A/N: Hi guys! Sorry I disappeared for a month :/ I went abroad for a week, then went back on placement and had a course that had some additional exam (not needed for me to graduate, but the student in me revised for it, still flopped it because I didn't give it as much attention as I should've so I'm doing a repeat, but wanted to get this out to you instead of making you guys wait), so that's why I've been gone longer than I intended to, very sorry about that, hopefully wont take this long again.
Thank you all for your sweet comments, it always leaves me with a smile and I really appreciate it. Hope you enjoy this angsty chapter XD
Katara's POV:
I wake up to the worst headache. 'Spirits what happened?' I groan as I sling a hand over my eyes, but I pause when I catch sight of a line in my hand. I follow it up to a bag of blood hooked up on a line. 'Blood?' My eyes widen. 'Oh gosh, that's right! I got hurt when the hotel collapsed.' I recall as my hand flies to my thigh.
Funny enough, that's not the only place that hurts. My abdomen twinges tightly when I move and when I pull up the hospital gown, I spot a bandage wrapped around my waist. I furrow my eyebrows. 'Wait, I think...I think I tried to heal myself but I was too out of it to do a proper job. Aurgh, everything is so hazy. I remember being with...oh.' My eyes widen when I remember Aang was trapped with me.
I try to search my mind for what had happened between us or if I had said anything dumb, but my useless brain comes up with nothing.
As I try to rack my brain, I hear the distinct echo of slow, but light footsteps nearby and when I pull my arm off my eyes, I find Aang standing at the doorway, watching me. His expression is chillingly blank as he stares at me, but the stress lines around his temples and the black bags under his eyes has my stomach twisting in knots.
"What's wrong?" I ask as I push myself up on one elbow, masking the wince I feel at my abdomen. Aang doesn't speak for several moments, but when he does, he purposely dodges my question.
"How are you feeling?" He queries as he takes one step into the hospital room. I eye him wearily before replying.
"A little sore, but fine. What about you?" I question, prompting the Airbender to lightly touch his shoulder. The action strikes me with another memory. 'He dislocated it.' I recall as I furrow my eyebrows at him.
"Same." He mutters, but his gaze isn't fixed on me anymore. Instead, he's intently staring at the wall. My frown deepens at his behaviour.
"Did...did something happen between us when we were trapped down there?" I finally ask. Grey orbs flicker back to me with semi-surprise.
"What makes you think that?" Aang queries with slightly pursed lips. I bite the inside of my cheek. Another dodge.
"You're acting weird. Or weirder than usual. And...and my memory is hazy. I can't quite recall what happened or how we got out." I explain as I observe him intently. Aang wrinkles his nose.
"You passed out before we escaped. And... nothing happened." Aang mumbles as he averts his eyes in an obvious lie. I push myself up further as I narrow my eyes at him.
"I don't think..." I start, but Aang is quick to cut me off.
"Sokka's not doing too great." The Airbender drops stiffly. My muscles tense up at the news. I stare at him for a good half minute before my lips start moving.
"What...what do you mean?" I croak back as dread trickles down my insides. Aang glances away.
"Toph noticed the trembles and was able to stop most of the debris from falling on them, but Sokka panicked and ran out from their cover before she stopped all of it. He's in a couple of bays down the corridor." Aang explains, his voice quiet and subdued. The dread within me tightens as understanding dawns on me.
"He...was worried about me." I voice numbly as I push back the covers, forgetting that I had hoisted up the hospital gown to inspect the damage. Aang immediately notices, but keeps his gaze fixed on the wall.
"You shouldn't be getting up." He protests weakly as I pull the gown down over my legs once more. I'm too worried about my brother to even consider being embarrassed.
"How bad is it?" I demand, steam-rolling past Aang's protest as I swing my legs over the edge of the bed.
"He's still unconscious. The rocks...they hit him right on the head." The Airbender reveals quietly. My heart lurches in fear.
"What did the doctors say? Are there any healers in the hospital?" My barrage of questions prompts the airbender to return his gaze to me.
"They're not saying much, but I can tell they're concerned. And no, there aren't any healers in this hospital, it's why you're still bandaged up." Aang explains with a nod to the bandages underneath my hospital gown. I falter slightly. 'He acts like he saw them being put on. If that's the case, I'm not sure how that makes me feel.' I shake my head and push up onto my feet, wobbling only slightly.
"I need to go and see him, I can..." A bout of nausea hits me and I trip. Aang's arms are around my shoulders in no time as he keeps me upright. I stiffen up and start to pull away from him, only for the man to tighten his hold.
"You need to rest. You're still recovering and healing takes a lot out of you." Aang suggests firmly. I shrug his hand off.
"I need to see my brother." I bite back while grabbing the blood stand and wheel it forward. Hurt flashes across his face, but he follows beside me. I wrinkle my nose at him. "Why are you following me?" I ask irritably. Aang parts his lips in surprise, frowning.
"To make sure you don't fall? Or do anything reckless." Aang adds as an afterthought. I glare at him, but resist the urge to push him away.
