I don’t think Neal would be in NYC and just waiting for Hook to bring Emma to him. No way would Neal risk putting his chance at reuniting with Emma and his son in Hook’s hand. Especially as Hook is the “love rival”. Were it Snowing or Rumbelle or any of the dwarves or Regina, then I could see Neal maybe stepping back a bit but not with Hook.
But I think Neal knows that any interaction he has with Emma before she gets her memories back isn’t going to go well. She wouldn’t listen to him because she no longer remembers the whole Pinocchio deal. She won’t remember Manhattan or Second Star to the Right or Ariel or Going Home. She’s back to season one mentality where she was lying to Henry because she thought Neal was a bad guy.
And Neal and Hook have had a year together with no Emma. Maybe they’ve actually…talked about stuff. Maybe they’ve come to an understanding that isn’t mind trickery or teenage boy angst.
If there hasn’t been some sort of CaptainFire progression in the year they’ve spent without Emma, then I will be seriously disappointed. I actually think that might be part of why Hook tried the kiss, because having spent that time with Neal, he’s probably more aware of how deep their connection and their relationship is, so maybe he’s a bit worried about Emma maybe feeling the same way about Neal, so he tried the kiss because if it worked, then he wouldn’t have to worry so much.
Even if he and Neal have improved their relationship over the past year, he was still willing to risk hurting the guy by kissing Emma. Playing along but really looking out for his own interests like that would be in character for him, so I wouldn’t mind if that’s how it plays out.
I still think Neal’s a good candidate for being on the gurney in the promo. What male character do Robin, Hook and Charming all have in common? Neal. It would be believable if all four of them had been working together on something, and Neal was injured in the process, so the other three rushed him to the hospital. And Hook told Emma that her family was in trouble, and Neal is her family by virtue of being Henry’s father. Maybe Neal ends up in a critical condition, like David Nolan 2.0, and none of them want Neal to stay that way, and knowing how Snow woke Charming up by reading him their story, maybe they think that Emma could do something similar for Neal. And if Neal and Hook are closer these days, he’ll be willing to help in any plan to save him, even if it means reuniting him with Emma. Neal being stuck in hospital could explain why MRJ hasn’t been seen out and about shooting, because all his scenes would be interior stuff. It’s all speculation right now of course, I’m just saying, it could add up nicely if Neal was the one on that gurney.