Chapter 2: The Date
Hey guys! By popular request, this story will be continued, though I must warn you, it won't be very long. There are some other projects I want to get started on as well and I don't think I could make a very long story out of this anyway, so this will be around 5-7 chapters long. Anyway, thank you guys for reading and I hope you guys enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender.
Katara was excited as she finished getting groceries from the store. It was friday, the day that she would go out on her date with Aang. She hadn't thought that she would be able to date for a while, but Aang was such an amazing guy. Although Katara was certainly more hesitant to rush in a relationship now, she couldn't help herself with Aang. He was so sweet and charming. And the best part… he was genuine. He didn't put up a front. Everything about him was who he was, and she was looking forward very much to getting to know him more.
She laughed a little as she thought of what her brother would do if he found out that she had been deflowered. As much as she appreciated that he cared about her that much, she also knew that he could be rather ridiculous at times. Her first date, Sokka had decided to spy on them throughout the night to, as he put it, make sure that no funny business happens. Katara couldn't keep herself from rolling her eyes at her brother, though she stopped herself as she realized he wasn't completely ridiculous. After all, Sokka had warned her about Jet, but she had brushed it off, assuming that his over protectiveness was making him see things that weren't there. Of course now she saw that he was right, but she would never admit it to his face.
What would he do when he met Aang, Katara wondered. Aang certainly wasn't like any other guy she had met, and that was good, because most of the guys she had met thus far were not very bright, with a few exceptions. Still though, maybe after Sokka met Aang, maybe just maybe Sokka would see what a great person Aang was. She wanted Sokka to like Aang pretty badly. Especially if things went well between them…
Whoa, hold on a second, Katara, she chided herself as she pushed a cart through the aisles. You just met the guy, and just got out of a relationship. Pace yourself. Still though, despite Katara's weariness, she couldn't help but feel like… like Aang might be the One. She had never been so happy before he had come into her life. He understood her pain from losing his parents, even going as far as to keep a bar just to feel a connection to them. Just as she kept her mother's old necklace, she too understood the value of family heirlooms. Something about them just made it feel like that they weren't truly gone, but that they were always with you.
Sighing a little, she shook her head and continued shopping until she had gotten what she needed. Though as much as she tried, she couldn't stop thinking about Aang. I wonder if Aang likes sea prunes, she thought in her mind as she picked up a container and closely examined it. She stopped suddenly when she realized that all she had really been thinking of was Aang. They hadn't even gone on a date yet and she was already hooked. Letting out a long sigh, she shook her head at herself. It wasn't as though she had meant to get so attached to him already, but he was just such a great person. Though she supposed it didn't matter whether she was attached to him already or not. She would just have to see where everything went with them and hope for the best.
Finally satisfied with her hunt, she made sure she had everything on her list and made her way to the front of the store. As she unloaded her cart, a familiar voice greeted her.
"Welcome to Bargain Mart, where everything's a bargain," a dull voice sighed at her.
Katara smiled as she looked at her friend. "Hey Mai. How's it going?"
Mai sighed again and rolled her eyes. "What do you think? I'm at work when I could be at home making out with my boyfriend." She paused as she remembered what Katara had been through and cringed a little, expecting the tears to fall, but Katara didn't show any signs of being sad. In fact, she seemed happy… really happy. Too happy for Mai's taste, but she wouldn't begrudge her of that.
"Oh. Sorry to hear that," Katara smiled sheepishly as she finished unloading the cart and brought it up to the front of the counter to put the groceries back in. "So, how have you and Zuko been lately?"
In a poor attempt to hide the wide smile that had appeared on her face, she pretended to yawn, but Katara saw it anyway. Her friend might not have been the friendliest person ever, but she knew her enough to know when she was trying to hide her emotions rather forcefully.
"We're fine," she finally shrugged as she put the last couple items in a bag and handed it to her. "Nothing ever changes, so that's good, I guess."
