Asami was exhausted. Leaning back in her chair, she stretched her arms over her head and yawned. This was the third day in a row she found herself staying late at the office. Determined to get through all of this paperwork, she ran her hands through her hair and picked up her pen, ready to make changes to this new contract.
About a hundred pen marks later, Asami heard the buzzer from her secretary. "Miss Sato, the Avatar is requesting to see you."
Before she could process what he said, there was a crash through her office doors. Korra, with a blast of air, burst into Asami's office, and stopped short right in front of the desk. Asami shot up from her chair, vaguely aware of her secretary's protests. "It's okay, Lee. It's late, you should be home with your family. Please, close the doors behind you," she said, her eyes never leaving Korra's. Her voice was calm and steady, refusing to show any signs of the whirlwind of emotions she was currently feeling.
They stared at each other, neither one moving an inch. Korra, because she afraid to make the wrong move, and Asami, because she was unwilling to move at all.
Finally, without breaking eye contact, Korra swiftly made her way around the desk to stand in front of Asami. In one fluid motion, she pulled her into an intimate embrace, cradling her head in one hand and holding her around the waist with the other. "Asami," she breathed, closing her eyes and relishing the way she felt in her arms. It was so natural, Korra was finally able to relax for the first time in days.
After a minute, or maybe ten, Asami regained control of her body. She shoved Korra back, creating a safe distance between them. "What the hell, Korra! What are you doing here?" Crossing her arms protectively in front of her, the CEO impatiently waited for the Avatar to respond.
"It's a long story," she started, feeling a mixture of guilt and hurt from being rejected so strongly. "Do you have time?" She looked up at her girlfriend, or, ex-girlfriend now, and saw the anger in her eyes.
"Funny thing is, I gave you three years worth of time, and I got nothing but radio silence. So pardon me if I find it a little hard to give any more to you. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have work to do." The venom in her voice made Korra flinch. Without breaking stride, Asami went to the door and held it open. "Please leave."
"Asami, wait," she pleaded, trying to get her attention, "you don't understand. Just...just five minutes. Can you give me five minutes?" She grabbed her hand in both of hers and brought it to her chest. Blue eyes imploring green ones, "Please. I can explain everything."
Snatching her hand back, Asami closed the door. "Fine. You get five minutes."
Breathing out a sigh of relief, Korra tried to give her a weak smile. "Okay, well, maybe you should sit down for this. It might-"
"Korra," she said icily, "you have four minutes left." Crossing her arms again, she tapped her foot and narrowed her gaze.
"Okay, okay, sorry." She looked up at the face scowling down at her, and tried to figure out where to start. "A few days ago, I woke up from a coma."
Asami's features began to soften. Even after all this time, the thought of Korra in any kind of pain brought a pang to her heart. Reflexively, she went to comfort her. Nope, nope, absolutely not. Not going there. Pulling herself together, she hardened her expression and stared at Korra, stone-faced.
"Apparently, I was in a pretty bad fight with some gang members in the Earth Kingdom and got a boulder to the head." Korra let out a slight chuckle in an attempt to lighten the mood, but stopped and cleared her throat when she saw the less than amused face staring back at her. Keeping her eyes downcast, she recounted the rest of her story. "I was out for about a week, and the healers weren't sure if I was going to wake up. And then I did, and I was so confused, because the last thing I remembered was falling asleep...with you." She looked up at the girl, sheepishly.
Asami's scowl turned into a frown. "That's ridiculous," she huffed. "The last time we were together was over-"
"Three years ago, yeah," Korra finished for her, giving a non committal shrug.
"You're telling me that you can't remember anything within the last three years," Asami asked incredulously. "Nothing?" She was finding it hard to breathe. Korra didn't remember the last three years. Panicking, she began to create a timeline in her head. "So that means," she stuttered, "you, you think, we, us we're still..."
"Yup." Boldly, she took a step forward. "Asami, please look at me," she begged softly. When she still wouldn't make eye contact, Korra placed her hand on her cheek, and caressed it softly with her thumb. She heard Asami take a sharp intake of breath. "Please, look at me."
Turning her head slowly, Asami willed herself not to cry. She felt blue eyes searching her own, and felt the three years of heartache run through her.
Korra gently moved her hands to the back of Asami's neck, bringing their foreheads to rest against each other. She breathed in her scent, so familiar and so comforting. She couldn't help but feel the overwhelming sense of completeness, like she was exactly where she belonged. "I am so sorry. I don't,' she paused, trying to find the right words. "I don't know what happened between us. I just know that when I woke up, the only person I wanted to see was you. And I know you probably don't want to see me, although I can't remember why. My parents warned me not to come, but I had to see for myself." She leaned in closer, brushing her lips softly against hers. "But I just don't understand what could have happened to make me stay away from you for three years. Please, help me understand. Because I know how I feel now, and I lo-"
"Don't," Asami whispered, gripping Korra's wrists. "You don't get to waltz back into my life expecting me to act like nothing happened. You might not remember, Korra, but I do." Keeping her voice steady, she backed away from the Avatar. "You need to leave."
Korra gave her a sad nod before turning around to leave.
"Korra, wait." She grabbed her hand, spinning her back around to face her. "I just need time to process this, okay? I'm not mad...I'm...well I don't know what I am. I just," she took a deep breath, "need time."