A/N: How this fanfic works: each chapter is centered around a thing that falls, eg rain, the sun, tears, etc. It's based off a poem I read ages ago. Some characters may be a little OOC (sorry!)

Disclaimer: Since I'm writing on a website called Fanfiction, I think it's kinda obvious. But I will say it anyway: I don't own ATLA or any of these characters. Don't sue me, unless you're willing to take Doritos as payment (:

Chapter 1: Rain

Sokka awoke to a thunderstorm.

He rolled over in his sleeping bag with a groan, peering outside the cave they were taking shelter in for the night. Outside, the pitch black sky hinted that it was midnight. The rain was so powerful, you couldn't really say it pattered against the ground. More like lashed.

The dark, heady smell of petrichor hung in the air. Coupled with the increasingly stifling humidity, it made Sokka feel almost near suffocation. He scrambled out of his sleeping bag, casting a glance over at his friends. They were sleeping peacefully - Aang was snoring softly on Appa's furry back and Katara was swaddled up in her sleeping bag. Toph, however, had concealed herself in a little 'earth tent' for privacy. Sokka assumed she was dead asleep.

He crept out of the cave, stepping right into the storm. Icy drops of rain smacked against his body, stinging any exposed bit of skin. Sokka wished he had come outside with more than just his thin tunic and trousers on, but it was too late now.

Black clouds were sprawled across the sky, billowing in from the west. Though Sokka had excellent night vision, even he struggled to make out anything a foot in front of his face, it was so dark. Vaguely, Sokka wondered whether the moon was obscured by cloud, or if it was just a new moon tonight.

Cutting through the monotone of rain came a low, menacing crackle of thunder, rolling across the valley.

One . . . two . . . three . . .

Sokka was interrupted from his counting of how long the thunder lasted when he felt a tap on his shoulder. He whirled around, boomerang at the ready, but he could only see the dark outline of a short person. It was impossible to tell whether they were friend or foe.

"Who are you?!" yelled Sokka, but his words were drowned out by the howling wind.

A streak of hot silver split the sky open, and for a brief second the person's face was thrown into light. It was Toph, and she was drenched and shivering.

The wind died down and Sokka heard Toph say, "F-f-followed you out-t-t." Her teeth were chattering.

Sokka swore. If he and Toph didn't get back in the cave soon, they were either going to catch hypothermia or unintentionally become electrical conductors.

"Let's go," he ordered, ushering Toph to the cave. The frigid wind had combatted the humidity in there, and with a dying campfire it was freezing. Sokka quickly set about poking it, until the fire flared with new carmine life.

Toph inched closer to the campfire, hugging herself. Her dark hair had plastered itself against her face, her lips were practically blue and her clothes dripped steadily onto the cave floor, the only sound apart from their breathing.

Drip, drip, drip.

Sokka sighed heavily when he realized he was just as wet as Toph. He set about wringing out his tunic, when the earthbender asked curiously, "What were you doing out there?"

Sokka didn't answer. He was still shaken up - and exhilarated - by the sound of the sky thrashing and screaming. It was dulled now they were in the cave, granted, but it still filled him with a heady sensation.

"Hello? Anybody in there?" Toph rapped lightly on his head, bringing Sokka back to reality.

"Oh, um, right." He shook his head a few times to clear it, like a dog trying to get water out of its ears. "Well, we get quite a bit of rain down in the South Pole, so I guess it kind of reminds me of home. Besides," he grinned, "it was hot in here!"

Toph chuckled. "Ha, yeah I guess so." She turned away to look out the cave, seemingly unaware that her pale face was set into a scowl.

Sokka saw all of this with sharp eyes. Incredulous, he exclaimed, "You hate the rain!"

He said that so loudly that even Appa shifted slightly in his sleep.

Toph whacked him, hard, in shoulder. "Shut up! So what if I hate it? Not everyone has to like rain. Especially not thunderstorms." She crossed her arms defiantly.

"Why don't you like rain?" demanded Sokka. He had always thought that rain was just a guaranteed good thing, like tart pie or otter penguins.

Toph seemed uncomfortable, but she finally snapped, "Because it messes up my sight. The rain hitting the ground sets off loads of vibrations, and I can't distinguish very well between them. It's like your eyesight being really blurry. It's better out of the rain in here, though." She winced and added, "And the noise gives me a headache."

"Oh, right . . ." Sokka had forgotten about that. Toph saw with her feet - of course thunderstorms would interfere.

There was another pause. Safe with the knowledge that Toph couldn't see him, Sokka stared concernedly at her as she snatched at the floating sparks. Her face was ashen and drawn - was she coming down with something?

Sokka grabbed his sleeping bag and proffered it to Toph. "Here, you look cold. I can go without it for a night."

Toph opened her mouth to protest, but Sokka could almost see her realizing how soft and comfy it was.

"Thanks, but won't you be cold then?" she pointed out.

Sokka tried his very best to not look freezing, even though he totally was. "I'm practically immune to the cold!" he announced, puffing out his chest.

An icy gust of wind blew through the cave. In his sopping clothes, Sokka felt like he had just taken the plunge in the South Pole ocean. He flinched, curling up into a little ball for warmth.

"S-s-see? F-fine," he managed through chattering teeth.

Toph rose her eyebrows like mmmm-hmmm. "You're obviously freezing, Snoozles. Why don't we just share the sleeping bag?"

Sokka stopped dead and Toph did, too, as if just realizing what she had said. There was clearly not enough room in the sleeping bag for them to have enough space between them, so they would have to be very close together.

Sokka could feel his cheeks and ears burning as Toph flushed beetroot. "Um, I didn't mean it like that."

"No, it's fine." Sokka inhaled deeply. Okay, you can do this. It's fine. It's just Toph. "We can share."

Toph wiggled in first and shifted around to make roughly a Sokka-sized gap next to her. Sokka squashed in beside her, both blushing scarlet.

Sokka turned over onto his side to give Toph some privacy, hoping she couldn't sense how his heart felt like it was going to beat out if his chest when their hands brushed.

Toph turned over onto her side to give Sokka some privacy, hoping he wouldn't notice how her breaths quickened when he made the slightest move.

And the two fell asleep to a thunderstorm.