Katara didn't believe her for a second. "Come on, Mai. I saw that smile you tried to hide. What happened that made you so happy?" she asked with a playful poke on her arm.
Mai would've glared at her, but she was reminded of her happy thoughts, unable to keep the small smile that had made its way onto her face. "Well… he-"
"Mai!" an excited voice came from around the corner as a girl Katara didn't recognize came running up to them. After a few seconds of waiting, the girl finally reached them and tackled Mai in a hug. "Zuko proposed?!" she squealed excitedly while jumping up and down.
Mai shoved her off and fixed her rumpled clothes. "No, Ty. He didn't propose." She smiled a little and looked down at her feet. "But… he might tonight," she admitted with a little blush. Both Katara and Ty Lee squealed excitedly and attempted to hug her, but she simply stepped out of the way as they crashed into each other. Katara didn't look too happy, but Ty Lee wasn't fazed at all, as she had become accustomed to this long ago.
"That's so exciting!" Ty Lee cheered as she stood next to her friend. "Where's he taking you? How do you know he might propose?" She kept asking a lot of questions that Mai couldn't quite discern from Ty Lee talking too fast, so she decided to step in.
"Ty!" she exclaimed exasperatedly with a huff as she totaled up Katara's groceries. "Look, I just heard him talking to a friend of his on the phone and said he had some big plans for tonight. For all I know, he might just want to ask me to try anal."
Katara was disgusted at the thought, but she shook it off and got back to the topic at hand. "Oh come on, Mai. What restaurant is he taking you to?"
Mai was silent for a moment, not wanting to get her hopes up, but she finally gave in with a sigh. "He's taking me to the place we went to on our first date," she finally admitted, making them both gasp again.
"He's going to propose!" Ty Lee squealed again and jumped up and down excitedly before she realized she didn't know who Katara was. "Hi. Obviously you're a friend of Mai's. I'm Ty Lee," she greeted her with a genuine smile.
"Katara," she smiled back and stuck out her hand which Ty Lee quickly shook before returning her attention to Mai.
"Well… What are you going to wear? Oh! What are you going to say?" Mai was getting more and more annoyed by her friend, but she knew this was all coming from a place of love, so she decided to let it go with a sigh as she took the money from Katara.
"I don't know, and… if he does ask me, then I'll obviously say yes," she admitted with a blush. Ty Lee looked like she was about to burst with happiness, so she decided to do practically anything to get the attention off of her as she looked over to Katara. "So what about you, Katara?"
Katara looked confused for a moment. "What do you mean?"
Mai rolled her eyes at her friend. Sometimes she felt like she was the only smart one in her group of friends. "I mean, what about your romantic-" she cut herself off as she remembered the situation Katara was in, hoping that she hadn't done anything to make Katara upset. Not that she cared of course.
Katara noticed her discomfort and waved it off. "Hey, don't worry about it. I'm not sad anymore."
Mai looked at her incredulously, not expecting Katara to be over it so quickly. If she found out Zuko had been cheating on her, though she would never admit it to anyone, she would be a wreck. "You're not?" Mai asked a little dumbfoundedly.
Katara laughed at her friend's surprise and nodded with a big smile on her face. "Oh yeah, I don't care anymore. Jet was a jerk who didn't deserve me."
Taking a closer look at her, Mai tried to figure out what had gotten Katara to be over Jet so quickly when a thought came to mind. "You met someone, didn't you?" she asked suspiciously.
Blushing a little, Katara looked away with a shrug. "I don't know what you're talking about," she attempted to be nonchalant but failed rather miserably. Mai didn't buy it for a second. Even if they weren't the closest of friends, Mai knew her enough to know when she was hiding something. And this was certainly no exception.
"Kat," she said in a warning tone, making Katara completely surprised. Mai had never once called her "Kat", so it made her completely focused on her friend, never expecting to hear that in her life. "I know you're hiding something. You met someone, didn't you." It was no longer a question.
Katara was reluctant, but she knew she had been caught and let out a long sigh before she nodded. "Maybe…" she admitted with a small smile.
