1.
Korra collapsed onto the cool stone bench, happy to have a moment to herself.
Since arriving in Republic City, Korra had been bombarded with attention: From Tenzin and his family, city officials, and of course, the city police force…and tonight was no different. After refusing Tarrlok's request of joining a task force to capture Equalist leader Amon, he had been doing everything in his power to persuade her otherwise. It began with lavish gifts and soon escalated into a whole gala honoring her.
While Korra was flattered, she wasn't exactly the 'gala type', and was able to find refuge on the small outdoor terrace. She just needed a moment to breathe, to think, without being surrounded by the 'movers and shakers of Republic City', as Tarrlok had put it.
She gazed up at the stars, longing for the clear nights back at the Northern Water Tribe where there were more stars that sky. She smirked to herself, "Who woulda thought I would miss that place…" She said softly to herself.
"Um, excuse me…" Korra turned around, hearing a small voice behind her. To her surprise it was one of the servers from the party, a tall, muscular boy with glowing green eyes. She had noticed him before, since she had the suspicion he had been following her…
The boy's face lit up with Korra's acknowledgement. "You're the Avatar!" He said excitedly, running over to her side.
"Ohmygosh, I can't believe it's actually you, I mean I saw you earlier, but now it's like up close and seriously you're just so amazing-" Korra placed her hand over his mouth. He was slightly annoying, but it was endearing to say the least.
"While I appreciate the flattery, mind telling me what your name is?" She removed her hand and the boy grinned sheepishly, clearly embarrassed.
"Uh, it's Bolin. Yeah, sorry, I was just really excited."
"Really? I couldn't tell." Both at them laughed. It was quiet for a moment, Korra not knowing what to say and Bolin too stunned to say anything.
"So, I know this is gonna sound creepy, but you live on the Air Temple Island, right?" Korra looked at him, nodding in response.
"Okay, well, the apartment where my and my brother live – my brother's Mako, he's a server here tonight too, he kinda looks like me but with golden eyes and obviously not as handsome – but it has this clear view of the island and sometimes, well, I just watch you train and your air bending is amazing. I've never met anyone like you in my life." Korra gave him a smile, just slightly creeped out by him. Bolin started getting worried, realizing he wasn't making the best impression on the Avatar. He quickly racked his brain, thinking of the perfect segue…
"This party's pretty great! I didn't see you dancing at all though…I'm a pretty good dancer." He said, obviously hinting that he wanted to dance with her. Korra smirked
"I don't dance. Besides, I have a patch on the back of my dress," She looked down, feeling embarrassed. When she was getting ready earlier, Ikki got a little to rough with handling Katara's dress, causing a tear that Pema had to patch up. Korra tried to shake it off but was still slightly mortified by it.
Bolin was intrigued. "A patch? Let me see it." He began to reach over when Korra lept from the bench, shouting no while she strategically moved to avoid Bolin seeing the patch. Somehow though, Bolin snuck behind her, exclaiming, "I like it!" Korra rolled her eyes and began to sit back down on the bench, but not before Bolin caught her hands.
"Dance with me tonight, and I guarantee you by next spring, every girl in Republic City will be wearing a patch on her dress!" Korra smiled and couldn't help but laugh at Bolin's ridiculous comment. Alright, so he wasn't just a giant creep, he was actually a pretty decent guy.
It took Bolin a moment before he realized he was still holding the Avatar's hands. They were smooth and warm, and seemed to fit perfectly into his own.
'Alright Bo, this is your chance, just seal the deal.' He took a deep breath and looked into Korra's eyes. "C'mon, take a chance on me?"
Korra smiled and slipped out of his gentle grip, swaying her hips as she walked away. Bolin felt dejected and sighed, walking away as well.
"Alright, we can bend if ya like." Bolin's head perked up as he looked over at Korra. She had her hands on her hips and a sassy grin on her face.
"How'd ya know I can bend?"
"The eyes, duh."
Bolin smiled sheepishly again, "Oh yeah, I guess so…but wait! This isn't fair! You're the Avatar, you can bend everything! Alls I can do is Earthbend…" He said, bending a stone from the garden at the edge of the terrace.
"Okay, while playing fair isn't fun, I accept. I choose…" She looked around and spotted a small fountain. She bended some and created a water whip, whipping Bolin at his feet, "water!"
"Hey, no fair, we haven't started yet!" Bolin called out. Korra laughed. Bolin gave the countdown and the two went at it, whipping water and stones at each other, but careful not to cause any serious damage to the building. When Korra had her back turned, Bolin created a small chain of stones and shackled them around her ankle, causing Korra to fall over. He bended her over to him, smiling triumphantly.
"Oh, you call that fair?" She smirked as Bolin helped her up.
"No, but playing fair isn't always fun." Korra felt herself blush hearing her words thrown back at her. Wait, was he…flirting? There weren't many boys back at her compound and she hadn't the chance to meet anyone her own age since coming to the city. Flirting was somewhat of a foreign concept to her.
"I wonder who told you that," She purred, stepping closer to him. She was even more surprised that she was reciprocating his flirtatious vibe. Bolin smiled.
"You really are great, Korra. I mean it when I say I've never met anyone like you before…" He trailed off, staring into her blazing blue eyes. They were silent for a moment, but it was nice, comfortable. She almost felt like they were going to kiss before-
"Korra! There you are!" Pema walked out to the terrace. "Tenzin's been looking everywhere for you! Apparently Tarrlok wants you to speak to a bunch of journalists but Tenzin thinks it's a-oh, who is this?" She asked, looking at Bolin.
"Oh, this is Bolin. He's, uh-"
"Big fan of the Avatar," He said, trying to remain composed.
"Oh, okay. You just met?" Pema asked.
"Yeah, just now. I came out here to get some fresh air and he was here too and we just started talking. Just talking. Nothing else." Korra said, trying to erase any romantic implications Pema might sense. Bolin didn't miss that and looked slightly dejected.
"Of course you were…well, you better come back inside before my husband has a heart attack. It was nice meeting you, Bolin." Pema smiled at the two of them as she went back inside. Korra turned back to Bolin.
"Sorry, guess I better head back in. It was nice meeting you, seriously, you're a cool guy." Korra turned around reluctantly, not ready to leave Bolin and join the party again. Before she could go, she felt Bolin grab her wrist.
"Hey, before you go, my brother and I do this thing, where we compete with other benders in this like underground tournament. It's three against three, one person for each element. We fight, kinda like we did, but it's fair and there're rules and stuff. My brother's a Firebender and our Waterbender just quit. So, I was wondering…" Bolin trailed off, hoping Korra would get the jist. Korra's eyes lit up.
"You want me to be the Waterbender on your team?" Bolin nodded eagerly. "That would be the best thing ever! Where can I see you again?" Bolin thought for a moment.
"Do you know Narook's? It's downtown."
"The Seaweed Noodelry! I've been dying to go there!" Korra exclaimed, bouncing on the balls of her feet with excitement.
"It's my favorite! Meet me there tomorrow at one o' clock. I'll bring Mako with me and we can talk about this more."
"Sounds great. I'll see you there." Korra gave him a final smile before heading back into the party. Bolin smiled to himself, almost unable to contain his excitement when he heard an unfortunate voice.
"Bolin! Get back in here! You're not getting paid to look at the stars!" His boss snapped at him angrily.
"Sorry, sir, I'm coming right in." His boss growled at him, but Bolin didn't even care. Nothing could bring him down tonight.