Touch the Skye- A Penderwicks Fanfiction

Chapter 1: Packing

THIS IS A SKYE X JEFFREY FANFIC FROM THE PENDERWICKS, ONE OF MY ALL-TIME FAVORITE BOOKS

"I love you," he softly brought my face up to face his. I tried to turn away from his sparkling green eyes, but he bent down to get a better look at my face. I couldn't let my eyes face his. This new... what was it, vulnerability? It was too much for me.

Stupid emotions. Jane would be better at this than I would.

Slowly, he held my cheek and began to bring his face closer to mine. I then looked into his eyes. Those darned, sparkling, green eyes that I couldn't help but sink into. I couldn't let my wall down this easy.

Glaring and backing up a little bit from his embrace. "You stupid idiot. Don't say that. Anyone would be a nuthead to ever fall for me." I spat, turning red a little.

Laughing a little, he whispered, "I know. And I'm okay with that" Then his lips were getting closer, closer, clo-

BRAP BRAP BRAP

My eyes flew open as the muffled sounds of clinking bowls, shouting girls, and a barking dog pushed its way through the soundproof safety of my door. I made a loud groan and slammed the alarm clock. Hard. I nodded in satisfaction as it made a few odd beeps, then broke in front of my eyes.

"That's what you get when you wake me up from a dream, you stupid alarm clock." I glared at the broken equipment. My eyes drifted over to Jane's half of the room. Books on sea myths were scattered amongst the usual clutter of gosh-knows-what that sprouted from her room. But wait, wasn't that a-

"JANE!" I yelled, throwing the covers back and storming over to the foot of my bed. Today, a mysterious pile of polka dotted, striped, and neon socks had grown from my spotless white carpet. Whichever disease that Jane's side of the room was contagious.

A moment after I had used my hand-vaccum to suck up the last of the smelly socks, a 13 year old girl with rosy cheeks, a head of tight, dark brown curls, and light brown eyes burst into my- excuse me, our- room.

"Jane, no matter what reason you're grinning like joker for, this mess isn't okay." I pointed to the light brown stain the socks had left behind.

Jane pranced over to the white carpet and had inspected the spot I had pointed to. "I don't see anything," she said.

"Just- don't- ugh, just don't do it again, kiddo." I rolled my eyes and tossed the hand vaccum back into it's regular spot on top of my dresser.

Jane didn't seem to care as she practically floated over to her half of the room and lay down amongst her clutter, flipping through her newest blue notebook. "Oh Skye, I just had the most wonderful idea for Sabrina Starr last night. See, this book says sirens are cursed by-"

"That's great, Jane." I pulled my covers back and fluffed my pillow. "But wasn't Sabrina Starr already a Greek monster?"

"Ha. Ha ha ha." Jane sat up on her elbows and glared at me. "This book is going to be the best yet, you just wait and see."

"How do you even live in that clutter? It's just..." I gave a look of disgust in the diseased half of the room.

"ROS-!" Jane screamed. I jumped up and quickly leapt over to her side, covering her mouth before she could say the rest of our older sister's name.

To get me back, she stuck out her tongue and licked my hand, causing me to fall back in utter disgust.

"What's going on up here?" a normally soothing voice had a little bit of an edge to it today. Rosalind crossed the room and helped me up off the carpet, which I was rubbing my contaminated hand furiously on. "Seriously guys. Again?"

"It was her fault, honest!" Jane and I both yelled and pointed at each other at the same time.

Rosy shook her head, "Gee, for two girls who can look so different, you still have identical tendencies to blame each other. You," she pointed to Jane. "finish your breakfast. Batty is waiting for you to tell her about the mermaids. And you," she pointed back to me. "finish packing up for Cape Cod. Daddy says if one of us decides to embarass him by being late, he will have you cædi et vínculis astríngi."

"What's that?" Jane stood up and began to head for the door.

Rosalind only raised her eyebrow and said, "You wouldn't want to know." Rosalind had taken Latin all the way from her middle school into her current sophomore year. She wasn't fluent, but she understood a lot of the gibberish our father would blab.

Once Jane had left the room, Rosy went over to my bed and sat on it. "So."

"What do you want?" I gestured her to get off my bed, but she rolled her eyes and kept her position. Sighing, I traveled into my closet to pick out some more clothes to bring on our trip.

"You ready to see Jeffrey?" Rosalind asked. I poked my head urgently out of the closet, surprised at her question.

"Why do you ask?" I shot back at her, trying to look nonchalant. Too bad I wasn't an actress, like Jane.

She shrugged, looking awful casual for talking about such an uncomfortable topic. "I don't know.. The last time we saw him... That was a while ago."

Indeed it was. Two summers ago, us three younger Penderwick sisters had travelled to a place called Point Mouette together. This was where Jeffrey had found his father, Alec. Last summer, they had travelled around the world, playing music on the streets, which is why we couldn't see him again.

"I guess so..." I awkwardly stuck my head in my closet and threw in a pair of flip flops, then went back to adjust them perfectly.

"Didn't he say something about what would happen if you guys got marri-"

"You know what, Rosy?" I interrupted, pretending to look guilty. "I gotta pack, and this isn't much of your business to know." Suddenly, something struck me. "How did you even know that Jeffrey told me that? I mean, the only person I had told was..."

Rosalind raised her eyebrows and gotten up from my bed, brushing past me as she headed for the door. "I'll tell Jane you definitely still have feelings for him."

"No- Rosy, I-" But the door had already closed.

Zipping up my duffel, I swung it over my shoulder and grumbled, "This is going to be a long two weeks."