Neverland's Angel

Chapter 15

Emily was blissfully suspended in that magical state between wakefulness and sleep. Wrapped in a cocoon of warmth and comfort. It was peaceful where she was at the moment…wherever that was. Once again she kept her eyes closed; afraid that in opening them her new found paradise would come crashing down into an even harsher reality. She really didn't want to wake up in the breakdown that had seemed to become her life as of late. Right now not a single thing hurt and she reveled in being able to breathe deeply without any struggle or injury. Her skin didn't send out any shots of stabbing pain nor did she taste any ocean water on her tongue. She was warm, dry, and most glorious of all free from all pain; physical and otherwise. She wanted to surrender herself to this marvelous floating tranquility.  And so she was content to lie there perfectly still and placid. But the longer she lied there the more awake her brain became. Unwanted thoughts swirled inside her head in an un-ending stream. How could she be unscathed after being beaten and drowned by a pack of murderous mermaids? Didn't she pass out from the pain? Why was she lying here alone? What if it was all a dream...What if she was actually lying in her own bed right now and everything that happened had just been a product of her over active imagination? What if she had been completely fooled by the illusions in her head… The more she thought about it the more that seemed to be the most likely case. Everything that happened was so outrageously ridiculous and impossible! The last dregs of sleep had completely fled her leaving her wide awake and no longer content to just keep lying down. Still she stubbornly kept her eyes shut. Even if it was a dream it was one that she wasn’t ready to wake up from yet. Though some really scary things happened in it, the way she felt about Peter was more real than anything she had ever felt for anyone in reality before. Frustrated she groaned aloud and buried her head in what she realized could only be a pillow. Her suspicions of it all being a dream was confirmed when she twisted her hands in the heavy blanket covering her. NO! Let me go back! her inner mind screamed at the unfairness of the real world.  She wanted to go back and live in that artificial world of make believe. She was happier living as a fool in a beautiful illusion then she’d ever been in real life. She was being irrational and delusional, but she didn't care. She lied perfectly still and tried desperately to will herself back to sleep…back to Neverland…back to him. She stayed like that for what felt like eternity. Sleep did not come. Inexplicably heartbroken at having the most beautiful dream she's ever had cruelly ripped from her fingers. Should have known. Peter was too perfect to be real anyways and even if he was he wouldn't have anything to do with someone like me. Finally admitting defeat she opened her eyes to face the harsh light of her average day to day life. What she saw however was not her bedroom ceiling. It was uneven wood. That was…strange... Confused she shot up in bed only to take a sweeping glance around the room that was most definitely not her bedroom. But she did know whose bedroom it belonged to. With a rush of pure unadulterated joy she squealed in delight as her eyes hungrily took in every inch of Peter’s bedroom. With each noted landmark her heart soared. The worn and faded wooden dresser, the small fire place on the far right wall that was casting a warm glow across the fur skin rugs on the floor, and the tall throne carved right from the roots of the great tree itself. She had never been happier to see a room in all her life. She had no way of knowing if it was day or night because Peter’s round room was deep underground; the only light coming from the crackling fireplace. She was lying on Peter's bed. Confused at her lack of physical pain she looked down to check out her body. Completely baffled she turned her hands over remarking in astonishment to not find a single scratch or bruise. In fact her skin looked freshly cleaned and felt as smooth as a peach. She looked down at her clothes only to find that her pajamas were gone and replaced with  a yellow t-shirt and black spandex pants, as well as a massive worn jacket that she guessed had been a cast-off of one of the boys that hadn't shrunk. But when she brought it up to her nose she breathed in the intoxicating unmistakable scent of Peter. It smelled like soft woods, fresh morning sea air, and sweet wild honey with a background of something purely masculine. She heard a distant murmuring of voices and not really knowing what to do with herself she quickly shot back down into the bed and pretended to still be asleep. She had no idea why and was about to sit back up when she heard the rustling of the large bear skin curtain that acted as Peter’s door. Feeling it was too late to pop up now she kept up her act. With her eyes closed all of her other senses went into overdrive. Her ears strained to hear every single sound. She heard a soft clink of something being set down on what she guessed was probably the dresser. Then she heard a soft scraping sound of something being dragged across the floor close to her bedside. Her heart sped up as an irrepressible need to move spread throughout her entire body. She wasn't sure how long she would be able to keep up her sleeping beauty façade. It was Peter. Somehow she just knew it was him sitting in what she surmised was a chair at her side. She felt it in her bones. She was just about to pretend to magically wake up when out of nowhere she felt his presence lean over her. He called out her name softly, but she didn't respond.  