AN: All copyrighted materials belong to their respective owners. This is also unedited.
Morning Coffee
Ever since she and her parents moved to Republic City, Korra fell in love with coffee.
The teenager had only heard of the dark liquid before, when her uncle Unaloq went to Republic City for a global summit. He gushed about the smooth, cold flavor and the alertness he felt after consuming it. He cautioned those who listened to avoid it after dinner, shuddering as he recounted his accidental all-nighter from drinking a tiny cup of concentrated coffee. Uncle Unaloq called that small beverage an "ex-press-oh," if Korra remembered it correctly.
Now, whenever she has free time, no school projects that need to be done, no chores to be completed, no dates to go out with- ha! No one has asked her on a date- the teenager went to a tiny coffee shop near the library. The tiny café, squashed in between buildings with colorful displays and bright lights, could easily be dwarfed and hidden from a random passerby, but upon finding the place, Korra thought it was perfect.
It was winter in Republic City, and even though the chances of snow were minuscule, and the cold was practically swimming weather in the South Pole, very few people were outside braving the chill. Korra was one of the few brave souls out this windy morning. School was closed for the season, and while some of the richer families went to the Earth Kingdom or Fire Nation for vacation, most students stayed in the city.
The night scene didn't wane due to the cold weather, either; each time Korra hit up her favorite bar, it was packed, as if everyone didn't feel the winter chill. The sauna-like heat was a welcome difference to every person inside the bar, many reluctant to leave at closing time and face the icy breeze.
Korra sighed at the thought of the patrons in the bar. Ever since that fateful night where she impulsively kissed a guy she just met, Korra tried looking for him each time she came. Scanning every balcony, every dark corner of the bar, the teenager was crestfallen at not finding the young man with the golden eyes. She would turn her blue eyes towards any scrap of red cloth she could see in the bar, but each time, Korra would come up empty handed.
The young woman shook her head to temporarily push back her failed attempts in finding the young man who called himself, "Mako." She instead focused on walking to her favorite coffee shop without running into someone. The blue-eyed girl looked around her as she walked on the barren sidewalk, almost at her destination. She could see tiny fires in the dark alleys and melted at the sight of two young boys holding hands. Their faces were red and their lips were almost blue from the cold. Whatever clothing they had- mismatched gloves, hand-me-down jackets, and worn leather boots, were full of holes and patches. Korra grimaced at this common sight.
Their tear-filled eyes bored right into hers as she made her way into the café. Grateful that there was nobody in line, Korra ordered a shot of espresso. As the barista made her order, Korra looked out the window and watched the two young boys again. She's seen them around before, playing with the other orphans during the summer, keeping each other warm every night by holding each other closely, and even giving each other the little food they could scavenge. Despite the pull in her heart at the ever increasing number of homeless orphans on the streets of Republic City, Korra felt especially attached to the two little ones she could now see through the café window.
After picking up her too-hot beverage and deeming it undrinkable at the moment, Korra placed her drink and bag on the table and asked the barista to keep an eye on her things. The teenager dashed out of the warm café back into the cold air. The two little boys were still by the alley, with the larger of the two rubbing the smaller one's hands together to keep him warm. Korra slowed her pace at carefully went up to the duo, and with a smile, she crouched down to their height. The two boys took a step back, with the older one putting an arm in front of the younger boy.
"You two need to stay warm," the teenage girl pointed out. She unwound her blue wool scarf from her neck and plucked her earmuffs- courtesy of her neighbor, Bumi- off her head. The blue-eyed young woman didn't even feel the cold air hitting her now-exposed neck and ears as she reached out to the boys. The older one hesitantly took them from her hand and placed both articles of clothing on his brother, but the smaller boy stubbornly plopped the earmuffs on his brother's head before running up to Korra and giving her a hug. Identical smiles were on all of their faces.
"Happy holidays," she greeted before standing up to go back inside.
Now back inside the tiny coffee shop, Korra sat down at her table. After checking over her belongings to see if anything was stolen, the blue-eyed sat down and looked at the tiny porcelain cup filled with espresso. The strong, inviting smell filled her nose. The dark brown liquid was a similar shade to the hair of the young man she wanted to see again.
Korra sighed at the thought of him, berating herself for thinking of Mako again. It's been months since their first and last dance that fateful night, and in the big and ever-growing city they live in, they're never going to see each other again.
With that, Korra gulped down her espresso and took out a book. She was so entranced by the action in her novel, that she missed a lot of things: people going in and out of the tiny shop; the two boys she talked to earlier showing off their new gifts to a tall man; the tiny ringing of the bells, which announced the arrival of a customer.
What did get Korra's attention was the rich, dark smell of freshly brewed coffee that was suddenly on her table.
She looked up from her book and spied the cup of coffee placed right in front of her, and then looked around the sparsely populated café. The caramel-skinned woman found what she was looking for.
Two table behind her, there was a tall man with dark brown hair and a red scarf hanging around his neck. His golden eyes were staring right back at her, and a smirk was formed on his face. Korra's blue eyes widened and her heart pounded wildly, her gasp of surprise slowly being replaced by a big smile.
He was here. After weeks of looking for him and failing, Korra was elated that Mako was finally here.
Mako stood up from the chair to his full height, giving Korra the chance to view his muscled arms as he reached for his jacket. He sauntered over to her table before standing right in front of her. Korra had to tilt her head in order to catch his golden eyes.
"Hey," he whispered, his voice bringing goose bumps along Korra's skin.
"Hi," she answered back just a coyly.
"How've you been?" Mako asked.
"I'm all right," she replied, omitting the fact that she'd been looking for him for a while, "How about you?"
"I'm doing all right myself," he said, sitting himself down on the chair across from her.
Mako looked down at the table, noting the book she was reading- The Hundred Years War- and the untouched porcelain cup of coffee he bought for her.
"You didn't touch your coffee," he noted.
"Oh, oh yeah, he he," the blue-eyed girl awkwardly replied before gingerly taking a sip of the bitter drink, "Thank you for getting me one, by the way."
Mako shrugged, "It was no problem at all. You kinda deserved it after giving those boys out there your stuff."
Korra's face warmed up at the mention of that.
The two spent the whole day inside the tiny café, talking about anything and everything; they even set up another coffee date in the near future.
Before they knew it, the café was about to close, and the sun was gone, replaced by an inky black sky.
"Let me walk you home?" Mako offered, and of course, Korra didn't refuse.
Using the cold as an excuse, the short young woman wrapped Mako's arm around her as they walked down the barren sidewalk. The streetlights emitted a warm, golden glow, making the cold winter night a little brighter, but Korra didn't seem to notice.
Mako was the only source of light and warmth she needed.
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