Neverland

Once upon a time, in the city of London, lived three children. Their names were Wendy, John and Michael Darling. Their father, Stan, was a horrible man who kept them chained to their beds all day. The chains were long enough so that John and Michael could only just see out of the small circular window on the far wall but because Wendy was closest to the door, she could never see anything but the four walls that surrounded her. Most nights, Wendy would be visited by her father which always made her sad the next day.

When Wendy was sad, her two brothers would tell her stories of the outside world. How wonderful and wacky it was with fairies, mermaids and pirates! They called it Neverland. Each time would be a different tale of the world outside. Across the street from them was an orphanage where a little boy named Peter lived. He would often be the main character in their tales, fighting off the nasty captain hook with his crew of “lost boys” which in reality was just the other children who lived there that would play outside. Wendy’s favourite story they told though was how Peter met Tinkerbell the fairy and learnt to fly.

One night, the children’s father visited Wendy and the next day she was really sick. She was bruised and beaten, one of the cuts she had sustained had become infected. She was sweating and shaking at the same time. Unfortunately, the boys knew that their sister did not have much time left. Wendy was terrified, she didn’t want to die. Her two brothers told her one last story;

“Once upon a time, in a place called Neverland, lived a boy named Peter Pan. He was the captain of the lost boy’s crew and they all lived together. Even though they had each other, they were always so sad that they did not have a mother. One night when Peter was particularly sad, he decided to go on an adventure with Tinkerbell and flew into the night sky. After a long time of flying, he came across a bedroom with three siblings in it. Wendy, John and Michael all sleeping soundly in their beds. He saw Wendy and felt an instant connection. He knew she could be the mother to the lost boys that they so badly needed. He crept through the small circular window, waking Wendy up and startling her. As her eyes adjusted, she saw the boy at the end of her bed.

‘Who are you?’ she asked.

He told her he was Peter Pan and introduced his fairy Tinkerbell. She lit the entire room up with her magical sparkle. Wendy was mesmerised. Peter asked her to come to neverland with him.

‘There are some people I want you to meet, I think they would love you!’ Peter exclaimed.

‘I will go with you on one condition’ Wendy demanded.

‘Anything’ replied Peter.

‘My brothers have to come with me, I am not leaving them behind’ Wendy said with a stern voice.

Peter chuckled, ‘is that it? Of course, they can come.’

Wendy rushed over to her brothers’ beds and woke the both of them up to show them the miracle that was happening.

‘It’s happening, we are going to Neverland’ Wendy could hardly hold in her excitement.

Peter taught the three siblings to fly and they picked it up super quickly. Before they knew it, they were having the times of their lives, flying around their bedroom. Peter opened the window and they all flew out into the sparkling night sky. They arrived at Neverland where they spent the rest of their days with the lost boys. Wendy even got her very own Tinkerbell.”

The boys finish their story, trying to hold back their tears. Wendy closes her eyes and mutters;

“I think I see her, Tinkerbell, it is so bright, she is so beautif- “Wendy draws her last breath before she manages to finish her sentence.

John and Michael both look at each other and know what they must do. In the corner of the room was the chest of drawers that their father would use when he came to visit Wendy at night. They try to walk over to it but are yanked back by the chains on their necks. They can’t quite get to it. John acts quickly and starts to jerk at the curtains with his feet. The curtain pole comes crashing down. Luckily, their father is at work otherwise they would be in so much trouble for making all this noise. John hooks the pole under the handle of the drawer, Michael grabs hold and begins to pull with his brother. They pulled so hard the entire drawer came out of the sliders! Using the curtain pole again, they collected everything they needed to carry out their plan; Two rags, two knives, a pen and their dad’s journal which detailed everything he did to Wendy. They tore some blank pages and took in turns writing their letters.

That night, their father came in the room to visit Wendy again, he found her lifeless on the bed and began to pace around the room. The two boys pretended to be asleep. They knew he would try to get rid of them along with Wendy. It was just a matter of time. They knew his secret.

To get to Michael, the youngest of the brothers, he walks past John’s bed. Before he could get to little Michael, John jumped out of his bed and stabs his father as many times as he could. Stan falls to the ground, stunned by the actions of his eldest son.

“You finally became a man” he snarls through his bloody smile. The life drains from his eyes.

Michael sits up in his bed; “I am scared John”

“It’s okay, we will be together forever, I promise!” John reassures.

Both boys lay their letters on their beds, and turn towards each other.

“Ready?” John asks.

Michael silently nods.

“We count together, okay?” says John.

Both boys take a deep breath.

“3”

“2”

“1”

At the end of their countdown, they thrust a knife into each other’s hearts. Michael falls first. John stood there with determination running through him.

“See you in Neverland, Wendy” John whispers before collapsing to the ground and joining his siblings.