A/N: I've decided I'm going to put these up one-a-day until we catch up to where I am on AO3 (which is currently chapter six). For the reviewer that asked, yes this is a Korrasami fic, though it will be a slow burn!
If you post a lot of LoK and want to follow me on tumblr, I'm ai-ge-smak-daun dot tumblr dot com and I will likely follow you back! :)
They finish up breakfast, Asami having to make a few more eggs for Bolin, who is hungry despite the fact that he had eaten his fill at the diner just hours before.
Mako doesn't sit and wait for them to be done eating. He stands in the corner, shuffling his feet awkwardly while Bolin makes small talk.
"We should probably get moving," Mako says, looking nervously at the bags stacked in the living room. "I'll get a head start."
The door shuts loudly behind him.
"He's still not a morning person, huh?" Korra asks once he's gone.
Bolin sighs. "Yeah, he wasn't exactly... thrilled, when I told you'd come home. But, you know him, he'll warm up!" Bolin flashes her a reassuring smile. It doesn't make her feel much better, but she figures she deserves whatever Mako has to throw at her.
"Why don't you guys go give him a hand, butter him up. I'll clean these dishes," Asami suggests.
Mako has already taken most of Asami's bags outside, so Korra follows Bolin into his room.
"So I haven't exactly finished packing yet," Bolin says, grinning sheepishly. "Mind taking my suitcase out while I pack a few toiletries?"
She ends up with his large green suitcase on wheels, which she drags clumsily through the narrow hall to the living room, where she grabs her single duffle before heading outside.
Mako has piled the bags by the curb, so Korra lugs Bolin's suitcase behind her as she makes her way down the driveway. He must hear her coming, because he turns to face her before she's gotten a chance to announce herself. He flashes her an uneasy smile that looks more like a grimace before ducking his head, passing her as he walks inside.
She sighs, dropping the bags next to Asami's purple luggage set.
Korra yawns in the bright sunlight, remembering that she didn't get to sleep last night. More coffee, she thinks, hoping that Asami hadn't cleaned up her mug yet. She turns to investigate and is surprised to find Asami walking towards her.
"You forgot your coffee," she says, holding out a travel mug once she's in front of her. "So I poured you a fresh cup in something a little more... portable."
"Thanks," Korra says. "I can use it," she says, and yawns again.
"I can see that," Asami chuckles. Asami eyes the single duffle Korra slung over her shoulder. "Do you need to go pack a bag? I can drive you home."
Korra suddenly freezes. The idea of being alone in a car with Asami causes her to tense. She's not sure she's ready to spend alone-time with the girl. What would she say?
Sorry your father died and I wasn't here for you? Yeah, that'll go over great, she thinks.
She shuffles her feet, suddenly uncomfortable. "Uh, nope. This is all I have."
It's not a lie. She had left behind most of her things at Kuvira's place, and she's hasn't been to her aunt's house in years. She doesn't know what she'll find there, and if she's being honest, she's not sure she's ready to go back.
Asami opens her mouth as if she's about to say something, then bites her lip and shrugs. The door bangs behind her as the boys bring out the last of the luggage.
"If you're sure," she says.
They stare at each other for a long moment before a loud squeal breaks their concentration. A large blue van is taking the curve just before the brothers' house a little too fast, and Korra worries for a moment that the driver is about to lose control before it straightens out, heading straight for... well, them.
"Watch out!" Korra shouts, arm shooting forward to push Asami out of the van's path. It turns out to be unnecessary as the driver slams on the breaks just in time. The car screeches to a stop a few feet in front of them.
The boy driving hops out, a wide grin on his face as Mako walks forward to meet him.
"What... is that?" Mako asks.
The boy shrugs, looking back at the van he doesn't look old enough to drive. "Oh this old thing? Just the car my parents bought me for my first ever road trip! You likey?"
Mako walks up to the van, hand on his chin as he inspects it. It's older, definitely vintage, but the paint is fresh, and it looks as if it's been well taken care of.
"Not exactly glamorous but..." he pops open the back doors, eyeing the luggage compartment and Asami's large stack of bags waiting to be packed in the trunk. "It'll work."
