I feel the cool breeze ruffle my hair as I sit beneath the tree in the park. I don't ever really think about it when I come, but I always end up in the same spot. I think back to when I used to come here for shelter or protection. I shudder at the thought of being back out on the streets again. Although I suppose I can handle it better now.

I lean back into the tree and shift around to make myself more comfortable. I just came back from working my shift at the factory. I feel myself falling asleep as I try to keep my eyes open but to no avail.

I'm in the alley. I feel the shadows on me, encasing my heart in a dark shroud. My parents stand protectively in front of me, my back up against a wall. In front of them stands a firebender with a cruel face. A scar runs down his face from the corner of his right eye to the tip of his mouth. He snarls at us, and his lips curl into a smirk.

"You know you don't stand a chance. Hand it over now!" he barks at us. My mother reaches her hand out to me and I grab it willingly.

He begins to play with a small ball of fire in his hands. "We didn't have to do it this way! I told you!" He throws his fire at us, but Mom steps out and sends it back towards him.

"Ooohhh, benders," he spits at us with malice. Before he can attack us again, my mom throws her hand in the air in submission.

"Fine, take it! Just, please don't hurt us!" She throws what little money we are carrying at him and begs again. "Please."

He sorts through the bag and scowls at his findings. "What a waste of my time. Now get out of my sight!" Mom pushes me in front of her and I scamper off with my parents at my heels. Suddenly, I hear a yell of pain and a thump on the ground. I see my father fallen on the ground; the back of his coat scorched all the way through.

"No!" I hear my mother screech. I stop and turn around. She looks at me and gestures me away.

"Go Mako! Find your brother and keep him somewhere safe! We love you Mako!" I start feeling the tears brimming at the edge of my eyes. "Go now!" I turn around and don't look back until I get to the end of the alley. I hide behind the corner and watch the scary man approach my parents.

"That'll teach you to retaliate against me!" he yells. "Any last words?"

My mom kneels down by my father's side. His breaths are short and quick, and I see the light slowly leaving his eyes. Mom turns toward him and yells, "Go to hell, you son of a-!"

Her last words are cut short as he fire bends her right in the face.

Before I think about it, a yell is wrenched from my mouth. "Mom!" The murderer looks up at me and smiles a vicious smile. He starts running towards me and I take off, but he is too fast for me. He grabs me by the scruff of my collar and yanks me off of the ground. He then knocks me over the side of the head with the heel of his palm. I become dead weight as my world swirls around me. He then drops me to the ground, and I crumple in a large heap at his feet.

He raises his hand above his head wielding a whip of fire and brings it down with a flick of his wrist. It cracks sharply against my back causing it to arch painfully. Before he could whip me again I turned around slowly and faced him.

"Please, stop. I have nothing; please go!" I practically scream this at him.

He raises his hand again to strike, so I feebly hold my hands up to protect myself. It ends up hitting my hand and bouncing back towards him. I slowly stand up and stand, ready to fight.

"Oh, now you're going to try to protect yourself? It'll turn out just like your parents," he sneers at me. I don't say anything; I just stand my ground.

"Okay, don't say I didn't warn you, you little brat!" As the words were leaving his lips, I bring my hands up near my face and create a ball of fire. Then I throw it as hard as I can towards him. It hits him square in the chest and sends him tumbling back a few feet.

"Why you little monster…" his words are cut off when he hears a scream. He looks back towards the entrance to see a woman standing there. He runs and throws over his shoulder a last warning, "Count yourself lucky."

He runs back towards the back of the alley and vaults over the wall. I collapse on the ground and attempt to crawl to my parents. I manage to make my way to them right as the lady runs over to me.

"Oh dear! Are you okay sweetheart? Let me just call an ambulance and the police and it'll be fine. Okay?" I nod my head just so she will go away. She heads back towards the alley's entrance, and I close the gap that separates my parents and I.

"Hey Mako, honey. Be strong okay? For us and for Bolin. We love you and will be in your hearts forever." My mom's dying words just slip through her mouth as she fades away. I start sniffling as the realization sinks in. I see the women frantically waving her hands and calling people over. I decide not to let myself fall into the hands of the government.

I look back over my shoulders to catch another glimpse of my parents. Before I go, I kneel back down and shut their eyelids. I look over them and see my father's beloved scarf. I snatch it up and leave quickly before anyone sees me. I hear the lady calling me back, but I don't stop running. And I still haven't stopped.

I jolt awake, immediately taking in my surroundings. I notice that the sun is setting, and people are beginning to leave the park. When I look to my right I notice someone staring intently at me. Korra. I gulp a little as my heart rate picks up a little.

I clear my throat a little which causes Korra to come out of her daze. "Ummm, how long have you been awake?" she inquires. I find it almost funny since she was the one hovering over me.

"Just a bit, how long have you been standing there?" my eyebrows cock a little at this question.

"Long enough." I start feeling confused. What's that supposed to mean? I get up and start brushing the dirt off of me. I look towards her to see if she has anything to say.

"Want to go for a walk?" she asks quietly. I'm not sure of what she has planned, but I go along with it.

"Sure." I feel as if I should offer her my hand, but I don't know what she would make of that so I keep to myself. We just stroll around the park in no general direction, I think. We are both silent as we walk. That's a first for Korra.

