Never Land

The water crashed against the rocks beneath Jodie’s feet, droplets of water showering her as she stood next to the shore. She’d never quite figured out what to call the large body of water, as it was so different from the ones back in her old life. The water was salty, just like the ocean, and it appeared to go on forever, but she wasn’t exactly sure what made an ocean and ocean, so she took to calling it the sea, as did the other boys.

Behind her, Jodie heard the unmistakable sound of feet and turned around, finding Liam behind her. He had his hands stuffed into the worn down pockets of his cargo shorts, while he jumped from one rock to the next. Jodie didn’t know why he continued to where those tattered pants, as Louis had brought them back new clothes multiple times, but she supposed they were his favorite.

He had been wearing them off and on ever since Peter Pan had brought them back to Never Land all that time ago. Jodie could no longer be sure of how long she and the other boys had been in Never Land, but it was long enough for them to have a routine.

When Peter Pan had first recruited them to take his place as the keeper of Never Land, they fought constantly about who would do what and when. After much time, they realized that Louis was the best at finding children to bring back to their happy home, while Liam fit the leader role best. Jodie and Harry were the ones in charge of most other things, including making sure they had proper relations with the other people of Never Land, primarily the Indian tribe.

When the tribe first learned that Peter Pan had brought back new people to take his place, they were hesitant about letting others into their world. Knowing that these four people’s duty was to bring back children, show them the magic of imagination, and then send them back safely to their homes, the tribe was slightly more welcoming than they would have been if the group was there for something else, but things, at times, were still tense between the tribes.

“Any sign of him yet?” Liam asked, as he looked up to the sky, where Jodie had her eyes. Louis was taking a little longer than usual to bring back children, and it was obvious they were both worried that something could have gone wrong.

“Not yet,” Jodie said, twiddling her thumbs. “But he should be back any minute, right?”

Liam nodded, stepping directly next to her. They kept their eyes of the sky for a few moments, while they stood in silence. They both had faith that Louis would come back with a job well done, just like he always did, but it could take time.

Both Liam and Jodie just wanted to meet the children, show them all the wonder that Never Land had to offer, send them back to the real world, and carry on about their business until they had to do it the next week. It was a long process, but it could be fun if they had the right children, and it was far better than what they could have been doing back in the real world.

“I’m sure he’ll turn up soon.” Liam kicked his foot against the rock, before turning to Jodie. “Until then, we can have dinner without him. Harry’s got things ready.”

Jodie nodded, before following Liam off of the rocks and back to their camp, just inside the forest. They’d fashioned up the site when they first arrived, with the boys creating an intricate tree house that looked like something out of a fairytale.

The boys were strong and resourceful enough to create an entire house up in the trees, completed with several bedrooms, a bathroom and a living room structure. It wasn’t the most beautiful home, as it was made of solely of wood and had few decorations, but it was better than sleeping on the ground and Jodie felt lucky enough to even have a bed, as she wouldn’t have anything without the boys’ help.

“He’s still not back?” Harry asked, as he stirred a pot over the open flame of their campfire. He’d made soup again, which was Harry’s specialty. It was delicious, but it got to be old after a while.

“Nope,” Liam said, shaking his head. “He probably got distracted again.”

Harry chuckled. “Doesn’t he always?”

Louis was excellent at what he did, as he was the only one of them that was able to safely get children back to Never Land without any yelling of “Stranger Danger”. It probably had something to do with his overflowing charm or sweet personality, but Jodie couldn’t be sure. All she knew was that he did a much better job than she did, and hadn’t caused any children to cry as of yet. Unlike her, he had a perfect record.

Jodie smiled at Harry, as he passed her a bowl of his soup. The three of them sat around the fire, as they usually did at dinner time, and chatted the night away. They hadn’t always been so comfortable with one another, but after spending so much time together, they naturally became friends and were very close.

Back in the real world, Jodie never had friends as close as Liam, Harry, and Louis, and they were one of her favorite things about Never Land. They never failed to entertain her with their shenanigans and pranks, and being the only girl of the group, she got most of the attention and she liked it.

Aside from the few female Never Land natives, Jodie was the only girl the boys were able to focus their attention on, as far as she knew, and even though none of the boys had any romantic feelings towards her, she was happy with her position in Never Land.