Katara paced around in circles while gnawing on one of her fingernails. "Where the heck is Sokka?" She said aloud, more to herself than her father, who was still sitting down in a chair nearby. "You know what?- I knew it, I just knew this would happen."
Hakoda watched his daughter, concerned. "Katara-"
"Now we're all going to jail for kidnapping," she interrupted.
"Katara, the wedding hasn't even started yet."
The Maid of Honor shot him a glare. "The wedding starts in ten minutes Dad and Sokka still isn't here. Just face it he's not coming. For all we know he's got Toph locked in a basement somewhere."
"Honey, you're being ridiculous, Sokka would never do that."
"You know what? Any other time I'd believe you, but after today I don't know what to believe anymore." Katara buried her face in her palms, wanting more than anything to wake up from this nightmare.
Hakoda stood up and placed a hand on his daughter's shoulder. "Listen, I'll try to get ahold of Sokka, you just... try to relax." With that he left Toph's room and closed the door behind him, leaving his daughter to glare in his direction.
"Relax," she scoffed, " yeah right."
While Katara was still in Toph's bedroom, Aang pulled Ty Lee and informed her on what was going on.
"So what do we do?" The Bridesmaid asked.
Aang shrugged. "I don't know, but Katara told us to keep Mr. and Mrs. Bei Fong away until Sokka brings Toph back."
Before either of them could voice an idea, Aang's eyes widened as he saw both Toph's parents making their way to the Bride's bedroom. "Oh God, we have to think of something fast." He gestured toward The Bei Fongs.
Without another word Ty Lee grabbed ahold of Aang's wrist. "Follow my lead," she instructed. Within seconds the two were in front of Lao and Poppy.
"Mr. and Mrs. Bei Fong!" The Bridesmaid nearly shouted, "I'm so glad you're here, Aang and I need you're help."
Their faces quickly turned to panic. "What's wrong?" Lao asked, "Is it Toph? Is she okay?"
"Oh she's fine," She replied, waving away the question with her hand. "It's something else, it's about the music."
Lao and Poppy immediately exchanged looks. "The music? What about the music?" Lao's panicked expression soon changed into plain confusion.
Ty Lee's eyes shifted, doing her best to buy their time. "Well, Aang and I- we're doing a duet. The two of us, we were planning on doing a surprise duet for the ceremony and we wanted to go over it with you, both of you."
Once again Lao and his wife shared a look before speaking. "Um, that's very nice," Poppy replied, "but right now my husband and I need to speak with Toph-"
"But it will only take a second," Ty Lee cut off, "and besides, we shouldn't be bothering Toph while she's getting ready. Don't you know it's bad luck to see the Bride before the wedding?"
A frown marred Lao's face. "But that's only for the groom-"
"She's right," Aang interrupted, while placing his hand on the man's shoulder, "we shouldn't bother Toph, besides she's all bridezillery right now." With his tight grip on Lao's shoulder, and with Ty Lee holding onto Poppy's wrist, the two moved the Bride's parents from the hallway that led to Toph's room to the garden where the ceremony was supposed to take place.
"Okay," Ty Lee said as she and Aang sat Lao and Poppy in two empty chairs. "So, the thing is Aang and I are torn with what kind of song we should do, a ballad or something more upbeat."
A moment of awkward silence stretched between them.
"Um," Poppy said finally, "A ballad sounds nice."
Ty Lee slumped her shoulders. "Really, because I was thinking of something more upbeat." She turned to face the Best Man. "Right Aang?"
"Uh, Right," he replied quickly, "everyone always plays the same boring old ballads during weddings, why not break convention?"
Lao looked at his wife again, and he could tell just by looking in her eyes they were thinking the same thing; their daughter's friends were behaving very strangely. Neither one of them wanted to be rude, but they wanted to at least talk to their daughter once before they give her away. "Look," Lao said, "that's very nice and all, but we really need to-"
Lao was once again cut off by Ty Lee who had burst out singing, and after she gave Aang a look he joined in and started singing too. Lao and Poppy Bei Fong could only look at each other, unsure what to do, but they continued to listen to the two singers none the less.
