LOVE HER – Zutara

Zuko didn't love a lot of people. He didn't love his sister or his father, not to mention all the court officials and maids and everyone else around his house or in his family (the only exceptions were his mother and his uncle). He didn't love Ty Lee or Mai, as much he thought he did, he found he most certainly didn't. He didn't love Jin or Jet or anyone else he met on his journey.

And he most certainly didn't love her.

There was no way he could. Positively no way. Nope. Nothing. Nada.

So why did he feel a burning sensation in the pit of his stomach when he wasn't even firebending?

She wasn't so great, really. Long brown hair, while it would appeal to some, did nothing for him. Her skin was too dark and tan, and her eyes were too blue. They contrasted with her brown features, he figured. He lightly wondered if they would go better if they were red, then brushed the thought from his mind.

She was too hardheaded and stubborn for it to be appealing. She wasn't trusting and could certainly hold a grudge. She was strong and wild and motherly, and Zuko decided that she was a mess of contradictions and that his life didn't need to get anymore messy than it already was.

Still, he couldn't but notice, she was graceful in the water, in her element. A beautiful calmness that just added another contradiction. Bending the liquid around her in a glorious dance, creating a picture that only the best artists should be allowed to paint.

He didn't love her. He most certainly didn't love her.

But he would admit that he kinda, really (really, really, really) likes her.