Sorry for the wait, but here is the sequel to "Crush". I'm pretty pleased with how this one turned out and I think it follows up the first story well. I do plan on writing more for this fandom, but for the moment, I have other fics I need to finish and work on. So, until then, I hope you enjoy this and feel free to favorite, follow, or review. No flames please, but I always accept constructive criticism.

I do not own Avatar the Last Airbender.

A week before the end of "Crush"

Suki bit her lip nervously as she paced, waiting for Sokka to return. She'd been thinking about this decision for weeks now, and it wasn't an easy one. She loved Sokka with all her heart, but she also wanted to move on from Republic City. She missed her home in Kyoshi and the warriors that had been her only family for so long—at least until she met the Gaang. She'd miss Sokka and the rest of them dearly, but she knew that this wasn't where she was meant to be. A small, selfish part of her wanted to ask Sokka to come with her, but she could never ask that of him. She knew it would hurt him to leave behind his family and the city that he had helped raise. Besides, if Suki was truly honest with herself, she wasn't in love with him anymore. She loved him and always would, but not how she once did. Finally, after weeks of growing apart from him and thinking things over, she had made up her mind.

The door opened then, and she turned to see him walk inside. They locked eyes and she could tell he had something on his mind as well.

"I have to talk to you," they said together.

"You go first," Sokka insisted, always the gentleman.

"I think we should break up," Suki said after a deep breath.

It was quiet for a moment as she surveyed his reaction. He didn't look heartbroken, which she supposed was a good sign. She really didn't want to hurt him.

"I was going to say the same thing," he said finally, his voice rueful.

"Really? Why?"

"I can tell you miss Kyoshi. You get in these moods sometimes, where you just stare into space. I think you're thinking of home and of the warriors. I've noticed how distant we've been as a couple lately and it got me thinking about it. I realize how selfish it was of me to keep you here and I figured it was time to let you go," he explained, looking at his hands.

"It's true. I do miss home, and that's why I want to break it off. I could never ask you to leave your family behind and I know Aang and the city need you. I just think it's best for us to go our separate ways," Suki replied.

"I don't regret us. We had good times, and I loved you. I still do, just not like I used to," Sokka said firmly, looking her in the eye.

"It really was an adventure I'll never forget. Thank you for everything you've done for me, Sokka. You were the first person I ever loved, and I'll always remember that," she said, kissing his cheek like she did that first time three years before.

"I want us to stay friends, and I want you to remember that you have a family here too," he cracked a small half smile.

"I'm glad you want to stay friends. I promise to come visit soon."

Sokka sat there as she went to gather her already packed things. He watched as she went to the door and hesitated.

"Sokka, there's something I want to tell you before I leave," she turned to face him.

"What is it?"

"There's someone else who still really and truly loves you, and deep down I know you feel the same. I can't tell you who it is, due to a promise I made her, but just promise me that you'll really pay attention since you don't have to worry about me anymore."

"What do you mean pay attention?" Sokka asked, deeply confused.

"I mean that I want you to really see what's in front of you. It's been there all along, but you were unable to see it because of your feelings for me I think."

"I promise," he said, even though he was still unsure of what Suki meant.

Suki nodded in satisfaction, and then she was gone. Sokka sat there for a little while longer. He was sad over the loss of a beautiful relationship, but then again he was glad that it ended peacefully. Finally, he decided he didn't want to be alone, so he went to the one person he could talk to about anything.

"Snoozles, what are you doing here? I figured you'd be busy with Suki," Toph smiled in her open door way.

His hand was awkwardly suspended in the air, about to knock but she'd beat him to the door. He lowered his arm and smiled back, even though she couldn't see it.

"Actually," he stated, "we broke up. She's on her way back to Kyoshi as we speak."

"Oh. I'm sorry. Are you okay?" she moved out of the way and motioned him inside.

Sokka made himself comfortable on the couch and looked her over. Her hair was down and fell down her back in dark waves. Her wide, unseeing eyes held concern for him and something else he couldn't quite decipher. It was then he realized just how much she meant to him. What was that Suki had told him to do? Something about seeing what was right in front of him...

