Title: It's So Wrong

Rating: K

Author: wicked18writer

Summary: Post-Homecoming, Claire comes to NY with Peter they convince Nathan to let them stay with him.

Pairing: Unrequited Nathan/Claire, hint of Peter/Claire.

Disclaimer : I do not own Heroes….but I am one.

A/N : I just got to thinking, Peter's so…but Nathan's so…ya know? Yeah. It's 3:20 am and if I fall asleep now I'll never wake up and the only reason I'm up this late is because I had to finish a paper/speech due tomorrow at 8am so I wrote this half delirious half bored and half intrigued by the cover of entertainment weekly…my paper's not about math.

If you don't get the flashback thing, its in italics then I get lazy and don't italic until the end of the flashback b/c I don't like reading italics.

Also I know I don't explain about Peter's apartment, so let just say it's was broken into and he's afraid to go in for fear of Syler.

He always had a thing for blondes.

Nathan found himself staring at Claire…again.

Nathan didn't know what had come over him. It was just a pretty girl, there were thousands of pretty girls out it in the world, but there was only one currently sitting on his couch eating Fruit Loops watching cartoons.

It was the proximity, she was the only pretty girl around at the moment and that's why he stared…Nathan couldn't understand how he could lie to everyone but himself, because truth was it wasn't the proximity. It was Claire.

Peter brought the haggard looking cheerleader to his house claiming it to be the only safe place to bring her. At first Nathan was furious that Peter managed to defy him, see the painting of his death, and in spite of the knowledge of his doom—still go to Texas to save some girl.

But, she wasn't just some girl she-"she's the cheerleader Nathan! Save the cheerleader save the world. I had to go, I had to save her she was going to die, what was I supposed to do?"

Peter was yelling, that didn't happen often but when it did Nathan was always a little shocked that his little brother who worshiped him dared to yell at him. He was shocked, but not silenced.

"You weren't supposed to see the painting in the first place. And when you did see the painting you were supposed think rationally and say to yourself, 'well if I try to save this cheerleader I die so I guess that's something I'm not meant to do'. And then-"

"But I didn't die!" The vein near his temple throbbed a little more. Peter knew Nathan hated being interrupted.

"But you could have!" Nathan was now toe to toe with Peter. Using all is height, authority, and power to intimated Peter to make him see his point.

"You could have died in some stupid high school for some stupid high school girl who doesn't matter because saving her didn't save the world because the world is not in need of saving!"

"Not yet." Peter whispered. Nathan glared. Claire knocked on the door to the study. Both brother's heads whipped around to the noise.

That first time Nathan saw Claire her blonde hair had some red residue that he assumed was left over blood that hadn't completely washed out, as just a couple hours ago she and his brother had been in Texas running from some psycho killer.

Her face looked tired, and tan and flawless, and older than seventeen. She was wearing a baggy black sweatshirt with what he assumed was a punk band on the front, a shirt she obviously borrowed. Her hands were buried deep in the pockets; her legs covered in form-fitting denim, showing they were her own pants. White sneakers, smeared with blood…she was beautiful.

"I'm sorry to interrupt but, there's a lady in the kitchen about to freak out cause she wants to know who I am and I don't know what I'm allowed to tell her." Her voice was nice.

"That's my wife. Don't tell her anything. Your not staying." Nathan knew he was being an ass. Claire smiled, "Peter was right you are an ass." Peter snorted/laughed.

Claire walked forward, in Nathan's opinion far more sexily than any high school girl should have the knowledge to accomplish, "Question is are you an ass who's gonna help me?"

Nathan saw it, that glint of mischief in her eye that said everything. She would be trouble, she wouldn't make it easy, if he let her stay she wouldn't be grateful, she'd flirt with him, tease him, she would jeopardize his campaign-he could picture the field day the press would have when they got a hold of the information that a young teenage girl was staying with him. They'd brand her his mistress in two seconds flat, once they heard her age he'd be branded a cradle robbing pedophile, and once the press got a picture of her…he'd be a pimp. There was nothing to gain from helping his brother and this vixen of a wayward stray, only things to be lost.

He'd lose what was left of his wife's trust, he'd lose points in the polls, he'd lose his mind with someone who looked like her so close but never able to touch.

"Nathan?" Peter asked.

"Nathan?" Peter asked, Peter was in the kitchen; he was in the kitchen…staring at Claire.

"She's watching cartoons." Nathan didn't look away from Claire; if he did he'd just look guilty.

"Yeah." Peter came around so he was in his eye line, blocking Claire from view.

"She drank all the milk."

"Yeah?" Peter was getting a box of Coco Puffs out of the cabinet.

"My wife thinks I'm letting her stay to be my mistress."

"Mmh." Peter was shoving a handful of cereal in his mouth.

"She can't stay." Peter's eyes were smiling. Nathan hated that.

"She can't." Nathan went to the other cabinet and got out a bowl and spoon, handing it to his brother he poured himself a bowl.

"Nathan, she has no where to go. Last night all she would tell me after she bailed me out of jail was that she told her father what she could do. Got some money from her friend Zack, and she wanted to go with me to somewhere safe." Nathan sighed and ate another spoonful of cereal…dry cereal sucked.

Claire was laughing at the cartoon. Claire was beautiful when she laughed. Her hair was golden and shiny in the morning light.

"Your going to let her stay until I find a new apartment right?" Nathan sighed again. Peter probably thought he was being selfish; thinking about how Claire was going to disrupt his life, endanger his political aspirations, and marriage. Peter couldn't know that Nathan was sighing because Claire was beautiful and young, tan and young, untouchable, irresistible, his dream girl ten years to young, perfect, and all too tempting…and of course way too young.

"She's so young." Peter gave him a 'duh' look that always looked so perfect on his face. "I can't remember ever being that young." Nathan thought that even if he were Claire's age, compared to him she would seem young.

"She can stay until you get a new apartment." Peter smiled with eyes in triumph; Nathan hated his brother's smiling eyes. Peter left to go tell Claire the news.

Nathan turned away because she was too gorgeous and too young and too untouchable.

And it was just so wrong.