Caged • Robbie Kay/Peter Pan •

Chapter Five

Peter had once loved.

As I studied him from across the table, finishing the morsels of fish and slices of orange mango, I was reminded of the fact that Peter had once felt something irreplaceably beautiful.

He was no stranger to good feelings so why did he lose the desire to feel them?

I could only dream of a day when he became a leader instead of a barbaric tormentor, scaring people into obeying him. Maybe he had once been a leader, but rejection scared him into cowardliness.

As the usual chatter erupted through breakfast, I was silently trying to decipher Peter Pan. That was all he wanted. He wanted someone to reach deep down into the darkest parts of his sleeping soul and caged mind and find something worth understanding.

He caught my gaze and held it for what seemed like an eternity, until I decided to do something I'd never done. I smiled.

Confusion swept across his green eyes and he looked away quickly, not caring to further peer at my unexpected friendly gesture.

Earlier, I had been awoken before the sun rose by an exhausted looking Roux. "Breakfast is early. We're going to the island to fish." he had said.

So I got dressed as quickly as possible and met the boys in Peter's tent for breakfast.

"Get your things together, boys. By the time we get there, the fish will be gone." Peter commanded, standing up, pulling apart the patched curtain that separated the dining area from his sacred space, and disappearing behind it.

"Meadow, get your cloak and spear and meet at the fire pit." Owen instructed. I nodded and left the tent.

The early morning air was still chilled and the grass around the tents wet with dew, making me shiver and clutch my arms close to my body.

Chase came out of his tent, which was next to mine, carrying assorted items and shoving them into a leather pack. He looked up at me and chuckled. "Does Meadow have a girly crush on Peter?" he asked.

My cheeks flushed, though I was certain I didn't have feelings for him. "I don't know what you mean."

He sauntered over to me, blocking my path and smirked, his deep blue eyes penetrating through the little courage I had obtained to look up at him.

"I saw you ogling at him with your big brown eyes. You're ridiculous if you think he'd ever have feelings for you." he went on with mocking sympathetic tone in his voice.

I didn't reply, unsure of how to respond without seeming defensive and silly.

"Aww, did I hurt your feelings? I'm sorry." he pestered, the back of his fingers trailed down the side of cheek.

"You can't even look him in the eye without intimidated by him so I wouldn't be talking if I were you." I said sternly, pulling his hand away firmly.

"Oh ouch, look at you." he said sarcastically, placing his hand against his chest as if I had offended him. "It's kind of adorable that you think you're so big and brave. You're like a little kitten." Chase laughed and threw his bag over his shoulder. "Don't get too used to being here, kitten. You won't last much longer." he winked and pushed past me to the fire pit.

I unclenched my teeth and sighed before pushing open the door of my tent and grabbing the cloak and spear that rested on top of the chest.

Owen met me outside my tent as I pulled my cloak around my shoulders and drew the strings tightly so it would stay on. "Hey, I saw what happened with you and Chase. Are you okay?" he asked me, walking beside me to the center of the clearing.