“Psh! You act like I’m some kind of dog snatcher,” Maya snorted defensively. “Making fliers is the first thing on the list. Then the pet store two blocks down from that bakery in town,” She bent down to pick up the pooch continuing forward to her work. “I really doubt that he’s a give away. Probably just lost or something.”

Maya drudged on slowly for a few steps before turning to her brother abruptly, “Wait. This is a dog. This is a dog and I’m going into my work with a dog. I don’t know of any other printers that I can get access to for free..” she bit her lip for a second before grinning miniackly at him, “Take off your jacket! I have a terrible idea!”

“Well that might just because you are an actually dog snatcher.” Nakoma mused and smiled over to his sister. Seeing her holding the pup in her made the firebender think back to old times wishing they could obtain the memory of having a family animal. Their parents weren’t very keen on letting their children have pets in the house, but that didn’t stop Nakoma trying to sneak some so called pets into the house. “Awh poor little guy!” He pouted to the pup scratching his ear. “It’s not fun to be lost. No it isn’t.”

Nakoma looked at his sister with wide eyes. “My jacket? Why do you need my jacket?” He inquired though he still took of his jacket anyway. “Maya what are you up to now?”

Adventure Pup [OPEN: Chat]

“Whoops..” Kita took a step back holding his hands up defensively with a slight shade of red covering his cheeks. “Sorry it was a tight space dude. I really didn’t mean to.”

Nakoma looked over the boy with an amused grin before shaking his head. “Oh sorry man. I just thought.. well I dunno what I was thinking. Sorry I freaked out on you.”

- “Jeeze! I didnt even notice it was you!” Maya scoffed at her brother as the pup greeted him with kisses. “Doggy food may be a good idea. And maybe a collar too. Oh and probably a home if we can find one,” Maya got up and dusted off her pants before shooting her brother a devious glance.

“How’s about an adventure, Naki?”

Nakoma chuckled and rose to his feet with a wide grin still patting the dog’s scruffy head. “Do you know where the nearest pet store is? Also he might belong to someone already so we should check that before we just randomly give someone’s dog away.” He chuckled before looking to Maya with a devious grin. “An adventure? Hell yeah lets go on an adventure!” He laughed giving her a high five. “Such a sweet dog though. I can’t imagine if someone gave him away could you?”

Adventure Pup [OPEN: Chat]

Ara grinned widely as she felt his arms wrapped around her waist. Her hands traced up his arms for a moment before chuckling. “Both have your way and have fun with are both almost equally provocative, just so you know. Both are accurate.” She hummed a bit before leaning up to kiss his lips. “Let’s go then.” The waterbender stepped forward and tugged for him to come along. “Any stops we need to make before we get to my place?” She asked curiously as she lead them in the direction of her apartment.

Nakoma hummed at the coy remark that subtlety voice from her lips before returning the kiss. “Lead the way then dear.” Nakoma smirked following behind her not even trying to remove the silly grin that was plastered on his face. “Hmmm.” He pressed his lips into a flat line as he seriously contemplated before looking to her and shaking his head cutely with a big grin. “Nah. Lets just hurry back to your place. I’m feeling a little tired and sore, and I might need some of your healing to fix this spot on my back.” He winked to her a he swung her arm. “That is only if you want to. I just thought it would be a good excuse to see me with my shirt off.”

“No, it’s my fault real…” The smile upon Amber’s face dropped immediately as the familiar voice rung through her eardrums and sent a chill down the back of her spine. Her eyes glanced from the floor slowly to the features of the boys face, the sinking feeling deep within her heart was the only thing she could feel. Her eyes closed for a brief moment while she attempted to collect her thoughts, her throat began to tighten so she cleared it with a gentle cough. “Nakoma…?” She quizzed.

Though she wasn’t exactly thrilled to see her ex-boyfriend it was nice to see a familiar face she just didn’t know why it had to be him of all the possible people. She plastered a smile upon her face as she attempted to maintain a civil conversation. “I’m doing well, thank you for asking. I’m here with a few people from the academy we thought it would be a fun vacation before we all moved on… Enough about me though, how are you? It’s been such a long time.”

