April 29th, Thursday, Ba Sing Se

Katara usually didn't see herself as an overthinker, but one could reckon against that opinion.

During their childhood, Sokka would constantly point that fact out, every time she stopped him from having fun. When he was around eight years old and had the brilliant idea to go penguin sledding during the winter in a swimsuit, Katara was the one to keep him from dying of hypothermia. She had also saved him from nonsense science experiments, crazy challenges he'd seen online, and many other deadly situations over the years.

Her overthinking usually kept them safe. Until she grew up, that is.

Then, her overthinking made her go into loopholes of anxiety and fear. It had only gotten worse since she got pregnant, as many changes were happening in her life. And that day, the excruciating wait for her guests to arrive was killing her, making her imagine every possible way things could go wrong.

Setting the table, and adding a few extra chairs to fit everyone, her hands almost trembled. She put some of her best plates and cutlery over the table, smoothing the blue silky tablecloth. Suki, who stood by the table, also putting down some glasses, eyed Katara with a preoccupied look.

"Hey, are you okay?" The sister-in-law asked, with furrowed eyebrows. Katara simply shrugged it off, murmuring a response.

"Sure." She paced around the living room, now focused on tidying up the pillows over the couch and making sure everything was in its place. Then, she turned to the kitchen, double-checking the food she had ordered.

However, the minute Katara concluded there was nothing more to do and nothing else to keep her distracted with, she started overthinking again. She sat down on the couch with a huff and stared at the ceiling, unwillingly letting her mind wonder.

First of all, she had never met Aang's friends before, except for Toph. For all she knew, they could be judging, cunning and manipulative people. The fact that those total strangers were going to be there while she told the most important news of her life to her family wasn't relaxing at all. She knew that it was most likely they were good people, given that Aang liked them but there was still doubt, since she didn't know what to expect from them.

Second, Katara knew her family loved and supported her. However, remembering the way Sokka had reacted when he found out the news, she had a feeling they would react similarly. Although they were quite open-minded, much more than her brother at least, she knew they had been raised in a very traditional environment, considering that the Water Tribes had some very conservative customs. If they happened to freak out, it could end up on Aang's shoulders, and he didn't deserve that.

Another point was that Aang himself was coming. Katara's heart started to beat fast, and she leaned against the arm of the couch. They had just made up, and she didn't want to mess things up again. When she had said no to his proposal, it hurt him a lot, and she couldn't ever risk making the same mistake. Yes, it would be a lie to say she wasn't in love with him anymore, but she just couldn't bring herself to act on it.

She was abruptly taken from her messy thoughts when she heard the doorbell ring, and her whole body froze. Glancing at Suki, who gave her a reassuring nod, Katara walked up to the door, only to see Sokka, Pakku, Kanna, and Hakoda.

All their familiar blue eyes shone to her as she greeted them, with a nervous smile. "Hey, guys!"

"Hey, honey." Her father patted her shoulder and walked inside, following Pakku, who had just nodded and was quick to enter the apartment to look around. Sokka hurriedly stuck by his wife's side and kissed her on the forehead.

"Huh... It's a nice place." The older man said, with an ever so judgmental tone in his voice, which she simply ignored.

Katara turned to her grandmother, who still smiled fondly at her, and pulled her into a hug. Her wrinkly eyes still had that wise, all-knowing look, which made her shiver. Kanna then complimented her granddaughter's clothes, resting her eyes on the girl's stomach for a split second. "Hello, honey. You look very gorgeous in this dress."

Since the day they'd arrived in Ba Sing Se, Katara knew her grandma was onto her secret, but she didn't understand why the older woman never interrogated her. Kanna had spent the past days shooting her comments and dropping hints, to the point Katara thought she was going insane, not sure if her grandma knew she was pregnant or if she was just bluffing.

"Thanks, Gran." Katara replied, sheepish, quickly turning to Sokka and her dad to change the subject. "So, what did you guys do today?"

"I took them for a tour in the University. It took forever... Super boring." Her brother replied, an uninterested expression on his face.

"Son, you just found it boring because you spent all your college days there." Hakoda pointed out a fact that was quite true. Katara, Sokka, Suki, and Toph all went to Ba Sing Se University, and she could agree that she spent countless hours around campus. There was nothing new to see anymore since they already had explored the buildings for years.

Even Pakku seemed to stop analyzing Katara's apartment for a moment to comment. "It was indeed a very interesting and educational tour."

