What if the world was different? What if they never met? What if Aang and Katara's story never really existed?
Katara was tapping away anxiously on her knees, staring at all the other passengers who were still boarding the airplane. Flying had always made her nervous for some reason. Maybe it was because she had lived on an island her entire life or maybe it was the fact that she had always felt more connected to the sea and preferred travelling by boat.
Katara's life was perfect. She had followed her dream of becoming a marine biologist and now she spends her days in the one place where she felt like she truly belonged - the sea. She had become quite successful and was frequently asked to speak in conferences all over the world. That was the reason she was in the airplane that day. She was happy with her life, yet she felt like something was missing.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a glitching sound from the speakers. Suddenly a young man's voice filled the air.
"Hello, this is your pilot speaking. I just wanted to let you know that we will be departing in 5 minutes."Aang had been a pilot for 5 years and many still considered the young man to be a prodigy. He had finished his pilot training in a record amount of time and his flights were never delayed. Every time he flew his plane, Aang would remember those moments when he was a child, the times when he would make paper airplanes and watch them soar with the air. He had always been fascinated by planes but the thing he truly enjoyed when he flew them was the beautiful view of the clouds and the sky from the cockpit. He felt like he could bend the air itself.
That day he wasn't feeling so well. He had woke up with a headache and he felt woozy every time he moved his head but he still decided that he wanted to go to work, after all flying had always made him feel better.
Katara was already anxious enough but her anxiety tripled when she felt the plane lurch forward. Suddenly everyone around her started screaming and, with a look outside the window, she noticed that the plane was falling from the sky.
She stood up and ran to the cockpit. It could have been her panic or a short-lived sense of heroism but she kicked down the door and went inside in a hurry.
The pilot had fainted on the controls for some reason so she propped him up. As soon as she saw his face, she gasped. He was handsome and Katara found herself staring at him. She forced herself to look away and tried to wake him up. After a few good shakes, Aang stirred and opened his eyes.
"Will you go penguin sledding with me?" Aang said woozily, clearly delirious.
Katara knew she would regret it later but she slapped him. Aang started and took in his surroundings. In front of him was the most beautiful young lady he had ever seen. Then he realised what had happened; he had fainted on the controls and now the plane was hurtling towards the ocean.
Aang went directly to the controls and tried to stop the plane from crashing. After a few minutes the plane was back on course. With his hands still on the controls, Aang stared into Katara's mesmerising eyes.
"I'm Aang, nice to meet you.Thanks for waking me up," Aang said with a goofy smile that pierced Katara's heart.
"It was either that or letting the plane fall into the ocean," she said jokingly. "Besides, this experience wasn't all bad."
Katara blushed.
Aang pressed the speaker button and said,"Sorry for that, passengers. We had some turbulence but it will be a smooth flight from here on out."
He said the last part while staring at Katara, clearly referencing their meet cute.
"Once again, thank you for choosing Avatar Airlines."