If basketball didn't pan out after college, Korra could definitely have a career adjusting insurance claims, since she was so good at denial. Maybe she and Asami could work in adjacent cubicles, denying claims and denying each other.


Despite their peace talk, Korra barely spent any time with Asami outside of practice. She knew when she agreed to give Asami space, she'd basically signed her own waiver to emotional torture.

Surprisingly, their teamwork during practice had been unaffected by the melodramatic lava pit between them. Korra could say, without bragging, that they were the best tandem duo on the court. But it seemed like that only applied on the court. Off the court was an entirely different ball game.

After the final team break, Asami would slip out, mutter goodbyes and whatnot to the team, and leave Korra to walk home alone. Which meant Korra would spend her post-practice walk home with her hands in her pockets and kicking rocks. You know what happens when you kick rocks? You accidentally kick one into a bush and cause an elephant rat to scurry out and accidentally crawl part way up your leg before you freak the fuck out and start whacking yourself. That's what.

Then Korra'd go back to her dorm, alternate between push ups, spinning the ball on her finger, and one-legged squats. Eat, rinse, repeat.

It'd been six days since they agreed to be friends, but that plan was working out with all the success of Wile E. Coyote's shenanigans.

Today, Korra paused as she passed by Asami's dorm, debating whether or not to knock on the door.

Fuck it.

Her impatience was getting the better of her again. She took a step towards Asami's front porch. They'd agreed to at least be friends, and Korra was not going to let it be weird. She'd charge past the weirdness straight into downright cringe worthy. Whatever.

Her phone buzzed in her pocket.

Was it divine intervention? Had she just been saved from committing some heinous, cheesy romantic gesture, like presenting Asami with the banana mango smoothie she had kept in a cooler bag in her duffel, that she totally did not wake up a half an hour earlier than usual to make? Korra glanced at the caller ID.

Catfish Mako.

"Hello?"

"Hey, what are you up to?" Mako's voice was clear, yet there was a lot of background noise, and it sounded like he was in a wind tunnel.

"I was just about to step on a romantic landmine, but if I have to rescue you from the tornado it sounds like you're trapped in, I'll come running."

Mako sighed, and Korra could feel his frown. She laughed.

"I'm driving," he said, ignoring her. "I had an assignment out of town, so I'm actually near you. Do you have time to get lunch? Are you even allowed off the compound?"

Korra rolled her eyes. "Yes Mako, we can leave the compound, we can't elope though, just so you know."

"One glance and they'd know you'd kidnapped me and I was being forced to marry you as part of your polygamous religious cult."

Korra grinned. "Yes, as you know joining the Red Lotus has always been a part of my life's goals."

She looked back at Asami's door, deciding that she could wait another day before pushing her own agenda. Besides, talking to Mako would probably be good for her, even if they ended up arguing. She turned and started walking to the front gate of the compound.


Mako took a seat at an open booth as Korra slid into the bench across from him. He'd chosen a nearby diner, known mostly for their greasy, but hamburgers. A waitress came by, and before they even opened up their menus, Korra ordered a Pepsi and Mako ordered a coffee, which he drank black, just like a grown up.

"So what's new?" he asked as he placed his mug back on the table.

Korra dropped the straw from her lips, pushing the cup away from her. She wondered where to start.

"Well, we won our last game," she said, "barely." She punctuated the last word with wide eyes.

Two cheeseburgers magically appeared and the waitress slid one in front of each of them.

Mako nodded. "I saw the game on TV. You played great." He paused for a second before asking, "And what about everything else? Off the court?"

Korra looked back up at Mako, mouth full of cheeseburger. "Haph, fuannay yous shoood ashgh."

Mako grimaced, holding up a palm. "Swallow first, Princess Diaries."

Korra eyed him as she chewed, swallowing her bite with a big gulp. "Can I continue now, master?" she asked with a jeer.

Mako arched a sharkbrow in response.

"I assuming you're talking about Asami," Korra said, to which Mako arched the same sharkbrow once more. "Well, I told her how I felt, and she ignored me for a bit, oh! And we kissed, then we weren't talking again, then we won the game," Korra rambled.

Mako's lips just kept pressing closer and closer together until they almost disappeared. "You kissed?"

Korra made a face. "More or less, I got pretty impulsive, and kissed her when we were in bed together."

