Complications

Chapter 2: Exposed

Peter went home on Tuesday, confident that Tricia had solved the mystery surrounding Neal's unusual behavior. But it didn't take long for his radar to signal an alert once more. If Neal was heading off to Boston to see Sara, wouldn't he appear happier? The reports Peter had given him could easily be managed by spending a few hours in the evening on the project, but Neal looked like he was burning the midnight oil every night. Something wasn't right.

He considered calling Neal into his office and demanding an answer, but in fairness, how could he give Neal grief for being conscientious? If this had happened right after Neal had started working at the Bureau, Peter would have assigned Jones to keep an eye on him. But Neal had earned the right to be treated like all the other team members. If something was bothering him, eventually it would come out. Until then Peter shouldn't pry.

Still, when Jones stopped by his office with a question on a case, no harm in a little light digging. "Wasn't this your week for Tuesday Tails?" Peter asked, keeping his tone casual. "How'd it go?"

Jones chuckled. "Funny you asked. Caffrey claimed to have forgotten about it. Would you believe he begged off! Even offered to let me win by default. Seemed strange to me. I thought he'd look forward to showing me up."

"He's been unusually quiet this week," Peter ventured. He wasn't being a helicopter dad. It was just an observation. "Has he mentioned anything to you that I should be aware of?"

"No, but everyone's been so busy, we haven't had much time to chat. Want me to try to find out if anything's going on?"

Peter would like to sign off on the idea, but hadn't he just told himself that Neal didn't deserve that kind of treatment? "Thanks, but I'm sure it's nothing."

And if it was something, he didn't want to involve any other team members before he understood what he was dealing with.

After Jones left, he reviewed his options. He could sit back and stew without making any headway or he could do something about it. As Neal was fond of saying, there was always a way. It hadn't taken long for Peter to discover that it was usually through the back door.

Later that morning, when he spotted Neal getting a refill at the coffee bar, Peter grabbed his mug and jogged down the stairs to the breakroom. On the way, he stopped to read a flyer tacked to the bulletin board as a diversionary tactic.

"El told me about a great new place for lunch," he remarked upon entering the breakroom. "I thought I'd try it out today. Care to join me? My treat."

Neal winced. "I'd love to, but I'll have to ask for a raincheck. I already have plans."

"The restaurant has a French chef. You sure you can't rearrange your schedule?"

Neal looked decidedly wistful. "Not much choice I'm afraid."

Peter hesitated to press harder, fearing anything he'd say would only aggravate the situation. Did those plans involve a doctor's appointment? Perhaps he was waiting on test results. Now Peter was starting to feel sick. "I hope your schedule includes downtime. You look seriously done in."

"Do I?" He made a face. "That will teach me to stay up late reading. I'll get more sleep tonight."

"Make sure you do." Peter bit back the tease over what kind of book could have kept him awake so late. The kid already looked so frayed, it would be cruel to pile on. 

* * * * *

Neal watched Peter go back upstairs, frustrated over not having handled it better. More than ever, he wished he'd confided in him. But what if he couldn't carry it off? He'd feel like he'd let Peter down. The one thing Neal knew for sure was that he was too tired to think straight. This was not the time to make a decision that could come back to bite him.