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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Apr 1, 2024 23:47:30 GMT
Zuko agreed, but Bella wasn't ready when he took her hand so they didn't get separated making their way through the crowd. Her heart skipped a beat and if her face wasn't already a bit red from the syrup incident, it definitely would be now. Why did she keep reacting this way around Zuko? It was happening more often lately and she didn't know what to think. The crowd soon thinned and Bella found herself looking down at Zuko's hand still around hers. Should she let go now? Or would that seem rude? She found herself unsure what to do.
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Post by zuyuri on Apr 2, 2024 3:22:34 GMT
As the noise level died down and he made sure that no one was going pull Bella away from him, Zuko released his grip on her slowly. The afternoon sun was glittering on the ocean, casting a small white glare. The open pier lay out in front of them. He walked with really no direction in mind, slowing his pace so he didn’t leave her. “Uh…so…what made you want to come out?”
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Apr 3, 2024 1:01:02 GMT
Before Bella could come to any kind of decision, Zuko released her hand first. She gave a silent sigh of relief. At least that took the pressure off her. Although she liked the feeling of his hand around hers more than she was ready to admit. Zuko changed the topic, asking why she decided to come out, which was fair. She wasn't out by herself that often. "I haven't been to the carnival out here since I was young," she replied as she looked out at the ocean. She loved the way the way the light made the water sparkle. It reminded her of gemstones. "I thought it'd be nice to go again. Utena would have come, but a lot of her friends were busy today, so they're going next weekend." Maybe she could have waited, but the weather had been so nice and she'd caught up on all her homework, she thought she shouldn't let the opportunity pass her by. "What about you?" she asked Zuko.
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Post by zuyuri on Apr 3, 2024 3:58:17 GMT
“Me? Uh, well I…never really went to a carnival. I just wanted to see what the big fuss was.” Cinder never let him go to a carnival. She feared that he would be kidnapped. Oh the horror stories she had told him to keep him from leaving the outside. Bella said she came here many times as a child. With a twin like Utena, there was probably never a dull moment. “You guys must have had lots of misadventures,” he commented.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Apr 6, 2024 20:17:08 GMT
Never being to a carnival before wasn't too unusual. They didn't come to every area. Although did that mean Zuko didn't grow up around here? Most people that did had come to this carnival at least once. But he brought the subject back to Bella, commenting about her escapades here must have been entertaining. She gave a little laugh. "Yeah, Utena would want to go on every single ride. My mom would always buy us ice cream and my dad would sometimes fish off the pier. And if we were here all weekend, we'd stay at this little retro hotel with this pretty neon sign outside." She paused for a moment before continuing. "I guess it's not as glamorous as a trip to the city or a tropical island, but...I feel like I kind of liked the simpler things rather than the glitzy stuff." Spending time with her parents and sister had been the most important thing. And after her dad had left, it had taken a while to get used to the hole he'd left in the family dynamic. Bella felt like they got along fine without him now, at least she liked to think that.
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Post by zuyuri on Apr 6, 2024 21:21:15 GMT
“The simplest things in life are usual the best; at least when you think back on it.” At least Bella had a nuclear family to think back upon. All Zuko had was hotel hopping with Cinder. The Slipper had been the fanciest, and even the longest place he and his mother had stayed in. Until he fought against her and paid the price with a scar. He didn’t have the opportunity to ride every ride at a carnival or eat ice cream. Unless he could pay for it. He tried to place Bella’s description of the old fashioned hotel, but he didn’t remember it being where he and Cinder had stayed. A stray wind picked up, and Zuko brushed back some jet black hair that was hitting his eyes. Just because Bella had something he didn’t was no excuse for him to avoid it now. “Um…was there a ride you and Utena always went on?”
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Apr 8, 2024 23:13:58 GMT
Bella nodded. Zuko seemed to understand where she was coming from. Sure, she might indulge in some new band merch or books every now and then, but she didn't need a ton of stuff to be happy. She'd been raised not to place too much value on material things. Zuko seemed to be in deep thought for a moment and Bela found herself sneaking a glance or two when she thought he wasn't looking. There was just something about Zuko's eyes when he was thinking, they seemed so focused, but far away at the same time. The moment didn't last too long though and he broke the silence by asking if she and Utena had a favorite ride. "The ferris wheel," she replied. "Somehow, we'd get lucky and it would always stop right when we were at the top. The view is amazing." Seeing the carnival and the nearby town from above was fun, but it was the ocean view that Bella really liked. Even that high up, it just seemed to go on forever and stretch endlessly towards the horizon.