Mako's face melted like a wax figurine in thrown into a volcano. "What?" He pinched the bridge of his nose, frowning. "Back up, start from the beginning. I told you to tell her how you felt. How did that progress to you two in bed together and kissing?"

So Korra recounted the events since their midnight conversation, though she conveniently left out the interventions by The Coaches Three and Eska.

"So you told her you want to be friends," Mako said incredulity and confusion. "That's it?"

Korra shrugged. "Yeah, I guess I did. Though I did leave the door open if she wants to," she waggled her fingers, "you know, be more."

"What happens if she doesn't want to be in a relationship with you?" he said gently, like his words were a blowtorch and Korra were dry grass.

Korra let out her breath. "Then that's all there is," she said evenly. "I can wait, Mako, and even if we've reached the pinnacle of our relationship, then that's what it is."

Mako smiled, and Korra could feel the warmth from it. His lips together, the corners of his eyes gently creasing. This was the best Mako smile; this was the one that meant he was content, and understanding, and not constipated. He nodded slowly.

"So que sera sera," he said.

"What? Korra blinked. "Quesadilla?"

Mako waved a dismissive hand. "Never mind. I just never thought I'd see the day where you learned patience."

"Yeah well, what's that saying? If you love something, you have to let it go? And I resent that. I am a very patient being."

"The only patient you ever knew was that time you ended up in the hospital. We're talking about you, the girl that wrote a haphazard Valentine's note in November when we were twelve, the girl who burned her lips on hot cocoa because she couldn't wait for it to be poured into a cup, the girl who gets mad at streaming videos because it 'takes too long.'" Mako sipped his cooling coffee. "I'd say you've done a lot of growing up."

"Thanks Mako," Korra said as she met his eyes. The mushy atmosphere was starting to make her really uncomfortable, so she changed the subject. "So what's the assignment?"

His hazel eyes got excited; Mako really did like his job as a detective. "I'm working on a kidnapping case right now. The girl might've been spotted nearby."

Korra oohed impressively. "Shouldn't you have a partner? Like Elliot and Olivia? Or am I your Olivia? Oh my god, let's go check out leads!"

"Calm down," Mako said holding out his hands, "I dropped my partner off at another restaurant; he's got family here. Although you'd be a better partner than Wu," he sighed. "He's ridiculously clingy. And always getting hurt."

Korra cocked her head. "Them's the breaks, pardner. Guess that's what you get for being such a hotshot detective."

Mako grunted and crossed his arms. "Assholes."

Korra grinned. Huffy Mako was the best.

Mako had made detective at only twenty-three. Unheard of in, well, ever. Being promoted ahead of everyone else, particularly old, grumpy hasbeens made for a lot of tension, and so he'd been getting a lot of bitch work lately. Though Korra had a very sneaky suspicion Mako's promotion had something to do with him sleeping with the 911 operator,d who, conveniently, was also the police chief's sister. He must've been very good for her to put in such a good word for him.

The rest of lunch passed freely, as Mako update Korra with Bolin's current life, and she shared the last few seconds of excitement from the previous game.


Korra shut the door and leaned over to wave goodbye to Mako. "Thanks for lunch!"

He leaned over the gear shift, meeting her gaze.

"Just don't get hurt, okay?" he said like the big brother he was.

Korra gave him a melancholy smile. "That's the risk though, isn't it?"

She had walked with the intention of going back to her place, but instead Korra found herself in front of Asami's dorm once more, the mango smoothie in her bag now long past melted.

Just don't get hurt.

Korra shook her head. Getting hurt wasn't even a question. Asami's past had been marred by far more hurt than Korra had ever known in her life, and she was still standing. Korra could survive getting hurt by a girl, even if it happened to be the most beautiful one she'd ever get the fortune of knowing.

Korra could be plain, safe and downright boring if she chose to. She could ignore her feelings, and Asami's for that matter, and live their lives in radio silence. Live the safe, normal life that she could probably have.

But she was Korra, and she had passion and love and a desire to give that to someone, to share it with them. And if the tightrope she was walking happened to snap while she was traversing it, well then fuck it all and she'd fall into the abyss knowing she'd given whatever she had.

And so she found herself rapping on the door twice, singing a stupid ass song from a hella good movie. Fuck it. Bulldoze past the weird.

