Senior Year

“Earthbending bomb!” Bolin shouted as he jumped into the pool with Pabu.

Water splashed up and out, but it didn’t reach the edges of the pool.  I laughed with Opal from our seats next to the pool.  The boys had managed to beat us in changing and were already in the pool when we came out.  Korra was currently still changing; she had been adamant about meeting us out at the pool.  I set my towel down on the back of my chair, running my hands down the sides of my dark purple one piece.  I had just recently bought it for at home practice and thought it was perfect timing to break it in.  Opal was wearing a green two piece that complimented her eyes.  I snickered when I saw Bolin pause in the pool to watch her place her towel on her chair.

Hearing my snicker, Opal looked up at me. “What?” she asked, walking over to me.

I pointed to Bolin, who immediately ducked underneath the water. “Someone likes your choice of swimwear,” I answered, a smile on my face.

Opal’s cheeks went red.  I chuckled, nudging her with my elbow gently, and began to walk towards the pool.  Sitting down on the edge of the pool, I dipped my feet slowly into the water.  I shivered as I moved my feet into the water so that the edge was up to my ankles.  Opal soon joined me as the boys began to swim over to us.

“Where’s Korra?” Mako asked, treading water just a couple feet in front of Opal and I.

I looked over my shoulder towards the door to the pool.  Still no sign of her. “She was still changing when we left,” I said, turning my attention back to the boys.

It was then that I heard the door to the pool open.  Mako’s and Bolin’s jaws both dropped as they looked at the new arrival, prompting me to turn around.  Damn.  Now I get why they both dropped their jaws.  Standing by the door, a towel in her arm, was Korra.  The light blue two piece she had on was stunning us all; the top featured a flowing water symbol that I assumed to belong to the Southern Water tribe, and the shorts fit her hips at just all the right angles as waves decorated the edges of the sides.  Not to mention how it completely compliments her toned six pack abs.  Spirits, please don't let me make a fool of myself right now.  She walked over to the chairs, setting her towel down on the seat before pulling her wolf tail braids out and letting her hair flow freely down her back.

“Dang girl.  Talk about knock dead gorgeous,” Opal called.

Korra smiled, walking over to our gathered group. “Thanks, Opal.  It’s one of my favorites.”

It’s quickly becoming one of mine.  Not wanting Korra to see the obvious blush I knew I had on my cheeks from that thought, I slid quickly into the pool.  I swam to the other side, hoping to by myself enough time to center myself.  Feeling that I had my feelings under control, I turned around in the water, only to come face-to-face with Korra.

She smiled. “What was that all about?” she asked.

I was praying my hardest that I wasn’t blushing by how close she was to me.  Spirits…PLEASE don’t let me make a fool of myself right now.  Please! “What was what about?”

She looked at me confused. “You just getting into the pool all quick and suddenly and swimming far away from us.”

“Oh…uh well…I haven’t swam in a while, and I just wanted to get used to the water again,” I said, trying to think of a better excuse but not finding one.  Damn it…please don’t see right through me.

She watched me for a minute before smiling. “I wouldn’t really call this swimming.  It’s more relaxation floating to me,” she said, demonstrating by laying on her back and floating away from me.

I rolled my eyes, splashing water over at her. “Call it what you want, Korra, but I love to swim, whether leisurely or competitively.”

That caught her interest.  She straightened up, splashing water back at me as she treaded in front of me. “You swim competitively?”

I nodded, opting to swim down towards the deeper end.  I smiled when she began to follow me. “I swim for the school’s team, and the season’s just around the corner.”

The smile that appeared on her face was stunning. “Sounds like I need to go talk with the head coach about getting on the team.”

I laughed, splashing water at her. “Think it’s that easy to get on the team, huh?”

“Hey, I’ve been around water my entire life!  It better be that easy to make the swim team!” she replied, splashing back at me.

We splashed back and forth at each other, laughing with each hit, for several minutes afterwards.  There were several instances where Korra managed to hit me with small waterbending splashes, which earned her larger counters from me.  Finally tiring ourselves out, we stopped our splashing and laughed at the silliness of the situation.

“You two done yet?” Opal called from the other end of the pool.

I looked over at Korra, who had a devilish smile on her face. “Want to race back?” she asked.

I smiled back. “You’re on.”

Without another word, I dove underneath the water, swimming as fast as I could back towards Opal and the boys.  Soon enough, I found myself neck and neck with Korra.  Damn she’s good.  Even with my longer wingspan, Korra was able to keep up with the pace I had set.  We made it back to them in a tie to my surprise.

“Damn Korra, you’ve got speed!” Bolin said with amazement.

