Two Black Cadillacs
Adapted after Carrie Underwood's hit song and the amazing TV series Avatar: the Last Airbender
I'm starting a series of song fics because what goes better together than Avatar and music? For those of you who don't know, song fics are fanfictions that use song lyrics and use them as the premise for the fanfiction. This one combines Two Black Cadillacs by Carrie Underwood (looooove that song!) and the Legend of Korra. Bear in mind, the song is edgy, so the fic should be, too. This (pardon my French) ain't gonna be fluffy.
I don't own the song, the characters, or the show in this fic.
Comment what you thought!
Two black Cadillacs driving in a slow parade
Headlights shining bright in the middle of the day
One is for his wife,
The other for the woman who loved him at night
Two black Cadillacs meeting for the first time.
Something was up.
Lately Mako had been on edge, even more than usual. At night he would come through the door, press a light kiss on Korra's cheek, heat up a plate of whatever he found in the fridge, and eat it silently in the dark dining room alone, tapping away on his phone. His sudden interest in his phone, he weakly claimed, was triggered by a game called Trivia Crack, but Korra caught him exiting out of his messaging app whenever she passed by.
Besides the new technological interest, Mako had formed new habits that were completely contradictory to who Korra always knew him to be. He had grown a thin layer of stubble along his jaw, a feature he would have previously cringed about. He had always found facial hair dirty and uncivilized and stated such every time the subject was brought up. He spoke no more than five words a day to her now and the small dialogue they shared was distant and filtered, like he was carefully picking which words he would say. He no longer played with Koza or June when he got home, no longer changed into flannel pajama bottoms and sipped tea in front of his laptop, no longer showed up for dinner on time.
Korra had never been particularly perceptive, but the change occurring in her husband was not obscure. His eyes were glazed, staring blankly into space, and whenever they shared a good-night kiss it felt like there was a wall of glass separating their lips. She saw her other half a grand total of four hours a day before one or the other of them went to bed or slipped out of the house. He was right next to her, yet he was so far away she grew afraid she could never reach him again.
It was one in the morning and the snow was falling steadily outside. Korra rolled over, half-conscious, and reached for Mako's stomach to cuddle into. Instead of her husband's warm body, her hand met a cold satin bedspread. Her eyes snapped open. The other side of the bed was empty for the third time that week.
Korra threw back the covers. That was it.
Korra stalked into the twins' room and woke them up, urging them to quickly put their coats and boots on. Their sleepy, indignant cries rolled off of her as her rage steadily consumed her. Three nights he had disappeared from her side at night. Two weeks had gone by since the last time they did anything together. Three months had passed since he looked her in the eye. She knew where he had been disappearing to at night and his reassuring words that everything was fine began to melt away like the snow off her windshield as she loaded her children into the van and drove to the Dancing Dragon Night Club.
Mako had always been fond of liquor, Korra knew. He had often said, jokingly, that it made him his best self. Korra always trusted her spouse's inner warning light that said he had had enough. So when she walked into the posh bar, toddlers in tow, surprise is a severe understatement for her reaction to the display before her eyes. There he was, her husband of five years, sitting at the counter with two empty glasses in front of him and a half-empty one in his hand with a young, wealthy-looking woman hanging over his shoulder like a curtain.
Korra simply stood in the doorway, struck dumb by the scene. All the sounds and smells of the busy bar melted together in a runny puddle in her head. The world stopped and the only thing on her mind was the picture of her love, her life, submitting to the woman as she drank in his lips and traced his neck with her hand.
It was at that moment that Mako's eyes made solid contact with Korra's for the first time in forever. His ochre eyes scorched a hole in her stomach. A wave of guilt crashed over them. His hands gently pulled the girl off of him. He told her something and she slid off him, pecked his cheek flirtatiously, and then disappeared into the crowd.
Mako stood, straightened his shirt, tucked his hands into his pockets, and made his way as steadily as he could to his wife. He stood in front of her, towering five inches above her, but suddenly looking extremely small. His glance shifted from her to the two children she had balanced on her hips, to the bar where he sat only a few moments before, and back to her. A sudden soberness eased into his face and his eyes spoke only two words: I'm sorry.