"Do you wanna build a snowman?

Come on let's go and play-"

Footsteps were padding towards the door, and Korra kept singing.

"I never see you anymore,

come out the do-"

The door swung open.

"-doooohhhhfuck!"

Instead of being greeted with the beautiful sight of Asami, P'Li was holding the door, giving Korra the most murderous look she'd seen yet.

"Hi," Korra tried as an opening salvo.

"You suck at singing."

"Uh, hah, yep, my bad. Is Asami here?" Korra said sheepishly, rubbing her arm.

P'li turned and yelled into the dorm. "Asami! I'm going out now." She grabbed a jacket off the back of the door. "And Korra is here!" P'li walked out of the dorm, pushed Korra in, and shut the door.

The door slammed behind Korra and she jumped in her shoes. She blew out a breath, hoping that she was blowing out the unease and worry sitting in her chest.

A figure rose from the couch and there stood Asami, dressed in a loose tank top and old gym shorts. Her face devoid of makeup, hair tied up in a messy bun, and small bags under her eyes. Korra doubted there was another time where she found Asami more beautiful.

"Hi," she said.

"Hi," Asami returned, and though silence followed, it was clear she was waiting for an explanation for Korra's sudden appearance.

"Hey, uh," Korra stuttered, as she fumbled around in her duffel bag. She pulled the tumblr out, dripping with condensation. "I made you a banana mango smoothie, but I, uh, got distracted, and it got kind of melted and warm, but I figured I'd stop by anyway?" Korra shrugged and water dripped off the bottle.

A beat passed before Asami stepped aside and nodded toward the couch. Korra felt the bubble of tension appear between them, but she strode forward, past Asami, and popped it. She walked through the foyer, kicking off her shoes, and plopped herself on the sofa.

Asami had some fancy schematic on her laptop, with the DIY Network playing in the background. Korra grabbed the remote and flipped it to ESPN, catching up on the latest scores. She was halfway through a recap by Steven A. Smith before she realized Asami hadn't sat down. Korra craned her head backwards on the couch, finding Asami still standing near the kitchen with her arms crossed.

"What are you doing?" Korra asked the upside-down Asami. "Come on, come sit down." Korra patted the spot next to her.

Asami didn't say anything, staring at Korra from above, before seemingly winning the war within herself, and walking towards the couch.

Korra righted herself, blinking a little as the blood drained out of her face and left her light-headed. Asami sat down an arm's reach away.

"So what's new?" Korra tried. She was really terrible at small talk.

Asami eyed her with a look that clearly said, "Are you fucking kidding me?"

Korra puffed her cheeks, blowing out a breath. Polite conversation was not going to work. So Korra changed tactics.

"C'mon Mimi," she cooed, and Asami's irritation immediately mixed with disbelief. Korra had struck gold. "Miiiiimiiii, she tried again, thrilled that her horribly made up nickname had cracked Asami's icy walls.

"What the hell kind of nickname is that?" Asami asked, and a little spark of delight burned in Korra, because Asami had said the question without anger or ire, but mock indignation. The real Asami Sato has just stood up.

"Uh, well," Korra laughed, "Your name has way too many syllables, and I just thought it'd be hilarious."

Asami rolled her eyes, but her crossed arms unfolded.

"Not to mention," Korra continued, "it means 'ear' in Japanese, and I, uh, kinda like it when you push your hair back behind your ear."

Asami reactively pushed a lock of hair behind said ear and blushed, and Korra gave herself kudos for that one.

"I am Japanese, you know," Asami said with a lift of her eyebrows.

"I know, but I'm not," Korra shrugged, "so aren't you at least impressed that I know that?"

"I think I'd be more impressed if you recited poetry," Asami said matter-of-factly.

"I can do that," Korra said.

Asami crossed her arms and fixed her with a dubious look. "Badly written haiku and stuff in children's books don't count."

"Fine." Korra crossed her legs on the couch and scooted closer to Asami. "But on one condition."

Asami flinched as Korra took away some of the spatial buffer between them. "What?" she said, eyeing Korra warily.

"You tell me what you think my name reminds you of in Japanese."

Asami's eyes immediately softened, and without hesitating, she said, "Kokoro."

