Never Land

There was something about the rooftop that always soothed Evelyn, especially at night. She loved climbing out her window, with a book in her hand, and being whisked off into adventures that were greater than anything she could dream of. She loved the stars that sat over her home, twinkling down at her and keeping their watchful eye. The rooftop was Evelyn’s sanctuary, and it had been since she was a little girl.

With her tattered copy of Gulliver’s Travels, Evelyn slid over the window pane and out onto the shingled roof. The tiles were still a little warm from the sun that had been out all day, but it only calmed her more. She took a deep breath, letting the warm summer night’s air fill her body, before collapsing against the roof, with her back lying against the warm surface.

As he flipped open her book, she was quickly pulled into the adventures of Gulliver. In just a few words, she was with him, on the island, surrounded by the miniature people. She was always so easily taken away by books, and she was often scolded for it, seeing as she was in high school and should have been much wiser, but she didn’t care. She loved being able to live out the adventures she could never have, and she wouldn’t let anyone take that from her.

Her older brother constantly teased her for it, but it was what older brothers did. Since they were young, Niall constantly toyed with Evelyn, so she had grown used to it. It was only recently, when boys began noticing her at school, that Niall became protective of her. He scared off anyone who had an interest in Evelyn, as it was his brotherly duty.

When Evelyn sat on the rooftop, living the adventure of someone else, she never expected to be given an adventure of her own, but the stars were smiling down on her that night.

The blonde girl was so wrapped up in her book that she almost didn’t hear the thud that landed next to her. Suspecting it was Niall, she sighed, knowing her brother was there to take her back inside.

Her eyes left the pages of her book for only a moment, to peek up at the figure above her, and instead of being met with Niall’s eyes, she was met with a pair of soft blue ones that were matched with a large smile.

Startled, Evelyn’s heart began racing, while her hand clung to her chest, and she scooted away from the figure as much as her body would let her. She was terrified, but it wasn’t because he was a dreadful sight. In fact, he was quite gorgeous. Evelyn’s pulse began to race and her palms began to sweat simply because she didn’t know who the boy was, how he got on her roof, and what exactly he was doing there.

She had good reason to be frightened, though she didn’t need to be. He had, after all, come out of nowhere and landed next to her, seemingly in one quick movement.

“I’ve startled you, yeah?”

Evelyn nodded, and the boy sat down on the roof, several feet away from her. She saw her chance to escape, but didn’t know how quickly he could move and whether or not she could reach the window before he did.

“I’m sorry,” he continued, folding his hands in his lap. “I have a terrible habit of doing that.”

Evelyn didn’t know what to say or even if he expected her to say anything. She was too frightened to move, and her vocal chords wouldn’t have let her speak even if she had known.

“Let me start over,” the boy said. He held out his hand, but quickly pulled it back, realizing there was probably no part of her that wanted to shake it. “I’m Louis.”

She stayed frozen, simply blinking her eyes at him.

“And you are?”

His lip trembled, as he waited for her to speak. He wasn’t sure she would, or if he’d ruined everything. He should have known better than to just land next to her, but he was so captivated by her beauty that it was as if a magic took over inside him. He was drawn to her, and he knew he had to meet her.

When she didn’t speak, he let out a heavy sigh, his head falling forward. She didn’t know what it was, but there was something about the look in his eye that brought her voice back to her.

“Evelyn,” she said with her voice shaky. Her hands were still quaking and she was still twelve flavors of terrified, but she finished. “Evelyn Horan.”

He smiled at that, something so bright that she couldn’t help but smile back, and he could just feel the tension disappearing. It was a small step, but it was something, and it gave him a small ounce of hope.

“I guess you’re wondering how I’ve come to be on your rooftop.” He chuckled, his fingers twiddling in his lap, while his eyes landed on an empty space in front of it. “It’s kind of a funny story.”

“Tell it.”

He looked at her and her smile gave him courage. He knew it was an impossible story, one that she surely wouldn’t believe, but he had to tell her.

“Evelyn, have you ever heard of Never Land?” Her head cocked to the side, her eyes clear in their confusion, but she gave one quick nod. He saw the hesitation in her and chuckled. “I think it would be better if I just showed you.”

He stood from his place, nearly startling Evelyn as she still wasn’t sure what his motives were. He held his hands out, as if in surrender, before smiling at her. “Just watch.”

Evelyn’s eyes were only on Louis and the moment his feet lifted from the ground, they went wide. Just a few feet in front of her stood a boy, who was seemingly floating in the air. She knew it was simply a trick, but it looked so real.

“How are you doing that?” she asked, her eyes squinting to see what kind of gadget was lifting him. She saw only space, but was still determined to know.

He smiled at her. “Fairy dust.”

He moved higher in the air, until he was a few feet off the roof top, and even though she should have questioned him further, there was suddenly no denying what was happening in front of her. It seemed impossible – it was impossible – but it was happening. There were no tricks of the eyes or hanging wires; he was just flying.

She looked up at him and just knew.

“Never Land?”

“Never Land.”

“But that’s impossible. That’s –”

“It’s not impossible,” he interrupted. “I can show you, Evelyn. I can show you adventure and wonder and everything that you’re looking for in those books of yours. I can show you all of it. It’s a magical world, Evelyn, and I can show you it all.”

Her lips trembled, while her lungs began their shaky breaths. It was as though the wind was knocked out of her, and her heart was racing like mad to keep up with what he said. Was he telling the truth? Could he really show her the adventure she was looking for?

“Just let me show you,” he said, holding his hand out to her. “Just let me show you and if you don’t like it, we can come right back.”

Evelyn didn’t know what came over her, but she suddenly believed him. She had to believe him. This was her shot at adventure, and she wanted nothing more than to live it.

Her hand moved slowly towards his, as he floated back to the ground. His feet at just hit the roof, with her fingers inches from his, when a voice called from the window.

“Evelyn, you’re not out here again, are you?” Niall crawled through the window, and when his eyes fell on Louis, his body pulled back in shock. “Um, who the hell is this?”

Evelyn turned back to her brother, her eyes wider than when she’d seen Louis for the first time. She knew he’d never believe her, as he had never been one for adventure and wonder. No amount of reasoning would convince Niall that what was about to happen would be real, and no amount of convincing would get him to agree to go if he did believe.

“Him, too.”

She spoke only two words, but Louis knew what it meant. She wanted to bring her brother, and that would only complicate things more.

“No, I – I can’t,” he said, shaking his head. “Just bringing you is bad enough.”

“Louis.”

“Children between six and 10. Those are the rules and I’m already breaking them to bring you.”

“Both of us or neither of us.”

“He doesn’t even –“

“Please.”

Louis sighed, looking from the beautiful girl to her stern older brother. It was going to get him in a mess of trouble with the others, and Niall was going to be more trouble than he was worth, but Louis was so desperate to bring Evelyn with him that he agreed.

He nodded, bringing a smile to Evelyn’s face. Before Niall had time to comprehend much of anything, Evelyn had gripped his hand and was holding on more tightly than she ever had before.

“Trust me,” she said, looking into her brother’s wild eyes, and from the look in hers, he knew he had to. She had that mischievous glint that she only got when she was about to get into a mess of trouble, and he knew he had to be there when she did. He didn’t have a clue what was going on, and because he was so logical, he asked only one simple question.

“Where are we going?”

Evelyn simply looked at Louis, before moving her fingers slowly to his. It seemed like minutes passed before they reached, with Niall looking wide eyed the entire time. The three of them were connected simply by their hands, but that was all it took for the magic of the fairy dust to move between them.
Louis smiled at him, before answering the question with an impossible answer.

“Never Land.”