She

Chapter 5

While Katara started cooking, I got up and walked around the camp, despite her protests. I was bored and had nothing else to do. Besides the pain was gone anyway.

Aang was practicing his bending, away from the camp. Sokka went out to try and hunt, or find food, although I guess they're the same thing. And Toph sat on a rock, doing nothing.

The sun had set by the time Sokka came back, with nothing. And Katara had finished cooking dinner. She handed a bowl of, what I assumed was, soup to the four of us, getting her bowl last.

I stared at the bowl, swishing the liquid around inside.

"You okay?" Katara asked, looking over at me. She seemed to talk to me the most.

"Uh yeah, I'm fine, I just don't remember the last time I ate something..." My eyes widened realizing what I had just said. "I mean, I'm sure I have eaten. I just uh, actually don't remember it... yeah." I blushed, taking a sip of the soup and avoiding everyone's gaze.

"Oh... Well there's always extras, if Sokka doesn't eat it all first that is." Sokka stuck his tongue out in response. "And Aang... and Toph." She sighed. "There might not be any extras, actually."

I smiled, holding back a laugh. "It's fine, this will probably be enough for me." I took a few more sips. "Anyway, where are you guys going?"

"To this desert oasis. We're doing these vacations to relax, although Sokka doesn't want to."

"I don't like sand," Toph said suddenly. "It makes everything fuzzy and hard to see." I tilted my head, and furrowed my eyebrows, confused.

"Oh, Toph's blind, she uses her feet to see."

"How does that work; is it like echolocation?"

"Oh so I'm a bat now?" Toph turned towards me.

I blushed. "What? No, that's not at all what I meant, I just-"

"Forget it." She stood up and walked off over to the corner of the camp.

I took a deep breath. "She hates me, doesn't she?"

Katara and Aang shook their heads. "She doesn't hate you-"

"She totally hates you," Sokka interjected.

Katara glared at him. "As we were saying, she doesn't hate you, she's just... wary around new people."

"Sounds like hate to me," Sokka whispered, drinking his soup. Katara elbowed him.

"Trust me, she doesn't hate you." She gave me a reassuring smile.

I could hear a quiet 'yes I do' coming from Toph, who seemed to hear us all perfectly fine. I sighed and handed my bowl to Sokka. "You can have the rest." I walked over to another part of the camp and fell asleep.