Love is Brightest in the Dark

Chapter 7

Lin awoke early the next morning just before sunrise and wasted no time getting ready to start her day. After pulling on a white tank top and cargo pants, she hastily laced her boots up and was off to source a hot cup of coffee. She strolled into the kitchen expecting to find it deserted but instead found Su, wrapped in a forest green silk robe sipping a cup of tea. "Good morning, Lin," she said cheerfully. "Didn't expect to see you here," Lin replied, as she heated a pot of water. "So how did it go?" Su cut right to the chase. "Su, please. It's too early for this," Lin grumbled. "Fine. Have your coffee and then will you tell me?" Lin sighed as she walked over to the table Su was sitting at with her freshly brewed java in hand. "There's not too much to tell." "Why don't you let me be the judge of that. Walk me through last night- I want every detail." Lin reluctantly recounted last night's events to her sister who listened attentively, hanging on Lin's every word. "And then we said goodnight," Lin concluded, bringing her cup to her mouth and taking a sip. "Did you 'say goodnight' or did you 'say good night'?" asked Su, winking. "We said goodnight! I don't get what you're implying," said Lin, doing her best to keep a straight face. "You absolutely know what I mean, but let's just say for argument's sake you don't. Did you or did you not have a goodbye kiss?" Su pressed. Lin took a minute before answering, debating in her head if she should be honest with her sister. "Fine. If you must know, I said goodnight and was leaving and she... may have been... affectionate when saying goodnight," Lin said, unable to hide her smile. Su's eye's widened and broke out into a grin. "Affectionate, huh? What are we talking about exactly?" Lin said nothing, but only tapped her cheek with her finger. Su nodded her head in approval and raised her mug in the air. "Cheers to that," she said, as Lin clinked her own mug against Su's. "So what's on the agenda for today?" Lin asked, trying to steer the conversation away from her love life. "I actually thought today would be a perfect opportunity for you and Kya to have a chance to spar before your big rematch," said Su. "Kya said she was going to study more acupuncture today until late this afternoon. Until then, your time is yours," she continued. "I think I'll work a little more with Korra, whenever she finally decides to wake up," Lin muttered, rising from her chair. "Where are you going?" "Going for a run. Just need to clear my head," Lin replied, leaving Su alone once more.

The sun had just begun to peak out on the horizon, enveloping Lin in it's gold glow. She breathed in the morning air, savoring the sweet dew that made the grass glisten. She took a quick deep breath before starting off at jogging, running towards the edge of the estate. She kept replaying last night in her head- trying to make sense of what it all meant. Did Kya like her like that? She had pulled away from Lin when they were in the courtyard. Lin quickened her pace. Kya also was the one who kissed Lin on the cheek, so maybe not all was lost? "Ugh!" Lin broke out into an all out sprint, the burning in her lungs temporarily distracting her from her thoughts. She ran like this for about a mile until she had exhausted herself, panting heavily as she placed her hands on her knees. Once she had managed to catch her breath, she straightened and wiped her face with the bottom of her shirt, realizing she was sweating more than she realized. Still breathing heavily, she placed her hands above her head and took in her surroundings- her final lap around the property had brought her back to the sparring ring. As she walked closer to the ring, she noticed Korra hanging from the pull up bars- making the slow but deliberate movements, up, down, up, down. "How many can you do?" Lin asked loudly, startling the Avatar who had her back to the metal bender. "Chief! You scared me!" said Korra as she dropped to her feet, spinning to face Lin. "You're up early," Korra remarked, crossing her arms. "Force of habit," Lin replied. "How many can you do?" she repeated. "More than you," said Korra, in a challenging voice, flexing her biceps. Lin smirked and cracked her knuckles. "Prove it," she said, gesturing to the bars. "Why don't we make this a little more interesting," said Korra with a mischievous smile. "If I win, you have to tell me about last night," she said smugly. "And if I win?" Lin asked. "Bragging rights that you're stronger than the Avatar?" Korra offered with a shrug. Lin rolled her eyes and kept up to grab hold of the cold metal bar. She counted silently to herself as she pulled her chin up over the bar over and over. Thirty. Thirty one. Thirty two. Her muscles were burning and begged for relief, but she pressed on. Forty three. Forty four. She had just reached fifty when she felt the fatigue settle in, her fingers losing their grip, her body shaking as she tried to pull herself up. The only way she was getting down from this bar was if her body quit before she did. "Fifty six!" Korra shouted as Lin's hands slipped and she came tumbling down to the ground. "I'm fifty three, actually," Lin mumbled sarcastically as she tried to get to her feet. "You're up," she said gruffly as she earth bended a bench for her to catch her breath. Korra grasped the bar firmly and resumed her pull ups with ease, keeping a steady rhythm. Lin began to have a sinking feeling in her stomach as Korra entered the 50's, not slowing her tempo. "Shit," she said to herself as Korra surpassed Lin's record effortlessly. As soon as Korra hit sixty, she hopped down and looked expectantly at Lin. "You looked like you could have done a few more," Lin muttered bitterly. "Quit stalling, Chief! Tell me everything!" "Pull up a chair," said Lin in a dry voice and Korra quickly bended the earth underneath her to rise to Lin's level. "Chief!" Korra exclaimed after Lin had concluded her story. "She kissed you on the cheek! That's so cute!" Against her better judgement, Lin had decided to be completely honest with Korra in an attempt to avoid the predicament she found herself in that morning with Su. "Okay, I've held up my end of the deal. We can drop it now," Lin snapped. "Who knew you were such a lady killer," Korra continued, giving Lin a playful punch. Lin quickly earth bended Korra's seat away from her, knocking her off in the process. "Hey!" yelled Korra, making Lin smirk. "By the way, are you still interested in doing some more meditation? I figured it would be a good time to try again since your acupuncture." Korra dusted herself off and made her way back towards Lin. Lin nodded, much to Korra's excitement, and found herself being pulled by the Avatar towards a lush green clearing off past the sparring ring. "This is a pretty good spot," remarked Korra as she took in her surroundings. It was no Air Temple Island, but it would do. Lin and Korra sat across from each other on the soft grass, taking deep breaths. "Remember, let yourself flow with whatever your feeling," Korra reminded Lin as she shut her eyes. Lin nodded and began to concentrate, letting her mind wander freely. This time was different than the last. She no longer felt that bubble of dread begin to rise within her that she used to get with her memories of Kya. Instead she felt her heart flutter at the mere thought of her, and she could feel a smile spread across her lips. She let her thoughts float back to that day at Air Temple Island where she and Kya had shared their first sentimental moment in the cave. The memory washed over Lin, transporting her back.