Ty Lee, though having known her for less than five minutes, loved gossip and jumped in on this. "Ooh! Who is he? Is he cute? What's his deal?"
"Ty!" Mai barked, making Ty Lee instantly stop as she backed away for a second. Mai gave her an apologetic look before she looked back to Katara. "She's right though. Who's this guy who's already made you forget about Jet?"
Katara smiled widely as she thought about him. "He's this guy I met at a bar last night. He's really nice and funny, and…" she sighed happily, just thinking about him made her feel all giddy inside. She wasn't one to let someone do this to her, but with him, she just couldn't help it. He wasn't like any other guy she had met before, and she couldn't wait to see him later.
"You had sex, didn't you?" Mai asked bluntly. Katara blushed heavily, making Mai smirk as she leaned against the counter behind her. "Yeah, I thought so," she smirked even more smugly.
"Fine, we did," she admitted but shook her head quickly. "But that's not why I like him so much. He's truly unique. I've never met a guy like him before."
Mai rolled her eyes. "Whatever. If it means that you're not going to be crying all the time over Jet, then I'm good with it." Katara didn't remember asking for her approval, but she knew how her friend could be at times, so she decided to shrug it off. "So, when are you going to see him again?"
"Tonight," she responded happily. "He's taking me to a nice restaurant in town." She struggled to remember what it was called. "The… Jasmine Dragon?" she asked herself more than them.
Mai's eyes widened in surprise. "You guys are going to the Jasmine Dragon?" Katara nodded more confidently, now remembering the name that she had somehow forgotten. "That's where Zuko's taking me." She gave Katara the most serious look she could muster. "If you ruin this for me, I will kill you." Katara wanted to laugh, but she knew her enough by now to know that she was absolutely serious.
"Don't worry, I won't do anything to interrupt you guys," she promised with a nervous laugh, remembering the shurikens Mai kept on her person at all times. It amazed her how she managed to get away with it. The store she worked at had metal detectors, having had a few times where they had been robbed, but Mai still managed to sneak it in somehow. Though how, Katara could not figure out.
"Good," Mai nodded before she let out a yawn. There was a small cough from behind them, and they turned around quickly to see a familiar old woman there.
"If you're done there, would you mind letting me get my groceries paid for?" she asked sweetly, but Katara could see the annoyance burning in her eyes.
"Of course," Katara smiled and stepped out of the way. "I'll see you later, Mai," she waved goodbye before she finally exited the store, feeling slightly relieved. She knew Hama back from when she was younger. Hama was the sweet, elderly woman in her neighborhood that everyone knew, but everyone knew that there was something she was hiding. No matter what anyone did, there was always a certain disdain in her eyes that no one knew what it was.
Shaking these thoughts from her mind, she went to her car and put all of the groceries in the trunk, happily thinking about him again. She couldn't wait to see him again. And maybe they could… do that again.
She didn't want to sound like a whore or anything, but she had really enjoyed their activities the night before. And he was really good. Dirty thoughts continued through her mind until she felt her panties start to soak, so she shut the trunk rather quickly and got in her car to distract herself. The last thing she needed was to have to change her underwear because she was thinking about him.
As she drove home, her phone started ringing, making her surprised. Looking at it, she was happy to see that it was Aang. "Hello?"
"Hey, Katara," Aang greeted her happily. "How's it going?"
She smiled and tried not to show how happy she was that he had called. "Oh, I'm fine. Just getting some groceries for my family. They go through groceries like they haven't eaten in weeks. Most people get groceries once a week, but I usually end up going three times a week."
"Wow," he laughed, making her laugh as well. She absolutely loved his laugh. "It sounds like they exercise a lot." She thought about it and remembered that her father currently had a bit of a beer belly. Nothing over the top, but still, he certainly hadn't been exercising that much.
"No, they just both have the appetite of a seventeen year old," she laughed back. "But it's okay. They're giving me a place to stay until I can get my own place."
