an: A short fic in celebration of my other story (Breaking) having received the most reviews of any White Collar story! Yay! Wanted to write about what Neal was like in kindergarten, but it ended in him punching another kid in the face, which wasn't exactly the cute adorableness I was going for. Anyway, love you guys and hope you enjoy my senseless babel.
To Peter their relationship is like a game of chess, constantly watching each others moves and gauging their reactions. Every move is carefully thought out. Not a single mistake is made. Though Peter still doesn't know if Neal is playing with him or against him. Are they working together using their queen, Neal's charms and connections, to catch criminals? Or is Peter really Neal's queen, just another piece to capture the king--Kate? All Peter knows is, whether Neal's playing black or white, he sure as hell won't lose.
To Neal it's like a game of Texas Hold 'em. Your not in it to make friends or have fun, you're in it for the money. He's in it to get out and find Kate. To him it's like slowly drawing one card at a time, finding one more clue--the bottle, Mozzie, the label. Eventually, all the cards will be played and the jackpot will be won--Kate.
Though their relationship could also be described as a video game. Together they work to take-out enemies, like the way they catch criminals, but they'd also shoot each other out to get power ups, like how Neal lies to Peter to get what he wants and sets off his tracker. In the end, though, if a bad guy ever attacked the other, they'd be the first to shoot the enemy in the face.
As complicated as their relationship may be, for good or bad, they both know one thing: they wouldn't be able to do it without the other.
Because you can't play a game by yourself.