"It's getting dark, I should go," said Lin, wiping away her tears. "Lin," Kya said in a soft voice, but Lin was gone before she could get out another word. She quickly fired a metal cable around a tree branch above her and shot upwards, flinging herself towards the base of the tree. She wiped her face to ensure she had no traces of tears visible before making her way home. Thankfully, the ferry hadn't left yet and Lin was able to sneak away without running into Tenzin nor Pema. She let out a long sigh as she watched herself drift further away from the island, turning to face the bow of the boat. She was already bracing herself for what she knew was coming next. As soon as the ferry docked, Lin set off towards her building, praying for suitable timing. As she approached her apartment door, she felt her trepidation build with every step. She metal bended the lock, and slipped inside, hoping to go unnoticed. She quickly scanned the living room which looked deserted. She sighed with relief and began to go to her room when she heard a voice say, "How was Twinkle Toes?" Lin spun around to see her mother sitting at the kitchen table behind her, still in uniform, holding a mug in her hands. "Fine. I'm fine," said Lin, disregarding Toph's question. "Okay, let's hear it," she said, pushing the chair closest to Lin out with a sharp movement of her foot. "Mom," Lin started but Toph silenced her by raising a hand. "I can feel your enraged breathing from here, Lin. Sit. Talk." Lin begrudgingly sat and folded her arms. "Tenzin and I.... broke up," Lin said bitterly. "I never really saw the two of you ending up together anyway. Good thing you dumped him," said Toph before taking a sip from her mug. "So tell me how it went- how did you do it? Did you let him down easy?" Lin felt her nose tickle as she tried her best to hold back the tears forming in her eyes. "It was him," was all she could get out. Toph's face seemed to soften for a second, sensing the heartache her daughter was enduring. "You know I never thought he was good enough for you," she said, resuming her stoney exterior. "He's Avatar's son- who would be good enough for me?" Lin asked in a dry voice. "He could be the Avatar for all I care. At the end of the day, you need to find someone you can see every day and not get sick of who has a backbone. If you ask me, relationships are overrated. Too many opportunities to be disappointed. Just worry about yourself," said Toph, rising and giving Lin a firm pat on the back. As her mother began to retreat into the other room, Lin summoned all her courage and blurted out, "Is that what happened with dad?"