"You know, I think I'm going to be just fine," he told her with a small smile.

Fire Nation, at the ball

Toph felt overall uncomfortable. Balls weren't her cup of tea, and the long dress and oily makeup did nothing but add to her discomfort. It was a bit overwhelming inside the ballroom. Hundreds of people packed into one room meant hundreds of vibrations all swirling around one another. While she could still easily pick out her friends, it all just gave her one hell of a headache. Which was why she was now strolling about the blissfully silent courtyard.

She couldn't help but chew on her lip nervously. A headache was not the only reason she sought refuge outside. Toph was also supposed to express her feelings to a certain Meathead and that in itself was nerve wracking. Katara had spent the past week helping her figure out what to say and do, but it was hopeless. She couldn't help but worry over if she messed it up or if he rejected her, and then she couldn't help but be disgusted at the weakness this all brought. Finally she just sat down on a nearby stone bench with an exasperated groan. She buried her head in her hands as she desperately tried to figure out what to say.

Sokka scanned the crowded ballroom. He saw several familiar faces among the guests. He could see Ty Lee standing over in a corner talking to Mai and Suki; he had talked to Suki earlier in the evening and was glad to know that she was doing well. Then he found Iroh at a table with other members of the White Lotus nursing a cup of tea. On the dance floor he spotted Aang twirling Katara around, Sokka smirked at this. For a four month pregnant lady, she could still dance pretty well. He did not find who he was looking for though. His best friend was currently missing in action, and he was somewhat annoyed. He, like her, hated balls so whenever they were forced to go they would spend the night with each other, usually at a table making fun of people and pulling small, harmless pranks; and then, on some occasions, have a little too much to drink. Tonight though, Toph had disappeared out from under him.

He let his eyes wander over the crowd for what must have been the hundredth time when he found someone that could be useful. Zuko stood talking quietly with a couple of council members in a corner. Sokka quickly made his way over to them and stood politely aside while they finished. If anyone knew Toph better than Sokka, it would be Zuko considering how close they had become over the years. Sometimes, if Sokka didn't know for sure that Zuko was completely in love with Mai, he would suspect something else, much to his dislike. Finally, after what seemed like forever, the councilmen broke away and left the Firelord alone. Sokka waved as Zuko spotted him.

"Hey Sokka. Are you having a good time?" Zuko asked with a smile, knowing how Sokka felt about these things.

"Hey, have you seen Toph anywhere by any chance? She ditched me a while ago and I haven't seen her since," Sokka said, ignoring Zuko's attempt at a joke.

"I saw her. She talked to me a little bit ago. She said she had a head ache and went to go sit in the courtyard for some peace and quiet," Zuko replied, eyeing Sokka warily.

"Oh great! Thanks," Sokka turned around to go find her but stopped when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Sokka," Zuko began, "before you go I want to talk to you about something. In private."

"Sure, I guess," Sokka shrugged.

He followed along as Zuko led him through a doorway into a dimly lit hall. Sokka didn't realize how loud and crowded the ballroom actually was until they were out in the quiet, deserted hallway. It was almost a relief.

"Sokka, how do you feel about Toph?" Zuko suddenly asked.

Sokka froze at the question, baffled.

"What kind of question is that? She's my best friend—"

"No! I don't mean what your relationship with her is. I want to know how you feel about her," Zuko sighed impatiently.

"Oh..." Sokka felt his face grow warm at the question.

He felt his mind go blank. This was a touchy subject that he'd forbidden himself from whenever he began having certain and random thoughts about her. It just couldn't work for several different reasons. Back in the war, even if you took away the fact that Sokka had been involved with Suki, there was still the age difference. Sure it was only three years and if he'd been eighteen and she fifteen it wouldn't be a big deal, but she was twelve and he was fifteen. Back home he was considered a man while she would still be considered a child. Of course over the course of three years age no longer became a factor, though he was still involved with Suki. Now, however, he was not with Suki anymore and there was nothing holding him back from such thoughts.

