Kendall's Neverland by Kayden Cassidy
Part One
Kendall stepped up on the porch of the big old house, her movements more than a little hesitant. Her steps were slowed, not because the place was unfamiliar, but each holiday she, her mother, and her father John spent at the old house was always the same. She'd been there more than once—it was her grandparents', Mister and Mrs. Darling's house. If it wasn't Kendall, her Aunt Wendy was the subject of the family's ridicule or gossip. According to them, she and Aunt Wendy were the family nut jobs. “She's mental,” her grandfather would say, “just like Wendy.” Then her grandmother would chime in. “I don't think Kendall is crazy. Odd, maybe. But not crazy.”
Kendall was always compared to her cousins, Uncle Michael's three children, at these family gatherings. The triplets Jacob, Jordan, and Jade were four years younger than Kendall and made her life nothing short of a living hell. Even though they were thirteen years old, the family thought everything they did was perfect and absolutely adorable and so came the “why can't you be more like so and so” whether Kendall did something out of the ordinary or not. They never got into trouble for their sarcastic little comments toward Kendall or woke up in a cold sweat in the middle of the night from the same, strange dream. They were perfect. They were normal.
The large oak door swung open and Mrs. Darling stood in the foyer, just as beautiful as ever. Her hands went to her face and she gasped as she excitedly ushered her eldest son inside. “Oh John, my boy!” she exclaimed as she hugged him and kissed his face. “You're just as handsome as you can be! And there's my Mya!” Kendall stayed near the door until her grandmother was done telling everyone how beautiful they were. Everyone but her. Kendall knew she hadn't really inherited her family's good looks—the long, thick curly hair her cousins had or the flawless, deep caramel skin her granny had. Instead, Kendall's hair was short and stringy and wouldn't dare grow past her shoulders (even Jacob and Jordan had luscious hair and they were boys), her skin was caramel in complexion but was flat and covered with freckles—something no one else in her family had—and her nose was crooked. Of all things, she had a crooked nose that she felt made her look more like witch or a jack o'lantern than a human. She wore glasses, her old, thick, wire framed ones that she hated all because Jade had broken her new ones during Thanksgiving break when she'd “accidentally” stepped on them.
“Hi Granny,” Kendall said, still standing near the open door. “Oh, child I almost forgot you were here!” Mrs. Darling exclaimed. “Come give Granny a hug!” Sighing a bit on the inside, Kendall obliged and gave the old woman a hug. Mrs. Darling let Kendall out of the embrace and took in the sight of her. “Why, Kendall, you haven't grown a bit, have you?” Mrs. Darling stated the obvious. Kendall was a short little thing standing at a mere 5'2” and hadn't grown much at all since she was 12. “Jade is almost as tall as I am! And dear, we must do something about that hair of yours while you're here. I have some products that should give it a little oomph!” Here we go, Kendall groaned. She simply nodded and showed a fake smile. “You'll have to excuse me,” Kendall started, a sarcastic tone taking root in her voice, “I have to go to the bathroom. See if I can find anything to fix my shortcomings before anyone else gets here.” Her father shot her a warning look and Kendall made a quick escape, grinning inside herself at the dumbfounded look on her grandmother's face.
Kendall didn't really have to use the bathroom; she just wanted to get away before she'd been sized up to her cousins or anyone else for that matter. She closed the door of the second floor bathroom and locked it behind her. She settled herself on the toilet and took out the tattered book she had in her coat pocket. Crossing her legs, she opened it to where she'd stopped earlier in the car and began reading words she knew by heart. It was her favorite book she'd received as a child. It was Peter Pan.
Soon there was a frantic knock on the door. “Open up!” a familiar voice shouted. “Jade's gotta go! Open the door Kendall.” Kendall rolled her eyes. What was so wrong with the bathroom downstairs that Princess Jade couldn't use it? “Jade's got to pee! Out now Kendall! I know you can hear me!” Aunt Jewel shouted. Frustrated, Kendall put her book away and flushed the toilet as if she'd been using it. She unlocked the door and snatched it open, trying hard not to glare at the sight that stood before her. Her aunt stood there holding a red-faced, and clearly pissed off thirteen year old Jade's hand as if she were a toddler being escorted to the potty.
“I was using it,” Kendall lied. “Well oh well, Jade has to go now,” Aunt Jewel said as if Jade were so much more important than Kendall. Kendall sighed. “Lovely to see you too, Aunt Jewel,” she said sarcastically as Jade pushed past her to get into the bathroom. Kendall rolled her eyes and made her way into the old nursery where all the grandchildren slept. She plopped down on Wendy's old bed and stared at the ceiling. The sooner Christmas was over, the better.
