A/N: Hey guys! Sorry, this took so long to get out, 4th year is proving to be a beast. My updates will probably be very sporadic. Anyway, thank you all for your thoughts on the first chapter, I'm glad that I've elicited such dramatic responses from you all XD This story is certainly a rollercoaster, so buckle up! Oh! I forgot to mention if anyone was wondering about the pic for this fic, the weird blue thing around Katara's neck is meant to be a stethoscope lol, art was never my strong suit, but I wanted a pic that somewhat fitted with the story at least. Now, onto angsty chapter number 2!

Next Day:

Katara's POV:

I'm scrolling down the list of bloods for an elderly female and cluck my tongue at her obvious B12 deficiency. 'Well, that explains her fall then.' I scribble down her results in her notes and prescribe her some B12 injections, before closing her file and leaning back against my chair.

"Katara, you can have your break now." One of my colleagues announces quickly before he quickly rushes off to attend to something else. I sigh and pick up the patient file before pausing. The computer is calling out to me to insert my husband's hospital number to find out how he's doing, but I shake my head and slot the file back into its pouch. 'He's not my patient to check in on.' Even if his ward is just next to mine and I could easily have a quick flick through his notes, I refrain from doing so. Whether it's from stubbornness, residual anger or worry I do not know. And I don't allow myself to dwell on it as I push my chair back and stretch.

"Dr Aqua?" I look up to find Kiki walking towards me and I give her a small smile.

"Hey Kiki, I've just prescribed some supplements for the patient in bed 5, but best we wait until after her operation to administer it though." I say when she reaches me. She nods her head in understanding, but I can tell that she didn't come to talk to me about that.

"I went to the acute unit this morning to pick up some patient notes and had a look at Aang's, if you're interested?" The nurse explains somewhat anxiously and I can't tell if she's anxious about looking in the notes of a patient that isn't under her direct care or if she's worried that she's brought up a sensitive topic. The latter wouldn't be wrong though, because my body immediately stiffens at hearing the man's name. I swallow. 'Am I worried?' I bite my lip. 'Or maybe the better question is, should I?' I opt for a shrug.

"Has he woken up? The last I heard was that the surgery went well." I say nonchalantly. Last night I stayed well after my shift had ended to make sure that the airbender had pulled through. Really just for my peace of mind. But I know I'm probably deceiving myself based on how loud my exhale of relief was when I found out he'd pull through.

"He hasn't. They're worried that the extradural haemorrhage he sustained may have caused some damage." At her words a bout of nausea washes over me and I have to clutch the edge of the table to stop myself from falling backwards.

"As in...brain stem dead?" I croak out as my knees shake, ready to buckle at any moment. But the woman shakes her head vigorously.

"No! They're not sure exactly what damage it may have caused, but there's some swelling in the hippocampal region. It could be nothing, but..." She trails off, but I already know where she's going with this.

"There's a chance that Aang's memory could be affected." I finish for her. I take in a deep breath and shake my head. "True amnesia isn't something that happens very often. If his memory is affected then it's usually only in the short term." I point out calmly, or at least more calmly than I feel. I watch as she nods her head slowly.

"Ok that should be fine then. I just thought to let you know." Kiki says with a meek smile. I return it and thank her before excusing myself. I'm wandering down the hospital hallways for a cafe, but instead I bump into my brother. His face appears a lot more sombre than I remembered. Our busy schedules mean we don't see each other as often as we probably should've. Although, I think it's also in part as a result of the fallout between Aang & I.

"I heard Aang was in a bad accident." Sokka begins anxiously as he walks with me. I glance at him from the corner of his eyes, wondering if there's a hidden meaning behind his words before directing my eyes ahead of me.

"A car hit him from what I've been told." I state passively. I can feel my brother's piercing gaze on me, but I refuse to give him any indication that I'm worried.

"Is he going to be ok?" Sokka presses with a look of fear in his eyes. I pause in surprise, only to remind myself that Aang and Sokka have grown extremely close over the years, regardless of what happened between the airbender and I.

"He's not under my care, so all I know is that he's still unconscious, but his operation did go well." I say offhandedly. My brother picks up on my dismissive tone and frowns.

"Aren't you worried?" He questions sharply. I cluck my tongue, a bad habit that I found myself getting into after I graduated.

"Why should I be? He's just another patient in the hospital." I voice neutrally as I continue my brisk walk. Sokka grabs my shoulder and pulls me back.

"Cut it out; he's your husband!" Sokka hisses and I narrow my eyes at him.

"I haven't seen him in 5 years! He's only my husband in the eyes of the law. Besides, husbands aren't meant to lie to their wives over multiple important things." I retort harshly, prompting the man to release his hold on me.

"You know he was only doing it to protect you..." Sokka argues, but I scowl at him.

"Don't you even dare use that on me. You knew more than I did and you kept it a secret as much as he did. You all did." I voice bitterly as I cross my arms, but my brother glares at me.