"Fine." I grumble as I turn around the corridor.
"Second door on the left." Aang whispers, prompting me to glance up at him. His eyes appear distracted as he swings his arms beside him, accidentally brushing against mine.
I ease slightly away from him in confusion. 'Something definitely happened when we were trapped down there.' I voice silently as I continue to watch him wearily. 'What did I say? If I lost enough blood to warrant a transfusion, then I must've had some delirium. I could've said absolutely anything like...I still love him.' I bite the inside of my cheek. 'That would not be good.' I grimace but refrain from asking and turn into the ward that Sokka's on.
My feet come to an abrupt stop at seeing the ponytailed man lying motionlessly on the hospital bed. He's swathed in bandages, particularly around his temples. The heart monitor keeps beeping and his chest rises and falls with each breath, misting up the oxygen mask around his mouth.
I can feel my knees weaken, threatening to buckle at the sight. I swallow thickly as I take a cautious step towards him. When I'm at his bedside, I stretch out a shaky hand to rest it on his forehead. I glance at the basin of water at the bedside table. My fingers freeze up momentarily before I bend the water onto Sokka's head. As I will it to glow, my weak knees tremble even more.
It's obvious he's had surgery to decompress the blood and fluid around the brain, but certain areas have a sickeningly quiet feel to them. As if the neurons have simply stopped functioning. I ignore the rise of bile in my throat and close my eyes, focussing on healing my brother. The brother who I've spent little to no time with over our disagreements. The brother who was so worried about me that he put his life on the line.
I clench my jaws as I work on increasing blood flow to the area, providing the much-needed nutrients his neurons need. Some flickers of activity come to life, but it's not enough. I scrunch my eyes tightly and imagine the neural pathway in my mind's eye as I try to reconstruct and re-mend the broken axons. But neurons are the type of cell that never really repair themselves. Once damaged, that's practically it.
I can feel tears squeeze out from my tightly screwed up eyes as I beg for them to be fixed. For his whole brain to light up with activity and life like it always has.
"P-Please." I choke out in a plea. More activity flickers before dimming. Knowing the brain, this isn't good enough. "Come on." I mutter under my breath as I pour out all of my concentration and energy into my healing. There was a time I was able to heal so effortlessly, it was as easy as writing my name. But when you leave something, you become rusty. And now is certainly not the time to be rusty.
I can feel that my legs are on the verge of giving way, but I don't stop. More activity flickers, but this time it doesn't fade like before. "Just some more." I utter to myself, just as my legs buckle.
"Katara!" Aang shouts as he scoops me up before I hit the floor. I'm already reaching for my brother's head once more, but the Airbender stops me. "That's enough, you're going to push yourself over the edge." Aang orders, but I scowl at him.
"If I don't push myself, Sokka is going to end up comatose!" I snap as I once again reach for the ponytailed man's head. Aang clenches his jaws, but doesn't stop me. Instead, he keeps an arm around my waist. I glower at him.
"I don't need you to hold..." I start, only for Aang to cut across me.
"If you're going to keep going, then I'm going to make sure you don't collapse. I'm not budging on that." Aang utters tightly. I squint at him before sighing and returning my attention back to Sokka.
I continue the delicate and excruciatingly slow process of re-knitting all the broken ties. This time the sparks of activity stays, but I don't stop until I sense the neural activity flowing throughout, by which time my hands have gone numb and my head is pounding with a headache.
I withdraw, half-expecting Sokka to open his eyes right then and there, but the logical part of me knows that any extensive damage to the brain takes time to heal. If it ever. I turn to the foot of the bed and spot an orange paper folder, but I'm too exhausted to move. Aang follows my line of sight and gets the idea immediately as he reaches over to pluck up the set of notes and flicks it open. I blink twice in surprise.
"Are you..." I stop myself. 'Of course he can read the complicated medical terms in there. Sometimes, I forget how knowledgeable he is.' I think to myself with a slight shake of my head. He only looks up briefly in answer to my unfinished question, before he returns to reading. He exhales loudly through his nostrils which causes the pages to flutter a bit before he closes the file. I frown and reach forward to take it from him, but he pulls it out of my reach.
"I think it's best you get some rest first." Aang suggests. I scowl.
"I don't need you to try to protect me." I growl. The Airbender watches me for several moments before glancing up at the file in his raised arm.
"Katara..." He tries to reason, but I shoot him down with a glower.
"Don't 'Katara' me. Give me the file." I demand, but the Air Nomad keeps it out of reach. His features morph into regret and pain.
"Katara, he's in a vegetative state and the doctors aren't sure whether it's permanent or temporary." Aang whispers. That was the last straw to make me buckle completely. The Airbender is too slow to catch me this time, but I'm glad. Feeling my knees hit the ground heavily means that at least I can feel something as numbness crawls up my body. I stare at the ground just as Aang kneels beside me. When he attempts to rest his arm around my shoulders, I slap him away.
