Chapter Two – Meet the Boys
"Dad! Dad, are you home?" Wendy shouted as she closed the door behind Violet. She could hear her father talking, probably in the kitchen on the phone. Sure enough, she found her father finishing a call while her little brothers ate a snack.
"Wendy!" Michael exclaimed, jumping off his seat to hug his sister.
Wendy picked up the five-year-old and squeezed him tightly. "Hi, Mikey. How was school?"
"Good! We got to have cookies for a treat today, and I was the line-leader!" her baby brother replied.
"The line-leader? Wow!" Wendy grinned. She then looked at her thirteen-year-old brother. "How about you, Jon?"
Jon shrugged. "Could've been worse," he said, pushing his glasses up to the bridge of his nose. "We got to go outside but I got all wet. Other than that, it was alright."
Wendy hugged her other brother before introducing her new friend. Mikey took a liking to her at once when he found out that she loved white chocolate and hated spinach. Jon was uncertain but never once acted rude towards her. Mr. Darling soon finished his call and turned his attention to his children.
"Dad, this is Violet Shields," Wendy introduced her friend. "Violet, this is my dad, George Darling."
"How do you do?" Violet asked politely. Mr. Darling answered back politely as well, ignoring her overall appearance. It was at this moment that their Newfoundland dog, Nana, entered the kitchen and welcomed Violet with a wet kiss. Violet grinned, liking the dog immediately. After all the formalities had been said and done, Violet looked at Mr. Darling and said, "Sir, me and a few others from our school would like to invite Wendy and her brothers to come on Friday evening and check out an amusement park."
"Amusement park? Where? What's it called?" Mr. Darling asked, in a hurry to get back to work.
Violet was given a piece of paper where she wrote down directions and instructions to arrive at Never-Neverland.
"Such an odd name," the man thought aloud. "Will they be back by ten?"
"Yes, sir," Violet assured him.
"Then you may go, Wendy," he said to his daughter. "Oh, Violet, do they allow dogs?"
"For a fee," the girl answered. "And if you keep them on a leash."
"Then you, Wendy, and Nana will be in charge of the boys," Mr. Darling told them. "Wendy, I'll leave you money on Friday. Now you'll have to excuse me. Very nice to meet you, Violet." And he left the room.
Wendy and Violet gave girly squeals and hugged one another.
"Oh, this'll be great!" Violet grinned.
"But what about the others?" Wendy asked, suddenly remembering them.
But Violet waved them off. "Aw, we'll lose them in the park. I've been there once, about a month ago, but I still remember the place. Don't worry, we'll be just fine!"
~NEVER-NEVERLAND~
It was nearly eight o'clock, and Wendy and her brothers were eating dinner. Violet had been invited to join them, but she politely declined and left for home.
"Violet's certainly interesting, Wendy," Jon admitted, cutting his fish in two.
"She is," Wendy agreed. "I just feel so sorry for her. She lives with her aunt and misses her parents so much."
"Did her parents die, Wendy?" Mikey asked, chewing thoughtfully.
"Don't speak with your mouth full, Mikey," Wendy reminded him. "Yes. They died in an accident three years ago."
They all remained silent, eating their dinners, when Mikey piped up. "How many more days 'til Friday?"
"Well, today's Wednesday, and it's practically over," Jon replied. "So you'll have to wait one day more."
"Two," Wendy corrected him. "We won't be leaving until seven that night."
"I can't wait!" Mikey grinned. "Do you think it'll be just like the Neverland in the 'Peter Pan'story?"
"I highly doubt it," Jon shook his head. "It's an amusement park, remember?"
Wendy sighed as her brothers got themselves into a playful argument about Never-Neverland. She urged them to finish eating or she would not give them dessert. As soon as they finished, she gathered the plates and utensils and set them in the dishwasher. They finished their dessert afterwards, and Wendy sent them up to their rooms to prepare for bed.
