[ Look, prince life is behind him, okay, Sypha — hot chip life, here we come... He'll eventually return to the apartments and choose a room at random by the end of the night, just somewhere to crash, but he's still trying to keep it in his head that maybe, by some miracle, he'd only need the room for tonight. Selecting an apartment made all this too real and solidified the hopelessness of the situation. If he kept pretending he could escape — even if it's not in the next 24 hours — it felt maybe he... could will it to be. Or at least just stave off another freakout till the next day.
In fact, the boy had had plenty of alone time throughout the day, and clearly stewing in his thoughts wasn't helping him much, based on how she'd found him. Whether he'd admit it or not, to himself or to Sypha, he actually didn't want to be alone just yet. It was the first social interaction all day that had gone, by Zuko-standards, well, well... All the others — even with other nice people — had exploded in his face somehow by the end of it. After all, this is a traumatic experience happening in the middle of his own traumatic experience, and he was pretty moody even before that cuz of his other various traumas oh my god bb, so socializing wasn't exactly coming easily through all this. And at the end of the day, despite all his lived experiences far beyond his years, Zuko is a sensitive, scared, sixteen-year-old boy. He's had far too much alone time throughout his life, let alone now as a stranger in a strange world. He may not be so tuned into this himself — but if he wanted to leave, he would. Pointedly, probably. Tends to be his style.
He nods and lets her lead the way back, keeping to her left as they walk, unscarred side of his face toward her. He may appreciate the company still, but he's quick to find himself hard up for conversation starters. But at least the silence isn't so awkward. ]
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In fact, the boy had had plenty of alone time throughout the day, and clearly stewing in his thoughts wasn't helping him much, based on how she'd found him. Whether he'd admit it or not, to himself or to Sypha, he actually didn't want to be alone just yet. It was the first social interaction all day that had gone, by Zuko-standards, well, well... All the others — even with other nice people — had exploded in his face somehow by the end of it. After all, this is a traumatic experience happening in the middle of his own traumatic experience, and he was pretty moody even before that
cuz of his other various traumas oh my god bb, so socializing wasn't exactly coming easily through all this. And at the end of the day, despite all his lived experiences far beyond his years, Zuko is a sensitive, scared, sixteen-year-old boy. He's had far too much alone time throughout his life, let alone now as a stranger in a strange world. He may not be so tuned into this himself — but if he wanted to leave, he would. Pointedly, probably. Tends to be his style.He nods and lets her lead the way back, keeping to her left as they walk, unscarred side of his face toward her. He may appreciate the company still, but he's quick to find himself hard up for conversation starters. But at least the silence isn't so awkward. ]