A/N: Well, here's another Pemzin oneshot. This one's quite a bit longer than my other one. They obviously take place in different universes, seeing as how Lin is "the other woman" in this one. Enjoy!
Seventeen & Thirty-three
"Isn't he handsome?" giggled Ari.
Pema glanced up at the man whom her friend was referring to. Master Tenzin, she'd said his name was. Ari, her cousin, had joined the Air Acolytes a few weeks ago, and had invited an interested Pema to stay for a week to see what it was like.
She shrugged. "He's not bad-looking."
Ari sighed and gazed at Master Tenzin, who was sitting with his father, Avatar Aang. "I think he's just dreamy. Too bad he's with that uptight Lin Beifong."
"You think every man is dreamy," Pema muttered, standing up to take her empty plate into the kitchen.
As she walked by Master Tenzin, Pema had to admit her cousin was right: he was pretty good-looking. He was tall, broad-shouldered, and had a rather handsome face. He glanced up at her as she walked by, and she blushed. Hurriedly, she dropped off her empty plate in the kitchen and sat back down with Ari.
Early the next morning, the two girls hurried down to the meditation pavilion. All the Air Acolytes, regardless of how long they'd been there, went to the pavilion to meditate each morning. Ari quickly got into position and shut her eyes.
Pema was completely lost. She studied the way Ari had folded her legs, and tried to do the same.
"Need some help?"
Pema turned. It was Master Tenzin. "Er… yes, sir."
He knelt down beside her. "Just put your right foot here, and bring your left foot up there… like that. There you go."
She smiled. "Thank you."
Master Tenzin nodded. "You're welcome."
Pema shut her eyes and began to meditate… or, at least, she tried to meditate. For some reason, she couldn't get Master Tenzin's face out of her head. She quickly chalked it up to nothing more than a simple childish attraction. After all, she was only seventeen. Master Tenzin was thirty-three, and involved with Lin Beifong. She just needed to stop listening to Ari whenever she talked about having a crush on this man or that one. It was starting to get to her.
That being thought, Pema smiled slightly to herself and focused her thoughts on more spiritual matters.
Eighteen & Thirty-four
It had been two weeks since Avatar Aang died. All of the world was in mourning, especially Air Temple Island. Avatar Aang had made a point to get to know every person living on the island, no matter who or what they were. Pema would've thought that, save for Master Katara, no one would be more upset that Master Tenzin. But the quiet, stoic man had hardly shed a tear during the entire ordeal.
So when she was walking to the meditation pavilion one day and came across Master Tenzin sitting on a bench, crying, she didn't quite know what to do.
Pema had lost her own parents at a young age, and understood grief a little too well. This wasn't a matter of whether or not she could comfort him. It was a matter of whether or not she should.
After a couple minutes of awkwardly shifting her weight and looking around, she decided to go for it. Pema sat down next to him. "Master Tenzin?"
He looked up at her. "Pema."
She smiled sadly. "I… I know what it's like to lose someone you love. My own parents died when I was ten years old." She touched his arm. "I know I'm young, but… if you need to talk, I'm here."
Master Tenzin was silent for a moment. Then he spoke. "I've been trying to put on a brave face for everyone. My mother is beside herself with grief, and I don't want to bother her with my own problems. My brother and sister have already gone back to their own families. The entire island is in mourning, and I need to set a good example. It's… it's almost too much, though." He wrung his hands.
"I just don't know what to do. Being the last airbender… I've been ready to get married for a long time. But Lin, she's just so darn stubborn." He forced a laugh. "I know she doesn't want children. But I have to get married and I have to have a family. Sometimes I wonder… if she's even the right one."
Pema shifted, unsure as to whether or not he should be telling her all this. "Maybe… maybe she just needs a little bit more time…"
Master Tenzin wrung his hands together. "I don't know. Maybe. Spirits, I wish my father was still here. He… there was something he told me once, when Lin and I started dating. Something about not giving my heart away too soon. I didn't really listen, though. I was only eighteen or so. Stupid." He glanced over at Pema, realizing what he'd just said. "No offense. You're a very smart girl, Pema. A lot smarter than I was at eighteen."
Her cheeks reddened. "Thank you, Master Tenzin."
He sighed, and smiled somewhat sadly. "You can just call me 'Tenzin' outside of class. I think… well, after this, we know too much about each other for our relationship to be strictly formal."
Pema smiled. "Okay… Tenzin."
