HOME | DD

Description

Disclaimer: This work of fan fiction is not for personal profit. All the characters used in this fan fic are the property of Nickelodeon and/or other designated copyright and/or trademark holders.
Asami entered the Jasmine Dragon and looked around. The pleasant aroma of fresh-brewed coffee mixed with the faint pine smell from the wooden floor and walls. A large, bearded older man standing at the cash register behind the long counter that lined one side of the cafe waved hello and said, “Can I get you anything?”
A black-haired younger man, about Asami's age, was changing coffee filters in a machine, his back to Asami. Asami answered, “Not just yet. I'm meeting someone. You haven't seen her, have you? Kind of tall, maybe five-nine, five-ten, dark brown hair in a ponytail?”
The older man shook his head. “I'm afraid not.” He turned to the younger man and said, “Zuko?”
Zuko turned partway, looked at Asami, and grunted, “Nope.”
“I'll just find a seat, then. When my friend comes we'll order,” Asami said.
She went to a table near the window, took off her suit jacket and draped it over one of the chairs, then sat down looked out onto the sidewalk. It was late afternoon, and in this mixed residential and commercial district, Asami saw not the steady streams of people she'd seen in the downtown core, but small groups and the occasional individual passing by now and then as she noted the weather had stayed nice all day.
Hopefully, a good omen, Asami thought.
Asami's eye caught someone moving swiftly down the sidewalk, and she shifted, craning her head to peer further down the block, and she grinned. It was Korra! She could see the other woman power-walking up to the coffee shop, clad in a white tank top and light blue athletic shorts that went down to mid-thigh. Her eyes roved up and down Korra, taking in the trim woman's appearance that had been mostly hidden the previous night by her bulky raincoat and the poor lighting. Asami wished she'd taken more time to take in Korra's appearance when she'd been running reception at the hotel, but now she could make up the lack.
Korra had a fairly ample chest and a trim torso the tank top did little to hide. Her muscular thighs and calves flexed as she quickly marched up the street to the entrance. Her ponytail swished from side to side as she walked, and her sharp jawline and cheekbones only added to a sudden very physical desire that Asami had to tamp down as she quickly reached in her purse to make sure she had her phone with her in case her father called.
A red-faced Korra burst in, looked around, spotted Asami five feet away from the entrance, and sat down, babbling, “Damnit, sorry about that, Asami! I'd finished working out before I called you and then I jumped in the shower, but after that my hairdryer went on the fritz and I had to smack it to finally get it to turn on, and then I looked at the time and I realized I was late--”
Asami finally managed to get abreast of the torrent of words as she said, “Korra! It's okay! Honestly! You weren't that late, really.”
Korra, catching her breath, frowned. “Really?”
“Yeah! I only got here a few minutes ago myself. I wasn't really paying attention to the time, but I guess it took a few minutes longer than I thought it would to get here.” Asami shrugged. “Anyway, you want to get anything?”
Korra let out a gusty sigh and turned to look at the overhead menu as she stood up. Asami did the same, and decided on the chai tea, while Korra decided on a regular coffee. After they got their drinks and paid up, they returned to the table Asami had taken earlier.
Up close, Asami found herself nearly zoning out as she watched Korra's shoulders and arms flex as she lifted the coffee cup to her lips to take a sip, then lowered the mug again. At first, she didn't realize Korra's lips were moving, but then she heard “--Asami?”
Asami shook her head sharply, blinking. “Sorry, I missed that. Could you say that again?”
Korra smiled. “Yeah, I was just saying I feel like I'm a bit underdressed and you're a bit overdressed for this place.”
“Then I guess we balance each other out and average out to 'appropriately dressed', right?” quipped Asami.
Korra chuckled, then fell silent, contemplating her coffee as she held the mug between her hands. Asami sat back and took a sip of her tea, then said, “Say, were you busy this morning?”
“Sorta,” mumbled Korra. She swirled her coffee around in her mug, apparently meditating for a bit.
“No worries.” Asami, casting about for something to keep the conversational ball rolling, said, “Hey, are you into cars at all?”
“Well, I like a good one as much as the next person. Why?”
“I once interned for the concept car division in my dad’s company, so I got to test race some pretty fancy cars.” Asami grinned.
Korra perked up. “Really? That’s kind of neat.”
“It definitely is. I spent time interning at Future Industries and at other companies while I did my Business Admin degree. My dad really wanted me to know what it’s like when you can’t just call him up and say, ‘bail me out, my boss is being too tough today’.”
“Huh,” Korra grunted. In a louder voice, she said, “I gotta say, the manager, Tahno – that’s my boss – he’s a dick sometimes. Some days, I wish I could call the president of Republic Hotels and get him kicked out of there.”
The two women made small talk after that. Asami learned that Korra occasionally went to the beach and her mind instantly conjured up a sunglasses-wearing, scantily-clad Korra. That distracted her for a bit, but luckily, Korra hadn’t seemed to notice.
Suddenly, Asami realized she had just drunk the last of her tea as the teabag bonked her in the nose. She set her mug down, leaving the teabag inside it, and grabbed a napkin from the dispenser to wipe her nose off. Korra giggled when she saw what had happened, and Asami found herself unable to wipe a smile off her face as she finished rubbing the tea off her nose.
Korra had, by this time, also finished her coffee, so by mutual agreement the two of them got up, dropped off their mugs at the counter, and said their goodbyes to the proprietor. Outside on the sidewalk, Korra looked at Asami and seemed about to say something when she abruptly looked down at her pocket, reached in and pulled out her phone. She took one look at the screen and blurted, “Aw, shit!”
Asami frowned. “What is it?”
Korra rolled her eyes. “You're not gonna believe this. I got a text message from Tahno saying I gotta come in for four hours tonight 'cause he's just realized we're gonna get just slammed. A wedding party wants to use the park near the hotel and of course, they're all gonna want to stay at the hotel and they’re due to check in tonight.”
“Will he be there?” wondered Asami.
Korra snorted. “As if. He'll hide out in the office and claim he's gotta do the books or some other stupid crap, leaving me to get the rooms prepped, check people in, blah blah blah.”
“Well, look, the least I can do is offer you a ride in a cab to the hotel then, since I've got to go back there anyway,” Asami offered.
Korra bit her lip, but Asami correctly deduced that comfort and speed would win out over imposing on Asami for transportation. She said, “You’ll want to come back to my place with me, then.” Korra's cheeks went a bit red and she said, “It's not much of a place, but it's mine.”
Asami reached out and touched Korra's upper arm. “I'd love to,” she said, barely overheard above the traffic noise.
Korra blinked, then gave Asami a slight smile. “Well, c'mon, then. Let's go!”
With that, the two set off at a brisk walk, eating up the distance to Korra’s apartment.

