Escape from Wonderland

Follow and RUN

"Ok which shirt?" I'm storming through my closet looking for the perfect shirt to wear to my meeting. I'm visiting the most important person ever. My mom. I come across a blue top with a wrinkle sleeve. In the middle is a broken heart that is stitched together. "You'll work." I shrug.

I head down stairs and see Jackson and Michael standing in the living room. "Yo Wendy!" Jackson waves me over.
"Jackson I have to get going what do you want?" I sigh.
"Meet Theo," he points over to a boy with sunshine blonde hair standing next to Michael. "He just moved here a couple of days ago and started school today. He's gonna hang out here with us tonight."
"Uh hi?" I study him a little before getting back to my plans. "I'll be back later. And stay out of my business this time?" I look back to the night of the school dance.
"We'll see." Michael chuckles.

I rolls my eyes. "Bye dad! Bye John!" I call to them.
"Bye hon!" Dad hollers back.

"Where are you going again?" Jackson looks at me with a questioning look.
"I have a meeting to attend." I walk to the door but I get stopped by a new voice.
"Who are you meeting? Your boyfriend!" I turn around and see Theo laughing.
"Nah she doesn't have one." Michael grins. "She told off her crush after he pretended to like her." I toon back to the day I made Matt wish what he did never happened.
"No need to tell my story who doesn't deserve the time." I glare at them.

"Wendy!" Dad runs in. He catches his breath. "Tell them I said hello."
"I will dad. I promise!" I smile and hug him goodnight. He turns and walks upstairs to go to sleep.

"I'll be back soon." I shoot back to the guys.
"Aye aye captain bitchy pants!" Jackson laughs.
I narrow my eyes at him and stick my tongue out.
"Hey look it's the kid I remember!" Michael smiles.
"We both know that kid is gone." I turn and open the door. "And she's never coming back!"

*=*=*
I arrive at the cemetery and walks to the back gates. I kneel down to a small stone with the words: Melissa Darling 1984-2014.

"Hi mom," I do a small smile. "Dad says hi. He's sorry he couldn't come this year. It's just he has a lot on his plate. Mostly because he's still upset that Peter left the note that says I went on a "find myself" journey."

I rest my head in my hands. "I wish I could say my life is going fine but I would be lying and you told me that if I could lie to my mother I could lie to the Devil and get away with it. I won't lie to you because you've been there for me when I need you and after I came back from Neverland I came to you first. Not dad."

My eyes burn from holding back the tears. "If you were here you'd say that I was strong and that I have the mighty-ness of a horse. I know that things will only get harder and when they seem easy somethings wrong. But I know one thing is for certain. I have you, dad, and Peter. And that's what I need. I don't need someone to tell I'm pretty and buy me things like jewelry or stuffed animals. I need someone who cares enough to see through the smile."

I rest my hand on the stone. "I'm never going to believe and that might get me into more trouble but I'm not ready to give in or pretend to be someone I'm not." I stand up and bend down to the stone and kiss the top. "I love you mom!"

*=*=*
The next day some of dad's coworkers and John's old college buddies come over from a midday brunch. They told me to wear a dress or a skirt but being me I wore black shorts and a yellow t-shirt that says "Forever a choice". I pull my hair back into a band but just my luck it breaks. "I can already tell this is going to be fun!" I say sarcastically.

I head into the back yard and make my way to the drink table. Before I even raise my hand to grab a soda someone stops me.
"I think we got off on the wrong foot." I spin around and see Theo standing there wearing long tan cargo shorts and a royal blue country club shirt.
"I disagree," I smile. "You showed me you're just like my stepbrothers. A jerk and a deceiving lier." I lean over and grab the soda from the top of the pile and crack it open.
"I didn't realize you were going to see your mom." He continues. "I didn't mean to upset you before you went to see her."
"You followed me!" I cough chocking on the soda.
"Me and you stepbrothers." He answers honestly.

"Why would you do that? Following a fourteen year old girl in the middle of the night to a creepy cemetery?" I'm so mad right now I can't even catch my breath.
"We were going to pull a prank on you where we hide in the bushes and jump out at you." His dark brown eyes twinkle like he's enjoying this.
"Congrats you're not just a jerk and a deceiving lier you're also a world class stalker!" I shove passed him heading to a open table far from the other.

"Hey stop that creature!" I hear dad screaming and I look up. A fox is running through the backyard knocking things over chasing a small white rabbit. The rabbit has a small red heart around its right eye and darts past everything.

The rabbit scatters between my legs and the fox  comes barreling through knocking the table I'm sitting out down. And letting my soda spill all over me. "Of course!" I look up at the sky. "One day you could give me! One day!" I look back at the fox and start following it.

He keeps running into the woods we have into our back yard. I slow down and lose sight of the two animals. I walk further and see a rabbit hole under a tall oak tree. I peak down next to it. "It's ok you can come out now." I really hope  he's in there or this is going to be really awkward. I open my mouth again but before I even get a sound out something pushes me inside the hole. "Ahhh" I scream. The hole isn't shallow it deep. Really really mega super deep. I manage to find a way to look up and see the white rabbit staring into the hole watching me fall with a grin on his face.

"Ahhh" I start screaming extra louder when I see a small light which I assume is the bottom. I try to grab hold of my locket but it's flying everywhere except to my hand.

"Ouch!" I finally land and rub my head. I stand up and see a bunch of bright colors and flowers singing. "This is not happening!" I groan. I start walking into a strange place I just landed in through a rabbit hole. So help me I better not be in Wonderland!