Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Korra was confused. When she had searched for a new roommate—eventually getting into contact with a friend of Bolin’s girlfriend—this wasn’t what she had expected.

Asami didn’t bother sharing a last name, place where she worked, or her secondary sex. She radiated power and wealth, which only made Korra question why she was here, deciding to live in a run-down apartment instead of a mansion.

And Korra could’ve lived with all of that, if only in the short two weeks they had lived together, Korra hadn’t started to fall head over heels, mentally making a list of everything interesting she could find about Asami.

Asami woke up insanely early.

The clock read 3:45 and Korra was still up, deep into the first season of Hoarders, snacking on slightly stale chips and peanut M&Ms. 

The sound of distant buzzing and ringing—an alarm—startled her out of her mindless, tv-watching trance. She paused her show, expecting it to be a mistake. Maybe Asami had set her alarm too early. Nope. A minute or so after it had gone off, Asami was out of her room, neatly folded clothes in hand as she walked towards the bathroom. Before she fully entered the room, she peaked her head out, catching Korra about to bite into another chip. Her eyebrows furrowed, something like concern in her eyes, not saying anything as she ducked back in and closed the door.

When she came out of the shower around twenty five minutes later, looking insanely put together with weird patches of plastic on her neck, she gave Korra a second glance.

“Don’t you have work in the morning?” She asked, pulling a bowl down from the cupboard. Korra knew what she was making—maple brown sugar oatmeal, the same thing Korra could smell in the kitchen every time she woke up.

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I?”

Asami shrugged. “I dunno. Usually people sleep before they go to work. Generally.”

“I do sleep before I go to work.”

“Yeah? That’s why you’re still up, at this hour?”

“It works fine. I get four hours of sleep, get ready in fifteen minutes and drive to work. Also, as you would say, usually people work a nine-to-five. Generally.”

Asami rolled her eyes, pretending to be annoyed at being mocked. “You do you. What’re you watching, anyways?”

“Hoarders.”

She wrinkled her face. “Ugh, watching that show gives me anxiety. I could never live like that.”

“That seems about right.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

She was still unable to figure out Asami’s secondary sex.

When Korra had found out from Bolin how mysterious Asami was, she was cocky, making a bet with Bolin that she could figure out if Asami was an alpha, beta, or omega in the first three days of them living together. Even if she didn’t say it in writing or words, surely it’d be easy to tell from her behavior, and her scent. Surely.

It wasn’t.

In another one of their late night for Korra, early morning for Asami encounters, she finally decided to ask about the weird patches Asami put on her neck every morning, hoping it’d give her an answer to one of the dozen mysterious things about Asami.

“They’re scent blockers.”

“What?”

“Yeah. I put them on my wrists and my thighs as well. Every morning and every night. They prevent my scent glands from functioning properly for 12-18 hours.”

Korra smelled the air, curiously searching for Asami’s scent. It was there, vaguely, a strange, somehow pleasant combination of lemons and metal, but it was dull and muted, lacking the sweet undertones of an omega or the savory undertones of an alpha. She’d been toying with the idea that Asami was a beta, but this confirmed she wasn’t—a beta wouldn’t have scent glands they needed to prevent functioning in the first place.

“Why do you even hide your secondary sex? Isn’t it just… more effort?”

Suddenly, Asami seemed a little defensive. Clearly Korra had poked at something she wasn’t supposed to. “Why do you even need to know?”

“Come on. You can’t even tell me? I’m your roommate!”

She scoffed, genuinely annoyed. “Stop asking about it.”

“Whatever. I’ll just ask Opal. She’ll tell me.”

Frustrated with each other, they spent the rest of their morning in silence.

And Korra did ask Opal. She refused to tell her.

She was an obsessive planner, for no apparent reason.

On their third day together, Korra walked into the living room to find Asami working on a schedule, written on a whiteboard, presumably for this week. Each day was broken into proper segments—so many of them that Korra was a little baffled. She couldn’t read most of it from the angle she was looking at, but she did catch a few things—notably, exact time blocks set aside for sleeping, showering, and eating. From here, it looked like she had very little time set aside for free time.

Korra cleared her throat, and Asami’s gaze snapped up to meet hers. “Not to, um, pry, but what’s that for?”

Asami gave her a confused look. “You’ve never seen a schedule before?”

Korra frowned, pouting. “I mean— I’ve seen a schedule before, obviously. But, like, is there a reason why it’s… so organized. You seriously can’t give yourself leniency with how long it takes to eat?”

Asami stared her down, like she was examining a specimen—Korra couldn’t believe how someone so wildly different from her could exist, and she was sure Asami was thinking the same thing.

After a few seconds, Asami spoke. It sounded like she was repeating something she’d heard a million times over. Maybe she was. “Discipline is the only way to achieve success. Leniency is not an option.”

