Where Earth Meets Sky:
Chapter 10: New Beginnings
Yeah for romantic fluffy-ness!
So, Toph has a lot on her mind and a lot to work out. She is so stubborn! Poor Teo only wants to help.
I know that many of you have shown an interest in Emi and I have received a few requests to pair her up with someone. So, how does this feel?
Disclaimer: These characters and the setting do not belong to me! They are the property of Mike & Bryan! Only the ideas for this fic are my own. Oh, and Milo, Yuki, & Emi.
From his position beside the open door of Toph's room in the medical wing, Teo watched as she silently cried into her knees. He fought with the uncertainty over whether or not to comfort her. Toph didn't seem like the type to accept such a gesture, but he still wanted to help… somehow.
Pushing the wheels of his chair forward, Teo rolled towards the bed. Seeing her like this made his chest hurt. He recalled telling her that he would wait until she saw that Sokka wasn't the one; that their relationship wouldn't ever be more then friends. Of course, he hadn't know for certain, at the time, whether or not he was right, and hadn't fully anticipated the consequences of his statement being affirmed – that she would be heartbroken by Sokka's rejection.
Reaching out, he laid his hand on her shoulder with a gentle touch. Her trembling form became rigid and she snapped her head up. "Who's there?" Her wide eyes glared into his direction and she roughly shoved at his hand. "Go away! Leave me alone!"
Realizing that she was completely blind at the moment, without any connection to her precious element, Teo ignored her demand. "It's me," he announced and reached for her.
Toph's eyes went wide in horror at the sound of his voice. "Te… Teo!" She scrambled off of the bed, wobbling slightly when her feet touched the floor. Teo watched as she rubbed her fist, first into one eye, then into the other. "Wh… What are you doing here?" She visibly cringed at the shaky sound of her voice.
"I was worried about you."
"There's nothing for you to worry about," Toph said after taking a deep breath to regain her composure.
Teo looked at her sadly. "No offense, Toph, but I'm not blind. I can see the tear stains on your face."
Toph took a sharp breath and turned her back to him, looking down to hide her face. "It doesn't concern you."
"I beg to differ." Teo's tone was calm and soothing as he pushed forward to move around the bed, towards her.
Feeling the vibrations of his chair through the stone floor, Toph moved further away from him, only to realize that she was about to be backed into a corner. Teo watched as she turned around to face him. Her only way out was around him. She looked like a frightened cat-owl, ready to pounce.
Recognizing the gestures that she made with her good hand, he knew what she planned to do. Before she could earthbend, Teo angled his chair off center and shoved towards her, just missing the stone that was raised to trap his wheels. He was now at her side and reached to pull her into his lap.
"No! Teo! Let go of me!" Toph protested. She pounded against his chest and struggled to break free of his arms, but his hold never faltered.
"I'm not letting go, Toph. You don't have to go through this alone."
With a mixture of anger, frustration, and sorrow she eventually collapsed against him, no longer able to hold back her tears.
From the entrance into the room, Haru observed the scene before him. He had been concerned for his friend and came to check up on the situation. He was ready to jump in, to help – if needed, but Teo had everything under control. Besides, knowing Toph's personality – even only if by reputation, the fewer people involved was probably for the better.
"Haru, Is everything alright?" Katara called from down the hall after rounding the corner to find him there. She began to sprint towards him, worried after hearing the echo of Toph's voice through the corridor. Haru made a gesture for her to be quiet and she slowed her pace. Thankfully, the blind earthbender was too distracted to notice the commotion. Katara made it to his side only to find herself staring in wonder at the couple before her. She exchanged a confused look with Haru, who shrugged.
Concerned for her friend, Katara moved forward, only to be blocked when Haru's arm shot across the doorway in front of her. He shook his head and motioned that they should leave. With a sigh Katara followed him; it was obvious that she would have to wait to check on her patient.
When they were far enough down the hall, Katara asked, "What happened?"
Haru shook his head. "I'm not sure, but I get the feeling that we shouldn't interfere."
Katara nodded. She hadn't ever seen Toph cry. The girl was normally as solid as the earth and just as stubborn; and above all, hated to show her weakness. That Teo had somehow broken through her defenses was evidence enough that something significant had happened between them over the past 2 months.
"Which way?"
Katara blinked out of her thoughts and looked up at Haru. "Huh?"
He was pointing ahead of them where the hall ended; you could only go left or right. "Which way?"
"Oh, uhh…" Katara scrunched her eyes as she tried to remember. "R…right?" She honestly wasn't sure, not having previously come from this direction. The last time she had gone this way out of the wing she was following that girl who had been caring for Toph. What was her name again? As if on cue, the sudden sound of crashing objects over the floor brought Katara's attention forward.
Just as Haru was rounding the corner into the crossing hall someone collided into him. He caught the person's hand instinctively in time to keep them from falling back. The tray of food that the person had been carrying flipped onto the ground. He found himself staring down into a pair of large, frightened brown eyes. As he took in the rest of her features, he recognized the girl who seemed to constantly be waiting on the female earthbender.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" she bowed her soft spoken apologies.
Katara watched the scene before her as the girl's, whose name she suddenly remembered – Emi, face seemed to turn crimson and Haru stared at her in utter bewilderment.
"It… It's okay." Haru answered in a husky voice.
As if in slow motion, Emi straightened her back, but kept her eyes down. After what seemed like a minute, but was in fact only about 15 seconds, a quiet "umm," escaped her mouth. Haru was still holding her hand. She dared to peek up at his face, finding him staring down at her. When their eyes met, she bowed her head to hide her embarrassment and attempted to pull her hand out of his grasp.
Haru blinked out of his daze at the movement and released his hold, bringing his hand to the back of his neck nervously.
Emi was almost disappointed when her hand dropped to her side. She stood there for a moment fiddling with a stray strand of her hair before dropping to her knees to gather the food tray and now empty dishes that littered the ground around them.
Katara smirked in amusement and gave a little giggle before moving to help the girl. Haru continued to stare, as if frozen, until Katara slapped at his leg. She was bent down beside him, trying to get him to back up so that she could reach the plate on the other side of where he stood. He startled out of his reverie and dropped down to help clean up the mess.
"I… I've got to take this back to the kitchen an…and clean this up." Emi spoke barely loud enough to hear. She stood with the tray of empty dishes and backed away towards the kitchen, her eyes lowered – her face still flushed.
"I'll help." Katara followed after her, leaving Haru to stare after them, still kneeling on the ground.
Toph jolted at the sound of the loud clatter that came from the hall. She leapt off of Teo's lap, her face burning in embarrassment. The world came back into view when her feet found the floor. To her relief there wasn't anyone else in the room. She took advantage of the distraction to get around Teo. Mortified over being seen in such an uncharacteristic state, she fled from the room, away from Teo and away from the presences that she felt at the other end of the hall.