Confessing A Feeling
(Katara POV)
It was a cold winter night as I silently sowed Aang's torn clothes in our modest tent. I sat on our shared mat while he laid in the far left corner of the tent only with his underwear on, trying to take a nap but failing miserably.
"Katara, I can't sleep." Aang whispered softly as he sat up slowly. "Come lay with me, please."
I placed his clothes down and stared at him for awhile. He looked tired and sad from all the fighting he's had to endure lately. So much so he looked like a completely different person. His cheerful smile was gone and his once bright and expressive eyes now only showed deep sadness. I couldn't stand seeing him like this at all. It hurt so much.
I smiled at him and picked his clothes back up. "I can't, Aang." I said under my breath, making sure to avoid his eyes. "I have to finish sowing your clothes for tomorrow."
He sighed and laid back down depressingly. "Okay . . ."
After a couple of minutes of silence I dropped his clothes and quickly crawled my way towards him. He blinked in shock as I threw myself at him. At first he went rigid, but then after some time passed he relaxed and hugged me back tenderly. I snuggled closer and rested my head on his strong chest while he hugged me even more tightly from my waist. He sighed and began to stroke my hair lovingly. I knew he loved my hair when it was unbraided so whenever we were alone together I made sure to unbraid it, giving him easier access to run his hands through it.
"I love you, Aang." I finally said after a few minutes, which is what I tended to say whenever I didn't know what else to do for him.
Aang kissed the crock of my neck and slightly pulled away to look me in the eyes. "I love you, too." He said in a shaky tone, cupping my face in his rough hands. "Oh, god, you don't know how much I love you, Katara. I-I don't know what I'd do without you. You mean everything to me!"
I bit my bottom lip as he continued with tears in his eyes. I couldn't hold it back anymore so I grabbed him and hugged him as tightly as I could. As I hugged him my hands gripped on his back as if though he were to disappear if I held on any looser. "I'll never leave you, Aang." I breathed out between gasps of air as I began to get a huge lump in my throat. "I promise . . . I promise I'll always be by your side. No matter what comes between us."
Aang pulled me closer and placed his hands on my hips. "Katara . . ." He wanted me to stop, but I wasn't ready. I had so much more to say and I knew that this was going to be my one and only chance. I'd never have this sort of courage ever again.
"E-Even if you fall in love with someone else . . . I'll continue to be there for you, Aang. Like it was meant to be." I sighed happily and pushed him back so I could stare into his lovely grey eyes as I finished my small speech. "I love you, Aang, and nothing is ever going to change that. Nothing. We were meant to be, I'm sure of that, and I'm willing to prove it to you by forever staying by your side."
Aang stared at me, his eyes wide in shock and amazement. "K-Katara . . ." He gasped, suddenly short of breath himself. "D-Do you really mean that?"
I grinned, tears in my eyes, and placed a hand on his soft cheek. "Of course, Aang. You mean the world to me and I couldn't be able to live without you by my side."
He bit his own lip and tightened his grip on me unconsciously. That brightness and expressiveness that his eyes once held coming back as if instantly. My old Aang was finally back.
After staring at me for what seemed to be for ages, Aang finally opened his mouth to say something, "You know, I'm going to have to hold you to that when you're thinking of leaving me for the next hot guy that happens to stroll by."
I couldn't help but laugh and smirk at him. "Same goes to you, Mr. Lady-Killer."
"Naw-uh." Aang said, shaking his head with that grin of his. "I didn't make any promises like you did, Katara."
"Aang!" I yelled, slightly annoyed.
He chuckled softly and hugged me once again, but this time with a loving smile. "I'm just kidding, Katara. You know I'd never do something like that to you."
"I know, I know."
--------End! I wrote this on a whim and I think it pretty much sucks. But I decided to hell with it and posted it anyways. It's a one-shot of course. But hopefully, this won't make you think of me as just a one-shot writer or some crap. At the present moment I'm working on an AU Avatar: The Last Airbender fic in which I've been dared to put in a cat-girl. They think I can't do it, I'll show them! I'll blow their minds away! Muahhahaha! . . . Anyways, that's coming out soon, and it's going to be mildly dark. But I don't know if I should couple Aang/Katara together or Zuko/Katara. E-mail me if you've got suggestions! I'd love to hear them all!
BTW: Don't forget to R&R! I'll love you forever if you do! . . . Seriously. :P
"The One and Only But Never Lonely" lilangelita a. k. a. Krystal