Tokka~Summer
It was the time of the summer solstice. Free from the fear of war's tight grip, the Fire Nation was full of festivities and mirth. The sounds of preparation were simply flying throughout the air of the city, the scent of street merchants slowly roasting food on the grill was floating about. Children ran down the street screaming and playfully dragging balloons in the shapes of dragons and rhinos. But despite all this, Toph was not enjoying herself whatsoever. She had been given a light vacation away from her best friend and teacher Aki (who recently was at Ember Island with her fiancé Haru). But the greatest earthbender in the world was nervous for the first time in a long time. And it wasn't an external battle she had to worry about in the past…it was the internal raw emotion of love for her dearest Sokka. For about half a year now, they'd been traveling with the fiancés going to random places and doing all sorts of weird activities. Now she was left alone free from the watchful eye of her sister figure, having to battle the love-struck flames that always seemed to melt her like a candle.
She gripped tight onto Sokka's hand as they stood at the end of a busy street, the bridges overhead filled with carts and wheeled shops. He was looking about, trying to figure out what to say, do and think. Despite him being the brains of the group before, when alone with Toph his whole system shut down. The water tribe warrior was trying to prevent himself from yelping in pain from the pressure of his love's bone-breaking grip. So many noises were entering her oversensitive ears, making her feel weighted and truly blind. She was trusting her sense of touch for this round.
Her heart sprung a little when Sokka pushed his hand around her waist, making them rub closer together in one quick sweep. He nuzzled his lips gently against her ear, knowing how heightened her other senses were. "So, it's the beginning of summer and Aki gave us three days to be alone. What do you want to do?"
She could feel every nerve in her body screaming in pleasure just by the feel of his rough hands on her soft, bare skin. Her hands felt drenched in pools of sweat, making it hard for him to grip onto them. Her whole body clenched, scrunching hoping for something else to happen to prevent her from answering his simple question. The words from his mouth poured out like streams of singing for Toph. She could now feel his stubble of hair on the chin slightly brushing against the crown of her hair. His fingers were gently pulling through the long ocean of black tumbling down to her waist. She gulped heavily and grabbed his hand back to her own, beginning to stomp through the busy street.
"Do you know what you want to do now?" Sokka asked in a hopeful voice, almost being dragged behind her.
"Nope." Toph replied nearly spitting acid at every person that she bumped into on the way out, "But I don't give a crap at this moment. We have to get away from this noise." With each foot she brought down, another tremble was created leaving no choice but for the other people to get out of her way. Heartbeats were controlling her, making her whole body shiver with each smooth move she attempted to pull off. But in this kind of environment, there was no way she could do anything with the vigor she normally had. The thought of it being a problem completely flew over Sokka's head, he just wanted to have a good time with her. He was trying to have a nice time, a normal date. But with her, things were never normal at least in a good way.
She rushed past everything and found a quiet, secluded spot where nothing but buildings could hear them. She sighed, finally able to hear things clearly again and looked up at him with embarrassed blush. In response he cocked his head slightly, still confused. "What was all that about?"
"Haven't you noticed? I hate huge crowds like that. It makes me feel really impaired and not…" The next few words had trouble escaping her lips, the result ending up in choppy mumblings and spits. "Not able to see you…and your wonderful features."
His shoulders lowered upon hearing this, grabbing her waist in a tight but safe embrace, fingers curling around her bare skin that showed through the fabric. He gave a look of concern, "What's wrong?"
"I'm kinda afraid to say this but I'm not sure how I should approach this. I forgot how lost it can feel without a teacher's guidance." She murmured at a level she was barely able to hear herself. Sokka gave a glinted smile towards her, slightly nudging her with the underside of his fist. "See you are tough."
"What do you mean?"
"If you're brave enough to tell me your feelings, then that's the stuff of true warriors!" He motioned fully in a sweep of his hand, making her giggle as he scooped her up in his strong arms. 'Now what do you say we go have a bit of fun before Artsy Fartsy gets back?"
"Only is you promise to behave yourself snoozles!" They gave each other both loving rubs on the noses, sweet Eskimo kisses that only he seemed to perfect. He set her down, the two holding one another's hand triumphantly returning to the great Fire Nation city.
