Chapter 8

                                    

                                          
Two months passed since Katara came back from Omashu. When she came back Zuko had planned on confronting her for lying about where she went. He didn't believe what she had said in the note she left behind for him. The only earth kingdom friends that Katara could have that Zuko could think of was Toph, Haru, and the freedom fighters. Katara wasn't close with the freedom fighters nor was she that close with Haru. Zuko would have believed her if she said she was going to see Toph, but she didn't.  
                          
 Just when he was ready to yell at her for her dishonesty he stopped. As Katara walked, she kept her eyes on the ground, her shoulders slouched, and strands of her hair were sticking out like she hadn't combed her hair for days. 
                          
"Katara?" he called out to her. Finally, she looked up from the floor and Zuko saw her eyes. Katara looked like she hadn't slept in days. Her eyes were red as if she had just cried earlier and she also had bags under her eyes. The water bender looked terrible. 
                          
"What's wrong Katara?" Zuko asked. 
                          
"Nothing" murmured Katara. 
                          
"Don't lie to me. You and I both know that you weren't really visiting friends in the earth kingdom. What were you actually doing?" 
                          
Katara really didn't have the energy to talk to Zuko but she couldn't avoid this. 
                          
"I went to Omashu to see King Bumi. I heard that Aang went to visit him, so I went there to get answers. Bumi wouldn't tell me where Aang went." 
                          
She recounted everything that happened. It seemed that Zuko's suspicion was right, Aang did leave because of them. He hugged her to make her feel better, but it didn't seem to do much for her.  
                          
Since then Katara had been depressed. It killed her knowing that Aang left to get away from her. She started to spend a lot more time in her room insisting that she was tired which she was, but she was tired almost all the time. When she slept she would have nightmares of Aang leaving her again and again. The time she spent practicing her water bending had decreased as it kept reminding her of Aang. 
                          
Sokka, Suki, and Toph noticed that there was something off about Katara when they returned. To them, she wasn't as talkative as much as she did before and rarely had a genuine smile on her face. Sokka had felt tempted to take her on a boat and sail to the north pole where Aang was but knew that it wouldn't be a good idea. 
                          
They all did their best to be there for Katara. Suki felt guilty about keeping Aang's secret, she wanted to help the water bender but didn't know how to other than telling her where he was. Toph had tried to get a rise out of Katara so that she would talk more but it didn't work. Sokka had suggested that he could inform Aang of Katara's condition but Suki and Toph insisted that he shouldn't. They didn't want Aang to feel more guilty for leaving. 
                          
Zuko reflected back on his relationship with Katara. After confronting Yon Rha, they had become close and he felt that he finally met someone that understood him. Katara and him both lost their mothers because of the fire nation. He wouldn't deny that he found her attractive either. Plus, Katara had admitted that she did find him attractive after she forgave him but was hesitant to be with him because she knew how Aang felt about her. That was how their secret meet ups started. 
                          
Zuko would be lying if he said he didn't feel guilty about hiding this from the others, especially Aang. He knew how the air bender felt about Katara and they were dating behind his back because they knew how hurt he would be. It would also have distracted him from preparing for his battle with the fire lord. 
                          
When they didn't have to hide their relationship anymore, things had become complicated. Katara worried what Aang's reaction would be and were surprised with how well he seemed to take the news. At first it felt like they worried over nothing until Katara found Aang's room empty the next morning. Had it not been for the letter Aang left, they would have immediately assumed that he left because of their relationship. Zuko could tell that Katara tried to not let the air bender's absence consume her but it was a fruitless endeavor. He understood that Katara and Aang were best friends, but he wondered if it was more than that. It was obvious that Aang had feelings for Katara. It would be understandable to worry about your best friend when they leave out of nowhere but for this long?