"Get over yourself, it's been years! Holding a petty grudge isn't going to change anything." Sokka bites back. 'There was a time when my brother would never speak to me in such a way, but that feels like a long time now.' My scowl deepens.

"That's easy for you to say! You knew our father was Aang's guardian from pretty much the beginning. You knew that Yon Rha was back in the city and you knew that Aang had stopped seeing his therapist, but you didn't tell me anything. The only thing you didn't know was..." I cut myself off with a firm head shake. 'Aang's history of self-harm was probably the only thing Sokka didn't know. It doesn't matter how furious I am with the airbender, I would never spill his secret.' I think to myself.

"The point is, I was meant to be his closest confidant and he just kept me in the dark the entire time. Ever since..." I trail off, not wanting to discuss the intricacies of our marriage. "...we got married, he changed and became distant. You can't expect me to be ok with all that." I retort angrily as I drop my arms to my sides. My brother looks just as fired up as I am before he jerks his head to the side.

"He was under enough pressure as it was, he didn't need to add you nagging him about not going to his therapist or who his current guardian is. And now he's in hospital and you don't even care." Sokka fires back heatedly. My fingers curl into a tight fist.

"Don't tell me I don't care." I grit out as my hands tremble from how hard I'm clenching them. My brother is taken back my words and for the first time he takes a proper look at me. His shoulders slump.

"You aren't taking care of yourself again, are you?" He whispers softly. I feel myself go rigid, but I choose not to indulge him.

"I'm fine." I spit. He looks ready to argue, but decides otherwise at the last moment.

"Ok. Well, when do you think he'll wake up?" He asks, changing the subject. I stamp on the rise of bitterness that his concern is focussed more on the airbender instead of his own sister.

"No idea." I say simply. Sokka narrows his eyes.

"Fine. Where can I find him? Do you know that much at least?" He snipes. I scrunch my nose and turn my head away from him.

"He's in the acute unit upstairs. They'll be able to tell you which bed." I mutter. I see him nod his head from the corner of my eyes as he turns to leave, but he hesitates.

"Take care of yourself Katara." Is all he says before he goes sprinting down the hallway in the opposite direction that I'm going in.

I stand and just watch him until he quickly turns round a corner. Part of me realises I probably should've told him that running isn't strictly allowed in the hospital, but I didn't want to extend our conversation longer than it already was. Or maybe I didn't have the heart to be the nagging little sister.

I sigh and continue my lonely walk towards the cafe. But my feet make a sharp turn towards the ladies toilets. A quick glance of the empty stalls reveals that I'm the only one here. I go in one of the stalls and slide down the closed door until I'm sitting on the ground.

I draw my knees up to my chest and lightly rest my arms over them. 'Shoot. Have things really become that stale with Sokka? We used to talk about everything and then now I barely see him. Dad too. He can barely lift his eyes to meet mine from how ashamed he feels for lying to me for the last decade. But that only came after I found out. Dad was perfectly fine lying to me when I didn't know he was doing it.'

I clench my hands into fists again, digging my fingernails into my palms. 'And Sokka has the nerve to chide me for not caring. As if he could possibly understand how I feel. Heck, I don't know how I feel. My non-existent husband reappears comatose in the place that I work. How should I feel? I know I should feel worried. And I do. But the buried anger is so much stronger.' I inhale deeply, hoping that my raging emotions would just disappear, but they don't.

4 years and 5 months ago:

I drop the plate in my hands and it crashes loudly to the ground, breaking in two.

"My Dad is your what?" I echo back in shock. Aang kicks at the ground and refuses to meet my eyes. A habit he's picked up when he knows that I won't like what he's going to say.

"He's my guardian...has been since Roku died." He mumbles. I'm frozen to my spot as my thoughts begin to race erratically.

"You mean when I was in hospital, he knew exactly where you were and let me think that you were gone forever for half a year?" I croak back, not wanting to believe it. He gives me the barest of nods. I put a hand on my hip. "Why are you telling me this now?" I ask. Again, I could tell that the airbender wishes he could be anywhere but here.

"You keep saying that I've been hiding things for a while. And you snap at me for nearly everything I do now. I thought maybe that telling you will help." Aang explains, but if anything it's doing the exact opposite.

"Why didn't you tell me this years ago? I thought...I thought we told each other everything." I ask, sounding just as wounded as I feel. That finally makes the man meet my gaze, but I wish he hadn't, because I instantly can tell that something's off. It hits me a few moments later why.

"This isn't the only thing you've been keeping from me." I croak out. My throat burns from a sudden dryness. So much so, that I reach towards the sink for a drink. I miss Aang's expression, but the shallow change in his breathing doesn't go unnoticed by me.

My knees feel weak at the knowledge that I was right. For months, things have been off. Ever since we got married. More specifically ever since we became physically closer. I caught the look of horrified shock in his eyes when he saw all the old scars that littered my chest and stomach. They had faded with time, but they still stuck out like a sore thumb.

