Note:

Holy crap! Here it finally is! Thank you all for being patient with me because I've had one hell of a week. Relationship issues and school don't mix well, but everything's much more cleared up now (thankfully). Give a big thank you to iterdei because she had a very busy week, also, but managed to edit this chapter for me. Be grateful for her because she helps me so much with my writing. Anyways, I hope you all enjoy and again, thanks to those who comment :)

It was Wednesday evening, about 5:00 in the afternoon. Korra couldn't help but pace back and forth between the couch her mother was currently sitting on and the kitchen counter. She kept nervously stroking her face and gritting her teeth. Throughout this past week, the thought had been getting to her, but today was the day it would all come down—right now, actually.

"Korra, sweetie, stop pacing like that. You're making me nervous, too," Senna asked with a gentle voice.

"I can't! I'm too anxious and hyped up about this. I-I can't do it!" The alpha hid her face in her hands. Ever since the beginning of the week, Korra's anxiousness had risen. It was impossible for her to control most of her feelings, and Opal had been there for her every day after school for the past few days. Of course the omega was scared as well, but for some reason, the Southerner was found to be much more nervous. Just yesterday, she had explained to Opal about everything she'd felt: confused, scared, lost, and paranoid. Opal only agreed she felt the same way; neither of them really wanted a child, at least, not yet. They both had talked over what would happen if there was a child, but it still left Korra incredibly distressed, even if the plan was decent. The alpha just wasn't ready for a child at all. Luckily, the omega always made a great comforter, even if she herself was afraid about their future, and had helped Korra through the first half of the week.

The Water Tribe girl nervously chewed on her bottom lip as she still continued to pace around the room. Everything had built up throughout the past two weeks, and now, Korra finally had to face what was to become of her life.

"I know it isn't easy to wait and not know what would happen in the next few minutes, but you can't stress yourself out this much. Here, come sit down and just relax for a moment." Her mother lightly patted the cushion beside her on the couch and gave a reassuring smile. Korra couldn't argue; she was a mess, and she needed to do something to help—maybe this would.

With a comforting, soft touch, Senna started to stroke through her daughter's dark brown hair. All Korra needed right now was something to ease her, and Senna knew exactly what would. Her light massages on Korra's tense muscles would help relax her both physically and mentally. The woman also spoke with tranquil words, trying to pry the anxious teen's mind off of what was bothering her: "Look, I know you're going through something hard right now, but you need to find something positive about it. No matter what happens, you will find something good out of it. You got it?"

The young alpha turned her head to look into her mother's light, steel blue eyes. She only subtly nodded.

"Good, now stop being so tense. It feels like you just came back from tennis conditioning, not just a normal day at school." Senna let out a light laugh to lighten the mood. Korra couldn't help but giggle as well. "Look at that! You're not that scared, at least enough to laugh a little."

"That's only because you're good at making me feel safe from whatever's to come, Mom." She leaned into her mother's space and reach around her, giving the older Southerner a tight embrace. "I love you, Mom. Don't ever leave me."

"Of course I wouldn't. I love you too much, dear." Senna tightened her hug on her daughter, and both of them sat there for a minute to just let out all the tension. There's no better comforter than Mom. No one else in this world could possibly make me feel better in a situation like this. I'm so lucky. Korra closed her eyes, while a small simper covered her lips.

Stepping out from the hallway, Opal came to find mother and daughter entangled in an embrace, with Senna almost cradling her daughter in her lap. The omega couldn't help but smile because of how perfect the two were together. Korra had always gotten along with her mother well, even if both Senna and her would tease her a great deal. Nothing could separate the two, and it was beautiful to see the relationship between them. Of course Opal had an amazing mother; Su had always taken care of her little girl—the only girl in the family—and was always going to be there, when she was in need of comfort or help. Senna was just like that to Korra, but she was also like a second mother to Opal.

The small, Earth Kingdom girl politely cleared her throat, trying to get the attention of the two Southerners. Korra and Senna broke their hug to look up at the omega standing in the hallway. Her eyes were weak, and her general posture showed she was tired. She gave a frail smile and shrugged. "I'm not."

"Really?" Korra's eyes were full of concern.

"Yeah. The tests read negative." The weak smile still rested on her face, and her eyes started clouding with tears.

Korra immediately jumped from the couch to go hug the omega. "It's okay," she assured, as she gently traced the lines of Opal's back with her fingers. She could feel the omega lightly lean in towards her, tightening her hold.

The two embraced for a minute without moving, then Korra finally pulled away. "Could I talk to you about something?" Korra suddenly asked.

"Y-yeah, sure." Her girlfriend replied with a sweet smile, her eyes still lightly fogged with tears.

"I'll leave you two some privacy. Those clothes aren't going to fold themselves, anyways." Senna pulled herself from the couch and passed the two teens, leaving them in the silence of the living room.

Guiding the omega by her hands, Korra led them to sit on the sofa. "Here, let's just sit for a little." She took a deep breath before she continued. "Okay, so you know we aren't doing so well. And I-I really don't know what to do." The Southerner looked up from their hands, which were still clasped together. Looking into those calm, earthy eyes, she tried to find an answer.

"I don't know, either. All I do know is that we're falling apart. This isn't the same as when we first were together, and I don't know what to do in order to make it that way again." Opal was staring down at the bronze hands that held her small, pale ones. She felt the subtle touch of Korra's thumb brushing the top of her hand to comfort her.

Pulling her gaze downwards, the Water Tribe girl also stared at their hands. There wasn't any grip that held the two together, and it felt like those small fingers could easily just slide away any moment. Something inside Korra yelled for the omega to not pull away; a string tugged on her heart at the thought of Opal letting go. There was an emptiness that filled her stomach, and she felt like her eyes were getting heavier. Nothing was going to save them—they both knew it.

