By the time they arrived at school, Korra and Asami were giggling like little girls at the stupid jokes Korra had been telling. The occasional chuckle from Hiroshi made its way back from the front seats. Asami lead Korra out of the car by the hand. They grabbed their bags, then made their way over to the front entrance. Asami called a goodbye back to Hiroshi, before pulling Korra into a run. They ran through the front doors and down the corridors towards the cafeteria. As soon as they entered, the room went from its usual clamor of shouting school kids to complete silence. Korra looked around to see every student and even some of the teachers staring over at them, some whispering to one another. Korra had never felt this nervous in her life. She thanked the spirits that Asami was there with her. Korra squeezed Asami's hand, who quickly squeezed back. The silence was suddenly pierced by a load, familiar voice.
"KORRA! ASAMI! OVER HERE!"
The two girls looked over to see Bolin waving his arms around like a maniac. They made their way over, still being watched by an endless sea of judging eyes. They soon reached Bolin, who was sitting at a table with a small mountain of food in front of him. Asami released Korra's hand to give him a hug.
"Hey Bo! How are you?" Asami asked. She looked at the heaped pile of food on the table. "Haven't lost your appetite, have you?" Bolin beamed.
"Nope. I need the energy for Pro-bending practice today." He said, reaching out a fist for Korra to bump. "Hey Korra."
Korra bumped the fist with her own. The girls took a seat opposite Bolin, who returned to his breakfast.
"So, everything went well yesterday, then?" Bolin asked, stuffing sausages into his mouth. Asami smiled, interlocking her hand with Korra's.
"Yep. Everything was perfect." Asami said. Korra giggled, leaning over to kiss Asami on the cheek. Bolin smiled a happy smile.
"Aww, you two are really cute together. I so made this happen." Bolin said. He turned to face the rest of the room. "I MADE THIS HAPPEN!" He shouted. Korra and Asami giggled at the earthbender. Korra suddenly remembered Pabu.
"Oh, Bo. Did you lose something yesterday?" Bolin looked at her with confusion, a piece of bacon hanging from his mouth. "Perhaps a little fire ferret with a green collar?" Korra added. Bolin spat his food out.
"You found Pabu?! Where?" Bolin said, his body tensing up. Korra chuckled.
"He's fine, he made his way to Air Temple Island. He's safe in my room. Naga will protect him." Korra said. Bolin looked at Asami, questioningly.
"Naga is Korra's polar husky. She's really friendly, Pabu won't be hurt." Asami said, answering Bolin's silent question. Bolin sat back and relaxed, happy that Pabu was safe. A small cough came from beside the table. All three turned to see a pretty earth kingdom girl standing at the end of the table. She had bright green eyes, smooth olive skin and short, styled black hair. She was wearing a green summer dress, with a large silver necklace over the top. She smiled at them awkwardly. Asami rose from her seat and moved over to the girl.
"Hey, Opal." Asami said, giving her a hug. "What's up?" Opal smiled at Asami.
"Oh, I was just wondering if I could sit with you guys." Opal said, in a timid little voice. Asami nodded, returning to her seat by Korra, as Opal took a seat by Bolin, who had finished his breakfast. Korra noticed that Bolin was starting to blush slightly as Opal slid into the seat next to him. She then noticed Opal blushing just as much. She nudged Asami and nodded at the two. Asami looked at the two in front of her, smiling slyly to herself.
"So, no offence, Opal, but why aren't you hanging out with the others we're usually with?" Asami asked. Korra looked at Asami, puzzled. The penny then dropped, as she realized that she had seen Opal the day before, out on the field with Asami when they had first met. Opal shuffled in her seat and looked down at the table. Asami's eyes narrowed. "What is it, Opal?"
"It's nothing, it's just… the others aren't exactly as supportive of your current relationship as I am. I think you two are cute, but they're saying some really mean things. I couldn't stay there and listen to their crap." Opal blurted out. Asami went completely stiff. Korra could feel her grip tightening around Korra's hand. Bolin's eyes darted from Asami to Opal to Korra. Asami looked over to a table of cackling girls, who Korra noticed had been turning to look at them and whisper to one another. Asami rose from her seat, and began to make her way over. Korra dashed after her, moving in front of her before she could reach them. Korra grabbed Asami's hands, moving her head so her face was level with Asami's. She looked into the deep green eyes, watching the tears slowly drip down her perfect skin. Korra leaned in and kissed Asami. After a few moments, the two broke away. Korra's smile lit up Asami's face.
"Ignore them. If they want to make fun of us, it's cus they're miserable seeing us so happy." Korra whispered to Asami. Asami nodded to her, burying her head in Korra's chest. Korra began to lead Asami back towards Opal and Bolin, who we both standing off to the side. When they were within reaching distance, Korra felt a sudden thump on the back of her head. She recoiled in pain, looking down to see a bottle of water on the floor. A table of boys began to laugh at her, high-fiving one another. Korra just saw red. She dropped into a stance, quickly bending the water out of the bottle and throwing it at them. The water collided with the face of the smug-looking leader of the group, snapping his head back. He collapsed to the floor, suddenly surrounded by his friends. Korra looked around at the rest of the cafeteria, which had once again gone silent.