“Okay…” Korra said, questioning that thought process. “No free time? Nothing?”

“I have free time,” Asami corrected her. “Just less than you might. Again, commitment and discipline.”

“And that’s not boring?”

“Sometimes. But, as my father would say, organization and order is the only way to make progress, even at the cost of boredom.”

“Wow, okay,” Korra said, not saying the quiet part out loud—Asami was weird. “I have a serious question for you.”

“Go ahead.”

Korra tried not to giggle as she spoke. “Are you a robot?”

Asami shot her a death glare, not answering her question.

She still hid what she did for work.

Asami was spending time outside of her room with the only intent being hanging out, which was rare - the only time she usually came out was to get ready, use the bathroom, or make food. Korra was trying to savor the moment of Asami sitting next to her on the couch, relaxed.

Despite being committed to savoring the moment, she was unable to stop herself from asking a question. “Okay, we’ve gotten through three episodes in silence. Can I ask you something?”

Asami laughed, biting another grape. She always ate grapes in two bites, even the tiniest ones—which was very, very odd. “You seem very curious about every aspect of my life. But, why not? Ask away.”

“What do you do for work? I’ve been trying to figure it out the entire time you’ve been here.”

She smiled mischievously. “Can’t tell you.”

Korra dramatically threw her head back, running her fingers through her hair. She hoped her show would convince Asami to tell her—even though she knew it probably wouldn’t. “What do you mean you can’t tell me? You let me ask. You have to answer.”

Asami’s grin hadn’t left her face. “Not once did I say I would answer.”

Korra groaned. “I need to stop letting you outsmart me.” She frowned, deciding to  resort to begging. “Please tell me? I really, really, won’t tell anyone else.”

Another grape eaten. Two bites. “Nope. Not telling.”

“I’ll ask Opal.”

“You know that isn’t a proper threat. She never tells you shit.”

She wasn’t wrong. Korra resolved herself to thinking for a moment — she actually did have a guess. Maybe not a good one, but a guess.

“Are you… a stripper?”

Asami looked unimpressed. “What?”

“That's the only job someone would need to keep secret, right?”

“I’m sure there’s other jobs that—” she shook her head and sighed. “No, Korra, I am not a stripper. Why would I use scent blockers all the time if I was? I feel like that’s counterintuitive.”

“Drug mule?”

She didn’t think it was possible for Asami to look even more unimpressed than she had previously. Turns out, it was very, very possible. “Obviously I’m not a drug mule, you idiot. I swear, your brain is full of water. No thoughts. I’m going back to my room.”

As Asami got up, Korra dramatically stretched her hand out. “No… come back… what will I ever do without you?”

When Asami got to her room, she slammed the door, hard. Korra snickered.

Korra had a massive, massive crush on her.

She hated admitting it to herself. Really, really hated admitting it. Asami’s goal in life seemed to be getting on her nerves as much as possible, and yet… Korra liked her, more than she should. She found herself holding in a smile when Asami returned from work or left her room, laughing at every one of her jokes. Found herself finding any excuse to be near her.

And after watching Asami’s every move for the past two weeks, Korra was convinced that she was an alpha. She couldn’t not be — she commanded too much attention, held too much power. And, most importantly, Korra was way too attracted to her. There was no way that her body would let her be attracted to anyone but an alpha, or at the very least a beta male, this much. Nope. No way. 

Whatever the deal was with Asami, Korra was determined to figure it out.

Chapter Text

“Please, Bolin, you have to get something out of Opal. I know she knows literally everything about Asami. Please.”

From the other end of the line, she could hear Bolin’s smug laugh. “And yet you were the one who was so confident you could figure out every aspect of her life without a lick of assistance. Funny how that works out, isn’t it?”

She wanted to throw her phone—no, actually, she wanted to throw Bolin—across the room. This was getting very, very frustrating. “I seriously hate you. Opal hasn’t told you anything?”

“In all seriousness, no. I did ask, but nothing. I’m a little shocked. She seriously won’t tell me a single thing.”

“Ugh. She hasn’t let anything slip?”

“Not much. She did say that Asami bought her these super expensive diamond earrings, so maybe she’s rich? But that doesn’t explain why she’s rooming with you, in your apartment, of all places… Why’re you so obsessed with figuring her out, anyways?”

Korra’s voice was a little clipped, and her response was suspiciously quick. “No reason.”

There was a pause, and she knew that Bolin was taking a second to figure it out. Before he even started speaking, she grabbed a pillow off her bed and threw her face into it, frustrated at herself for making her feelings so obvious.

“You like her, don’t you?”

She yelled into tue pillow. “No!”

Bolin sounded a little giddy, clearly ecstatic to have something new to tease Korra about. “Oh, no. You for sure do.”