(***)
"We're here," Sokka muttered as he put his car in park behind the Bei Fong Estate, it was the first time he said a word since he got in his car.
Toph wanted to say something, anything that would cheer up her best friend, but she knew she couldn't. She hurt him, she could tell. "...Sokka, I..." she trailed off, "I don't know what to say."
"It's fine, you don't have to say anything," he replied, his voice nearly a whisper. Once again they sat in Sokka's car in silence. Toph knew she should go inside but she didn't want to leave like this, she didn't want to end things with Sokka like this. Despite everything that's happened between them he was still her best friend, and she still wanted him to be apart of her life.
"Sokka,... I just want you to know how much I care about you," she said finally, "and despite everything, I hope we can still be friends." When he said nothing she continued to speak. "Can we at least be friends?"
Sokka released a breath he'd been holding for what felt like an eternity. "It's not that simple, Toph, I can't just be your friend. I love you,... and it hurts too much seeing you with someone else. Not everyone is as tough as you." He sighed. "Maybe someday I'll be able to just be your friend, but until then... I..." His voice died mid sentence as he gazed at Toph, and without noticing he stroked her cheek and sighed. "You should probably go, I'm sure everyone's wondering where you are by now."
Toph nodded. "You're right." With that said she unbuckled her seatbelt and exited the car, but not before she turned in his direction. "Sokka, I really am sorry." She didn't say anything else, what was the point? Although there was so much she wanted to say but she knew she couldn't, it would do no good. In the end Toph made her way to the inside of her home, leaving Sokka alone in his car.
As he watched her walk away Sokka felt a lone tear fall down his cheek. When did I start crying? Unforunately for him though once that tear fell more began to fall, but what could he do? She didn't love him. Toph didn't love him anymore. Sokka had to take a few minutes to gather himself before he eventually turned the ignition back on in his car then drive back home.
(***)
"Come back Mr. and Mrs. Bei Fong," Ty Lee pleaded, "we still have to go over the music."
Lao sighed as he and his wife were making their way to their daughter's bedroom, with the Best Man and Bridesmaid close behind. "We've gone over the music, you and Aang sung twelve songs already, besides, we told you either one of them was fine." Lao didn't mean to sound so harsh, but they really were making things very difficult.
"B- But," Aang said, "we still have things to go over with you."
Lao and Poppy both stopped in their tracks. "Like what?" Lao asked.
Before Aang could say anything, Poppy beat him to it. "You know, I'm starting to get the feeling you don't want us to see Toph."
The Best Man's blood immediately turned cold. "What! But that's crazy."
"She has a point," Lao clarified, "all this time you've been keeping us from seeing Toph." His expression, as well as his voice quickly turned serious. "What's going on?"
Aang looked at Ty Lee, who wore a fake smile and shrugged her shoulders. "Nothing's going on."
Lao's eyes narrowed. "Then you won't mind if we speak to our daughter, privately before the ceremony." His eyes widened as he caught sight of his watch. "We'd better hurry, the ceremony begins in five minutes."
Aang and Ty Lee panicked at the realization. Five minutes! The wedding begins in five minutes, and as far as they know Sokka still hasn't returned with Toph.
"What do we do?" Aang mouthed to Ty Lee.
She shrugged and mouthed 'follow me' as she still kept in behind the Bei Fongs. Though they were fast, Ty Lee was faster as she ran right past Lao and Poppy and stood in front of Toph's bedroom door.
"What is the meaning of this?" Lao asked, raising his voice a little, "Step aside so we can speak to our daughter."
"Come on Mr. Bei Fong," Ty Lee replied, "you don't want to go in there."
"And why not?"
Her eyes shifted. "Well, because..."
"What's going on?" Poppy asked finally, "You two act as if something terrible happened."
"No," Aang joined in, "nothing terrible happened-"
"Then let us through," Lao cut of as he grabbed the knob and pushed his way in Toph's room.
