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Night fell faster than anticipated on the streets of Republic City.
It had been a normal day, almost past Valentine's Day. Mako's nerves had surfaced as soon as he’d set foot out of bed, though there was nothing unusual about his detective work throughout the day; nothing he should be nervous about. Except, of course, that this was a day that was supposed to be spent as a couple, and the reason why he was now looking at himself in the bathroom mirror at home with such impatience.
Things had not gone so well throughout his morning and afternoon. Nothing he’d anticipated had happened, starting with Lin, his beloved boss and the reason behind his time mismanagement. She’d called to tell him that, despite it being Mako’s day off and a minimally special date, she needed him at the police station because a case had gotten complicated and having as much help as possible was always welcome.
At the time Mako had just sighed and obeyed orders. After all, he loved his job even with that kind of inconvenience, so he didn’t want to complain. Lin was not to blame for the circumstances. As she wasn't to blame, Mako couldn’t say, “No, I'm busy.” And, above all, she was not to blame for the fact that he was a lousy boyfriend.
That was the other problem within this whole situation. Mako had a partner, and was incapable of refusing a few hours of extra work just to fulfill his obligations to a certain Fire Nation general. Iroh always understood his problems; he was a man of few words and when he spoke he tended to be friendly and helpful, so Mako wanted to believe that Iroh would forgive him for not wanting to take him seriously. Mako did, even if it seemed like he didn't, but deep down he felt a little crestfallen that he wasn't what the other man seemed to need. But now Mako was here, looking at himself in the mirror and pretending that his fears were unfounded and that this time his partner would understand the delay as he always did.
He’d dressed in dark-colored clothes. Black suited him well, so he tried to highlight his white skin by wearing shirts of that color. The red he’d also worn made him look sloppy, but attractive. He supposed that would be enough.
The young firebender was due to pick up his boyfriend at the port where the Fire Nation vessels were waiting for some order. With the call he’d made in the morning describing the inconveniences that prevented him from spending the whole day at his side, Iroh had decided that continuing to attend to reports to his mother didn't sound so bad. Because of this, his partner saw it better to continue working rather than to wait for the case to resolve itself. That made Mako look worse than he had previously perceived himself.
As soon as Iroh saw him arrive on his moped they set off towards the place Mako had planned for them. The older man was well-dressed, in a way that was worthy of his royal blood and that showed his education and elegance. He wore the kind of suit that encouraged Mako to look at the way his muscles were accentuated under the garments. The red color made him look seductive thanks in part to the softness of the fabric. To the young detective he looked phenomenal, giving Iroh’s formal bearing a trait of utmost sensuality. Perhaps too much to bear.
Along the way through the city in the hours of darkness several things happened. The first was that they discovered a stowaway hiding in some unknown part of the moped. Pabu, without Bolin's attention, could be a very slippery creature, so the animal's first instinct on seeing the moving vehicle was to jump over their heads to land on the pavement. It would have been a very ugly situation if Iroh wasn't there to catch him. Bolin should thank them later.
The place they arrived at was a simple noodle stand deep in the city with a view of the harbor that made the water stand out in the moonlight. The sounds of the waves accompanied them amidst murmurs of people celebrating Valentine's Day in their own way. Mako did not enjoy an extremely generous salary so for the moment that was all he could afford. He sighed as soon as the noodle order was delivered to his hands. He had bought Iroh a sweet as compensation for his absence on a day that was supposed to be special. At least the man at the stall was friendly and served a good meal to enjoy.
The night made them move away from the rest of the customers to find a place where they could feel comfortable and enjoy their meal. The smell of salt from the nearby coast gave them an air of warmth.
"I'm sorry I didn't have much time today. Maybe I can make it up to you later?" Mako asked. It was the least he had to say to excuse himself. The evening was nice, but it wasn't supposed to be just one outing all day.
Iroh looked at him slurping some of the noodles. After chewing, he swallowed.
"It's okay,” he said. “It doesn't bother me. This kind of thing always happens. I’ve also let you down because of my work." As always his behavior was gentle. There was no way he could get angry with his mate, it wasn’t the way he was.
"Anyway, I'm sorry, you deserve better for today, and..."
"No, this is great." Iroh smiled a little as if he could read his thoughts; maybe he could. "I'm not a fan of fast food, but this is really good. Don't worry about the rest. It's the thought that counts."
"Really?” Mako said. “Are you sure there's nothing else I can do?"
"Actually..."
"What?"
Iroh rushed up to him, closing the distance to join their lips in a short spicy kiss that took Mako’s breath away. The taste of the food was there, but that made it all the more comforting. He broke away with another smile.
"With this, you have paid for your absence today," Iroh answered in a soft tone that it could not be more perfect.
Mako took a shaky breath and blinked a couple of times before his head cleared. He averted his gaze and continued eating, not daring to look at him out of embarrassment. Iroh looked satisfied. Pabu was there waiting impatiently for them to finish so could eat some of the dish.
The moon shone brighter, the stars now accompanying them.
All in all it was a good Valentine's Day. Of course, for Mako, the way in which Iroh was cashing in on his faults motivated him to see how far the general could go in pursuit of taking his reward for what a bad boyfriend he was.
Did it sound suicidal? That was the fun of it.