“It isn’t a big deal. And I swear, if you tell Opal a single thing—”

“I won't, I won’t! But you have to admit, this is super fun drama. It’s like a soap opera but I’m influencing it, real time.”

She sighed, sitting up straight. “I should’ve never gotten you into reality TV. And this isn’t high school, me being attracted to her is the least important thing, ever. It’s not going to go anywhere.”

“First off, reality TV and soap operas are not the same thing, I’ve told you a million times. And if you’re gonna be like this, don’t come running to me you’re trying to figure out if she likes you—”

A knock at her door.

She whisper-yelled into her phone, cutting Bolin off. More important things were happening. “I think that’s her knocking— I’ll call you back later!”

She hung up just as Asami opened the door, straightening her shoulders.

“Hey,” Korra sputtered, her voice a little squeaky as she tried to push down a smile.

Asami smiled back at her, holding a cup in her hand. “I made you some tea. I figured that if you’re going to stay up late every night, you should at least have some caffeine.”

She was speechless. Korra knew that she interrupted the efficiency Asami strived for, and, on account of that, figured that she wouldn’t waste time doing something simple and nice for her. But she did. 

She took the warm cup from Asami, feeling the smooth porcelain in her hand. It definitely wasn’t Korra’s cup—it felt far too expensive and well made. “Um, thank you.”

She took a small sip, looked up as Asami watched her, and savored the taste on her tongue. She expected it to be any of the flavors she had in the apartment, one that Asami had chosen at random. It wasn’t. It was her favorite.

She leaned over to set it on her nightstand, a little baffled. “How did you know that one’s my favorite? There’s so many types in the cupboard.”

Asami smiled, looking a little proud of herself. “I have my ways. Did I make it okay?”

Korra’s heart was going a mile a minute, and she could barely focus on Asami’s words when they were shaped by her pretty mouth. “I think you might’ve made it better than I usually do, actually.”

“I’m glad.” She looked down at the bed. “Can I sit with you?”

Korra got a bit of whiplash. She’d expected Asami to leave, their interaction over. “Yeah, of course you can.”

As Asami sat down, Korra moved over, attempting to give her as much space as possible. The space was partially out of respect and partially for Korra’s own sanity — she didn’t think she could handle being this close to Asami in her current state.

Asami gave her a weird look. “What, d’you think I’m contagious? You can sit close to me.”

Korra mumbled out a sorry, face flushed, shifting closer to her and avoiding looking at her face. This wasn’t going to be easy.

Asami had been far too nice recently, and Korra was getting a bit suspicious. Either Asami was planning on murdering her, or she was suddenly feeling generous — either way, Korra was beginning to miss their old, short lived dynamic of constantly annoying each other.

Determined to piss her off, Korra crept into the hallway as the time hit 4:30 exactly, peaking into the bathroom where Asami was brushing her teeth and peacefully humming an old song. It was yet another one of the early morning interactions they had where Korra’s 'about to go to bed' time crossed into Asami’s 'just waking up' time. Korra’s 'about to go to bed time' should’ve been over by now, actually, since Asami had become determined to make sure Korra was in bed by the time she left for work. Every day now, without fail.

However, she had her sights set on scaring Asami—from the time they’d spent together, Korra had come to realize that getting scared was the one singular thing that Asami hated most. Out of everything— getting scared.

So she continued to linger near the bathroom doorway, determined to find the prime moment to scare her and subsequently annoy her. Another second. Another second.

As Asami began rinsing out her mouth, Korra walked forwards with light footsteps so that she was fully in the doorway. Grabbing her felt a little too mean, being scared by the sight of Korra’s silhouette in the mirror could be enough. She waited, and waited. For somebody that smart, she was shocked Asami lacked the observational skills to see someone standing in the reflection.

Korra was about to say something—done with this idea because somehow it hadn’t worked—when Asami grabbed an unlabeled pill bottle out of her pocket.

Very suddenly, Korra was beginning to understand the saying curiosity killed the cat. She really, really had to see—had to see what they were. If she said something now, Asami would most definitely hide them from her, and wouldn’t give her an answer when asked, because she was notorious for never giving a straight answer.

Asami shook one large, simplistic white pill into her hand. Fortunately for Asami, and unfortunately for Korra, there wasn’t a single thing that could hint to her what it was.

Seeing no other option but to ask, she spoke. “What are those for?”

Asami had been both mid swallow and completely unaware of Korra’s presence, so upon realizing that Korra was right there, she startled and choked on the pill, leaning over the sink and raising one finger as she coughed — telling Korra to hold on.

When she got a grip on herself, having managed to avoid suffocation, she cleared her throat and looked at Korra with a distinctly annoyed expression. At least her plan had worked in the end.

“You can’t scare me like that!”

Korra grinned. “Who says?”