"Does...does my father know?" I utter numbly. Aang's lips part as he silently removes his phone from his pocket.
"I haven't had the opportunity to tell him yet. I'll...give him a call now." Aang mumbles as he scrolls to find Hakoda's name.
He doesn't have to scroll far though because his name is already in his call history. 1 week ago. Then again at 4 and 6 weeks ago. 'Wow. My Dad was still in contact with him even after Aang totally blanked me.' I push back the rise of hurt and gaze up at my motionless brother while Aang rises to his feet and turns his back to me as he walks out of the room with the phone pressed to his ear.
I reach for the bed railing and hoist myself up. That sense of wooziness returns, but staring at Sokka's still face stops me from focusing on it. 'He just wanted us all to spend time together. What even was the last thing I said to him?' I squeeze my eyes shut, my come up blank. 'I can't even remember.' I think as my heart trips over itself in guilt. 'What was the last thing he said to me?'
"Hey, are you ok?" and
"Take Aang with you."
My stomach clenches. 'He was just being a brother. My brother.' A trail of moisture slides down my cheek as I watch him. 'If my healing didn't do the trick then...' My face pales and I snatch the spare vomit bucket and hurl into it until there's nothing left. I hear footsteps behind me, but I don't turn to meet them.
"Katara?" Aang probes quietly.
"I'm going to stay here for a bit." I mutter as I put the vomit bucket down. The Airbender seems ready to argue before he thinks better of it. Instead, he pulls over a spare chair from the side and positions it close to Sokka's hospital bed.
"Ok. Here's a chair." He offers. I blink twice in surprise before nodding my head and ease myself into the seat.
"What did my Dad say?" I ask while keeping my gaze ahead of me. Aang rests his back against the wall and crosses his arms as he glances at Sokka.
"Not much. He was pretty subdued. I think he's trying to get his head around it. He said he'll catch the first ferry here which will be in later today." The Airbender explains, his tone sounding detached.
I breathe in deeply. 'It doesn't matter how distant we became, I know how much Dad must be hurting right now. He and Sokka always shared a special bond. Besides that, we've barely recovered from losing Mum.' A small whimper escapes me. 'He has to wake up. He just has to.' I silently beg as more tears escapes my eyes.
Aang pushes himself off the wall in concern as he hovers over me, unsure whether to provide some comfort or keep his distance. I sniff and quickly swipe at my eyes with the intent of not wanting him to see me crumble. He lifts his hand, but stops mid-air before dropping it back to his side.
"You don't have to stay here." I mutter as I stare at my tightly clasped hands. Aang rolls his lip between his teeth in deliberation.
"But I want to." He murmurs. I bite the inside of my cheek as more tears prick my eyes. 'Why is he being so nice?' I think to myself as I stare at my lap. 'Does it take a tragedy for him to let down his walls slightly?' My nails dig into my palms as I refuse to meet his gaze.
The urge to ask him what really happened when we were trapped is on the tip of my tongue, but I refrain from asking. 'He wouldn't tell me anyway.' I remind myself with a scowl. Aang's eyebrows furrow at my expression, but he doesn't comment.
"Ah, there you are!" An unfamiliar voice calls out and when I glance behind me, I spot a woman in blue scrubs. "Your blood transfusion is nearly done and the doctor asked for me to take some blood to check that your haemoglobin level is back to normal." The nurse explains as she strides over to me with a blue tray in hand. I give her an apologetic smile.
"Sorry about that." I say as I stretch out my arm for her to take. She glances at Sokka before wrapping a tourniquet around my arm.
"Don't apologize. It's understandable to be worried about your brother. I hope your husband takes good care of you after all that's happened." The nurse murmurs with a stern stare at the Airbender. I falter and lower my arm.
"My husband?" I echo back as I flicker my gaze at Aang who immediately averts his eyes. The nurse blinks twice before frowning.
"Is he not your husband?" She asks with a hand on her hip and her stare directed at the man becomes more heated. It takes a moment before my lips work.
"No...yes...I mean...yes...I guess...technically." I mumble with tightly knit eyebrows. The nurse looks at me unsurely.
"Hmm, because if he isn't your husband we'll have to have a word with him about lying to us for staying past visiting hours. We made an exception because he was worried and refused to let go of your hand while you slept." The nurse utters seriously as she pricks me with the needle and pops in the blood bottle.
My jaws slacken as I whip my head towards the Airbender who's a little too focussed on staring at his feet.
"So, is he your husband or not?" The nurse repeats again. Aang's lips part, as if ready to answer the question for me, but I swiftly turn to face the nurse.
"He is." I state firmly. The woman scrutinises me for a good minute before nodding her head and presses a cotton bud to my arm.
"That's good enough for me. The doctor will be in to review you later, so make sure you're back in your bay by then." The nurse voices as she picks up her discarded equipment and spins on her heels to leave. I wait until she has disappeared before returning my gaze to Aang. He doesn't say anything for several moments before he kicks at some invisible dust.