"Anyone else got a problem?" Korra called out, looking around at the shocked faces. Korra began to relax, moving back towards Asami. "Come on, lets get out of here." She said, grabbing Asami's hand and leading her to the door. Bolin and Opal quickly followed after them. Korra was fuming as she led Asami out into the corridor. Asami pulled Korra back into a hug, trying her hardest to calm Korra down. She could feel Korra shaking with rage.
"Korra…" Asami started.
"It's just not fair!" Korra fumed, tears running down her face. "Why can't it just be fair! Those people have no right to judge us. Why can they just…" Asami pulled Korra back into her arms. Korra began to quietly weep into Asami's shoulder, while Asami stroked her hair, rocking her gently on the spot. Asami looked over to Bolin, silently signaling for him to help.
"In the upside, you did just smash Tahno in the face with a pretty sweet shot." Bolin said, placing a hand on Korra's shoulder. Korra pulled her head from Asami's shoulder, letting out a chuckle through the tears. She wiped the tears from her eyes and pulled Bolin and Asami into a hug.
"Thanks guys." Korra said. She looked up to see Opal standing off to the side, awkwardly fidgeting with her books in hand. Korra moved over to her. "I'm really sorry you had to see all that. Not exactly a great first impression." Korra said, placing a hand on Opal's shoulder.
"It's fine." Opal replied. "I heard all about you from Asami yesterday. In fact, I got an update every other minute as Bolin texted her more and more information." Korra spun on her heels to face Bolin, who was now whistling to himself and trying his hardest to look nonchalant. Korra crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow.
"It wasn't anything bad!" Bolin said, throwing his arms up defensively. "Plus Asami was texting me all through your date yesterday. Do you really live on Air Temple Island?" Korra watched as Bolin dodged a pen, no doubt thrown by Asami. Asami lunged towards him and began to smack his arm with her purse.
"I told you not to say anything!" She said between swings. "Dropping me in it, like that." She stopped beating Bolin, who was now rubbing his arm. Opal rushed over to him, making sure he was OK. Bolin stammered for a moment, as Opal ran her hand un and down his arm, making sure that Asami hadn't left any bruises. After a while, Bolin finally managed to get his words out.
"Besides, it's not like I told Mako." Korra's stomach turned slightly at the mention of Bolin's brother. She suddenly felt Asami's hand slip into hers, tightening slightly. Korra looked at her girlfriend, who had gone slightly white. Korra squeezed back, snapping Asami out of her trance. Opal looked at the other three with confusion and slight worry.
"What's wrong with Mako?" Opal asked. Asami, Korra and Bolin looked at one another, before Bolin turned to Opal.
"My brother didn't exactly take the knowledge that Asami is dating again very well. He was sulking in his room all night last night. If he found out that Korra, AKA the new girl, is the one Asami is seeing, it wouldn't be a pretty sight." Bolin said, looking at Opal with genuine seriousness, something neither Korra or Asami had ever seen. Opal looked over to Asami, who nodded to her.
"Was he really that bad last night?" Korra asked. Bolin sighed heavily.
"I really thought he would just have a few minutes of anger, then be fine. But he wouldn't even talk to me. Every time I tried to get him to talk or come out of his room, he would either ignore me or tell me to talk to Asami." Bolin said. It took a second for him to realize he said something he shouldn't have. Asami's grip tightened, crushing Korra's hand. Korra made a slight whimpering noise to bring Asami's attention to her python-like grip. Asami looked at Korra, then to their interlocked hands. She loosened her grip suddenly, cradling Korra's mangled hand in her own.
"Oh, spirits." Asami exclaimed. "Sorry, sweetie."
"I'm good." Korra said, checking her hand was still working before giving Asami a weak smile. Asami turned to look at Bolin and Opal. Opal was looking up at Bolin, who had gone completely still. He was staring straight into Asami's eyes. He looked like a Rabbaroo in the headlights.
"I shouldn't have said that." He whispered. Opal looked from Bolin to Asami. Asami had gone bright red. Not with embarrassment, but with pure rage.
"Where. Is. He." Asami said, through gritted teeth. Bolin pointed out of a window, towards a separate building across the courtyard. The gym. Asami took off like a bullet, marching out of a nearby door and across towards the gym. It was a few seconds before Korra fully computed what was happening, but she sprinted after Asami, closely followed by Bolin and Opal. By the time they caught up, Asami had already slammed the gym doors open and was storming past a few students towards Mako, who was currently lifting weights in the corner, surrounded by a gaggle of girls. Korra tried to pull her back, get her to leave him alone. But Asami was on the warpath, and even the well-built Korra didn't have the strength to stop her. Asami pushed her way through the girls, stopping in front of the firebender, who had now placed the weights back on their stand.
