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Chapter 13

Along for the Ride

The sheer surprise on Katara and Zuko's faces were priceless. After a weekend of worrying about how their friends were holding up, they show up in the cafeteria for breakfast to find Aang and Toph already laughing over their food. Katara's eye twitched angrily. Here she had been riddled with worry for two whole days about them and here they were laughing!

"What's all this?" she yelled as she slammed her hands on the table.

"Breakfast, Sugar Queen," Toph replied. "What's it look like?"

"Not that! You two! I thought you were fighting!"

"What? You want us to fight?" Toph asked. "Okay."

"No, wait, Toph!" Aang begged. Too late. Toph's fist slammed into his shoulder as his milk carton spilled onto the floor. "Aw. I was gonna drink that."

"Feel better now, Sweetness?"

"Don't you patronize me!"

"Calm down, Katara," Zuko said as he gently sat her in her chair.

"Wow," Aang piped in. "Zuko's calm and Katara's flipping out. Did you two trade brains today?"

Katara couldn't help but smile at Aang's comment. Aang and Toph were all right. She did not know how it had happened, but she didn't really care all that much either. Toph was in school and Aang was happy so everything was back to normal.

"So, are you guys gonna come to my track meet?"

"Their going to make you compete in this weather?" Zuko asked, mortified by the idea.

"At least it's not snowing yet," Aang replied with a smile.

"Don't jinx it, Twinkle Toes," Toph laughed. "You might end up with frozen feet by the end of the day."

On the surface of things, nothing had seemed to change. Toph knew better though. Her mind was still on that kiss a few nights ago. Afterwards, Aang had just walked her home, holding her hand the entire way. He said nothing, she said nothing. Just off to the side of the gate, he and squeezed her hand gently before letting her go on alone.

What does it mean? she asked herself in class. I know we're friends, but we're more than that now, right? Does that mean that we're dating? Is he my boyfriend now? Why am I asking myself these things anyway? Why don't I just ask him?

And so her mind was made up. During lunch she would drag Twinkle Toes up to the roof and figure this out. If there was anything to figure out. Of course there was something to figure out. That kiss was great and all, Boy was it great, but she wanted to know what it meant.

When the lunch bell finally rang after a few hours that felt more like days, Toph waited anxiously outside by the cafeteria door. Katara was the first to arrive, and Toph smiled when she stopped to say hello. Not wanting to have to explain anything, Toph just said she was waiting for Twinkle Toes and that the two of them would catch up with her and Zuko later. It took a little convincing, but Katara eventually went inside to wait. Zuko was much easier to dodge the issue with. He walked past her, said hello, patted her shoulder, and went inside.

Why can't Katara ever be that easy to handle?

"Hey, Toph!" Aang's smiling voice came.

"We gotta talk."

"That doesn't sound good," Aang laughed. "Here?"

"Roof."

Aang followed behind her as she parted the crowd that was trying to get into the building for their food. He felt a tiny bit jealous of them as his stomach began to growl angrily at his decision to walk in the opposite direction. Toph was silent the entire climb up the three story stairwell, but Aang was sure he already knew what this was about. He had been thinking about it too.

"So what was it you wanted to talk about?" Aang asked innocently, gazing out at the blue sky.

"What is this?" she asked. "What're we doing?"

"I'd say we're talking and watching the sky," Aang joked.

"Get serious, Aang. You know what I mean. You kissed me."

Toph did not use his name very often. It kind of made it all sink in how much it was bothering her. Aang just continued to smile as he leaned against the railing of the roof.

"I don't really know," Aang answered with a smile.

"Are we just friends?" Toph asked.

"I'm pretty sure it's more than that."

"Then what is it?"

"I don't know that either," he said truthfully. Toph leaned up against the railing next to him in silent thought. "Do you regret it?"

"No," she answered rather quickly. Aang laughed and Toph came dangerously close to smiling.

"Someone really smart once told me that no one knows where their relationships are going to go. I don't know where we're going, but it's been a fun ride so far, right?"

Toph couldn't argue with that at all. She had never had as much fun as she did with Aang. She nodded with a small smile.

"I want to see where the ride goes," Aang continued, his smile growing as he spoke. "Are you willing to get dragged along with me to find out too?"

In response, Toph slipped her hand into Aang's and held it tightly. His hand gripped hers in turn and he leaned his forehead against the side of hers.

"If you ever call me 'honey' or 'baby', I'll kill you. You know that right?"

Aang chuckled into her ear.

"Trust me," he said. "I'm not stupid enough to call you 'baby' and you're nothing like honey anyway."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked as she pulled away from him with a smile.

"Well, honey is sweet, right?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, you're mean, stubborn, and I wouldn't spread you over a biscuit."

