've done will definitely pay off. it's good that you know what the job is roughly like, so you'll be really prepared when you finally do start it. you know that one scene, in the 2nd season of the great pretender? when the chinese mafia boss emphasizes the importance of a translator in literally everything? (like that book award example) i may be getting the thing muddled up, but i found that so cool. like yeah, a book or speech could be absolutely beautiful, but if everyone can't enjoy it due to it being a different language, it would be such a shame. i just find translators really important. sorry, i'm really dorky haha 🥺🥺

awww but i think your personality type is wonderful. a lot of my favourite characters are intj (they're all so precious istg grrrr) yes!! i was in a tooru brainrot yesterday too 😭😭😭 (saw a bunch of couples on my walk, and I was like "if only Tooru was real grrrr") and yes?? there'd be so much to learn from each and every one of them. dedication from hinata, savage lines from tsukki, kindness from yams/yachi, how to be a dork 101 from atsumu. aaaah 😭😭i'm sorry they're all so wonderful.

No pftttt I totally feel you. I saw some people without masks today and I was like "bro wtf" and just really loudly said "I sure hope everyone starts following the rules so the cases don't increase" because I'm a lil bitch like that xD

awww okay!! I'll definitely keep that in mind. Mayo makes everything better, tbh >.< aww that's understandable! I don't have specific preferences but hearing the phrase "soggy cheese" makes me want to cry somewhere :( I don't like nuts in chocolate. I'm very passionate about that? XD ikr??

I'm surprised too, I usually never pass on murder, but I guess you're just special like that 👉👈 sir I'd get married to you as many times as you'd like 😼 oops sorry for being cheesy, but—you like cheese ;)

U

I won't ask why, don't worry. Since I kinda feel the same about Malaysia tbh. It's a love hate relationship, I think HAHA but yeah 😣😣 i don't look up to US at all, and it sucks because people generally do. And I'm just like ;-; why (no offense to Americans tho lol)

is that even legal omg they're so chaotic?? XD how cute tho. Angel does stuff like that all the time too, but I'd never know that when I first met her (she has the most perfect exterior, and then when you get to know her; she's the biggest dork) Schools opening on the 20th, I can't wait to see her then :] (I can, however, wait for the exams which are scheduled for the 25th ugh)

peanut butter is indeed yellow, not up for discussion hehe :) here's my favourite hues!! I love gentle, soft hues like these (pastels) , for yellow; I don't have a favourite. they're all wonderful

ahhh no that's so precious of you!! :)) I'm smiling rn.

yeah skdhskdjsk I'M JUST SO GRRR. Whenever someone goes "hey Ari can you ______" and we both respond?? The tension?? In the air?? Bro skdjskks. 😔🤚 You share a name with one of the most precious characters too tho!!;

This is Shiro from Voltron hehe. I love him so much, just like I love you (tho I'm sure we both know I love you more <3)

I share a name with a book character. His name is Aristotle Mendoza, but his crush-turned-boyfriend calls him "Ari" (which has been my nickname since I was 12). Reading it for the first time was the BEST feeling ever. It's also my favourite book, "Aristotle and Dante discover the secrets of the universe".

—Ari :D (no pfttt I love the tag so much. I have my own tag, that's like the best thing ever 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺)

Heyyy I'm so sorry for answering so late!! I know you said not to apologize but..... well hmm no excuse I just feel like apologizing, but either way thank you for your patience!!♡ This is the third time I'm rewriting this, and this time I'm doing this in my notes because fuck it😔

Im glad to hear that!! Highlands are always so pretty. Wish we had those here, but it's only steppe here:( Boring~ ooh, donuts!!! They're really good. I havent much, but I tried them like 3 times and they're so good. I really hope I will get to eat more<3 also WHAT'S THOSE NOODLES' NAME I WANNA KNOW- Are you feeling okay now, though? XD

My days were nice!!! Felt as if I had been hiding three bodies, but I've been feeling better lately. We had online school yesterday so I'm excused from the errands for the half of the day, thankfully. But your messages make me very happy. Though I dont always feel like writing a response (or I get stressed because it doenst save) so very sorry for that😔

Ohh those look so pretty!! I'd totally join to just look at them. The colors are so nice🥺 it looks like one of our olympiad prep slides, though better. I dont have the screenshots sadly😩 Either way I really love the little details like the squiggly thingies or the Ж .... they seem unnecessary but the energy changes a lot without them hehe

I really hope they will be🥺 that'd mean a lot to me. And I'm also really hopeful itll work out. I really don't wanna disappoint my family, which is literally just one person. The less people there are, the more it hurts, you know?

