Authors Note: Here is the long awaited Ch. 4! Soooooo sorry for my long dissappearance, and I will try to get another chapter out soon. Anyways, this chapter is a little slow, but I personally like the ending I made :) Of course, you guys may think its awful but oh well XD Enjoy!

Update: 9/5/13.*Looks at authors note and shakes head* I loved this chapters ending? Wha? O.o Just kidding, but seriously, I could have done so much more with this... And I also just realized that Aang doesn't ask any questions like I had originally planned... Not wanting to mess anything up, I kept it as it was here, but feel free to pretend that he threw in a few questions here and there X3

Toph could ask him anything, anything at all. the thought thrilled her for some reason, as potential questions began to run through her mind. Do you like me? Do you think I'm pretty? Are you even interested in the least? Instead of choosing the most burning questions, she settled on one that could be taken as nothing more than simple curiosity, "Why did you like Katara in the first place?"

"Well, uh, I don't know… I thought she was really pretty, and then she turned out to be really nice and fun... Sometimes. Not to mention she was pretty much the first non-Airbending girl I had ever seen." he said with a shrug, wanting to get away from the topic more than anything.

"Katara? Fun? Are you sure you're not thinking of Sokka?" She asked teasingly, hoping to make him more comfortable with a bit of humor. It seemed to work because Aang gave a soft chuckle of amusement.

"I'm sure. When we first met, Katara agreed to go penguin sledding with me… After that, she was burdened with a lot more responsibility and was almost forced into the mother role of out little group. It's just where she felt the most comfortable after her mother died, I suppose." He explained, trying to help her understand his view of things.

Toph pieced that together; still unable to really pity the girl. She understood being a mother figure, but Katara took it over-board. She almost reminded Toph of her own mother at times. Sometimes people need less discipline and rules, while getting more of just simple love and support. Unfortunately, Toph doubted that Katara understood that.

"Uh… I would never have guessed… She doesn't seem like the 'fun' type, to be honest. Next question, what… What are your thoughts on me, honestly?" she asked, trying to make it sound nonchalant and random, but on the inside she felt like a swarm of butterflies had made their home in her chest.

Aang raised an eyebrow at her, hope flaring deep inside his chest. What could her motivations truly be? Did friends normally ask each other questions like these? "Well, you're strong, determined, and don't care what anyone says. You're true to yourself and don't conform to anyone's idea of how you should be. I really like those things about you." He answered with all the honesty he possessed.

Toph nodded, again getting that jittery feeling in the pit of her stomach. How in the world could he make her feel this way? Like she was the most important person on the planet at that moment; what made him so special, anyway? A faint blush rose to her cheeks as she processed his words, liking how he had described her if she disagreed with some things, and she quickly hid her face from behind a curtain of hair. Not that it really helped, but it still made her feel better.

Aang tilted his head as his brain put two and two together, piecing together her words and actions as he tried to figure out what they could mean. As the answer revealed itself, his eyes grew wide and a grin quickly spread across his face.

Toph did like him! It was obvious now that he actually had taken the time to just think everything through. All the blushing and giggling and dressing up… All of those things were hints that he so blatantly missed. If he was right, all of his previous worry had been for absolutely nothing.

"Next question, Twinkle Toes." Toph stated, demanding his attention once more. Which he was more than happy to give to her, by this point. "What could make you leave Katara?" she asked after a moment's hesitation, obviously worried he might get offended. To her surprise and delight, he just laughed.

"Well, a number of things could do it, to be honest. Finding someone I loved more, for instance, would be a huge factor in my leaving." He began, mulling it over as he considered all of his options. "My time here has really allowed me to think on a few things, and I believe that my time with Katara has come to a close… We've reached our breaking point, so to speak." He answered with a slight shrug of his shoulders, waiting to see her reaction to his response.

Toph blinked in obvious shock, it was all that she could do at the moment as her brain struggled to wrap itself around what he had just said. So, Sugar Queen was really out of the picture? That was good news… But what had cause him to change his mind? As Toph tried to clear her mind while remaining inconspicuous, she ended up blurting out the one question that had popped into her mind. "Could you ever love me like you loved Katara?" she said before quickly slapping a hand over her mouth, silently cursing at herself.

Wonderful. Just wonderful.

Now it was Aang's turn to be surprised. Of course he had guessed at her feelings, but he didn't expect her to be so blunt about them. "No." he replied as he considered his answer, and he watched as Toph instantly paled and her expression turned pained. "Wait, I'm not finished." He assured her quickly, hating how upset she looked in that moment. "What I felt for Katara was simply puppy love and fascination, nothing more. It wasn't real love, in any sense of the word. Katara's never felt anything more than interest in me either, so I really don't feel bad in admitting that. Her being with me was probably only based on that stupid prophecy she got from that fortune teller all those years ago, and not her honest feelings. Toph, I couldn't love you like Katara, because I could love you so much more than that, if you'd let me of course." He finished, the depth of his words shocking even him.

Toph gasped quietly as she realized what he had said to her, eyes going wide, "R-really?" she asked hesitantly, almost afraid to hope.

"Really." He answered simply, standing as he quickly made his way over to her. She traced his light steps until he was right next to her, taking one of her hands that had been clenched tightly from a mixture of shock, anxiety, and probably fear. "I didn't realize it until now, but it's always been you. You weren't just meant to be my teacher; the vision had had in that swamp was trying to tell me something much more than that. You were meant to be my life as well." Aang admitted quietly, almost sheepishly, as he brought the back of her hand up to his lips to plant a kiss. "Believe me."

Toph bit her lip, wanting nothing more than to fling her arms around him and scream. However, her fear of rejection kept her pinned in place as she struggled to make a decision. In the end she just stood and gave him a small smile before placing a swift peck on his cheek, "Thank you… Just give me a night to think on things..." She murmured before quietly pulling away from him and heading for her room, servants fluttering around as they began cleaning the table. When Toph was finished eating, everyone was finished, apparently. Aang stood there for a moment in stunned silence, contemplating his next move as he tried to fight the feeling of rejection. He understood her reasoning's, it was a lot to take in after all, so he could stand to wait patiently for her, When he felt a yawn come over him, he allowed himself to leave it at that and whispered a quiet good night to the woman who had left him standing there; moving silently to his room to get some sleep.