Yes, he had his friends. He had the friend that had died as he hummed one of the songs of his people against his chest.

Zuko had once thought that the most meaningful and profound experience he'd ever have with Aang was dancing with the last dragons and seeing the true meaning of Firebending. Firebending was what bound them. The war had started with the betrayal of one Firebender - his flesh and blood - by another Firebender - also his flesh and blood. Through teaching Aang Firebending, he could make up for the wrongs of the past and in seeing the dragons dance and their multi-colored fire, it meant both he and Aang could help restore balance. They could help reshape the role of the Fire Nation into a peaceful one and help bring back the true meaning of Firebending to the world, as something that could help create things and nurture life rather than causing destruction.

After that, Zuko couldn't imagine they could ever experience anything more meaningful together. He was grateful enough Aang had forgiven him and started to become his friend. He was grateful he'd been able to stand there with him in the light of fires of the last two dragons.

But he'd been wrong.

As he lay there dying, Aang, the last of the Airbenders had given him one of his people's songs. Zuko had felt it rolling against his chest and from the rhythm of it and the way it was shaped, he knew it had to be from the Air Nomads and that meant he'd given him something no Firebender had deserved for over a hundred years. He'd held him and wept for him when his own father had thrown him away and even tried to kill him.

He'd spent so many years of being tormented by Azula and battered by his father's words. He'd lost his mother. He'd lived through three years of rage and restlessness and feeling like he had done something to deserve not being loved without realizing that his uncle was right there and now that he figured it out he'd possibly hurt his uncle so badly he might not want anything to with him anymore. He'd destroyed his relationship with Mai and probably had broken her heart because he had to go do the right thing.

After all that, he had someone new who cared about him enough to cry when he was gone. Someone he'd scared and chased over and over and yet had still forgiven him anyway. No, he'd more than forgiven him him, he'd honored him by giving him something incredibly meaningful.

That was why Zuko had been all that much more terrified when Aang finally fell in the arena, hoping desperately that his friend would be revived - could be revived.

Now that he'd found him again, now that he knew for sure, he felt relief and happiness (when he was usually never happy) and so many other feelings he couldn't name. He wanted to hug him but still wasn't sure if that was quite okay and there was something else he needed to do first anyway.

So the moment he and Aang saw each other, he stood there, his whole body trembling, eyes watering, and then...

Then he bowed. He bowed because respect had to be paid first. Before anything else, before hugging or the two of them trying to go do something else to lighten their hearts try to forget the pain and fear, he had to show his respect because he needed to humble himself before what Aang had done for him during his last breaths.

"I am humbled." His voice got raspier than its usual rasp. "I am humbled by your forgiveness and friendship and I know what it meant, what you gave me when I was dying. I could tell what that was -"

And now he was weeping, without even understanding everything behind why he was doing it, because dying had been traumatizing and terrifying and watching Aang die when he could do nothing to help had been the same. And his friend - his friend that was the first since his uncle to care about him - was alive and Zuko was alive so he could show him how honored he was by his gift and the way it had given his death meaning.

Yeah, he did kinda talk too much sometimes. At least when he wasn't in full cranky mode when he communicated mostly in eye rolls and frustrated groaning.

Right now he communicated by hugging Aang back and being grateful he'd become someone that Aang wanted to hug at all. For a while, that was all he did, hug his tiny friend and think about how unfair it was that he had to deal with all this when he was so young and still had go back home for more of the same life and death struggle when they faced the Firelord.

It suddenly occurred to Zuko that while Aang had already made new friends and was sure to make more, as of right now, he was his only friend from home. Katara wouldn't be here to comfort him, or Sokka, or even Toph.

That was Aang's new family after losing his people, so he had to try his best to do what they would do for him in their place.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there to help you. I got careless."

He should've been more careful to compensate for his lack of hearing, especially with the bad vision in his left eye.