He waited outside of her door.

It was a ratty place, the carpets smelling like smoke and the surrounding rooms noisy.

Did Maiget my note? he wondered. She was taking a long time to leave her room...he'd been waiting—what--half an hour already? It was early; Katara was probably still sleeping back at the palace. Or maybe she's awake, singing and wondering where I am, he countered. He suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey," Mai said. Zuko's smile was crooked.

"Hey," he said back. "I'm...I'm so glad you didn't leave."

Mai dipped her head and looked at him from under her bangs. "You didn't let me," she told him. They hugged, but it was quick, so quick—and a quick peck on the cheek, that was all. There was tension—not between them, but in the touchy situation itself.

"Do you think we could talk somewhere...private?" Zuko asked. Mai nodded and led him into her room and shut the door.

Zuko watched Mai set her room key on a tabletop and watched how she tucked her legs under herself as she sat across from him. He watched her watch him.

"...What exactly is the situtation here?" Mai asked slowly. Zuko took a breath.

"I'm...Mai, I'm in love with you, you know that. But...I'm also kind of in love with my fiancee--"

"Wow, Zuko, you really know how to make me feel like the other woman."

Zuko shook his head. "I don't know what to do! I mean"--he glanced at Mai's eyes --"I know what I want to do, I just...don't know how to do it." His shoulders sunk. "I can't let Katara down, because she'll take it really hard."

"Katara." Mai tried the name on her tongue. "Isn't she the Water Tribe girl?"

"Yes." Zuko hesitated. "She's also the reason I never got any of your letters."

Mai blinked and studied Zuko's face. She said, "You aren't breaking off the engagement because of rhat, are you?"

Of course he wasn't. Zuko had done worse things in his life and had been forgiven; how could he not forgive others himself? He told Mai that...inched closer to her. He could hear her breathing, so slow. He was breaking off the engagement because every time he thought of Mai or saw Mai or heard the name Mai or picked up a knife or looked at the night or saw a drawing...or ate an apple or felt water spray from a fountian or picked out shapes from fire or dressed in orange or heard music or sat on chaises or felt the sun on his skin, he was reminded of a person whom he loved. Deeply and truly and unconditionally. Loved.

"Zuko, if Katara isn't the person you love the most, it would be unfair to both you and her to go on pretending that everything's fine." Mai brushed her fingers against Zuko's scar. It wasn't a mark of a coward or a traitor to her. It marked someone who wasn't afraid to speak his mind, to tell the truth. "And I think Katara knows that things have changed."

"She will hate me," Zuko muttered.

"She will hate you more if you drag this out, Zuko!" Her gaze melted and she closed her hand around the curve of his chin. "She will move on, Zuko," she whispered.

Zuko needed something to hold. So he took Mai in his arms and wrapped her up, and she nestled her face in his shoulder and stayed there. And he stopped thinking about Katara, because as long as Mai was in his arms, he could think of nobody else but Mai.

I love you.

He rested his hand on Katara's shoulder. How he hated to see her cry.

She rose her own hand as though to brush Zuko's away, but no—no, she let her palm fall and let his hand stay there on her shoulder. Those big blue eyes were so pale.

He almost stroked his fingers through her hair, that thick brown hair that was so pretty in the sunlight. She blinked and tried to breathe without sobs, talk without screaming...she lifted her eyes to his and dwelled on the memories. And suddenly Zuko's arms were around her, for the last time. And she knew he loved her and for that moment she pretended he would always love her.

The engagement necklace fell to the floor, the tears fell to the floor.

One last kiss, then goodbye.

The kiss lasted for a second and the sun filtered through the clouds and the curtains, and then...goodbye.

Goodbye.

I love you.

Like the words would help

...I love you more.

And the sun fell behind a cloud and Zuko saw Katara no more.