Warning: This chapter has no plot whatsoever - it's just another piece of short, mindless fluff. Hmm... I seem to write those a lot.
Read on if you dare.
06. F
Family
Sokka had always thought of their little group as his family.
Katara actually was his sister, of course. And since she and Aang were practically engaged, he supposed that made the Airbender his brother, even though the 15-year-old sometimes got on Sokka's last nerve with his endless pranks and jokes.
(He had heard somewhere that this was what brothers were supposed to do. He supposed it was true, considering that was certainly what his sister did.)
Sokka had been slightly repulsed by Appa since the day they had first met (and he had discovered that Appa's sneeze was even worse than Aang's), but he realized and accepted that Appa was an essential part of the team. Momo got on Sokka's last nerves as well with his endless chittering - annoying at the best of times, but simply unbearable when trying to get rid of a headache. He had never been overly fond of the bison or the lemur, but he loved them in a dysfunctional kind of way. They were part of his family.
That took care of Katara, Aang, Appa, and Momo… and left Toph.
At first, Sokka had thought of her as another annoying little sibling. She had probably smartmouthed him more times in the first week he knew her than he would be able to compensate for in his lifetime. On top of that, she was another bender, and frankly her powers got on his nerves. Show-off, he would think to himself as she demonstrated her abilities over and over again.
But as time passed, Sokka started to look up to Toph. She was smarter than most people gave her credit for. She was very down-to-earth (pun intended) and gave sensible advice. She was brave and strong, and she wasn't afraid to be different. Sokka liked that about her. She couldn't exactly be qualified as a little sister anymore, despite the fact that he was three years her senior. So, in a weird and unexplainable way, he began to think of her as his big sister.
Then, as many of his girlfriends came and went – Suki fell for another man, Ty Lee annoyed him to no end with her endless optimism, various Earth Kingdom girls got lost in the crowd – Toph became his confidant. She listened with an open mind, always ready to supply comfort when he needed it. He appreciated her kindness, and slowly but surely, he began to fall for her.
And then... she had kissed him. It had been a completely random, spur-of-the-moment kiss, meant to be nothing more than an innocent peck on the lips. But he cupped her chin in his hands and kissed her back, and it had felt better than all of the kisses that had preceded it combined.
Now, as he lay beneath the sheets with his sleeping fiancee, he couldn't believe that he hadn't realized it sooner. He loved her, and her position in his family was perhaps the most special one.
Soon, Toph, we will be family, he thought as he stroked her hair. We'll be husband and wife. That's the most important kind of family of all – the kind you choose for yourself.
A/N: Have you gagged yet?