Fortunately for Mako, enough work came in at the station that day to distract him from the predicament at hand. It was hard to think about having an ex-prince in love with you when you were setting your mind to deciphering the frequent disappearances of produce from a local fruit stand.

However, his bliss was not very long-lived.

He had only taken a few steps outside at the end of the day when someone called his name; and this time, he was expecting to see the person that was waiting for him. He froze and considered pretending he hadn't heard him, but before he could make his decision and walk away, Wu had already approached him and it was too late. "...hi, Wu," he grumbled defeatedly.

Wu was a minimum of a thousand times happier to see Mako than Mako was to see him. "Hello to you!" He made to give Mako a hug, but to Mako's surprise- and maybe even delight- he dropped his arms to his sides and placed his hands on his hips before he could place them on Mako. "So, how did you like the flowers? I saw them in the market, and their fiery vibrancy reminded me of you so much that I knew they were the PERFECT way to show my affection! I was going to serenade you, but, I know how you feel about my singing…" He let out a lighthearted laugh. "I didn't want to push my luck."

Mako's initial instinct told him to respond in the coldest, snarkiest way he could, then continue walking home. However, as he opened his mouth to snap something at Wu, he realized that he just couldn't do that to someone that was smiling so sincerely. So instead, he cleared his throat, glanced away, and awkwardly muttered, "They were nice, I guess, but I don't really do flowers."

Wu's shoulders slumped and a disappointed pout replaced his smile. "Oh… I'm sorry to hear that," he said, as if Mako should be more offended than he should. The smile soon returned to his face, though slighter this time. "Okay, so you don't like flowers. Noted! However, you MUST like food… So, what do you say you and I go grab some dinner together?"

It took a moment for Mako to register what Wu was asking; he had recovered so quickly, as if he had prepared a back-up plan in case Mako didn't like the flowers. "...now?" he stated incredulously.

"If you're free, yup! And don't worry about paying; it's on me."

Mako hesitated. His head was starting to pound again, and he wanted to leave Wu's presence as soon as possible… Yet, he knew it wouldn't really hurt to have a night out for dinner; otherwise, he would just be returning home to cheap leftovers (not that he and Bolin couldn't afford better, but simple meals were always the easiest for both of them). Plus, he admitted to himself, this would be the perfect opportunity to find out if Wu really had become a new person. He wanted to say "no," he truly thought he did, but with a quiet sigh, he told him, "Sure."

Wu's entire face brightened at this response. From the bit of relief etched into his grin, Mako got the feeling that he wasn't entirely expecting an affirmative answer. "Oh, great! That's fantastic! Are you ready to go right now?"

"...as ready as I'll ever be."

The restaurant of Wu's choosing brought back (slightly unwanted) memories for Mako: it was the same place Asami had taken him for their first date. It was the kind of place that Mako would only be able to afford to eat at maybe once a year, even if he was eating alone; clearly, Wu had kept more than just some of the money he had inherited as prince.

"You wait right here while I give them our reservations, alright?" Wu instructed cheerily as they walked inside. Mako only grunted in response, not totally focused on Wu. For one thing, he was immediately aware of just how under-dressed the two of them were just by glancing at the exquisite decor and all of the red-carpet-ready customers seated at tables; for another, his agitated and uncomfortable state of mind was making him imagine things: the fleeting memory of his first date with Asami made him think that he saw Asami walk in behind him. ….Asami, dressed elegantly, with Korra on her arm… Laughing, then suddenly looking at him with wide eyes and calling out to him-

Closing his eyes tightly and giving a shake to his head, Mako realized that he wasn't just imagining things. "Mako!" Asami repeated with a smile, approaching him along with Korra. "I sure didn't expect to see you here…"

"Yeah, I... didn't really expect to be here myself," Mako responded awkwardly, glancing off to the side.

"What kind of investigation brings you to the most expensive restaurant in town? You would think they would call in Food Services, not the cops," said Korra, unlatching herself from Asami's arm.

Mako's discomfort clearly increased. "...I'm, not here on an investigation. I'm-"

"Asami? Korra? Fancy meeting you here! How have you lovely ladies been?!"

Korra and Asami had to stare at Wu for a moment before they realized exactly who he was. "Prince Wu-?!" they exclaimed in shocked unison.

"The one and only! But please, just 'Wu' is fine." He bowed graciously, and Mako expected him to reach out and kiss their hands; but he didn't. When he stood back up, he only smiled at them, keeping his hands to himself.

