To Lucy, growing up was probably the worst part of growing up. She hated it. Truly. What others thought was so great about being an adult, she never understood.
It didn't take her long to realize that growing up was definitely not "her thing". And, unfortunately, Lucy's mother, Mrs. Parker, wouldn't allow that. She was quite a proper woman. She enjoyed banquet dinners and company parties. Adult things.
The poor woman tried for many years to teach Lucy what a proper lady should act like, how she should speak, what she should wear. None of it meant much to Lucy. A "proper woman" was hardly something she wanted to be.
No, Lucy strived to be much more than just a "lady".
It was thanks to Lucy's father that she believed in such fantasies. He, being so opposite from Mrs. Parker, believed in magic, and imagination. At night, he would sneak into Lucy's small bedroom, and tell her the fairy tales he read as a child. He would have read the stories to Lucy, but Mrs. Parker would hardly allow any storybook into their home.
Lucy's father explained the stories in such a beautiful way that Lucy couldn't help but believe in them- from the bottom of her heart. She knew they were real, that they existed in some far off place.
"Somewhere out there, Lucy," Mr. Parker explained. "There is a tower hidden in the thick woods where the beautiful princess Rapunzel is waiting patiently for her Prince Charming to rescue her from her dreadful prison."
Lucy's jaw dropped in amazement. "Really?"
"Mhm. And she waits so patiently because she trusts that her prince will come-"
"Charles." Lucy's mother's strict voice spoke from the doorway of her bedroom. "Stop loading her head with childish poppycock stories!"
Mr. Parker respected his wife, and chose not to mention that Lucy was, in fact, a child, and that it was okay for her to hear child stories.
"Mother," Lucy whined. "It's not poppycock!"
"Lucy, dear," Her father hushed her and pulled her blanket up to her chin. "As long as you believe in them, they will never be poppycock." He whispered. He leaned down and gently kissed her forehead. "Goodnight, sweetheart."
"Goodnight." She replied quietly as she watched her father walk to her mother's side.
"I love you, darling." Lucy's mother said to her.
"I love you too." Lucy grumbled.
It was always a mystery to Lucy how her parents had fallen in love. They were absolute opposites, after all.
-
-
-
-
As Lucy started to grow up, it was obvious that she was not enjoying herself. She clung onto every bit of her childhood that she could. She never got rid of her dolls, her toys, her coloring and painting pages, or her stuffed animals. But most of all, she never got rid of the fairytales. Every night, Lucy still begged her father to tell her another story. It didn't seem to bother him, but it certainly bothered her mother.
On the night of Lucy's thirteenth birthday, her parents came into her bedroom. Mr. Parker was holding a present in his hands, that was perfectly wrapped in brown paper and topped with a blue bow. Lucy sat up slowly.
"Happy birthday, sweetheart!" Her father said, holding the present out to her. A smile crept to Lucy's lips. "It's from both of us."
Lucy took the gift into her hands and gently tore back the paper. What she saw absolutely took her breath away. "A storybook?" She shouted in delight. Lucy looked up at her parents, and, to her surprise, her mother was smiling.
"It's not just a storybook." Mr. Parker said.
"It's a storybook where you get to create your very own stories." Mrs. Parker finished.
Lucy's eyes widened. She felt like she was dreaming. Her mother would never allow this! "What?" Lucy opened the book to a random page and found it completely empty. As she flipped through the rest of the ages, she found them blank too.
"You can write your own fairytales." Mr. Parker said.
Lucy couldn't help it. She let out a shriek of joy. "Oh, thank you! Thank you, thank you!" She threw her arms around her father's neck.
"It was your mother's idea." He whispered in her ear.
She pulled away from him, and wrapped her mother into a tight hug. "Thank you, mother."
"You're welcome, dear."
When Lucy pulled away, she found her mother with tears welling in her eyes- the happy kind.
-
That night, Lucy fell asleep hugging her storybook tight in her arms.
>
<
>
<
Hey! So, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I know it was super slow, but it will pick up in the next chapter :) FYI, this is a Peter Pan fan fiction, if you didn't already catch onto that. So be prepared for some Pan-action ;) All rights to J.M. Barrie for his brilliant characters and settings!
This is one of my first stories, so I'm sorry if its awful! And I apologize for typos because I know there's tons!
Xx,
C
