No Where Left to Go but Up || [Hookfire]
The days surrounding his father's ordeal had left Neal tired and strained, and it was beginning to show. He'd woke up shaky and breathless, the stress wearing his body down. He knew he needed to calm down and manage better, otherwise his illness would begin to take its wrath, and he knew he would be no good to anyone if he was hospitalized. But the thought of losing his father again was too much to take. He was still angry, and some days it seemed as if nothing would ever be the same as it was again, but the stubborness had begun to melt away when faced with the very real possibility that his father might be gone for good.
Pale and sweaty, Neal rose up from his bed, fumbling his way through the darkness of his father's house towards the kitchen, taking a quick peak in Belle and Fai's room to make sure they were okay. Filling a glass with ice water, Neal sipped at it, the ice cubes clinking together as his hand shook. His stomach reviled in protest as it usually did after taking his medication and he had to suppress the urge to be sick.
Quietly, Neal grabbed for his hoodie and shoes, zipping it up and closing the door so as not to wake up his mother and sister. He'd have to go to New York again for another treatment soon, but he hoped the hospital here could at least give him something to dull the pain.
Shivering against the night air, Neal walked the streets to the hospital, wincing when the bright lights and white walls glared across his vision, causing him to become dizzy. Leaning against the nearest wall in an effort to catch his breath, Neal looked up to notice a familiar shape walking towards him. "Captain...?" he asked breathlessly.