Note from Liberty: Thanks a lot for waiting patiently, and for all the good reviews of the last two chapters! I love you guys. Anyway, I promise you that this is going to be the best chapter yet. :)
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Toph stood frozen, her hands out in front of her. She couldn't feel a thing! Her normal way of seeing wasn't working, her feet couldn't detect anything… It was like she was standing on air.
"Sokka," she whispered to the Water Tribe boy. "I can't feel the ground!"
Sokka stood there for a moment, his eyes wide. "What? What do you mean?"
Toph kicked snow in his direction, which caused her to tip off balance and topple back into Appa. "I mean I can't see anything! It's like I'm standing on nothing!" she turned around, gripping Appa's fur in her hands. "I'm going back home! I knew coming here was a bad idea!"
Appa groaned as the young lady started to climb clumsily up his side. "Mroooow," he protested, shaking his gigantic head.
"Toph!" Sokka called, jogging towards her. "Stop climbing, it will be okay."
"No, Sokka, it won't! How would you feel if someone suddenly tied a blindfold around your eyes? Huh? And then dumped you in some stupid, cold wasteland?!" she yelled at him, still climbing.
The young man reached up, grabbing her sides. He tugged on her, but she held fast, digging her fingers into the flying bison's thick fur. "Toph – let – go!" he muttered, and with one final tug, she came loose. Unfortunately, her sudden release sent Sokka tumbling backwards into a snow drift, Toph landing on top of him.
It was like time was frozen, with the two teenagers just laying there for a moment. Toph's hands were on his chest, from when she had tried to prepare herself for hitting the ground. But instead she had fallen on him. Sokka could see the individual lashes on her eyelids, he could have counted them if he wanted to. Her frosty breath spread across his face, making his eyes go wide in surprise. He was so close to her, he could smell the earthy scent of her… he closed his eyes, leaning in towards her…
And his lips collided with air.
Toph had moved, sitting up on the snow next to him instead of being on top of him. "Geez, Ponytail!" she grumbled, having no idea what Sokka had almost done. She sat with her arms crossed over her chest, her fingers impatiently tapping against her arm.
"S-Sorry," he muttered, sitting up and rubbing the back of his head. "Well. Ready to go now?"
"No," she said flatly, standing up. Sokka did the same, his cheeks flushed red. "But what difference does that make? Just lead the way."
Sokka looked at her for a moment, his gaze lingering on her peachy lips. "Alright," he said, swallowing. How was he supposed to lead the way? He could just tell her where to go, but that wouldn't be too smart, he had never been good at giving directions.
"Alright." He said finally, and took a step closer to the Earth Kingdom girl. His hand slowly slid into hers, grasping it firmly. "Here we go."
