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Aang tapped his hand incessantly on the counter as he stared at the clock. He was a bundle of nerves today, his stomach all jumbled up as he waited for 9:00. Usually Aang never got nervous, especially when it came to work. No, Aang was often carefree and humorous, pushing away his pile of nerves and forgetting about them. Today though? Today was different.
Well, not entirely different: it was still Monday morning, he was still at his opening shift at the animal shelter, and he was still expecting his usual volunteer to walk in at 9:00 on the dot just like she always did.
He sighed dramatically as he leaned over the counter, leaning his chin on the palm of his hand as he stared at the clock tick, tick, ticking at its monotonous pace. 8:57.
Lying on the floor below him, Appa, Aang’s even-tempered boz shepherd, yawned loudly.
“I know, buddy, I know,” Aang commented, though he barely glanced down at Appa. “The time is going by so slowly. I wish I could fast forward!”
8:58.
“Ugh!” Aang moaned, now burying his face in both hands.
Appa let out a bark before getting up off his dog bed and sitting down next to Aang. He pawed at Aang’s leg, whining until Aang finally lifted his head out of his hands and reached down to pet Appa’s large head.
“I know,” Aang repeated, finally tearing his eyes away from the clock and looking down at Appa. “I’m sorry, buddy, I’m just… I’m nervous. I’ve never done this before!”
Instead of answering, Appa just pushed his head into Aang’s leg, causing Aang to chuckle lightly. Scratching behind Appa’s ear, Aang glanced up at the clock again: 8:59. Sighing, Aang shook his head.
“I need to relax,” he told himself, taking a deep breath in. “I’m being silly, aren’t I? I mean, we’re friends, aren’t we, Appa? Surely she won’t -”
But Aang wasn’t able to finish his thought because just then, the bell on the front door tinkled, signaling a customer. Aang’s eyes snapped to attention, catching a flash of green as she walked through the door.
“I’m here, bitches!” Toph announced, spreading her arms out in front of her, her cane gripped tightly in her right hand. “Everyone bow down to your rightful ruler.”
Aang let out a loud laugh, causing Toph to smirk over at him, placing her arms down and heading over towards the counter.
“Who were you talking to, Twinkle Toes?” she asked, placing her hand on the counter and raising an eyebrow at Aang. “I don’t see anyone else in the room.”
“I was just making small talk with Appa,” Aang replied casually, leaning over the counter even though Toph can’t see him. “He makes a great conversationalist, believe it or not.”
“I’ll take your word for it,” Toph quipped, grinning at Aang. “So Mr. I Want to Save All of the Animals, what are we doing today?”
“Same as always,” Aang stated, pushing Appa aside lightly so he could walk around the counter towards Toph. “I have three dogs for us to consider. Think you’re up for it?”
“That’s why I keep coming back, isn’t it?” Toph shrugged lightly, though Aang couldn’t help the way his heart pounded in his chest.
Yes, she only came for the dogs, nothing else.
Aang sighed again, which did not go unnoticed by Toph, but she didn’t say anything as Aang offered her his arm. As always, Toph looped her arm around Aang’s and let him lead her towards the back, towards the kennels.
As soon as he opened the door, he and Toph were greeted by a variety of barks and whines, the sound of tails hitting metal as excited dogs eagerly waited to be greeted. The doors of one of the kennels was open wide; inside, On Ji, one of Aang’s fellow coworkers, knelt inside as she cleaned the space for a new arrival coming in later that day.
“Hey, On Ji,” Aang greeted, standing in front of the kennel and dropping Toph’s arm. “Toph is here, so we’re going to head out soon. Mind watching the front until we get back? Appa will most likely want to keep you company.”
On Ji turned around, a dirty rag in her hand, and smiled at Aang. “Of course, Aang. I’d be happy to. Appa too tired to walk?”
“More like lazy,” Aang commented, waving his hand nonchalantly.
Toph snorted. “You walk that dog twice a day, every day,” she told Aang, giving him a shove. “He’s not lazy, he’s pooped. Let Appa have his bonding time with On Ji.”
On Ji laughed, standing up and making her way out of the kennel. “Toph is right, you need to give Appa a break.”
Aang couldn’t help but blush when Toph elbowed him playfully in the ribs, a smirk on her lips. On Ji raised her eyebrows towards Toph before glancing at Aang, a question in her eyes.
Not now, he mouthed towards her, taking Toph’s arm again to lead her towards the back of the kennel.
