The digging was done in silence. Two men often at opposing sides stood shoulder to shoulder to create a resting place for a man they'd known their entire life and not at all. After everything that had happened in the last 48 hours, the physical labor provided a welcomed release. Duke stepped back near the end so that Nathan could place the last shovel full of dirt and smooth out the plot himself. Then, Nathan leaned on his shovel and stared at the recently disturbed ground. Duke returned his shovel to the truck and sat on the bumper. The small amount of extra space gave Nathan a little privacy, but, he could still keep an eye on him. As much as Nathan may want to be completely alone right now, Duke didn't feel like he could leave just yet. Eventually, Nathan joined him on the bumper. His shoulders were slumped with exhaustion.
"I'm sorry, Nathan."
"So am I." Nathan sighed, not meeting the other man's eyes.
Duke nodded and pretended to look out at the scene before them while watching Nathan out of the corner of his eye. Nathan's eyes were a million miles away, face blank, and his mouth in a thin hard line. It wasn't hard to remember where and when he'd seen him look this way before. Nathan had worn the same look the entire time Reverend Driscoll recited prayers over his mother's casket. There were so many people there. It seemed as if the entire town had come out to say good bye to the dear lady. Tears didn't come until everything was over and people were heading back to their cars. There was no actual sound coming from him; just tears. They fell, unnoticed until Hannah offered him a tissue. The confusion on his face would've been funny under other circumstances. Duke didn't understand fully at the time why that was the moment some of the grownups started crying again. He did now.
Coming back to the present, he saw that the silence had worn Nathan down. Just like the little boy from all those years ago, he didn't notice the warm tears tracking down his face. Always prepared, Duke reached into his shirt pocket and offered Nathan some tissues. Confusion flickered across Nathan's face before it completely crumbled. Duke was taken by surprise as the normally stoic man next to him buried his face in his hands and sobbed.
"Okay…okay." Duke soothed, patting his back. While he knew that Nathan couldn't feel it, he couldn't think of anything else to do. Next to Nathan dying, this was the scariest thing he'd seen today.
"This wasn't supposed to happen." Nathan gulped, trying to pull himself back together. "I can't even put him next to mom."
"I know." He replied, keeping his hand on his back until Nathan finished.
"Sorry." Nathan apologized after a minute, rubbing at his eyes with his knuckles.
"It would be more worrying if you weren't this upset," Duke assured him, offering the tissues again. "Hey, you want me to call Audrey for you?"
"She's a little busy right now with her own problems." He declined, referring to the double that had just come into town.
Well, there went his plan of handing over Nathan to someone who could offer the man some actual comfort. Audrey would've known what to do. Duke felt helpless. This really wasn't his area of expertise. Consoling beautiful women? That was one thing. The problem in front of him was a completely different matter. Asking Nathan what he could do would be of no use. He would just say that he wanted to be alone. Duke knew that wasn't the answer. As awkward as the situation was, he just couldn't take the easy way out. An idea finally came to him as his stomach reminded him that it was well past dinner time.
"When was the last time you ate something?"
"Huh? Probably yesterday afternoon." Nathan answered, surprised. He'd lost all appetite the minute Audrey came into the office with the news about Hansen not being able to feel anything. Everything that happened afterwards certainly didn't inspire it to return.
"I thought as much. We need to get some food into you. How's about some pancakes?" Duke offered. Surely, some of Nathan's favorite comfort food would be calming.
"I don't think I can handle the diner right now." He replied, making a face. Word of the Chief's demise had to have gotten out by now. The rumor mill would've been greased by the Teagues even before the article was sent to print. He didn't need the pitying glances and whispers that would erupt all over the diner the moment he walked in.
"We're not going there," Duke assured him, "you're going to come back to my place. Believe it or not, I can make pancakes."
"You're serious?"
"Hey, no one will come looking for you there. You can brood in typical Nathan fashion while I whip them up. I also have plenty of Jack if you prefer to drown your sorrows."
"I brood?" Nathan asked, cracking a small smile. Duke just shoot his head.
"Come on before I change my mind."
Nathan would never admit it, but, Duke's recipe was far superior to the one used at the diner.
