10 Things Claire Learns : Chapter 2, Part 3
8.
Gabriel has never lied to her. It’s not that she thought he lied to her with every other breath or anything, and after 214 years she cernaintally trusts her friend completely. Claire had always just assumed that he stretched the truth were those little, seemingly inconsequential things were concerned.
The day that she realizes how honest Gabriel truly is with her occurs far too late, at least as far as her ego is concerned. Claire is sitting across from him at an outdoor café table in Italy. The waiter stops by their table to see if they require any more coffee, and with a start Claire recognizes her ex boyfriend, Roberto. She and Roberto had split two years ago after she’d figured out that he had been having a four month long affair.
Claire glared at him, more on principle now rather due to any lingering hurt, and with some confusion she realized Roberto seemed to have become paralyzed by terror. Although Claire would have been flattered to think she was the cause, she knew that a 5’4 petite blonde didn’t exactly inspire expressions that suggested one had just been told they were on their way to the guillotine.
It was then she noticed that Roberto was staring wide eyed at Gabriel, who was coolly gazing back at him over the rim of his cup. As Gabriel causally turned his gaze back to the menu in front of him Roberto suddenly took off, not appearing to notice when he plowed into several chairs and sent a table flying in his frantic haste to escape.
“What was that about?” Claire asked, honestly not expecting an answer.
Gabriel, who had appeared not to have noticed Roberto’s extremely loud and terrified exit, put down his coffee cup, gazing at her with unwavering brown eyes.
“He hurt you Claire.” Gabriel said, in a tone that implied she was missing something obvious.
“Yes, that’s true. But that doesn’t explain why he looked like he’d just seen the decapitated ghost of his grandmother.”
“ I told you I’d telekinetically break his legs if he caused you pain. Don’t you remember ?” Gabriel asked, concern appearing in his eyes.
“Well of course I do Gabriel,” Claire remarked, slightly exsesperated, wishing he’d get to the point already, “but what does a small white lie have to do with - “
“ I’ve never lied to you Claire, why would I start now?” Gabriel interrupted, raising his eyebrow.
Claire opened her mouth to correct him, to say that of course he lied to her occansialy, and she didn’t expect him to be honest all the time…. when she realized that Gabriel had never lied to her.
He hadn’t lied to her when he said that he hadn’t meant to cause her pain after he saved her from that vortex.
He didn’t lie when he told her that her father, Noah, would never truly see her or others like her as human.
Sylar was telling the truth when he told her that she and him were more alike then any of them, even as he forced her, her dad, and her biological family to run for their lives.
Gabriel didn’t lie when he said she could sleep in his spare bedroom anytime she wanted, when he swore he’d drank only two shots of whiskey, or that he didn’t mind spending the day playing Frisbee in Central Park with her.
Gabriel had always stuck by his word when he promised to give her space when she requested it, when he swore not to get involved in her relanships even when he loathed her choice of partner, or those countless times he allowed her to deal with her own emotional problems that seemed to be inevitable with immorality.
He told the truth when he said that he would never use her, leave her, attempt to kill her, or over protect her, even though Claire knew she had given him more then enough reasons and opportunities to do so over the years.
Gabriel knew, thanks to the countless decades Claire had spent trusting the former psychopath, that as she was growing up those whom she had loved and trusted had constantly lied to her. If it had only been a few times Claire would have easily overlooked the deception. Instead the lies came in a constant never ending stream. They were built, stacked, buried, twisted, and knotted around, over, and under each other so tightly it would have taken years to uncover every one.
The fact that Gabriel had never, in over two hundred years deceived her, not even about the smallest thing? It reveled a depth of care and concern for her emotional well being, as well unfathomable respect for her as a person that no one had ever shown her.
Pushing down the shock and gratitude that this unexpected revelation caused she focused her attention back on Gabriel, who was still gazing at her expectantly.
