Toph's Future

"Well?"

"Well…here I go." Toph grabbed Aang's hand tightly.

"If things go south, you can stay at my place. Gyatso said it'd be fine."

"Okay." She exhaled and gripped the edges of her fancy silk couch. "This is gonna suck."

"They need to know."

"Right. They do. They do." She let go of his hand.

"I love you." Aang said.

"Yep." Toph trembled as she walked up to the door of father's study. She gulped, then walked in without knocking.

"Uh, dad? Can we talk?" She peeped inside and saw her father sitting at his work desk, drinking a cup of coffee and mulling over some files.

"…sure Toph. Sit down." Lao knew Aang was in his house, right outside the door.

By now, Lao had gotten used to the 'idea' of Toph and Aang dating. He didn't like it, but he also couldn't stop it from happening. He didn't chase Aang away anymore and occasionally said hello to him, but that was it. He didn't like him.

"Okay." She tried to collect herself. She tried to find some gentle words that wouldn't hurt her father's feelings, but she was never good at dancing around a subject. "I don't know how else to say this dad, so I'm just gonna to go for it.

"…fine." Lao knew he wasn't going to like whatever his daughter had to share with him.

In one breath, Toph said, "I don't want to go to college."

The cup of coffee vibrated as Lao's hand shook. "…what?"

"I hate school. I hate studying. I hate being in this town and…I thought about this a lot, and…I don't want to do it." She crossed her arms. Lao rubbed the arc of his nose.

"Toph…this is your education. Your future. You can't…I mean, you can't…how can you just turn your back on something like this?" Lao was not arguing, not trying to convince his daughter that he was right. He knew better. Now, he was just angrily shouting.

"Because I chose it. It might be dumb, and I might regret it later. But it's…"

Lao slammed his hand on his table. The coffee spilled all over his papers. He didn't break eye contact with Toph.

"You cannot just turn your back on everything I have done for you! I have invested everything in you and you always throw it away! How can you not feel even the slightest bit guilty for treating me the way you have these past few years? How can you just tell me that you are not going to go to school after I did everything to make sure you can go?"

"Because it's my life!" Toph screamed as loud as she could, loud enough to push Lao back, loud enough for her face to turn white. "You can't make me do anything! I don't want to go! I'm not going! I am leaving home and going where I want too and I can do that because it's my life!"

Toph stared her father down. Eventually, Lao flinched, sat back in his chair and rubbed his forehead.

"Toph…Toph…I never understood you. Ever. I love you but…we are such different people." He was not capable of crying, but a throbbing vein swelled up on his forehead. "It's because of Aang, isn't it?"

"…yeah dad. I love him. He…I…I know you did a lot for me, but Aang is…"

"You are going to risk everything. Your future, your college career…for a boy?" Lao didn't look at her.

"It's not a risk. It's not about getting something. I'm doing it because I want to do it." She crossed her arms again. "He treats me like I am human being, not a china doll or a nuisance."

Lao sighed and rubbed his eyes again. He had tried to control Toph for eighteen years. He was tired. He didn't want to try anymore.

"Go away." He gestured with his hand. Toph didn't expect that. She stayed still for a few seconds.

"I…"

"Toph…go. Wherever you want to go, go." Lao turned his back to his daughter. Toph's heart cracked.

"It…I mean…dad?" Lao didn't answer. "Dad?" No response. Toph slowly stood up and even slower opened the door. Lao didn't move. He rapped his fingers over the arm of his chair and stared as his daughter slipped outside. "Bye…dad. I love you." Top weakly said.

"I know Toph. I love you too." Lao lowered his head. Toph left. She got what she wanted.

Aang went into Toph's room when he heard yelling. He played with a dart and waited nervously while girlfriend faced her father.

Her door opened and Toph walked inside quickly, not looking at him. Toph somehow looked much smaller than she did before. She grabbed one of her duffle bags off her floor and, slowly, unzipped it.

"What happened?" Aang jumped off her bed.

"Can we go?"

"Sure. What happened? Did he kick you out?"

"No." She pushed a few clothes inside, not bothering folding them.

"Did he cut you off?"

"Maybe. I don't care." A few other things were thrown into the bag. She tucked the picture of Aang and her at New Year's Eve under her arm. "I just want to leave."

"What did he say?" Aang was really worried. He had no idea what had happened.

"He said I could go where I wanted to. And that he loved me."

"So…that's it?"

Toph nodded and started crying. "Yeah. That's it." She covered her face. "He was…god. He was such an asshole to me...but he is still my dad."

"It's okay Toph. We can go. If you forgot anything, we'll just get it later." Aang rubbed her head. Toph nodded without saying a word. "I'll carry that." Aang took her bag for her. Toph grabbed a second, smaller duffle bag and put a few more things it. More clothes…and an extra XBOX controller.

They snuck out of her house as quietly as they could, closing the front door in paced, quiet inches. They walked really slowly. Aang tried to match Toph's depressed tempo.

"Wanna take the bus?" Aang asked, slinging the duffle bag over his shoulder.

"Can we just walk for a bit?" Toph held his hand again.

"Sure." Aang led her away from her home. Toph turned around, just to glance at it again, and saw her father looking at her through the window of his study. He had a picture in his hand, one of when Toph was a little girl, back when she behaved, back when he understood his daughter.

Toph looked away and kept walking. Lao looked away and went back to work.

I know we all have issues with our parents, but despite their flaws…they usually aren't terrible people. They are just different than us.