"What does that mean?" Korra asked, intrigued.

"That wasn't part of the deal."

Korra narrowed her eyes, hoping that her pouty lip and miffed face were adorable enough to sway Asami's mind. They weren't.

"Fine," Korra said giving up, "Promise to tell me one day, and I promise I won't Google it."

"I can do that," Asami said, echoing Korra's earlier words. "Now your end of the deal."

"Okay, by the way, if Coach Su ever has the urge to recite haiku to you, run away. Fast."

Asami merely arched an eyebrow, waiting for Korra to continue.

Korra cocked her head, reciting the first snippet that came to mind.

"While I am I, and you are you,

So long as the world contains us both,

Me the loving and you the loved,

While the one eludes, must the other pursue."

Korra lowered her eyes; she hadn't meant to expose so much of herself in a single verse. There weren't very many times where she left herself emotionally vulnerable like this.

"Wow," Asami said, as gave into a casual smile. "I really thought you were lying. I didn't think you actually read poetry."

"It's an easy way to distract myself when basketball's too stressful. It's impossible to worry about your field goal percentage when you're trying to figure out the author's intentions in ye olde English."

"I do that with cars," Asami said offhandedly.

"I noticed," Korra said, as she smiled with her eyes. "You wanna know something?"

Asami nodded.

"The author actually wrote, 'loth,' not 'loved,' in the poem."

"So why did you-"

"Because I don't loath you," Korra said with a shake of her head, averting her gaze. Her heart had somehow lodged in her throat, yet her stomach had managed to bottom out.

Korra finally found the courage to meet Asami's eyes, full of hesitation and doubt. Korra smiled, hoping that her eyes made plain the unfailing love and certainty she felt. She held her hand out, hovering in the neutral zone between them.

Asami eyed the hand, pausing for two beats before bringing her own out to match Korra's. But she stopped before making contact, hovering an inch above, afraid to touch. So Korra came up to meet Asami.

Korra traced her fingers under Asami's palm, the tips of her calloused fingers running over the worn pads in Asami's hand. Her fingers ran slowly up to tips, just tickling the skin, before aligning her fingers in the spaces between Asami's. Korra pressed their palms together, flushing her fingers all the way through and curling her fingers around. Her blue eyes watched as Asami's tense fingers finally relaxed and curled around her own hand, and she marveled at how well Asami's hand fit into hers.

Korra smiled at the contrast in their skin tones, ivory against mocha, just a whole milk chilling next to a chocolate one in a grocery aisle. Korra could feel a heartbeat in the fingertips against the back of Asami's hand, and she wondered if it was hers, or Asami's, or maybe their hearts were beating at the same time.

She looked into Asami's eyes, finding that they had blown wide, reducing the green to a thin line. Using their interlocked hands to pull her closer, Korra pressed in, yet still leaving enough space for Asami to change her mind.

Asami's free hand hand reached up to Korra's cheek, tracing her thumb over caramel skin. Korra's eyes fluttered closed.

Asami mumbled out words that were barely heard.

"A mind at peace with all below,

A heart whose love is innocent."

Korra brought her hand up to hold Asami's, blue eyes opening to meet green ones.

"Lord Byron," Korra whispered.

Asami's gaze dropped to her lips, and Korra ran her tongue over them. Asami paused, her head tilting to the side. Her eyes slid out of focus for a second, before honing in on Korra.

Anxiety, expectation, want, panic and excitement all cycled through Korra, flipping through each one faster than a dragonbird's wings. It felt like all her senses were on fire, hyperstimulated to the point of completely short 's eyes shut, anticipating the scant, yet familiar feeling of Asami's lips. But they never came.

Asami dropped the hand and looked away. "I'm sorry. I can't."

Korra exhaled, releasing the tension and her disappointment. It was still too soon. The last thing she wanted was for Asami to force herself into being with her.

Asami pulled her knees into her chest, resting her chin on her arms. In an instant the tender ambience had evaporated, congealing into a messy, murky pile of dismay.

"It's okay," Korra said gently, wondering if there'd be a day when the statement would no longer be true. Korra blew out another breath, this one sounding more like a dramatic sigh. If basketball didn't pan out after college, Korra could definitely have a career adjusting insurance claims, since she was so good at denial. Maybe she and Asami could work in adjacent cubicles, denying claims and denying each other.