Yeah, that scene meant so much to me!! I dknt remember much, but I was very happy they said something like that, because I've been told being a translator wont work out for me. Now look at me, I'm about to tell them to fuck themselves<3 I was also so surprised to see Laurent know that many languages ..... I aspire to be like him😩 And honestly, I havent though so deep of that but you opened my eyes and now I'm about to float off into the next universe😭 dont apologize though, its very cute!!!♥︎♥︎

Heheh, I guess you're right.. every single anime INTJ is a silent sexy mastermind and I love them . ... YEAH every single time I see a passing couple i cry because I dont have anyone 😡💔 and sometimes when I see people doing something amusing (which includes people failing cuz I'm evil) I just imagine one of the characters doing that and I smile all the way xD Honestly, I'd sell my father on black market for a single day with one of them:( though that may sound like a really low price because his cigarette filled lungs wouldnt cost a lot... I sound like my 7th grade self again I'm so sorry

BAHQHHANEJWJD I HOPE THEY WERE EMBARRASED. I HOPE THEY FELT AWKWARD AND OTHER PEOPLE DID TOO, they deserve it. Like, learn your lesson bitch, it's been a year!

Yeah!!! I love mayo, not to the point where I would gulp it down from the package, but it does make dishes taste good. Same, soggy cheese on itself sounds like a dish served in the ninth circle of hell. You should try nuts in honey!! Like, just straight up dip them in honey. Sounds weird, and it doesnt always taste NEJFJKSKF (depends on the honey)but I think it's worth trying xD Walnuts are the best with honey I think

That was so funny ... TOO FUNNY, I LAUGHED FOR LIKE . 3MINUTES STRAIGHT and I do not laugh when I'm tired. You really are special 😭😭😭😭 cheesy ... HAHRNFJJSF

I'm so sorry for being a bully like that but it's so funny how you left a single U there . Its so mysterious, was it in purpose? Or were you lost in the excitement if messaging me?

I was one of those people, honestly 😭 but mostly because I wasnt aware of its political condition, I guess. Maybe theres more than just politics that's bad about US, but honestly, it has more opportunities than this hellfire. Though now I'm more into Norway and Japan. Really wanna travel there :(

Heheh, yeah, we never really show off to strangers at first. I dont know what exactly I mean by we, but you get my point ♡ Good luck though!! I hope it goes well for you<3

Oh they looks so pretty!! They're really wonderful. Like bubblegum and cotton candy and literally anything sweet... it's so cute !!! And I totally agree, there isnt a bad yellow.

HAHAH, honestly, that reminds me of how there were 4 people with the same name in my class, and whenever the teacher did the attendance thing, they would all stand up. Teachers usually dont say the last names, so we always gotta ask which person they mean if theres more than one person with that name, so yeah.. That happened on accident at first, but then they just did it for trolling xD

OH MY GOD HES SO PRETTY? HES SO PRECIOUS?? HUHHH??? I gotta thank Kuro for this wonderful opportunity of sharing a name with someone like .... him🥺

Oh that's so cool!! Also, he has a boyfriend ... I really need to start reading xD it's so cute though! It sounds like such a good book, I'm glad you share a name with him, hehe!!

I also share my real name with one of the characters in a kids' show, and its SO ugly, I'm in pain. Every time my friends see one of those on TV they go

Which is a pain in the ass, it's so embarrassing...........

Awh, okay!! I'm glad you love it, cuz I do too. Because it's your name.... cuz I love u. That was so lame PLEASEJWJDJSJF I HOPE YOUR DAY WAS GREAT !!! LOVE YOU

[rixxy8173571m3w1p3]

Doesn't It Hurt?

This is for the lovely @ravenousscorpian wanted a jealous Doofus Rick. The title and some dialogue is based off the lyrics from the song Jealousy, and it's a song from the 1980s show Gem. If you want to hear the song then heres a link. (Listen to song here) Lol, and if you want to hear about my fan girl moments with Gems voice actress then dm me. And to all of you whose prompts I didn't get to try, I promise to get to them as soon as I can.

Reference to the woman from Zeta-7s old journals is from my fic What you Found Amongst the Pages. Read it if you want a little more context on that.

In this fic the reader runs into an old friend, but to Zeta-7 this guy is being a little more then friendly.

_______________

jeal·ous·y

/ˈjeləsē/

noun

jealous resentment against a rival, a person enjoying success or advantage, etc., or against another's success or advantage itself.

mental uneasiness from suspicion or fear of rivalry, unfaithfulness, etc., as in love or aims.

vigilance in maintaining or guarding something.

_______________

Jealousy is something you've felt on many occasions. Whether it was dealing with other women who took a libidinous interest in Zeta-7, or of the woman from his past you had only read about in an old journal, and on the rare occasion having felt it towards the Jerrys in his care at the Jerryboree. However, the feelings usually left as quickly as they came.

As for Rick, you never readily suspected he was capable of such emotions, except for the other day when you two were shopping and decided to stop at the boba shop next to Charming Charlie for a drink. It was adorable watching his reaction to the small tapioca balls in the honey milk tea, and his fascination in the concept, but he wasn't sure as to why it was as popular as it was. You thought it had to do with trends, and you were ready to explain it, but someone else answered. “Duh, because it's fun."