On Ji shook her head, rolling her eyes at Aang as he focused solely on Toph. He knew exactly what On Ji was thinking about, but he didn’t need her to start asking questions as soon as his heart finally stopped fluttering in his chest.
“Come on, Toph,” he urged, leading her towards a group of kennels hosting three dogs: a golden retriever and two black labs. “I want you to meet the gang.”
He released Toph’s arms and opened one kennel at a time, giving each dog a signal to wait until he gave them permission to move.
“Well, they look adorable,” Toph remarked sarcastically, cocking her head to the side. “All fluffy and… blue?”
Aang couldn’t help but chuckle as he went into the kennel hosting the golden retriever. “We have a retriever named Unagi. She’s very sweet, even if her name suggests otherwise.” Once he had the collar and leash attached to Unagi, he led her towards Toph, taking her hand in his to place the leash in her fist. “She’s fluffy, just like you said, and pretty tame compared to other retrievers I met.”
Toph reached down to pat Unagi’s head, frowning slightly as she stroked the dog’s ears and neck. “Hmm, she feels like she might shed.”
“A little,” Aang admitted, heading into the other kennel to grab the two labs. “But she’s well behaved and listens to commands eagerly.”
“Well, let’s see how she does on her walk,” Toph stated, turning towards Aang to consider him. “And the other two?”
“Agni and Tui,” Aang told her, bringing the two labs over to Toph. “A little more energetic than Unagi, but still very sweet. So far I haven’t had any problems with commands, but sometimes they do what they want.”
Toph laughed. “Sounds like my kind of dogs. Okay, well, ready to go?”
“Yeah, let’s get out of here,” Aang replied. “Okay, you three, follow me.”
He gave a short whistle and the dogs began following Aang out of the kennel, Unagi gently pulling Toph after her. Toph chuckled again, letting Unagi lead the way.
As they went back to the front, On Ji leaned against the counter Aang once inhabited, tapping her fingers against the counter in rhythm to the song playing softly over the speakers.
“Bye, you two,” she told them, her voice playful, knowing. “Have fun.”
“Don’t we always,” Toph retorted, waving in On Ji’s direction.
On Ji snorted, waving towards Aang. As he caught her eye, she mouthed, Ask her!
Shush! he mouthed back, shaking his head and opening the door.
He let Toph and Unagi go through first before following with Agni and Tui, letting the early autumn breeze cool his nerves. Like always, Toph took the lead, allowing her dog to lead the way, though Aang followed close behind. At this point, Toph was an expert of their usual route, memorizing every twist and turn. Aang admired how independent Toph was, never letting her blindness take over her life. Rather, as Toph told him, she used it to her advantage, finding unique ways to ‘see’ the world around her, whether it was listening to the different sounds that fill the world or relying on touch to understand texture, mixing and matching her clothes. He admired her sense of direction, how she ran each route over and over again until she had it committed to memory.
“I don’t want to rely on anybody,” she had once told him, early into her volunteer hours at the animal shelter. “I only need me.”
“You don’t need anybody?” Aang remembered asking her, pushing her gently to get her attention.
Toph just shook her head, a determined look on her face. Still, Aang never gave up hope that maybe someday she won’t necessarily realize she needed Aang, but rather she enjoyed his company.
Aang shook his head, focusing on the present that was laid before him. Toph had eased her pace, falling into step beside Aang as much as three dogs would let her.
“So,” Toph started, her voice twinged with conversation. “You seem jumpy today.”
“Do I?” he asked her, somewhat surprised. “I guess - I don’t know - I guess I am.”
“Any reason why?” Toph asked when Unagi paused before the crosswalk. Toph glanced down at Unagi. “Good girl! I hear the cars, so we need to wait.”
“No reason,” Aang replied, just as the light turned to walk. The dogs urged their walkers forward, keeping their pace steady as they crossed the road. “I mean, there’s just a lot on my mind, that’s all.”
“Anything you want to share with the class?” Toph asked him, turning her head towards him.
Aang couldn’t help but be glad that Toph couldn’t see his face turning red. “Uh, no, not right now. Maybe when we get back to the shelter?”
Toph shrugged. “Whatever you say, Twinkle Toes.”
So they continued their walk, making idle conversation about nothing as they did. It was easy being with Toph, Aang thought. To be fair, he decided he enjoyed spending time with her on her third day at the shelter, finding her quick wit and somewhat crude humor charming in a sense. He never missed a moment to listen to her talk about her life; she often talked about her family, though from what Aang determined, she didn’t have many friends due to her overprotective upbringing.
