Chapter Text
the moon shines brightly as zuko tossed and turned trying to find his way into a peaceful sleep. a tight feeling was growing in his chest as he breathed heavily.
Zuko stared at the ceiling as his mind wandered and his eyes drooped slowly and he felt somewhat at ease.
a painful sensation shot through his body as his eyes opened again. a pool of hot sweat dripping down his face, He was suddenly awake, feeling sweaty and paralyzed. He lay there for a moment, trying to understand what was going on. He couldn't move, but he could hear his own breathing. He tried to remain calm, telling himself that this was just a bad dream.
Zuko could feel the sensation of light but couldn’t see it. The feeling made sickly bile move up in his throat and be breathed in an effortless motion to keep from vomiting. it all felt unreal, like some sadistic thing that his mind had come up with to scare him.
he shivered as he tried to move his arms and only felt pain in response.
Zuko felt tears beginning to pour from his eyes when he heard a familiar voice.
“zuko? Are you ok dude?”
zuko sat up a little too fast from the startling yet joyful feeling that ran up his body. He expected his body to slam violently back into the bed but was caught by the strong and steady arms of sokka.
zuko wouldn’t refer to himself as a nervous person, but in this moment it was definitely true. his heart was pounding and his hands began to sweat more as he looked into the concerned eyes of the water tribe boy that he deeply desired so much.
“yeah i’m fine, just go back to bed” zuko said as he tried to lay back down.
Sokka wasn’t stupid however and immediately clocked the embarrassment coming from Zuko. He smirked as he put a hand on Zuko's shoulder to pull him closer.
“Come on man, I'm fine. It was just some weird dream I had, "Zuko said grumpily.
Sokka frowned a little and stood up to leave when Zuko made a decision in a moment of confidence.
“Actually I feel kind of lonely in this massive room, maybe you can stay,” zuko said while avoiding eye contact.
Sokka crawled into bed next to Zuko and gently caressed the other boy’s face and moved closer to him.
Sokka could tell how nervous Zuko was and he got a feeling that he was craving more than just simply sharing a bed. He was tempted to take the hint and cross the line between friends and something more, but he had never admitted his feelings for Zuko before and he wasn't sure if the feeling was mutual. Nonetheless, Zuko slowly felt at ease enough to fall asleep in Sokka's arms.