Part 10

The meeting ended almost as quickly as it started, tensions still high as ever. They were both pretty freaked out, but it was reassuring they were able to leave freely without a problem. With all the idiots around there had to be others spreading gossip about the attack. It couldn't of just been them. It was still hard not to feel uneasy, Sokka could tell she was stressed. He put a hand on her shoulder, squeezing gently, "Hey, they let us leave, it wasn't us, we're gonna be okay."

"Easy for you to say, I don't trust any of them, we are the newbies of the group-"

"And like they've said before, they've had dozens of new members recently, definitely some more suspicious than us."

"If you say so..."

He stopped in place, letting out a long sigh.

"What's wrong? I wanna keep going , I wanna get as far away from here as possible."

"I know you don't like to talk about things, at all really, but are we just going to act like before never happened? Like anything ever happened?"

"There's nothing to talk about-"

"But there is, you've got it bad for me, huh? And you don't wanna admit it."

"Don't get so full of yourself, I don't-"

"But you do! Can you stop and just talk to me for once, what is so wrong with me that you can't admit it? I know I'm annoying, it's my specialty, but I'm really not that bad. You've never had a problem speaking your mind before and all of a sudden you try and throw me off with all of these anonymous letters and little moments of the truth slipping out, and then next second you hate me again."

"That's the damn problem, Sokka. I've always thought you were annoying, you've always gotten on my last nerve over the years, and now all of a sudden - you're less annoying. I don't know - maybe I like you a little I just don't know... Ive never felt this gross and uncomfortable before..."

"Oh come on I can't be your first little 'crush'"

"Hey I was sheltered a lot... and find most people repulsive, give me a break."

"You could of told me ya know, like in person, I thought we were close enough to confide in."

"I'm not really your type okay, I'm rough - not really the pretty girly girl, I didn't want you to laugh at me."

"You know you're beautiful, right? I mean I know ya can't really tell and all but like... I think you are."

She's been waiting for that moment for a while now, for him to finally bring it up and force her to talk about it. She wanted to badly to kiss him, to hold him, to feel safe in his arms for even a second. But she never got what she really wanted, the ground below her was sending a giant warning.

"We're being followed we need to go..."

"Hey you can't get out of this talk that easily!"

She shoved her hand over his mouth tightly , telling him to shut up for once. This was real, too real."

"We need to go..."

She could only feel one set of footsteps, far enough for now but too close for comfort. They walked at a steady pace, trying to make as little noise as possible. The figure was approaching quickly, a bit of uncertainty in their path. Toph was uneasy, trying to stay calm but she couldn't help but panic inside. Panicked, she grabbed Sokka's hand, in a way demanding it for comfort. They held onto each other tightly, making their way down the dark path.

Toph led them to a nearby lake, both sitting on a log for a few moments, out of breath. Once the figure was too far away to feel any more, she sighed with relief.

"We're okay for now, but let's stay here a bit, I don't wanna lead whoever it was back to camp."

Sokka simply nodded in agreement, both still choosing to stay quiet. It was late and they were both exhausted, it was better off making camp there for the night. Toph used her bending, setting up a temporary rock shelter for the two. They were still too uneasy to speak, choosing to use simple actions to communicate instead.

Sokka plopped down on the ground, clearly ready for bed that second. He motioned for her to join him, awkwardly climbing in and laying down beside him. She curled up beside him, resting her head on his chest, quickly falling asleep listening to his steady heartbeat.