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The 5K walk/run to benefit Ellen’s Place had been Neal’s idea from the beginning. Peter thought that it was more trouble than it was worth, as far as fund-raising went, but Neal insisted it was good publicity and a potentially good way to draw in future volunteers. Peter kept his mouth shut and did his part to help with organizing the event. The day of the event was about as good as they could have hoped for, sunny and not too warm, and Peter knew what his jobs were—he’d start with checking in participants then move to the water station.
Neal, on the other hand, seemed to be trying to keep on top of all of the staff and all of the volunteers, not to mention the participants and and the kids and everybody else in a four block radius. It seemed ridiculous to Peter, but Neal was happy, flashing Peter a grin as he paused to check in as he jogged from one place to another. Peter shook his head and watched Neal go, the khakis he was wearing hugging his ass as he ran.
A little while later, Peter’s phone buzzed with a text from Diana, who was managing the finish line. If you see Neal get him to take a break.
Peter started to text back with a question when he saw Neal approaching from across the street. He was walking quickly, not jogging anymore, and as Neal got closer Peter could see that he looked exhausted, his shoulders rising and falling as he breathed.
“Hey.” Peter hurried around the table. He met Neal halfway and put a hand on his shoulder, and Neal leaned into the touch while he looked at Peter curiously.
“What’s going on?” Neal paused to take a couple of breaths. “You need me for something?” His cheeks were bright red, making his eyes look even bluer than usual, and his hair was clinging to his forehead in sweaty spikes.
“I need you to come sit down for a few minutes.”
Neal shook his head, though he was still leaning into Peter’s grip. “No, I have to get to the—uh—the—“ He blinked and looked around, and Peter cupped his other hand around the side of Neal’s neck, where the skin was dry and hot, his pulse beating too quickly under his skin.
“You need to get inside. Come on.” Peter shifted to put one arm around Neal’s back and guided him toward the sidewalk. He thought about having Neal sit down there, but Ellen’s Place was only a block away, and air conditioning would be better. The two teenagers who’d been helping Peter at the water station were looking on with concern, and Peter nodded to them. “Robbie, grab a couple bottles of water and come with me. Leila, hold down the fort, okay?”
“I’m okay,” Neal argued weakly, and Peter resisted the urge to shake him.
“No, you’re overheated because you were trying to run a marathon while everyone else did a 5K.” They were making their way slowly down the block, and Peter didn’t think Neal had any idea how unsteady he was on his feet.
“What do you want me to do?” Robbie was walking along next to them, looking awkwardly like he didn’t know if he should grab onto Neal or run in the opposite direction.
Peter held out his phone to the kid. “Call the last number that texted me, and ask Diana to send a medic to HQ.”
“O-okay.” Robbie took the phone, and Peter turned his attention back to Neal, whose face was going from red to pale.
“You doing okay?”
Neal swallowed hard and looked down at his feet then over at Peter. “Don’t feel great.”
Peter resisted the urge to hoist Neal over his shoulder for the rest of the short walk to Ellen’s Place, and soon enough they were closing in on the front doors. Robbie held the door open while Peter guided Neal inside, and Neal swayed hard when the cool air hit them. Peter levered him down to sit on the floor of the hallway, leaning against the wall. He looked over at Robbie, who was hovering uncertainly. “Go get me some paper towels.”
The kid nodded then jogged off down the hall, and Peter turned back to Neal. “I’m going to take your shirt off, okay?” Neal shook his head and shifted his shoulders uncomfortably, but Peter ignored him. He loosened Neal’s belt and unbuttoned his khakis then tugged the blue event t-shirt out from where it was tucked in then up over Neal’s head and down his arms. “Can you take a few sips of water?”
Neal put a hand on his bare belly. “Don’t know.”
Peter really didn’t want Neal to have to go to the ER, and he knew Neal would want it even less, but if he couldn’t get hydrated on his own they weren’t going to have much of a choice. “Come on, try.” Peter opened one of the bottles of water and held it to Neal’s lips, and Neal took a few slow sips. “You think that’s going to stay down?”
Neal nodded slowly, and Peter looked up at the sound of footsteps to see Robbie running down the hallway with a stack of paper towels about a foot high. “Diana called back and says to put you on the phone.”
“Tell her to hold on a minute.”
Robbie frowned, his eyes wide. “Um, I’ll try.”
Peter turned back to Neal. “I want to get you laying down, okay?” He tugged Neal away from the wall and helped him stretch out on his back, with his folded-up t-shirt as a pillow and an empty copier paper box under his feet. He poured some water onto one of the paper towels and wiped it over Neal’s face as he finally accepted the phone from Robbie. “Yeah, Di?”
“What the hell is going on? I’ve got some lady who tripped and hurt her wrist, so if you need a medic right away we need to call 911.”
Peter sighed. “I’m not sure, give me a minute.” He put the phone down on the floor and checked on Neal. His pulse was slower and stronger, his breathing steadier. Peter re-wet the paper towels then picked up his phone. “I think we’re okay. Neal got overheated, but I got him inside, and he’s looking better already.
“Shit. Are you sure?”
“Pretty sure. And I think Neal would never forgive me for having an ambulance pull up and disrupt his 5K.”
“Never,” Neal agreed vaguely, his eyes closed.
“Can the rest of you manage without him for the rest of the event?”
“Without you too, I guess?”
“Unless something major comes up, yeah. We’ll be here in the building for a while.”
“We’ll manage. I hope Neal feels better.”
“Thanks, Di.” Peter hung up and looked up at Robbie and he pulled his wallet out of his back pocket. “Will you go to the store for me? I need two bottles of Gatorade and some crackers. Get yourself something to drink, too.”
“Sure, okay.”
Robbie took the money and left, and Peter turned back to Neal. The hard floor was killing his knees so he settled down to sit next to Neal and moistened some more paper towels. Neal opened his eyes as Peter wiped the cool towels over his chest. “What happened?” he asked, his voice dry.
“You got a little bit of heat exhaustion, babe.”
Neal blinked, but he eyes looked clearer than they had. “Crap,” he replied as he closed his eyes again.
Peter continued to sponge Neal down, letting the evaporation help cool Neal’s body, and coaxed him into taking occasional sips of water until Robbie returned from the store. Between the two of them, they managed to get Neal back on his feet and down the hall to his office. Soon enough, more volunteers and participants were likely to end up in the building, and Peter wanted to spare him the indignity of being a half-dressed spectacle on the floor.
With Robbie thanked and sent on his way, Peter settled Neal on the couch in his office, propped up and reclining with his bare feet in Peter’s lap. Neal sipped at one of the bottles of sports drink and sighed as he tipped his head back against the corner of the sofa. “I feel like an idiot.”
“Hey, it could be worse. At least you’re conscious enough to feel like an idiot.” Peter squeezed Neal’s ankle, and Neal glared at him.
“Very funny. I was supposed to manage this event.”
“Right, you were supposed to manage it, not run the whole thing yourself.”
“Mmmm, yeah I guess.”
Peter ran his hand up and down Neal’s leg soothingly; it wasn’t the time for a speech or an argument. “We’ll hang out here until the event wraps up. If you feel okay, we’ll go home. If not—“
“Home. I’m feeling better already.”
Peter considered arguing that Neal still looked like he might fall over if he stood up, but since they weren’t going anywhere for a while it wasn’t necessary. “I’m glad,” he said quietly.
Neal answered with a small smile then went back to nursing his drink. Peter texted Diana to let her know the situation then reached out to take Neal’s hand. His pulse felt strong under Peter’s fingers, and Peter knew that everything would be okay.