"Why don't you go to the table, Wu? I'll meet you there in a minute," Mako suggested under his breath. Wu's eyebrows furrowed in a disappointed pout.

"Right now? But I want to catch up with these two a little!" The stern glare Mako shot down at him was enough to shut him up. "...um… I'll just wait for you over here, then. We can go to the table together," he murmured.

"I should probably check us in, too," Asami noted, watching Wu shuffle away before walking up to the reception desk. This left Korra and Mako by themselves.

"You know, I had heard rumors that Prince Wu was in Republic City, but I haven't seen him for myself until now," Korra remarked with a tilt to her head.

"Guess he's been laying low," Mako muttered.

A mischievous grin appeared om Korra's face. "What are you doing on a date with the guy?" she teased. However, when she noticed Mako's gloomy demeanor, her grin faded. "Um, sorry... But really, what are you doing with him? Is he forcing you to be his bodyguard again?"

"No, it's worse than that. ...I'm his love interest."

For a moment, Korra only stared at him. "...his what?"

Mako explained his situation to her just as he had explained it to Bolin: Wu had come to Republic City in search of a humble lifestyle, and Mako himself, because he was in love with Mako. When he finished, though, Korra didn't smile like Bolin had; instead, she furrowed her eyebrows thoughtfully. "This might not actually be such a bad thing."

Mako groaned loudly. "Oh, come on! You too?! Bolin said the same thing!"

Korra raised her eyebrows. "Well maybe that's because it might be true. I mean, think about it! I know you like to play Mr. Lone-Wolf, but doesn't it bother you even a tiny bit that you're so single?"

"..no…" Mako muttered stubbornly. But after a pause, he added, "Okay, so maybe I've thought about how I'm the only one without a girlfriend, but that doesn't mean it bothers me, right? ….right?"

"Hey, maybe it doesn't, maybe it does," Korra shrugged. "But I think it could possibly be good for you to try to fall in love, to have a little something besides your job."

"I enjoy my job, though," Mako retorted.

"Yeah, and Asami and I like our jobs. But we also like each other." Korra pursed her lips. "Look, why don't you just give him a little bit of a chance? If he's as good of a person as he's said he is, maybe you could do with someone like that in your life."

Mako narrowed his eyes incredulously. "Are you listening to yourself, Korra? This is Prince Wu we're talking about." Korra didn't seem like she was changing her mind. So finally, Mako sighed dejectedly. "...fine. Fine, I'll give the guy a chance to prove himself. But if he's still the spoiled brat I remember him being, I'll gladly return to forgetting I ever met him. ...but I will try."

Korra gave him a smile and patted him on the arm. "Good. Now stop making him wait for you, heartbreaker."

"Allow me!" Wu gasped as they approached their reserved table. He rushed ahead of Mako, quickly but carefully, and pulled out a chair, motioning Mako into it. Mako raised an eyebrow at the courteous gesture, but accepted it anyway.

"...I'm honestly surprised you didn't ask to combine tables with Korra and Asami. I mean, it has been two years since you last saw them, and I know you had been pretty into them," Mako commented with an edge of stark bitterness.

"Oh, that would just be rude!" Wu exclaimed as he took his own seat. "That would completely disrupt the reservation process. Plus, those two deserve some space, since they clearly wanted to be alone together. Not to mention," he added with a smooth smile, "I want to be alone with you, Mako."

Mako shivered with discomfort at Wu's obvious flirtation; yet part of him felt… impressed. Wu was being so… respectful, and unobtrusive. With a brief glance at the table, Mako noticed that Wu's hand rested close enough that he could touch Mako's arm if he wanted to, but he didn't. Well, he certainly seems to have learned to control his touchiness, Mako admitted to himself. He subconsciously began to relax.

"So, what looks good to you?" Wu asked as they opened the menus left for them by their server. "You can have anything you want; remember, it's on me!"

"Anything, huh? Well… I'm not really sure what I feel like. Seafood, maybe…"

"You think so? Personally, I'm not a big fan of seafood; although, while I was in Ba Sing Se, I tried this one dish….."

