Chapter 10 #2
The Lost Boys’ eyes popped back open. Dash’s head snapped towards Maggie within an instant.
He gulped down a final time and moved with a frightening speed.
Instantly, he was shoving his chair back and flying around the table, effortlessly hooking his hands beneath Maggie’s arms and sweeping her off her feet in a quick motion.
A sharp squeal left her lips as he twirled her through the air, his breath smelling faintly of the sweet berries.
Musical laughter filled the air as Dash stopped spinning her around, only to jerk her into the center of his chest, arms tucked around her in a tight embrace.
Maggie stammered as her cheek pressed against his hard sternum. “W-What -”
“How can something taste so good?” Dash exclaimed as he pulled her back by the shoulders. “And that texture - what was it that you called it?”
“A…” Maggie gulped, her surprise too loud for her to remember her words. “Y-You mean pancake?”
Dash snapped and pointed towards the Lost Boys.
“Cake! How brilliant is that? Cake!” With another loud laugh, Dash held onto Maggie’s hands tightly before beginning to dance with her around the room.
The eyes of the Lost Boys clung to them as they continued around the dining room, Maggie’s laughter soon filling the air.
Embarrassment clung to her chest as the realization sunk deep into her: he actually enjoyed the food.
And, if she was lucky, the rest of them would love it just as much.
As a prickly heat began to spread across her cheeks and button nose, the rest of the Lost Boys devoured their plates.
One by one they rose to their feet and joined in on the fun, dancing around and proclaiming Maggie Hart to be the best cook in all of the land from a single bite.
Her laughter melded into their own as they spun her around.
Eventually, as the room kept spinning, Maggie stumbled back to the table and fell into her seat.
She blinked a few times, waiting for the world to stop spinning, when she realized that someone was watching her.
“You just have no idea how good you really are,” Peter mused in a lowered voice, the corner of his lip curling into a charismatic smile. “Don’t you?”
Bewildered by the heaviness beneath his stare and how it stirred something in the back of Maggie’s mind, her lips snapped shut, rendered speechless in front of the King of Neverland.
He too had devoured most of the pancakes on his plate, the same unmatched excitement brewing behind his eyes as the rest of the Lost Boys danced around the dining table.
“The things this can do for my people,” he continued, unwavering, “is indescribable. You truly are the most amazing cook in all the lands.”
Maggie’s eyes were widening. The Lost Boys settled down to finish their meals, still throwing compliments in her direction.
When was the last time she received such praises for her skills, besides being at Hart’s Crumbs?
But she could hardly recall. Even at her precious bakery, the townspeople watched her with a wary eye, always appreciative of her good food but never once letting their guard fall.
Here, in Neverland, they never once hesitated to tell her how they felt, to fly off the handle in the best way possible.
Every ounce of love she dropped into those pancakes spoke to them, and Maggie couldn’t be any happier.
It was Peter’s attention that drove her into a nervous silence.
He was as happy as the rest of his Lost Boys, but something beyond his joy touched Maggie.
Perhaps it was all in her head, a figment of her imagination that was too bright to ignore.
But she could’ve sworn that the glimmer in his eye, the hook in his grin, all of it led straight to her heart, like Cupid’s fiery arrow.
Maggie gulped and looked away, noticing the empty plates beginning to pile up.
As the boys rambled on loudly about what sort of food they wanted to try next, Maggie ate her pancakes quickly, pushed away her chair, and began to collect their dirty things.
The Lost Boys eyed her, growing silent, as she curved around the table, juggling a growing stack of plates.
“I’ll get to cleaning,” she finally said, entirely unnerved by their stares. “W-What –”
“Why would you clean?” Peter blurted. His confusion was far more charming than any sort of flirting he might’ve conjured.
Maggie raised a brow. “Why wouldn’t I?”
“Because of the Brownies, of course,” Twitch replied instead. He twirled a fork playfully around his nimble fingers. His head jerked up when he realized she wasn’t responding. “Tell me your land has Brownies!”
“Well,” she mumbled, her stomach grumbling as she imagined a decadent square of thick, fudgy cake. “I suppose we do have brownies, but -”
Peter chuckled. “I don’t think you two are referring to the same thing.
” He rose from the table, slowly approaching where Maggie stood.
Once close enough, he swiped the stack of plates from her hands.
“Brownies are small creatures,” he explained.
“They clean up as soon as we leave the room. It’s quite fun for them, actually.
Give them ingredients or pieces of a puzzle, and they’ll be done with it in no time. ”
Maggie could hardly hide her shock. She imagined the mess she had left behind in the kitchen, and the feeling of dread rushed back to her.
All her life, she believed the only bad thing about being in love with the kitchen was the responsibility of cleaning it up afterwards.
It was why her dream included having a partner, someone to be by her side and do the things she loves with her.
But to know that Neverland had Brownies, creatures who wanted to clean up her messes, brought a sense of excitement to her almost instantly.
She could have all the fun of cooking, without the hassle of cleaning?
This is my dream.
“So,” Peter said, the dishes effectively removed from her grasp, “would you like to see our famous Everything Plant?”
Maggie’s attention was snatched. “Could I?”
“Well, if you plan on reviving it,” he teased with a growing smirk and a flashing wink, “I had hoped you would!”
Effortlessly, Peter’s arm twisted around her own with a hooking motion, pulling her against his side gently but effectively.
He led the way out of the restaurant, leaving the Lost Boys chattering aimlessly behind them.
Maggie’s head grew dizzy with the past few days, the events of her recent change hovering above her like a heavy storm cloud.
Nevertheless, Maggie did not falter and remained at the King of Neverland’s side, more than excited to see what lay in store for her next.