"They weren't going to let me in at all unless I had some relation with you. Apparently being a 'friend' doesn't cut it." Aang mutters as I continue to stare at him.
"So, you fell back on our default status." I utter dryly, crossing my arms. He flinches.
"I'm sorry. I know we're not really together anymore, but it was the only thing they accepted." The Airbender mumbles as he rubs the back of his neck. I know it shouldn't, but my heart twinges at his statement of us no longer being together. I turn away from him and start removing the small cotton bud that the nurse had taped against my skin.
"It's fine. You're technically still my husband so it's not like you lied to them." I say with a half-shrug as I go to drop the cotton bud into a nearby bin. "Although, I didn't expect you to hold my hand the entire time I was passed out." I add offhandedly which elicits an awkward chuckle from my former husband.
"Well, I was under the impression you wouldn't find out about that." Aang mumbles back as he turns away from me. I gaze at his back for a few short seconds before sighing and crossing the short distance between us.
I rest a hand against his shoulder blade lightly, but it still surprises the man as he releases a sharp intake of breath. His muscles tenses beneath my hand, but he doesn't turn to face me. My eyes flicker over the side of his face, but it's hard to make out what he's feeling or thinking. Even after all this time, there are moments like these that I can't read him.
I release a quiet breath and start to withdraw. His hand snaps out from behind him to keep mine pressed against his scapula. I quirk an eyebrow, but he still shows no signs of revealing his inner emotions to me.
"What's the last memory you have before you passed out?" Aang asks quietly. I frown at the randomness of his question, but go to answer anyway.
"Trying to heal my thigh. Why?" I reply. Aang doesn't say anything for several moments as his grip around my hand loosens.
"Just curious." The Airbender breathes back. I scrutinise him. 'Ok, something definitely happened after that.' I think to myself. Against my better judgement, I lean forward until my chin hovers by his ear and just over his shoulder, not quite resting on it, but close enough for him to feel me.
"Something happened after that, didn't it?" I deduce. The Airbender shivers beneath me before closing his eyes.
"I-It's nothing." He stutters in the same way that he used to whenever I'd peck his cheek.
My lips quirk up in a half-smile. Knowing that my proximity still has the same impact as it used to sends an unwelcome electrifying shock up my spine. I swallow and start deliberating on whether I should create some distance between us and yet I want to know what he's so desperately trying to hide. I rest my chin against his shoulder and the younger man somehow stiffens even more.
"I know that's not true." I murmur by his ear which has turned bright red. "What happened?" I whisper. The rest of the Airbender's face takes on a paler shade as he re-opens his eyes, only for them to dart away from me.
"We talked a little. You tripped a bit and then you passed out not long after." Aang replies while somehow keeping his tone level. But his heavy breathing gives him away. I purse my lips and press my hand deeper against his back. He bites his lip.
"What did we talk about?" I ask as I scan the man's face carefully, but he's able to avoid looking at me and instead keeps his eyes trained on the wall in front of us.
"Can't remember." He offers quickly. I release a displeased throttle as I rest my other hand on his shoulder. The colour of his face changes from its pale nature to take on a pinker tone.
"If you can't remember, then why has your face turned red?" I query lightly with a low husky voice. Aang clenches his jaws.
"Because you're so clo-" He begins only for someone else's voice to ring out.
"Boy, now I can see that you two really are married." The same nurse from before quips.
We spring apart so quickly that I'm surprised I didn't trip over the fluid stand. I shoot a guilty expression at the woman who simply laughs from her position at the entrance of the bay.
"Don't mind me, I'm leaving." She jokes before disappearing once more. But my heart is still thudding rapidly in my chest. Whether from embarrassment at being walked in on or whether it's from being so close to the Airbender is something I choose not to dabble on. The silence between us doesn't stretch out for long when the Airbender speaks up.
"I should...go and wait for your Dad at the port." Aang mumbles as he tries to excuse himself from the piercing awkwardness. I clench my jaws and watch him brush past me.
"This conversation isn't over." I voice as he reaches the exit. He pauses for a moment before continuing forward and soon he disappears the same way the nurse went.
My shoulders sag as I drop into the nearby chair. 'Jeez Katara. Your brother is in a coma that he may or may not wake up from and here I was...what was I doing? I keep saying we're done, but my behaviour screams anything but done. It was so obvious that even a total stranger was able to see it.' I groan and drop my head into my hands.
"Sugarq...I mean, Katara?" A familiar feminine voice cuts through my fog of loathing. I turn to find Toph standing with her arms crossed at the entrance.
Other than a few cuts and bruises, she looks perfectly fine. 'At least some of us got out relatively unscathed.' I think in relief. The earthbender hovers by the entrance before coming to join me at Sokka's bedside. Her pale green orbs flicker over Sokka's form briefly before fixating on me.
"It's not like you to call me by my name." I say to break the silence. Toph's lips quirk upwards in a smirk.
"I thought that maybe there are some situations where nicknames aren't appropriate, Sweetness." Toph quips back. I give her a half-smile before turning to watch my brother.
