“Well you couldn’t just keep your pants on, can’t you?!”
I heard my mother shout from what it looks to be the kitchen downstairs.
I was upstairs in my bedroom, blasting the radio in a desperate try not to hear them fighting again.
Tonight, fourth day in a row, my father came home drunk and reeking of Channel.
“Don’t you dare raise your voice at me like that!” My father roared back followed by a loud thud and my mother sobbing hard.
Assuming from what I’ve heard, my father had slapped my mom. It wasn’t like this was all new to me, don’t get me wrong, but a stream of tears can’t help from falling down my cheeks.
When I can’t take it anymore, I grabbed my keys and made my way downstairs and outside to my car, an old beat-up truck which my father gave to me when I turned 15.
My family wasn’t always like that, you know. We used to be happy.
I remember when I was still a child, my father used to tell me all kinds of stories. He would always read me fairytales before I go to bed. I remember us looking out the window and pointing up to the stars – locating that one faithful star to the right, Neverland. I can’t help but smile at the bitter memory.
Yeah, so much for leading us to the land we dream.
All of that changed when I grew up.
On my 15th birthday, me and my brother was driving this same car. We were talking about how Peter Pan, my father’s favorite story to tell us have this some kind of creepy twist to it. I was forcing him to tell the damn story causing him to get bit distracted and that is when we got hit by a truck.
I, on some unfortunate odds, survived while Peter…
Two years later, my father still mourns for my brother. In some way, my father died with him.
Now, we’re living in hell. God I wish I never grew up.
If it weren’t for me, maybe he’ll still be alive.
I should’ve died instead of him.
My tears came pouring out of control at the thought.
I was furiously wiping my face and absentmindedly let go of the steering wheel and next thing I knew, a truck was about to hit me. I closed my eyes as its headlights hit my face, anticipating the hit but when I opened them, I was on the side of the road, the truck was gone and somehow, there’s a guy standing in front of my car.
My heart was still racing and I was left dumbfounded by what happened.
“Hello?” the guy called out to me and I was forced to collect myself.
“You know, you almost hit me”, he was smirking right at me.
For a human being with an IQ above average, it was pretty dumb of me to get out of my car to stand face to face with a complete stranger at the side of the road in the middle of nowhere but for some unknown reason, I was drawn to him.
He was wearing this weird green cap and a matching green shirt which somehow made him look pretty normal yet so alluring.
“I’m Pan”, I reached out my hand in a formal greeting.
“Peter”, he shook my hand and for a moment there, I swear his hand felt as cold as ice.
“I’m sorry but did you see what just happened? I swear I saw this truck was about to hit me and… I almost died”
As I said that, he chuckled and looked me straight in the eye. This is when I noticed that his eyes were so dark it feels like they were looking straight into my soul.
“You know, they say that to die will be an awfully big adventure”, he took a step towards me and smiled.
“You want to go for an adventure, Wendy?”
I felt a cold sensation at the back of my neck.
My name… he said my real name.
