Chapter 18

The mailbox

"Asami! Asami, look!" Korra called to her the moment the engineer walked in the door of the Southerner's hospital room.

With a furrowed brow, Korra pulled herself to the edge of the bed. She slid off of it onto her feet and stood without buckling. The steps that followed were firm and confident. She walked right up to the taller woman as if a single thing hadn't happened to her body almost a week ago.

Asami tossed her bag to the ground and hugged the injured woman in a gentle, but enthusiastic embrace. "I'm so happy to see you moving around on your own."

"Me, too. I can finally go to the bathroom whenever I want!" She laughed a bit too hard and clutched her abdomen; her rib still ached from the attack.

"Easy, there." The older woman placed a hand on the Water Tribe Girl's cheek and cradled her jaw line. "I'm glad that you're feeling better, but you still need to be careful."

Korra covered the pale palm resting on her face with her own. "I know, I know."

"When do you get discharged?"

"Tonight, actually. In like an hour or so." Her tone flattened enough for Asami to notice it. "Can I, um… stay at your place? Just, you know…" She scratched the back of her head and looked down at her feet.

"Of course you can, Korra. I'll stay until you're released and we'll go from there." Never would she let Korra walk somewhere alone in the dark ever again, if she could help it.

The younger woman gave her an appreciative grin. "Actually, can I… ask for another favor – just, really quick?"

It was Asami's turn to chuckle. "Of course you can."

"Well, they haven't given me anything to wear for when I leave and I…." she glanced over her shoulder at the bloody scraps of her previous outfit folded on the chair, "I really don't…"

"I'll go swing by your place and grab you some clothes."

Korra gave a sigh and a smile of relief. "Thank-you, Asami. You still have my key, right?"

She nodded and pulled the little piece of metal from her pocket. "Safe and sound."

"Great! Thank-you so much." The Southerner gave her a hug of gratitude that neither of them expected but accepted.

"You just stay here and rest. I'll be back before you have to leave."

Korra nodded in response and climbed back onto the bed.

Asami took one last look at the girl, who was now nose-deep in some sort of book with a colorful cover that she didn't recognize. A smile crawled across her lips as she closed the door behind her.

(-)

When the engineer entered Korra's dorm, she was not expecting company. Neither was Korra's roommate, by the shriek Asami received when she stepped inside.

"I'm sorry!" She covered her eyes and left the room, slamming the door shut. A few moments passed until the woman returned.

"Who are you? And how did you get into the room?"

Asami kept her back to her in embarrassment. "I'm Asami Sato. I'm Korra's friend. She lent me her key so that I could stop by and get her some clothes before she leaves the hospital."

Although she couldn't see it, she could feel the woman grow tense. "Korra's in the hospital?"

The taller woman spun around to see Korra's roommate with a concerned look on her face. She nodded in response.

"What – what happened?"

"I'm surprised you haven't heard, considering you live with her." Asami retorted with a minute hint of animosity in her voice.

"I… I'm not in the room much. Usually, I'm with my other friends, studying for all of my architecture classes."

She released a silent sigh and eased up on the girl, understanding the difficulty of such demanding coursework. "Opal, right?"

The shorter woman met her eyes and nodded. "That's me. Opal Beifong." She outstretched her hand and Asami shook it.

"It's nice to finally meet you." The engineer spoke with a smile, though a portion of her charade was forced. "Can I come in and get Korra's clothes?"

"Of course! Sure." Opal let the older woman inside and pushed the door shut behind her. She looked to the ground and spoke in hesitation while Asami rifled through the Water Tribe girl's drawers. "So, what happened to Korra?"

The engineer straightened and rested her fingers on the edge of the dresser. She kept her back to Korra's roommate as she spoke. "She was attacked by a group of drunken men Friday night."

There was a very slight gasp of disbelief. "But she's such a nice person. Why would anyone do that to her?"

Asami turned to her. "I don't know. Some people are just…" she struggled for a word. She still felt raw from her emotional battle throughout the week, and the aches she thought she had buried over her life were resurfacing. She thought of her mother, of her father, of Korra… "Cruel." It came out with a dark level of bitterness.

"Is she okay? I'm assuming if she's leaving the hospital, she's okay, right?"

"Her swelling has gone down and it seems like most of her physical wounds have healed." She could speak nothing to her mental health, though. The thought of Korra screaming in the night forced a knot in her throat. She focused on the drawers once more, blushing when she reached Korra's intimates. She shoved them in her bag, along with some pairs of pants and a few shirts for the Southerner.

"Is she coming back tonight?" Opal was cautious to ask.

"She's going to stay at my place." Asami continued arranging things in her backpack with no desire to face the girl watching her. "She feels safer there." The engineer slung the strap onto her shoulder.

"Does this have to do with the window?"

She swirled on her heel. "You know about that?"

