Bolin stood there with his arms across his chest and a scowl on his face as the general approached him.
"What seems to have you in bunch?" Iroh asked.
The teen whipped his head around, "Oh, sir! Nice to see you again, sir."
When the man continued to give him a questioning look, Bolin gave a sigh and gestured out to the training yard. Mako was currently practicing some fire-bending techniques, with his shirt off, as the girls watched him. Jinora and Ikki were staring at him dreamily as Korra, Asami and two of Asami's girlfriends gazed on much less innocently, if you get my drift.
The general smirked, "A little sibling rivalry?"
Bolin blinked. He hadn't really thought about it that way. He was never jealous of his brother. It was just the fact that women had stopped paying attention to him since he wasn't pro-bending anymore.
"I suppose…" he mused.
Iroh gave him a surprised look, but Bolin was not in the mood for more talking. Placing a foot forward, the teen bent a rock from the yard and slammed against the gong behind them. Everyone out in the yard looked over, shocked.
Bolin simply threw his arms toward the general, "General Iroh's here."
They quickly got up and headed over with enthusiasm, giving him their hellos and welcomes. The earth-bender sighed and rolled his eyes.
"I think I'll just go sulk in the corner until all the pretty boys leave the building."
Iroh frowned as Bolin walked off. He wished to go and give the boy some moral support, but he was soon surrounded by the others.
After a long discussion with Tenzin and Korra, the general returned out to the yard. This time it was empty except for a pouting Bolin. As Iroh neared the teen who was sitting on the ground, he noticed that there was small bar of metal in front of him and upon further investigation his pout seemed to be rather a look of concentration. The general remained a few feet away and watched the teen's progress. A few moments later, the general realized there wouldn't be any development despite how hard Bolin tried to bend the bar.
"Hello," he announced.
The earth-bender jumped in surprise and looked up to the speaker.
"Oh, it's just you, sir," he said with relief.
Iroh dropped down to the ground next to Bolin, who was perplexed, now.
"Don't you have some meeting or something to go to?"
"Mmm…it can wait for a while," Iroh replied, flashing the teen a small smile.
Bolin grew instantly flustered at the attention and looked back to his piece of metal. It had been so long since someone had given him their time, especially some big shot like the general.
"Hey," Iroh called, giving the teen a nudge with his hand, "You should stop worrying about whether or not others like you the most."
Bolin gave him an annoyed look, "That's easy for Mr. Popular to say."
The man shook his head, "While I do have people who look up at me, I also have those who hate me and dislike many of the things I do. You are a smart, independent young man and if you let this little dry spell get to you, I think it would actually be a bit hard to like you…if that's possible."
The earth-bender turned red at the compliment, "Well…I, that's very nice of you to say."
Iroh chuckled and leaned back on his hands.
"So…you're learning metal-bending? Perhaps something I said?"
Bolin bit his lip, looking even more embarrassed, "Maybe."
"Everyone else is so stupid; you're adorable, Bo."
The teen froze in place. Adorable? …Bo? Did he hear that right? He finally turned to the general with a frown.
"Did someone dare you to do this, dude or do you just feel that bad for me?"
"Neither," he said, staring straight into the other's eyes.
"Oh…"
Well, this was unexpected…what should he say now?
"I…I think you're pretty awesome, too."
Iroh smiled, "I'm glad you think so."
The general sat there in silence comfortably while Bolin sat on pins and needles. Iroh noticed this.
"Is there someth-"
He didn't get to finish the question because Bolin's mouth was suddenly on his. Just as quickly as he had leaned over, he moved back.
"Sorry!" Bolin shouted, "I just…I wanted to make sure you understood the way I was feeling. The way things went with Korra were a bit confusing, so I just…I didn't mean to kiss-"
Iroh placed his lips against Bolin's in a much gentler caress than before. They parted and the teen shivered from the exhilaration of such a kiss.
"Woah."
Iroh laughed, "That was the most interesting reaction I've ever gotten."
Bolin blushed, "Well, that was good kiss."
"Would you like another one?"
The teen got up on his knees to face the other, "Hell, yeah."
The two happily moved in closer, passion taking over. Iroh nipped the younger's lips before sliding his tongue along them. Bolin was excited to let the man in and their tongues battled.
It wasn't long until Mako was out searching worriedly for his brother. It was unfortunate that this time he found the teen. All the blood drained from the young fire-bender's face when he saw Bolin on the ground tumbling around with the general. He slowly backed up and headed back inside.