Chapter 8
The sun shined bright, casting a warm glow. The weather wasn't too hot where it would be unbearable. There was a light breeze blowing through the crowds. People were around every concession stand and ride and game. People splashed in the pools; others were on roller coasters; and there are people shooting with water gun sat targets. The Gang had arrived there hours ago. Katara was the most anxious of the bunch. Everyone had taken turns choosing which games and rides to go on. Toph chose the Rocky Mountains coaster; Sokka and Suki decided on the Bumper Cars; Aang did the Swings; and Zuko and Mai did the Fire Dragon coaster. Now it was Katara's turn. She had picked the log ride because when you go down the slide, you get wet. Katara always felt closer to water than any of the other elements that made the planet Earth. She was practically skipping as she could see the ride getting closer, and she wanted to run so badly toward it. But one thing kept her in place. Aang had his arm around her. As much she loved him, Katara was anxious to get to the ride first. Aang realized that she wanted to go faster. He turned to her.
"Be patient. We're almost there."
"But Aang!" she whined. "You guys have been on all kinds of rides. And now that it's my turn, I can't help being impatient. I want to be in the water now!" Aang shook his head, clearly amused by her pouting face. Katara on the other hand wanted to get to the ride and quick. So, with a smirk, Katara kissed Aang's cheek and took off laughing. Aang was dazed for a second; then he shook his head and laughed while sprinting after her. The others shook their heads, amused.
Katara dodged people as she sprinted to the ride, getting weird looked but not caring about them. She has never felt so free! It felt like she was flying.
Aang was having a blast. He felt like a kid again, playing tag with his friends back home. Everything felt more alive as he went after his girlfriend, determined to catch her before she got to the ride.
Katara almost made it to the ride when she felt strong arms wrap around her waist and she felt herself lift off the ground. She squealed and laughed as Aang spun her. He laughed with her and stopped spinning before sliding her down his body. She turned around in his arms to look at him, both of them panting. How she lived without him she never knew; but she was glad they found each other.
They giggled quietly, trying to regain their breathing. He looked into her aqua gems, and said, "You're so silly."
She shrugged, her eyes sparkling with mirth. "Takes one silly person to know another. You chased me, remember?"
He shook his head while grinning. "You have a point there. But it was you who initiated the chase in the first place. So it wasn't my entire fault."
Katara brought her face closer to his. "You didn't have to follow through with it."
"I didn't want you get away," he said before he kissed her when she giggled. She stood on her toes as she wrapped her arms around his neck. They kissed deeply and passionately, forgetting about the world around them.
They didn't know how long they stayed like that; they in their own bubble of bliss. That is, until Sokka said, "Okay, okay! Enough already! Sheesh!" The couple pulled away, heavy blushes on their faces as they remembered where they were. Sokka continued complaining. "I mean seriously, I know you love each other and all, but could you PLEASE keep the kisses to a minimum? It's giving me the oogies." He shuddered.
Toph snorted. "You do worse things, Snoozles." Everyone looked at her, wondering what she meant, although they had an idea. She felt their gazes and shrugged, looking innocent except for the grin that was fighting its way onto her face. "What? I'm being honest. And I'm telling you: you don't even want to know what they do." Everyone, but Sokka and Suki, laughed while the couple blushed. Sokka opened his mouth, but nothing came out besides spluttering, and everyone laughed harder than ever.
Then he found his voice and said in a high voice, "Oh yeah? Well what about them?" He pointed to Aang and Katara. "They were making out in public! Doesn't that give you guys the oogies?"
Suki snorted. "Okay, one: they're boyfriend and girlfriend, so that gives them the right to kiss in public. Number two: I find it cute. And lastly: only you would come up with something as ridiculous as 'oogies'."
The laughter the ensued could be heard across the park. When it finally died down, Katara said, "Okay. I think that's enough." Her excitement came back. "Let's go!" And she ran off, Aang's hand in hers and the other's following like ducklings.
They got into line, and Toph tried to sneak away by saying, "I'm not really a fan of water. I think I'll just sit this one out."
Katara grabbed her arm as the blind girl was about to slip away. "Oh no, you don't. Have you ever even been on this ride?" Toph shook her head. "Then how do you know you don't like it if you've never tried it?"
Shrugging she said, "An accident involving water made me wary of it."
Katara rolled her eyes. "Was this incident in the water itself, or was it on a ride?" she asked.
"It was in the water itself," she replied.
"The ride is different. Please, just try it. For me? Pretty please?"
Toph sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "If I said 'yes', then will you shut up?"
"Yep!" Katara answered enthusiastically.
Toph crossed her arms and huffed, "Fine!" Katara squealed and grabbed the blind girl's arm and led her through the gate. 'Good thing I have spare clothes' Toph thought.
After the ride, dripping wet and laughing like goof balls, everyone decided to change clothes and get something to eat. As they went to the bathrooms, Katara asked Toph, "That wasn't so bad, was it?"
Toph had a huge grin despite herself. "Okay. I'll admit it: it was fun. There was this exhilarating feeling when you slide down." Then she punched Katara's arm. "But don't expect me to learn how to swim. I don't like being submerged."
Katara laughed a little nervously as she rubbed her arm. "Fair enough."