"Yeah." I echo back. The earthbender shifts from one foot to the other before speaking again.
"I heard Snoozles isn't doing too great." She voices with a tone that's so uncharacteristically mellow. I bite my lip.
"I tried healing him, but the brain is such a delicate structure that I don't know if it will do much. I just...if he stays like this, I don't know what I'd do. We spent years arguing and to end it like this would be just so wrong." I say, my voice wobbling towards the end. "He's my brother and I can't even remember the last time I told him that I love him." I choke as bitterness runs through me.
"Stop being a rock head." Toph cuts back. I blink twice and jerk my head up to stare at her.
"Excuse me?" I say with a wrinkle of my nose. The woman puts a hand on her hip, but keeps her gaze forward.
"You don't need to tell someone that you love them for them to know that you do. Sokka obviously loved you and knew that you loved him back." Toph explains as she stares at the motionless man. I swallow at Toph's touching attempt to comfort me.
"Thanks Toph." I whisper which finally prompts the earthbender to turn her head towards me. My lips part when I spot the small collection of moisture in her eyes.
"He was being such a fool. If he hadn't argued with me about staying put, he'd be fine right now. If I had been paying attention, I'd have anticipated his movements and stopped him from running off." Toph berates bitterly as she rests a hand on the railing of the bed. Her fingers curl around the metal tightly. I furrow my eyebrows and rest my hand on top of hers.
"Hey now, you shouldn't blame yourself for that. Sokka has a mind of his own." I argue, but the earthbender's grip solidifies.
"That doesn't change the fact that I should've been expecting it. I've known him for years; of course his first concern would be to get to you." Toph mutters with a deep scowl and somehow that statement just makes me feel a whole lot worse. 'Sokka trying to protect me. It's something he's always done. And even now, finding out that Aang left to keep me safe and why Sokka supported his decision makes a whole lot more sense than it did before. He stood against me, because he was looking out for me. And when he saw how miserable I became, he started having second thoughts on where he stood between Aang and I which is probably why he was arguing with Aang a couple of days ago.'
I drop my head into my hand, hiding my face from the police officer as my tears re-start, but knowing Toph, there's not much you can hide from her. I try to hold back the throttled sound of crying, but I hear Toph sighing anyway. I feel her press her side into me as she rests a light arm around my shoulders.
"Hey now, he wouldn't want you to cry." Toph mutters gruffly. I squeeze my eyes tight when I feel another headache coming on.
"I want him to wake up." I choke back.
"Come on Sweetness, I don't want Twinkletoes to start thinking I made you cry. He was worried about you enough as it was." The earthbender tries to joke, but it does nothing to help my already miserable mood.
"Please don't mention him. I can't bring myself to think about him anymore." I mutter dryly as I rub at my sore eyes. Toph raises an eyebrow at me.
"Something happen between you two while you were trapped down there?" The black head asks with a thoughtful expression. I jerk my head up, caught off guard by the question.
"What makes you think that?" I ask. The woman shrugs.
"He was acting off the whole time. Even after we were questioned by the police." I part my lips, unsure what to say.
"I can't remember. I think I became a little delirious from the blood loss, so anything could've happened. But he refuses to tell me as usual." I mutter with down-turned lips. Toph blows at her fringe.
"Jeez, your heart rate is steady so you can't be lying." The earthbender mutters in disappointment. I quirk my eyebrow at her.
"I've never liked that ability of yours." I comment in disdain.
"This ability of mine, helps me catch criminals." Toph retorts with finger quotations. I roll my eyes and turn away from her.
"Didn't do any good with Yon Rha, did it?" I jab bitterly. I sense the woman stiffen beside me before scowling.
"I did everything I could and you know that." Toph grits back. I clench my jaws briefly before releasing a resigned sigh.
"Sorry, I know you did. It's just..." I trail off. Toph wrinkles her nose.
"It's easier to focus your anger if there's someone to blame." The earthbender finishes off for me. I cringe and stare at the ground.
"Something like that." I mumble. Toph purses her lips before speaking up.
"Has Aang told you what happened?" The black-haired women queries offhandedly. I furrow my eyebrows and stare at her.
"What do you mean?" I echo back.
"About how the hotel collapsed." Toph clarifies. I pinch my lips tightly together as I shake my head.
"He hasn't said anything to me." I mutter. "But, I haven't had much time to think about it. Why, do they know what happened?" I ask with a frown. Toph doesn't reply immediately, only gazes ahead of her with that neutral expression of hers.
"You've probably gathered that it wasn't an accident. Bombs were fixed at the bottom of the building. Some witnesses claimed to have seen blue fire. Although both witnesses were on opposite sides of the building, meaning it's either some fancy trick or there's more than one wielder of blue fire. Since we only know..." I interrupt Toph's rambles by pushing my chair back.
"Azula." I hiss with clenched hands, but the earthbender shakes her head.
"Zuko has already talked with her. She's been at the company all day which has been further confirmed by a couple of employees. So, it's not her." Toph waves off. I frown and sit back down.
