Aang, Katara, and I walk slowly along the cold New York road. The sidewalks are crispy with the last leaves of fall, and overhead a light shower of snow begins to fall from the night sky. It's silent for awhile, until Katara finally speaks.
"So, Suki. Where was Sokka tonight?" she asks. I look down, digging my nails into my palms as I speak.
"I... don't know. I guess he just skipped," I say bitterly. A million different scenarios run through my mind, but one stands out to me as the clearest. Sokka is with a different girl. That has to be it, where else could he be? Anger pulses through me, and I have half a mind to pick up my phone and call him right now. I try to calm myself down and just enjoy the night. After all, it's not often that we all get to see each other. Almost all of us, that is.
"Great show, huh?" Aang tries to break the thick tension that hangs in the air.
"Yeah, definitely," I say, cracking a smile. The couple next to me breathes out a sigh of relief in unison which makes me giggle. "Guys, it's fine. Really. I'll take care of it later." It feels nice to keep the issue off of my mind. "Say, the night is still young! Who wants to go get mochi?" I look expectantly at the other two, grinning. They share a glance before Katara responds.
"Sorry, Suki... I really wish we could. But I have to work tonight."
"Yeah, and I've got to... uh... I've got a thing to do," Aang says, face going beet red. Oh, I get it. I instantly get ten times more uncomfortable.
"Ah, yes. Alright then. Well, I'd better head to my apartment. See where that silly guy's off to now! Ha ha." I do an awkward finger gun and turn on my heel.
"Um, Suki? We share an apartment," Katara says. I blush before quickly saying,
"Right, duh! I know! I'm staying with Korra tonight!" Korra is a pretty good friend of mine. She probably won't care.
"Oh! Well, okay. Goodnight Suki." Katara waves before going up the steps to enter the apartment.
"Night Suki," Aang adds. I'm already pulling out my phone when I respond with a quick wave. I dial Korra's number and cross my fingers.
"Hello?"
"Heeey, Korra! How've you been?"
"Well actually I've-"
"Yeah so can I crash with you tonight?"
"Oh! Uh, sure, I guess. If it's fine for me to ask… why?" Figures she would ask. I cringe at how I must sound but try to hold my ground and not make some weird excuse.
"Sokka's missing, and I don't want to stay the night with just Aang and Katara."
"Of course. Where are you? I'll pick you up."
I sit in the passenger seat of Korra's car as she pulls into the parking garage near her apartment.
"Thank you so much—again. You're the best," I say. We step out of the car and begin walking inside. The musty hallways are a comforting change.
"You know you can count on me, hun. So do you want to talk about it or watch anime with ice cream?" Korra's brown ponytail swings in the air as she talks. She knows me so well.
"I think you know the answer to that one," I say with a small smile.
I plop onto the squishy couch as Korra slides in a bright colored disc. I cup a bowl of chocolate ice cream in my hands like a life support. Part of me knows I need to call Sokka and find out what the hell he's doing, but the other part of me wants to ignore all this drama and enjoy a night with my friend. Korra smiles as she sits down next to me, and we curl up under a mass of blankets.
Sunlight beats through my eyelids, and I squint around the room. All my memories come crashing back onto me and I sigh, closing my eyes and slumping backwards. I have to take care of this. I carefully creep out of the blankets so as to not wake Korra and step into her bedroom for privacy.
I swipe open my phone and click on Sokka's contact.
The phone rings once... twice... I hear some heavy background noise, then a strangely cheery:
"Hey there, Sugarglider-bear!"
"Cut the crap Sokka, where the hell are you?" I fume, all my pent up anger finally escaping.
"Oh, I'm nowhere... Yup, nowhere. Heh." The noise in the background is so loud that I almost can't hear the half baked response. The noise is almost... too loud.
"Oh my god, Sokka, are you at a club? What has gotten into you?" The tears that I've been desperately trying to hold in start falling, and I have to sit down on Korra's bed.
"What? Naaaw, Suki. Like I said, I'm just... ya know..." He trails off, and I can hear now that he's walking somewhere. What a bad liar.
"Sokka, please. Come home, we can talk!" I resort to begging, throwing away my pride.
"Uh, actually Suki, I've got to go. Bye honey bun-bird!"
"Sokka, wait!" But I'm talking to dead air. How could he just hang up on me like that? I throw my phone onto the mattress and collapse into tears. I understood that he was annoyed at me, but crumbling our whole relationship just because I wanted to do an activity with him? I feel helpless, and I have no idea how to fix this. To my left, my phone lights up with the time.
Oh crap.
I rush out of the apartment, leaving Korra a quick thank you text as I run back to my apartment. I completely ignore Aang and Katara's profuse blushing as they cover themselves with blankets because, "Wow, it sure just got cold in here!" I pull on my tights and leotard and throw in a crappy bun, and I'm out as soon as I came in.
I finally take a breath as I sit down on the seat on the bus. How could I forget that I have morning practice today? Just because Sokka's being uncooperative with ballet doesn't mean I've stopped going. I pull out my phone to send him a text, but think better of it. If he wants to ignore me, so be it.