So for the first time he let the forbidden topic enter his mind. How did he feel about Toph? He thought she was beautiful, and funny, and strong. He admired her intellect and bold way of doing things. He liked how she wouldn't back out of a fight and loved how free she was when she did her bending. He liked how they joked with one another and how he could tell her anything. He loved how open she was with him, especially since he knew how much she hated talking about her feelings. He thought her blindness made her strong rather than weak, though he secretly cherished the moments where she couldn't see and would latch onto his arm. He never thought of her as inferior or useless. He loved being her partner in crime and loved cheating the cheaters with her. He hated seeing her hurt and that one time when Zuko burned her feet had made him so angry, and yet carrying her around wasn't half bad... Sokka mulled this all over in silence, and slowly the realization dawned on him.

"I love her..." he mumbled quietly to himself.

"What was that?" Zuko's voice broke him out of his reverie.

"I love her," Sokka repeated, louder so Zuko could hear him.

"That's good to know. Maybe you should go tell her," Zuko suggested waving his arm in the direction of the courtyard.

"I...I can't," Sokka sighed, looking down.

"Why not?"

"She's my best friend! She's not going to look at me that way. Sometimes I wonder if she even likes me at all," he snorted as if it were obvious.

"Sokka, you are so clueless. The answer to that question has been right in front of you all this time..."

Right in front of you... Suki's words echoed in his head. Suddenly his eyes widened as it clicked.

"It's Toph!" Sokka exclaimed.

"What?" Zuko stopped his rant to give Sokka a curious look.

"Suki was talking about Toph!"

"What do you mean Suki was talking about Toph?"

"When Suki and I broke up she told me that someone else was in love with me and that I needed to see what was right in front of me. The answer is Toph! Toph...Toph loves me..." he grew quiet as the said the last part, like he was in awe.

"Well, I'm glad you finally figured it out," Zuko sighed in relief.

"You knew?" Sokka gasped in surprise.

"Yeah. We all knew," he shrugged like it was no big deal.

"And you didn't tell me?"

"Of course not. She would have killed us! Besides, you were with Suki."

"But Suki knew?" Sokka demanded, even though it was obvious she did.

"She was the first to know apparently. Back whenever she saved Toph from drowning, Toph let something slip and Suki pieced it together. Toph wouldn't tell me all the details, but she said that Suki offered to back off and then Toph told her to go for it."

"Huh. I can't believe it," Sokka shook his head in disbelief.

"Well, believe it. She's out there now, probably freaking out because she was supposed to tell you tonight."

"She was?"

"Yep. Now, you can beat her to the punch," Zuko grinned in spite of himself.

"That's not a bad idea..."

"Before you do anything, just know that if you hurt her in anyway, I'll kill you," Zuko stated, giving him a hard glare.

"Hey, I'm not the one who burned her feet," Sokka sniffed.

"It was an accident that happened years ago!"

"Whatever gets you through the night," Sokka replied before turning on his heel and heading towards the courtyard.

Cool air greeted him as he left the hot, stuffy palace. It wasn't cold, but it was certainly cooler outside than it had been inside. The moon was full and Sokka found himself staring at it for a minute. Yue's presence always comforted him, and right then he needed all the comfort he could get. His heart was practically beating its way out of his chest at the thought of what he was about to do. Sokka took a deep breath to compose himself before continuing his search.

The courtyard wasn't that large, and it didn't take long to find her. She was sitting on a bench in front of the turtle-duck pond with her head in her hands. He knew that she was aware of his presence by now and so he just casually made his way up to her.

"Nice night out," he stated, looking at her for a response.

She rose up out of her position and just shrugged, gripping the bench tightly. Sokka took the moment to take her in. Her hair had been pulled out of her face, and was similar to how she'd had it that one time in Ba Sing Se. He could see her eyes clearly and smiled. He'd always loved her eyes.

"You're quiet," he noted, though he couldn't blame her, she was probably more nervous than he was.

Toph flinched slightly as he pointed out her unusual quietness. He never missed anything when she wanted him too.