"So, you're saying its either a light show or maybe blue fire is more common than we think it is?" I query dubiously. The woman shrugs.
"Could be. Or Zuko's trusted employees are lying. Sparky is talking to his mum right now." At Toph's reply, I find myself biting my lip.
"You...you think it's Yon Rha?" I ask quietly. Toph purses her lips.
"It could be, but initial finger prints haven't matched his." I slump at her reply.
"So, another dead end basically." I mutter. Toph throws me a side glance before flickering her pale green orbs to Sokka's general direction.
"No. Whoever it is, they're not getting off lightly for putting Sokka in a coma." Toph growls. I blink twice in surprise at the ferocity in her voice. My eyes soften a fraction.
"You really care about him, don't you?" I murmur in appreciation. The woman snorts.
"You think after 14 years I wouldn't?" Toph retorts, but her features lose its previous hard edge. "He was my first friend and it's hard not to catch feelings." The earthbender adds quietly. My eyes widen and my jaws slacken.
"You mean...you..." I trail off in disbelief. I watch as she gives me a one-sided shrug.
"I became a sap? Yep pretty much, but not anymore. Those feelings faded with time. Not like what you and Twinkletoes have anyway." Toph voices blandly. I jerk my head up and wrinkle my nose.
"Aang and I are done." I mutter firmly, but the woman just rolls her eyes.
"Yeah and that's why both of your heart rates pick up when you're near each other." Toph mocks. I glare at her.
"My heart rate does not pick u..."
"Right this way Hakoda." Aang's voice filters down the corridor and my heart spikes.
"Sure it doesn't. It's why it spiked just now." Toph utters dryly. I shoot her another glower.
"It's my Dad, I haven't seen him a while." I hiss defensively as Toph rests her hands on her hips.
"Turn right, you said?" My father's voice accompanies the Airbender's. My stomach twinges in dread.
"Yeah, the first right." Aang replies. My chest clenches again just as Toph leans towards me.
"I can tell the difference between a heart rate that quickens in fear and one that quickens with barely suppressed feelings." Toph whispers in my ear. I bite the inside of my cheek and I'm just about to continue my tirade of denial when my Dad's face appears at the door. His features soften, hiding the prior stress marks that I caught only a glimpse of before they changed.
"Katara." He murmurs in that fatherly tone of his, as if any previous tension between us never existed. My eyes mist up as I subconsciously rise to my feet.
"Dad." I croak back. He's beside me in two strides and I throw my arms over him as emotion bubbles through me once more.
"Hey now, I think it's my turn to cry not you." He jokes lightly as he encloses me in a warm embrace. I rest my chin on his shoulder as everything over the past several hours tumbles down.
But as I go to close my eyes, I spot Aang loitering at the back with averted eyes and looking every bit as awkward as he did during most of our family gatherings. 'He used to say it's because he felt like an outsider and despite my numerous protests stating otherwise, it seems those feelings never faded.' I swallow and withdraw from my father in a subconscious attempt to make Aang feel less uncomfortable.
"Do you know..." I trail off, finding it impossible to find it within myself to finish my sentence. Hakoda gives me a solemn nod as he steps towards Sokka.
"Aang told me. I...I was praying it would be a horrible joke." Dad voices with a half-smile, but it wobbles. 'And just like last time with Mum, he's trying to act strong in front of me.' I bite my lip as I move to stand beside him.
"I tried healing him. I just don't know if it's enough." I mutter as I run a hand through my messy hair. Hakoda turns to look at me, his eyes sad with grief as he scrutinises me.
"How are you feeling? I heard you were hurt." My father queries as he cups my cheek to inspect my face closely. My heart tugs at the familiar fatherly warmth. I catch his hand in mine and squeeze tightly.
"I'm fine. Lost a bit of blood, but Aang got me out before anything really happened." I reassure. My eyes unintentionally flicker to the Airbender. Our eyes lock, but he swiftly averts his gaze. I bite my lip just as my father hums before nodding his head to the Air Nomad.
"Thank you." He murmurs, prompting a slight nod from Aang.
"I'm sorry Hakoda. I should've protected him better." Toph voices gruffly, earning the man's attention.
"Don't say that. There are things we can't foresee sometimes." The counsellor protests vehemently before massaging his temples. "I...I think I'm going to have a chat with the doctor in charge." My father adds after a beat of silence. I'm just about to tell him to stay here when I catch the collection of moisture in his eyes. 'Oh. He wants to be alone.' I realise as I clamp my jaws shut.
My heart lurches, but I decide to let him go. 'Dad's always been better at processing things when he's on his own.' When he's out of sight my entire body sags to the point that I have to lean the back of my thighs against the bed rails.
"He's not taking it very well, is he?" Toph mumbles, breaking the silence. Her comment somehow makes me feel worse.
"He was silent on the whole way here." Aang adds unhelpfully. I pinch the bridge of my nose.