"Why is your brother still living with your father?" Aang wondered.
Katara shrugged, but then realized that he couldn't see it and spoke. "I don't really know, but I think it's because he knows my dad is lonely. But I think my dad would rather be alone. Sokka brings his girlfriend there, and from what my dad told me, they're never quiet."
Aang cringed as he heard it, though he supposed he had no right to judge. After all, he and Katara had been pretty loud the night before. "Well, hopefully your dad doesn't hear them too much." Then he was reminded as to why he had called. "So, are we still on for our date tonight?" he asked hopefully.
"Of course we are," Katara laughed a little, finding it cute that he still didn't quite seem to believe that she had agreed to go out on a date with him when a question came to mind. "Wait, if you run your bar, who's running it tonight?"
"Oh, I don't run it much myself," he admitted with a sigh. "I've got an employee here who does most of the actual bar tending. I just have to work on the days that they have off."
"Oh, that makes sense. But why do you sound like you don't really like this person?" she asked curiously, hearing the tiny amount of what she assumed was disdain in his voice.
Judging by how quickly he was talking, Katara could only assume that he was embarrassed as the words came tumbling out of his mouth. "What? No! It's not that I don't like them, it's just that..." he let out a frustrated sigh. "It's just that, this employee of mine has a bit of a crush on me."
Katara raised a brow as she took a turn into her neighborhood. "Anybody I should be worried about?" she asked playfully, though secretly a little worried. Not that she would ever admit that in a million years.
"No, no! Not at all!" he assured her, making her smile that he wanted her to not be worried at all about someone else. "Although I do think she's pretty, if I'm being honest, she's a little too… how do I put this nicely…" he trailed off as he thought about it. "Stalker-ish?" he finally decided.
Katara raised a brow. "How so?" she asked curiously, now not worried at all. Not many people were wanting to date someone who was caught stalking them. And from what she knew of Aang, though he was very respectful to others, he was also a sort of "go with the flow" kind of guy. And a stalker most certainly was not "go with the flow".
"Well…" he started nervously, making her laugh a little at his innocence. He truly was one of a kind. She had never met a guy like him before. Most people had no problem insulting other people, but Aang was truly struggling with finding the right words that told the truth but didn't belittle whoever this girl was. "Let's just say that I've caught her several times following me back up to my 'condo' or whatever you want to call it. If it was slow enough, she would sneak in and try to peek at me while I was in the shower or if I was working out or something," he finally decided to just let it all out. Katara's eyebrows raised in surprise, not expecting to hear this level of stalker, but she shook it off and returned to their conversation.
"Wow," she breathed in disbelief. "That's… kind of insane."
"Yeah, I know," he sighed, and she could hear how tired he was from having to deal with it.
"Why don't you just fire her?" she wondered. "You could easily find another bartender to help you." She laughed a little as she thought about it. "You could even get a restraining order if you're really sick of it."
A long sigh erupted over the phone. "As much as I'd love to be free of her stalking, I can't do that. She is an excellent bartender and a nice person, she just doesn't know how to…" he struggled with the words.
"Act like a normal person?" Katara supplied helpfully.
He laughed a little and let out another sigh. "Yeah, that," he agreed before he resumed his thought process. "But like I said, she's an excellent bartender and she's found it hard to get a job. Likely because she's been caught stalking people she's liked before."
Katara couldn't help but admire him even more. He was willing to let a stalker invade his personal life if it meant that she would have the means to make a living for herself, even if that meant that he wouldn't get to live as comfortably as he would like to. She hadn't even known him for that long, but he had already amazed her at how selfless he was. He had even tried to talk her out of having sex. The thing that most men would beg for, because he didn't want her to regret it. Fortunately for him, she didn't regret their night together one bit.
"I guess I can understand that," she admitted somewhat reluctantly, imagining herself in that situation and knowing that she likely wouldn't be able to deal with a stalker working for her. "But still. Can't you just tell her to stop?"