"Are you kidding? This thing is awesome!" Bolin shouts. "It looks like it's straight out of the sixties!"
Mako smiles at his brother for the second time that morning, his posture finally relaxing as Bolin pushes past him.
"Wu, you know my brother Bolin." Bolin waves, friendly as ever. "And these are my friends, Korra and Asami."
Wu turns his attention to the girls for the first time and nearly squeals.
"Well well well, Mako, you did not tell me we'd be bringing such lovely ladies with us on our trip," he says, accentuating his words with an obviously fake accent that Korra can't quite place. "Happy birthday to me."
He bows and quickly reaches for Korra's hand, grabbing it and raising it to his mouth before she has time to protest.
"Uh, nice to meet you too?" she says, uncertain. She pulls her hand back the moment his grip loosens, and shoots a glare at Mako behind Wu's back.
"You must be Wu," Asami says, always cordial.
Wu looks like he's winding up for another dramatic bow when Mako steps in. "Alright, now that we're all introduced we should probably get going. It's going to be a long drive."
"Okay everybody in, I'm driving!" Wu skips down the driveway, practically to the car when he realizes that no one is following. Korra and Bolin share and uneasy look.
Mako doesn't know how to tell Wu he isn't getting in a car with him behind the wheel. He's never been good at mincing his words, but this kid is like his boss, so he should at least try, right?
He takes a few steps forward, visibly uncomfortable. "Listen, uh - maybe it'd be best if... Well, your parents are paying me to drive, and..."
Wu's face falls slightly but he nods, and Korra wonders if he's more adept than she'd first pegged him as. The kid could take a hint. "Oh, yeah, of course. My bodyguard, my chauffeur." He turns and winks at Korra. "Pretty cool, huh?"
Korra laughs, because it's almost cute how dorky this kid is.
"Shotgun!" Wu shouts in her ear, and she reconsiders as he rushes to get in the front seat next to Mako. Asami's takes a seat on the drivers side, and Korra slides in next to her. Bolin climbs behind them into the rear bench, swinging his arms around the girls' shoulders once he's seated in the middle.
"This is going to be great!" he says, squeezing them together. "I brought my old iPod with all the songs we used to listen to in high school!"
"No music," Mako says firmly. "I need to be able to hear the GPS."
Bolin pouts for a moment before sighing, crossing his arms as he slumps in his seat.
"Alright, you grumpus," Wu says, poking Mako in the cheek. "Full speed ahead!"
Mako's "full speed" isn't very fast, it turns out.
He's never driven a car this size before, and Bolin seems antsy as Mako gets in the right lane as soon as they hit the highway. "I know!" he shouts after a few minutes of silence have gone by. "Let's play a game!"
"Ooh, great idea," Wu says. "I spy with my little eye... something... blue!"
"The sky!" Bolin guesses, happy to have someone to engage with, but Wu shakes his head.
"The van?" Korra asks, angling her head to see if Wu can see the side of the van through the side-mirror.
"Nopers," he says, a smug smile on his face. "Give up yet?"
"No!" Bolin throws his arm out. "Wait, uh, it has to be... no..." He frowns suddenly. "Hey- there isn't anything else blue in here!"
"Why, you're forgetting the most beautiful thing in this van, Bolin," Wu says, turning to face Korra in the seat behind him. "Korra's cerulean blues," he sighs.
A collective groan echoes throughout the van. "Gross, Wu," Mako says, but he's laughing. Bolin sits up a little straighter, locking eyes with his brother in the rear-view mirror before smiling.
"I spy with my little eye..." he says, but Korra's attention is drawn away when Asami rests her hand on her knee.
"I'm really glad you decided to come," Asami says quietly. Korra smiles.
"Me too," she says warmly. "Speaking of... where exactly is it we're going?"
Asami laughs. "You're kidding. You got in a van with us and you don't even know where we're going?"
Korra just shrugs, not wanting to explain how alone she would feel in Republic City without her three friends. Without Asami.
"Well, you signed up for a sixteen-hour drive," Asami says, and Korra's jaw drops.
"You're kidding," it's her turn to say, and Asami just shakes her head, laughing.
Her shock is broken by a tap on her shoulder.