"C'mon, let's get you two to bed. It's late." Mako slipped Koza and June out of Korra's arms and carried them off towards the door. Korra was left standing in the middle of the entranceway, filtering the sudden change in her world. Her eyes flickered to the now unoccupied barstool, where Mako's phone sat, neglected. She made her way over to it and pressed the home button. A message from the contact labeled "Shu from Work" flashed on the screen:
"Hey babe, where are you? These clothes aren't going to rip themselves off."
…X…X…X…X…X…X…
And the preacher said he was a good man Two black Cadillacs, two black Cadillacs
And his brother said he was a good friend
But the women in the two black veils didn't bother to cry
Bye, Bye Bye, Bye
Yeah they took turns laying a rose down
Threw a handful of dirt into the deep ground
He's not the only one who had a secret to hide
Bye bye, bye bye, bye Bye
Korra and Mako went from speaking minimally to not speaking at all. She took Koza and June to her mother's house and they stayed there for two weeks until Korra felt she could confront Mako again. She had ignored the texts and calls he had been sending her in waves, pleading to let him explain and apologizing profusely. When the steady stream of messages trickled to a stop, she packed the three of them up and drove back to the house.
The lights were off and his car was absent from the driveway, as she had suspected. That meant she had a whole night to prepare for the talk that would no doubt erupt into a tirade. She tucked the twins into their own beds and made her way into her own bedroom. The bed was neatly made and her pillow was untouched. Everything was dusted and straight, the rug was vacuumed and the trash bin was empty. Everything was in its perfect place. It was almost enraging how well managed the place had been without her there to nag him to pick up after himself.
A sinking feeling settled in her stomach. Maybe he really didn't need her.
Korra sat down on the bed and opened the drawer of her nightstand. It was still there. The woman's number that she had scrawled on the back of a napkin the night of the bar scene was still lying in the bottom of the drawer. She held it in her hand and studied it. The numbers were messily written down and nearly incomprehensible, just like the scene itself had been. Seeing how nicely he was managing with her gone snapped a part of her heart off and crushed it into dust. He definitely didn't want her, but, then again, he might not want that other girl either.
An idea flashed in Korra's mind. It was possible there was something the two women had in common. Maybe that woman wasn't just a random bar girl. She had seemed very upper-middle class and even when she was plastered to Mako she was graceful. She had too much skin covered to be a stripper or a hooker. She might've been more than that…
Korra ran downstairs into the kitchen, trying not to wrinkle the napkin. She had to know the truth. She picked up the home phone with a shaky hand and punched the numbers in. She lifted the phone to her ear. The droning sound of the call waiting almost made her hang up, but when a sweet, unassuming voice answered, she shook her head and took a deep breath.
"Who is this?"
"Asami Sato… who's this?"
"My name is Korra Roshimaru… I'm Mako's wife."
Silence drilled into the other end. Korra was afraid Asami had hung up, but her voice squeezed through the phone again.
"Mako doesn't have a wife."
Korra took a deep, uneven breath. "Are you sure?"
When she was met with a pause, Korra jumped right in. "I walked into the Dancing Dragon a few weeks ago and saw a girl with my husband. Was that you?"
"… How do I know you aren't some jealous ex trying to get back at hi—?"
"I'm not. You must have a ton of questions and… I'm sorry you have to find out like this. Mako has a wife." Korra's eyes filled with tears for the first time since it happened. "And two children. A girl and a boy. They love him, and so do I." She sat down at the kitchen table and rested her forehead in her free hand. She tried to control her tears, but they fell down her cheeks. "I just want to know the truth."
Korra had screamed, yelled, clawed, kicked, punched, gritted her teeth, clenched her fists, and overturned tables in frustration for those two weeks. She hadn't had time to cry. Now, sitting alone in the silent kitchen with the woman her husband was having an affair with on the phone, everything came crashing down on her. The hurt, the sadness, the desperation, everything came in currents, sweeping over her in grievous waves. It was too much all at once.
"Please… I just want the truth…" was all she said.
"…Mako never told me he had a wife… or kids… he told me he was single."
"… What did he tell you?" Korra whispered into the phone shakily, trying to control her trembling hands.
