CHAPTER SEVEN

Jinora thought Kai was already asleep, tucked under the covers of their bed in the Gaoling safehouse, when she heard him say, "I'm sorry."

She pushed herself up slightly, looking into his face. "For what, baby?"

"I'm sorry I screwed things up so badly at—"

"Stop." Jinora kissed him gently. "There was no winning, and you...dealt with all of that better than most people I know ever could." She stroked his cheek, feeling his stubble beneath her palm. "You might need a shave, though, baby."

It coaxed a smile out of him. "I thought you wanted me to grow a beard. Thought it would make me look ruggedly handsome?"

"You're handsome no matter what. I thought you knew that."

"Nice to hear it from you."

Jinora smiled fondly. "You'll always be handsome to me, baby."

"And you'll always be beautiful to me." He placed his hand over hers, stroking it gently. "I wish I could guarantee that we'd have decades and decades together."

"It's okay. I already told you. No matter how long we have, it's alright, as long as we spend it together."

He melted into her with a smile. "Mm. So do you want me to shave, baby?" He nuzzled his face into her neck.

"Maybe for now," she mused. "I think a beard or anything would make you look too old and dangerous… although I do like being with a dangerous man, for now I just like the stubble."

"Stubble it is, then."

She pressed a kiss to the side of his head. "And Kai? Don't let my father scare you."

"It's not him. It's...he really doesn't want me to be with you."

"Well, good thing he doesn't control who I get to be with."

Kai raised his head to look at her. "But he does make some good points, baby," Kai cupped one side of her face. "As soon as I can, I'll go straight for you. Make myself an honest man. I promise."

"You don't have to."

"I know. I want to. I wanna give you a settled life free of guns. Ain't nothing wrong with that, is there? I just need more time, more money. A few years maybe, so we can put a payment down on a house is all."

Jinora felt herself tear up. "You want a house with me, baby?"

"Of course I do," said Kai with a slight smile. "Where else am I supposed to marry ya and raise all our kids?"

A tear leaked out, and she laughed despite herself. "You wanna marry me?"

"Is...is that okay?"

She kissed him firmly, unable to keep from smiling against his mouth. "That's more than okay."

"And you're okay with kids?"

"As long as they're yours."

"Good, I was hoping on that, too," Kai teased, and Jinora laughed again. "But not for a little while now, though." He wrapped his arms tight around her waist. "I want you all to myself first, an' we can keep practicing on how to make a baby. Need lots of practice."

"Yes we do," Jinora grinned, smiling when he kissed her again. He went to deepen it when she pulled away. "But tonight we need sleep, first baby. It's been a long day."

Kai paused, and then kissed her cheek. They weren't many days they didn't have sex, but neither of them minded when that was the case because one (or both) of them was too tired for it. "Alright baby." He settled beside her, and wrapped his arms around her again when she curled into him. "Sleep tight, Jin."

"Sweet dreams, baby."

###

A full kitchen was a luxury these days, especially when they usually stayed in remodeled barns that could barely fit a fridge. But with an oven and stove, Jinora figured she could take advantage of their current good fortune, at least to make a good impression on Kai's parents.

"You know they'll love you no matter what, right babe?" Kai asked as he helped her knead the dough.

"I appreciate that, but you were so good to my family that I just...wanna do the same for yours, in my own way."

"Babe, I said hello, nearly got into a fight with your father, and then kept my mouth shut, more or less. My mother will be ready to adopt you even if you weren't bringing cookies, and both my parents are very eager for grandchildren."

Jinora smiled. "I still wanna let them know I'm just as happy to meet them, I guess."

Kai chuckled softly. "If you really want to. And I'm sure the boys wouldn't object if we made them extra."

"We're spoiling them, between these and my mother's sweet buns," Jinora said with a soft laugh.

"Mm, well it does make Ryu say you're the best thing to ever happen to him," Kai said with a grin, wrapping his arms around her from behind, and getting more sticky pieces of dough on her small apron. "Which I should be saying. Have I told you I love you yet today?"

"Yes, but you know I don't mind hearing it more often."

He buried his face in her shoulder. "I love you, then."

She leaned into him. "I love you too, baby." The oven beeped, and she reluctantly pulled away. "Come on, let's get these into the oven."

"Fifteen minutes?" Kai checked, and Jinora nodded once she had put the cookies in the oven. "Gee, I wonder how we'll pass the time…" He started slowly sliding his hand down towards her crotch, once he had wiped it clean on her apron.

