As much as I love my work, it can be a struggle to get through each day. The simpering smiles and hidden agendas wear me down and every new council session ends with complete mental exhaustion. I still wouldn't trade it for anything. I cannot describe the satisfaction of pushing a new piece of legislation through the system, or of being responsible for a new policy that makes a difference in the lives of the people. I delight in the responsibility placed on me, and the power rushes through my veins like a drug. However, as much as I take pleasure in my work, it is also a great weight upon my shoulders that constantly threatens to bring me to my knees. Each and every day I force myself to exude confidence and energy as I walk away, but I long to slump over with fatigue and stumble my way home.
What waits for me at home is what makes everything worthwhile. Korra is bluntly honest, the opposite of the bureaucrats I constantly maneuver around on the council, the opposite of me. She says exactly what she feels and I doubt she'd be able to tell a convincing lie if she had to. Instead of worrying about hidden goals or deception, I relax, smile, and simply take in what she says. Where others treat me as an obstacle to be worked around or an uneasy ally, she has opened her heart to me, and it is a gift I never could have deserved. The things I've done to her should have made me an enemy in her eyes, but she is as quick to forgive as she is to anger. When I walk through the door and enter our home, the way her eyes light up brings a flood of warmth to my heart.
I think I will never stop wondering at the pleasure she takes from being with me. We blundered our way into a relationship, and the memories of those early days of awkwardness and stiffness still make me cringe. The first time she threw herself into my arms I was so surprised I almost fell over. She touches me as much as she can, even when we're just doing simple work around the house. Even on the nights where nothing else happens in bed, she rests a gentle hand on my arm, not breaking that contact even in sleep. Whenever either of us returns home, her first aim is to touch me and reestablish that physical link. On my rare days without council meetings I rise early out of habit, but she sleeps late, spreading out to take up both halves of the bed. I collect the papers that need my attention and do what work I can at the small desk I keep in the room. When she finally wakes up, she rolls over looking for me, and pulls me down on the bed to burrow into my arms and rest her head against my chest. She showers me with kisses and caresses at every opportunity, and the constant affection she shows will never cease to amaze me. My days might be long and exhausting and the work unending, but this woman who waits for me with open arms will keep me standing as long as she looks on me with favor.