Another WIP I have about Linzin waiting for their baby, making love and being sweet with each other. Ironically, this part is set in the universe of the "Acolyte's Diary", which partly follows the canon, meaning the ending of this story will be very tragic. Yes, I wanted to torture myself and everyone around me. No, I'm not sorry. But for now, there's no need to worry about anything.
«I got to hold my whole world in my hands»
On the evening before the weekend, the sweet scent of the essence slowly filled the air. Tenzin adjusted the magenta lace lampshade over the oil lamp, dimming the bright flame and bathing the bedroom in the colors of sunset. He placed a bottle of massage oil nearby.
His beloved wife was under a lot of stress.
Due to potential complications during her pregnancy, Katara strongly advised her to step away from active missions and take on office work. Lin felt restless, constantly jumping up to respond whenever incident alerts echoed through the station, and getting frustrated whenever she remembered that the police chief had personally forbidden her from jumping on an ostrich-horse and rushing off to save the world. Her mom also came to check on her between the cadets' training sessions. But she understood the reasons perfectly well — this was their third and most successful attempt to expand their family, following two miscarriages and several years of infertility.
On top of that, all the unpleasant symptoms of pregnancy hit Lin all at once, as if in the span of a single week. Her back ached from sitting all the time, she couldn’t stand the scent of her favorite perfume, and the foods she used to love now seemed tasteless — not even Katara’s excellent cooking, Aang’s berry pies, or her father’s otter-seal jerky could save the day. The only things she could tolerate were lemon mint tea and nectarines, which had to be shipped from the other side of the world because the greenhouse on the island couldn't keep up with demand.
Despite everyone’s joy, Tenzin knew that these changes were taking their toll on Lin. They were both devoted to the strict routines they had developed over the years, and preparing for the impending, uncontrollable chaos that a child would bring required a special ritual of its own. He wanted to please her before the quiet picnic they had planned for the weekend. And the best way to do that was to take matters into his own hands. Quite literally.
“This lipstick has such strong pigment that I couldn't wash it all off,” Lin walked into the room, a towel on her head and wrapped in a bathrobe.
A faint raspberry tint from the new lipstick was indeed clearly visible on her lips, giving her face — flushed after a hot bath — a languid expression. Tenzin immediately felt the urge to kiss her right then and there, to cast aside all his plans and devote himself entirely to pleasuring this majestic woman who had given him the most genuine happiness imaginable. But he restrained himself — he couldn’t do the same thing every time.
“Like the one we had to scrub off my forehead with the power of the Avatar himself?” Tenzin asked jokingly, meeting her halfway inside and taking her long, slender fingers — which were always cold in the winter — in his large, warm hands.
Lin laughed. “Kinda. Though that one was more scarlet.”
Tenzin brought her fingers to his lips and kissed them.
“So which one do you like best?”
Lin’s breath hitched under her husband’s soft gaze.
“I think the previous one. The color is more… bold. I think it suits me better. And what do you think?”
“I like that one better, too. That shade is practically legendary.”
Lin freed one hand to toss the towel from her head onto the chest by the bed.
“Welp, that’s what happens when you wear the same lipstick for ten years. You don’t like yourself in anything else anymore.”
Tenzin captured her hand again, massaging the back of her palm in circular motions.
“But you'll still have to thank Mo for the recommendation.”
Lin moved right up close to Tenzin and placed her palms on his bare chest.
“No problem. I'll invite her to lunch after the weekend. Share some nectarines with her in return.”
Tenzin placed his hands on Lin's waist.
“Lin?” he asked, almost in a whisper.
“Hm?” she replied wordlessly.
“May I kiss you?”
“I thought you'd never ask.”
