Hey guys! Sorry I keep getting distracted from Rock On, but I thought of this song called "Skin" by Rascal Flatts that I haven't heard in a long time and was really inspired to write this, so I'm going to get this out of my head before I get back to it. I know I keep saying that, but this time I mean it. But then again… Just kidding. Anyway, I hope you're all doing well and I'm praying for you guys. Stay safe everyone.
Katara was really scared as she sat in the hospital waiting room, finding that she was mainly scared to hear what the doctor would say. She hadn't been well since the day that she fell, about a few weeks ago when she had thought that she had tripped over something that she hadn't seen, but the bruise she had gotten just wouldn't go away.
Fortunately for her, her mother and dad were there with her to support her as they waited for the results of the tests, flipping anxiously through an old magazine as she tried not to think about all the things that could be wrong.
Kaya, seeing that her daughter was obviously very nervous, put a hand on her shoulder and gave her a reassuring smile. "I'm sure everything is just fine, dear. You fell pretty hard when we went on that walk. You probably just need some more time than usual."
Although Katara wanted to believe her mother, she couldn't help but feel like something was about to go horribly wrong. But, knowing that there wasn't anything she could do about it other than pray, she took a deep breath and nodded. "Yeah. Maybe it'll just be something easy." Though as she heard her own words, she couldn't help but become doubtful, feeling something in her heart that it would not be that simple.
Becoming surprised as she heard the door finally open, she looked over to the door and saw a nurse stand there with a smile on her face, and said. "Will you please come with me?"
Katara felt her heart drop as she listened to the doctor speak, her fears becoming reality as he did his best to explain what the problem was. She could tell that he wasn't having an easy time with it, even though he must have had to do this at least a dozen times before, but it proved to not be easy for either of them.
"Between the red cells and white, something's not right," he finally finished with a sigh, the obvious hatred he had for having to tell a young, healthy girl like her these kinds of news. "But don't you worry, we're going to take care of you."
Reaching over to his chart, he put it on display for them and pointed to a specific portion of it that showed them the statistics on where she was at in this stage and said. "Six chances in ten, it won't come back again with the therapy we're going to try. It's just been approved, it's the strongest there is. And I think we caught it in time."
As she and her parents made it home, she mindlessly hugged them goodnight, noticing that their hugs were much longer than usual and doing her best not to think about why they were hugging her so tightly. Once they had said their goodnights, she made her way up to her bedroom and laid down, turning off the lights as her mind tried desperately not to think about how worried she was. She had felt rather sure that something bad was about to happen before they talked to the doctor, but a big part of her had been hoping that her feeling would be wrong.
Taking a deep breath, she decided to force out all of her fears and instead focused on happy thoughts, a small smile coming onto her face as she closed her eyes. She dreamed that she was dancing, around and around without any cares. And with her very first love, who was holding her close, with a soft wind blowing her hair.
After a few sessions of the chemotherapy, Katara found herself in her room being held by her mom, unable to stop herself from crying as she felt like her world was falling apart. She had so many plans for her future, and one of them had been to go with her best friend and love to the senior prom, but there was one little problem that she faced with this.
"Honey, you look beautiful no matter what," Kya attempted to whisper consolingly to her daughter, feeling her heart break as she watched her only continue to let the tears fall as she wondered how it had all gone so wrong. "And I know that Aang won't mind. He really cares about you, sweetie."
Despite knowing this to be true, Katara couldn't help but keep crying, knowing that it would be a mistake for someone to take a girl with no hair to the prom. Even if she knew that Aang was not vain and would love her no matter what she looked like.
Finally letting go of her mother, she took the fallen hair in her hands and felt her tears fall down her face, her heart feeling shattered as she took a deep breath and looked at the proof she couldn't deny. Feeling herself in need of happy thoughts, Katara leaned back into her mother and closed her eyes.
She dreamed she was dancing, around and around without any cares with her very first love, who was holding her close, with a soft wind blowing her hair.
It was quarter to seven, and she saw Aang at the door, as her dad ushered him in. Though she noticed something unusual about him as he walked in, and after a few moments of trying to figure it out, she finally seemed to figure it out as she noticed the cap on his head.
Though they were all surprised to see him wearing a cap while wearing a tux, none of them bothered to ask him why he was doing it as they talked and got ready for what was supposed to be the night of their lives. Katara was just grateful that he wasn't like all the other guys who would abandon her because the treatments she had to take made her hair fall off. She loved him so much. She didn't know how she could possibly love him more.
But, as the time came to take pictures so they could get going, Aang smiled and said. "Well, before we do, I have a little surprise for you, Katara."
Being confused as she heard this, she could only watch as he reached his hand up to his cap and slowly pulled it off, making them all start to cry as they saw what he had done. Because this morning where his hair had been, she reached up and touched just skin.
And they went dancing, around and around without any cares, and her very first true love was holding her close. And as she looked into his eyes as they swayed to the soft music playing around them and looked up to where his hair had once been as she remembered what they had been talking about the day before.
"Katara," Aang had said as he walked in the room, finding that the rest of her hair had fallen off and that she was now completely bald. "I'm so sorry. Are you okay?"
She had been in too many tears to give him an answer at the moment, so instead she had just thrown her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly, already feeling comforted by his familiar presence and knowing that he loved her no matter how she looked.
"It's okay, Katara," he whispered soothingly in her ear, holding her tightly as she cried into his shoulder. "You're just as beautiful now as you were before, if not more so."
At this, Katara couldn't help but smile, even if she knew that he was just trying to make her feel better. What she didn't know, however, was that Aang always thought she was beautiful. Even if she got scars all over her face or got in a horrible burning accident, she would always be beautiful to him.
But, despite her mind telling her that she didn't look beautiful, she felt better at his words and stopped crying. "Well, thanks, Aang. At least I know you'll always think I'm beautiful." She couldn't help but sigh as she rested her chin more comfortably on his shoulder, squeezing him tighter as she was especially glad that he was there for her when she needed him. "There's so many kids at school, and I'm going to be the only one who doesn't have hair. I just wish I wouldn't be the only one."
Aang smiled as he heard this, an idea coming to mind as he heard her wish, and decided that maybe just maybe he could make her wish come true in the morning.
Smiling as she remembered this, she shared a loving kiss with him and rested her head on his shoulder as they continued swaying to the music, feeling content knowing that she had her true love holding her close. Although there were many things that could go wrong in the future, she knew that she could get through it as long as Aang was by her side. And for a moment, just for a moment, she wasn't scared.