"Move over if you're not gonna play so I can sit behind Wu," Bolin says, already standing to move to the front.
Korra looks to Asami, who shrugs, before unbuckling her seatbelt and scooting closer. The van is narrow and there isn't much sitting space, so when Bolin sits down with his wide knees Korra ends up pressed against Asami, who just smiles at her at the contact.
They don't talk much more for the next few hours. Asami pulls out her notebook, brow furrowed as she scribbles with a ball-point pen. Mako chimes in every few minutes to whatever game it is Bolin and Wu are playing now - something about license plates - and Korra just sits back comfortably, enjoying being in the presence of her friends again.
Korra asks once what Asami is doing, but she just shrugs and says something vague about work before immediately returning to whatever has kept her pen so busy for the past three hours. Korra can't help but watch the way that Asami worries her lip between her teeth as she concentrates, her eyes focused intently on something that's troubling her on the page.
A drawing maybe? A new invention? Korra thinks. After all, Asami's father had been one of the great innovators of Republic City. He put it on the map when he opened his first factory, and brought some much-needed relief to the small town's economy. He had been a very well liked and very influential man in town.
And now all that's on Asami, Korra thinks.
Asami pauses for a moment, her pen finding its way to her lip. She bites on it lightly, and Korra finds herself focusing way too closely on how plump Asami's lips look under the pressure of the pen's tip.
Don't be a perv, she chides herself. This is her childhood best friend, after all.
Just because you like girls doesn't mean you have to crush on every girl you come across.
Korra tears her eyes away from Asami and forces herself to look at the road ahead.
It's almost noon when Bolin nearly jumps out of his seat. "Oh, Mako, look! A Five Guys! Can we stop, pleasepleasepleaseplease please?"
Mako casts a look over his shoulder, eyebrows already raised in defeat. There's no arguing with Bolin when he's hungry, but he tries anyway. "Bolin, you just ate a few hours ago."
"I know, I know, but we don't have any of these back home and who knows when we're going to see one again!"
Bolin slips under his seat belt to pop over Mako's shoulder, pointing to a blue ATTRACTIONS sign on the side of the highway. "Look, they even have a Dairy Queen! Please, big brother, I need my burger and fries."
"I'm down for food," Korra chimes in.
Asami laughs, looking out of her notebook for the first time in hours to nudge Korra in the shoulder. "Always."
Korra bites back a grin, her heart pounding a little harder against her chest.
Cut it out, she reminds herself. You're just… excited she's not holding a grudge.
"I guess... I only had an apple for breakfast," Mako concedes. If he weren't in a car, Bolin would have jumped for joy. Instead, he high fives Korra over Asami's lap.
/
One hour, several burgers and way too much ice cream later, they find themselves dragging their feet as they make their way through the parking lot.
"My god, that was amazing," Bolin groans, collapsing into the car seat. His hands land with a plop on his stomach, which looks to have grown twice in size. "I think I'm just gonna take a little... nap..." he says, his eyes closing before he even finishes his sentence.
"No kidding. Move over will ya, I'm taking the window seat. It's time for my siesta," Wu says, punctuating the request with an exaggerated yawn.
Bolin responds with a snore of his own.
"Yeah, I'm feeling a little tired too," Mako says, rubbing his stomach. "Asami, do you mind taking the second shift?"
Korra eyes the middle seat of the van, where Bolin's laying and has already begun to drool. She can sit in the back bench, she supposes, but that'll mean she'll be in the furthest seat from the only other awake person in the car.
You could use a nap yourself, she thinks, remembering how she didn't sleep the night before.
She changes her mind when Mako speaks up. "I think I'll spread out in the back seat if you don't mind?" he asks, addressing Korra directly for the first time that afternoon.
"Of course," she says with a bright smile that goes unreturned as Mako begins to climb over his brother into the back seat.
Still, she feels relieved that Mako is at least talking to her again before realizing that sharing the front seat with Asami while everyone else is asleep in the back is exactly the sort of private moment she's been nervous about sharing with the girl all day.
Something about Asami's willingness to forgive her was scary. Korra wasn't entirely ready to forgive Asami for her transgressions, and the fact that Asami seemingly so easily forgave her for doing something arguably way worse made her uneasy.