The family soon started settling down at the couch in the living room, while they talked about the activity they'd done that morning. Kanna had motioned to sit at one of the chairs by the table and raised an eyebrow at her granddaughter when she saw there were more plates than necessary for the six of them.

"Honey, is anyone else coming?" The older woman asked. "I think you picked up too many plates."

Katara stood still for a moment, mentally cursing herself. In the middle of her worry and nervousness, she forgot to tell the family that other people were coming too. She quickly put together a response.

"Oh, yeah, a couple of friends are coming too. Sorry, I forgot to tell you all about it."

"What friends? Toph?"

Suddenly, she heard the doorbell ring. Using it as an excuse to completely ignore her grandma, Katara rushed to open the door again, and when she saw Aang's bright smile, she almost froze in place.

"Hey."

"Hi." She greeted him back, only to realize other people were standing beside him when they all murmured a greeting.

A slender, tall man, with a scar on his face, held hands with a woman who had a bit of a gloomy expression. Standing next to them, another woman with long, silky black hair nodded to Katara. She looked very alike to that man, so she figured they were probably the siblings Aang had told her about, Zuko and Azula, and the woman he held hands with was Mai.

A more familiar face, Toph, grinned at her too, yelling. "Wassup, Sugar Queen."

A brown-haired girl had a bright smile on her face waved at her too, quickly introducing herself. "Hi! I'm Ty Lee. It's so nice to meet you, Katara!"

"Nice to meet you too." She replied with a nervous smile. "All of you. Come in!"

As all those people crammed in her living room, she started feeling overwhelmed again. Feeling her throat tightening with anxiety, Katara tried to take a deep breath, until she felt a warm hand squeezing her shoulder.

Aang had a comforting smile on his face, and his eyes glimmered with compassion. "It's going to be okay, trust me."

His fingers lingered there before he joined his friends and her family in the apartment. The words he had just said were being replayed in her head, giving her some sort of comfort. Breathing out, she put a smile on her face and walked into the room.

It 's dinner time.

It had gone smoothly, for the most part. Despite some occasional snarky comments from Kanna, asking if Aang and Katara were dating - which were met with quite an awkward response- they were all having a very pleasant dinner, and the group was mingling. She had been relieved that Aang's and Toph's friends were nice people, and felt like it was a weight off her shoulders.

Aang sat beside her by the table, noticing how her breaths were shaky, and how she barely ate any of the food they'd ordered. Katara's blue eyes seemed darker, grayer, and a slight frown never left her forehead. As she made small talk with her guests, her hair fell in waves down her tense shoulders.

When he realized he might have been staring too much, Aang turned to the other guests sitting by the table. Suki and Ty Lee seemed happy, talking and chatting. Kanna made small talk with Zuko and Mai, trying to get to know the more introverted couple, and next to them, Azula looked at the rest of them with analyzing eyes.

As the evening wore on and the guests were done eating, however, Aang felt nervous. He tried controlling his breath and putting up a smile on his face, but inside, he felt like he was about to explode with anxiety.

Katara noticed too when all of the plates were empty. She kicked his foot gently under the table and looked at him with pleading eyes. It was as if a silent conversation was happening in between them, but unfortunately, the other people at the table noticed.

"Katara, honey, is everything okay? You seem pale." Kanna pointed out, with narrowed eyes. One could say it was pure preoccupation, but Aang saw in her eyes the suspicion. Katara gulped next to him.

"You seem a little off today too, Aang. Is something wrong?" Azula asked, from the other side of the table.

Aang frowned. The girl had her golden eyes fixed on him, almost piercing through his soul, and he hated when she did that. There was a faint grin on her face, almost as if she knew it all, and was teasing him. "I'm just fine, Azula."

Katara recomposed herself, smiling at her grandmother.

"Yeah, Gran-Gran. I'm okay. But..." She looked at Aang one last time, looking for reassurance. He gave her a quick nod before she continued. "There's actually something else I..."

Sokka gave his sister a thumbs up and tried to hide it when Hakoda saw it and looked at him, quizzed. Kanna had a peaceful expression on her face, seeming completely unbothered as a tiny smirk formed on her lips. Azula had a similar smirk on her face, while her brother, Mai and Ty Lee just waited, looking from Aang to Katara.

Under the table, she took his hand and squeezed it. He took it as a sign to continue talking for her.

