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The atmosphere at the party changed drastically. The room was silent for her quick press conference. But when those reporters made accusations towards Korra about not joining Tarrlok's team, it seems that the young avatar cracked. She blew up, and defended herself quickly. In that process, she joined his team.
No one in the room missed the look on her face when she realised what she did. Especially not the bending brothers. They exchanged worried looks between each other, before gluing their eyes back onto their teammate.
They saw her shocked and confused expression. Then, they saw her eyes dart to all the faces looking at her, questioning her, yelling at her. They saw her eyes tear up, and her breathing quicken.
Bolin had noticed something off with Korra lately. She wasn't coming to practice a lot, and she wasn't much of a talker anymore. He also took note of her demeanor towards Asami, wondering why she had acted so weird.
She quickly made her way down the stairs and through the crowd, running out the back.
Mako and Bolin looked at each other again. Asami tugged on Mako's arm, and leaned up to whisper in his ear.
"She's not okay, is she," she said. Mako looked at her and shook his head. He looked over at Bolin, who only shrugged.
Mako instantly grew worried. His insides twisted into a nervous bundle. When he looked for her, she was already gone. He sighed.
"I'm going to try and talk to her. Somethings not right," Mako told them. Bolin nodded his head and Asami did the same, letting go of his arm. She gave him a reassuring smile, and he returned it. Then, he set off to kind the Avatar.
He looked everywhere. Bathrooms, other dining rooms, the kitchen, even snuck upstairs to find her. He wondered if she had gone back to the Island. As a last resort, he went outside. He searched around the venue, and found a back door. He hoped that that is where his teammate would be. Hopefully in one piece.
He didn't really think this through; what if she was crying? He can't even handle a crying Bolin, though he hadn't done that in years. Consoling an upset Korra would be very difficult for him, but he felt that consoling her would be the least he could do since she helped him get his brother back.
The warm wind hit his face, but it was refreshing. He loved warm nights. He didn't have long to admire it, for he found what he was looking for.
Korra's hair was down from the bun, curly hair sprawling over her shoulders. Her head was in her hands, and she was sitting on the steps. Mako took a deep breath and walked closer to her.
"Korra?" He called to her softly. She jumped and looked up at him.
"Oh, hey Mako," she said, while attemping to nonchalantly wipe away her tears with the back of her hand. If anyone had to come find her, why him? "What's up?"
Mako gave her a disapproving look. "You know why I'm here."
Korra sighed and looked down at the ground. "I'm fine, you don't need to worry."
Mako shook his head, and took a seat next to her. They both stared out into the alleyway, listening to the sounds of the city. They were silent for a few minutes. Mako wasn't sure of what to say. Korra didn't want to talk.
Mako looked at her from the corner of his eye. He saw the pain twisted on her face. He saw that she was most deffinantly not fine, and that she was hurting. He actually became angry with her. He was angry that she refused to let anyone else carry her burden; that she never shared her problems or her fears with anyone. He wanted to help her, he really did. But he couldn't unless she opened up to him, and she did not want to do so.
"Korra, please, tell me what's going on," he whispered. She squeezed her eyes shut, and shook her head. Disgruntled, Mako stood up, casting a shadow over her. She looked up at him with glassy eyes, her lips in a tight line.
"Why won't you tell me?" He said a little louder, growing more and more frustrated with Korra.
She glowered at him. "Because there's nothing to tell!"
Mako let out a gruff sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I saw you up there. You were confused, and... and scared!"
At that, Korra stood up and tried to match his height. It didn't help that she was a good head shorter than he, but that didn't phase her.
"I'm not scared! I'm the Avatar, I can't afford to be scared!" she yelled."Don't you get it? This is my weight to carry. I can't be afraid, or scared, or needy." She sank back down to the stairs, and put her head in her hands again.
Mako finally cracked her. He realised that she wasn't just scared, she was terrified. And he now knew that she thought she wasn't allowed to be scared. He took a few breaths before sitting down next to her, hesitantly wrapping his arm around her slim shoulders, hugging her to him.
"Korra, you're not only the Avatar," he began,"but you're human. You're allowed to be scared. It's normal."
Korra shook her head. "No, I can't. Being scared won't do anything for me or the world."
"Denying it will only make it worse."
Korra sighed, knowing that he was right. She lifted her head up to him, revealing the tears falling from her eyes.
"Look," Mako started. "You know you can tell me what's going on. I know somethings been up with you, and Bolin and I are really worried. Instead of you just drowning in your fears, just tell them to me. It can't be that hard." He smiled at her, and she smiled back. She pressed her forehead into his temple, her nose brushing against his cheek.
Mako wasn't sure if this was right, but it felt right. He liked being this close to Korra, and he loved being her anchor.
She sighed against his skin. "I didn't want to join Tarrlok's team for a lot of reasons. I told him it was because I wanted to focus on my airbending, which is true. But, I also didn't want to because..."
"Because what?" Mako prodded gently.
"Because," she took a shaky sigh, "because Amon scared me. That rally was too much. I've been having nightmares every night about him. That my bending is getting taken away, or that I get captured by Equalists. It's something that I don't want to face... But I have to."
Mako was shocked at her confession. He didn't think she was that shaken up about the rally. He assumed this is why she had been acting distant and almost rude. Why she was never at practice anymore.
"You don't have to face him alone, Korra. You know I'll be there right by your side. And Bolin. This affects all of us, and we're all in it together." Korra pulled away and looked up at him. She wasn't expecting that from him. She felt an overwhelming sense of comfort and confidence. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him close to her.
"We're not only your teammates, but you're friends," He smiled at her. "You can trust us with anything, especially me."
"Thank you, Mako," she whispered. Mako only smiled, though she couldn't see it. He was happy that he made her feel better.
"You're welcome. I meant everything I said," he murmured. She only squeezed him tighter, glad that he was the one to come out and talk to her.