"If these burn, it's all your fault," Jinora said, not pulling away this time. Kai grinned, kissing the crook of her neck as he slipped his hand underneath the band of her skirt, underneath her panties till she was grasping and rocking onto his hand with quiet moans.

Good thing Skoochy and Ryu were out for the day on a date of their own.

They were leaning against the end of the dining table, Jinora falling apart in his lap when the oven went off, and Kai pushed his fingers in deeper, harder, until she climaxed. He set her down on the chair before quickly washing his hands and taking the cookies out.

"Only one got a bit burned," he said, and she looked up with flushed cheeks as she came down from her high.

"Damn you," she said, smiling breathlessly.

Kai set the cookies down on the counter to let them cool. "Yung likes the slightly burned ones, anyway, but we just won't tell 'im how they got that way, now will we, baby?"

She laughed, extending her arms towards him, and he wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his forehead against hers. "Take me up to our bedroom and finish what you started, then," she murmured.

"Gladly."

Kai scooped her up in his arms, and she wrapped her arms around his neck and her thighs around his hips, kissing his broad shoulders as he carried her upstairs. He opened the door to their bedroom with one hand, then closed it shut with his foot, before throwing her onto the bed, and himself on top of her. Their lips met in a collision of fervor and wanting, her fingers latching onto the collar of his shirt, before she started undoing the buttons below it.

Jinora pushed his shirt off his shoulders before reaching for his pants, first palming the bulge at the front of them and giving it a squeeze. "Mm, you're so hard for me baby," she grinned against his mouth. He bit down gently on her bottom lip, his hips jerking into her hand. She giggled against his mouth, before undoing the buckle of his pants and shoving them down to his mid-thigh. His cock was hot and throbbing against her inner thigh, and she moaned quietly.

Kai pressed his smirk to her cheek. "How badly do you want me, baby? How badly do you want my cock?"

Jinora stroked her fingers over the back of his neck. "Don't you already know, baby?" she murmured. "Haven't you already felt how tight and wet I am?"

"Mm, are you still that tight?" He slipped his fingers between her legs again.

Jinora knew she was dripping for him, and kept her eyes locked on his as he gave her entrance a languid stroke with one finger. "I'm burning for you baby. Aching."

He tugged her panties all the way down, then rubbed his length along her entrance, coating himself in her wet heat. Kai watched as she moaned, her hips writhing against his, trying desperately to create friction. She whined, quieting when he took her face in his hands with a sly grin.

"I'll give you what you need, baby," he promised, watching her as he slid into her, until he was buried up to the base. Jinora moaned in relief, clutching at his shoulder blades as he began to thrust into her.

"Yes—right there—" Her thighs tightened around his hips, pulling him in deeper. He kissed her deeply, tugging the sleeves of her dress down. He peeled the material down off her torso, revealing a lacy black bra underneath.

"Mm." He pressed kisses to the swell of her breasts, above the black cups of her bra. "My favourite, baby."

Jinora smiled, moaning softly as she dragged a hand through his hair. "I know baby. Why else would I still be wearing it? 'Course, you could always change that." Her smile grew as he tugged the straps of her bra down, then peels down the soft, lacy cups. He cupped her bare breasts with his hands, and she hummed softly. "Mm, that's it."

He squeezed her breasts as he continued to thrust into her, their lips colliding in a passionate mess of teeth and tongue and desperate mouths. She clawed at his back, feeling his muscles shift beneath her palm as he made love to her, his body rough and warm and deliciously solid on hers.

She only broke away from his mouth when she came with a hoarse cry, her nails digging into his back and her body melting into his. He buried his face in her neck and held her close, his breath hot on her skin. "That's it baby," he murmured, his voice rough. He thrusted a few more times before spilling into her, his high coming on the tail end of hers. Even when they stopped moving, their mouths remained locked in a slow, passionate kiss.

"I love you," she breathed, and he inhaled it, like the sweetest oxygen he'd ever tasted.

"I love you too Jin," he murmured, his lips brushing hers, and slowly pulled away. "We should probably get dressed, baby."

"No," she whined, pouting. "Give me a reason why."

"So I can have the fun of undressing you again later tonight?" he tried. "Or at least, I should get some pants on and wait for Skoochy and Ryu to come back home. You know what Skooch is like, always getting into trouble."

In this case, trouble being a number of things, but usually fistfights.

"Fine," Jinora said, managing a small smile. "Bring me some chocolate?"

"Only because I love you so much," he teased, giving her another soft kiss. "And then I'll lick the taste right off your lips afterwards."

"Mm, just how we both like it." Jinora watched him get up, pulling on his pants before sending another smile her way.