"Mr. Bei Fong wait!" Aang and Ty Lee cried in unison. But it was too late, Lao and Poppy were already inside Toph's bedroom, with Ty Lee and Aang following close behind, keeping their eyes peeled.
"Toph," Poppy nearly shouted, "it's your mother and father dear, we need to have a word with you." Her eyes fell to the large lump under Toph's covers on the bed. "Toph? Are you sleeping?"
Aang and Ty Lee turned away as Mrs. Bei Fong made her way to Toph's bed.
Poppy sighed. "Toph, do you realize your wedding starts in five minutes? What are you doing still sleeping?" The middle-aged woman's eyes widened when she pulled over the covers and discovered Katara in the bed except her daughter.
"Katara!" Lao and Poppy shouted in unison.
The Maid of Honor laughed nervously. "Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Bei Fong."
Lao immediately turned around to face Aang and Ty Lee. "Alright, what's going on here?-"
"Where is Toph?" Poppy asked, her voice filled with concern.
Aang looked at Ty Lee, who looked at Katara, who just kept her eyes on the floor, neither one of them had any idea what to say next. What could they say, really? They've been caught red handed. The only thing to do now is to come clean. However, before the room could fall silent, Lao, tired of the nonsense, spoke up.
"Listen, I don't know what's going on here, but I do know one of you is going to tell me right now. Now where is Toph?" His voice, as well as his eyes were so threatening that neither one of them wanted to come forth.
Katara sighed. "Alright, I'll tell you."
Aang turned to his girlfriend. "But Katara-"
"No Aang," she interrupted, "we can't keep this quiet forever, Mr. and Mrs. Bei Fong need to know."
"Know what?" Poppy asked, "Did something happen to Toph."
Katara cleared her throat, her eyes still focused on the floor. "You see, the thing is Toph... Toph was... Toph's been...-"
"I'm right here."
Immediately everyone turned around to see Toph standing at the entrance of her room looking disheveled. Though her dress was fine, Toph's hair was loose and all over the place, and not only that, her lipstick was smeared, and she had mascara running down her face. Toph's parents were the first to run to their daughter, wrapping their arms around her like she'd been gone for months.
"Oh Toph," Poppy said, her voice shaky from her crying, "I'm so glad you're okay."
"What happened to you sweetie?" Lao asked, his arm still around his daughter.
"I fell," Toph sighed, "I needed to clear my head and take a walk, so I did. On the way back I lost my footing and fell."
Poppy ran her hand down her daughter's dress to smooth it out. "Well, at least your dress didn't get dirty. We're just glad you're alright."
Lao nodded. "Yeah, you really had us worried, and your friends were no help."
"Well, I'm fine now," she reassured.
Poppy nodded. "Yes, and now that we know you're okay we should all get in our places, the ceremony starts in just a few minutes." She turned to face everyone. "You all can go, I'll just clean up Toph's make up and fix her hair-"
"Actually Mom," Toph cut off, "if you don't mind, I'd like Katara to do that."
"Sure honey." She kissed the top of her daughter's head. "Whatever you want, it is your day after all."
Toph couldn't help but scoff at her mother's words. My day, huh? Then why does it feel like the worst day of my life? However, before her head could form an answer to that, she heard her door close and felt someone, she presumed to be Katara, pull her in her arms in a tight hug.
"Oh God Toph I'm so glad you're okay," she confessed, "you have no idea how worried I was." She pulled away to give her friend a good look over. "How are you really? Did Sokka hurt you? He didn't try anything on you, did he?"-
"Relax sweetness," she cut off, "I'm fine, and no to all that other stuff you were sprouting." She felt her way to her bed and plopped on it, while Katara went in Toph's bathroom to get a warm towel to clean her face. When she returned she began wiping off the mascara and smeared lipstick.
"Well, I'm relieved to hear that," Katara said, "you know I still can't believe Sokka did that to you, the next time I see him I'm giving that guy a good kick in the head."
Toph's face softened at this. "Katara, don't be so hard on Sokka when you see him."
"Why not? After what he did to you today he deserves it."
"Maybe," she admitted, "but I think he's been hurt enough today..."
