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You winced at the burn on your arm. It was already blistering, which was a good sign, right? You would usually see if Katara could heal it. but she was still busy healing the others. Sokka had gotten a particularly deep cut which needed attention right away. You figured your burn could wait.
When you finally made camp you still didn’t go to Katara. At that point the burn had partially healed itself, and you didn’t want to be a bother. Besides, you had lectured Sokka on the importance of being more careful after his cut was healed, so going to Katara now would be hypocritical. -
Instead, you decided to let the wound heal naturally. It seemed like the best idea at the time. Now, as you trekked through the woods to find a new training spot you knew it hadn’t been the best decision.
Every step you took shot a wave of pain through your side. It didn’t help that Sokka decided to go with you. It was difficult enough to hide the wound, but hiding the pain was another issue entirely. Although you didn’t mind the company he provided on the trip, it probably would have been best if you went alone.
“Are you alright?” Sokka seemed worried when you stopped for what felt like the hundredth time. It wasn’t like you to need to rest so much, and he couldn’t help but feel that something was off.
“Oh, I’m fine,” you lied. “I just want to stop and take in the sights.”
He didn’t believe you, but nodded anyways. “Well we should probably stop sight-seeing and find a good training spot.”
You agreed and continued walking, still doing your best to avoid showing how much pain you were actually in. It wasn’t until you began to grow dizzy that you finally admitted something was wrong.
“So funny story,” you said as you collapsed next to a tree, “I’m not actually fine.”
He looked back at you, eyes full of concern. “What’s wrong? Did you get hurt?”
You could only manage to nod weakly, The lightheadedness made it hard to focus on anything, let alone forming a coherent sentence. Placing your hand on your side, still trying to hide the burn, you inhaled sharply. Something sticky coated your hand and you pulled it away quickly. Once you removed it you saw red blood thickly covering your hand. Uh oh.
Sokka rushed over to you, trying to mask his look of panic. “What happened?”
Despite wanting to hide it you showed him the wound. “No big deal,” you answered. “It’s just a minor scratch… that happens to be bleeding… profusely.”
“We need to get you back to camp, right now,” he insisted. There wasn’t any way you could debate with him. You were feeling dizzier by the minute. He helped you up and you wrapped an arm around his shoulders for stability.
Your train of thought was drifting from one thing to another as you made your way back to camp. Sokka’s thoughts on the other hand, were concentrated wholly on you. He wasn’t sure what had happened, all he knew was that he couldn’t let anything happen to you.
Maybe it was due to the blood loss but as you turned to look at him, you couldn’t help but say what you were thinking out loud. “You’re cute when you’re worried,” you mumbled.
He shook his head. “We really need to get back to camp, come on.” To be honest, he tried not to be flustered by your words. After all, it was probably just from your dizziness, it wasn’t as if you actually meant it, right?
The two of you drew close to the camp, and Sokka began to breathe a sigh of relief. You’d made it in time. He rushed you over to Katara’s tent, where she was organizing some supplies.
“Katara,” Sokka called out, trying to get her attention.
She turned and gasped in shock. “What happened?”
“I’m not sure,” Sokka confessed. “We were walking and she suddenly collapsed. She’s bleeding badly.”
Katara’s eyes settled on the wound and she took a deep breath. “I’ll do the best I can.”
As she led you back to the tent, Sokka tried to think of how you could have possibly gotten hurt. It couldn’t have been on the trip, he decided. There was nothing that could have happened then. His memory took him back to your last encounter with Fire Nation troops and he recalled you being hit with a flame.
He had assumed it wasn’t anything serious, since you hadn’t gone to Katara for help. Apparently he was mistaken. Once Katara healed you, he’d have to find out what really happened. “If Katara can heal her,” he thought. He tried to shake the thought out of his mind, he had to stay positive. Thinking about you being hurt cut him deeply, and he knew he had to push those thoughts down to be of any use.
He sat down near the tent, waiting for any updates, or any news of things he could do to help. After what seemed like an eternity he finally heard Katara come outside and looked over nervously. Now he wasn’t sure if he wanted to hear the news, instead trying to calm his nerves.
“She’s alright,” Katara said, breaking the uneasy silence. “You can visit her if you want, but please be careful. It was a close call.”
The affirmation that you were fine was all Sokka needed to rush into the tent. When he saw you sitting up in the small cot a wave of relief washed over him. “I’m so glad you’re alright,” he said softly.
You smiled, “Thank you for getting me back here in time. If you hadn’t been there…,” you trailed off, not wanting to think of what may have happened.
“Of course,” he answered gently, sitting down next to you, “I’ll always be there when you need me. But what were you thinking? You should have told someone you were hurt!”
“After the fight you were injured and Katara was busy. I didn’t think it was a big deal,” you said honestly. “Besides, I didn’t want to worry anyone."
“Well I was worried,” Sokka said. “Katara told me how bad it was.” His voice grew quiet and you could tell he was trying to hold back his emotions. “I almost lost you.”
Your heart ached at his words. “It’s alright, I’m still here. I know I should have said something but,” you sighed, “I knew you were hurt badly and didn’t want anything to happen to you because of me.”
He gently took your hand in his and intertwined your fingers. “Promise me you won’t do that again,” he whispered. “I’ve lost so many people I’ve loved, I can’t lose you too.”
Your eyes met his and you gasped softly. “What did you just say?”
He blushed slightly but continued, “Well I guess there’s no point in hiding it now. I love you, and I have for the longest time.”
“I love you too,” you whispered. Before you could overthink it you leaned in and brushed your lips against his. He kissed back gently, careful not to mess up your bandages. When you finally broke apart you smiled.
“I promise I’ll be more careful from now on.” Suddenly a memory resurfaced. “Wait did I really say ‘you’re cute when you’re worried’?”
He smiled, planting a soft kiss to the top of your head. “You did,” he laughed. “But don’t worry, I think you’re cute too.”