Golden orbs swooped over the figure that left a heart-wrenching feeling that haunted his past with an expression of a soft ache. The last time he saw those eyes looking back at him they were filled with a mixture of hurt, anger, and sadness. Nakoma swallowed the lump that rose within his throat hard once Amber started to reply to him.

Ironically it was refreshing to see a familiar face after a while of living in a city with people you barely know or who barely know you. Once she pulled a grin on her lips Nakoma figured he should show the same civility with her for the sake of the conversation. “Well that’s great to hear.” He continued to smile warmly and nod. It was sort of surreal to hear of his once fellow classmates move on to a better point in their lives unlike him, but nevertheless Nakoma felt more than content at the moment. “Yeah, really long time actually.” He rubbed the back of his head and let out a nervous laugh. “I’ve been doing alright. The first month out here was rough since I was on my own, but it’s been a lot better now. I work at a tea shop that’s close by so if you ever want any tea you can come by and see me.” He chuckled. “So do you have a job out here or are your parents paying for you?”

Her heart immediately leaped as a loud gasp escaped her lungs before jerking herself to a half rotation. It was a sudden tug at her pants leg that caused the waterbender to almost lose her lunch but the culprit was far furrier than she expected. Maya smiled to herself and sighed as she knelt down to indulge her friendly unexpected greeter. A passerby neared their way closer to them casually as Maya halfway glanced up before exchanging a hopeful acknowledgement, “Excuse me, this wouldn’t happen to be your dog would it?”

Nakoma gasped suddenly and clutched at his chest when he witnessed the most adorable dog he had ever seen yet. “Nuuuuuu, but I wish I had the money to afford him because I would defiantly keep him.” He cooed crouching forward to hug and pet the dog. “Looks like he is a little hungry Maya-naise.” He chuckled as the dog licked over his face. “Should we go get him some doggy food?”

Adventure Pup [OPEN: Chat]

It had only been a few days since Amber had left the Fire Nation and settled into a small flat in Republic city with a select number of friends from her previous studies. She was already begging to feel homesick, her thoughts drifted towards her family - namely her younger brother Kai. Amber shook her head, trying to dismiss the thoughts, she would return home in no time at all and join the Fire Nation Navy; then she would see him again. In order to take her mind off home, she took what little money she needed and sent herself towards the one market square she remembered the way to.

The market place was lively, the sound of laughter and other peoples voices filled the air. The sun was high up in the sky, beaming down; gracing them with warmth. A content sigh parted from her lips as she looked upon the various exotic stalls; one thing she knew for sure was that Republic City sure was a place of diversity - she had never seen so many different foods or items from other Nations. It sure wasn’t the same as the Fire Nation. In Amber’s awe at all the weird and wonderful things, she didn’t notice the person she was now on a collision course with. Amber quickly attempted to spin out of the way, pushing her hair from her face. “I’m dreadfully sorry, I didn’t see you there!”

It was the second week of this month meaning that the young firebender had recently gotten his paycheck and it was a decent size number this time around. Excited as he was to spend his fresh earnings, Nakoma decided to put it towards the important things first like bills and grocery's first before anything that could be considered irresponsible. The day was bright and sunny just how he always loved. This made coming to the market a much more enjoyable experience because if the weather was nice, generally the people would be too.

For the passed few months Nakoma certainly got the hang for weaving through the heavy traffic of crowds, especially when it was busy as such as this one. His eyes searched over the tops of heads to navigate where his favored noodle stand was before accidentally crashing into somebody. “Oh no, that’s my bad I didn’t see you I’m.... sorry?” The boy’s sentence trailed off into the sudden heavy air as he looked over the last face hr’d thought he’d never see. “Amber?” He questioned already reminiscing in that aching feeling he abandoned in his heart so long ago. “H-how are you? And what brings you to Republic City of all places?”

Nakoma and Ara having a relaxing day in bed.

“Desperate may be an over exaggeration, but I can definitely tell that I’ve got the upper hand in this situation. I’ve got the power of whether or not he gets to be in my life.” Ara shrugged as she stepped forward and started to trace her fingertips up his forearm. “I think that he’ll like you, but what’s more important is that I love you.” She smiled up to him before pulling away. “Before I get too mushy, you need to finish up your shift so we can get to my place and have some fun, okay?”