This served as the lead-in to the rest of the night's conversations. Wu led a majority of them, going into detailed recountings of experiences he'd had while in Ba Sing Se: food he ate, people he met, animals he saw, things that helped or hindered the kingdom's conversion into a republic… Mako mostly just nodded along with an occasional casual comment, but he couldn't deny that Wu's pure-hearted enthusiasm about the topics drew him in: especially when he talked about the attempts at reforming the Earth Kingdom. It seemed like he had been legitimately dedicated to getting the kingdom on its feet, and spoke about all the citizens he had spoken to with a fondness most befitting of a king. Even though he had stepped down from the throne, Mako thought, it was heartening to see that he still regarded the Earth Kingdom people as his people.

"...but what about you, Mako? Here I've been prattling on all night, and I haven't even asked if you have any interesting stories!" Wu realized a little over an hour later, as they were finishing up their meals and contemplating dessert. "So, anything particularly exciting happen over these last two years?"

Mako's eyes widened a bit; he didn't expect Wu to suddenly divert the conversation to him. After a moment, he shook his head and shrugged. "Not really, honestly. I've helped Korra out a little, busted some minor cases, but… Nothing really big has happened."

"Well, no news is good news, right?" A few seconds after he said this, Wu gasped quietly, smiling sheepishly. "...I said the same exact thing the other day, didn't I? I must sound like an idiot, huh…" Mako raised his eyebrows; Wu actually looked embarrassed. Mako couldn't help but smile a little.

"It's fine… ...oy, if I get this cake slice, would you split it with me?"

Wu gaped in flattered awe as if Mako had just asked him to go out with him, not to simply share a slice of cake. "I'd love to, Mako…!"

At least another half hour had passed by the time they ordered the cake, ate it up, and asked for the check. Mako happened to glance at it as the server was setting it in front of Wu, and when he read the number at the bottom, he choked. "Holy shit, Wu…! I didn't know it was going to be that much, I-"

"Shhh," Wu interjected, "it's completely fine! I told you to get whatever you wanted, didn't I? Besides, It's mostly because of the stuff I ordered." Smiling reassuringly, he removed a stack of bills from his pocket, counted out the owed amount, and set it atop the check.

"...at least let me bring it up to the counter for you…" Mako offered, still stunned at how much money Wu had just spent on him.

"Well, alright, if you insist! Tell them to keep the change; the tip's included." Mako nodded slowly, reaching for the check and the money and feeling the guilt reverberate inside of him. "While you do that, I'm going to run to the bathroom," Wu added.

Mako froze as he stood from the table. "...are you sure you don't want to wait? Remember what happened last time you went to the bathroom by yourself?"

Clearly not realizing that Mako was being serious, Wu let out an amused laugh. "That was the last time I went without you! I've used the bathroom plenty of times in two years, and nothing bad ever happened. I've gotten pretty good at peeing unaccompanied."

Mako blushed, admittedly embarrassed. He seemed to have legitimately forgotten that years had passed since he was Wu's bodyguard… For a moment, he almost felt as if he still was; which was odd, considering he loathed being his bodyguard, and he hadn't had a single negative thought about Wu for hours. With reddened cheeks, he hustled to the reception desk without another word.

Fate seemed intent on seeing Mako interact with his ex-girlfriends on this night, for when he brought the check to the counter, he had to wait in line behind Asami. She immediately turned around and smiled at him. "Well hello again. How did your date go?"

"It wasn't a date," he insisted quickly. Asami let out a light laugh.

"Right, right, I'm sorry. How was your, business dinner with the ex-king of the Earth Kingdom?"

His blush had died down by the time Mako got in line, but now it flared back up again. "...nice, actually. He had some interesting stories to talk about," he admitted half-heartedly, glancing away and scratching his cheek.

Asami laughed again, amused. "Wow, Mako, you're blushing… But I'm glad you had a good time." Her expression softening, she glanced around and lowered her voice a bit. "You know, when you were talking to Korra, Wu came over to me after I signed in. I expected him to hit on me, honestly… But I was very surprised at what he actually had to say."

Mako's face faded back to its normal color and he raised his eyebrows slightly, intrigued. "Really? What was it?"

"Well, regardless of what you seem to think this little get-together was, he told me that it was a date. He told me that he's head-over-heels in love with you, and really wants to impress you." Her smile grew as she watched the humiliation spread across Mako's expression. "He apparently remembered that you and I dated, because he asked me what makes you tick…"

"...and?" Mako urged. "What did you tell him?"

Asami chuckled to herself, and winked. "That's a secret."

Mako wanted to make a further attempt at wriggling more out of her; however, it was Asami's turn to pay the cashier, and Wu had finished in the bathroom and was returning to Mako's side.