"I tried," he told her with obvious irritation in his voice. A beep could be heard from his end of the line. "Oh! Katara, I'd love to talk more, but I've got something else I need to take care of. But I'll be there at eight to pick you up. Sound good?"
Katara wondered what else he had to do, but she shrugged it off. "Yep. Sounds good," she agreed. "I'll see you later, Aang."
"Bye."
"Bye." She hung up the phone and let out a happy sigh, but she couldn't help but wonder what he had to do. Oh relax. It's probably just a business meeting for his bar. Not everything is a secret, she reminded herself. Shaking these thoughts from her mind, she drove home and got ready for her date with a smile on her face.
A few hours later, Katara was all ready to go for her date with Aang. She had made sure to wear her best dress, and if things went as she wanted them to, it would end up on the ground in his room later that night. Smiling at the thought, she checked her hair in the mirror one last time and, once she was satisfied, made her way downstairs where her brother was waiting for her with a slightly angry look on his face.
"What do you want, Sokka?" Katara sighed in annoyance as she moved over to the cubby that held their shoes and sat down to put them on.
"Oh nothing," he smiled innocently, but Katara could see right through him. He wanted something, but she wasn't sure exactly what. Then it hit her. He wanted to meet Aang.
"No, Sokka!" she objected without him even having to tell her his plan. "I'm going on a date, I'm not marrying the guy. You are not talking to him."
Even if she was insistent on this, she knew better than to expect him to give into her so easily. "I don't think so! You're not going anywhere until I've met him, and that's that."
Katara rolled her eyes, doing her best not to flick him on the head as she usually did when he was being annoying. With some work, she managed to cool off her temper enough so that she trusted herself not to do anything.
"Sokka, it's just a date," she insisted more forcefully. "If it goes beyond that, you can talk to him all you want, but right now, I'm waiting to see how this one goes."
Sokka didn't believe her for a second. He could tell that she really liked this guy, and that pretty much meant that unless this guy royally messed up, they were going to go on a second date. "Katara, just let me talk to the guy. For one minute," he added quickly when he saw that she was going to object. Katara pondered this for a moment before she looked up at him.
"Why do you need to talk to him so bad, Sokka?" she questioned, knowing exactly why he wanted to, but if she was going to allow him to do this, she wanted to make him squirm a little.
"You know exactly why," he shot back with his arms crossed over his chest. "I want to make sure that this guy isn't going to turn out like…"
"Like Jet?" Katara answered for him sweetly. Sokka didn't respond, just continued to stare down at his feet. Katara let out a little sigh and got up on her feet. "Sokka, I told you, I'm over it. Jet was a jerk who doesn't deserve to be with anyone. Aang is nothing like him." Except that he's just as handsome and charming, if not more, she thought happily.
Sokka looked her in the eyes and finally gave up with a sigh. "Okay, fine. I believe you," he told her, making her smile triumphantly before he continued. "But I still want to meet the guy."
Katara's eye twitched a little, but she knew just how stubborn her brother could be at times and finally gave in with a sigh of her own. "Fine. You get one minute to talk to him, and then we're going on our date. Deal?"
"Deal," Sokka agreed with a smile before they both heard a car horn honk, signaling that Aang had arrived. Smiling happily, Katara didn't hesitate and opened the door as Aang stood in front of the car on the side of the street.
"Wow," he breathed as she walked up to him with a faint rosy blush on his cheeks. "You look beautiful."
She smiled and kissed him on the cheek. "Thanks." Dreading this next part but knowing that there was no way of getting out of it, she then turned to her brother. "Aang, this is my brother, Sokka. Sokka, this is Aang, my…" she blushed before she pulled herself together. "Um… date."
Sokka was silent for a moment, taking Aang in for a moment as Aang looked at Katara nervously. There was an unspoken question in his eyes: Is he going to kill me? Katara's eyes danced in amusement as she gave him a reassuring smile before Sokka finally stuck his hand out.
"Nice to meet you, Aang," he greeted him not unkindly. "I'm Sokka, Katara's brother."