Practice goes by as a blur. As much as I try to keep him off my mind, I find it impossible. I try to piece together why he might be acting this way. I know we haven't been getting along perfectly lately, but I never thought it had gotten this bad.
When I get home, it's about noon, and thankfully I finally find Katara without that boyfriend of hers. When she sees whatever look must be on my face, she knows exactly what I'm thinking.
"It's time for a spa day."
The first place we go is the local massage house. Katara and I lay down on adjacent tables. I feel the trained masseuse bend warm water onto my back, but I can't relax. If anything, my muscles tense even more. I don't know what to do about Sokka. As the massage continues, my stress builds up until finally I jump to my feet.
"Excuse me," I say before walking briskly to the bathroom. I lock myself into a stall and open my messaging app. An unopened text from Sokka awaits me. How could I have not noticed it before? It reads:
Hey babe, not going to have service today. Talk soon.
Talk soon? I don't understand why he's acting like this. What is he trying to accomplish by completely ditching me and then texting me like nothing's wrong? And why doesn't he have service? He's not the kind of guy who would embark on a spontaneous cross country road trip, so there's no reason that he shouldn't have any. I don't even bother responding. So much for putting him out of my head.
Reluctantly, I exit the bathroom. Katara looks at me questioningly, and I just shake my head. I excuse myself to the lobby to wait until she's done.
When Katara is finished, she immediately rushes to me and gently touches my arm.
"Suki, what happened? Is it Sokka?" she asks, her brow furrowed with concern.
"Yeah. He sent me this." I hold my phone up so Katara can see. She shakes her head slowly.
"I don't understand. Why wouldn't he have service?" We exit the massage house and begin walking the sidewalks aimlessly.
"I don't know! What should I do, Katara?" I look at her desperately. She looks at me sympathetically.
"You know, I'm sure he'll come back. What guy in his right mind would leave you?" But this answer doesn't satisfy me.
"So you mean to say, you have no idea what I should do?" I ask.
"Suki, that's not what I said! I'm just saying that I think things will work themselves out!" She pleads. I scoff.
"Yeah, right. You're just saying that because you've always had the perfect relationship with Aang, so you don't know what it's like to have real life issues." The words come out of my mouth before I can stop them, and I regret it almost immediately.
"You asked for my advice, and I gave it to you. Goodbye, Suki." Katara turns on her heel and walks away. I sit down on a nearby bench and bury my head in my hands. Just like me, to let my temper get out of control. Why did I have to go and ruin things with Katara (and Aang, too, they might as well be one person) when things are already so awful with Sokka?
I decide to call Korra again, since I couldn't bear to show my face in my apartment and she kind of deserved a better explanation than a text reading:
Ballet practice sorry thx
"Hey Suki, how are you doing?"
"Not great... I'm sorry, can I come over? I'm only like a block away."
"Sure thing! I'll get the ice cream out." For some reason this strikes a nerve in me, but I try to shake it off. Korra is being more helpful than I could dream of.
When I reach the apartment, Korra smiles at me and offers me a bowl.
"Anime and ice cream?" she says, cracking one of her famous grins. I've been on edge, but this is the tipping point for me.
"Really? Anime and ice cream? You know that's not what real friends do. Real friends are supposed to be like, 'Hey, let's talk about your problems,' instead of ignoring them! But all you want to do is sit side by side watching some magic girl transform a hundred times. I don't know if being one of the avatars and living a perfect life has blinded you, but you're a terrible friend, Korra." She pauses before answering, and I know I've made a mistake.
"You want to talk about your problems? Fine. But what about mine, Suki? I know you're dealing with your own issues, but have you even thought about me? My life isn't perfect. Remember when you asked me how I was doing yesterday on the phone, but you interrupted me before I could respond? Yeah, I just got fired from my dream job. Pro-bending is over. But whatever, because Sokka tried to take a vacation and have some time away from your demanding self. I don't blame him." She sighs after finishing and turns away from me. I have no response for this. Am I really this demanding? I mean, look how I've been treating all my friends.
"I..." I can't bring myself to apologise, and I kick myself for being such a wimp. "Anime was a mistake. Bye." I walk swiftly out the door, not even bothering to slam it (though it's kind of my trademark fight thing). Korra was right. What am I doing? All my friends hate me now, and it's completely my fault. And now I have no choice but to go back to my apartment.
When I enter the apartment, nobody is home. I hang up my jacket and scarf, then notice something bright yellow out of the corner of my eye. There's a sticky note on the white counter reading:
Out for dinner. Don't call.
Great. I decide to lock myself in my room for the night, and I collapse onto my bed. I can't believe I ruined everything so quickly. I think back to last night. Sokka and I might have been snappy, but at least I still got a night out with my friends. And earlier that day, Sokka had bought me flowers. Sure, it was a bribe, so he wouldn't have to sign up for ballet (which I did not accept), but how can I be disregarding all he does for me? I need to get him back.
I must have fallen asleep at some point, because it definitely wasn't daytime when I entered the room. I check my phone. 10:54. Thank goodness I don't have morning practice today. That's the only thing I have to be happy about right now. What am I going to do about Korra and Katara? They both hate me now, and I want nothing more to apologise, but I know I don't have the guts. I think I'll just go out for breakfast. Alone. Don't want to ruin any more relationships I have.