"Sooo, Mako," Korra stops as she talks and scuffs her feet against the ground. "Wanna talk about anything?"

I wonder what she's talking about? "No, not really. Why?"

"Umm, well…"

"Korra, just come out with it already!" I say it a little harshly, and I know maybe a little too harshly when I see the hurt in her eyes. "Sorry, just curious is all."

"No, it's fine. I just, I wanna know what you were dreaming about." My throat dries and my chest tightens at the thought of it.

"Why? Who says I was even dreaming?"

"Well, you seemed kind of worried or nervous." I look around the park; no one is around. "You were muttering about something, and… and I think you were crying." All of that happened in my sleep? I suddenly feel really self-conscious of myself and pull my scarf up a little higher. If she saw all of that, what's the harm of telling her?

I sigh, "Well, I was dreaming about, about the day my parents died." I am already depressed just by the thought of it.

"Oh. I am… so sorry."She looks at me with sincere concern. She takes my gloved hand and guides me to a bench. I'm thankful for the darkness, so she couldn't see my blush.

We sit down next to each other, almost bumping shoulders. "Will you tell me about it, Mako? Please, I just want to help." I see her cerulean blue eyes light up in hope, and I know I can't deny her.

"Fine, just don't interrupt. Okay?" She nods her head in understanding, and I launch into my story. By the time I'm done, it's probably late, much later than I intended to be out here. When I finish, I turn my head away, so she can't see the tears dotting my eyes.

"Mako, I really am sorry. I never knew that about you."

"Yah, not many people do." I turn towards her, and she looks at me cautiously, like I'm a bomb about to detonate.

"Did it scar?" I follow her gaze which end up down at my hands which are still gloved and nod.

"Why do you think I wore them this whole time?"

"Oh." She sits looking at my hands, and I suddenly feel really self-conscious. I'm about to stand up and shove my hands in my pockets when she grabs my left hand. I'm about to yank it back when I relax. It's just Korra after all. She begins to take my hand out of my glove carefully. When she finally takes it off, she flips it over and gasps in shock. Starting from the middle of my pinky and ending at the bottom edge of the left side of my palm is a large angry red line where the fire hit me. It is still painful, like I just got it. She runs her finger along it causing me to wince.

"Oh, I'm sorry! Does that hurt?" I pull my hand back and take back my glove.

"Just a little." I put my glove back on and stand up. I offer my hand, and she willingly takes it. "I'll walk you back to the dock if you like."

She nods slowly to herself and says, "Yah, I'd like that." When she gets up she doesn't let go off my hand.

Together we walk hand-in-hand down to the dock. "So you've got one on your back too?"

I look at her my eyebrows raised, wondering where this is going. "Yes, I do." Korra just nods thoughtfully and then shivers. "Are you cold?" I begin to take of my coat and hand it to her.

"Just a little," she takes it from me gratefully and puts it on. She let's go off my hand, and I'm surprised to find that I'm almost disappointed. I shake my head and look back to her. She's put on my jacket, and I have to stifle a laugh. It is much too big for her and hangs loosely over her frame.

"Why do you always hide, Mako?"

"What do you mean?" I am scared to find out what she has to say about me.

"Like just now! You could've laughed! It's like your never happy, except maybe when you're with Bolin." I stand their shocked. I'm not sure what to say to that. "Plus, you look 10 times better looking when you're happy," she mutters under her breath. I'm what? Does she actually think that? I look back to where she's standing, and I guess I wasn't supposed to hear that last part because she's looking sullenly at the ground.

I grab her forearm and spin her around, ready to set her straight. "Korra, it's not that I hide from—" My words are cut off when I feel a gentle pressure on my lips. My eyes pop open in surprise. I'm about to push her away, but why? It's not like I can deny that I don't want this, so I let myself sink into it. I feel Korra go rigid, but she smiles into the kiss. She brings her hands up my back which causes me to shift uncomfortably. I hear her whisper sorry for a moment before kissing me again. She tangles her fingers in my hair, and I cautiously rest my hands on her hips and pull her into me.

After a while, we both separate and look at each other. I find myself blushing a very bright red, so I look at the ground and hope it fades away.

"I find it very endearing, Mako. The blush, I mean." I just scowl and blush more. She then takes my hand, and together we finish our walk to the dock.

"I guess," I clear my throat, "I guess I'll see you tomorrow, then."

"Okay, Mako. Bye. Oh, and here's your jacket." She hands my jacket back to me and I shrug it on. I nod at her and shuffle my feet.

"So, Mako… What are we now?"

I gulp just at the thought of it. What are we? I rub the back of my neck uncomfortably and shrug a little. "Umm, I guess we are dating, I think."

Korra just nods and then turns around towards the edge of the dock. I wonder what that means. Technically she didn't agree, but I don't think she disagreed either. I keep walking towards the end of the dock when I hear thumps on the wood. I turn around to see what's going. Just as I turn around, Korra crashes into me full force, and I stagger back at her weight. She kisses me once on the cheek then whispers in my ear, "Good night, boyfriend."

Hey! Just a little fluff. May be a little stupid, but I couldn't resist. So much longer than I intended it to be! I am in love with Makorra. Don't get me wrong, Asami is super sweet, but… yah. Just to let you know, he is not dating Asami in this scene. That would be weird.

Xoxo- to all you obsessed readers, from AwkwardPlatypus7