Aang took his hand and shook it firmly, noticing how Sokka was squeezing a little tighter than was truly necessary. A clear warning: Hurt my sister, and I will hurt you. Clearing his throat, he nodded quickly. "Nice to meet you too, Sokka."
There was awkward silence for a moment as Sokka stared him down before the minute that Katara had finally agreed to run out. "Alright! Let's go, Aang!" She waved to her brother as Aang opened the door for her, making her smile as she climbed in and watched as Aang made his way to the driver's side and started up the car. Aang gulped a little as he saw that Sokka was still glaring at him, but Sokka finally decided to go back inside, much to Aang's relief as he drove away.
"Sorry about that," Katara apologized sheepishly as she saw the slightly frightened look on his face. "Sokka's been over-protective of me since… high school, if I remember correctly."
Finally snapping out of his fear, he looked at her with a soft smile. "It's okay. I understand. I would probably be protective too if I had a sister as beautiful as you." Katara blushed and smiled at his compliment, feeling like the more she talked to him was like easing into a hot tub after a long day of work.
Before long, they were finally at the restaurant as Aang pulled into the parking lot and held the door open for her. "Shall we?" he asked with a smile. She smiled back and took his hand as they made their way inside, her gasping at how beautiful the place was. If the place wasn't so… red, she would have thought it to be the most beautiful restaurant she had ever seen. But, because she wasn't very fond of the color, she thought of it as one of the most beautiful restaurants she had ever seen.
Making their way to a podium, they were greeted by an old friend. "Ah, Mr. White! It's nice to see you again!" He noticed Katara and smiled slyly. "And who is this lovely lady?"
Aang smiled and gave him a quick hug. "It's nice to see you again, Iroh. You know you can call me Aang. And this," he gestured to Katara with a smile. "Is Katara Aqua. She's my date for the evening."
"Well, it seems you have good taste, my friend," he murmured to him before he got some menus from the podium and gestured for them to follow. Before long, he led them over to a nice table that they had set up for them in a corner of the room. A lit candle adorned the middle of the lavish wooden table that was covered by a beautiful piece of linen cloth with some of the most expensive looking tableware Katara had ever seen.
"Wow," she breathed, finding it hard to believe that all this was set up for her. The most Jet had ever done for her was take her to a chinese restaurant with a dinky chandelier, and that was on their one year anniversary. Aang took her here, on their first date.
Aang smiled and pulled out the chair for her, making her smile as she sat down in it and waited for him to sit down as well. Iroh handed them their menus as they looked. "What can I start you off to drink with?" he inquired.
Katara thought about it for a moment and realized it had been a while since she had some wine. "One glass of merlot, please," she requested politely.
Iroh smiled and nodded before looking at Aang. "You already know what I want, Iroh," Aang chuckled as he handed him his menu.
"Yes, I do," he chuckled back before he left to get them their drinks. Aang turned back to his date with a warm smile, making Katara feel like she was melting on the spot.
"So, you know him, do you?" she asked curiously.
Aang laughed a little. "Yeah, I do. He was a friend of my father's before he died. I've known him since I was little. He's basically like the fun uncle I never had."
Katara smiled at the thought. "Well, he seems like he's a nice guy. Is he how you got in this place? I've heard it's the most exclusive place in the city."
Aang nodded. "Yeah, pretty much. He owns the place, so he can have whoever he wants in it when he wants."
Katara looked at him in surprise. "He's the owner of the place?" she asked in disbelief.
"Yeah…" Aang scratched his head in confusion. "Why?"
"I don't know, I just didn't really expect the owner of a restaurant to be a waiter," she admitted with a shrug. "It just doesn't seem like something a lot of owners do, if any."
Aang smiled as he thought of his friend. "Yeah, but Iroh's not like any other business owner. Iroh loves to help people, especially with this tea."
"Oh, so that's why he named it the Jasmine Dragon, huh?"
