"I'm sorry buddy but I'm doing this for your own good. You're refusing to eat." Peter ran his hands through his hair, sighing in frustration.

Ever since Neal had landed in the hospital he had steadfastly refused to eat. His doctor even made an exception and allowed Peter to bring in outside food in an effort to get Neal to eat. Not even Elizabeth's delicious meals had been enough.

In a last ditch final Hail Mary, Peter tried to guilt Neal into eating. "C'mon Neal, please you gotta eat something. If you're not going to do it for yourself, please do it for me." Peter didn't want to use guilt to force Neal to eat but he was at his wits end and out of options.

Neal stared at Peter and it looked like the guilt trip might have worked. But then a shuttered look fell across his face and he shook his head adamantly.

Neal still wasn't eating enough to satisfy the doctor so today they were going to insert a feeding tube so he could get the nutrients he so desperately needed.

Dr. Watson approached Neal's bed and Neal visibly shrank back, clutching his blanket protectively against himself. "Since you are refusing to eat we're going to be fitting you with a gastric feeding tube. This will pump nutrients directly into your system at regular intervals." A look of fear instantly crossed Neal's face. "We're going to need to sedate you…it'll make the procedure more comfortable for you. Don't worry, it's a mild sedative and will relax you. You won't be completely under and you'll be aware of what's going on. I'll send the nurse in and we'll get started once you're prepped."

"It's okay Neal. I'll be right here with you." Peter tried to comfort his friend. Neal looked like he was going to have a panic attack.

Maggie, Neal's day nurse entered his room with a tray of instruments to prep Neal for the procedure. "Hi Neal, I'll be getting you set for the procedure. I'll give you a mild sedative and it'll relax you. She looked at Peter and said, "Agent, if you would please step out." Peter made to leave and Neal grabbed his hand. For someone who hadn't eaten much in weeks, his grip was surprisingly strong. Neal's eyes practically begged Peter to stay.

"Nurse please I think it would be better for Neal if I stayed." Neal shook his head yes. Maggie looked at both men and had to agree. Neal was always calmer when Peter was around. "Sure, you can stay. Okay, Neal, I'm going to give you the sedative now. It'll take a couple of minutes for it to take effect." Maggie approached Neal's bed with the needle and all hell broke loose. Neal's fight or flight instinct kicked in as he tried to scramble out of his bed. In the process he knocked over the instrument tray which fell to the floor with a loud clang. He also managed to rip out his IV. Peter stood frozen in shock for a moment.

Maggie started yelling for some assistance. Neal managed to grab a pair of surgical scissors from the tray and was now waving them in an un-coordinated manner. He was unsteady on his feet, his eyes darting around the room frantically.

A couple of orderlies charged in the room with restraints. "Wait, hold on!" Peter snapped out of his shock. "Those won't be necessary. Let me just talk to him." The orderlies looked to Maggie for assistance. "It's okay", she said. "Let Agent Burke try talking to him." Meanwhile, Neal was still waving the scissors around.

"Neal, look at me." Peter held his hands up in a non-threatening gesture. "It's Peter. No one is going to hurt you. You're safe. Look at me", Peter said again. Neal's eyes finally settled on Peter.

"Peter?" he whispered hesitantly.

"Yeah, kiddo, it's me. Put the scissors down. No one's going to hurt you. C'mon, it's Peter. I'm right here."

"No, you're lying, it's a trick. You can't trick me again! Peter's not here. It's a lie, it's always a lie. You're NOT my Peter!" Neal's confusion broke Peter's heart.

"It's not a lie or a trick Neal. I'm here and you're safe. Please believe me." He slowly walked towards Neal with his hand outstretched. "Take my hand Neal, I'm real. Take my hand please," Peter pleaded.

Neal dropped the scissors and grabbed Peter's hand like a lifeline. He sagged against the wall, all the fight drained out of him. Neal brought his knees up against his chest and started to sob, his whole body shaking uncontrollably. Peter cautiously stepped closer to Neal, not wanting to spook him and slowly sat down beside him. Neal practically threw himself at Peter.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry", he chanted, his apology like a mantra. Peter held Neal tightly and ran his hands through his hair. "It's okay Neal," he soothed. "It's okay. It wasn't your fault. You're going to be okay."

He was trapped with no way out. Neal thought that when was rescued, that would be the end of it. He would be free and move on. Little did he realize that this was the beginning of a worse nightmare, trapped within the walls of his guilt and fear. When Maggie approached him with that needle something inside him snapped. He couldn't, no wouldn't go through that again. So he did the only thing he could, he fought. But he was so tired of fighting. And besides what the hell was he fighting for anyway? Neal was always a problem solver. Give him enough time and he could always find a solution. That was what made him a master con man and CI. But he couldn't figure a solution out of this never ending nightmare.

Peter could see that Neal's outburst had exhausted him. He laid weakly in Peter's arms, his eyes drooping, already half asleep. Peter motioned for Maggie and she slowly came forward and crouched in front of Neal. She gently swabbed his arm and injected the sedative into Neal. Neal barely flinched and in seconds his eyes closed and his breathing evened out.

Peter lifted Neal back onto his bed and motioned for Maggie to follow him outside. He asked her to page Neal's doctor as he wanted to speak with him about continuing with El's meal program. At first Dr. Watson was reluctant but Peter could be quite persuasive and soon after he relented and agreed that putting the feeding tube in could do more psychological harm to Neal.

After about an hour Neal started to stir. Peter was there when he woke up.

"Hey Neal. Everything's fine. They didn't put the feeding tube in."

Neal visibly relaxed at hearing that information. "The doctor said that you can continue to try eating the food Elizabeth brings in but Neal you have to make a real effort to eat."

"Thanks Peter," Neal said. "I'm sorry about earlier." Neal looked down in shame.

Peter placed his hand on Neal's shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Don't worry about it. Everything's gonna be fine. I know it doesn't seem like it but you have to give it some time."

Neal didn't respond. He was shutting down again. Peter gave an inward sigh. He could see the doubt in the young man's eyes and knew Neal didn't believe his words. But Peter wouldn't give up. Neal was worth fighting for even if Neal didn't believe it and this was the time Peter would need to have enough strength to fight for the both of them.