Nakoma’s lips rendered a soft spoken smile when she mentioned she loved him. Golden orbs linked to her blue ones as he looked down to her before she stepped away. “I love you too ya big ol’ sap.” He let out a hearty chuckle. “Oh have some fun you say. I wonder what that eludes to.” He shot his lover a wink as he head into the back to place the dishes in the sink. After removing his apron and placing it on the hook Nakoma returned behind Ara encasing his arms around her with a hug and a kiss to the top of her head. “Okay, my schedule is all clear for you the have your way... uh I mean fun with me.” He glanced down to her with a coy smile.

A devious little smirk curved the waterbender’s lips. “Have I ever let you down?” Ara smirked and shook her head. “No, I don’t think he’ll be like that. He seemed very… desperate? I dunno.” She shook her head and pressed her lips into a flat line as she spoke. She hated speaking of her family. “I think he’s remorseful because he missed out on out lives, and now that he’s realizing that we’re getting older; he wants to make up for it or something.” She shrugged her shoulder as she thought aloud. “But if things do go to shit we can leave. I’m not going to sit around and deal with bullshit.”

“Well, I mean... you’ve pushed me down a couple of times.” He still bore a smile over his lips until his brows rose in surprise when she mentioned the man sounded desperate. “Desperate? Really?” He paused listening to her speak. “Well I guess now is better than never right?” He scratched the back of his head. “I hope it doesn’t got to shit too fast. It would be nice if your parents actually like me for a change.”

“I’m fairly sure I should be more worried than you. I may have to move away from Republic city just to be safe from her wrath!” Toshi laughed, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly. His hands waved dismissively as Toshi spoke. “Well, I’m sure her father will love you, even if he doesn’t it can be like a forbidden love story. That would sure make for an interesting tale to tell the kids if you folks ever have them.”

“Trust me I wouldn’t let that happen to you buddy.” Naki chuckled patting his friend on the back. “Ah, I dunno Toosh.” He sighed uncomfortably. “You think so? You know those forbidden love stories don’t end out working well.” He chuckled. “Oh shit we haven’t even discussed having kids. I don’t think Ara is really keen on having children even though I would love to someday.”

The sound of the bell alerted Toshi, he panicked at the thought of Avira seeing him in this state; he didn’t want to have to explain to her what was going on. Yet, the familiar voice  of his best friend stopped his panicking but the tears continued to flow from his eyes. Usually Toshi would try to hide his emotions and put on a smile for his friend so that he didn’t have to see him like this, but he just couldn’t find the strength to do so. Toshi closed his eyes as he could feel Nakoma’s hand upon his shoulder, it was a simple sentiment but Toshi took it as more than that.

“N-Nakoma” Toshi began, his voice sounded weak and trembled. Toshi wasn’t sure what else to say, he didn’t want to burden his closest friend with his selfish problem. He gulped attempting to give himself some courage as he wiped his eyes with his hand. “It’s…. Nothing.” He mumbled, his head shaking slowly. “I’m just being selfish… Stupid…” Toshi’s face plastered a small, weak smile; yet his eyes stained with redness and the tears refused to stop flowing.

Big and warm sympathetic eyes looked over his friends who were very much in pain. The sadness that encased his heart tugged Nakoma’s with a great sense of concern. Hearing his voice tremble cause the firebender’s eyes to sting while he wished desperately in this moment Toshi would return to his bouncy carefree smile again, but witnessing this made him realize their was so much more behind that smile. “Toshi..” Nakoma hushed out in a low voice in attempt to comfort his friend. He gently moved his hands to wipe the tears still pouring from his cheeks before wrapping his arms around his friend with a tight hug. “You could never be selfish or stupid Toosh. You one of the most brilliant selfless people I know. You are so far from those words.” He slightly pulled away to look over him with a soft smile. “Why don’t you close the shop and come have a bite with me? If Avira has a problem she can come talk to me.” He lightly chuckled. “We can hit up that noodle place you were talking about.”

