"You should've know ,"

"You really are that stupid? No surprise for a pathetic waste of space like you to fall for something so obvious,"

"They always hated you,"

"Your just a monster, no one could actually love you.."

Bang

Bang

Gold eyes looked behind him and a gasp was stuck in his throat seeing two bullet holes in Katara as blood seeped through her clothes and she dropped to the ground in shock.

"Kat!" A screamed ripped through his throat.

"Katara!" He shrieked running towards her as tears fell down her face holding her chest where the blood dripped from.

"No no no, kat I'm sorry, I'm sorry I'm sorry," Zuko sobbed holding her as she stared at him in surprise still as she had tears run down her face until her chest stopped moving.

He paused seeing the life drain from her eyes. He inhaled deeply as his body trembled, he screamed.

His screams echoed through the black room as he held her, feeling her blood.

"You should've known, she would never care what happened to you yet you would be destroyed if something were to happen to her,"

"And look what happens, because of you, just like mom, like jet, like jin, everyone will leave you anyways,"

"Stop!"

Zuko bolting from his bed with tears and sweat as he felt like there were bricks on top of his chest.

"Get off get off stop!" He cried pushing away whoever was trying to grab him.

He whimpered a little holding his head as durk jumped on the ground as Zuko choked on air with wide eyes, he wheezed holding his chest and pulled the blanket off him when he felt to hot.

"Stop stop stop," he whispered at the pounding in his head.

"Hey are you okay? We heard something fall," Aang walked to his room and saw the cat on the floor.

"I'm fine, j-just leave," Zuko kept his head down as his hands shook.

"What's wrong?" Aang asked gently.

"Bad dream, I'm fine," he inhaled deeply but the exhale was shaking.

"What happened?" He asked again and Zuko looked at him. Why would he care? He was bullied by him. He shouldn't be kind, he should hate him.

"You said you knew what I was doing before, what did you mean by that?" Zuko ran both hands through his hair to push the sweat off his face.

"Like with your freak outs?" Aang cocked his head to the side. He nodded softly.

"Just... I remember the first time you and Jet got in a fight before you disappeared for a while, you tried pushing him away with insults and acting like it didn't matter, like nothing matters, and you were doing that before acting like it didn't matter," Aang explained softly as he rubbed the short brown hair on his head.

"And at the dance yesterday you didn't react at all, you've never given people a reaction and when they keep pushing and pushing you snap, that blind rage you have,"

Zuko gulped a little and nodded understanding what he meant.

"I guess it's easier to just shut down.." He whispered.

"Your smart for a kid you know that?" Zuko sighed flopping on his back in the bed with his arms above his head.

"Really? Thanks," Aang beamed brightly.

Zuko looked at him raising a brow and smiled a little as he looked back at the ceiling.

"Do you think it was a lie? Or a misunderstanding?" Zuko asked quietly.

"I think it's a misunderstanding, but I get why you'd think it's more, that it was some cruel joke, and maybe it was in the beginning but... it probably didn't last long," Aang told him honestly remembering when he saw Katara and Jet get in an argument in the hallway and she looked distressed.

"How did the rest of last night go? I felt like I was going to pass out," he gulped and Aang shrugged.

"I didn't know until Suki told me, Katara went home too, Sokka went after her, toph, Suki and I took an Uber home, Sokka said she was still sleeping when he left earlier," Aang nodded and Zuko covered his face.

He felt his phone ring and look to the side seeing it wasn't Katara. It was jin.

"I have to take this," he rolled to his side, to tired to get up. Aang understood and closed the door as he left.

"Hello?" He tried to make his voice not seem so.. him.

"Hey, been a while," jin chuckled but she sounded nervous.

"Yea, what's new?" Zuko closed his eyes.

"I'm starting to look at colleges, my mom is going to help me figure out the whole money part but I think we'll be fine," jin hummed as it sounded like she was walking.

"I just wanted to see if you have any in mind for one we can go too,"

Zukos heart sunk as he pulled the blanket to his chin.

"I don't think I'm going to be able to go to one your colleges," he gulped a little.

"What? Why?"

"I lost the job that was going to get me out of here," Zuko admitted.

"I don't know if I even want to go to college," he shrugged a little.

"Hey, you don't sound to good Zuko, what's going on?" Jin noticed and immediately got concerned.

"Nothing, I'm actually doing really good," he lied with ease. "I just woke up, sorry if my voice is kind of bleh,"

"How come your not thinking about going to college?" She asked still worried.

"Just seems like a waste," he yawned a little.

"How's.. Katara?" She asked.

"We're good, her brother I think doesn't hate me," he tried to sound more positive in his voice but his eyes stayed closed.

"Yay! I'm happy for you!" She giggled.

"Yea, it's really not as bad as I thought here, people suck but like tolerable," he clenched his fists till they turned white.

"Thank god.. I was worried it was going to be hell alone there," jin laughed a little and Zuko covered his mouth.

"You worry for nothing," he gulped as he felt tears in his eyes again. No no no he couldn't cry. That's stupid. He sniffled a little to collect himself.

"I gotta let you go, uncles calling me," he told her quickly and hung up.

Zuko sat up and rubbed his face again, he wiped his nose quickly before standing. He grabbed his sweat pants and a tee shirt before going to the bathroom ignoring the people in his home.

He looked in the mirror seeing the bags under his eyes showing more. He grabbed his pills and filled the cup with water for the medication. He had to keep trying. He tore off the patch on his arm and threw it away before replacing it with a new patch. He had to show people-no he had to convince them, he had to convince everyone that he wasn't going to be the piece of shit he use to be.

Fuck the world, fuck everyone else. He was getting better for him. He didn't need anyone's permission. Fuck them.