I made sure to always cover them up as best as I could, going as far as putting foundation on the scar at my collarbone for his own comfort, because I always knew he'd blame himself if he saw how extensive they truly were. Of course, that became impossible when we got married and after seeing them he withdrew completely.

A part of me wondered if he was disgusted by them. I know Aang isn't that type of person, but it was a recurring thought, especially when he shot me down every time I tried to bring it up. I didn't even know why he was so shocked to start with, he was the one who told me they would scar. 'Maybe he forgot about them or didn't know it was that bad.' I think to myself as I grab another dish to dry in an attempt to distract myself.

"Maybe we should put this conversation on hold." Aang suggests and I don't know why, but it made me so angry as I hold onto that plate with insane amounts of strength.

"You keep dancing away from everything we talk about!" I shout. The airbender looks at me, unsure whether to be mad himself or make a quick escape.

"If it were important, I'd tell you." He insists, but I only stare at him in disbelief.

"So, not telling me that my own father was your guardian wasn't deemed important?" I retort acidly. The air nomad pauses at that before lifting one shoulder up as if it weren't a big deal.

"Sokka didn't seem to think it was." He answers. My lips part in shock.

"Sokka? He knew?! Since when?!" I exclaim with wide eyes. The young avatar releases a quiet curse, as if realising that he shouldn't have mentioned that.

"I didn't want him to find out either, but he helps your dad with his paper work, so he found out pretty quickly." Aang voices, sounding apologetic as he takes a step towards me. I abruptly step away from him.

"So, you all kept this from me...for years?!" I hiss. This finally makes the airbender crack.

"Why are acting like this? He's already my father-in-law anyway. Why does it matter if he's also my guardian?" Aang asks, looking equal parts confused and frustrated. My jaws slacken.

"Why does it matter?! There are many reasons why it matters!" I grit out. The air nomad scrunches his nose up.

"Then enlighten me." The young avatar instructs sarcastically.

"Lying to your wife for one. Then there's the three of you leaving me out of things. My Dad saw how bad of a shape I was in after the whole kidnapping fiasco and he never once thought to put my mind at ease. And let's not forget that my Dad being your guardian makes us siblings, so our relationship feels at least a little wrong." I list off, feeling more and more betrayed with each point. Aang's face darkens slightly at my last comment.

"So, our marriage is wrong then?" He utters tightly. My lips part and I don't even know what to tell him.

"Isn't it?" I throw back. I spot his hand shaking by his side as he tries to keep his emotions in check.

"If you knew, would it have changed things?" Aang asks quietly. I'm taken off guard by the question. 'The first 4 years together have been bliss. People often called us the perfect pair. Aang had vowed he wouldn't hide things from me and I had promised him the same. During all that time I had thought he kept that promise, but turns out that couldn't be the furthest from the truth.' I shake my head when I realise I'm going off track, but Aang must've assumed my head shake was the answer to his question.

He drops his head to stare at the ground for a moment before spinning on his heels and fleeing from the kitchen. It takes me a full minute to catch up to his line of thinking and when I do, I sprint after him with wide eyes.

"Aang, wait! That's not what I.." I trail off when I find the door to outside swinging open and I know that there's no way I'd catch up to him now. I bite my tongue, angry at myself for my mistake. Aang avoided me like the plague for a few weeks after that and he never gave me the chance to explain myself.

Then our big fight happened and I never saw him again.

Present Day:

'Until now.' I squeeze my knees as I feel my eyes misting.

"I told myself I was over this." I mutter quietly to myself, but the tightness in my chest tells me that this couldn't be further from the truth. I screw my eyes shut. 'Spirits. Him being here is just dredging up all these horrible memories.' I voice silently. A sudden shrill echoes in my toilet stall and I don't even need to glance down to know it's my bleep. I snatch it from my pocket and read the letters. 'Another MET call.' I exhale lightly and rise to my feet.

With a quick brush of my scrubs, I'm unlocking the stall door and dashing out of the loo. 'There's no time to dwell on the past, I have to focus on helping people.' I silently tell myself, even as I feel the lag in my legs and the tiredness in my eyes.

A/N:

*cough cough* misunderstandings have got to be the most common cause for arguments I feel. So, some of you might think Katara was being over-dramatic, but honestly if your husband lied about something quite significant for so long, it would make most of us angry or at least hurt. And I certainly would hold a level of distrust over what else they're hiding. I don't know, that's how I looked at it anyway. There's a lot more to uncover, so sit tight! I'm currently writing chapter 11, so this story might be longer than 20 chapters, but its still a bit early to tell. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this and please let me know what you think. Catch you later & keep well everyone!

Med Terms:

-Extradural haemorrhage is just a fancy way of describing a type of bleed in the brain, it's quite serious and requires urgent drainage usually.

-Hippocampus is part of the brain that stores our memories.

-B12 is a vitamin that is often low in the elderly which can cause falls.

-MET call = an alarm that calls for the medical emergency team.

18/9/22