“This is really my first time truly being independent,” Toph had told him. “That’s why I don’t want to rely on anyone for anything.”
Aang understood that, especially after being raised by his elderly grandfather. His upbringing wasn’t difficult, though there were some struggles growing up that helped shape him into the person he was today. Of course, he was as open with Toph as she was to him, telling her about Gyatso and the friends he met in college. Though she didn’t outright say, he could tell she was envious.
Though after three months of Toph volunteering at the shelter, Aang came to the final conclusion: he liked her. He really, really liked her. So much so that every time he thought about her he got butterflies in his stomach and he felt like he might actually throw up. Toph used to tease him about the fact that she could sense people’s heartbeats, and he wasn’t sure how truthful she was being, but he really hoped that if she did feel how his heartbeat picked up when she was around him she wouldn’t say anything.
Their walk ended an hour later, the three dogs panting happily as they were let back inside, Appa barking to them in greeting. On Ji was restocking the shelves as they walked back to the kennels, and she gave Aang a questioning look.
Not yet, he mouthed, causing On Ji to shake her head at him before focusing back on her task.
Together, Aang and Toph got the dogs settled back inside their respective kennels, offering them food and water after their short trek.
“So, where are you heading after this?” Aang asked Toph, opening the door back to the front for her to walk through.
“I don’t know,” Toph replied with a shrug. “I’m hungry, maybe brunch or something.”
“Sounds like fun,” Aang told her, catching up to fall into step beside her. “By yourself?”
“Well, you can come with me if you want,” Toph offered.
Aang stopped, feeling his eyes go wide as he stared at Toph’s back as she walked away. Did she just… ask him out?
Toph stopped, turning around towards Aang, confusion written on her face. “Aang? Did you stop?”
“Oh, um, yeah, sorry,” Aang replied, striding towards her. “I just - what did you ask me?”
“I said you can come with me,” Toph emphasized, raising her eyebrows towards him. “You know, me and you together, getting brunch. Eating.”
“Like - like a date?” Aang asked, feeling his ears go hot as Toph laughed.
“Uh, yeah, as a date,” she replied, reaching out and poking Aang’s arm. Suddenly, she turned serious. “Unless, you don’t want to. If you’re not into that.”
“No, I am!” Aang said hastily, shaking his head even though Toph couldn’t see him. “I’m definitely interested.”
“Then why did you hesitate?”
“Because if I’m being honest, I was going to ask you out,” Aang told, rubbing the back of his neck. “That’s why I was being too twitchy. I was planning on asking you out today.”
“Ah, so we have the same brain?” Toph teased, poking Aang again. “Well, think you can swing brunch with me? Or do we have to wait?”
“Oh, well, let me check -” he started.
“Go have fun!” On Ji yelled, popping up from behind a shelf. “Please, Toph, take him. He’s been dying to go on a date with you.”
“Hey!” Aang blushed furiously, but Toph just smirked.
“Dying, huh?” Toph teased, unable to keep the smug tone out of her voice. “Well, who knew?”
“Okay, okay, I get it, I stink at sharing my feelings,” Aang whined, grabbing Toph’s hand without thinking about it. “So, are we ready then?”
“Oh, yes, I’m ready,” Toph replied, tugging Aang’s hand and leading him towards the door. “See you, On Ji!”
“Have fun!” On Ji called as Appa barked happily from next to the counter.
Once outside, Aang felt Toph intertwine their fingers together as she tugged him to the left. He looked at their combined hands, feeling a warmth spreading through him as he followed her lead.
“So, exactly how long were you planning on asking me out?” Toph quipped, glancing towards Aang with that smirk still on her lips.
Aang groaned. “Am I ever going to hear the end of this?”
“Nope,” Toph teased happily, still pulling Aang along. “You’re in it now.”
“Good,” Aang replied. “That’s what I want. If - if you want that?”
Toph paused in her stride, turning to look at Aang, her eyes softening as she considered him. “Yeah, I want that. Honestly, Aang, when I’m with you, I have a lot of fun. You make me laugh. You make me feel seen.”
Aang squeezed her hand. “I feel the same way.”
“Good!” Toph said, pulling Aang again, turning away from him so he couldn’t see her cheeks steadily turning pink. “Enough of these mushy feelings, I want waffles!”
Aang chuckled. “Waffles it is!”
As they walked through the streets, hand in hand, Aang couldn’t help but be glad that he decided to wait for the right moment to tell her how he felt.