As the days and weeks passed by, Wu's methods of affection sorted themselves out into three general categories: gifts, compliments, and date proposals. He made it plainly clear that he was dedicated to his cause, and this made Mako… unsure of how to feel.

The gifts were fairly self-explanatory. Mako would come into work to find something waiting for him, sometimes wrapped, sometimes unwrapped, at least once a week. They were never accompanied by any sort of card identifying who they were from, but it was obvious enough. His gifts had included, but were not limited to, a new pair of gloves, a humble fruit basket, and a hand-woven scarf from the market. Although Mako didn't want these presents, he also didn't quite have the heart to toss them, so he created a corner in his bedroom where he stashed them all, untouched.

The more frequent gesture of Wu's was to call Mako at work and tell him something flattering. Every day, at varying hours, Wu would call, say, "Mako? It's Wu," drop him a compliment, and hang up after giving Mako a second to digest his words. As nice as some people may have found these calls, Mako was only horribly embarrassed, and tried his hardest to find a valid excuse to ask Wu to knock it off. He wanted to scold him for wasting his time at work, but that would have been an invalid argument because he hardly took up any time at all. The calls were so brief that Mako was able to shake them off within a few seconds and resume his work, but they still left him flustered every time. He also considered telling him that he was only to call into the police station in case of an emergency, but then he feared that Wu would start complimenting him face-to-face instead, and that would be even worse. ...of course, he could also simply tell Wu that he didn't like being complimented… But part of him didn't want to hurt Wu's feelings.

Still, the compliments constantly lingered in the back of his mind: "You're the most handsome guy in Republic City!" "You're not only tough, you're smart, too!" "The police force would be lost without you! And so would I~" "Ba Sing Se is a beautiful city, but it was nothing without you with me!" He couldn't tell if the way Wu's words got under his skin was good or bad, but regardless, it was beginning to drive him crazy, and even if it was a good kind of crazy, he didn't like it.

The date proposals were perhaps what gave Mako the most stress. On some days, seemingly out of the blue, Wu would "happen" to walk past the police station just as Mako was leaving, and invite him out somewhere (the park, a casual restaurant, or even his apartment). Mako was easier at coming up with excuses on the spot, because he didn't have time to think on how it would offend Wu; so, he would always tell him he had something to do at home, and hurry off before he could see the hurt expression on Wu's face. Nonetheless, he was always left feeling heavily guilty by the time he got home. He particularly dreaded Wu's flattery calls on days when he had rejected Wu the night prior.

It was only a matter of time before he caved in some way.

About three weeks had gone by since they had gone on their "first date." Mako had come to anticipate Wu's daily calls, to the point that when he received a call from somebody other than Wu, he was mildly surprised. That being said, when the phone rang on this day, Mako picked it up before it could even finish its first ring. "Good morning~! Just wanted to-"

"Wu, listen," Mako interjected. He could practically hear Wu's mouth clamp shut on the other end of the line. The first few days, Mako would respond to him with a mumbled "thanks" or "um, right," but lately he would just hang up silently after Wu was done speaking. So, hearing him initiate a conversation came as quite the surprise. "...stop this," Mako muttered into the phone.

"...um, what do you-"

"Just stop doing this, okay?!" he cut him off again, much louder this time. "I can't take it anymore, I'm sick of you pampering me. It's too much. Just knock it off," he begged furiously, panting when he completed his brief tirade. He was met with only silence; on the other end of the line, Wu was frozen in shock, his eyes wide and his heart throbbing painfully in his chest.

Mako didn't have to be skilled at reading the atmosphere to tell that Wu's silence was a pained one. He drew in a difficult breath and released it in a heavy sigh, relaxing his shoulders and running a hand through his bangs. "...I'm sorry," he said gently. "I didn't mean to yell. I… I get that you're not trying to be obnoxious. But I'm just… Not into these things, okay? The daily compliments are a nice gesture, but… They're just excessive. And I don't like getting presents, or making plans on the spot right after work. I mean, trying to win me over with your money… Doesn't that make you no better than you were before?"

He realized he had said too much the moment the words left his mouth. Mako smacked his palm against his forehead, frustrated with himself. "Wait, I mean, it's not like you're still the same brat you used to be, I can tell you've tried to change- I mean, you're doing a good job, I think- shit- I mean-"

"It's okay, Mako." Wu's voice was firm, but calm; his tone didn't sound hurt or offended, save for an edge of embarrassed sadness. "I just wish you'd told me earlier, is all! Not that I'm mad at you or anything. I'm sorry for being a bother… I'll think of a different approach, I promise!"

And before Mako could say anything- not that he knew what to say to that- Wu hung up.

That would be the last time Mako heard from Wu for several weeks.

Mako tried to convince himself that he didn't care, that this was what he wanted; but as the days passed by, he only grew more and more worried. Whenever he had desk work, he would anxiously wait for the phone to ring, and when it never did, he went home feeling unsatisfied. The absence of gifts began to make his desk feel empty in the morning and he left work in a hurry each day, peering around corners to see if Wu was nearby, and his shoulders falling when he was nowhere to be seen. He did his best to ignore the paranoia, to tell himself he didn't care about Wu's whereabouts or at least was relieved that he finally had peace and quiet; but when his incessant worrying became so much of a distraction that he couldn't concentrate at work, he decided he needed to do something. Desperate and feeling as though he was clinging to sanity by a thread, he frantically gave a call to Korra.

"Mako? Is everything okay?" Korra asked seriously when Asami handed her the phone.

"No- well, actually, yes… ...sort of." Mako groaned under his breath and jumped straight to the point. "A few weeks ago, I told Wu to stop pampering me. And, I haven't heard from him since. He said he'd try a different approach at winning me over, but, he hasn't even tried to contact me. ...so I was wondering if you could look around for him a little bit, when you can."

On the other line, Korra raised her eyebrows and didn't even try to restrain her smile. "I thought you didn't like hearing from him?"

"I don't!" Mako snapped. Then he paused. "….and that's the weird thing about it. I can finally dedicate myself to work without any distractions, just like I wanted, yet I can't focus anymore. Things are back to normal, but… I guess Wu's presents and phone calls had started to feel like they were normal. I guess I got used to it."

Korra smirked, leaning against the wall. "Sounds to me like you miss him."

"I don't miss him!" Mako insisted. His loud, overly-defensive tone only made Korra laugh.

"Okay, okay, calm down. I'll keep an eye out, alright?" For a fleeting moment, Mako heard more than just amused laughter in her voice; something about her tone seemed vaguely… suspicious. But he quickly shook the feeling off.

Mako's shoulders slumped, his face steaming a little after his short outburst. "...alright… Thanks, Korra."

"Anytime. Try to stop stressing, okay?"

"...yeah." Sighing and closing his eyes, Mako made to hang up the phone; but then he heard a sound distantly on the other line. It wasn't Korra's voice, or even Asami in the background, but someone else's voice: a male voice, saying, "Who was that?" And Korra hung up before Mako could hear any more.

Now Mako knew for a fact that the paranoia was making him lose his mind: it seemed to him that the voice sounded just like Wu.