"You two aren't helping." I hiss. Instead of Toph making one of her snide remarks, she simple sighs and walks past me.
"In that case I'll check in on Sparky. He's probably bored of phone calls and police statements by now." The earthbender announces as she disappears out of the ward before I can say another word. I roll my eyes, but stop when I spot Aang's hand twitching by his side.
"I should go too." He mumbles, but there's something about the way he said it that makes me frown.
"To see Zuko?" I query in surprise, only for the Airbender to shake his head.
"No. I mean... I've had meetings scheduled for today in a different city, but had to miss, so I should head out." Aang clarifies. My heart drops.
"You mean... you're leaving?" I echo back as I feel myself going numb. Aang doesn't meet my eyes.
"Well, I did say it would only be a few days, right?" He mumbles back. I didn't think my chest could hurt anymore than it did when he first left or when I found out about Sokka.
"You're not even going to see if Sokka will be ok?!" I argue, my voice borderline cracking. The Airbender stares hard at the ground.
"You know that building probably collapsed because of me, right? Sokka is in this state because I was near him." Aang voices monotonously. My lips part wordlessly as my mind comes empty on how to dispute that statement.
"Don't you think I know that?!" I fire back bitterly once I've found my voice. "Sokka still wouldn't want you to leave." I mutter, dropping the volume of my voice, but the Airbender turns his head away from me.
"I'm sorry, but I can't stay. You should know that by now." Aang mumbles with a touch of sourness as he starts to walk past me. I don't think as I snap my hand forward to grab his collar, taking the man by surprise. "What are you..." He starts with wide eyes.
I swallow. The impulse to either kiss or smack him right there and then fizzles out. But I don't let go. 'How can I? He's been gone for years, but I still want him just as badly as the day he became mine and I became his. I didn't want to admit it because I was still angry. A part of me still is. But...I don't want him to go. Never again.' I swallow again.
"I...I don't want you to go." I voice haltingly, surprising the Airbender who seems to gawk at me for a full minute before replying.
"I thought you're still mad at me?" Aang queries with a frown. I cluck my tongue.
"You can be mad at someone and still want them around." I retort brashly. Aang's lips thins at my response.
"I told you before that this can't work. Not until..." I cut him off before he can finish.
"You think people wait that long?!" I bite back, prompting the Airbender to part his lips in surprise before his gaze darkens.
"You don't have to wait for me. Give me the divorce papers and I'll sign them right now." Aang utters harshly. I clench my jaws.
"What makes you think I even have them?" I throw back angrily, but my body is shaking.
Aang's gaze drops from mine to stare at the ground. He doesn't say anything for several moments, but I suddenly get a creeping sensation that there's something I'm missing. I watch him wrinkle his nose before reaching for his duffel bag that I hadn't noticed lying on the ground. The same bag he was so sensitive about me emptying. His fingers twitch at the satchel before he unclips it open and pulls out some papers. My heart rate takes a nosedive and I find myself stepping back.
"I have them." Aang mumbles without meeting my eyes. I didn't think my skin tone could go any paler.
"You..." The words get stuck in my throat. I swallow. "You brought that with us? You were going to ask me while we were on this trip? Is that why you decided to join us?" I bombard acidly and with every accusation Aang's shoulders sag a little more which only serves as answers in themselves. "Spirits." I curse as I spin on my heels to give him my back. "I knew it was weird for you to not protest as much as you should've." I mutter as I clench my hands.
"I was going to bring it up that first night, but I chickened out." Aang admits which only serves to make my temper flare.
"So, asking now in the room where my brother is in a coma and may never wake up is a better time?!" I snap. I hear the man breathing heavily through his nostrils.
"I don't think there's ever a good time to give your wife a bunch of divorce papers." Aang retorts brashly. My lips part at how real he makes it sound. 'Oh gosh, I think I'm going to puke.' I think as my stomach flips and turns.
I hear the Airbender take a step towards me, but I'm too stunned to curl away from him. He comes to stand beside me and those awful looking papers in his hands enters into my line of sight. My knees tremble.
"We can do it right now and just be done with it." Aang mumbles quietly and for all his genius he somehow doesn't seem to understand that it's really not that simple. 'I'm definitely going to be sick.' I realise.
It's not a surprise when my knees buckle underneath me after a moment. What is a surprise is that the Airbender doesn't reach out to stop me from falling. I hit the ground hard, but I'm so numb that I barely feel the thud. The sense of nausea turns into vomiting as I retch on the ground. A brown bowl suddenly appears in my line of sight and I start heaving the last of my stomach contents into it.
A hand hesitantly rubs my shoulder blades, but at this point it feels more of an obligated duty rather than a caring, concerned touch. I lean forward and rest my forehead against the cool floor, away from where I vomited.
"Sometimes, I really hate you." I mutter. The hand pauses, almost stiffening at those words, but he doesn't withdraw. I swallow thickly and stare at the white flooring. "And sometimes I love you so much that it drives me crazy." I add under my breath. Aang inhales sharply and his hand slips off my back. I reach out blindly and end up grabbing his shirt. "Why do you do this to me?" I ask quietly as I finally meet his scared eyes.