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Post by zuyuri on Apr 8, 2024 23:46:52 GMT
The Ferris wheel? That was something Zuko was not expecting to hear. He was expecting a sort of in between of Utena’s excitement and Bella’s preference for relaxing. He glanced over his shoulder to the white wheel, dotted with red and yellow wagons. After finding the money in his pockets, he looked at Bella. “Come on. Just because Utena isn’t here doesn’t mean you should miss out. Let’s get in line before the crowd catches up.” Zuko didn’t offer his hand, but he stayed close by her as he made his way over to the wheel. Surprisingly, tickets were not that bad. “Two, please.”
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Apr 9, 2024 23:51:45 GMT
Bella glanced over when Zuko started rummaging around his pockets and offered to go on the ferris wheel with her. "Really?" she asked, her face brightening. She hadn't expected the offer. Maybe he was just returning the favor since she'd offered to get him some food later. Still, she was smiling as she followed Zuko towards the ride. "Thanks, this is...really nice of you," she said, brushing her hair out of her face as she looked up at the ferris wheel. It was a little smaller than she remembered, or maybe she'd just gotten taller. But the view was sure to be great.
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Post by zuyuri on Apr 9, 2024 23:59:39 GMT
Zuko looked away as he sat in the small cubby. A hand came to run the back of his neck. He was only doing what good friends did. She was his friend, and she deserved to have all the fun that she could have. In a way, it was making him feel better. These small, kind gestures. Maybe that could also be what helped him patch things up with Ruby. “I just want my friend to have a good time. What, is that a crime?”
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Apr 11, 2024 23:52:25 GMT
Zuko actually seemed to look embarrassed for once instead of Bella. Maybe this was all new to him? Bella could get that way too if doing something new with a friend. She either clammed up, or if she was with someone shyer than she was, she jabbered on and on in an attempt to seem more confident. "No. no, it's...just nice," she said, smiling a little. "Like offering to get you a treat earlier." She sat next to Zuko, trying not to think too much about their close proximity, and wondered if the lines for those had let up yet. But her thoughts turned else where once the ferris wheel started turning and they rose higher and higher off the ground. "Man, everyone looks like ants already," she said as she peered over the side.
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Post by zuyuri on Apr 12, 2024 0:59:45 GMT
The buggy creaked the wheel began turning. Bella was stammering something, but Zuko didn’t hear it. He was staring out as the ground got further away. This was different than riding a glass elevator in the city. There was a slight breeze from the movement. The ground got smaller, and the pier was getting smaller and smaller. He looked over from his side, staring at how the sun caught against the glass. Bella was right. The view was amazing. Zuko glanced over at her, peering down at the people. How could she find joy in just simply being in a buggy above the ground?
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Apr 14, 2024 21:09:02 GMT
Zuko was quiet, but Bella didn't mind. He was one of the few people whose silence didn't feel so awkward. They went around in a circle once, but as they were going up again, the ferris wheel stopped, allowing people to either gaze at the view or get out if they happened to be at the bottom. "Oh, isn't it beautiful?" Bella gushed as she looked out at the ocean. The water sparkled and gleamed in the sunlight and the further out Bella looked, the bluer it seemed. "You ever wonder how clear it is way out there?" she mused. "Like you could just look down and see everything from the surface to the bottom?" Movies and documentaries tended to show the ocean like that and Bella thought it was fascinating.
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Post by zuyuri on Apr 14, 2024 23:23:35 GMT
“It is,” Zuko said agreeably. The sun hit the ocean at the perfect angle, so that the light wasn’t clashing in the natural dark blue, which was a beautiful contrast to the cloudless blue sky. He smiled to himself, and stole another look at Bella. Her joy was so infectious. When she was happy, everything aroubd her looked brighter. For a minute, her blue eyes matched the exact point of sky and sea, and he didn’t know why, but he felt his heart stop briefly.
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Post by angelofmusic1992 on Apr 15, 2024 22:21:20 GMT
The ferris wheel remained still for a moment longer and Bella was content to look out at the ocean for as long as it stayed that way. But it soon started moving again and the ground slowly got closer. "You ever think we'll get to see sights like this once we're full fledged superheroes?" she said, thinking out loud more than anything else. "I mean, I know most of the work is here, but they travel sometimes. I bet they get to see a lot of cool places."
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