Inside the four-storey walk-up, Asami surveyed the apartment Korra called home. It was a wide-open one bedroom apartment that opened out onto a balcony that overlooked the street. In one corner, there was a small but serviceable kitchen, and near the entrance was a table with chairs. In the middle of the room along one wall sat a couch. Opposite it, against the other wall, was a TV set. Korra’s bed was in the far corner, near the glass sliding door to the balcony. Beside her bed was a dresser and an upright closet. Asami called, “Oh, Korra? You mind if I use the—?”
Korra, busy setting out her work clothes, waved her hand distractedly. “Yeah, go ahead. I’m gonna be changing.”
To Asami’s left was a hallway that led to a bathroom. When she finished up, after drying her hands on a clean towel, she exited and looked at the sliding doors on either side of the hallway leading back out to the main apartment. One was ajar, and Asami’s curiosity was piqued. She moved over and looked, and saw a rowing machine set upright in one of them. “Huh!” She called out, “Hey, Korra?”
Korra rounded the corner, clad in a dark grey vest, a crisp white shirt, and grey slacks. Asami’s jaw dropped a fraction and she momentarily forgot what she was going to ask. She blurted, “Wow, you look sharp!”
“Thanks. This’s just my work outfit, though,” said Korra with a perplexed look on her face.
Asami remembered, and said, “Right! Well, I was gonna say I noticed the rowing machine in here. You work out?”
“Yeah, I do. I’ve got the machine here, and—” She brushed past Asami, and leaned down to pick something up off the floor inside the closet. Asami’s eyes automatically followed Korra down, and then down some more. Holy—
Asami swallowed and stepped back, hoping Korra would start talking so she could try not to notice how those pants just molded onto that perfect ass—
“Just a sec – there we go!” Korra, seemingly oblivious to Asami’s mental wanderings, held up two dumbbells. “See, here’s a couple of the weights I use. They don’t roll, which is nice.” Korra nodded at Asami. “You do anything like this?”
“Not as much as I'd like. I mostly do a lot of jogging, but I try to also do more specific exercises, like using free weights for my arms and doing some specific leg and butt exercises.”
Korra's eyes seemed to widen just a bit at that last revelation. Asami’s heart leapt a bit at the thought that maybe Korra could be more than just a friend. But Korra's voice stayed steady as she said, “I try to get to a gym at least once a week. In fact, tomorrow I'm gonna hit the gym because I know I’m gonna be stressed to hell after this emergency shift.”
“Nice!” Asami grinned. “Maybe I should see what the gym life is like.”
Korra shrugged. “It's weights and trainers and all that. Nothing really that special.”
“Still. I should get in more workout time,” Asami noted. Please say yes, please say yes—
“Okay, if you wanna come along, you can. But right now, I gotta just fix my hair real quick. Be out in a flash!”
Asami made way as Korra ducked into the bathroom and shut the door. As Asami sat down at the table, she thought maybe Korra might just be that one girl she was looking for.
Thanks to Skeleton-Horse for betaing this!