Who: Nathan and Peter Petrelli
What: Discussing how relationships never last ( while having a few drinks )
Where: The Petrelli Mansion
When: After the Nathan/Heidi break-up thread/later that evening

Fortunately Ma was out for the day, so he didn't have to explain anything to her yet. He knew she'd probably tell him to fight for his wife and kids, but frankly, he didn't see that there was anything else he could do to convince Heidi to stay - or rather come back to him. If she couldn't handle who he was, then maybe it was better for her to leave now. His deepest regret was losing his sons. Right now, they were still young. They didn't need him to be around to know that he loved them. They hadn't reached the age where they started questioning their father's priorities. That was a grown-up problem. And by securing a future for his family early on, he would be more available later. If only she had been able to see that. All he'd wanted to do was get a head start, and that's exactly what he'd done. However, it'd come at a price. Was it worth it? Only time would tell.

At this particular stage, he had chosen to drown whatever sorrow existed deep down beneath that gruff exterior with any alcoholic beverage he could find. His tolerance level was high, so he wasn't drunk, though he had drank enough to take the sting off. He'd also made up an excuse to duck out of a previous engagement: a dinner that'd been on his schedule for weeks. But at this stage, it didn't really matter. Either he would win or lose. He'd covered every base, visited every corner, and shook hands with all the right people ... if he hadn't made an impression by now, he wasn't going to. It wasn't that he was giving up or throwing in the towel. Not at all. He simply was taking the night off, even though he'd undoubtedly get an earful about it later from those who supposedly stood in his corner. In other words, the kiss-ups who benefited from his success the most, or his mother, who for some reason was so inspired by the idea of him becoming a Congressman.

He'd been prepared to spend his time more productively, but the FBI felt it was too soon to arrest Linderman. What exactly they were waiting for hadn't been made clear, but Nathan had been in no mood to argue with them. So he'd resorted to staying in and sifting through old photographs instead. There were a lot of memories that had been captured in those pictures, although it was hard to remember a time when they were all that happy. Everything had changed so fast, and he still didn't fully understand why or how any of the changes that'd occurred had taken place without him noticing - or how some of them were even possible. Despite his failure to observe what was happening to the people he claimed to care about the most, he'd lost just as much as he'd gained - maybe more. He was fighting to win an election his father wasn't even alive to see. Heidi felt unloved and unneeded, and she had implied that even if his boys didn't feel that way now, they would someday. Half the time Peter was angry at him for something he had or hadn't done, and then there was the whole flying thing.

On the plus side, he had a daughter, and she just happened to be in town at the same time his wife decided to take their children and leave. Much to his surprise, Claire also had a superpower. While it might've been reassuring for her to discover she wasn't alone ( and he assumed Pete would be pleased too that he finally found someone that understood what he was going through ), Nathan didn't think it was cool, not in the slightest. Had he passed it on to her? Was he responsible for all this somehow? Regardless of where she'd inherited her ability from, her life would never be normal, and neither would Peter's for that matter. They didn't seem to understand the levity of the situation. If people ever found out what they could do, their lives as they knew it would be over forever.

... Thinking about all this stuff at once hadn't improved his headache, so he decided to take a break from everything and go upstairs, maybe turn in early. He took a little something to help knock him out quicker, because the wine he'd started with didn't seem to be having much of an effect anymore. As for the photos, he left them scattered across the sofa.

After entering the bedroom and plopping himself down on the edge of the bed, he tipped the bottle of whiskey and filled his glass. That's when his gaze drifted to the papers that were sitting on the table nearby, right where Heidi had left them. He really didn't have to sign them, but what good would it do to refuse? Perhaps in the morning he would be more willing to cooperate. Tonight, he was bitter and lonely.