A Tokka, Toph's POV because it's so fun to write and about 7 years in the future
I woke up this morning with the feeling that something was going to go right. You see, we- being myself, Sokka, Aang, and Katara- have been staying at my parents' house, so nothing really exciting has happened to us for the past week or so. Well, excluding the fit Sokka had when he caught Aang and his sister sleeping together the second night here; that was extremely entertaining. But otherwise, it's been quite dull compared to our usual adventures as we travel the world to keep the peace.
I got up like usual; pointlessly opening my curtains, pulling my clothes on, purposefully "forgetting" to do anything with my hair, and heading to the kitchen for breakfast. Also like usual, Katara and Aang were already up and eating with my parents- who have been on much better terms with the Avatar since a very open debate about my past actions- all four of them talking of news and current events. But unlike usual, Sokka was also already awake, and seemed to be waiting for me. I stepped into the kitchen, regarding him curiously; and to the obvious scorn of my parents, he pulled me into a kiss, giving me the opportunity to sense an unusual kind of anxiety in him which I was unable to decipher.
"G' morning to you too," I told him, grinning.
"Oh, hey Toph," Aang called from the table.
"Good morning sweetie," my father said. He still feels the need to address his nineteen-year-old daughter that way. It's degrading.
"Come have some breakfast," my mother offered. Hungry, I gratefully obliged; piling my plate with toast and bacon.
"So have we got any plans for today?" Katara asked.
But before I could answer, Sokka spoke up. "Why don't we go to the park later today?" he suggested.
"That sounds great," I replied, even though I couldn't figure out why he was so anxious to do so. Could it possibly have to do with that nervous feeling I'd sensed on him earlier? And could all of this have to do with that strange, hopeful mood that still followed me?
We finished eating breakfast and decided to meet at the park at noon. After that- and once my mother had forced me to at least comb my hair- my mother, Katara, and I went to the market for some type of special sale. The men decided to stay behind and talk more about politics, which I'd have rather done that go shopping, but it didn't seem I had a choice.
While we were alone at a fruit stand, I turned to Katara. "Hey Katara, do you know if anything's up with your brother? He was acting kind of weird this morning," I asked.
"Oh, um," she stammered. Here came the lie, I could tell. "I don't know. He seemed fine to me," she lied. Yup.
"Hm, well, I guess I just imagined it then," I lied right back, picking up some strange lumpy fruits which smelled unpleasantly like an open sewer. After that little charade, I dropped the topic; finding the subject not worth risking any type of frustration.
At noon, my mother took our purchases back home as we headed for the park. As we approached the gate, I could smell the sweet aroma of flowers blooming in the trees. If that was the reason Sokka had been so anxious to get to the park, he might have considered the fact that I couldn't enjoy the sight of the flowers. But I decided to forgive him for it. After all, there was something good about this day.
Aang and Sokka were already waiting by the entrance of the park when we arrived.
"Hey guys," I said.
"Hey Toph, Katara," the replied respectively. There was a brief awkward silence before Katara suggested she and Aang find somewhere to "practice some waterbending."
"I don't think I even want to know what they're really doing," Sokka told me as we started our stroll- hand in hand- around the park pathway.
"Yeah, probably not," I agreed, although I had a disturbingly detailed idea thanks to having witnessed certain vibrations that night last week.
We walked in silence for a couple more minutes. His heartbeat was still elevated, as though he was nervous about something.
"Are you expecting someone?" I joked when we came to a standstill.
"Wha-?" he asked. I lifted his hand in response. "Oh. No, I just kind of need to talk to you- about, something."
Now I was curious. I let him know with a tilt of my head.
"Why don't we sit down?" he offered. Uh-oh, this was serious. We sat on a nearby bench which was under one of the most fragrant of the flowering trees. I hoped he was appreciating the romantic scenery he'd planned, because the smell was starting to get to me.
"What's this all about?" I asked him, squeezing his hand playfully. He took a steadying breath. I honestly could not have guessed what he was planning at this point, but it had to be something big for him to get so worked up over it. And it certainly had to do with the sense that I'd woken up with. But I was so curious it hurt- and butterflies were starting to spread in my stomach.
"Toph, I- I-," he stammered. Was he going to tell me that he loves me? But I'd heard him say that before, plenty of times. He wouldn't get so worked up over that. The question was what he would get so worked up over.
"Yes?" I asked.
He began to stutter, and I squeezed his hand again. That seemed to calm him down enough to speak in a steady, comprehendible sentence.
"Toph, you know, in my village, when a man makes a necklace for a woman he loves, it's a way of proposing to that woman," he told me. I couldn't be sure, but the seed of an idea had planted itself in my mind. But could it even be possible…?
"Well, thanks for that useless bit of trivia," I teased. I didn't want him to know I might have almost been onto him. He felt incredibly clammy and shaky now.
"Actually, Toph," he said, and pulled his hand out of mine long enough to reach up and retrieve something from his pocket, which he softly pressed into my palm.