"Be right back, baby," he said, and then he left, and Jinora rested her head back on the pillows, sighing softly.

Sometimes it was almost overwhelming, how much she loved him, but she wouldn't have it any other way.

###

Jinora had never cared enough about a boy to find herself standing at his parents' doorstep with or without a basket of cookies in her hand, and she hadn't ever expected herself to care that much. And yet, here she was, the nervous energy only just kept at bay by Kai's presence, by his hand on the small of her back.

"You know how happy they're gonna be once they meet you and see how great you are?" he kept saying, almost excited rather than nervous. "Breathe, baby. They're gonna love you almost as much as I do." He pressed a series of kisses to her cheek to make her giggle.

"Okay, okay, I'll believe you!" she laughed, giggling more when he tickled her side. "Alright. I'll knock on the door."

"That's my girl," he said, and Jinora rapped on the door three times.

It was opened almost immediately by a pretty woman with her curly hair up in a messy ponytail, and it struck Jinora how much she resembled Kai. Though her features were much softer, it was clear that Kai had taken almost everything from his mother.

The woman's green eyes lit up and she hugged Kai, before looking at Jinora and exclaiming, "You must be that girl he writes so much about!" and pulling her in for a hug as well. Jinora almost laughed, managing to hug her back before she ushered them inside.

"What are you both doing out—Oh!" Ming glanced at the basket in Jinora's hand. "Did you make these, sweetheart?"

"Kai helped," Jinora said, and Ming smiled proudly at her son.

"That's my boy," she said, ruffling his hair. She was already nearly a head shorter than him, and Jinora swore she saw Kai bend down slightly so his mother could reach.

"Ma," he mock-whined, unable to look truly annoyed.

"You get those curls from me," said Ming, wagging a finger at him.

"Where's Yung?" Kai asked.

"Upstairs, fixing a rocking chair for Mrs. Wan. I'm surprised he's still at all these odd jobs, with his back."

"So I shouldn't surprise him?" Kai asked sheepishly.

"Just do it gently," Ming said with a smile.

It turned out Kai wouldn't get the opportunity, as he went to head upstairs to the second floor tenant of his parents' small apartment building, Yung met him halfway. He pulled Kai into a tight hug, even lifting him off the floor a little, in spite of Kai's protests of, "Yung! Your back!"

"I may be old but I'm not too old to lift my boy!"

"Yung," Kai tried to object, but he was too busy laughing, even as Yung set him back down. He hugged his stepfather tightly, before pulling away excitedly. "C'mon, Ma's got dinner going, and I got to bring my girl home."

Yung brightened even more, if that was possible. "I finally get to meet this girl of yours?"

"She's waiting right down stairs."

Yung laughed. "I'm gonna get those grandchildren after all, then."

"Yung!"

"I'm not saying I need 'em tomorrow, but it's nice to have the insurance," he said.

Kai shook his head, grinning, as he followed Yung back to the kitchen. Jinora perked up when she caught sight of his stepfather, a pudgy man with a goatee and a twinkle in his soft brown eyes.

"Hello," she said politely, sticking out her hand. "Kai's told me all about you, sir."

"Hopefully good things," Yung said with a glance at Kai, giving her hand a hearty shake "and it's just Yung. I've heard a lot of good things about you, Miss Jinora."

"She was very thoughtful and brought us some homemade cookies. Your favourite, too," Ming piped up.

"I burnt 'em a little," Jinora added meekly.

"Good. That's how I like 'em," Yung said, and Kai gave her a quicksilver grin. "Now, let's all sit around and talk. We got a lot of catching up to do."

Kai took Jinora's hand. "Yeah. We do."

###

"You really love that girl, don't you?"

Kai and Yung were out on the back porch having a smoke, and watching the sunset. Kai didn't know what the girls were up to, maybe looking at embarrassing baby photos of him, but it was nice to have a little time alone with his dad. Time to be grateful that his father was far more accepting than Jinora's, through no fault of her own.

"I do," Kai said, a soft smile on his face. "Yung… Dad, how did you propose to Ma?"

Yung had a small, wistful smile on his face. "It wasn't anything fancy, but I tried to be romantic. We were sittin' in the garden, back when we had one. Talking about how much we loved you and your sister. The ring felt so heavy and so light all at once in my pocket, and I wanted to keep listening to her talk, but then I'd never get the question out. So I just did it plain and simple; got down on one knee, when she was in the middle of a sentence, and asked her if she'd do me the honour of spending the rest of her life with me."

"She said yes?"