They stopped first at one of the booths, Sokka purchasing candy for the both of them. The earthbender had her doubts when he promised her sweets but he delivered them fresh right into her mouth. Beyond the sticky and cinnamon taste of the chewy candies she caressed her tongue on his fingertips that pushed past her fair soft lips, slightly dried. He relished the feeling of her tiny tongue tasting his red-coated fingers, licking them free of any remains. She then realized it was gum, blowing out he bubbles twice the size of their heads. Sokka did not see this at all and attempted to give her a kiss. POP! The gum exploded on one another's face, making them stick together while giggling. They tried to pry apart but that didn't work. Instead he began to nibble the chunks of sticky gum from her face, paying special attention to the area around her ears. He knew it was the only way she could see. In response she pried the remainder, being very gentle trying not to rip the small stubble of hair growing from his chin. She felt it a little, hands still slightly sticky as they began to walk towards the open courtyard where street gypsies and circus performers were showing off for a bewildered crowd. Toph fully implanted her feet on the ground, focusing to watch the performance. She felt his hands creasing over the small of her back the whole way through, trying to hide her blush underneath her thick bangs. He cuddled her, playfully batting at her large pom-pom fluffs on the side of her headband. She smacked his hand away lightly and nudged his head with her fingers so he could fully enjoy the performance. He couldn't resist bugging her, so halfway through the performance she dragged him away, not able to see the grand finale. They were way to busy enjoying one another's touch in a quiet street left alone by the entertainers. "I was wrong." She whispered, her quiet breathing faintly ticking his ears.
"What?" He asked in a flirtatious voice, feeling her hands caress his chest, sharing each other's warmth. "You said you like theater and I actually believed you!"
He chuckled heartily, grasping him within his hand once more leading her into the streets. He spotted people wearing bathing suits and looked down at Toph, her whole face beaming in the evening light. Just this morning she was scared and stressed but through his tactics as the idea guy, she was able to smile again with the huge grin he enjoyed so much. "Hey did you bring anything to swim in?"
Just recently taught how to endure the feel of water surrounding her, Toph usually carried clothing around to change into if they ever wanted a romantic swim. She ran over to the woman's dressing rooms coming out with a bikini top and bottom. "Does this answer your question Snoozles?"
He nearly fell over upon seeing her frame inside the suit, every detail completely enhance lit brilliantly by the slowly setting sun. Her grayed eyes sparkled like her slightly tanned skin in the blazing heat, her long black hair just reaching for her wide hips. He looked down upon his body in just swimming trunks and sighed. His abdominal muscles could have used some toning. But despite this she took his skinny arm within her hands and dragged him near the large swimming pool surprisingly empty. It was convenient to have nobody around but at the same time she felt unusual. As he led her into the pool completely caressing her every feature she nearly squirmed upon feeling the tension of the water's surface on her bare feet. But within the grip of the watertribe warrior she relaxed and let herself be completely submerged. She felt his hair in the darkness of the abyss, its tendrils flying in the perpetual loss of gravity. She could feel his hands wrapping around the small of her back as she placed her temple onto his chest and complied, listening to the rise and fall of his nervous beating heart. She could no longer hold her breath and so reached up to grab the side of the pool, gasping aloud upon surfacing. He followed, roaring as he tried to submerge her once more. She instead reacted with a screech, violently splashing him in the eyes with the water. He quickly pulled back and shielded himself, giving a huge belly flop onto the surface. She snickered getting out of the water, holding out her hands, "I think that's enough swimming for you Snoozles."
He made a disappointed sigh, slumping over as he exited by his lover's tiny hands. She pulled him put, the two sitting in the remaining sunlight trying to free themselves of the liquid that attached itself so feverishly onto their skin. She sat shoulder-to-shoulder with him, making circles with a finger on his stubbly chin and cheek. He followed suit by placing her body within his chest, her legs dangling on his lap as she gave a small, warm smile in his loving embrace. The feel of each other's skin was so silky from the waters, she graciously thanked the spirits for giving him that idea.
After a few minutes, they both got back into their normal dressings and began to scale the area. "Well, I guess we've pretty much seen about everything." Toph told, rubbing the back of his head with slight embarrassment and followed by a long, deepened sigh. Sokka's ears twitched as the flash of neon lights began to fill the area. "Hold on, the night is still young." He grabbed her lightly by the wrist and dragged her, blushing as the reddest rose through the emptied back alleys and into a secluded field just outside the royal city. She felt so blissfully happy upon feeling the soft, almost plush grass underneath her sore feet. She wanted to hug it so badly but instead followed him to the center of the field, smiling as he took her in his embrace. Her ears heard the sounds of explosions and she tensed, almost believing it was the sound of bombs until Sokka held her shoulder with gentleness. "Don't worry they are just fireworks."
She relaxed slightly, now recognizing the sound. "So…what do those fireworks look like?"
Sokka stopped looking to the skies and instead looked into Toph's glassy eyes. They were so mysterious and filled with intensity. He held up her cheek and kissed her on the lips. And with a slight chuckle in his voice he told her in the summer's eve,
"They look just like the feelings I have for you."