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He still didn’t know what that was exactly—only that it sounded horrible.
He also thought about his parents, who always seemed so stressed out about their jobs or worried about paying bills. Being an adult was even worse than being a teenager. The older you got, he realized, the harder everything became.
Barrie ran his finger over the hook, feeling the cold metal. Then he glanced at the letter again. It tempted him.
Never grow up.
But still, he hesitated. For starters, taking things that didn’t belong to you was wrong. Not to mention this was a historical museum, which meant that the hook was a piece of that history. It belonged in a museum. What would his father think if he found out that his son had stolen a historical artifact?
Guilt pooled in his heart. He knew that it was wrong to take it—very, very wrong.
But none of that could temper his desire for his greatest wish.
“I want to stay a kid forever,” Barrie whispered to the hook.
And it was true. That was what he most desired in this world. He glanced around the cabin to make sure that nobody was watching.
But the cabin was still empty. No one had come looking for him. He wondered if they’d even realized he was gone.
With a deep breath to steel his nerves, he slipped the hook, along with the letter, into his backpack and zipped it up—
Thump. Thump.
It sounded like heavy footsteps again. The ship rocked suddenly, and Barrie lurched forward. He stumbled to his knees and braced himself. What was that?
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw something move behind the tarps draped over the walls. The dark silhouette flashed past his vision. Barrie’s stomach flipped.
For a split second, he thought he was in trouble and someone had caught him stealing the hook. But then he came to his senses. It was probably just a wave hitting the ship, he told himself, even though his heart was still jackhammering in his chest. It must have made the tarps s
way so that the shadows played a trick on his eyes. He was just seeing things again.
Taking a steadying breath, Barrie pulled his backpack on. The weight of the hook inside settled on his shoulders. A satisfied smile crept over his face.
He’d found a solution to his greatest problem. Now he never had to grow up.
But wait.
What if it doesn’t work? What if this is just some prank?
Barrie hesitated. Should he put the hook back?
But then, worst-case scenario, Barrie would have a cool pirate hook to show off to his friends. And not just any hook—one that belonged to the infamous pirate captain. And he had the letter to prove it, so they’d have to believe him. Michael and John would totally geek out over the hook. They could play pirates in their secret Lost Boys hideout in Michael’s backyard—
Thump. Thump.
That noise. The boat rocked under his feet. His stomach twisted. And then there was that shadow again, moving behind the tarps.
There…and then gone.
Barrie blinked hard and then stared at the wall. Nothing. Everything was still. It must have been his imagination. It tended to be overactive. Just ask his teachers. All the creepy pirate stories and being on a pirate ship could be messing with him, too.
Outside the windows, the sun was starting to set, casting the cabin into half darkness. He needed to get back soon, or his parents would start to worry. The tour was probably about to end, and soon the museum would close, too.
He turned to leave, but then—
Thump. Thump-thump.
This time it was unmistakably footsteps.