"I'm just tired," she said, brushing it off like it was nothing.

"Zuko told me you had a head ache," he said.

She could feel his vibrations and mentally sketched his outline. He had taken a seat on the grass next to the bench she was sitting on. His legs were crossed and he was leaning back on his hands casually.

"I did. It's gone now," she replied.

"Then why are you still out here?"

Damn, he was just full of questions.

"Just thinking."

"Oh? What are you thinking about?" he sounded genuinely interested, and her feet picked up a slight change in his heart beat, feeling it speed up.

"Nothing in particular," she wanted to delay the inevitable for as long as possible.

"Come on Toph, I know you better than that. What's on your mind?"

She stayed silent for this one, hoping that he'd pick up on the message and quite bugging her about it. She heard him sigh after a second and felt him shift into another position. Now he was sitting on his knees in front of her.

"Well if you aren't going to tell me what's on your mind, can I at least tell you what's on mine?" he finally asked.

"Well, I guess," she sighed obnoxiously, feeling his mouth lift a little at the corners.

"Okay, so there's this girl and I think I'm in love with her," Sokka began.

Toph felt her heart break. He already had someone else. She should have known better than to think that she had a chance.

"Oh? What's she like?" Toph forced out.

"She's smart and funny and strong. I've never met anyone like her," he said wistfully.

"Is she pretty?"

"Beautiful. She has the most amazing eyes, and she's not afraid to do things her way. She's perfect," he gushed.

"Is she here tonight?" Toph asked, trying to keep the sadness out of her voice.

"Yes, she is."

"Do I know her?"

"You could say that," he chuckled softly.

She didn't know why, but Toph just had to know.

"Is it Ty Lee?"

"No. She's with Haru anyway."

"Oh yeah. Please tell me it's not Mai..."

"Of course not! Zuko would kill me!"

"Are you still in love with Suki?"

"Nope."

Toph pursed her lips in thought. Those were all the girls she could think of that could possibly be it. Obviously he couldn't be in love with Katara... There was only one other person she could think of.

"Is it... Is it me?" she asked in a soft voice, feeling her face heat up at the question.

It was silent for a minute. She bit her lip as it stretched on.

"Sokka, I was kid—mmph!" she was cut off as she felt something on her lips.

Her eyes widened as she realized what it was. Sokka was kissing her! After a second he pulled away. Her mouth just hung open in shock.

"Sorry... I probably should have gave you some warning there," Sokka laughed awkwardly.

"It's okay," Toph breathed, pleased to feel that his heart was beating just as fast as hers.

"So... Zuko said you had something you wanted to tell me?"

"Oh did he?" Toph muttered, thinking about how she was going to kill him later.

"Yeah. So, what was it?"

"I...I uh...sort of, kind of...love you..." she trailed off, holding her breath.

"Is that all?"

"Is...Is that all? Did you seriously just ask me that? Do you know how hard it was for me to tell you that? Do know how long I've kept that hidden from you? Do you—" she stopped as his warm hand covered her mouth.

"Toph I was kidding," he laughed, cupping her face now.

"Oh."

"Why didn't you ever tell me before?"

"You were involved with Suki and I knew I never had a chance. Then you broke up, but I didn't want risk our friendship over something that might not work..." she trailed off sadly.

"Toph, you're my best friend. Nothing could ever ruin our friendship. We could date and have the ugliest break up ever, but I'll still be there for you. For the record though, I think it could work."

Toph smiled at this and leaned forward so her forehead touched his.

"So, what are you saying?"

"Toph, I love you. I'm just sorry it took so long for me to figure it out."

"It's okay," she grinned, "Just don't do it again."

"So, should we go back inside?"

"I suppose..."

She let him help her up and they started the walk back to the palace, as they were walking, she let her arm shoot out and punch his shoulder.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"It's how I show affection," she grinned.

He laughed and then a second later, before Toph could do anything, Sokka pulled her forward and kissed her quickly.

"And that's how I show affection," he stated, smiling at her blushing face.