My Neverland

~1~

Hiss. I could practically hear the blood escaping me. Doing this many times didn't make it hurt less. Still, I sighed in relief as I felt the physical pain take over, covering the emotional wounds. Phrases from earlier today came back, making me grimace.

"Why don't you just die already? No one would miss you."

"It's not like we care about you."

"Nobody cares."

"Nobody could ever like someone like you."

"Just die already."

"Just die."

"Die."

Die. That one word repeated in my head over and over again. Die. What would happen if I cut vertically this time? What would happen if my life just ended? Would anyone care? I braced myself for the final cut, when-

"Sissy? Are you almost done? We're waiting for you! Mommy and Daddy say they have an announcement!" I heard my 5 year old sister Lia say.

I grinned. Lia would care. "One minute! I'm almost done!" I washed off the new mark on my forearm, cleaning the blade and putting it away. I grabbed some gauze and my Superman sweatshirt and went out into the living room.

I was immediately hugged around the knees by Lia. "Sit down, sit down!"

I laughed. "All right, all right!" I looked at my mom, Tara, and my step-dad, Mark. They were calmly waiting with serious looks on their faces. My mind flashed back to another time, another man's face sitting beside my mother's. Those were the 'divorce talk' faces. This couldn't be good. "Um, so, what exactly is this announcement?" I asked slowly. I just didn't want Lia to get hurt. The one person I truly loved beyond a shadow of a doubt.

They exchanged a look. "Wendy, Lia, your mother and I..." I waited for the dreaded 'D' word. "...are taking you on a trip to Disneyworld." Mark finished. What. That was not the 'D' word I had been expecting.

"Yay! Really? Disneyworld? Thank you so much! I love you, I love you, I love you!" Lia danced around the room in her nightgown. "We're going to Disneyworld, Wendy!"

I let out a chuckle. "Yep, kiddo. We're going to Disneyworld."

"All right, now that we have that announcement out, it's time for bed, girls." Mom clapped, grasping Lia's hand to lead her to bed.

"When are we going, Mommy?" She asked, skipping to her room.

"We'll be leaving in 3 weeks, the day after school gets out." Mom answered.

"How long are we staying?" I wondered aloud. In my mind, I was thinking How long will I be able to escape?

Mark grinned. "That's the thing. I got a huge raise and a promotion, so the vacation is lasting all summer!" Mark was a surgeon, so he already made a lot. Mom was a dentist. We were wealthier than most, but we had our secrets.

"Isn't that great?" My mom came back, finished tucking Lia in.

They stared at me expectantly. Jolted from my thoughts, I had no choice. I pasted on my perfected grin. "Yep. Great."