Asami looked so small and fragile, curled in on herself. "Why would you ever want someone so broken? Why don't you want someone whole?"

Korra smiled, and it was probably too bold for the moment, but she pulled Asami into a hug and wrapped her arms around her. Korra hoped her arms were made of something strong enough to hold Asami up as her cheek came to rest on black, wavy hair.

"Why would you want to be whole alone?" Korra said lightly. "Aren't we just meant to be misshapen halves until we find the piece that complements us?"

She released the hug, giving Asami her personal space back. The other girl leaned back, putting her focus back on the television. Korra sat quietly for a few moments, but she broke the silence before the strained atmosphere had a chance to settle.

"You know, a wise man once said, 'Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple.'"

"Dr. Suess?" Asami said knowingly.

"The wisest of all mortals."

"So you're saying my answers are supposed to be easy?"

"Maybe, maybe not. Maybe we're both making this more convoluted than it really is."

Asami hummed. "Maybe so."


The day before their semi final game against the Democratic Union of the Water Tribes, Coach Lin called a team meeting after practice.

"Everyone have a seat," Coach Lin motioned towards the bleachers. "I want to go over a couple of things before the game tomorrow." There was a shuffle as everyone found a place on the bleachers, Korra sitting next to Asami, but leaving just enough distance between them to be-well, just far enough away.

"With the game just a day away, I'm going to announce our team captain. We didn't have plans to choose a team captain, but after the last game, we've decided that someone has shown themselves to be deserving." Coach Lin looked over towards her assistant coaches before continuing. She drew in a deep breath, making the moment a lot more dramatic than it needed to be.

"The other coaches and I have decided that Korra has demonstrated to us the leadership for this position."

Wow.

Korra looked down, the tips of her ears burning. She'd been team captain on almost all of the teams she'd played on; it was expected. She'd been far and away the best player on every team. But this time it struck a chord with her. It was the first time she truly felt like she deserved it.

A small round of applause sounded around her. Her eyes met Coach Lin's, who gave her just the smallest nod of approval and a smile. Asami placed a hand on her shoulder, a wide smile on her face. A swooping sensation rushed low in her stomach.

"What?! Why is SHE captain?!" Kuvira exploded, face contorted in rage. The swooping feeling vanished.

"I don't have to explain myself, least of all to a player. I told you from the beginning, the coaches would make all the decisions," Coach Lin told her tartly.

"But I'm the best player on the team! I've scored more points than Korra, and twice as many points as the rest of the team!" Kuvira rose to her feet, fists clenched.

"When will you learn that being the best player on the team has little to do with scoring the most points?" Suyin stepped in, shaking her head. The rest of the team looked distinctly uncomfortable, shuffling their feet or looking at the roof.

"Korra has been one of the first players in the gym, one of the last out. She's here late at night watching film, she stays after practice to do skill work with other players. You show up for practice only concerned with how well you're doing," Coach Kya said, now getting involved. Korra's body felt like it was on fire. The coaches had known all along about the extra time she'd devoted. It was discomfitting and relieving at the same time.

"Don't think we don't know that you check your stats after every game and practice," Coach Lin scoffed.

Kuvira was not to be deterred. "Korra isn't the best player on this team! She afraid to even play me!"

Korra clenched a fist. She ground her teeth, growling under her breath. Kuvira was pushing the mercury on her thermometer to near bursting. Korra's temper had been wearing thin, what with dealing with Asami, and disappointment, and whatever else the fuck she was feeling. She was near explosion.

And Kuvira just would not drop it. She was still arguing with the coaches.

Like, why are you so obsessed with me?

"That's not for you to determ-" Coach Lin began.

But Korra's self control slipped. "I'll do it," she snarled as she stood up. "I'll play you."

Fuck, Korra. You and your big mouth.


So good/bad news. Next week will be the final chapter! Which is good, because putting my favorite characters through emotional torture is really wearing me out. No one told me when I got on this ride how time consuming it is, but at least it's been a fun ride. I really hope it lives up to your expectations.

This chapter was a fair bit heavier than the others, but that's because Korra's life has been slowly leaking fun.

And no, I shall not be addressing Iroh II any further. That's Asami's bidness, not Korra's, but you can consider that pizza box CLOSED.