Korra's worries are for nothing, because as soon as she leans her head against the window, she's out like a light.
/
She wakes with a start what feels like only moments later. She rubs her eyes sleepily, only stopping when she hears Asami laughing beside her.
"Have a good nap?" she asks, and Korra nods groggily. She glances at the clock and is surprised to see it's mid-afternoon, almost four hours after their food-stop.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to conk out like that. Are you okay, driving for this long? Should we wake Mako back up soon?"
Asami shakes her head, waving off Korra's concerns. "No no, it's fine. I like to drive. It's... therapeutic."
Korra pauses, considering arguing further before remembering Bolin's comment that morning (had it really only just been that morning?) about Asami's apparent inability to grieve and holds her tongue, figuring that she shouldn't take one of Asami's few comforts away from her.
"I could use a little music though to mix things up. You mind?"
Korra glances behind her to make sure Mako is fast asleep before grabbing the AUX cord dangling from the radio and plugging it into her phone. She picks something soft and adjusts it so it's only playing out of the front speakers.
Korra lets the song play through the first verse before turning to Asami. "How are you holding up?" she asks.
She doesn't want to pry, as she's sure that she's the last person Asami wants digging into her personal life right now. Then again, with how weirdly nice Asami has been ever since Korra reappeared in her life, she isn't really all that sure. Either way, Korra feels a strong need to know what's going on with her friend. She's felt nothing but concern ever since Bolin had broken the news to her the night before.
Okay, so maybe there was a little guilt mixed in with the concern too, but Korra was pretty dead set on ignoring that as long as possible.
"I told you, I like driving," Asami says, her tone somewhat sharper than it should be. Korra frowns, surprised by the sudden change of attitude.
"No, I meant-"
"I know what you meant, Korra," Asami says, tight lipped.
"Okay," Korra says, blinking in shock at the change in her friend. She'd seemed nothing but happy to see Korra this morning.
She probably realized what an awful person I am while I was sleeping, Korra thinks, frowning. Or maybe I snore.
A few more minutes pass in silence before Korra can't take it anymore. She never has been a patient girl, and she's growing more concerned by the minute as Asami's eyes seem to gloss over. She watches as Asami swallows tightly, letting a slow breath out of pursed lips.
"I'm sorry I haven't been there for you," Korra says. "I'm sure... it hasn't been easy."
Asami laughs, as if that's the understatement of the year, and Korra pretends not to see the tears that are definitely brimming in her eyes.
If there's one thing she remembers about Asami, it's that the girl never liked to seem weak. Once in high school her ass of a boyfriend decided to break up with her by showing up to the school dance with his new date. Asami had waited until they arrived back at Korra's to even shed a tear. They stayed up all night watching a Cinderella Story on the Disney Channel.
So she doesn't push Asami when she sniffs, her hand brushing against her cheek as it rises to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
They drive a few more minutes in silence before Asami sighs.
"I have nothing left," she says, defeat evident in her voice. She pauses, glancing nervously at Korra. "I think I'm gonna have to sell the company."
The words come out in a breathless rush, and Korra takes a moment to process them before her she's immediately shaking her head. "Asami, no," she says, but her friend just laughs darkly.
"My mind is already made up," she says with a shrug. "I have school and a life in California, and no one can replace my father."
Oh , Korra thinks, letting the comment about Asami's life, the one she'd started without Korra, slide.
Of course this is about her father. She remembers once again Bolin's observations, and hopes this is just a manifestation of that. There is a lot of pressure resting on Asami's shoulders, coupled with the grief of losing her father. It was a lot to deal with, and Korra didn't want her friend to make a bad decision just because she was in a tight spot.
"I can't let you do that," Korra insists, her hand reaching for Asami's shoulder. "You need to take some time and think this over."
The hand is smacked away with a scoff, and Korra recoils. She shrinks further when Asami speaks, her voice low and angry.
"You don't get to just waltz back into my life and tell me what to do," Asami says, her eyes not meeting Korra's. Probably for the best, Korra considers, since she's she's driving and all.
Still, the tone of her voice makes Korra stop short, her confidence suddenly gone. She lets out a shaky breath.