Kendall opened her eyes. She hadn't even realized she'd fallen asleep, but she wasn't in the nursery. She was somewhere all too familiar; it was dark and snow covered the ground. The trees were so high above her head she couldn't even imagine where the tops may be. They formed a canopy overhead and Kendall couldn't tell if it were the middle of the night or the early morning. Though a thick layer of snow blanketed the ground, it was oddly warm. Kendall smiled to herself. She stood from the ground and knocked the snowflakes off her jeans.
After walking aimlessly for what seemed to be an eternity, Kendall came to a stop in front of an archway the trees formed. It didn't look like it'd been done by accident, but like someone took the time to make sure each branch and tiny detail fit together perfectly. Sunlight streamed through the opening invitingly. Kendall walked through the passage just as the branches hurried together to shut it. There was no going back.
Kendall sat straight up in bed, her breathing labored and she wiped sweat from her forehead. The dream wasn't a shock to her; it was the same dream she'd had nearly every night since she was ten years old. What shocked her was the snow melting on her boots. It hadn't been snowing when they arrived. Shaking off an uneasy feeling, Kendall went downstairs and into the kitchen. She poured herself a glass of orange juice and sat at the table minding her own business when the triplets walked in.
They said nothing to her and Kendall hoped they'd get whatever they wanted and leave. The three of them scampered around the kitchen, chattering mindlessly to one another in one of those made up languages multiples have. Jade sat down at the table across from Kendall with an odd look on her face. Jacob took a seat next to Jade, said something odd in their code and the two of them shared a wicked laugh. Kendall knew they were up to something. What it was, she didn't know but she did know that it wasn't anything sweet; she could tell by the devious looks on their faces.
It was then that Kendall realized she hadn't seen Jordan since they walked in. A lump began to rise in her throat. Whenever you couldn't see one of the little demons, something bad was about to happen—usually to Kendall. “I don't know what you monsters are up to, but leave me alone,” Kendall said with a sigh. It didn't matter what she said, they never listened. No one did. You would think the adults would make them mind Kendall at least a little, with her being older, but they didn't. They could do whatever their twisted little hearts pleased and Kendall had to accept it as “they're just playing” and that she was “too serious”. “Kennndall...” Jordan sang from behind her.
Kendall whipped her head around and looked right into Jordan's face. Being so much bigger than her, and puberty setting into him, Jordan easily snatched Kendall's chair back causing her to fall to the floor. The triplets giggled. “How's our favorite cousin this evening?” Jordan asked sarcastically. “What?” Kendall said, standing and crossing her arms over her chest. “Why don't we play a game, Kendall?” Jacob said, an odd grin spreading across his pretty face. “Like maybe, Catch the Gopher? Or Hide and Seek?” They laughed and Kendall rolled her eyes.
Catch the Gopher was really just their version of playing Tag, but instead of each person getting a turn to be “it”, they just chased Kendall around and punched her when they caught her. And of course, “gopher” was just a way to tease her about how her braces-filled mouth made her look like a gopher or a chipmunk. “Just leave me alone, okay?” It came out as a question when really, Kendall was demanding it. She felt a tad pathetic; asking these children not to bother her as if they had real authority over her. Whatever. It was better than not saying anything, she decided.
Jordan and Jacob then backed Kendall against the counter so she couldn't move or push past them. Jade stood from her spot at the table and joined her brothers. “Come on, Ken. Let's play a game!” Jade said cruelly and the three of them began pulling and tugging on a defenseless Kendall. Jordan raised and hand to wop Kendall on the side of her face and she braced herself for the impact. It never came. “Just what are you doing?” a voice asked from overhead. Suddenly the tension in the room went from thick, “Kendall's-about-to-get-her-ass-kicked” to “finally-someone’s-about-to-intervene”. Kendall opened her eyes and let out a long breath of relief.
Wendy stood, towering over the triplets, with an angry look on her face. “Aunt Wendy!” Kendall shouted, relieved. Wendy snatched Jordan out of the way and glared at them. “Leave Kendall alone before I go tell your parents what naughty little brats you’ve been,” she said. Her eyes narrowed into thin slits. “Go now!” And with that, the triplets fled the room. Kendall exhaled a sigh of relief. If it weren’t for Aunt Wendy, she probably wouldn’t survive these terrible family gatherings.