The small diner is the go-to place for singles, so when a couple walks in, it's like a rip in the liminal veil. One girl is wearing all pink, right down to her shoes. It looks like she has never not been smiling, the way she beams at all of us. The woman she's with is almost the exact opposite. The bored look on her face, makes it seem like she's looking down on everyone else in the world. She wears black jeans and red hoodie she wears. They sit down at a booth next to mine, and I can easily hear their animated conversation. I'm not one to eavesdrop, but this seems like a drama couple, so it'd be nice to take my mind off things. Plus, it's not like they're making any attempt to be quiet.
"Ty, you're never going to see him again. Would you just give it a rest?" the bored girl says.
"But he was like-so cute!" the girl in pink-Ty? says.
"Please. Who wears ponytails? That trend was like, how long ago? Oh yeah, never. Plus, he clearly has a girlfriend." Wait a minute. Ponytail? Girlfriend? I shake the thought out of my head. This could be a hundred different guys in the city.
"Yeah right Azula, they clearly were not together anymore. With how he was flirting with me? Plus, if he had a girlfriend, why would he be standing outside a theatre? Alone?" Oh my god, are they actually talking about Sokka? I bite my lip, considering. Should I ask about him?
"Either way, you can be sure he wants nothing to do with us after Zuzu's little spaz. Poor guy."
"Yeah, I guess you're right. How funny though, Ba Sing Se?" I can't help it. I burst into a fit of coughs, choking on my water. Ba Sing Se? Could that be where Sokka is right now?
"Hey Ty, let's go. We've got a stalker, six o'clock." I turn deep red as they stand up and walk past me. The girl in the red sweatshirt gives me a quick glare. I can't let it bother me too much, because I just found out some insane information.
I leave the restaurant and walk through Central Park. Is Sokka really in Ba Sing Se? They must be talking about him... probably. Maybe someone else with a ponytail was at the theatre last night? Although, I never did see Sokka there. Maybe he was too busy flirting to even catch the show. This angers me to think about. We haven't even broken up! And with the texts and calls he's been sending, he's acting like nothing happened! What a con artist. I can't believe that just this morning, I was thinking of apologising to him. Realizing I never got anything at the diner, and it's too late now for breakfast, I head to the Dandelion Lizard for tea.
I sit down with my cup of lavender tea and stare down into the golden liquid. I jump when I see somebody pulling out the chair across from me. An old man with a large belly and a warm smile sits down.
"Uh, hi. Can I help you?" I try to say this as politely as possible, but my current mood isn't helping.
"My name is Iroh. It's nice to meet you, too," he says with a chuckle. I blush as I realize how rude my words came out. "I'm sorry to disturb you, but you looked down and it seems like you need someone to talk to." I'm confused by Iroh's behavior, as it's not generally normal to walk up to someone and ask about their life problems. Although he's already being more helpful than my friends. I sigh, and the words start coming out of my mouth. I tell Iroh about everything I've been going through since ballet practice before going to the theatre, and he listens intently, nodding occasionally. When I finish, it feels like a weight has been lifted from my chest.
"I see. I'm very sorry for your troubles. It seems like this young man is very special to you. It just so happens that I might have met this Sokka before." My eyes widen. What are the chances?
"Really? Where?" I grip the edge of the table, hoping this man can tell me whether or not the information I heard from Ty and Azula is correct.
"I had a wonderful conversation with him in the Jasmine Dragon, back in Ba Sing Se. He really cares about you, I think you should remember that. You may have differences, but there is not a set of people in the world who are exactly uniform. Pride is not the opposite of shame, but its source. You must set aside your strong mind sometimes to let him know how much you love him. I can tell that it is very much." Iroh smiles warmly and leans back in his chair. My mind is reeling with what I've just heard.
"Wow. Thank you so much. I-I have to go. Thank you, again." I stand up, push in my chair because I know that man would do it if I didn't, and rush out of the shop. I pull out my phone as soon as I step outside and call Sokka to apologise.
Ring.
Ring.
No answer. Right, he doesn't have service. My phone dings, and the hope that it's Sokka rushes to mind despite what I just remembered. It's not him, it's just a reminder that ballet practice starts in five minutes. I sigh and pocket my phone. I walk along the sidewalk for about a minute before my mind finally processes what just happened. Practice. Five minutes.
This must be becoming a habit or something, because I find myself in a whirlwind around the apartment once again, preparing as quickly as possible for ballet.
I sit down on a bench in the studio with a minute to spare and begin lacing my pointe shoes. I hear someone clear his throat much too loudly for a ballet studio, and I look up to see a very familiar pair of blue eyes.
This is part three of the entries for the Capital City Catgators. You can read the other ones here:
Part One: s/12221163/15/Pro-bowls
Part Two: s/12660355/1/Ready-to-Rock-n-Roll
Part Four: (Link)
My prompts used were:
(dialogue) "Anime was a mistake"
(character) Korra
(restriction) First Person PoV
I used my element: water
Word count: 3,283