Katara studied her friend and was struck by the sudden melancholic expression on her face. "Toph? What's wrong?"
The Bride lowered her head and turned away from her Maid of Honor. "I- I don't want to talk about it."
"Is it about Sokka?" She placed her hand on Toph's shoulder. "Did something happen when you were with him?" When she didn't answer Katara sat on the bed beside her. "Toph, whatever's wrong, you know you can tell me. Is it because Sokka told you he loves you, because I told him he'd only mess with your head and-"
"It's not what Sokka did," Toph interrupted, "it's what I did."
"What did you do?"
Toph lowered her head and took a deep breath. "I lied. Sokka asked me if I still loved him and I said no, but that was a lie." Without realizing tears were falling, but she was too upset to care anymore. "I don't know why I- and he was so hurt. And he said it hurt too much for him to see me with someone else, so now I'll never see him again."
Seeing this, Katara immediately pulled the young woman in her arms and stroked her back. "Shh, It's okay, Toph."
"N- no it isn't," she replied, her voice shaky from crying, "I feel like I cut off his right arm or something. Oh God, why did I have to say that to him?"
Katara shrugged. "Well, Sokka has hurt you in the past, maybe subconciously you were trying to hurt him as much as he's hurt you."
Toph shook her head. "Still, I had no right to lie to him like that. I mean, what kind of a friend am I?"
"Well come on Toph, it's not like he gave you a choice, I mean he kidnapped you on your wedding day. What kind of a sick freak does that?" When Toph didn't say anything, Katara quickly pulled away from the girl to look her in the face, despite her blindness. "Wait, are you saying you want to call off the wedding?"
Toph shrugged. She honestly didn't know what to do at this point. After their fight eleven months ago all Toph could do was think about Sokka. With his words engraved in her brain, she questioned herself countless times if marrying The Duke was the right thing to do. Sure he was a great guy, he loved her, but he wasn't Sokka. Toph always assumed she'd learn to love The Duke as much as she loved Sokka, but after today she wasn't so sure. "I don't know," she answered softly.
Katara released a breath she didn't even realize she was holding. "Well Toph, if you don't want to go through with the wedding you don't have to. We could just call a cab and The Duke and your parents will just have to get over it."
This made both Toph and Katara laugh. "Thanks Katara, but I think I've worried enough people today." She ran her hand through her tangled hair. "Let's just finish getting me ready, there's something I need to take care of before the ceremony starts."
Katara nodded and spent the next ten minutes fixing Toph's hair and make up. As soon as she finished the two left the room and made their way to a room that was just before you reached the backyard to where the ceremony was taking place.
"I think he's in here," Katara whispered.
Toph nodded. "Okay, thank you Katara." She and her Maid of Honor hugged one last time. "I'll see you out there."
Katara smiled. "Okay Toph, see you."
When she heard the echoing of her friend's high heels disappear Toph let out an exhausted sigh and opened the door in front of her.
The Duke was standing in front of a mirror, putting on his tie when he heard the door open.
"Duke?"
At the sound of her voice he turned around to see his bride standing at the door. "Toph? Hey baby, are you okay? Your parents told me you fell and the ceremony was going to be a few minutes late." He took a second to get a good look at her. "Wow, you look amazing. Although, I don't know if I should be looking at you since they say it's bad luck to see the bride before the wedding"
Toph chuckled. "You daredevil," she joked playfully as she reached out and took his hands in her's. "Listen Duke-"
"The Duke," he corrected.
This made them both laugh. "The Duke," Toph repeated, "listen, before the ceremony starts, there's something I need to tell you."
A/N: I'm really sorry this took so long. I've been crazy busy, but other than that- there you have it folks! I tried to keep the ending of this chapter a bit of a mystery. Is Toph really going to go through with the wedding? Or is she going to call it off and find Sokka? I'm sure some of you already know the answer to these questions, but I did want to leave that question mark up there. Of course there's going to be one more chapter after this, and I'll try to have that up by this weekend. Anyway, to all the reviewers, followers, and those who favorited this story, thank you. Until next time...
Free-Spirited Dreamer