Selfish Sorrow || Toshi & Nakoma

Ara bit on her lip playfully as he leaned in closer to her and asked her such a pointed teasing question. “Not sleep.” She fired back with a wicked yet calm grin. She leaned in and murmured coolly in his ear, “I can promise you that.” The brunette stepped back and looked to him with a simple smile, wondering how much she could tease him while he was still working, but she knew that she needed to mention something else that held some great importance as well. “Um, so Thursday night my dad is still wanting to meet us for dinner.” She swallowed hard before nodding her head as she thought about it. “Are you sure you’re willing to meet him? You can always say no if you don’t want to go.” After the less-than-perfect interaction they had with her mother, she understood if he didn’t wan to deal with another parental meeting again.

Nakoma narrowed his stare on that wicked grin of hers for a moment before blinking his eyes back into reality. When her soft breath fell against his ear it sent a sharp shiver down the firebender’s back causing him to get caught up in her spell once more. “Then you better keep your promise then.” He shot her a wink with an impulsive grin now stuck on wondering how the rest of the evening will play out. “Y-your Dad?” Nakoma stammered with a light breath. Ara rarely spoke of her father let alone casually mentioning they are going to have dinner together. “No, no, I’m sure I want to meet him.” He gave her a reassuring smile. “I just hope he won’t detest me because I don’t fit the standards of a certain somebody.”

Toshi allowed the grin to turn into that of a more playful one. “Oh, well I’m glad that I can touch! What Ara doesn’t know, won’t hurt her, eh?” He joked; a cheeky giggle escaped from deep within his chest.

“How’s it going with the lady anyway? Everything all good in Romance-ville?”

Nakoma chuckled even more upon seeing the grin on his friend’s face. “That’s exactly right Toosh, but if she does find out she might hurt us.” He laughed. “Oh wouldn’t you like to know? Well things have been good so far, but I’m kinda nervous for this weekend because I’m going to be meeting her father for the first time.”

Toshi pushed the door of the shop closed, his back pressed against it - he could feel the coolness of the door against his shirt, sticking it to his back. He ran his hand through his hair allowing a small defeated sigh to escape from his trembling lips; all day he had been giving pointless readings to people who would probably never return to the shop. His eyeline caught a glimpse of a photograph upon the small drawer; he made his way towards it; leaving the door to the shop unlocked. He ran his hand along the picture frame, he made out each of the faces on the photograph, Mom, Pops, Avira and, of course, himself. Yet, that was just it: they weren’t his biological mother and father. He could feel his heart sink, a burning feeling caught in his chest, while his throat became close. His eyes closed for but a moment, before he could feel the familiar trickle of water down his face; it had been such a long time since he last cried. He felt so selfish.

‘So selfish…’ He told himself. ‘Your so selfish, you got the chance that others didn’t you did get a family that love you.’ He tried to calm himself down but only worked himself up more. He sat down upon a small wooden chair and placed his hands over his head. The only thoughts running through his mind was of his biological parents. He used to be so hopeful about them giving him up; used to believe it was for the best. But now that he was older he had grown to resent them, and blame himself.

Nakoma casually strolled through the waves of people rushing around to either punch in on time or find a place that was cooler to escape the heat. Since he just clocked out the other option seemed to be the best idea for now, but he didn’t want to head home and crash on the couch just yet. Luckily for him he was coincidentally on the path that would eventually lead him to Toshi and Avira’s shop. Thinking it would be fun to get to go out with his friend, Nakoma was more that excited to head up the steps to the shop.

The sound of a bell chimed over the door as the firebender peered his head in the doorway with an all to chipper smile. “Yooo hooo? Anybody home?” Deep golden eyes glanced around as he quietly stepped inside? “Hello?” His voiced called out as he walked into the back room where he glanced upon his friend quietly weeping across the room which was a surreal to see a wonderful warm happy loving soul like Toshi doing. “Toosh?” Nakoma asked concerned voice as he approached his friend placing his hand on his shoulder. “Is everything okay?”

Selfish Sorrow || Toshi & Nakoma

A devious grin curled upon Toshi’s lips as he watched the reaction of his friend. “Oh, come now Naki; if I’m not allowed to touch then who is? I’d need to have some serious words with them!”

Nakoma smirked and gallantly rolled his eyes away from his friend’s mischievous demeanor. “Oh did I say not for you to touch?” Naki giggled to himself. “I mean it’s only for you to touch Toosh, but I think Ara is defiantly gonna disagree with us.”