"She started crying at first, actually. I was so worried I did something wrong," Yung chuckled. "But then she smiled so wide, and kept nodding, 'cause she couldn't get the actual word out on account of she was smiling so much. When we got back home, she kept telling me how excited she was to tell you and Kuvira that they were getting a new daddy."

"You're the only real father I've ever known," said Kai fondly. "I still can't believe you wrote new father vows for me and Kuvira."

"Seemed like the right thing to do. Y'know I still remember all of them?"

"'Course I do. How'd you keep 'em all for so long otherwise?"

Yung chuckled. "You're a smart kid. That girl of yours is smart, too. You're good for each other."

Kai's smile faded. "Her father doesn't think so."

Yung placed a hand on his shoulder. "Being a parent is hard, 'specially when your kid's in love."

"You don't seem to be takin' it hard."

"No, but… it's hard, realizing your kid's growing up. Especially since Jinora's their first kid. And… well… let's admit, you are rough around the edges."

"If by 'rough around the edges' you mean 'crook'."

"You're still a good man, Kai. Even if you don't see it in yourself yet. And her father will one day, too."

They were both silent for a moment, the only sounds their puffs of breath as they smoked, before Kai said, "I think I wanna...stop all this, one day." He glanced at his stepfather nervously. "Robbin' and stealin'. I know you kept tellin' me to stop, and I didn't listen, and—and I don't know if she'd want to leave, or stay—I might have to do time if I stay—" His voice faltered when he saw Yung's expression. "Yung?"

"You really are in love, kid," he said with a tiny smile. "I'm glad you found a reason to start clean, and to face the consequences of your actions, but…" He chuckled softly. "I'm a selfish man who doesn't want his boy in jail."

"I don't wanna go, either," Kai said. "But I also don't wanna be too far from you and Ma, or to make Jinora stay far from her family…" He sighed. "Took me long enough to start even thinkin' 'bout going straight, huh?"

"Better late than never, kid. They can't give you more than a few years for theft, anyway, an' looking at that girl, I know she'd wait for you."

Kai threw down his cigarette and stamped it out. "I don't know if wanna make her wait though. I don't know if I could stand being apart from her for that long."

"Then go away for a few years. Make the authorities think you're missing. They'll get busy with some new threat, and you can come back. Maybe you can take Jinora's name, and settle down nearby."

"Maybe." He gave his stepfather a tiny grin. "You may not be wrong about gettin' those grandkids one day, after all." He looked out at the horizon line. "If she wants 'em, anyway. I think she does; we've talked about it a little bit."

"Your Ma and I will be right here for both of you whenever you need, it, too, you know that?"

Kai's smile grew. "I know."

"Kai?"

He turned and saw Jinora and Ming in the doorway, the former having been the one to speak. They looked almost nothing alike, but had the same softness in their eyes, and something frayed and doubtful in him melted.

"Yeah?"

"We should probably be going," said Jinora almost meekly. "If we want to get on the road before the streetlamps come on."

On dark, moonlit night drives, sometimes Kai felt like he could barely see the road if not for his headlights. Even then, it wasn't his favourite time to be driving, nor would he ever make her take his place.

"You're welcome to stay the night," Ming offered.

"Nah." Kai took Jinora's hand and laced their fingers together. "She's right. We should really be going. Skoochy and Ryu are waiting for us back at the safehouse."

Ming chuckled. "Those boys. Give them our love, will you? And our thanks?"

"'Course, Ma. They miss your cooking almost as much as they miss you." Kai pecked his mother on the cheek, giving both his parents one last hug, before Ming gave them a basket of leftovers to bring home. Ming hugged Jinora, before the two lovers walked back to their car and got in, the basket carefully stowed away on the back floor.

"See?" Kai said, as they pulled out of the dirt driveway, leaning over to kiss Jinora's cheek once they were on the road. "Told ya they'd love you."

"And I love them just as much." His mouth caught the upturned curve of hers. She leaned against his shoulder, sighing softly. "You were right, baby. They really are lovely. But you know, your mother told me some rather funny stories about you as a boy…"

Kai groaned in mock, and maybe a little real, embarrassment, and Jinora laughed. "What'd she tell you?"

"Did you really go running stark naked through poor old Mrs. Wan's cabbage patch?"

"My towel fell off!" he said, and Jinora laughed harder. "I wouldn't have been in that cabbage patch anyway if her cat hadn't been chasing me, and it was practically a dare from Skoochy anyway."

"Hmm." She grinned cheekily. "Excuses, excuses."

He rolled his eyes, smiling. "You're lucky I love you, baby."

"Mm." Her smile softened as she pressed it to his cheek. "Yes. I am."