North || Nathan Drake

14

Dante awoke with a gasping cough, expelling the last of the salt water from his lungs as he scrabbled to roll over. Hands caught his shoulder, stopping him from falling off the edge of the floating crate s he gasped and gagged. "Dante! Dante, I've got you. It's okay, I've got you". Nate's hands were warm as he held him. Dante found himself reaching out to clasp at the man's shirt as shaking gasps turned into rasping sobs. His eyes were dry but he was shaking, choking on the shock of the last hours. His father had been murdered and he had fallen from a plane. Blood still stained his trousers, the saltwater having darkened the material so they were less noticeable but still there.

For a few minutes it was like he was still underwater fighting for breath. Shock made him feel cold and he was shuddering as he tried to inhale. Nate held him. Dante half sprawled across the other boy's lap as Nate's arms encircled him tightly. The pressure was grounding, tight and seemed to break through the fog in the curly haired boy's mind. Slowly, Dante felt his mind come back online. He was soaked from their dip in the sea and everything ached. He felt like he had been hit by a truck, though slamming into the water had a similar effect. The sun was warm above them and the crate rocked in the ocean with a soothing rhythm. Nate was warm and he could hear the other man breathing. "Is that Fraser shouting?" He muttered exhaustedly through a dry mouth. His shaking was slowing.

Nate startled. "Oh, yeah. She's on the crate over there". He nodded his head and Dante struggled up, pulling away from the hold slightly to glance over at the floating crate a hundred yards away. Chloe was a small figure waving her arms at them and shouting. She seemed to want them to swim over to join her. Dante didn't really want to. "Are you feeling better now?" Nate asked gently. Dante nodded slightly and sank back to red his head on Nate's shoulder.

"Can I just stay like this a little longer?" Neither mentioned the vulnerability in his voice. Dante couldn't remember the last time he had been held like this and he needed it.

"Sure", Nate's arms wrapped around him in a hug. "I've got you". 

He rested his head on the other boy's shoulder and stayed there. The two of them sitting pressed like that as the sun beamed down at them and the crates bobbed on the sea. After a while, Chloe stopped shouting and dove into the sea. Nate watched her swim her way over, Dante sitting with his eyes closed and ignoring the world. 

"Why weren't you listening to me?" She grunted as she hauled herself up onto their crate. Neither boy moved to help her. The crate swayed but it was big enough that having three people on it only sunk it slightly lower. They would have to be more careful not to capsize it, but Dante didn't really care. Chloe pushed her wet hair out of her eyes with a huff. "I was trying to tell you that we should head to shore. Who's got the map?" 

"Here". Dante had to move as Nate unslung the roll from his shoulder. He hadn't even noticed that the other man was carrying it. 

"I gave that to Sully", he muttered, brain moving too slow. 

"I stole it before I went to save you from being shot". 

"Good. I can see a beach over there. Let's go", Chloe pointed towards the line of gold in the distance. During their cuddling moment the currents had swept them further than Dante had realised. Though, he was pretty sure that he was in shock and did not really know how long they had been bobbing on the sea, could have been one hour or five. The bright sun was making him lightheaded too. 

"Are you up to it?" Nate's brown eyes were warm with concern. Dante rubbed his temples to ground himself and flashed him a smile. 

"Yeah. Just needed a moment. Thank you". 

Nate stared at him for a second longer before nodding. He slung the map over his shoulder and dove off the crate, Chloe right behind him. Nate took a breath then he was leaping into the turquoise waters. They had a mile to swim back to shore but he had swum longer distances before and the natural buoyancy of the ocean was calming. He half swum on his back, floating as he lazily kicked. The motions more soothing to his frazzled mind than anything else so far. He was distantly aware of Nate and Chloe swimming close by, but other than occasionally checking on them and to make sure he wasn't swimming in the completely wrong direction, he lay back and let his mind turn the last day over in his mind. 

He knew that the mental image of Jo slicing her blade through his father's neck would remain in his head for the rest of his life. It would haunt his nightmares. The event had changed him and he doubted he would be the same as before. His grandfather was dead, his father was dead. He was the last Moncada left and he didn't even use the surname. A mess of paperwork and organisation would be waiting for him when he returned to Spain. People would be expecting him to take over the family fortune and the company that came with it. Already the thought of returning to that world was nauseating.  

He swallowed down that thought and kept swimming. They had managed to hit the private beach of a resort and rich white tourists stared at them as the three of them walked out of the surf, fully dressed and slumped with exhaustion. "What the hell happened to you?" A man reclined on a deck chair stared. 

"Fell out of a airplane", Nate groaned as they began walking up the sand. Dante grimacing as his sodden shoes made squelching noises. 

"You know, that happened to me once", the tourist nodded. Nate just blinked at the man and walked away. Dante on his heels and Chloe right behind. 

unedited