Toph jabbed him in the arm with a smile before walking for the stairwell. Aang simply laughed as he rubbed his soar arm and joined her.

By the time the two of them had returned to the cafeteria, the lines were nearly emptied. Aang being Aang, he offered to get Toph her lunch. Toph actually felt good enough about the day that she allowed him to do so without much resistance. She joined Zuko and Katara at their usual table and propped her dirty, bare feet up in Aang's seat as she waited with a smile on her face.

"So, what took you guys so long?" Katara asked.

"We were just talking," Toph answered.

"Oh? About what?"

"Us."

"Us?" Katara parroted. "'Us' as in the group or 'us' as in just the two of you?"

"'So are you guys coming to the track meet or what?" Toph said, abruptly changing the subject.

"I'm game," Katara replied. "What about you, Zuko? You're coming with, right?"

"No."

Aang arrived at the table carrying two trays of food as Toph removed her feet from his chair.

"You guys are all coming to my track meet this afternoon, right?"

Zuko hung his head nearly to the table, sorely tempted to just begin banging it as hard as he could.

- - - -

"I can't believe I'm doing this," Zuko said as he rubbed his arms.

"Oh, you can miss one session with your club, Zuko," Katara said. "It's not like you'll get rusty."

"I'm not talking about that!" Zuko growled. "This is the first time in almost two weeks the club has had a session indoors instead of on that field, and I'm coming out here to freeze anyway!"

Katara and Toph laughed as Zuko continued to shiver. Aang patted him consolingly on the back, not bothering to tell him that the gym was not much warmer this time of year. Looking up into the sky he could feel the snow begging to fall. Returning his gaze to the field, Aang was surprised to see Qiang standing near the gate.

"Hey, Toph," he greeted with a smile. "I haven't seen you around. How ya doin'?"

Toph did not reply. She just walked past him without even acknowledging he was there. Aang followed behind her and joined his teammates by the track. Zuko gestured to Katara to go with them.

"Meeting's in the gym today, Zuko. Field's taken."

"I'm well aware of that," Zuko told him.

"You ditchin' the club too then?"

"You're lucky I'm still there at all," Zuko answered bluntly. "If it weren't for Rou and the students that I've been helping, I'd have left your sorry butt along with Toph."

"So, what's up with her anyway?" Qiang asked. "Where's she been?"

"Toph was at home. Thanks to you."

"Yeah right!" Qiang scoffed. "I know that she ran out of that party crying because of that beanpole."

Zuko's eyes narrowed into a baleful glare. This man really was a fool.

"Toph wants nothing to do with you."

"Toph's parents totally love me. She'll see what a great catch I am as soon as she gets bored with running boy."

"I wouldn't be so sure," Zuko smirked. "She's quite taken with him. And I'm sure he could take you."

"I'd wipe the floor with that little grass stain!" Qiang roared.

"Which reminds me," Zuko said. "I'm also aware of your little hallway run in with Aang the other day."

"What of it?"

By the time Qiang had finished speaking, the back of Zuko's fist was next to his face.

"Come after one of my friends like that again, and people will stare at you funnier than they do me."

Qiang just stood there grinding his teeth as Zuko joined his friends to watch Aang's competition. Qiang stared at Aang hatefully as he stretched and talked with Toph. She was laughing again. What made that stupid first year so special?

"You better win, Twinkle Toes," she grinned.

"What if I don't wanna?" Aang smiled back.

"Then I'll beat the snot outta you!"

"Can't you ever say or do anything positive to encourage people?" Katara joked as Toph punched Aang in the arm.

"Toph? Positive encouragement?" Zuko smirked. "That'll happen the same day that Azula comes home a perfectly polite little angel."

"Oh yeah?" Toph asked.

Without so much as fair warning, she reached down and pulled Aang up to his knees by his shirt. To Katara and Zuko's mutual surprise, Toph then pressed her lips to Aang's and promptly pushed him back to the ground.

"Win and maybe you'll get another," she said. "How's that for positive encouragement?"

Aang sat on the ground with an idiotic smile and a deep blush on his face. Zuko's mouth was hanging open like a starving bullfrog as Katara began squealing in delight.

"Maybe you should check to see if your sister's grown wings," Aang said to Zuko as he stood up.

As he made his way over to the starting line, he could hear Katara bombarding Toph with questions like "how long" and "since when." As he took his position next to his opponents for the race, Aang thought about Toph's encouraging gesture. Never had he wanted to win a race so badly.

A/N: So Aang and Toph have decided to venture into the unknown together! But what about the upcoming holiday? Toph begins to wonder that herself when Katara and Zuko share their Thanksgiving plans wit her. What's Aang gonna do since he's all alone? I need some reviews before you get to find out!