"Yep. He loves his tea." He leaned in closer, pretending as if what he was about to say next was top secret. "Truth be told, I think he loves it more than his own nephew."
Katara couldn't help but burst out laughing at hearing this, making a few people around the room look at them, but soon returned to their meals as Katara blushed in embarrassment. "Oops," she murmured in embarrassment.
Aang smirked and gave her a reassuring smile. "Don't worry about it, Katara. You're not the only one to get in trouble for laughing randomly." Katara smiled and was about to ask him more as Iroh came back with their drinks.
"One merlot for the lady and one champagne for the gentleman," Iroh told them as he set it down in front of them. "Have you decided what you would like yet, Miss?"
Katara nodded with a smile, happy that she found what she had been hoping for on the list. "I'll take some sea prunes, please."
Iroh smiled and nodded. "Of course. I'll be back in just a moment." With that, he took his leave and left the couple in a comfortable silence as they looked back at each other.
"He's a really nice guy," Katara felt she should tell him, making him smile.
"Yeah, he is. And he is also very astute at being able to tell how people are. If he hasn't found anything wrong with you yet, then that means he's not going to, so I can tell that he likes you," he replied with a charming smile, making her heart melt a little. Looking over to his left, he smiled as he saw his friend. "If you look over there," he pointed in their direction. "You can see my friend, sweaty and nervous because he's about to do one of the most important things in his life."
"What's that?" Katara asked curiously as she took a sip of her merlot.
"Proposing to the girl he loves," he laughed a little as he noticed Zuko was fumbling with the box in his pocket, his nerves shaking his entire body.
Katara laughed a little but gasped as she finally recognized the couple that was sitting there. "That's Mai and Zuko!" she exclaimed in surprise, completely forgetting that Mai had told her that they would be there that night.
Aang looked at her in surprise. "You know them?" he asked incredulously.
"Yeah. Mai's my friend," she smiled as she noticed how nervous her friend was. Her face didn't betray her, but every other part of her did, Katara thought with a smirk as she saw her legs shaking under the table. They watched as Zuko noticeably took a deep breath and stood up, walking over to her side and getting down on one knee, making Mai gasp.
Aang looked at Katara quickly. "Do you-"
"Absolutely," Katara agreed just as quickly and they got up to get a better look. After Zuko finally got the nerve to ask, Mai agreed quickly and they kissed. "Awww," Katara smiled in adoration at the happy couple. Maybe that'll be me and Aang one day… she thought hopefully.
A scream came out of nowhere as Zuko and Mai quickly split apart, looking around to see what on Earth was going on.
"No, no, no," Aang muttered to himself as he looked around wildly. "Not right now. Please not right now."
Katara looked at him with concern etched deeply on her face. "What's going on?" Before Aang could respond, a man in a black trench coat with a hood hanging low over his face came into view.
"You will die," the man promised as he pointed the gun at Zuko who moved Mai out of the way to make sure that she was safe. Katara looked over to Aang, wondering if there was anything they could do, but he wasn't there.
Then the lights went out.
"What the hell happened?!" the mysterious man cried in outrage in a foreign accent that Katara couldn't place. There was pure silence for a moment before there was a gunshot. Fearing the worst, Katara ducked under a table that she could just barely see in the moonlight shining through the window. After a few moments, the lights turned back on as Aang came rushing over to her.
"Katara, are you okay?" he asked in concern as he helped her up.
"Yeah, I'm fine," she assured him before a thought struck her. "Where did you go?" Before he could answer, there was a horrified gasp by some of the other customers as they looked upon the dead body of the mysterious man with a hole in his heart.
Okay! Thank you guys for reading this continuation of the story! I know that this probably wasn't what you guys were expecting, but this idea just popped into my mind and I think I can make a good story out of it. Rest assured, there will still be good romance and some elements of the first chapter in it, but this idea seemed too good to pass on instead of just having another sappy love story. Rest assured, there will be more of those, but I really like this idea and want to see where I can take it. Anyway, thank you guys for reading and I'll talk to you all later!