Pulling her hair back to get the excess water out, Korra smiled at him. “And that’s without using any waterbending to give myself an advantage,” she said proudly.

Mako smirked at her. “Well, if you plan on making the team, you should know that Asami’s the best swimmer at school, so it’ll be hard to knock her off the top spot.”

Korra looked at me before turning back to Mako. “I’m not worried.  At least I know that if it’s me against Asami, I’ll have a challenge.”

I laughed. “Same to you.”

We all began laughing.  Spirits, it felt good to just hang out with everyone and not have to worry about anything around us.  I leaned up against the edge of the pool, my arms resting on the ledge.  For once, it felt good to just sit and do nothing but smile and laugh.  It was hard to remember when the last time I let myself relax for longer than five minutes.  With Amon and school, my mind was always racing, always thinking about something.  Yet now, none of that was on my mind.

“So, Asami, what are you going to do for the upcoming Talent Show?” Mako asked, leaning against the adjacent wall.

Korra looked at him confused, pulling herself up onto the ledge beside me. “Talent show?”

Bolin smiled. “Yeah; Republic City High does a talent show every fall as a fundraiser.  Awards are given out to the best acts, and Asami’s won an award each year.”

I sighed. “I don’t really know if I want to be in the Talent Show this year or not, guys.  It’s always the same acts that perform, and I feel like that they only give me an award because everyone else has some subpar performance that doesn’t get the audience going,” I said, slowly pulling myself up onto the ledge.

“Well, what have you done in the past?” Korra asked, the intrigued expression on her face focused on me.

I looked up, thinking about the past three years. “Well, freshman year I did a dance routine; sophomore year I did a martial arts demonstration; and then last year, Opal and I did a cheerleading routine.”

Opal smiled at the memory. “I still say you should’ve went out for the squad this year, Asami.”

I frowned. “And have to listen to Ginger complain every day about whatever new boy she had hanging on her arm?  No thanks,” I said, leaning back on my hands.

“Well, it’s your last year, so why not do it one more time?  I’m sure you have some hidden talent that’ll surprise all of us,” Korra suggested.

Bolin’s eyes went wide when Korra mentioned the words ‘hidden talent.’ “She sings!  Asami, you should sing for your last year!” he exclaimed, clapping his hands together at the idea.

I shook my head. “What?  Bolin, you’re crazy.  I can’t go out and sing in front of everyone; I’m not that good.”

Opal, who had maneuvered herself so that she was sitting on my left, playfully pushed me to the side. “Oh, shut up.  You’re a great singer, and I think it’s a great idea.”

Mako and Korra agreed, and suddenly I was voluntold to participate in the Talent Show.  I mentally groaned at the thought of having to perform again.  I would’ve just liked to spend some time at home with everyone instead of having to sing out in front of a whole bunch of people who could care less.  At least Bolin had volunteered to be my guitarist for the talent show. 

The rest of the day went on smoothly.  We paid a visit out to the track, where I was able to show off my driving skills against one of our test drivers.  By the time we had made it back to the house, Bolin rushed himself to the nearest bathroom.  Opal sighed as we watched him sprint down the hallway; we all laughed at her embarrassment for him.

“Speaking of bathrooms, I’m going to head upstairs and use that one real quick,” Korra said with a smile.  Always with a smile whenever she’s near me.

I smiled back. “We’ll be in the entertainment room.”

She nodded and left for the upstairs bathroom.  Mako stayed behind to wait for Bolin to return, while Opal and I made our way down to the entertainment room.  It was quiet for a few minutes before Opal spoke up.

“So…what are you going to sing at the talent show?” she asked, her hands behind her back.

I shrugged. “I don’t really know yet.  I have a feeling you’re going to give me an idea, though.”

She smiled, moving in front of me but continuing to move with me towards the entertainment room. “Why don’t you sing a song to sweep Korra off her feet?”

I could feel the warmth rush to my cheeks. “Absolutely not!”

Opal frowned as we reached the room. “Why not?”

“Well for one, I don’t even know if she goes that way in the first place.  Second, if she does, I don’t even know if she feels the same way as I do.  There are so many things that could and can go wrong with that idea,” I explained, plopping down into my favorite seat.

Choosing her seat next to mine, Opal leaned her elbows onto the arm rest. “You never know unless you try, Asami.”

I rubbed the sides of my head. “I’ve known her for about four months and just figured out that I like her, and you want me to sing a song to sweep her off her feet?  Really Opal?” I asked, looking at her.

She shrugged, smiling at me. “Basically.”