The voice on the line was thin and unsure. "He said he recently came into the city after his parents died to make a new start for himself, that he had to leave his brother behind to pursue his dreams, but he misses him every day."
"He did come into the city after his parents died… ten years ago. And he left his brother behind to live with me after the wedding." Korra covered her eyes with her hand, trying to steady the world around her that was spinning out of control. How could he leave out so much?
A moment of silence lingered between the two women, who were clearly processing the whole ordeal.
"He said he loved me." Asami's voice was thick.
So that wasn't a one night stand. This was a long-term thing.
Korra could hear Asami's lips trembling as she spoke. "Nobody has told me they loved me since my dad passed away three years ago. I never wanted to love anyone again. Then he told me he loved me. And I believed him."
Korra suddenly wanted to console this woman. She was no longer some woman who was taking advantage of her husband, no longer a tramp. This was a woman who was lied to just as much as she was. He had played them both.
"I believed him, too, Asami." Korra sniffed and wiped her tears away. "He tricked us." A sudden bubble of anger burst in her stomach and gripped her heart. Her heartbeat quickened and her nostrils flared. "He has two children and a wife waiting for him every night. He has a roof over his head, food to eat, a good job, a loving family. What more can a man want?!" Her fist pounded the table.
"He said he wanted to move in with me! That he didn't have anywhere nice to stay!" Asami's voice cracked in an equally rising anger. "He said he has no family except his brother! Said he hasn't loved anyone like he loved me…"
Another moment of silence.
"He needs to pay."
Korra's eyes widened at the woman's words. The nice, melodic voice she had heard previously had turned into a hard, cold tone that almost scared her. But instead of feeling the need to defend her husband, Korra felt a jolt of excitement run through her. Revenge.
"We both deserve better. My heart isn't a game." Asami said darkly.
"Are you up to showing him how it's played?"
"I'd be all too happy to."
In a rage-fueled night of insanity, Korra and Asami plotted deep into the night.
Two months ago his wife called the number on his phone
Turns out he'd been lying to both of them for oh so long
They decided then he'd never get away with doing this to them
Two black Cadillacs waiting for the right time, right time
Mako stumbled into the house after a minute or two of fumbling with the door. It was two in the morning, last he checked. He held his throbbing head and plopped down on the couch. He had drunk too much, again. He threw his head back and tried to calm his thoughts.
This was a mess, he knew. He hadn't heard from Korra or Asami in two weeks and he was starting to slip into despair. He hadn't meant for things to get so messy.
"Are you home, Mako?" A sweet, melodic voice called from the other room.
Mako's heart jumped. Who was that? He tried to identify the voice with anyone he knew, but found it hard to think so intensely under the effects of the liquor.
Asami appeared in the doorway to the kitchen and Mako's eyes widened.
"Asami!" He stood abruptly, almost knocking over the coffee table. "You're here!"
Asami walked over to him and planted a tender kiss on his lips. She pulled back and smiled with crimson lips. "I couldn't stay away for too long. I guess I was just disappointed after you stood me up."
Mako held his head and closed his eyes. "Right, sorry. Something… came up."
Asami placed a consoling hand on his shoulder. "Oh, my poor baby, you look awful. Come on into the kitchen. I'll have you feeling better in no time. How about some coffee? I heard that helps."
Mako nodded half-consciously and let Asami lead him into the kitchen. She eased him into a chair and handed him a cup of coffee.
"You already made some?" He stared into the cup of steaming brown liquid.
"I was up late filing some reports and coffee always keeps me awake." Asami leaned against the counter and watched him. "Rough day?"
Mako sighed and took a sip. "You have no clue. I got fired."
A pang of guilt sprinted through Asami's heart, but she quickly extinguished it. She sat opposite of Mako and covered his hand with her own. "Tell me about it."
Mako proceeded to tell her about how his boss called him into his office as soon as he got into the building, but Asami wasn't listening. She merely watched him lift the mug to his lips every few sentences to swallow another mouthful of coffee. Each sip made her small smile grow. Just a few more…
"Babe, that's terrible." Asami rubbed her thumb across the top of his hand.
Mako nodded and opened his mouth to respond, but his face contorted in abrupt pain. He held his stomach and clutched the side of the table. His eyes flashed and looked down at the coffee cup.