"How dare you take your anger out on Bolin!" Asami screamed. "You had no right to put him through that. He's your little brother, he looks to you for emotional support. It's not the other way round! If you have a problem with me, you come to me." Mako stood up and looked at Asami. She was still bright red with anger. He looked over her shoulder at Korra, Bolin and Opal. Bolin was fidgeting and looking down at his shoes, with Opal holding onto his arm to steady him. Korra looked back into Mako's amber eyes and saw the penny drop. He took a deep breath and stepped past Asami towards his brother. Korra noticed a drop of sweat run down Bolin's face, his eyes closing tight, as if he was waiting for a tirade of abuse. Opal herself tightened her grip on Bolin, pushing her body so it was now in front of Bolin. Korra's hands made fists, ready to strike if Mako made a move. Sure enough, he did. But it wasn't the move everyone was expecting. Mako put his arms around his brother, pulling him into a hug. Bolin's own arms dropped for a moment, taken completely by surprise, then wrapped themselves around Mako.
"I'm really sorry, Bo. I had no right to be like that." Mako said, breaking the hug. Korra noticed a tear running down Bolin's face. He wiped it away and looked at his brother, giving him a weak smile. "I was out of line." Mako continued. "I was really pissed at myself, and took it out on you. I hope you can forgive me." Bolin threw his arms back around Mako in an overly-dramatic fashion. Mako was now the one taken by surprise, not expecting Bolin to put his full weight on him. The crowd of girls made a collective aww noise, then dispersed after a sharp look from Asami. Mako pushed Bolin back onto his own feet, then pulled out of the hug.
"We're good, bro." Bolin said. "But you might have to pay for take out tonight to make it up to me." Mako laughed, putting his hand on Bolin's shoulder. Korra moved over to Asami, who was still breathing heavily from her earlier rant. She ran he fingers down Asami's arm, and into her hand. Asami looked down at her hand, noticing Korra's in hers. She gave a quick squeeze, trying to calm herself down. Mako then turned to her.
"Asami, look." He began. "I know things are bad between us, and I know its all my fault. I was the one who messed it up to begin with, and even though you tried to mend it, I just kept shooting you down. I'm really sorry, I've been an even bigger jerk to you. I wish I cold take back what I said yesterday, and I know I can't. But I hope I can at least fix it." Asami nodded slightly to him.
"I just need you to understand that I've moved on, and that I need to be the one you talk to if you've got a problem. I want us to go back to how we were. Friends who would hang out together." Mako smiled slightly and nodded to her.
"I understand. And we can go back to that, promise." Mako said. He moved towards Asami for a hug, who released Korra's hand and gave him one. They broke away, and Asami returned her hand to Korra's. Mako then turned to her.
"I know I was distant yesterday, and nowhere near hospitable, but I hope you can forgive that and we can start again." Mako said. He extended a hand to Korra. "Mako. Bolin's brother and Asami's…" He took a second, then finished, "friend". Korra shook his hand and smiled.
"Korra. Bolin and Asami's friend." Mako laughed slightly.
"It's cool, you can say girlfriend." Mako said. Both Korra and Asami when stiff, dumbfounded by what Mako had just said. He looked at the two with a small smile. "Hey, Bo has a bad habit of leaving his phone unlocked on his texts. I saw it in passing this morning." Bolin gave a small nervous chuckle.
"Oops?" He said, retracting behind Opal, who was taken by surprise as he moved her between him and the two girls. Asami and Korra looked at on another, then burst into laughter. Bolin peered around Opal, who was now bright red at his touch, and looked at them with equal amounts of confusion and fear. "What's so funny?" Bolin asked.
"You are, you moron." Asami said through her laughter. "Trust you to break it to your brother without realizing you had." Asami moved over to Bolin and hugged him, Korra following up by hugging the both of them. The two girls pulled back and beamed at Bolin, who was still trying to process what had just happened.
"C'mon." Asami said. "I know for a fact that we have a free period this morning. Let's go get some food. I'm thinking Kwong's Cuisine." The group moved towards the door, with Mako sweeping up his gym bag and shoving a water bottle into it. After waiting for a few minutes for Mako to change, the five made a move for the car park. Opal suddenly stopped dead, looking down at her phone. Bolin turned to see what was wrong, followed shortly after by the other three.
"You OK?" Bolin asked. Opal looked up at him and blushed slightly.
"I… I just realized I have a study group I should have been at half an hour ago. I really should go." Opal said. Bolin looked at her, dejected.
"Oh. OK, then." Bolin said, his voice quiet. "Maybe some other time?" Opal gave a small smile.
"Sure." She said. She gave him a quick hug, then pulled back, tucking her hair behind her left ear. She waved at the others, then quickly walked back inside, looking over her shoulder every so often. Mako moved over to Bolin to get him moving again, guiding him towards the car. Korra gave him a sly smile.
"Sooooo…" She said. "Opal. She's nice."
"Yeah…" Bolin said, dreamily. Asami gave a stifled laugh. She turned back to the car that she and Korra had arrived in that morning. Korra paused for a second.
"Uh, sweetie?" Korra said. "Your dad drove us in this morning. How are we…?" Korra was then cut off when she noticed a set of keys dangling from Asami's finger. Korra looked at her with disbelief.
"I always have a spare set, just in case." Asami said, giving Korra a cute smile. Korra giggled.
"You just got so much hotter." Korra said, moving in for a kiss.