It's a type of fear that I rarely see him display. Perhaps one I could count on a single hand. The last time was probably after I got whipped years ago. My eyes turn inwards as I wipe at my moist cheeks. A lump bobs up and down his throat as he watches me silently.
"I just want you to be safe." Aang chokes back. "Sokka... Sokka's in a coma because he was around me. How can I let that same fate fall on you?" Aang queries gently as he raises a hand to cup my cheek softly. I swallow and subconsciously lean into his touch.
"How can you think this is a better option?" I ask with wounded eyes. The Airbender bites his cheek.
"If it means you're safe, then it is better." Aang insists with resolve. I shake my head and without a further thought, I throw my arms around his neck and clutch him tightly. Hugging him properly for the first time in years. Any previous embrace was half-hearted at best, but this is the first hug that I've genuinely given him since he's re-entered into my life. I hear him gasp in surprise. "K-Katara..." He stumbles.
"I'm not signing them." I announce softly by his ear. I hear him gulp as he keeps his hands by his sides.
"But...but you said you can't wait." Aang stutters. I bite my lip as I settle my chin on his shoulder.
"And I stick by that. I'm not going to wait for you. But I'm not going to divorce you either." I mutter. I feel the Air Nomad shake his head in confusion.
"That doesn't make sense. It's one or the other." Aang protests. I wrinkle my nose, but don't pull away.
"Why can't there be a third option?" I mutter which makes the Airbender gaze at me wearily.
"There isn't a third option. You can't travel with me. Besides, it doesn't change the fact you're still in danger when we're together, in the same city or not." Aang fires back stubbornly, but I'm surprised he even understood what I meant by a third option. It was something we discussed many years ago. In the end we decided that my job required stability, but that doesn't have to be the case anymore.
"Why can't you trust that I can take care of myself?!" I argue. Aang's nostrils flares as he pushes me away.
"Because you can't!" He yells. My lips part as I stare at him in shock. The Airbender fixates his gaze on his fist. "I couldn't protect myself from Yon Rha and I'm meant to be the Avatar! How in spirits name will you protect yourself when you haven't even been waterbending in years?!" Aang continues hotly. I flinch at the jab and pull further away from him.
"I didn't think you thought so little of me." I hiss as hurt courses through my veins. Aang wrinkles his nose. A flash of remorse crosses his soft grey eyes before they harden.
"For once in my life, I'm being realistic. You need to do the same." The avatar utters seriously. Those words sting me a lot more than I thought it would as I drop my head into my hand and release a bitter laugh.
"Of course I should've expected this. I don't know why I thought it was a great idea to let my guard down in the first place. I thought that maybe our past was important to you, but I suppose I was wrong to think that. Spirits, I was wrong to love you." I voice between grit teeth.
A clap of silence fills the room which is only perforated by the Airbender's ragged breathing. I reach out for the ruffled bits of paper left abandoned to one side and with a nearby pen, I sign my name. The only thing stopping it from being official is the distinct lack of Aang's own signature. I settle the papers by his feet and move to stand.
"There. You don't have to worry about me anymore. Keep chasing after Yon Rha because I'm done chasing after you." I mutter as I grab my fluid stand.
"W-wait!" Aang stutters as he stumbles to his feet, leaving the crumpled papers on the ground. As soon as his hand makes contact with my shoulder, I spin around to roughly shove him back.
"Don't touch me! Don't ever touch me." I hiss. Aang's lips part, speechless before he shakes his head.
"You don't have to make this worse than it needs to be." He echoes back, his voice is strained as his eyes shine with a layer of moisture. I throw my head back and release another sour laugh.
"I'm making this worse? No, you're the only one doing that." I snap, making the man reel back as if he'd been slapped. I bite the inside of my cheek and turn away from him. "Either way, it doesn't matter. Have a good life Aang." I mutter and push myself forward. Something akin to a thud sounds behind me, but I don't look back because if I did, I know I wouldn't be able to look forward ever again.
A/N: Yep, Yep hope you enjoyed the angst lol XD I had fun writing this one, always love introducing the drama, as you guys have prob gathered by now lol. I'll try to get the next chapter out sometime next week. Gonna keep cranking up the angst from here on out XD
I kept wondering how I was going to end this story and then it suddenly hit me last night! I'll be honest? I was planning for this to likely be my last story, I've been writing on this site for nearly 10 years now and with work starting in the summer, I thought it would be a good place to leave it. However, I realised this story couldn't possibly end the way it needs to for it to have a satisfying end. So, I've decided that this story will likely end at chapter 20ish and then I'll write a sequel to it as a follow up from the inevitable cliffhanger. That's my current plan anyway, I may change my mind and figure out a way to tie it together in this story, but for now this seems like the only way I can do it because you guys deserve a good story.
Anyway, leave your thoughts on this chapter if you can and I'll see you in the next one XD
15/3/24