"Something wrong?" Asami asked innocently.
A realization flickered across Mako's face. "Asami… how did you know this is where I live?"
"You must've told me."
"No, no I didn't… how did you get in?"
"There was a key behind the flower pot, that's all."
Mako stared into the cup with a puzzled look. Suddenly his face snapped up to meet hers. His gold eyes drilled into her. "Asami…"
"Don't worry. It won't hurt in a second." Asami fluffed the tuft of hair on Mako's forehead.
Mako's face dropped in horror as his limbs grew limp. He dropped the mug and it cracked neatly into three pieces. His eyes glazed over as he fell out of the chair and dropped to the floor.
A few moments passed. Asami poked the back of his leg with the heel of her boot. He didn't flinch. Asami stood, picked up the pieces of the broken cup, and tossed them into the trash. She wiped the coffee stain up off the floor before pulling her coat on. She glanced down at Mako, who was lying motionless on the floor.
"It was nice knowing you, Mako." Asami blew him a small kiss in the doorframe. She pulled her hood over her raven hair and ducked into the snow, leaving the man behind on the floor, a permanent look of pain and terror twisted on his otherwise lifeless face.
And the preacher said he was a good man
And his brother said he was a good friend
But the women in the two black veils didn't bother to cry
Bye bye, Bye bye
Yeah they took turns laying a rose down
Threw a handful of dirt into the deep ground
He's not the only one who had a secret to hide
Bye bye, bye bye, bye bye
Yeah yeah
Asami really was beautiful, Korra had to admit. Her wavy, thick hair was black as night and her porcelain skin was flawless. She understood what Mako saw in her. She was sweet, sensitive, and caring, not to mention gorgeous. Her blazer and pencil skirt clashed against the white of the snow as she exited the black Cadillac. Korra tightened her hold on Koza and June's hands.
Asami's green eyes met Korra's blue. The glance lasted for only a moment, but it communicated so much. It was a look of sympathy, appreciation, and villainy wrapped into one. Without saying a word, she stood next to Korra and looked on as Mako's coffin was brought out of the car. The glossy mahogany gleamed in the gray afternoon. The children clung to Korra's legs and she stroked their hair, her eyes unwavering from the wooden box.
A fleck of remorse was tattooed on her heart, she knew, but the rest of her soul was delighted by the sight of the body being lowered six feet into the ground, never to lie or cheat again. She would find another man, a good man, a man who would love and take care of her. Mako just wasn't that man.
The preacher said a few mandatory words and Bolin, Mako's brother, gave a broken hearted farewell to his brother. Asami held his hand comfortingly and he closed his eyes in an impressive effort to hide the tears. The prayers that were said over the casket ran together in Korra and Asami's brains. Their silence was taken for grief and they wanted it that way.
Korra and Asami were handed two red roses at the end of the ceremony and they stepped up to the coffin together, side by side. They rested their flowers on the shiny cover in unison. Their eyes rose and met each other's for the first time since they arrived.
Korra's lips twitched into a small, discreet smile. Her eyes shined and a hint of insanity glittered in the corner. Asami returned it with a small smirk. Their eyes shared a single message: I won't tell if you won't.
And with that understanding, they parted: Asami to her family's abandoned estate and Korra to the new apartment she purchased to escape the haunting memories in the house. The Cadillacs drove off in separate directions, crunching the snow beneath the tires, leaving their secret buried deep beneath the soil.
It was the first and the last time they saw each other face to face
They shared a crimson smile and just walked away
And left the secret at the grave
And the preacher said he was a good man
And his brother said he was a good friend
But the women in the two black veils they didn't bother to cry
Bye bye, Bye bye
Yeah they took turns laying a rose down
Threw a handful of dirt into the deep ground
He's not the only one who had a secret to hide
Bye bye, bye bye, bye bye
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Told you it wasn't going to be fluffy. That was probably the darkest thing I've ever written for this show… comment what you thought. Oh, and listen to Two Black Cadillacs by Carrie Underwood! And one last thing: this fic is not supposed to be an attack on Mako. I just love the idea of Korra and Asami teaming up to be partners in crime and it went with the song so well. Love you Mako :*
Keep Calm, Leaf On.