Asami rolled her eyes. “I do! What could have possibly inspired you to do that?”

She shrugged, trying to come off as nonchalant as she possibly could. “I dunno. You’ve been awfully sweet lately. Trust me, I love it, but I miss you being all snarky.”

Asami huffed, still annoyed. She mumbled something under her breath that Korra’s tired brain couldn’t quite catch.

“Anyway, you still haven’t answered the question I asked. You never answer any of my other questions, at least give me this one.”

She hesitated for a moment. “They’re… uh, they’re suppressants.”

Korra was very, very confused. “Why do you need them if you’ve got those weird patch things for your neck?”

For once, Asami gave her a straightforward answer. “Mostly for backup. They prevent my cycle and they stop pheremones from instinctually affecting me, as well.”

Korra wrinkled her nose and frowned a little, still annoyed at Asami’s air of mystery. “You’re weird.”

As soon as she had gotten home from work, she snuck away to her room to call Bolin, barraging him with texts about it being a very urgent call until he picked up.

“I swear, Korra, you better be on the verge of death or about to say goodbye to a limb.”

She giggled innocently. “What happens if I’m not in either of those situations?”

She could picture his dramatic eye-roll in her head, even if she couldn’t see him. “What is it, then?”

“I think I might’ve figured something out.”

Bolin quickly dropped the annoyed act, switching to the most teasing tone he could muster. “Oh, this is about her, isn’t it?”

“Don’t phrase it like that!” She frowned. “But yeah, it is.”

He did seem a little curious. “Did you find out what she does for work?”

She sighed. “Nope. Still nothing on that front. I still don’t know how she keeps it hidden.”

“Hold on. I might have a theory for that one.”

She perked up. “What is it?"

Bolin sounded very, very confident—even if he wasn’t here, she could see that dumb grin he had on his face. “Drug mule.”

Korra laughed. “Believe it or not, that was my second theory. She’s not. Anyways, no, I’m fully convinced that she’s an alpha.”

“Didn’t we figure this out, like, a while ago?”

“Well, yeah. But that was just anecdotal. I saw her taking these suppressants this morning, and they had to be for alphas. All the suppressants I’ve ever taken are much smaller, and also are pink, for some weird reason.”

“Always thought that last bit was odd.”

She hummed. “Yeah, me too. But the way they look matches the look of every alpha suppressant I’ve ever seen. So there it is—case closed.”

“That was actually a lot easier than I thought it’d be. But, this is really good for you. You can go after her now! Try to woo her or whatever, now that you know you can settle down with her.”

“Shit, I hadn’t thought of that.” After a brief moment, and a healthy amount of snickering from Bolin, Korra caught her slip. “But I’m not pursuing her! We talked about this.”

Bolin giggled from the other end of the line. “Sure you aren’t.”

Chapter Text

Korra was becoming a bit obsessed, and Asami sure as hell wasn’t helping.

It was a little past 11:00 PM, far past the time Asami usually went to bed, and Korra felt the need to prod and ask why she was still up. She hoped this wasn’t one of those weirdly sensitive subjects, like her secondary sex, that made Asami genuinely pissed off and defensive when she asked. “Aren’t you… um, supposed to be asleep by now?”

Asami smiled slyly at her, swirling around the wine in her glass. Korra couldn’t help but stare longingly at her fingers for a second or two—the way they curled around the glass, the soft paleness of them, and her perfectly manicured, short–clipped red almond nails. She looked away, hoping Asami hadn’t noticed the mood shift in her scent, or the way her face flushed a deep red. “Am I not allowed to stay up with you?”

Korra shifted to put her legs fully on the couch, a little in her space - but Asami didn’t seem to mind. “I thought you’d have better things to do.”

Asami stared at her for a second, licking her lips. “What better things are there to do than you?”

As her words registered, Korra paled, and then blushed. She was about to question what the hell that meant, when Asami, her cheeks light pink, realized what she’d said as well. Her free hand came up to cover her mouth, hand flat and rigid in an effortlessly elegant way.

“Not… not like that.”

Korra was feeling a little bold. “Is there a second meaning to you doing me that I’m not aware of?”

Asami looked away from her, evidently embarrassed. “I meant hanging out with you, not… something else.”

“Sure you did.”

Korra was laying in her bed, scrolling through social media mindlessly. She was very, very bored, but Bolin and Mako were busy, so she had no one to bother. Well, except for Asami, but, after the night before, there’d been a bit of tension between them.

A few more minutes of scrolling. Okay, maybe she should go and bother Asami.

Just as she resorted to loading up a stupid mobile game, there was a knock at her door. Her heart did a few flips and she swallowed, throat suddenly dry. “Come in.”

Asami peeked into the room, holding a plate of food. “Hey, Korra.”

She cringed at her stomach rumbling. When wasn’t she hungry? “What do you have there?”

