A/N: Hello, dear readers! Recently I was re-watching "White Collar", and in one of the episodes Peter wondered what would happen if he caught Neal earlier. Neal said that nothing would have changed, but I think it would. So, I decided to write this story. This is an AU, where Neal is only 15.

Hope you enjoy. And, please, leave a review if you have a minute. Thank you very much.

Who do you trust, if no one is real anymore?

A seven year old boy was sitting quietly in the corner, trying not to listen to the sounds coming from the next room. This was not real. His mom and her boyfriend weren't arguing again. Suddenly the door opened and his mother came in. She was as beautiful as always, but her eyes were sparkling not with happiness, but with tears.

'Neal, sweetie. I want you to go out for a while, but make sure Charles doesn't hear you, ok? Can you do this? Please, don't worry. Everything is fine, we just need to discuss something.' she said, kissing his curly hair.

The boy nodded and quickly left the house.

Neal didn't remember much what was happening next. He remembered feeling lost and scared. Men in police uniform took away Charles. And his mother was pale and cold.

Then a nice lady, Ellen, took care of him. She was kind and Neal felt that she loved him. And he loved her. The first day he came to live with Ellen, she bought him colored pencils and that was when Neal found out that he enjoyed drawing...

Four years passed and everything was great, until one cold winter day came. Neal's teacher asked him to stay after the lesson was over and then she told him those dreadful words. And again nothing, except for the pain in the chest and a feeling that you are alone in the whole world.

After that there were a few foster homes for a year. But all those people were fake. They had awful fake smiles. But Neal didn't care. All he needed was paper and a few pencils, and then he was in his own world. Maybe it was imaginary, but at least it wasn't fake.

After a year, Neal decided that it was enough. He ran away and never came back. And most importantly, he never regretted.

The next few months were tough for Neal. Surviving on the streets of New York is hard even for an adult, not to mention a 12 year old teenager. But there was nothing he couldn't handle. The streets had taught Neal, that people lie. They lie a lot. And Neal found out that the best way to avoid such people is not to trust them.

It was a sunny autumn afternoon and Neal was sitting on the bench in the park. He saw a group of people gathered near a small wooden table. On one side of the table was standing a short bold guy, wearing glasses.

'Pick a card. Any card.' he said, when Neal approached the table. The man's hands were quick, but Neal's eyes were a lot faster.

'Hey, you are cheating! You hid the card in your right side pocket.'

The bold man was stunned and finished the game by shouting to the crowd.

'Sorry, folks. The game is over. Come back tomorrow.'

And this is how he met Mozzie. One of the real people in this fake world.

Mozzie taught Neal everything he knew, including the 'art of theft'. Neal never doubted his artistic skills, but with Mozzie he found the purpose for his talents. He created world-class forgeries, which were now proudly decorating the walls of the most famous museums in the world. And his masterpieces were also the part of some private collections.

Mozzie loved books. He always told Neal that he should read more, because as Ernest Hemingway said "There is no friend as loyal as a book."

The next three years of Neal's life were almost perfect. Every teenager dreams about dangerous adventures, loyal friends, brilliant success and fame. Neal had all of the above. Even fame. He wasn't as famous as Madonna, but certain people in certain society knew him more than just well. Criminals wanted him to work for them, and FBI wanted him behind bars. There was one agent, whose life goal was to catch Neal Caffrey. Special Agent Peter Burke was on his trial for a very, very long time.

And of course, which hero doesn't have a lady of the heart? Kate. She was special. Why? Because she was Neal's first love and that was enough.

And everything was fine until that day. The day when Neal tripped. The day when it all began.