Neverland Read Online Free Page B

They’ll run down and outside. What will they do when they realize I’m no longer there…in their world?
    A shudder, cold as a scoop of ice cream, skitters down my spine. This is just too much to wrap my mind around. When I gaze at Tami once more, I remember what she said about Peter before. About his wish to never grow up. “How old is Peter?”
    Tami’s delicate butterfly wings start to flap. She takes off from the ground, flies a circle around me and lands on my other side, giggling. “How old does he look to you?”
    I let my attention wander back to the battling boys and study Peter Pan’s face for a moment. “Sixteen?”
    Tami shakes her head and more pixie dust rains down. “He was fifteen when he left his home and came to live in the jungle. That was a very long time ago.”
    I rub my neck and come to the conclusion that nothing works right in Neverland. This is a seriously queer place. “And all the boys have been the same age for...”
    “As long as they’ve been here,” she finishes my sentence.
    “Does this mean, if I stay, I’ll be forever seventeen?”
    “Yes.”
    Heck, I don’t want to be stuck in the body of a teenager for eternity. I want to grow up. And what’s with the guys not remembering where they come from? What if I too forget my family one day? Raking my hands over my skull, I drag in a scared breath. “Really, I can’t stay here. I have to go. Now.”
    Someone places an arm around my shoulders. As I look up, I’m face to face with Peter. “I told you I’m going to help you tomorrow,” he assures me. “It’ll be dark in a couple of hours. Since you’re new to the jungle, it wouldn’t be a good idea for you to roam around alone at night.”
    “Peter’s right,” Toby backs him up. “Stay for the night, eat with us, and tell us everything about you. Any information can help with getting you back on track.”
    Through the windows higher up in the tree, daylight’s already getting dimmer. Maybe it’s for the best to camp out with Peter and the Lost Boys and start my exploration early tomorrow morning. I can’t do this on my own after all. Hopefully, Mom and Dad will soon be home, so the twins don’t panic or something terrible happens to them.
    With a nod, I agree and let Peter drag me to the area with the wide table. Loney and Skippy start a fire in the hearth and set up something that looks like a skinned rabbit on a skewer. Obviously we’re going to eat roast bunny tonight. I wonder if this is something I’ll like.

Chapter 3
     
    THE RABBIT IS excellent, and the best thing about this dinner is there’s lots and lots of strawberry milk to wash it all down. Best dinner I ever had.
    I help Tami and Toby clear the table, but when I go back for the second load of dishes, Peter grabs my arm and pulls me aside. “What do you say? Shall I give you a quick tour through Neverland before night falls?”
    A hike through the jungle? I might spot a possible way to get off this island while exploring. Great! So I don’t have to wait until tomorrow after all. “Let me just get my sweater, then we can hike off.”
    “Hike off…” Peter says, testing the words while I slip into my black sweater.
    As I pull it down, an ear-piercing shriek bounces off the walls inside the tree. The little pixie with the pointed ears dashes to her room, leaving a trail of golden dust in her wake. With a loud boom, her door slams shut.
    “What in the world—” I don’t get to finish my sentence. Each of the boys in the room points at the skull on my sweater. Actually, they look rather ridiculous with their outstretched arms. I make a sheepish face.
    “Get Tami out of there and tell her Angel is not a pirate,” Peter instructs Sparky, who’s running a helpless hand over his buzz cut. “Angel and I have to go now, or it’ll get too dark for the tour.”
    While the boys talk to Tami through the wall, I sidle up to Peter, waiting for him to show me a door that’s leading out of this