She lifted her eyebrows, pretending to be unimpressed. “Oh, so you’re more interested in the food than me? I see how it is.”

“No! I was just curious—”

Asami stepped into the room, shutting the door behind her. “Relax, I was just teasing. I know you’re glad to see me.”

When was Asami going to say something that didn’t make her mind blank and her face redden? Ugh.

“But, seriously, it’s just cookies and milk.”

Korra couldn’t help but smile, taking the plate from her. “You didn’t have to get me anything.”
“I know. But you haven’t eaten since you got home from work, so I figured you would want something small, at least.”

It was true—Korra had totally forgotten to eat, too lazy to make herself anything, but that wasn’t the point. Asami had no real way of knowing that. “How do you know? You got home later than me today.”

“There were no dishes in the sink.”

“I could’ve washed them!”

“Sure you did,” Asami giggled a little. “Because you always wash your dishes immediately. You never put them off until right before you get to bed.”

She’d been caught there. Instead of satisfying Asami with an annoyed response, she resolved to dipping one of the chocolate chip cookies in milk. She’d expected Asami to leave right then, her point proven. But, much to Korra’s dismay—and excitement—she lifted up the blanket and sat down on the bed, pulling it over herself.

“Scooch a little. I’m falling off the side of the bed.”

“Right,” Korra stuttered, moving right. Clearly she’d moved a bit too far, putting too much space in between them, because Asami shot her an annoyed glare.

“What did I say last time? Get back over here.”

Seeing no other option,  Korra did as told. She moved just a little closer—if she got any nearer, she was afraid she’d do something outlandish. Asami gave her another glare. Closer she went, then.

Her heart was jackrabbiting in her chest, and her mind was blank, barring her constant thoughts of Asami, Asami, Asami. She took in a deep breath, trying to steady herself, but all she could focus on was the muted, weak scent of Asami. She really, really wished Asami wasn’t wearing those stupid scent blockers now, so her scent could be stronger.

Craving contact, Korra angled her legs so her knees brushed up against Asami’s thighs. Maybe she was delusional, but she swore she heard Asami suck in a breath.

Asami gave her a smile—not nearly as frazzled as Korra was—and threw an arm over Korra, forcing her to lean into her. Now, with her head on Asami’s shoulder, she was really breathing her in. 

She needed to get a grip on herself, as soon as possible.

Asami was working late, and Korra was going a bit insane. She missed her, really fucking bad. For the past hour, because Asami usually came home at 6 PM at the earliest, Korra had been lounging on the couch, waiting for Asami to walk through the door, maybe even sit down with her and watch a show. She was a little pathetic.

It was 7 PM, and she still wasn’t home. She hadn’t answered Korra’s texts either, which meant she wasn’t on the way home. She’d even texted Bolin, telling him that she was getting worried and asking him if he could ask Opal about her. His reply had made her want to choke him.

If you miss her so much, go steal a hoodie from her room or something.

She’s definitely okay, you’re just down bad.

It mostly pissed her off because he was right. She was down bad, to a concerning degree. Her original reply to him had been that no, she wasn’t invading Asami’s privacy to steal a hoodie from her, but as the clock ticked, and ticked, and ticked, the idea was becoming more appealing by the second.

So, against her better judgement, she found herself walking up to Asami’s door, twisting the doorknob and letting herself in.

She’d actually never been inside the room— Asami always came to her.

As expected, it was meticulously clean. The only sign someone actually lived there was a hoodie—jackpot!—thrown across the bed, and a few papers strewn across the desk in the corner.
It also smelled so much like Asami, that muted scent that Korra wished she didn’t suppress, to the point where she felt a little dizzy. She stood there, for a second, feeling a variety of things, taking in Asami’s scent with her eyes closed. Being surrounded by it was making her feel things she really shouldn’t have been feeling, seeing as she had previously been committed to not pursuing her.

She only felt a tiny bit of guilt as she snatched up the hoodie, having collected her bounty.

Wearing the hoodie was both a blessing and a curse. She wasn’t overcome with missing Asami anymore, or at least not as much, but now she felt the compulsion to bring her wrist to her nose and breathe in her scent every three seconds.

She had also had to move to her bedroom. Not only did she not want to explain how she’d snuck into Asami’s room and stolen a piece of her clothing, but being wrapped in Asami’s scent was making her feel a desperate throbbing between her legs—and in no world did she want the first thing Asami smelled upon coming home from work to be the cloying scent of Korra’s own arousal.

Hating the way she felt—the way Asami’s scent was making her feel—she bit her lip and squeezed her legs together, hoping it’d be enough to stave off the feeling.

It wasn’t, not by a longshot.

She looked at her phone, sufficiently embarrassed and overcome with need, checking the time.

