North || Nathan Drake

05

Dante glanced at the copper sign on the wall of the church as the sunlight slipped into late afternoon. Beside him, Nate had dried off and had changed his wet clothes from jeans to another white tshirt and navy jogging bottoms. Dante was paying more attention to the way they hugged the other man's legs than to the church in front of them.m

"Santa Maria Del Pi", Nate stated. "Saint Mary of the pine". He grinned at them as he crossed his arms, the tshirt offering Dante a lovely view. (Nice pecks). 

"Here's our tree", Dante stated as he felt a smile of his own tug at his lips. He tried not to look too happy though, despite the other man's infectious happiness. 

"This has to be it! You just might be a genius", Sully complimented as he began thumbing his way through the journal pages. 

"Genius might be a stretch", Chloe muttered sourly. She smacked the back of her hand against Dante's stomach and the man flinched. "Stop eyeing him up as if you want to sink your teeth into him", she hissed as he glared at her, her voice lower but not quiet enough to avoid Sully and Nate hearing. 

"Maybe I'm eyeing him up as competition?" Dante retorted. "A threat? He is obviously much smarter than he first appeared". 

"I'm not sure if that was a compliment or a insult", Nate frowned. 

"Compliment", Dante smiled. "After the tracker, I thought you'd be as dumb as Sully. I am very glad that you share the same brains as your brother. And I was not thinking of biting him". The last part was aimed at Chloe, who just smirked. 

"Look at that", Sully interrupted the conversation to show them a page of the journal. A tree emblem, reminiscent of the one emblazoned in copper above them, was illustrated on the worn page. "Now you know why we brought him". 

"Huh, okay. Good work", Chloe admitted reluctantly. Nate just inclined his head at her slightly smugly. Then she ruined it all with her next words. "I thought that Dante was loosing his touch and going for the dumb ones again". 

"How long have you known each other again?" Nate asked with a pointed snap. 

"Five years", Dante muttered. "We broke up four years ago officially". 

Chloe laughed dryly. "Yet you still spent every meeting trying to get into my pants". 

"Not this time", Dante grinned. "I got the message last time. Besides, you said that the last time would be the last time. I get it". 

"Maybe I got sick of watching you sleep with everyone", Chloe snapped. She rolled her eyes with a sigh. "I'll go and see if we can get a little private look inside". She strolled off towards the church doors. Dante sighing and watching her go with a slightly vulnerable expression. 

"What happened between you anyway?" Nate wondered as he watched the other man's face. 

"Whirlwind romance", Dante shrugged. "We were twenty, in love. Treasure, guns and danger. Then I got stabbed. Tragic, I know". He chuckled. "It was either the treasure or me and she chose the treasure. I knew that would happen, yet it hurt. After that I didn't feel the same. We broke up later and though the sex is amazing, I can't keep doing it. We both can't keep doing it". 

"Was that before or after you fucked my brother?" Nate raised his eyebrows. No sympathy on his face. Dante's sad face cracked and he grinned wickedly. 

"I fucked Sam before Chloe. And once after Chloe. I guess you could say that he was my rebound". 

"Ewww gross", Nate groaned. Dante cackled. 

"You asked". The curly haired man rummaged in his pockets and pulled out a slim business card. "I'm going to see if my photography skills will open the doors for me since Chloe is taking so long". He flicked the card off his forehead in a salute as he sauntered away towards where the woman was talking to two nuns. Nate watching him go. 

Sully caught Nate's look as the curly haired man walked away. "Whoa whoa whoa", he shook his head. "Don't even think about it". 

"What?" 

"Well you don't catch on too quick do you? Neither of them are to be trusted. Dante North especially. I would have warned you earlier but this is the first time he has left us alone since we landed". He glanced to where Dante was showing his camera to the Nuns. 

"What's so bad about him? Sam obviously knew and trusted him", Nate shot back defensively. 

"I warned Sam too", Sully replied as he lowered his voice. "North's mother was one of the biggest names in the tomb raiding world. No one even knew that she had a son until Dante pops out of the woodwork seven years ago. There are rumours that he's related to Moncada, that he used to work for him, but nothing has been proven yet". 

"Then why did Sam sleep with him?" Nate whispered with a frown. 

"Because he had grown fond of the kid, okay? I warned him about North but he didn't listen. Ever since Mexico when he saved the kid's life, it was like he was protective of him. I would had left Dante stranded in a tomb years ago if it wasn't for Sam insisting that we didn't kill the kid". 

"Are you sure that you're not bitter about the treasure he's stolen from you?" Nate smirked. 

Sully paused. "Okay, a bit. But he's still not to be trusted. Secrets are dangerous and everyone has them, but if Dante really is related to Moncada then we need to be on our guard". 

"They're coming back", Nate muttered. He shut up as Dante and Chloe returned. 

"There's a midnight mass tonight, so tomorrow's the earliest we can poke around", Chloe informed. Dante was fiddling with his camera. 

"Our gear is at the house. We should go there tonight", he voiced. "I vote we take Chloe's car. My mini could probably fit one more person but we might as well take the more conspicuous vehicle". He smiled at them and Nate found himself wondering what exactly the other boy was thinking. 

unedited