The two of them sat there for awhile, not saying anything. Pema could tell that just her being there helped Tenzin feel better. She hadn't thought of him in a romantic way since that first day over a year ago, but slowly those affectionate thoughts were beginning to return. She chided herself, reminding her heart that Tenzin was in his thirties and involved with another woman. Right now, he just needed someone who understood what it was like to lose someone close to you.
After awhile, Tenzin stood up. "Thank you, Pema, for listening, and just being here. It means a lot."
Pema stood up as well. "It's not a problem, Tenzin. I just remember how I felt when my parents died… sometimes I wanted to talk about it, and sometimes I just wanted someone to be there."
Tenzin nodded, and then did something rather uncharacteristic. He hugged her. It was brief, but nonetheless, it was a hug. Then he smiled, and walked back to the main temple.
Pema had a feeling that it would take her a little bit longer to get rid of those romantic thoughts this time.
Twenty & Thirty-six
"But that's the whole point of reading a fictional story; it's supposed to be for fun!"
Tenzin shook his head, grinning slightly. "Pema, the whole point of reading is to learn. You can't learn anything from a story that's made up!"
Pema blew a wisp of brown hair out of her eyes. "Of course you can! Just because the plot of a story is made up doesn't mean that there can't be bits of fact in it!"
Tenzin folded his arms. "Like what?"
"Just the other day I was reading a novel about a girl who was in love with a boy who happened to be her best friend, so she confessed her love to him, but he didn't feel the same way, and I learned that sometimes you have to take chances that don't always pay off."
Tenzin raised an eyebrow. "Okay, so maybe fictional novels teach you life lessons. But what about facts? What about how to do something?"
"Well-"
"Tenzin!"
Pema and Tenzin turned and saw Lin Beifong walking up to where they were sitting. Pema's grin faltered.
"Hi, Lin." Tenzin leaned in for a kiss, but Lin brushed him off.
"We need to talk," she said.
Tenzin got up and looked at Pema apologetically. "We'll continue this discussion later."
Pema nodded. She smiled slightly at Lin, who met her with cold eyes. Hurriedly, she left the two alone.
Later that evening, Tenzin sat down with Pema and Ari at dinner. He looked at Pema with - was that sadness? - in his eyes. "Can I speak with you outside, Pema?"
She glanced at Ari. "Sure."
The two walked out to the balcony overlooking Yue Bay. Tenzin didn't look at Pema as he spoke. "This afternoon, when Lin came to talk to me, it was… about you."
"Me?" Pema's heart stopped. She didn't like where this was going.
"Yes. She… she doesn't think we should be friends, you and I."
"Wait. Does she think that?…" Pema's voice trailed off.
Tenzin sighed. "I don't know. She thinks that you have feelings for me. I told her that was ridiculous, that we were just friends, but she's still not convinced."
He was silent. Pema had a bad feeling she knew why. "You told her you'd stop being friends with me, didn't you?" she asked quietly.
For the first time since they came out on the balcony, Tenzin looked at her. "I didn't know what else to do. Lin and I have been arguing so much lately- I wanted to avoid another spat if I could."
Tears began to form in Pema's eyes. "I understand."
Tenzin looked like he wanted to say something else, but couldn't quite bring himself to. Instead, he straightened his robes and went back inside.
Pema looked out over Yue Bay, tears streaming down her face. Lin wasn't wrong. Pema did have feelings for Tenzin, feelings she had just started to classify as love. A small part of her had hoped that maybe, just maybe, Tenzin felt the same way. She knew that he and Lin weren't happy. She'd seen him with her. Every time they were together, he was uptight. He wasn't happy. Pema knew how badly he wanted to get married and have a family. She wanted that, too. She'd wanted a family ever since she could remember.
Pema thought about the book she'd been telling Tenzin about. The girl in the story took a chance on love, even though it didn't pay off. Maybe…
No, Pema thought. I will not ruin whatever is left of mine and Tenzin's friendship.
Somewhere deep inside her, Pema hoped with everything in her that Tenzin reciprocated her feelings. But logic has a way of outweighing hope, and Pema refused to let herself get heartbroken.
Because this road can only lead to heartbreak, right?
Twenty-one & Thirty-seven
It had been a year since Tenzin had called off his friendship with Pema. She'd hoped that she'd fall out of love with him. She'd hoped that she'd meet a nice man, close to her age, whom she could settle down with.
Much to Pema's disappointment, though, she hadn't. If anything, her love for Tenzin was stronger than ever.
