"CUT!"
Mako threw his hands up as he groaned loudly that the director interrupted the scene yet again, feeling a dull ache start to progressively worsen at his temple. There was no need for this, the fight had been choreographed and practiced countless of times -hell, he and the other actor often ran through this exact scene whenever they had the time to do so- but whenever the cameras were rolling, she found something wrong with it every time.
Too much lighting. Stiff movements. Wrong expressions on the actors. Not enough lighting.
Mako had never walked away from a job but this was looking to be the first time he did just that. He looked over to where Korra sat, attempting to reign in his anger by a degree before he said something he regretted.
"What's wrong now?" He asked through gritted teeth, aware of his 'opponent' talking to someone off the set. She drummed her fingers against her chin as she looked the actors up and down, and during their brief and albeit tense time together, Mako had come to know that 'thinking pout' look on her face. He almost wanted to groan again as she walked up to him, blue eyes shining with an otherworldly fire in their depths. His agent had warned him about this director; told him horror stories of her attitude and stubborn behavior that caused other actors to walk away from a project, but he wouldn't let it deter him from shooting another film. Mako squared his shoulders as she stepped closer, looking up at him with a scrutinizing glare. The two remained silent, looking each other over carefully before she spoke.
"Your expressions and movements are all wrong. We're sending in the double-"
"Like hell you are." He huffed, crossing his arms over his chest and narrowing his eyes. It was a jab at his ability to act -something that had been natural for him since he could remember- and his poor grip on his anger was slipping. "I can do this damn scene if you would just sit back and let me do my job."
The set had gone silent, watching the two closely in case they were needed to break up a potential fight. Mako could feel the tension rise in the enclosed room; from the nervous stagehands around them to the mounting anger that was bleeding into something almost sexual. He pushed that thought to the side just as she smirked up at him.
"If you say you can do it, then show me what you got. I thought I signed on an experienced actor, not a shit rookie."
The next time Korra called for action, he gave it his all and then some, not holding back on his frustration towards her. He let everything out on the poor stunt double, his body working on autopilot while his mind flashed images of the director; that damn smirk, those fierce eyes, the way the clothes she wore accented the muscles she had. Everything about her drove him crazy, from the attitude and outright challenges towards him to the way the corners of her mouth would turn up at the stupidest puns and jokes.
He must have done something right in her eyes, because not once during the scene did she say another word until the act ended. When he looked back to her, she was talking to one of the stagehands. He stared at her almost expectantly, ignoring the way the sweat ran down the nape of his neck and the way his heart was running rampant in his chest -he would blame it on physical exertion rather than look the truth in the face- when she looked up at him. They stared at one another for a moment before she smiled almost knowingly, and for once Mako wished he had listened to his agent about this 'blue-eyed devil in disguise'. She laughed and gave him a curt nod.
"Looks like I got the right actor for this part after all."