7:32… surely, if she wasn’t home by now, she wouldn’t be home for a bit, right?

Masturbating to her roommate, who’d been nothing but kind to her, was not the way she had planned to spend her evening, but it was beginning to look like her best option.

She exhaled as she slipped a hand between her legs to tease at herself above her clothing, feeling more than a healthy dose of shame.

She imagined, biting her lip, how it’d feel to kiss Asami, hot and heavy until all of the lipstick was sucked off her pretty mouth.

Checking the time again, and keeping her ears open to make sure Asami hadn’t gotten home yet, she slipped her hand under the waistband of her sweatpants and underwear, a little whine slipping from her lips as her fingers rubbed lightly at her clit.

She thought of how it’d feel to have Asami’s hand on her back, pressing her down into the mattress as she fucked her. How it’d feel to be Asami’s mate, her omega.

The thought of Asami fangs in her neck, marking her, had Korra tightening around nothing. She let out a needy whimper—feeling hot and flushed and desperate as she touched herself, wishing above all else that Asami was there, helping her through it.

She was being far too loud, especially so as her fingers slid down, sliding past her entrance with little resistance, but she didn’t really have it in her to care. Not when she hadn’t ever wanted anyone as much as this, hadn’t needed anyone as much as this, as much as she needed Asami.

She had never desired the simple life of a mated omega, had always found the idea of submitting to an alpha day in and day out a bit too invasive and dehumanizing, but Asami was proving to be the exception. She’d do anything, right now, just to be Asami’s, for Asami to be hers. 

She brought the wrist of her free hand to her nose, inhaling the sweet smell of Asami. She wished, so badly, that Asami’s hands were on her hips, or in her hair, kissing her neck as she fucked her.

This, gasping desperately with her fingers deep inside herself as she took in Asami’s scent, so close to coming with Asami’s name on her lips, was a level of debauchery she had been proud to not have stooped to in the past.

She was so close, the feeling coiling and winding in her abdomen, when she heard the jingling of keys being set down on the counter—had she failed to hear the apartment door opening?

The realization, cold down her spine, that Asami could’ve heard her—and was home, now—was enough to effectively sober her up.

Hurriedly, she pulled her fingers out of herself and tore the hoodie off, stuffing it under her bed. She’d deal with it later.

She would also have to get changed, the smell of her own slick was sticking to her horribly.

And crack a window. Ugh.

Chapter Text

Korra was sick. For the past few days, she’d hoped that being in denial about her sore throat and stuffy nose meaning anything would make it magically go away. It didn’t. 

Instead of spending her time being not sick, she was laying in bed with the worst head fog, fresh out of a very heated argument with her boss over letting her take the day off—he had thrown a fit over her not giving a warning twelve hours in advance.

Not fully there, she opened her phone to text Asami. She wasn’t sure why, considering she usually avoided texting her while she was gone, not wanting to come off clingy, and Bolin was the typical receiver of texts about her random thoughts and tiny problems, but she sent the text anyway.

Sick. You should come back to the apartment.

Right after pressing send, she rolled onto her side and tried to fall asleep. She was really, really tired.

She dreamed of dunking her head in ice water.

A gentle voice woke her up. “Hey, Korra, wake up. You’ve got a fever.”

She opened her eyes to see Asami leaning over the bed, pressing her hand to her forehead and looking awfully concerned. 

“I thought so.”

Asami laughed, and Korra really hoped it was at her slurred speech, and not her current condition. “Mhm. Have you eaten anything?”

Korra shook her head. “No. M’tired.”

She laughed again, that cute giggle she always did. “Do you want me to make you something?”

“Mhm.”

Asami sat down on the edge of the bed, holding an extra blanket. “Yeah? What do you want?”

Korra let out a breath, thinking for a moment. Her head—and all her limbs, actually—felt really heavy, and her thoughts were going awfully slow. “I want… you’t stay here. Yeah.”

She lifted her eyebrows. “I thought you wanted food?”

“I do.”

“I can’t…” Asami shook her head in amusement. “I can’t make you food and stay here.”

“You can. Ugh, it’s too cold in here.”

“I’ve already got an extra blanket for you. I’ll heat up some soup for you, too.”

“But—”

“No fighting. I’ll be back soon enough. I’ll stay with you then.”

The soup was really good. And so was the extra blanket.

She woke up in a coughing fit, body aching and her vision swimming.

“Hey,” Asami’s voice came, and there she was, pulling Korra across the bed to be closer to her. “You’re okay.”

Korra rested her head on Asami’s thigh, chest hurting from her violent coughing. “I’m done with being sick, I think.”

“You think?”

“Mhm.”

Asami ran her fingers through Korra’s hair, gently combing out all of the knots. Her voice was a little small— was she nervous? “I’ve, uh, I took tomorrow off.”