Wendy liked her new room, mostly because it had French Doors, like her old room back in London. She loved old-fashioned things, knowing that she was a very romantic kind of girl. Putting on a long-sleeved white blouse with matching slacks, Wendy took out a brush and began to untangle her hair. Nana soon walked in, giving her own sigh. The girl giggled and petted the dog. "You must be exhausted, you poor thing," she crooned.
"WENDY!" Mikey soon came sliding into her room, his chocolate hair wild, his brown eyes wide. "I saw a BOY!"
Wendy blinked, staring at her baby brother for a moment. "…you mean Jon?"
"NO! I saw a FLYING BOY! OUTSIDE MY WINDOW!" the little boy screeched.
"No need to shout," Wendy winced, covering her ears. Nana plopped onto the floor and covered her face with her paws, as if in agreement with Wendy. "Where's Jon?"
"In the bathroom," Mikey replied.
Jon soon came into the room, his toothbrush still in his mouth. "Wat wa ah da ou-ing a-ou?" he asked, his mouth full of saliva and toothpaste.
"Mikey says he saw someone outside by your bedroom," Wendy explained.
"I DID see someone!" Mikey pouted, seeing that Jon gave him a quizzical look. "You NEVER believe me!"
Wendy sighed. She didn't want him to start crying now. "Look, Mikey, how about next time you see the flying person, you shout for us to come right away. Ok?" The little boy brightened at once and agreed. "Now, what story shall I tell you two tonight?"
"Tell us something about Robin Hood, or Batman!" Jon insisted, after he swiftly left the room and returned with his mouth empty and clean.
"No! Tell us about Peter Pan and Captain Hook!" Mikey protested.
Wendy looked at Jon. Jon shrugged. "Why Peter Pan, Mikey?" Jon asked, pretty sure that he knew why.
"Cuz the guy outside our window MUST'VE been Peter Pan, or how else would he be able to fly?" Mikey replied.
Jon and Wendy looked at one another and nodded: just as they thought.
"Besides," Mikey added. "We love Peter Pan. And you don't tell as many stories about him as you did before, Wendy."
"That's because I've told all the stories that have already been written," she explained.
"So make up some new ones!" Mikey exclaimed.
Wendy bit her lip, thinking a moment. "…o-kay. But I can't promise that they'll turn out good."
"We'll see," Jon smiled, his baby blue eyes twinkling. He and Mikey always had faith in their sister, and he was sure that Wendy would do a great job making up new stories about the boy who wouldn't grow up.
Walking together into the boys' bedroom, they all sat down on Mikey's bed. Wendy racked her brains, trying to gather ideas to create a new story. "One day, Peter Pan was chasing Tinker Bell through the Never-Forest in a game of tag…"
Wendy found herself talking about Tinker Bell's capture, a fight with Captain Hook, a prank, and a ton of ice cream! Before she knew it, both her brothers were gently snoring, with Nana fast asleep beside the bed. She had to wake Jon so that he could stumble over to his bed and sleep in peace. Kissing each of them good-night, she got up, turned on the night-lights and shut the door behind her.
Taking her time, Wendy got ready for bed. As she walked into her room, she noticed a shadow pass by her window. Curious, she tiptoed to the spot to investigate. However, when she looked out the window, there was nothing there. She was puzzled for a moment, but eventually shrugged it off. With that, she headed back to her bed, tired and eager to see her new friend tomorrow.
~NEVER-NEVERLAND~
There was a large maple tree nearby Wendy's windows and, unknown to her, a figure crouched in the branches. He was completely hidden by darkness, not even the moonlight shone on his face. His emerald eyes followed the girl inside the room, watching her as she combed her curly midnight locks until they shone and gleamed. Her cerulean eyes haunted him, reminding him of the beautiful waters that surrounded his home. He silently thanked God that her little brother only caught a glimpse of him as he tried to hide in the eaves of the roof. "That was close, too close."
Finally, the girl turned out the light and snuggled under the covers. He grinned, flying closer to the window so he could see her one last time before he left. After a few silent seconds, he let go of the eaves and roof, taking off into the inky sky decorated by shining stars.