I didn't have to see to know what it was. The necklace was made of some type of crystal threaded onto a braided silk ribbon.
"Oh Sokka-," I sighed, clutching it tight in my now shaking fist. I felt tears forming in my useless eyes. I couldn't believe it.
But from my esteem-lowering loss of composure, he seemed to gain strength. I felt him take my fist containing the necklace in both of his strong hands.
"Toph," he whispered my name, "Will you marry me?"
With a huge grin on my face, I cried, "Yes!" and threw my arms around his neck. He let out a laugh of obvious joy before I began smothering him in kisses.
A half an hour- which may as well have been a half a year- later, the two of us made our way back to the entrance of the park. Once again, we were clutching each others' hands, but now I wore the necklace ecstatically around my neck, and the sickeningly sweet smell of the flowers didn't seem so bad. In fact, it pleasantly reflected my current mood.
When we reached the gate, Katara and Aang were waiting for us.
"So?" Katara asked, sounding like a young child eager for good news.
"We're engaged!" Sokka announced, free of any unusual feelings from earlier in the day, and full of the sincere happiness we shared.
"Yes!" his sister cried, and ran to embrace him. I smiled sheepishly when Aang gave me a friendly hug as well. Then the two of them switched, and I was being squeezed to death by an overly excited waterbender.
"I- can't- breath- Katara!" I gasped. She released me.
"I'm sorry, it's just, we've been waiting for so long for Sokka to finally propose to you," she said. She was as jittery as those of us actually involved in the engagement.
"Wait, we?" I asked.
"Yeah, we were kind of in on it the whole time," Aang told me.
"Thanks for not ruining it for me," Sokka said.
"Well actually," I said, feeling guilty about dampening the mood, but this was sort of necessary, "That would be my job."
"Why, Toph? What's the matter?" Aang asked.
"You're not having second thoughts, are you?" Sokka asked, sounding worried.
"No!" I assured him, "But, we've eventually got to tell my parents."
I guess I should start this part of the story by telling you about my parents' relationship with Sokka. It's not that they don't like him- they do; they think he's a polite and respectable young man (when they told me this, I couldn't help but snort into the cup of tea I was currently drinking)- they just don't think he's right for me. Probably their most prominent argument is that he's "of a lower class," so he's not worthy to be romantically involved with someone like me. I found this totally ridiculous, and let them know this with a variety of words my parents probably didn't know I was familiar with. But then, there's the general fact that's I'm their only- and incredibly overprotected- daughter, and anyone else in the world interested in taking me away from them is automatically an enemy. Not that I even really considered this when accepting Sokka's adorably awkward invitation to be his girlfriend. But ever since we've been together- especially since we've been staying with my parents- they've been incredibly annoying about dropping hints that they do not approve. And that's what's made this news so… interesting.
"Mom?" I said quietly, stepping into the sitting room where she was flipping through some type of magazine. I'd left the others out in the hallway. This was something I needed to do alone.
"Yes dear?" she replied, not bothering to look up. If she had, she would have noticed the new necklace around my neck.
"Well, I've got some news," I told her.
"That's great," she told me. For some reason, I got the impression she wasn't listening.
I decided to resist the urge to tell her I was pregnant with Sokka's baby to test her reaction. There was always the possibility that she'd hear me, and have the poor guy thrown out of the house.
"I- I'm getting married," I practically whispered. In actuality, I found it hard to even use my voice, let alone say something so forward as I'd been planning.
"That's gr- wait, what?" she asked. Now she looked up.
"You heard me," I said, "Sokka asked me to marry him- and I said yes."
"Toph," she started, dropping her magazine and standing up.
"I know you're going to say that he's not right for me, but, I really don't care. I love him mom-," I started to argue.
"Toph, honey," she said, stepping forward and placing her hand on my shoulder, "I'm happy for you. I know how strongly you feel for Sokka, and, as long as this is what you want-."
But she didn't have a chance to finish. Almost as happy as I'd been when I'd first accepted Sokka's proposal, I threw my arms around my mother and hugged her for the first time in a long time.
"Can we come in now?" came Aang's voice from the other side of the door. Apparently they'd been listening in the whole time, as they appeared quite flustered when I opened the door and the three of them came stumbling in.
My mother turned to my fiancé, who regarded her shyly.
"Mrs. Bei Fong," he said with a small bow of his head.
"I don't know if you've already heard," my mother said to him- I'm assuming with a smirk on her face while the others blushed-, "But, I approve of your engagement. Congratulations, Toph and Sokka."
As I stood outside my bedroom door that night, ready to turn in, Katara approached me.
"Today was a good day," she said. I didn't care that she'd just pointed out the most obvious fact ever, because I had just remembered that unusual hopeful feeling from earlier in the day.
"Yes, it was," I agreed. I smiled, truly appreciating the feeling of the necklace around my neck, and the knowledge that things had certainly gone very right.