Korra sniffled. “Why? You got something to do?”

“No. Just in case you still don’t feel good tomorrow. I’ll be there to take care of you.”

Feeling a warm, secure feeling bubble up in her chest, she leaned closer into Asami, feeling very grateful for her. “Thank you.”

Falling in and out of sleep, she tried to bring herself closer to Asami, finding it impossible, already as close as she could get. She was pretty much laying on top of her, head pressed against Asami’s chest. Korra could feel something heavy resting on her hip, followed by the sound of typing—it must’ve been Asami’s laptop. 

Sensing her discomfort, Asami halted her typing. “You okay, Korra?”

She grumbled, shifting a little more. “Ugh, no. I feel super gross. And everything hurts. Can I have some of my water?” She was gross—very gross. She hadn’t showered that morning, or yesterday, when she’d first been sick enough to call out of work. And she’d spent the past while sweating and puking over the toilet bowl—lucky to have a very kind Asami who’d been willing to hold her hair up and rub her back gently. She felt a little embarrassed, upset that Asami was seeing her like this—she really, really hoped she didn't smell.

Asami, however, didn't seem bothered, passing her the water bottle and setting her laptop down on the bed. “Do you want me to run you a bath?”

Korra nodded.

“Yeah?” Asami laughed lightly, taking back the bottle of water and setting it down. “You’re gonna need to get up, then.”

Korra shook her head, frowning pathetically. “No.”

“If I could stay here and run your bath, I would. But I can’t, so you have to move, okay?”

She stretched, rolling over so Asami could get up. “Fine.”

“You’re gonna be okay, I promise. Hot or cold?”

She thought for a second. “Hot?”

Asami smiled at her, getting off the bed. “Sounds good. Lay there and I’ll tell you when it’s ready, okay?”

“Mhm.”

After a few very long minutes, Asami was back in the room. “It’s all ready. Do you need help walking to the bathroom?”

Korra probably didn’t, she was sure she could stagger there alone. But she really, really wanted Asami’s comfort right now, so she nodded and decided on downplaying her strength a little.

Asami held out a hand, helping her get down from the bed. She hooked an arm around Korra's waist, trying to steady her, and Korra leaned into the touch as they walked to the bathroom—Asami's body heat felt so good, and she smelled so good, despite how muffled it was.

When they made it to the bathroom, Asami let Korra steady herself on the bathroom counter. She could see that not only had Asami run her a bath, but she’d also lit a candle, one of the coconut ones Korra always raved about liking the best.

She smiled, looking back at Asami in the doorway. She caught Asami smiling back at her. “If you need anything, let me know, okay?”

Korra nodded. “I will. Thank you.”

Asami smiled back at her, mostly closing the door. “Of course. I’ll be in your room if you need me.”

After Korra was in the bath for about fifteen minutes, Asami knocked on the door. “You okay?”

She could tell, through the crack in the door, that Asami was facing away from her. Of course she was trying to be as respectful as possible—as if Korra needed more reasons to swoon. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just procrastinating washing my hair.”

She could hear Asami’s affectionate smile in her voice. “You don’t have to wash your hair, Korra. This bath is just for you to feel a bit better. You can always wash it once you’re not sick anymore.”

Korra’s throat felt a little dry at the thought of asking Asami what she was about to ask. “...actually, um, could you wash my hair for me? I need it washed to feel clean but it hurts to lift my arms, I really understand if you’re not comfortable—”

“No!” Asami sounded a little flustered, her voice clipped. “I’ll wash it for you. Don’t worry.”

“‘Kay. Thank you.” She shifted so she’d face away from the door, bringing her knees up to her chest.

The door creaked as it opened slowly, and when she looked back at Asami, her eyes were shut. “Am I okay to come in?”

Korra laughed anxiously. “Yeah, you’re good.” When Asami’s eyes were still closed, she added, “You can open your eyes now.”

Asami, slowly, nervously, opened her eyes. She knew that Asami was being as respectful as possible, looking anywhere but at Korra, but she still felt flustered and nervous, vulnerable. She came to kneel by the side of the tub, near Korra, her breaths shaky.

She began brushing through Korra’s already wet hair with her fingers, unsnarling it properly, with as much gentleness as possible. As Asami came to massage shampoo into Korra’s scalp, she leaned back into the touch, her nervousness fading away a little. Asami worked slowly, diligently, with expert care.

As she dumped a little water on Korra’s head, washing out the second round of shampoo, she broke the silence. “I’ve always thought that you have such pretty hair.”

She was a little shocked at that. “Really?”

“Mhm. It always looked so soft. Come to find out, it is. And it’s such a pretty brown color. You leave it down all the time, though. You really should let me do something with it, one of these days.”

“Yeah? Like what?”