She missed him. She missed debating with him over books. She missed his smile (which seemed to be getting fewer and further between these days). She missed the way his eyes would light up whenever he talked about someday visiting the old Air Temples with his future children.
There was a rumor floating around that he was going to propose to Lin tonight- and that she was going to say yes.
Ari had told her the news. Pema was at least glad that, if she had to hear the news, it had come from her cousin. That didn't make the heartbreak any less painful, though.
She'd skipped dinner and went down to the meditation pavilion to try and think. Over and over, she said to herself, He's marrying Lin. He loves Lin. You never had a chance.
Still, she couldn't help but wonder if he'd ever thought of her as more than a friend. There had been a couple times when he'd looked at her that had made her think… but she'd quickly dismissed that thought as nothing more than the product of a foolishly hopeful mind.
"Pema?"
She turned around. It was Tenzin.
He walked up next to her. "How… have you been?" he asked slowly.
Pema shrugged. "Alright, I guess. You?"
Tenzin sighed. "I've been better."
There was a long moment of silence. Eventually, Pema asked, "Why are you here?"
Tenzin shrugged. "I don't know. I came down here intending to meditate, but when I saw you, I decided to talk to you. It's been awhile."
"It certainly has," Pema said.
Another moment of silence. Tackling the elephant in the room, Pema said, "I heard you're proposing to Lin tonight."
Tenzin chuckled, though his eyes seemed to have a sad quality about them. "Nothing stays secret around here, does it?"
Pema smiled ruefully. "Oh, you'd be surprised by some of the things that have stayed secret around here."
He looked into her eyes. She looked back. In that moment, she would've sworn that he knew- and that he felt the same. After a few moments, Tenzin broke away, almost… flustered? "I… I guess I better go get ready for tonight."
And at that moment in time, Pema mustered up every ounce of courage in her body and said the three words she'd longed to say to Tenzin for years: "I love you."
A myriad of emotions seemed to cross over his face after her confession: shock, confusion, relief, happiness, hope, and regret. Tenzin said nothing.
Pema could feel tears beginning to form. "Don't just… stand there! Spirits, say something! At the very least tell me you don't feel the same way!"
Tenzin stepped closer to her, cupping his hand around her face and wiping away a stream of tears with his thumb. He looked like he was about to cry himself. "Pema…"
She brushed him off. "Forget it. Forget I said anything. Just forget it." Pema turned and ran back to the temple as fast as she could, leaving Tenzin standing in the meditation pavilion with a heartbroken expression on his face.
"Pema, what are you doing?" Ari asked three days later, standing in the doorway of her cousin's room.
"I'm leaving," Pema replied coldly, packing the last of her clothes into a bag.
"Leaving? But you love it here!"
She zipped up her bag and looked at Ari. "I made a mistake, Ari. A huge mistake. I can't stay here any longer."
Pema hadn't told anyone about her confession to Tenzin. Ari knew she loved Tenzin, and Pema could tell that she suspected he was the reason she was leaving. Thankfully, she didn't ask any questions. Instead, she just embraced her. "I'll miss you, Pema."
Pema hugged her back. "I'll miss you too, Ari."
The two broke apart, and Pema walked away. There was a ferry leaving in fifteen minutes, and the dock was on the other side of the island. She didn't want to miss it.
About halfway through her walk to the dock, she heard a voice call her name. "Pema!"
She turned around. Tenzin.
He caught up with her, panting. Has he been running around looking for me?
"Pema, you can't leave. Please. Stay." His voice was pleading, desperate.
She shifted her bag. "Tenzin, I made a huge mistake. I never should've said anything. I could've lived with you marrying Lin if I'd kept quiet, but since you know… I don't think I can live here anymore."
"We're not getting married."
Pema caught her breath. "Did you…?"
He nodded. "We're broken up."
Pema's head swirled. They're not getting married… he broke up with her… Lin is going to kill me… he-
"I love you, Pema."
Tenzin spoke those words as if there was nothing in the world he was more sure of. He looked at Pema, expectantly.
Pema broke into a grin, and started crying. "I love you, too," she whispered, and threw her arms around him.
Tenzin wrapped his arms around her, and buried his face in her shoulder. A deep horn blared in the distance, signaling that the ferry had taken off.
Tenzin chuckled. "Looks like you missed your ferry."
Pema smiled coyly. "I guess I'll have to stay here, then," she said before pulling him in for a kiss.
I hope I didn't make Lin too villainous. She's one of my favorite characters from Korra, but I was trying to write how I thought Pema would've perceived her. Please review! :3