A/n: Hi, guys! I really hope you like this. Please review and tell me what you think :) I know it's short, but more to come soon!
After Almost-Armageddon, Chapter 1: Bolin
Bolin laced his fingers together behind his head, leaning back in his hot tub, trying to exhale his stress away. It was the end of another long day of acting, and all he wanted to do was to relax. I am still surprised at how quickly Varrick started making a new mover, considering the world almost ended and all, he thought. He supposed he shouldn't be too taken aback, especially considering how… opportunistic the man was. Bolin frowned, cracked his knuckles, and tried to massage out a twinging ache from his calf.
He wasn't going to lie; the life of an actor was hard work. The inner poor-kid in his head scorned him for ever even contemplating that notion, much less believing it, but… it was true. Even though it was difficult enough scraping for money and barely having enough to survive, at least he had always had Mako. But once they had enough money to make ends meet, Bolin had learned that additional money didn't seem to buy happiness. Sure, the hot tub, fancy clothes, and life-sized marble statue of himself were all nice – but as he had remarked to Asami the night of the final premier of Nuktuk: it wasn't much, or, seemed like a lot less, when you didn't have anyone to share it with. Retrospectively, he thought she could probably understand it better than he thought, but she had always at least had her dad or, more recently, Mako.
Big brother. Even though Bolin knew he annoyed the brains out of Mako at times, they had lived together for so long! And he had always at least had someone to talk to. Make that a human someone. He smiled. At least Pabu was still around. His furry companion, though not able to talk back, had proven to be a great friend nonetheless. But Bolin still yearned for a human to have a real conversation with, outside of work – especially a female human.
He fought off a sudden cold chill when a vivid image of Eska popped into his head. He had always wondered what was under that coat- stop it, Bolin, he chided himself. Best not to travel down that road with an ex. Remembering his and Eska's crazy kiss, he mused about what Mako had thought. His brother was under the impression that Bolin had simply tricked the fearsome waterbender into believing that he loved her in order to escape from their icy prisons. He sighed again from deep in his belly, expelling the air forcefully out of his lungs. Slowly raking his fingers through his hair, he coated the strands in hot water. He still wasn't sure exactly how he felt – had felt about Eska, he corrected. How much of it had he faked, the second time around? The kiss had been nice enough, in a desperate I'm-trying-to-kiss-you-while-still-encased-in-an-ice-block-and-scared-shitless-that-armageddon-is-here sort of way.
That's what made this acting stuff tricky. After a while, the line between reality and fiction started to blur. The juxtaposition of himself saving the president in real life during the climax of the Nuktuk finale was a chilling testament to just that. Just when he had started to actually think that some of the acting would translate to real life, such as moving his and Ginger's on-screen relationship to something actually tangible off-screen, of course, the buxom little minx had to stomp on his hopes.
"These damn women!" he yelled, pounding his fists into the water in frustration. The water slapped his triceps before yielding, sending a wave over the side in the process. Pabu, who had been napping near the tub, shrieked as the deluge hit him. "Oops, sorry little buddy," Bolin apologized, smiling with chagrin – an emotion brought on both from soaking his pet and the memories.
He rolled his eyes at himself. Besides, he thought, don't even get me started on Korra. Remembering the blissful date he had spent with Korra, his cheeks heated. He had acted like such a doofus; it was no wonder that she didn't want him. Annoyed that the memory could still affect him, he shook his head to himself in disbelief. A pang of sadness stabbed his gut. It was a mixture of longing and misery, coupled together…
Misery?! Come on, guy. Get your head on straight, his brain snapped at him.
Still. He had had ample fangirls as a Pro Bender, and had even more now as a mover star. Why weren't any of them suitable?
They're not her, inner-Bolin said, not impatiently. Was it true that he was putting on a front of trying to find a new girl while secretly burning for the Avatar?
Was it true that he had actually felt relieved when Eska announced that she wasn't coming to Republic City to be with him? Could he actually have felt quite more ecstatic inside instead of empathy for Mako when his brother and Korra split for the second time?
Pabu finally seemed to be feeling better, re-settling in front of the tub's heater to dry. Bolin finally got out of the tub and toweled off, settling down beside his furry friend and stroking the ferret's fur. "Oh, Pabu," Bolin remarked. "Why does this always happen to me? Why am I so…alone?"
As always, the ferret's whiskers twitched and he could offer no reply. But, it was still better than nothing.