#67—Death
Her frail body shook with each decreasing breath. The old man stood next to his wife and patted her hand over and over, tears spilling over his cheeks. When she spoke, her voice was weak and barely audible. "Sokka, gather out friends."
The old man instantly left her side and ran to the door. He ushered in the rest of the GAang. "Here they are Love." He said, kissing her wrinkled hand. Katara held back a sob behind her hand. She reassuringly patted her brother's back.
"Come closer." Toph wheezed. "I know I only have a few moments of life left, but I want you all to know that I will always love you all. I will never forget you. Sokka, I now turn my address to you. You have been the love of my life since the very first day I met you. You had your eyes on other girls for a while but I never lost hope. You'd come around. You did and look how it turned out." The withered woman stopped to catch her breath. "I will always and forever love you. Just remember that." The woman touched his cheek. A moment later, her hand fell limp to her side. The last moments of her life had passed.
The man fell to his knees. The pain that gathered in his chest was overwhelming. Aang could hear his heart breaking. Salty tears poured down his cheeks and splattered on the wooden floor. His blue eyes showed the hurt. Katara placed a hand on his shoulder. Sokka angrily shook it off. "Get out!" He screamed, the pressure of the moment falling onto his shoulders.
Aang and his wife slowly backed out of the small room, leaving Sokka alone to wail on the floor.
The man clawed at the sheets on the bed in desperation. The love of his life was gone. There was no saving her. His tears began to gather into a puddle on the floor. The heartbreak was evident. The catch in his throat became too much and he broke down into hysteria. He cried out in agony and pounded his fists into the mattress. The hysterias took a lot out of him. With drained energy, he took slow steps to the stairs.
Finding the energy to even move proved a task even more difficult than all those of the war. The grief was almost too much to bear. It broke the hearts of those who loved him. It was obvious that his hopes had been lost long before in the despair of losing her.
Why did death have to crush the hopes of those its victims?