Asami was rubbing conditioner through her hair, now, dragging her fingers through it—a slow, comforting motion. “Hmm. There’s so many things I could do. Could put it half-up, half-down, I could do a little braid on the side… point is, if you’re going to some fancy event, let me know. I’ll do my best.”

Korra coughed, involuntarily. “I don’t get to go to many fancy events, but I’ll make sure to let you know if I do.”

They returned to that comfortable silence, Asami taking her time rinsing out the conditioner. Korra was beginning to suspect that Asami was dragging out the moment, delaying having to get up and leave. 

She didn’t really want Asami to leave, not yet at least, so she gave her another request. “Um, when you’re done with my hair, could you maybe rub my back?”

Her voice was quiet. “Y-yeah, of course.” As asked, her hands slid down, rubbing at her shoulder blades.

“You can tell me if I’m overstepping, by the way. I really don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

“No, no! You’re not. I would’ve said no if I didn’t want to. I, um, I like taking care of you.”

Korra sucked in a breath, letting the silence return. She felt safe here, wrapped in the scent of a coconut candle, her own shampoo, something sweeter she couldn’t quite name, believing it to be the candle, and Asami. 

She slowed down her breathing, tried to ignore all the aching her sickness was causing, and took in the moment for what it was. Tried to commit all of it to her memory, the security and the feeling of Asami’s hands on her back.

After a few more minutes of it, Asami’s hands moved away. “Okay, your water’s gotten cold. I’m gonna get you a bathrobe, and you can dry off and think of a movie to watch. Does that sound fine?”

She was a little confused about the bathrobe part, considering she owned none, but she just nodded, mourning Asami’s scent as she got up and left the bathroom.

As a little part of her had suspected, the bathrobe was Asami’s. She’d been handed it through the door, Asami promising to help her walk back to the bedroom when she had it on. 

Not only was it Asami’s bathrobe, made clear by the fact that it was way too long on her, but it clearly costed way too much money, pretty red silk with a golden A.S stitched onto the sleeves.

She stepped out of the bathroom, leaning into Asami’s gentle, supporting grip on her waist. “How much did this cost?”

Asami laughed lightly as they walked towards the bedroom. “What, the bathrobe? Don’t worry about it.”

“I am worried about it. It feels super expensive. I don’t want to ruin it with my…” she sneezed, her body proving her own point, “Ugh, germs.”

“You’re not going to ruin it, Korra. If you want to wear your normal clothes instead, though, that's totally fine. I can get them for you.”

“No, I like this.”

“Yeah,” Asami smiled, “I thought you might.”

Even after a few days, when Korra was pretty much fully recovered, Asami was still caring for her as much as she possibly could. She’d returned to work, as she had no other choice, but she’d cooked Korra dinner multiple days in a row, despite her protests.

Korra knew that something weird had to be going on when Asami came home with flowers. For her. 

Despite hiding her face behind the bouquet, Korra could still see the flush on her cheeks. She’d shot up off the couch at seeing the flowers, feeling the need to make sure before she assumed.

“Who are those for?”

Asami held out the bouquet, looking a little sheepish. “You. Did I do okay?”

She did. It was a beautiful arrangement of various blue and white flowers—the kind of thing she must’ve gone to a proper flower shop for. “I… yes. Of course you did. They’re gorgeous, Asami. Um, I don’t know how I can thank you…”

Asami laughed, a sound that sounded free and beautiful in her lungs. “You can start by getting them a vase and everything. And then maybe we can move from there?”

“Y-yeah, of course.” Korra hurried to do so, trying to remember if she even kept a vase in the household.

She was more than a little shocked that Asami had even gotten her flowers in the first place. Pretty much no alpha looking to woo her—not that that was what Asami was trying to do—had ever gotten her flowers. It wasn’t that she didn’t like them, she actually really did, but, for some reason, being masculine in the way she dressed and acted made alphas assume she hated every aspect of femininity. She didn't, and she was glad Asami could recognize that—so far, Asami was proving to be immensely unlike every alpha Korra had known, in every positive way, and she couldn't be more grateful for it.

For the rest of the evening, she wasn’t sure which to look at—Asami, sitting next to her on the couch, or the flowers on the coffee table.

As soon as Asami had headed to bed, Korra sought Bolin’s advice. Upon catching him up on the past few days—from when she was sick to getting the flowers just now, he had begun berating her. “What do you mean you aren’t sure why she’s doing all of this—?”

“She could just be being a good roommate—”

He scoffed. “Ugh, Korra, next time I see you, I’m going to kill you, I swear. She’s obviously trying to win you over so you’ll date her. Go get her, dude.”

“It’s just… ugh, it’s confusing. Literally no other alpha has treated me like this. They all just…”

“Try and get in your pants immediately? Yeah. But she’s being all chivalrous and whatnot. She’s courting you, Korra.”