"Right, no, of course," Korra says as she tries to mask the confusion from her voice.
Up until now, Asami had welcomed her back with open arms. Her stomach turns when she realizes that was all probably an act, another thing that Asami wasn't willing to deal with, would rather ignore until it reaches its breaking point.
She watches the way her friend's fingers tighten against the wheel and swallows thickly, thinking that they might've reached that point already.
"I'm sorry," she tries. "I didn't mean to... intrude."
Asami responds with a sigh.
"Just... go back to sleep, Korra," she says.
Korra presses her head against cool glass, looking anywhere but at Asami. She closes her eyes and wills herself to fall asleep, but even in her sleep-deprived state she finds herself unable to drift off.
Twenty minutes later and she's grateful to hear Mako stirring in the back.
"How you doing?" he asks quietly, and Korra's not surprised when Asami answers him without vitriol.
"We're making good time," she informs him, and Korra opens her eyes just in time to see Asami return Mako's smile through the mirror. Her stomach drops a little at the sight, and she tries to ignore the jealousy she feels at Asami's friendliness towards the boy.
She happy when the others begin to wake in the back and Mako finally looks away from Asami.
"Good morning sleepyheads," Asami teases. Korra chooses now to make it known that she's awake, turning to face Asami, but the girl doesn't offer her a friendly greeting.
Her eyes stay glued to the road as rain begins to splat against the windows.
"Good morning, fellow roadsters. How are we... uh-what's that?" Wu asks, his face paling as he leans forward to look out the windshield. A huge, dark cloud looms overhead, and he gulps.
"It's just a thunderstorm," Mako brushes him off. "I checked the radar, we won't be under it for too long, maybe like an hour. Besides, Asami can drive through anything."
"An hour?!" Wu's eyes go wide before he settles back into his seat, looking stricken.
They drive a few minutes just listening to the rain as the pattering turns to loud pelts, and Korra starts to wonder if this storm is a little tougher than Mako was letting on.
Wu practically leaps into Bolin's lap when a loud crack of thunder snaps overhead. He laughs, though it sounds anything but genuine.
"What do you guys say we pull over for the night, get some rest?" he suggests, looking around the van hopefully.
"Rest?" Mako asks, incredulous. "You've been napping all day!"
"Yeah, but..." Wu pulls at his collar, not meeting Mako's eye. "I'm afraid of thunder. We can get a hotel, I'll pay."
Mako sighs. No one else in the car offers any disagreement, and he hangs his head. "Fine. But I'm getting room service for dinner."
Asami remains silent, just turns on her blinker at the next exit and starts searching for a sign for a hotel.
"There's a Hampton Inn Express on our right," Korra offers. Asami nods slightly, and takes the next turn.
/
They have to run to the entrance of the hotel it's raining so hard. It doesn't stop them from getting soaked, and Asami is shivering by the time they make it inside.
There isn't a line, Korra notes thankfully, though she wasn't really expecting one early in the evening like this.
Wu lays his shiny metallic card on the front desk as he bats his eyelashes at the blonde sitting behind it. "Five of your finest rooms, please."
"Sorry," the girl at the counter answers, barely glancing up from her computer. "We only have two rooms left. There's a convention in town," she explains when Wu splutters at her in disbelief.
"They each have two queen sized beds?" she offers. "That should be enough for the five of you."
"Well... alright. I guess those will have to do," he says. "But I get my own bed," he says under his breath, glancing back at Mako and Bolin to make sure the brother's aren't going to put up a fight.
They look at each other before shrugging - they've been sharing a room for years, they can sleep in the same bed for a night. Korra glances at Asami, nervous at the girl's unreadable expression and how she doesn't even attempt to meet Korra's eyes at the news they'll be sharing a room together.
Maybe I can sleep in the bathtub, Korra considers as Asami reaches forward for their room card.
Asami only brought one of her bags with her, Korra notices as they walk down the hall. It's a small overnight that makes her realize that they'd been planning on spending at least one night in a hotel regardless of the weather they encountered.
Korra trails behind Asami as she counts the number on the doors, stopping before one that reads 129.
