Title: Five Times Peter Burke Saw Neal Caffrey Cry
Author: TeeJay
Genre: Gen
Characters/Pairings: Peter, Neal (and a little bit of Elizabeth)
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Spoilers for 1x14 'Out Of The Box'
Summary: I think the title says it all: Five times Peter saw Neal cry.
Author's Note: This is kinda dark and angsty. Every now and then, I need a McPunisher fic to purge all the dark, angsty thoughts from my mind and project them onto someone else. And Neal is such an easy target. That said, I am not sorry. :-P The fourth time was inspired by a particularly haunting scene from Prison Break in season one. You'll know which one if you've seen the show. And, geez, I made myself cry when writing the fifth time. *sniff*
An armful of kudos to the wonderful rabidchild67 for the beta.
Disclaimer: White Collar, its characters and its settings belong to Jeff Eastin and USA Network. And, guys? Your characters are not only welcome, they're wonderful. I'm just borrowing, I promise.

1

The first time, it was a single tear. It was Neal, in a hangar, saying goodbye to a life he had built for himself but was all too ready to let go in the face of love and hope.

He handed Peter his FBI badge. "Thank you for this."

Neal blinked, his eyes wide, trying to evade the emotion. "I gotta go." It came out almost choked.

The plane's engines in the background whined a pitch higher. Departure was imminent.

Peter knew if there ever was a moment where he could make even a hint of a difference, it was now. "You said goodbye to everyone but me. Why?"

Neal stopped walking, turned around. "I don't know."

"Yeah you do. Tell me."

"I don't know." Denial. Evasion.

"Why?" Peter insisted.

"You know why." A single tear left a wet trail on Neal's cheek.

"Tell me!"

His voice was on the verge of breaking. There was a desperate plea in his eyes, one that said, Don't. Don't do this. I have already made my decision. You're fucking this up. "Because you're the only one who can change my mind."

"Did I?"

It was a simple question. There was no simple answer. And because Neal perfectly knew it, he walked away without a word.

And then he didn't. He turned around, said Peter's name. And then love and hope went to hell.