I groaned, but the boys’ entrance cut off any more of that conversation’s potential to turn worse.  They took their seats to our left, Bolin immediately thinking about what snacks he was going to ask the butler to bring.  He had just made his decisions out loud when Korra walked in, her expression grim.  We all sat up in our seats when we saw her.

“Korra, what’s wrong?” I asked.

She shook her head. “Nothing.  I just…I have to watch the airbender kids tonight, and I have some homework I need to catch up on.  I just wanted to let you guys know I was heading out for the night,” she said before she promptly left the room.

I got up, rushing after her.  I grabbed her hand, pulling her to a stop. “Hey, what’s going on?”

The look she gave me, one of internal conflict, gave away that something was definitely up, but she wasn’t going to budge on what it was.  She shook her head, giving me a hug before she ran out of the house.  I watched her leave, a feeling of dread as to what was wrong.  It wasn’t like Korra to leave like this, to leave this upset.  Something had happened in the house that had set her off, and it concerned me that I didn’t know what it was.

The next day, Korra was quiet at school.  She hung out with us, but whatever was on her mind was overpowering.  She was so un-Korra that I felt as if she had been replaced by some type of robot.  I spoke to Opal about my concerns, but she was as clueless as to what was currently bothering Korra as I was.  Even Varrick, with his crazy inventions he brought with him today, couldn’t get a smart remark out of her. 

She left school right after it ended, not bothering to say goodbye or answering if she was going to hang out with us.  Korra being not herself today affected all of us, so we decided that we’d get her together with us tonight to get her mind off of whatever was bothering her.  What I hadn’t planned on was finding out what was wrong when I got home.

Pulling up to the house, I saw Chief Beifong’s patrol car and Tenzin’s car parked outside.  Pulling into my spot, I quickly grabbed my things and made my way inside.  Korra was standing by the staircase with the butler, a grim look on her face.  When she saw me, a flash of a smile came across her face before it quickly disappeared.

“Korra?  What’s going on?” I asked as I walked over to her.

She looked at me for a minute before sighing. “Asami, I…I think your dad’s involved with the Equalist movement.”

I looked at Korra, dumbfounded by her accusation.  She thinks that…that Dad is an Equalist? “What are you talking about?”

“I overheard him talking about Cabbage Corp and I-“ she started to explained, but I was already furious.

“You spied on my dad, and now you’re accusing him of being an Equalist?” I yelled, not waiting for an answer as I made my way to Dad’s office.

I could hear Korra following me as I made my way down the hall.  I pushed open the doors hard, finding Chief Beifong and Tenzin in the midst of talking with Dad. “Just because we’re not benders doesn’t mean we’re with the Equalists!” I shouted as I entered the room.

Dad’s expression changed from relaxed to alarmed. “Equalists?  Is this what this meeting’s about?  I can assure you that I and Future Industries have nothing to do with those radicals.”

By Korra’s frown, I could tell that she wasn’t convinced. “I heard you talking about Cabbage Corp and its investigation.  How it was giving you time and you were about to strike,” she said, crossing her arms over her chest.

It was then that Dad began to laugh. “Is that what this is about?  I assure you, it’s just a misunderstanding.  Cabbage Corp was Future Industries’s leading competitor, and the investigation, while unfortunate for Cabbage Corp, is allowing us to provide new product out without need to wonder about any counters,” Dad explained to Korra, Chief Beifong, and Tenzin.

To be on the safe side, according to Chief Beifong and Tenzin, every Future Industries factory was searched.  Even Dad’s headquarters were searched to make sure of no Equalist involvement.  It was late before the factory searches ended.  I watched as the last of the metalbending police officers left the main factory, my arms across my chest in an effort to keep from letting my anger go out of control.

Korra was speaking with Chief Beifong and Tenzin.  After a brief nod, she began to look around.  I could see her eyes light up for a moment when she found me, and I felt a brief flutter in my chest, but I was too angry at her and this whole ‘Equalist ties’ stuff to react properly.

“Are they happy now after having searched every factory and finding nothing?” I asked as she made her way over to me.

Korra frowned at the anger on my voice. “Asami, I know what I heard.  Something’s up,” she said calmly.

I shook my head. “Well you’re wrong, Korra.  I know my dad; I know he wouldn’t get involved into something like this.  He’s a good man,” I said before I left for my car.

I didn’t bother waiting for a response as I peeled out of the area.  I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand as I drove down the streets.  How could she even think to accuse Dad of being one of those…those…those criminals!  I thought she was better than that.  I shook my head.  I knew I couldn’t stay mad at her, but it was going to be a long couple days before I could even talk to her again.  I was too angry tonight to think straight.  If only I wasn’t so angry, then maybe I could’ve seen that Korra was onto something.  Something that would change my entire world forever.