The both of you turned towards the owner of the voice and you didn't bother holding back your surprise. “Lawrence? Oh my God, I haven't seen you in ages. How are you?”

“I've been alright. Doing a little better now that I got to see you.”

He was that one guy who was ready for any kind of adventure. The last time you had seen him, he was making out with his girlfriend of the week. And while you had been friends, you lost touch after graduation. You shook your head, finding him as flirtatious as ever, and from the corner of your eye, you noticed his quiet and still Rick had gotten. “You never change do you?” you continued, despite your better judgment. “So, what have you been up to since after graduation?”

Unceremoniously, he pulled up a chair to your table, completely disregarded Ricks existence, and sat close beside you, going on for a while about all the unbelievable things you used to think of doing but never did until you met Zeta-7. Every so often you looked back to gauge Ricks response, but he was quiet and contemplative, drinking his drink in peace. You didn't want to be rude and listened on for a while longer, but your anxiety was building at his continued flirtations. And the moment Lawrence tried to touch your hair, you heard the clatter of a chair, and Zeta-7 stood between you two. “Sh-she doesn't like to - to be touched.”

Honestly, you were relieved. Now you had a better idea as to why you didn't stay in touch.

“What the hell man? I wasn't going to try nothin.”

“Y-y-y-y-you were going to touch her, and I think she wouldn't appreciate that. She's a-a proper lady.”

Oh God. Did you break Zeta-7?

“Rick?” you wondered, gently slipping your hand into his. “Is something the matter?”

With a sigh, he turned towards you, giving you those pleading, quiet, desperate, cloudy blues, telling you that he wanted to leave. You nodded, understanding the possible consequences of staying here longer then you should. “I'm sorry Lars,” you apologized. “we've got to go.”

Glancing at your latched hands, he scoffed. “You do huh? Who is this guy anyway? Your grandpa? I thought your grandparents were dead.”

“Th-they are,” Zeta-7 answered neutrally, his sounding a bit more Rick like then you preferred. “and they were r-really nice people.”

Never knowing when to stop his foolishness, he smirked at you. “So you're his carer? That's cute.”

Usually, Rick ignored what others thought you two were, but his face fell as though he were fighting a losing battle. However, with a final stretch of resolve, he answered firmly. “N-no, she's not.”

You gave his hand a squeeze, and smiled up at him, proud of his improvement. Poor man, being tested all the time, but you too were resolved in the matter. You softened. “The two of us, we're a lot of things, which could include caretaking I guess, but he's usually taking care of me. I doubt it's convenient for him, but he's reliable in that respect. And before you ask, he's not my sugar daddy, because he's too good for that, and he doesn't…we're more likely….we're in it for the long run. Lawrence, this is Ricardo Sánchez. He’s my neighbor and above all things my boyfriend. Now,” you giggled, standing up and latching on to his arm. “if you'll excuse us, we have a date to finish. He's been patient enough to let us chat, but it's my turn to return the favor. See ya.”

As ever, it wasn't long before the guy found interest in the next girl in his path, who you hoped would know better, and for Zeta-7 to settle back into the habit of continuous apology, but you kissed him on the cheek to ease him. “I think that every place we go, or everywhere we turn, someone else is moving in, trying to throw fireballs or something. Do you think we should move? Cause lately being with other humans is starting to annoy me.”

“Y-y-you mean the two of-of us?”

“Yes, if you want. Or do you think I mean that guy back there? Look, I'm going to tell you this once, and you better remember it. Understand? I only want you, and you were the one who had asked me to go steady with you. So, if you think that anytime soon I'm suddenly going to change my mind, then the only way that's going to happen is if I get amnesia, or if I was replaced with a robot. So you better not get a robot of me okay?”

Scratching the back of his neck, he nodded. “I-I-I won't.”

“And, while we're on the topic of being jelly, you better stop acting cute in front of other people,” you pouted. “or else.”

You saw the beginnings of a smile, and blame the Rick in him for his next words. “Or - or what? What will y-you do?”

Tugging on your hoodie strings, you put on your shades, and posed. “Or I'll become savage and roast anyone who gets in between me and my man. And then, I'll go home and cry, and eat a quart of ice cream because I'm a dork, and will probably feel bad about it.”

“I-I-I don't really get it, but it's cute. You,” he softened. “are t-too precious.”

“You know, I'm not going anywhere.”

Taking your hand again, he said softly. “Yeah, y-you're right. No dejaré que alguien - I-I won't let someone get in b-between us. O-okay?”

You giggled. “Unless…oh never mind.”

“Unless what?”

“Unless they're related to us.”

You allowed him to absorb this information while you lead him to the next store; half dazed and twice assured.

Fin