Mako rubbed his eyelids as he pulled the worn out mattress towards the stairs. Half his mind was wondering what the time was while the other was thinking about the massive headache he would wake up with the following morning. They had just come back from a victory party at the local bar and even he had joined in with the festivity. He smiled thinking about the step closer they were to winning the tournament. Once they won the competition everything would get better.
Just enjoy tonight and worry about everything tomorrow he told himself. He adjusted the mattress so he could carry it more easily and started to climb the stairs to the little floor which their beds lay.
"Need help with that?" he heard Korra say from the top of the stairs.
"Nah- It's fine really-" he looked up and received the biggest wakeup call of the night.
There was Korra. At the top of the stairs. In a shirt that reached mid thigh. His shirt. With questionable amount of clothing underneath.
"Uh" he stopped in mid track. Oh shit he thought.
"Oh yeah the shirt" Korra deduced, "I don't have anything to sleep in. I asked Bolin if I could borrow it but he's pretty smashed right now I think he could've said yes to anything... I can just wear my own clothes if it bothers you"
"No its fine" Mako injected finally able to take his gaze away from her legs. He sincerely hoped he wasn't blushing.
"Let me help you" Korra said and peered closer to the edge of the stairs, high enough for Mako to see up that skirt- He looked away again feeling his face flush with heat and swallowed the lump in his throat that was choking him from speaking.
"I've got it" he raised a hand to stop her and as quickly as he could brought the mattress up the stairs before she had any chance to intervene. Korra looked at him quizzically.
"You alright you look a bit red?" Korra inquired showing a touch of genuine concern.
God dammit Mako cursed in his head.
"It must be the alcohol" he quickly thought up and place the mattress in a space on the ground between his and Bolin's bed. He glanced at his younger brother smashed on his bed proceeding to drool on his pillow.
"I could've just slept on the sofa" Korra told him. Mako shook his head.
"It's cold tonight" he retorted, "It's warmer up here than there"
"City Boy, I did live in the South Pole" she stated.
"It's fine. And why aren't as you as smashed as Bolin is? I'm pretty sure I saw you chugging away perhaps even more than he did" Mako changed the topic to hide his embarrassment.
Korra placed her hands on her hips triumphantly.
"I wasn't allowed alcohol in the White Lotus training facility. So I built up a good resistance so I could convince them I hadn't had any"
Mako nodded a reply and went to the cupboard to get some blankets when he noticed a pile of the clothes that Korra was previously wearing on the floor. Science of deduction told him she definitely wasn't wearing much underneath his shirt.
Not allowing his mind to entertain that thought he busied himself by laying out the blanket on the mattress.
Stay calm he told himself, in a few moments you'll be asleep and that will be it.
"Thanks" Korra said and sat down on the mattress. Mako didn't look at her again and climbed into his own bed and faced the other way.
But his mind replayed the images it had captured a few moments ago and he could feel his own blood boil.
A few more moments of silent agony he turned around to see whether she had fallen asleep. He regretted it very quickly.
She had taken her hair out letting it fall around her and frame her soft brown face. More than that a sleeve had fallen down leaving her shoulder bare and the shirt nefariously low.
Without anymore thought Mako turned away again cursing Bolin for being able to sleep, cursing himself for not being able to and oddly cursing his own shirt that was gripping at Korra's skin.
This was infuriating for him. Though he wasn't looking he could picture her. The soft brown tone of her skin and her slim yet muscled body. Sleeping only a few metres any from him. Wearing his shirt.
And Korra was pretty he'd admit to that and hearing the way his own heart was beating in his chest he would be lying if he said he didn't have a thing for her but for spirits sake he was just a teenage boy.
Mako pressed his legs together. Furrowed his eyebrows until they met and squeezed his eyes shut begging for sleep. But images still haunted him.
Unable to contain his anguish any longer he sat up and looked again.
The shirt had twisted and rode up to her-
Mako took no time to jump out of bed and rush to the bathroom.
Bolin woke and rubbed his eyes then his mouth to wipe away the spittle that was escaping from his mouth. His vision was blurred but feeling the familiar settings and he made his way out of his bed but stepped on something unfamiliar and soft which said 'Ouch' and ignored it. He felt the railing under his hand and counted the steps down but he must of counted wrong because he still tripped on the last nonexistent step. A turn to the left he reached out to feel the walls and let them guide him on his way. He found and opened the door but found that his brother was already there.
"Mako?" he mumbled still unable to see properly, "What are you doing here"
His brother quickly hid the bunch of dirty clothes behind his back.
"Uh..um.. I just had a shower" his brother replied. He sounded like he had just been caught stealing candy from the sweet shop. Unable to see the problem in keeping care of personal hygiene Bollin pushed it down to one of those strange habits Mako had.
"Great night tonight wasn't it" Bolin smiled sleepily his eyelids half closed.
"Um... yeah" Mako replied. Why was he so nervous?
"We're one step closer to winning the tournament" he continued. Mako nodded.
They were both silent as Mako stood there and Bolin hanged onto the door for support.
Mako looked at him. Then the wall. Then the floor, clearly agitated by something.
"I need to pee" Bolin finally broke the silence.
"Great idea" Mako said and quickly manoeuvred his way out past the drunken Bolin before he could spot the evidence of his embarrassment.
When Bolin returned from the bathroom and made his way up the stairs again he found his brother asleep in his bed and realised that the soft thing in the middle of the floor was Korra on a mattress. He could hear her giggling faintly.
"Oh Korra is that you?" he asked trying not to step on her again.
"Yes" she said her voice was clouded with a laughter she was trying to hold back. Bolin failed and stepped on a leg.
"Ow" she said but she quickly went back to giggling.
"Sorry" Bolin apologised, "Goodnight Korra"
"Night Bolin"
"Sweet Dreams Korra"
"Apparently not as sweet as the dreams Mako will have" she answered and giggled uncontrollably.
Suddenly his brother sat up and although it was dark and his vision was hazy his brother's face was unmistakably red.
"OH FOR LOVE OF EVERYTHING JUST FORGET ABOUT IT AND GO TO SLEEP!" he shouted, fell back on the bed with a thump, curling into a ball and tightly gripped the twisted sheets.
Korra couldn't contain it anymore and burst out into laughter.
Bolin didn't understand what was so funny but he'd get the joke out of them in the morning after he had rested.
The next morning he found Korra in a particularly good mood and Mako in a particularly bad one. More concerned with filling his stomach than asking what was the joke last night about he stuffed his mouth with dumplings.
Mako sulked, his head in his hands, sitting on the sofa while Korra sat joyfully next to him. When he brought his face up from his hands Bolin saw Korra giving him a quick kiss on the cheek. His brother's face flushed and he groaned put his head back in his hands while Korra giddily giggled.
Bolin looked at the pair curiously. Perhaps some things were better left a mystery.
A/N: This is the counterpart to the one shot Restless. It is a different style of writing which I mostly use, loose quick and humorous but with the same plot line as before. If you have read Restless I would appreciate any critique between the two styles, which you thought was better etcetera, etcetera.
I love teasing Mako to death. :D