The shorter woman nodded. "I'm the one who called maintenance to get it fixed. I thought it was just some hooligans messing around and acting idiotic." She paused. "I had no idea it had to do with Korra or that any of this was going on."

"Maybe if you were around more often, you would know."

Opal recoiled to the comment and dropped her eyes. "I guess I haven't been a very good roommate to her, have I?"

The engineer sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "I suppose you technically don't have an obligation to her. Living in the same dorm doesn't mandate anything between you two other than mutual agreements over your living space." She walked up to her and placed a hand on her green silk-covered shoulder. "Just, try to keep an eye on her when you're here together."

"I will. And if there's anything I can do to help, please let me know."

Asami nodded and moved around the younger woman. She left without a sound, clutching the band of her bag. She halted in the lobby in a half daze, her mind on Korra's dorm mate and what she said about the window. Her eyes made contact with random areas in the room. She stopped when she hit a grid of compartments, all built within the wall next to the front desk.

Thoughts and conversations replayed in her head. 'I've been getting these in my mailbox, under my door, tied to rocks…' She stared at the boxes until it all clicked together.

(-)

There was a pound on the door loud enough to make Opal jump. She squinted through the peephole to find Asami Sato panting at the entrance and twisted the handle open. "Asami? Is everything alright?"

"Your mailbox. Do you and Korra share a mailbox for your room?"

Opal nodded in hesitation and raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Have you checked it lately?"

She shook her head. "Asami, what's going on?"

"The people who did this to Korra, they had been sending her threatening letters. I need those letters for evidence, but someone stole the ones I had. I remember Korra telling me that some of the letters were slid under the door, others were tied to rocks and thrown through the window –"

Realization dawned on the younger woman's face and she exited before the engineer could even finish her explanation. Asami followed her as Opal dug in her pocket for the key. She opened the mailbox in the top left corner of the wall and stood on her toes to peer inside.

"Empty." She sighed, just as Asami looked over her head to inspect the barren compartment as well.

Both girls shared a silent sadness.

"You wouldn't happen to have seen any in your room, did you?" She already knew the answer to the question, but asked anyways.

The shorter woman frowned. "I didn't, no. I'm sorry, Asami."

She fought her natural tendency to retreat under the stranger's hand on her shoulder. "It's okay. I just thought that, maybe…" She exhaled in defeat and dropped her eyes to the ground.

"I'll keep my eyes and ears open for anything that might help Korra's case." There was an intense surge in Opal's irises when Asami looked up that she was not expecting.

"Thank-you, Opal."

They stood in the awkward quietness for quite some time before they departed. The engineer embraced the crisp air that pelted her and relished the clearing effect it had on her mind. She made her way to the hospital, her sight gazed and immersed in the twilight-filled sky.

(-)

When Asami reached the fifth floor of the infirmary, she found Korra sitting out in the hallway, knees to her chest. I haven't been gone that long, have I? The pout on the younger woman's face became more evident as she got closer.

"Korra, what's wrong?"

"They kicked me out of the room." She crossed her arms across her chest.

The engineer chuckled. She didn't mean to, but the way Korra's lip stuck out when she moped was too much for her. "Come on, I've got your clothes. You can change in the bathroom." She offered her a hand and pulled the Southerner to her feet.

"I don't know what's so funny." She grumbled, bending to pick up the few books she had with her. Just then, Korra's stomach made a loud noise. She was sure it echoed down the hallway.

Asami giggled and wrapped her arm around Korra's shoulders. "Why don't we stop by the Dining Center on our way to my place? It's right in the middle. Can you eat solid foods yet?"

The Water Tribe girl nodded. "Yeah, I can, if I chew on my left side. That actually sounds really good." She paused and hung her head. "I haven't been able to keep much down lately. I think it's just because it's hospital food. Maybe it'll be easier to eat something more substantial."

They reached the restroom door and Asami retrieved one of the outfits from her bag. She exchanged it for Korra's books. "Do you need help getting anything on?"

Korra blushed but hid it well. "No, I think I can do it on my own. I'll be right back." She rushed through the entrance before the older woman could respond.

Asami shook her head and leaned against the wall opposite of the bathroom. The colorful hardcover that Korra had been reading earlier caught her eye. Mastering the Elements: The Collected Stories of Past Avatars. She raised an eyebrow and shoved the books into her carrier before the Southerner emerged from the restroom.

"That's much better. I feel clean again." Korra slid her hands up and down her sides, appreciating the softness of the fabric against her skin. "Ready to go?"

The engineer hadn't moved; her mind was on other things. Her fingers on one hand were sliding back and forth in a short, horizontal line over the fabric of her pants on her left thigh.

"Asami?" The brunette snapped her fingers in front of Asami's face. The taller woman jarred herself free from her thoughts and focused her gaze on Korra.

"Let's go."

They exited the building just as the sun finished setting and the moon came out to shine.