Opal tightened her grip, causing Korra's heart to quicken its pace. Any movement of their hands caused the alpha's heart to skip a beat, then rapidly increase to a fast rhythm. Her insecurity of their grip caused an anxious swirl in her gut to arise because she didn't know whether the omega would slip out of her hands or not. Please, don't leave me. Not yet. I can't do this right now. I just need a few more minutes. She tried to take a breath to settle her emotions, but it came out shuddered and weak. The tears started to weld up in her eyes, her vision now blurred by the built up drops of liquid. Just seconds later there was a splash from a fallen droplet on her thumb. It wasn't Korra's; at least, she didn't think it was hers. Slowly gazing up, the Water Tribe girl found her girlfriend's eyes clouded with tears and droplets traveling down her red cheeks. There were trails leading from her eyes down to her small chin. The water built up at the bottom of her face, and another droplet fell onto their hands.

Letting go of their hand hold, Korra reached up to wipe Opal's tears away. Her thumbs tenderly grazed away the streams leading down those plump cheeks, and she lightly cupped the Earth Kingdom girl's face.

Korra tried to swallow the lump caught in her throat but couldn't. With a raspy, faint voice, she spoke: "I know this is hard. Trust me, I don't want to, either," she took a shaky breath, "but this isn't going to work out. We both know it. I just..." She couldn't say it. Something caught in her voice, making her unable to speak. Her voice was silent, as she tried to form some sort of word. It finally came back dryly: "I just want you to know that," she inhaled, "that I'll always love you."

Her whole mind was spiraling, and her breath started to quiver more. She slowly drew her lips up to the omega's forehead and laid a gentle kiss there. Her thumb caught one more stray tear that had slipped down Opal's face. Delicately, Korra wiped it away and stared into Opal's soft eyes. The alpha tried to smile fully, but she only managed to weakly simper. Her lips shivered, and tears started to flow down her cheeks as well. Opal only leaned towards her, and Korra closed her eyes, causing another couple large tears to start streaming down her face. The omega kissed away a stray droplet, then pulled her into a deep hug. The two sat there for a long moment, entangled in the embrace, not wanting to let go.

I'll never let go of you. You'll always be safe with me.

Korra only buried her face in Opal's light green jacket and cried. Her arms rested around the omega's small frame, and she felt the unsteady breaths of the omega—her lungs quivering with each inhale and exhale. Knowing it could help, the alpha started lightly rubbing Opal's back, trying to get her to settle her breathing. Her strokes were weak because she had no strength left in her after all the emotions that had overwhelmed her. Nothing felt good anymore; nothing felt like it would come back to her as it was before. She was no longer strong and confident; she was only lonely and afraid, even though Opal was still in her arms.

The omega's arms started to slip away from the alpha's back, and Korra clenched her teeth to confine the whimper that was surfacing in her throat. No, please no. Not now. Just a little bit long, please! However, she had no choice but to let the omega slide from her grasp. Her arms slid down Opal's back, then around her torso. Every last second counted for the Water Tribe girl. She wasn't ready to let go; she didn't know it would be this painful. No pain could ever hurt her more than this heartache. Not until this moment did Korra know what it was like to let go of someone you really, deeply cared about, and she was beginning to regret everything. Why couldn't I have just tried to fix this instead of making it worse? What brought me to think I could replace you with someone else? Damn, I'm such an idiot to throw you away—a Raavadamn, dirt-bag asshole.

Opal's glistening eyes rested at a gaze at her feet. She subtly fiddled with her fingers and bit her lower lip. With the last bit of strength left in her, she softly said, "I know what happened between you two," she choked up, then took a breath, "because she told me. She said she couldn't hold back the guilt of letting it happen, then hiding it behind my back. It's nice she reached out to me; it's good to know she's very honest, and I'm glad she makes you happy." A few teardrops fell from her swollen, pink cheeks and splashed onto the wooden floor. "I-it's good to know you're happy-"

"Opal..." Korra interrupted. "I could never find anyone better than you and I-"

"Stop lying, Korra! I know we've been breaking apart for the past few months—you even said it yourself! We've been lying to each other and ourselves these past months, and I think it's best that we split ways and make ourselves happier, so we don't have to lie anymore." She licked the salt from her lips, then pulled a hand up to wipe away another fallen tear. "Look, I know you're sad, just like me, but promise me one thing...actually two things."

Korra only nodded, not wanting to interrupt the omega again. She knew Opal would only cut her off to get back to what she was saying, so the alpha left space for her to talk.

"First off, we don't have to completely break off from each other; I would like to stay your friend, so promise me you won't block me out like you did with Mako. I-I know you two ended things pretty harshly, but I don't want to have to reestablish our friendship like you had to with him. So, if you're up for it, I'd like to be your friend," her lips slightly curled up, "and just promise me you'll never leave me. And second, promise me that you won't mess things up with her. She's a very lovely person, Korra. Actually, she's beyond that," a small giggle sounded from the omega, "she's amazing, so don't you ever forget that. Just promise me you'll love her."

"O-Opal...I can't-"

"Either you do promise me you'll take care of her, or I will break you." Opal looked up, and her eyes pierced through Korra.

"Okay, I promise. And yeah, we can still be friends." Korra smiled at the omega. "I would never want to let such an amazing person like you out of my life."

Opal smiled back and grabbed the alpha's hands one last time. "Hey, Korra." Their gazes met, and Opal stared one last time into those sharp, azure, crystal eyes. Never again would she look into the Southerner's eyes this way. That's when those few words slipped from her mouth in a breathy voice: "I love you."

"I love you, too."