After changing into spare clothes, the teens stopped at a concession stand, where, surprisingly, they had vegetarian food, which Aang was thankful. He never understood the whole 'eating meat' business. It was never his style. Gyatso had taught him to respect all living things because they were people too. Besides, in the past, Aang had always liked animals, so the thought of eating any kind made him sick. Katara sat with him eating chopped iced fruit. He made a joke about her becoming a vegetarian too, and she nudged his shoulder. "So what if I was?" she asked jokingly.
Sokka raised his hands. "No! You better not be turning into a vegan!" He pointed a threatening finger at Aang. "If I find out you converted her into a meat hater, I swear I'll-"
Suki hit him on the head. "Will you leave them alone, Sokka? Every time they say something, you just have to jump right into their conversation." Everyone laughed as Sokka huffed.
After they ate, they thought about what to do next. There were plenty of rides around the park. Everyone wanted to do different things. After some debating, they decided to split up and go on different rides. Sokka and Suki are going to the Octopus, Zuko and Mai are going to the Bungi Jumping Ropes, Toph is going to the hammer game, just to show who was boss, and Aang and Katara's are to the tunnel of love; partly to annoy Sokka, partly because it's romantic. Sokka rolled his blue eyes and muttered something that sounded like 'oogies'. Suki punched him in the arm and told him to leave them alone. The Gang separated after agreeing to meet back in front in an hour. Aang and Katara walked in comfortable silence, fingers intertwined. Then they talked about random subjects, not really worried about what they said.
Finding the ride wasn't very hard. The entrance was decorated with swans, hearts, and Cupid's shooting arrows at the boats as if they were willing the couple to fall in love more. After getting in the swan shaped boat, Katara sat back and said, "Finally. Peace at last."
Aang laughed, hugging her close. "I know right? I thought Sokka would never leave us alone."
Katara grinned as they started floating down the artificial river. "He tends to do that. Since I'm his 'baby sister', he feels like it's his job to watch over me. I appreciate the fact that he does, but sometimes I wish he would back off a little."
He chuckled. "That's true. But I have to say, you're lucky to have someone like him. I don't know what it's like to have siblings. My parents thought about having another child, but...that was before the incident." Aang got that distant look in his eyes and Katara knew at once that he was thinking about his parents. She touched her necklace. She knew how he felt; she had lost her mother to a murderer. There's was that big empty hole in your heart where it will remain empty. But there was something strange about their deaths. It seemed too much of a coincidence that they died for no reason. She thought about her mother's old fashion company, and how the money had vanished shortly after she was killed. It was connected to Aang's parent's deaths somehow…
And suddenly, Katara couldn't breathe. A terrible thought filtered through her mind. She tried putting some pieces together of a terrible puzzle, and started freaking out. She gasped before tapping his shoulder and Aang came out of his thoughts with a few blinks. "I just thought of something." She paused to swallow, her eyes wide.
Aang's face morphed into a concerned expression. He gave her a squeeze. "What is it?" he asked, worried. He didn't like seeing her this way.
She took a shaky breath and started playing with her hair before looking at him. "What if...what if it's all connected? Our parents' deaths; everything."
Aang looked confused. He stilled her hand and brought it down. "Why do you think that?"
Katara looked down, not sure how to phrase it, before taking a breath and looked into his eyes. "Aang, do you remember when you told me your parent's were rich?" He nodded, dread filling his stomach as the idea of where she was going with this came in. "So are mine. And I was thinking: what if they were killed because of it? I think they were murdered for their money. It would explain how the profits had gone missing from Mom's business."
Aang's brows furrowed and his eyes narrowed, thinking hard about what she had just said. He started putting the pieces together. Then his eyes widened as realization struck, and a lump formed in the pit of his stomach. "I think you're right." He hesitated. "But why kill both of my parents, and only one of yours?"
Katara sighed. "I don't know. But I'm going to be honest." She grips his hand tightly. Hers was shaking. "I'm scared, Aang. Not to mention worried about everyone else.." She looked into his silver eyes. "What if the people who killed our parents comes after us?"
Aang released her hand to bring her into his arms as if he could protect her from those fears with his embrace. He wish he had that ability. "Listen to me," he said softly, rubbing circles in her back. "I promise I'll protect you. I will always be there, no matter what happens. And I swear: as long as I'm alive, no one can hurt you or anyone else. I'm not losing any of you, and I'm not leaving your side. I love you Katara; in this world and beyond. Nothing is going to change that."
Katara took a deep breath and snuggled into her soul mate's chest, feeling her fears melting away at the warmth and confidence in Aang's voice. Then she said, "I promise to always be by your side too. I will be honest and will help you make decisions, and stick to them. Nothing will rip us apart because no one can." She looked into his silver eyes and smiled lovingly. "I love you too, Aang: now and forever."
Aang smiled, tenderly pushed some hair from her face, and kissed her gently yet thoroughly. Katara responded instantly, wrapping her arms around his neck, playing with his hair as they became closer. The Cupid's seem to smile for real, as if they could feel the couple's love and devotion as they glided beneath the angels.
And little did the couple know of the faint blue glow emanating from the pendant like a third throbbing heart.