A couple hours later, Mako collapsed on the couch in his and Bolin's home, lolling his head against the couch's back with a groan.
"Long day at work, Bro?"
Mako didn't look up when Bolin greeted him. "You could say that," he scoffed, closing his eyes and running his hands over his face. He was vaguely aware of his brother sitting down beside him.
"Well, wanna talk about it?" Bolin asked with obvious concern.
Mako hesitated, then sighed and sat up a bit. He slowly opened his eyes, eyebrows furrowed. "...Wu is here. In Republic City."
Bolin stared at him uncomprehensively for a moment before the realization dawned on him. "You mean, Prince Wu?! Well, not 'prince' anymore, since he stepped down from the throne so the Earth Kingdom could become a republic… But, you know, that Wu?! The loud skinny kid you used to babysit? I mean, bodyguard?" he gasped loudly with bulging eyes.
"No, 'babysit' is more accurate," Mako muttered miserably. "...but yeah. That Wu."
Bolin gaped at him in shock. "No way… Why is he here, all of a sudden? Did you talk to him?"
"Oh, I talked to him, alright. Or more like, he talked to me." Mako crossed his arms in an agitated manner, unwilling to even reflect back on the incredulous and ultimately uncomfortable conversation he had had with the former prince.
"Annnnd what did he say?" Bolin urged.
"A lot of bullshit, I can tell you that much," Mako spat. Catching a glance at Bolin's now pouty expression, he sighed heavily and continued to fill him in. "He tried telling me that he went 'soul-searching' and decided to settle down and become a better person. That he's trying to be more humble."
"Well, that's not totally impossible to believe… I mean, it's been what, two years? People can change!" Mako let out a sigh under his breath. It was typical of the overly-trusting Bolin to think that way. ...although, Mako had to admit that he did have a point… But he was more liable to believe Wu's claim that he was going to become a better person, than he was regarding the part he hadn't yet told Bolin.
"...that isn't the worst part, though. He… Well, he…" Mako bit his lip and shifted awkwardly. "He told me that the main reason he came to come to Republic City, was... Well, I'm the main reason. Because he said he's... in love with me."
Caught off guard by this statement, Bolin's breath caught abruptly in his throat and he choked. However, he quickly recovered after a few deep coughs, and once he evened his breathing, he grinned. "That's great, Bro!"
It took Mako a moment to register his brother's response, and when he finally did, he could only stare at him in disgust. "...great? Exactly what part of that is great?!"
Clearly oblivious to his brother's exasperation, Bolin laughed. "Someone's in love with you, Mako! Love is ALWAYS a great thing! And he's trying to become a good person, right? So you might even have a nice guy in love with you!"
Mako was speechless. Even if there was any truth to Bolin's words, Mako just couldn't bring himself to not feel disturbed by the situation. He couldn't explain why, but it just felt completely… wrong. He opened and closed his mouth, struggling to find the right words of protest, until he thought that maybe, just maybe, there was an ulterior reason for why he couldn't think of why he was so opposed to it. "I don't know, Little Bro…" he managed eventually. "Every memory I have of the guy leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I can't say I'm ready to suddenly accept that he's changed into even a half-decent person."
"Well, that's why you take the opportunity to make new memories! Good ones!" Bolin reasoned cheerfully.
"I guess…" Mako admitted reluctantly. "...but it still feels… wrong. I'm not even, y'know, into guys." The sentence felt odd on Mako's tongue; he had never so much as considered such a thing.
But Bolin had an immediate response to that. "Sexuality is a flexible thing, you know! I mean, I admit it, I've casted second glances at Wei and Wing a couple times myself. And look at Korra! She's a prime example of how easy it is to love guys and girls! I bet before she fell in love with Asami, she would have said she wasn't into girls. In this day and age, gender doesn't mean a thing when it comes to love. If Wu's really serious about being in love with you and becoming a better person, then maybe he'll be the first guy you have feelings for!"
Mako cringed at the casualness and enthusiasm with which Bolin discussed the topic. He wasn't currently looking for a relationship, especially not with another man, and most CERTAINLY not with the spoiled little boy he hadn't seen for two years and hated when he did see him. The idea of developing feelings for Prince Wu was repulsive, he thought. ...yet, as he he thought on it longer, he gradually felt less sickened. If Prince Wu truly was a person of the past, and "Wu" was potentially someone worth falling for, then maybe he could consider it... It still made Mako uncomfortable, yet he couldn't honestly say he was 100% opposed to it.
"Tell you what," Bolin remarked, noticing his brother's clear distress, "just give it some thought, okay? Take some time to get used to the idea of him living here, and not being a total brat, and being in love with you. And if you still decide you just can't get down with it, well, maybe you two can be friends! I mean, if he's here to stay, and he really cares about you, you might as well start fresh and be buddies, right?"
Mako's head was pounding at this point, and he still couldn't help but feel skeptical. "...fine," he sighed at last. "I'll… I'll think on it, I guess."
Truthfully, he didn't want to think on it one bit. But he knew in the back of his mind that he had no choice.
After a night of restless and unsatisfactory sleep, Mako arrived at work to a bit of a surprise. Sitting on his desk was a nice glass vase, containing a fresh bouquet of flowers: fire lilies, to be exact. Even Mako, who wasn't the most artistic or sentimental of men, had to admit they were beautiful. Still, their presence was plainly suspicious. He glanced around the room, checking to see if any of his less-liked colleagues were giving any inclination that they had put them there; he saw nothing. Surely it was a prank, or maybe even an attempt at harming him… Carefully, he scoured his desk. searching for a note of some sort, anything to hint towards who had left them; again, nothing.
Just as he gradually reached for the vase to see if there was anything dangerous about it, Lin stepped into the room. "Relax, those flowers aren't going to hurt you," she assured him, noticing his cautious demeanor. "We made sure to check them for poison or explosives before he brought them in."
Mako turned to her with a raised eyebrow. "'He'? Who is 'he'?"
He couldn't believe he wasn't expecting Lin's answer: "Prince Wu. He came to the station bright and early and said he wanted to leave those for you."
Hearing those words were like a punch to Mako's gut, and he felt his face heat up. Whether he was suffering from secondhand embarrassment from Wu openly leaving flowers for him, or embarrassment at himself for being the receiver of the gift, he couldn't quite tell.
"He seemed pretty eager to see you yesterday, too. Why is he even here? What's the deal with that kid?" Lin asked, furrowing her eyebrows.
Mako gazed perplexedly at the flower arrangement, as if their petals held the answers to all the frustrating emotions he was mulling over. "...I wish I knew."