Yuuta went home that night to the apartment. It was a long and scary walk back, but not as scary as the times before. Maybe finding out his mother's illness wasn't getting better was the scariest thing for him and so Amon and his goonies were in the back of his mind, now. Even if he wasn't a bender, the man still frightened him. Benders that were scared acted like dogs backed into a corner, attacking everything they could in fear of loosing their bending. Those that knew him as a nonbender backed away from him, as of recently, thinking he was associated with those Equalists- such a hypocritical name, he thought to himself.

Still, there seemed to be no way he could fall asleep that night leaving him all alone in the apartment. He read his books, then re-read his books. When that was done, he went to the wash room and scrubbed every last inch of his skin clean with cleansing salts and other disinfectant herbs. Ever since his mother was diagnosed one idea had constantly nagged him: what if it was hereditary? If he could keep himself from getting sick from other things, his immune system could keep fighting whatever he might or might not have. Better safe than sorry. Right?

After a long night of nothing, he returned to the herbalry. Every time his skin brushed against his clothing, it burned. Yuuta had realized something last night: too much scrubbing with salt could actually scratch up your skin. Somehow, he scratched up most of his arms more than he had with the rest of his body. At least I didn't scrub my legs too hard, he thought to himself rather passively as he pushed open the back door to the shop, resisting a shudder from his scratched arms. He did his usual routines, mixing up a few medicines and looking over the checking book to see if they had any profits to spend on more herbs.

He took his seat at the front desk, surprised he had yet to see his mater since the store was going to open in less than an hour. Oh well, if he was sick, he would call in soon, Yuuta thought to himself as he laid his head on the table tired beyond belief.

The dark haired man heard the familiar bell ring, the one that symbolized the opening of the front door. A customer? He picked up his head, strands of his hair blocking his vision so that, for a moment, he thought the girl in front of him was a customer- someone he didn't recognize. With his green eyes locked on her, he brushed the hair away and behind his ear to see Emi. She finally bought new clothes, not that he minded, but it was a relief. With Equalists on the rise, walking around in her Watertribe outfit could be dangerous. Not that he didn't have confidence in her to take care of herself, he was just a worrywart though he might say he had justifiable reasons for such thoughts.

It's because I am," he said, his voice lagging and dragging on the spaces in between each word. Yuuta rubbed his eyes in an attempt to wake himself up; it didn't work as well as he had wanted it to. "I couldn't sleep last night," he informed her. One never knew when they might pass out, so not to worry anyone, he might as well let someone know the reasons behind his lagging actions. He contemplated telling her about the letter he received about his mother's condition. He didn't trust a lot of people with the story of his mother and why she was were she was because it never accomplished anything besides gaining the pity of those around him. Yet it was nice to talk to Emi about it, someone who not only met his mom but knew her healer.

In the end, he decided against it, figuring he could tell it to her later. For now, he wanted to concentrate on waking up and getting ready for the day. He dug through his pocket and grabbed the ribbon from his mother and tied up his hair. He had such long hair, not because he thought it looked nice (his mother thought it did, though), but because it was so much easier to keep out of his way when he could tie it behind for better control. Besides, what other use would he have for the ribbon his mother gave him, one of her possessions?

He planted his hands on the table, helping him stand up, and walked towards his co-worker. "That looks... uh, nice on you," he said, his face flushing a deep red. Girls liked to be complimented, right? Especially on changes? He didn't get it, but if it meant something to her, why not bother a few words? "I'm guessing the financial situation is getting better?" he asked as he massaged his shoulder with his hand casually. Man, he really needed some sleep sometime soon. "Oh," he said before waiting too long for her answer, he headed to the back, returning with the herbal books. "Here. You can study up on them. They belong to the owner so try not to loose or damage them, otherwise I'll be in a bit of trouble."

Yuuta managed a pathetic laugh when Emi began to ramble on. He even nodded when she asked if he liked it. It did look very cute on her, he had to admit. And somehow, with some sort of miracle, he managed to smile just a bit after hearing she was doing better because he landed her the small job. "No problem," he replied. He looked back down at his work for a few seconds though keeping an eye on her in the corner of his eye. She hadn't moved. He looked back up to see her still standing with a goofy grin on her face. Was it something he said? Those few seconds seemed to last an eternity and it felt like his heart started to beat faster. At the last second, she decided to go back to work, avoiding the blush that crept it's way on to his face.

What was with her... oh, was it...? Did she like him? His first thought was: what kind of person could like him? He was grumpy, handicapped, a workaholic and all his money went towards his mother, leaving him a little less than broke. All he could afford was rent, a bit of food and a few other small items. Heck, he hadn't even bought a new pair of pants in the past three years to say the least. But the bigger question was: did he like her? She was younger than him! Not by too much, but there was certainly a small age difference. Was that the deciding factor of his relationships? Of course not.

He'd give that more thought later, so for now he would concentrate on work. Yuuta heard a door open and close, assuming Emi went to take out the trash, making him aware of the time. How long had he just been... sitting there and thinking? He needed to get his head straight and very soon. Leaving his station at the front, he went back to resort the jars of medicine. There was no purpose to this, only something repetitious to keep his mind busy. Suddenly, the sound of freezing ice was heard, shocking him a little to jump.

One second, two seconds, three seconds, he counted, but she didn't return through that door. Yuuta slowly walked towards the door and opening it a peek to see a man of Water Tribe decent. Interesting.

—-

The man had been looking for Emi, who had ran away from home after an engagement. Though it was a hard choice, he decided not to tell the man what he knew and to confront the girl herself before throwing her back to whence she game. It hadn't taken long to find Emi's apartment and took a deep breath before using his cane to knock on her door three times. When she answered the door, he walked in, not even waiting to be invited in. Standing only feet away from the door, leaning on his cane for support (the stairs were his worst enemy, by far), he looked her dead in the eyes.