Korra frowns as she watches Asami's hands shake from the cold as she swipes the key card once, twice, before bending over, squinting and flipping the card around before sliding it through again, finally resulting a green light and a beep.
She's happy to see that the attendant wasn't lying about this being a two-bed room. Asami sets her bag down on the one nearest to the door, rifling through it and pulling out a few items before opening what Korra's assumes is the door to the bathroom and disappears inside. Her suspicions are confirmed as she hears the shower start from the other room.
Korra flops back on her bed heavily, allowing herself to sink in to the mattress for a few minutes as she listens to the shower run.
She sighs after some time has passed, pushing herself up on her elbows and reaching over to rifle through her bag until she comes up with her phone charger. She plugs the brick into the outlet and is glad when her phone blinks to life.
She sends a few quick texts to her mother, who was happy to hear that she didn't have to drive at all on the ride up and that they had settled in before it got dark. She doesn't check, but she knows there are no new messages waiting for her from Kuvira.
The shower shuts off in the other room, and Korra jumps up, scrambling to get changed before Asami re-enters. She's tying the drawstrings on her pajama pants when the door cracks, steam pouring out as Asami emerges in her robe from this morning.
Asami doesn't look at Korra as she enters, and Korra does the same, turning her eyes back to her phone.
"I'm going to bed," is all Asami says before she draws the curtains, blocking out whatever light is breaking through the dark clouds over head. The rain hasn't let up, though the thunder sounds a little more distant now.
Asami tucks herself into bed and Korra follows suit, staring at her phone for a few minutes before shutting it, the bright light getting to her eyes.
The room is so quiet that Korra has no choice but to listen to Asami's breathing. Or at least that's what she tells herself as the minutes pass and she's unable to focus on anything else.
She knows Asami has every right to be acting this way, but she had wished she hadn't hid her anger from Korra from the start. Maybe she wouldn't have come on this stupid trip if she knew everyone on it was going to be giving her the cold shoulder the whole time.
Korra thinks the other girl has fallen asleep when all of the sudden the breaths stop. She waits a beat, maybe two. One second longer and she would've said something, but a voice in the dark surprises her.
"I shouldn't have snapped at you," Asami says, so quiet that Korra thinks she's imagined it.
She responds anyway.
"You had every right-"
"I know," Asami says sternly, and Korra's mouth clamps shut. "Trust me, I know, but... as mad as I am at you for leaving, I don't really want to be. I shouldn't have talked to you like that."
"I'm not sure I understand," Korra replies honestly.
It's a few more seconds before Asami responds. "I just feel like I need every friend I can get right now, you know? And being back with you, it feels..."
Korra can't see her, but the way Asami's voice cracks as she trails off makes her think the girl is crying. She doesn't know what to say, or what to do, her hands fidgeting restlessly at her sides.
Should I go comfort her? she thinks, but remembers the way Asami had pushed her away before and reconsiders.
Asami let's out a shuddery breath, and Korra has almost decided that it's worth the risk when Asami speaks again. "I just can't handle dealing with losing my father and you at the same time."
"Okay," Korra says, shrugging even though she knows Asami can't see her.
"Okay?" Asami breathes out, turning to face Korra. Her eyes have barely adjusted to the dark yet, but she can see Asami's green eyes meeting hers anyway.
"Look, I haven't been there for you for the past three years. Let me be there now," she says.
It's the least I can do, she keeps to herself.
"Okay, but," Asami pauses, uncertain. "We're gonna have to talk about it eventually."
"After the trip," Korra decides. "We'll take this time to get to know each other again, and at the end, we'll just see where you want to go from there?"
"Okay," Asami says after a moment. Korra's eyebrows shoot up, and she can't help the smile that tugs at her mouth.
"Okay? So, we're cool?"
She must sound a little too eager, because Asami laughs. It sounds so nice that Korra doesn't even mind that she's embarrassed herself.
"For now, yes, we're cool."
She's sure when Asami falls asleep this time, a light snore squeaking out once or twice before her slumber deepens.
For now, we're cool, Korra repeats in her head. You have until the end of summer. She closes her eyes against the nervousness rising in her chest and snuggling beneath her blankets before closing her eyes and letting sleep take over.