“I can’t really think of a reason, to tell you the truth”. Claire said, shrugging.
“Knew you’d figure it out eventually Cheerleader”. Gabriel replied, smiling that familiar grin of his that was 60% smug and 40% cocky, apparently not fooled at all by her attempt at a causal response.
Claire, not surprised by her friend’s response, smiled in amusement as Gabriel returned his attention to the menu.
Realizing that no more would be spoken on the subject, Claire also refocused her attention. As she sipped the last of her drink Claire silently thanked whatever God existed for the man sitting across from her.
9.
That night at the Carnival Claire received a tattoo from a man named Samuel. As she let her mind clear, allowing the ink to flow across her body and create the image of the one person whom she would need and desire the most, who was her destiny, she hadn’t really given it much thought. When the image began to form on her left hip, Claire had assumed that the tattoo would be of Peter, her dad, or possibly Gretchen.
So when she saw the face of the man who had removed her skull and taken her power, who had killed her biological father, who had murdered dozens of people and made her life a living nightmare? Well, let’s just say that for the next several hours her emotions were a swirling vortex of shock, horror, disgust, and denial. The fact that a few days latter that Sylar reveled a tattoo of her face on his own arm? It was just a sick, twisted condisence.
It would take forty years after graduating college for her to grudgingly admit that Sylar might not be a complete monster after all.
Fifteen years latter, they have become friends of a sort. Not close ones certainly, but enough for her to think that the tattoo wasn’t wholly wrong.
By the time 214 years have passed, they are seeing each other for hours daily, taking trips to France, China, and Italy, going to bookstores and museums, hell they’re practically living at each others homes. Now, Claire has no problem admitting that the tattoo was correct that she would need Sylar more then anyone. He had become her best friend, confident, the only person that she felt completely safe around, her source of trust and loyalty, and the one constant in her life. But loving him as a lover? That’s were that ink was dead wrong, Claire told herself firmly.
Seven hundred years latter Claire looks out their kitchen widow of their home in Greece. She watches their children, Leah, Noah, Andrew, and Sara, all of whom have inherited their rapid cellar regeneration power, playing in the back yard. She smiles as she feels her husband of 321 years come up behind her and place one hand over her tattoo, his other arm full with two year old Allison, and gently kiss her neck. Who would have ever thought that a tattoo gotten over 500 years ago on a whim would revel her destiny?
10.
In the past 4,000 years Claire has learned so much about Gabriel Gray.
She knows that he hates the smell of pumpkin pie and strawberry shampoo. She is aware that his mother abused him and that he likes how the tiny rainbows from crystals dance across her skin. She can tell you exactly where each freckle resides upon his body or that he loathes caramel. Claire knows that Gabriel loves Peter and Julia Pretrial like siblings, that he loves her natural hair color the most out of any shade she’s experimented with, and that he has can’t sleep on his stomach. She knows exactly how long Gabriel fought The Hunger, is aware that their tattoos were smarter then she had been willing to admit, and that their children mean the world to him.
Claire knows both Sylar and Gabriel will give their lives for hers, that they will always fight for her and sacrifice everything for her. She knows he will always be there for her, has never lied to her, and that he loves her.
Claire has also learned something else in regards to Gabriel Gray; She is everything to him.
As Claire Sandra Gray watches the man who is her best friend, husband, and lover sleep next to her in their bed, his features the same as they were that night at her school so long ago, she wraps her arms tighter around his taller frame. As his arms automatically hold her more closely in response she buries her face in his neck and inhales his sent.
As she drifts off to sleep something else that she has learned over the course of 4,000 plus years crosses her mind. She may be everything to her husband, but Gabriel “Sylar” Gray is also everything to her.
END
So? What do you think? I think that I may have gotten carried away on a few of them. I also know that the time intervals may not make sense, but in my defense I wasn’t paying attention, plus my math skills are about 13 light-years beyond terrible. Thank you to everyone that’s reviewed.