She shakily takes in a breath and looks away from him, speaking over her shoulder so he can't she the tears she's trying so desperately hard to hide, "What do you want?" Her voice is quiet, not holding any of the harshness it used to, four years ago.
He says nothing, just stares at her, wondering quietly to himself when everything changed, when they changed, when she changed. It wasn't like her to be so... so.. quiet, so, drawn into herself. He missed the days when the ground would shake with her anger, and laughter. Now, the earth only seemed to sigh quietly to itself or occasionally rumble with silent tears. He hated it. He wasn't sure what had changed with them. She used to tell him everything, as did he with her. He'd grown used to her constant presence and came to enjoy it. As they began to drift, he noticed a small whole in his heart, not physically of course, but he felt, a hollowness when she wasn't with him. He tried to ignore it, but as time went by, and she began to mature, he noticed others had started to take a liking to her. He didn't understand at first, only seeing the young girl he used to know instead of the woman she became. When she walked out on him one night, he finally noticed. He noticed what he'd been missing out on, what everyone else seemed to see, and the hollowness he'd been trying to ignore came back with a vengeance. He understood, yet he couldn't seem to wrap his brain around it. He loved her. She was his bestfriend and he loved her regardless. He was such a fool. How could he love someone who could never love an idiot like himself, all she saw was an stupid Meathead. All thoughts leave him as he gazes at her, colored by moon and firelight. Yue is full , and she shines brightly down onto raven colored hair that frames pale soft cheeks and tumbles down her small back. The wind picks up slightly and the sent of earth and rain finds its way to his nose and he inhales deeply, smiling softly at her sent. He listens for a moment and hears her shakily release a breath, as she calms herself down. He decides he can't stand to see her this way and moves to sit next to her, tearing his eyes away, knowing she doesn't like to be seen as 'weak'.
He tilts his head to the side slightly and peeks at her from the corner of his eye, his breath hitching in his throat when he sees her beautiful face. Her eyes shut loosely, tear stains down her cheeks, her breath coming out in small clouds between her slightly parted lips as she faces forward. "I want..." he starts, fumbling to say what he's wanted to say for a while. "I...I want.."
Seeming a bit irritated, like her old self, her eyes flash open and she glares in his direction, "What Meathead!"
Hearing emotion in her voice brings a small smile to his lips and the spirit back to his heart as he turns to face her, gripping her hands tightly even as she tries to yank them away. "I want you."
Hearing his words, she stops her efforts in trying to escape and just sits, her hands in his, her brain soaking in what she's just heard, "you...you what?"
He smiles a bit wider as he replies, his voice shaking slightly, "I..I want you," seeing her face slightly brighten he continues, stronger, "I love you."
Fresh tears spill down her cheeks as she stares blankly somewhere over his shoulder, a smile creeping into her face as she whispers, more as conformation to herself than lack of hearing, "you...You love me?"
"I do, I really do," he replies quietly, reaching his hands up and wiping her tears with the pads of his thumbs, "I think I always have."
She smiles even wider, practically grinning as he retracts his hands and places them again on her hands. She lunges forward into his lap and wraps her arms around his neck as she mumbles into his shoulder, "I've always loved you too."
He knows she can feel his heart skip a beat before practically running away from him as he wraps his arms around her waist tightly and presses his face into her hair. That's fine with him, for he can feel her lips as they press against his neck in a small kiss and he knows she means what she's said, just as she knows he could never lie about this. He pulls back slightly to look into her sightless milky green eyes, smirking slightly, happiness overwhelming his senses as he teases "what was that Toph?
She can feel him staring at her, can feel his smirk and smugness, but she doesn't care, this is the most happy she's been in a long time. She can feel his heartbeat loud and strong, playing a song just for her, a song of love and truth. She simply shakes her head and leans forward, her finger finding its way to his lip to guide her own to them. She smiles softly as she feels the pressure of his lips returning the kiss and she pulls back slightly, their lips barely touching as she whispers back, "I love you Sokka."