"There's a reason we wanted to gather all of you for dinner today. We have some news, and since you're all in town this weekend, we figured it would be a good day..." Aang looked at the woman sitting next to him when she interrupted his speech.

"I'm pregnant."

The room fell in silence for a moment. Then, the weirdest thing happened. Gran-Gran and Azula both stood up in celebration.

"HA! I knew it!" Kanna yelled, with a bright smile on her face. Across the table, the younger fire nation woman also raised her arms in victory.

"Me too! You owe me fifty bucks, Zuzu!"

She turned to her side, where her brother sat, and stood out her hand to collect her money. Zuko, however, still had a shocked expression. His golden eyes were opened wide, and his jaw almost fell on the floor.

Toph, who already knew everything from the start, began to laugh and whispered under her breath. "That's a hell of a way to say congratulations."

Hakoda stood up, walking towards Katara and putting a hand over her shoulder. He stared at his daughter with proud eyes, despite his stunned look.

"You're... having a baby?"

"Yeah." She replied

As she was engulfed in a big hug by her father, she was finally able to let out a sigh of relief. Katara felt stupid for having spent so much time worrying about their reaction.

From her seat, Ty Lee couldn't keep her excitement in anymore. She clapped her hands as her eyes glimmered.

"This is so exciting! A little tiny and cute baby!" She shrieked.

Mai, who sat by her left, couldn't stop a smile from forming on her lips.

"Yeah... It's the first time a friend of mine is going to have a baby." Then, she huffed and crossed her arms. "Huh... That kid is going to be so spoiled by us."

Finally letting go of her father's hug, Katara saw her grandma's proud face watching her. Turning to Kanna, she chuckled.

"You really knew, didn't you?"

"Of course I did." The old woman chuckled. "You spent our entire trip holding onto that weird coat, covering your stomach. You were more attached to it than to your childhood teddy polar bear. It was getting quite obvious, honey."

That made everyone laugh, except for Pakku. As he had sat back, taking his time to process the information he had just received, his icy eyes turned to Aang. While Kanna pulled her granddaughter in for a hug, he motioned for the young man to get closer.

"I'm assuming you're the father, right?" With a bit of a threatening voice, he asked.

"Yes, I am."

Something in Hakoda's eyes shifted at the man's statement, and his expression hardened a bit. Aang couldn't blame him, though. He had just received the news his daughter was pregnant with some random guy's baby, a guy he had never even heard about.

"Don't worry, dad. I already roughed him up a little." Sokka said, crossing his arms over his puffed chest when he saw the change in his father's demeanor.

Hakoda's body language changed just as quickly as it had before, and he turned to his son, with a raised eyebrow and an apprehensive look now targeting the son. "How did you do it, exactly?"

"I broke his nose..." Sokka said, with a more somber expression, that was quickly replaced by a bright smile when he saw the disappointment on his dad's face. "But don't worry. We're buddies now."

The man turned to Aang with an apologetic look. "I'm sorry about that on his behalf."

"It's alright... I forgave him a long time ago."

Once everyone in the room had already congratulated Aang and Katara, which involved a lot of hugs from Ty Lee's part, Kanna turned to her granddaughter, her wrinkly face gleaming with joy.

"How far along are you, honey?"

"Thirteen weeks." Katara answered, with a smile.

Zuko frowned, confused. Turning to Aang, he asked, whispering. "Uh, can you translate, please?"

His friend leaned in and muttered back a response. "About three months."

"Oh, okay."

Kanna didn't acknowledge their interruption. Instead, she brought her hands to her heart and sighed.

"This is so exciting! I'll have my first great-grandchild!" She said, turning to her family with a proud look. Then, her expression fell. "Oh, dang it. I should've brought some yarn on my suitcase to knit the baby some clothes."

Katara laughed, hugging her grandmother again. "You don't have to, Gran."

"Oh, but I will."

"Well, thank you, then." She chuckled, planting a kiss on Kanna's cheek.

When the guests were back in their seats for dessert, Aang glanced at Katara with caring eyes, and a grin appeared on his face. Then, bright blue eyes looked back at him, making him blush. Katara's face also smiled at him, and she reached out to grab his hand. Aang ran a thumb across her knuckles in response.

Looking around the room, where his best friends were gathered, with happy looks on their faces, he was finally able to let out a sigh of relief.

For the first time since his failed proposal, he felt hope, and that was all he needed.