Regrets (Complete)

Chapter Sixteen

Lin was dying.

There was no other explanation for the way she currently felt. She could feel her entire head throbbing and when she tried to open her eyes she immediately regretted it and closed them tight again. She wasn't on Air Temple Island anymore which meant Kya must have decided it was time for them to go home.

Memories started coming back and she groaned. She had finally given her mother the drinking contest she had always wanted. And she had... won.

Lin smirked and tried opening her eyes again. It was still an unpleasant experience but she decided her current feeling of death was worth it as payment for the satisfaction of beating Toph at one of her favorite games.

Sitting up was a harder task and the whole room swam. It took a moment for her gain a sense of where she was when she noticed the unmistakable smell of breakfast being cooked. Her stomach both grumbled with hunger and twisted with disgust at the smell but she got up slowly from the bed and pulled on a robe.

She could hear voices and she paused before opening the door. So that hadn't all been a dream, Rei was here. Her daughter was alive and she was in her apartment making breakfast with the love of her life. She took in a breath and pushed through the door and into the kitchen.

"Lin! Good morning! Wasn't expecting to see you up so early."

"Not so loud, Kya. Morning kid."

"Oh! Uh, good morning!"

Rei smiled cheerfully before looking to Kya as if the two of them knew something Lin didn't. Kya walked to Lin and handed her a cup of warm liquid that she concocted herself as a cure for hangovers. She waited expectantly until Lin took a few sips before speaking.

"Lin, Rei has something she wants to ask you."

Lin lowered the cup as she felt a sense of anxiousness build in her. She had been avoiding this conversation since they'd been back. It was easy while they were on Air Temple Island with so many people around to keep them all occupied. But now she had no choice but to face it. How could she ever make up for her failures? How could she ever expect Rei to forgive her? She turned to her and nodded in what she hoped was encouragement, unable to come up with any words.

"I had a mother my whole life and I thought it was as simple as that. But then, everything happened and I found out my entire life was a lie. And part of me is always going to love the woman who raised me because she was my mother and she really did love me. But I'm also incredibly angry at the life I missed out on and that you... that you missed out on raising me. I-I understand if you're not comfortable with it and it'll take a bit for me to get used to it myself but I was wondering if it'd be okay with you if... if I... if I called you mom?"

Lin didn't say anything as she turned away, setting her cup on the counter and bracer her hands on its cool surface.

"Lin?"

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have... it was stupid to even think-"

A sob caught in Lin's chest as she turned back around, grabbing Rei by the arm and pulling her close to her. Rei seemed surprised for a moment but she recovered quickly as she wrapped her arms around Lin's middle and squeezed her tightly.

"I've spent the last twenty years wondering what it would be like, wondering what being a mother would feel like. Imagining what it would feel like to hear you say mom for the first time."

She pulled back to look at Rei's face, gently wiping away the silent tears streaming down her face. She smiled and Lin felt an unfamiliar sense of peace wash over her.

"Well, how does it feel mom?"

"Better than I ever imagined, kid."

She hugged her again and Kya playfully whispered to Lin.

"I've never seen you such a blubbering mess before. I wish I had my camera."

"Shut up and come here."

Lin pulled Kya in to join them. She wrapped her long arms around both of them and leaned over Rei's head to kiss Lin tenderly on the lips.

Rei was completely trapped in their embrace but she wouldn't have had it any other way. She knew things wouldn't always be this easy in the coming days but it was a new chapter in her life that she couldn't wait to explore. She had finally found her way home.