A/N:

Merry early Christmas, here's a new chapter!

Honestly, I wasn't expecting to have another one out so soon, but as I've said before, I started writing and couldn't stop.

That being said, this chapter is significantly shorter than the last one, but I hope it's easy to see why once you read it. There are revelations in this chapter, and some updates on everyone's favorite Meat and Sarcasm Guy.

Also, a quick announcement: I decided to draw Katara from a moment in the previous chapter, which I have posted on my tumblr. My username is 112aang . Check it out, if you want- you don't have to, though.

I probably won't post another update until after Christmas. Hopefully I can post before the new year, but if I can't:

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year from Hailey!

Disclaimer: I don't own ATLA.

Made

Chapter 8: "I've Never Been Loved Before You"

It had been a week since their duet session at the Jasmine Dragon, and they had not spoken a word to each other since- not even a text message.

After the performance, Aang had casually asked Katara if she would be interested in attending a band practice, just as Iroh had suggested. She was caught completely off guard, not even imagining he would ask such a question. She supposed she should have been thrilled. To have the honor of attending a practice for one of the most famous bands in Republic City should have been a no brainer. But still, she found herself leaning more towards 'no.'

After his invitation, she simply stared at him, dumbfounded. While, yes, it would have been an amazing opportunity, she couldn't help but think of the pain it would cause her. Katara stood perfectly still, contemplating her answer, before eventually declining the offer.

She knew, somewhere deep down, that Aang's offer was a way to eventually get her to join the band. The waterbender remembered his brief mention of being on the lookout for a new co-lead singer from their first encounter together. Katara knew this would be an incredible, once in a lifetime opportunity, and in a normal situation, she probably would have accepted. But this wasn't a normal situation.

She had admitted to herself during their final song together that she had feelings for Aang- strong, undeniable feelings. And she hated herself for them. After seeing him with his girlfriend, her arms around his neck, it became all too real – the fact that he was in a relationship. And from what she could tell, Katara had assumed he was happy with her. His smile toward her seemed genuine, and he returned her embrace easily.

The waterbender had silently been holding onto any sliver of hope she could. Hope that maybe, just maybe he wasn't happy with the woman in the ponytail. But that sliver dissipated as soon as she saw them together. The woman was most certainly happy, judging by the wide grin upon her face as she spoke to him. Aang, from what Katara could tell from that brief moment across the room, was also happy.

She was thankful for Sokka, especially after seeing them together. Although he seemed as though he didn't want anything to do with her infatuation with the airbender, he tried his best to help. He slid in front of her, blocking her view of Aang. Before he knew that the man was already with someone, Sokka had briefly mentioned to Katara that they would look good together. But he took back that statement as soon as it left his lips.

It wasn't so much that he denied what he had said, but more so that he didn't want Katara to get hurt.

Her brother had been there a little over a week and was already making Katara happier than she thought she would be. It was an adjustment, to say the least- he attempted (and failed) at cooking multiple times, was often messy with his things, and borrowed her car more than she would've liked. But she couldn't deny that she loved having him there with her. She felt less alone, and she was glad that it was because of her older brother.

Sokka had also already made a couple of friends since his arrival, to which Katara was slightly jealous of. However, he was more outgoing than she was, so she couldn't blame him.

He often rode with her to the Jasmine Dragon when she played there, and had many games of Pai Sho with Iroh. None of which he ever won, but he loved playing, and took a quick liking to the old man.

To her surprise, Sokka had also managed to form a small crush on a woman he met at the duet session. Her name was Suki, and after a description from her brother, Katara concluded that she was one of the women that Toph had been sitting with.

Katara hadn't met Suki yet, but from what her brother had told her, she could only assume that the woman was perfect for him. Sokka had told her as much as he knew, which wasn't a lot. Suki was about his age, was a part of Aang's band -she played the piano- and had previously trained as a Kyoshi Warrior.

Her brother was always either out with Suki and a few others or at the apartment playing video games, and Katara wondered if he had a plan for his time in the city. She had thought about asking him on multiple occasions but decided against it. He was happy, so that was all that mattered.

Her on the other hand, though- she had fallen into somewhat of a slump after her performance with Aang.

She hadn't been to the park in a few days, which was not normal for her. Since moving to the city, Katara had tried to make it to the park at least every other day to feed the turtle ducks and sing. She did her best thinking there, surrounded by the open air, nature, and the friendly people that congregated there. She couldn't quite figure out what was keeping her away, but whatever it was, had a rather large pull on her.

After declining Aang's invitation, she felt as though she created a hole within herself. The waterbender knew what her heart wanted, but her head won the battle, and she was now suffering the aftermath.

As much as she wanted to attend a band practice, the thought of possibly being asked to join said band left her feeling uneasy. Something pulled her toward Aang, and it seemed to be stronger as they sang together. She couldn't help but feel as though it was something almost… spiritual.

Seeing Aang again was a thought that she couldn't ponder for long without feeling broken inside. Broken, and hurt- both because she had feelings for him, and that she couldn't do anything about them. It wasn't that she was angry with him, not at all. She was angry with herself for getting so attached as fast as she did. And for what? Katara didn't want to be the reason for him leaving such a kind looking, and beautiful woman.

But she was getting ahead of herself. The waterbender silently scolded herself as such thoughts crossed her mind. Who was to say that he even felt something for her? She didn't have any proof that he was even remotely interested, and if he was, there was nothing he could do about it without leaving his girlfriend.