She just tried to keep breathing the way a deep sleeper would. She didn't know why exactly she started to pretend to be still asleep it was just an instant reflex, but the more she thought about it the more she recalled previous events.  Thinking of how she was nearly drowned by mermaids and then saved by Peter only to pass out later from pain made a wash of shame seep into her. Sheer embarrassment was what kept her eyes closed now. How on earth was she ever going to look him in the face again? Just thinking about it made her want to crawl into a hole and die. But it seemed her mutinous stomach had other plans as it cried out a pitiful squeal of hunger. She had been caught. Surely he knew now that she were awake. She had expected Peter to call her out, but instead she felt and heard his weight shift as he stood up and began to walk away. She wanted to cry out at his absence but before she could she heard a clink sound of dishes followed by the sounds of his boots on the floor coming back towards her. He stopped right beside the bed and hovered there. He didn't move or make a sound for a few painfully long seconds. No longer able to bear it any longer she lifted her head up and opened her eyes only to see Peter’s rich warm brown ones staring into hers tenderly. “Peter,” she whispered his name not sure what exactly she was going to say. He stood there handsomely rakish looking with a tray of food with a wooden cup in his hands. There was even a tiny bouquet of freshly picked wildflowers draped across the side of the tray. Peter deftly reached out toward her with one hand while the other balanced the tray as he brushed her hair away from her face. Still he didn't speak; he just gazed at her with his comforting and understanding eyes. Feeling impossibly intimate and foolish at the same time she decided to open up to him, “I had a nightmare. I thought that this was just a dream and that none of it was real.” she kept her voice soft, afraid of somehow breaking this unexpectedly fragile moment. Peter kept stroking her hair and his voice was hushed when he replied, “Maybe it isn't…but I’d rather be with you asleep then anywhere awake.” An overwhelming feeling of love surged in her chest and tears threatened her eyes. “That’s exactly how I feel about you,” she confessed. Peter’s eyes shined, not with tears like hers, but with an equally powerful emotion. His plush lips quirked up in a sweet half smile. “I love you.” And although his voice was the barest of whispers it struck her with the force of a blow. She remained still, trying to absorb this glorious moment. Peter’s body tensed at her silence and his eyes clouded with caution. He went from being completely relaxed to looking as if her next words might shatter him. She immediately filled the small space between them by scooting to the edge of the bed and locking her arms around his index finger. She rested her head gently against that finger. “You don’t know how glad I am to hear that. I love you too, I can’t describe how much,” she said softly while trying not to choke on the emotions that were welling up within her. Other boys had made her feel awkward or inferior in some ways, always afraid to be her true self, but with Peter she could make a total fool out of herself and still feel like the loveliest of creatures because she knew that no matter what, that is how he sees her. It was reflected in the gentle way he caressed her hair, the way his eyes twinkled with a mischievous light every time he looked at her, the way he hugged her tight as if they were two puzzle pieces that were made to fit together. Despite her previous misgivings about a relationship with him, looking back now, everything he did made her feel truly accepted and loved and that was something worth holding on to. She vowed she would never walk away from this beautifully strange enchanting man ever again. He was now hers and she was forever his. To show him this she sat up on her knees delicately balancing her weight on the mattress. This brought her face up to his knuckle, then reached up his face. He picked her up gently before looking down and locking gazes with her. She tried to convey with her eyes the emotions that no amount of words ever could. Peter’s warm brown ones responded and the twinkling laughter was instantly extinguished and replaced with an intense seriousness. Peter responded by leanding down to lay a feather soft kiss on her forehead before whispering in her ear, “I love you." She lifted her head up until her lips briefly met his, as she whispered back, “I love you too Peter.”