"A man came in, said you ran away from home. I didn't tell him anything because I'd like to hear it from your side of the story," he said, though not telling him for another reason. As far as legal reasons were concerned, he could be considered an associate or be even thought of as a kidnapper (by legality) for helping her. "He also said... you have a fiance," he added, though in a less harsh tone. He said he would think about what he thought about Emi later, so why were these darned feelings resurfacing?

It wouldn't be too long until he got angry for being lied to and he began to force himself to take deep, even breaths. Yuuta listened intently even though he had his eyes closed and his index finger and thumb pinched the skin between his bows. He couldn't bring himself to look at her while she talked, his eyes now open but never looking towards her. This is where she lived, he asked himself as he took a look at the state of her living room. Water pooled on the floor and the apartment looked dirt cheap. He guessed it wasn't like she could afford much else on the money he managed to get her with such a low paying job.

He shook his head, some of his hair slipping from the ribbon and whipping his face. "I get it," he said. He couldn't relate nor could he sympathize, but he could understand what she might be coming from. Without any control, it wasn't even her life she was living, was it? Coming out here to live on her own in such a time of political messes took courage. A lot of it. Thieving shouldn't have been her first choice, but she looked young enough not to know her way around. Changing cultures completely would have been a shock to anyone.

"I bet your parents are worried sick. Have you even written them a letter to tell them you're okay?" he asked. Only having a mother who cared for him completely, he had never even begun to think of running away or doing anything to hurt her. Parents were parents, no matter how controlling, that loved their children, wanting what was best. They could be crying their eyes out, not knowing if their daughter was alive or not. He wanted to try and convince Emi that she should go back and apologize or something, but return if she wanted to. But, in the end, he knew he could never do that.

He dropped his cane and leaned in forward, with one hand holding her wrist and the other gently touched her neck. Within a moment he managed to lean in and press his lips against hers. It felt so right, but so wrong at the same time. He didn't know... he had no idea what he felt about her with real words. Right now he just had feelings, feelings he impulsively acted on with a selfish will. "Sorry," he said, his head only inches away from hers as he pulled back. "I didn't mean... I guess... Excuse my actions," he said with a long bow.

He leaned against the wall and ran his hands through his hair and let out a long sigh. "What do you plan on doing?"

She came forward and gave him a kiss to confirm his feelings and to say she liked him. A deep blush bloomed on his face, wishing he could move back so she wasn't so close, but she stood in front of him, very still, while he was up against a wall. Suddenly, a wave of words poured from her mouth and even after she was finished, it took him a few moments to process what she said. This was unbelievable, at best, and certainly not something he could have expected when he first saw her on the ground, bloodied and beaten. What progress she had made since then from avoiding anything personal to... well, kissing him.

Yuuta casted his eyes away from hers, looking at the ground though there was nothing of interest there. "I've never known my father," he found himself saying, "and my mother is deathly ill. I would give anything to be with them. Even if you didn't like what your parents were doing, you can still say here. You're grown up and responsible; they have no control over you, but at least let them know you're okay and happy." There, he said something that might actually make a difference. Him giving her that kiss was a big mistake, though not one he truly regretted.

He took her hand into his, his thumb lightly moving back and forth against her soft skin. "If that's how you feel," he began, though he felt like what came out of his mouth he had no control over, "you can live with me and Shuai." It felt right as Emi had explained and he didn't have the heart to tell her it also felt wrong. She was so much younger than he was and needed someone a few years closer to her age and less of a grump, like him. He kissed her forehead. "You can move in, but only when you let your parents know that you are safe."

Hesitantly, he let go of her hand and left her room to go back out on the streets. With a flip of his pocket watch, he saw it was nearing the time of his job at the warehouse. Tomorrow, he would check back in to the herbalry. If she did what he said, he would let her move in. Oh god, how was he going to break the fact he was bringing home a sixteen year old to Shuai?

It had been a week since their kiss and she had not met his requirement of telling her parents she was okay, instead telling him about how she got the PI off her tail. While he was disappointed that she didn't value family like he did, he liked the fact she could stand her ground and fight for what she wanted. His feelings getting the best of him, he let Emi move in with him anyways despite not having sat down and figured out what she meant to him yet. It was a rash decision, without much thought to it and on impulse, so why did he not simply tell her at work at call her saying they should hold off moving in for a while?

He held his head in his hands, siting on the sofa in the living room, hoping he could figure out his own thoughts before Emi arrived. Why did he like her? Shouldn't he have tried to resist such feelings? Yuuta was the older one. Not only that, but he was a man. He had to be responsible for such things. Yet why were the thoughts of "leaving her to live on her own in Republic City isn't responsible" dominating his mind? Leaving her to fend for herself, though she was capable, was not something he could find in himself to do. He didn't want to let her go and the thought of her being gone forever was a scary one.

Her independence, the herbalist realized, is what I like about her. So many people had to be taken care of or watched over to make sure they were okay, but she fought for herself. Taking care of people with illnesses all day and the like, though a satisfying feeling when they walked out happy, was tiring. Not only that, but if she wasn't able to handle herself, there was no way he could. He could only patch up the injured and heal the sick, but he could not take care of a dependent person. He was injured and his mother sickness also plaguing his sleep. All in all, he could barely take care of himself.

She said she loved me, he thought to himself, a slight reddening in his cheeks appearing, but do I love her? No, he decided. I like her... but other than the love I feel for my mother, I'm not sure how love would feel like with someone like her. Suddenly a knock on the door sounded and he opened it up to see Emi. "Welcome,"