The thought of uprooting his life made her sick, but Katara couldn't seem to keep such thoughts from her mind.

She assumed, against her better judgement, that not seeing him would push the thoughts and feelings away. But instead, it only made them worse. Katara had only known Aang for two weeks, and he already had such a hold on her life. But as much as it hurt her, it somehow also filled a void in herself that she didn't know she had.

Katara had felt as though there was something missing from her life, and Aang had filled that spot, indirectly. Although she wasn't with him, just the small act of meeting him, bringing him into her life, seemed to make her feel whole; a little, at least.

She still played at the Jasmine Dragon, but the performances passed in blurs, hardly staying in her memory. Iroh had sat her down a few times, questioning whether she was alright, but she simply shrugged him off.

Every time she sang on that stage, all she could think of was Aang, and it pained her.

She lay on her bed, facing the ceiling, arms stretched out to her sides. She closed her eyes, a headache starting to take over her body.

She pinched between her eyes with her fingers before her phone buzzed on the bedside table. She sighed and leaned over to pick it up, checking the notifications on the screen.

There were a few texts from Sokka, telling her that he was going to be home late after a night out with friends. She responded with a thumbs up.

The most recent text message was from Haru.

"Hey, Katara. If you aren't busy tomorrow, I was wondering if we could go to brunch in the park?

-Haru"

She sighed and locked her phone, not responding.

Aang felt conflicted, mind racing as he ran through the park.

A week had passed, a week since he had seen Katara, and he felt drained.

He was nervous about inviting her to a band rehearsal, but Iroh and Toph had told him it would be a good idea. Aang had trusted them, and mustered up enough courage to ask, only to have the invitation declined.

The airbender supposed he couldn't blame her. After all, maybe she didn't like singing with him. Maybe she didn't care for his band as much as her brother had. But nevertheless, he was stunned by her answer. He respected it, or course, but it pained him more than he let show.

She hadn't given him a reason for her answer, and he hadn't asked for one. He assumed it was because she wished to spend time with her brother, or that she was nervous to meet the band. But whatever the reason, he respected her decision.

Singing with Katara had filled him was such joy, and brought up emotions that he had never experienced before. Singing with her confirmed Aang's feelings for her- strong, undeniable feelings.

Before the performance, as he was sitting his car, he thought about On Ji. About what he should do, whether he should break up with her or not. He liked her, and he couldn't deny that she was beautiful and fun. But he didn't have romantic feelings for her, and he hated that he had let their relationship go one for so long.

Aang had decided before the duet session that whatever happened during would determine what he would do about On Ji. He never imagined, though, what singing with Katara would do to his heart.

Watching her sing was like watching his childhood lemur with a bucket of moon peaches- she was truly in her element. He admired everything about her as she sang: her voice, her body posture, the way she closed her eyes and smiled into the song. She truly was an amazing woman.

As much as he enjoyed watching and singing with her, his heart yearned for more. It pulled him towards her, like she was a magnet. He wanted nothing but to hold her, laugh with her, just be with her. But he couldn't. Not right now, not with On Ji still in the picture.

Aang was not a cheater, and he had no desire to hurt his girlfriend, but he couldn't deny what he felt for Katara any longer.

It was crazy, he thought to himself often. They had only known each other for two weeks, but there was something that pulled him towards her; something almost… spiritual.

His conversation with Toph from two weeks prior flashed through his mind.

"My parents used to tell me stories of the spirits and how they connected us all, some more than others. Maybe you and Sugar Queen have one of these deeper connections."

He wondered if Katara felt the same for him. Aang couldn't deny that he was often oblivious to his surroundings, especially when it came to other people. But he mentally took note of her blushes when she was around him, and hoped that they had meant she felt something for him.

He stopped running abruptly, a look of realization on his face as he panted lightly.

Aang pulled his phone from his pocket, slight remorse in his eyes. He swiped through his contacts, stopping on the name of a person whom he needed to speak with immediately.

The airbender typed a message and hit send, then resumed his run for the day.

"Hey, we need to talk. Meet me at the Fire Nation market at 6.

-Aang"

A/N:

Ahhh, the revelations. As I wrote this chapter, I was feeling so many emotions. Writing Katara's thoughts about everything just pulled some things from deep within myself that I haven't thought about in over a year.

Anyway... who do you all think Aang is going to meet with?

Responses to reviews:

Honeysucklebee: Okay, I have actually thought long and hard about this. I feel like Katara would have a voice very similar to Tori Kelly, and Aang's would be close to that of James Bay, possibly a little deeper.

UGudBroXD: It's alright, I understand. I can assure you that this story will not be like that- it is Kataang endgame for sure.

lhaekLag: It's okay, I figured that is what you meant. That is definitely not what I am going to do.

Monkeyfeathers: I am so glad you liked my song choices for them! I am a major Disney fan, so you can probably expect more references and songs coming in the future. About the On Ji and Aang thing... you'll just have to see. ;) And Haru won't be gone that easily... but I promise he isn't a bad person.

Unoriginalpoet: I also really like Haru, so I'm glad that I'm not the only one. I decided to make On Ji a nice girl, because well, I like angst and I feel like that adds a lot. Plus, it makes things harder on Aang, which I'm still not sure why I am drawn to. I don't want to give anything away, but I can say that you may be pained in both ways with this one. In response to your theories, you will just have to wait and see, hehe. What I can say is that this is just the tip of the iceberg.

As always, thank you all for the continued support, and I'm anxious to see what you think of this chapter. :)