Tales of Peter Pan and Cheap Trick

He reminded her gently that she shouldn’t forget to keep her appointments with Dr Solomon. The appointments had been a source or support, of motivation and a supply of pills. Happy pills that helped her cope with the mundane eccentricities of everyday life. She was a little irked that her brother kept reminding her about this. As an adult with a budding career and a steady relationship, with two Master’s degrees, Nora was a far cry from the troubled child he made her seem like. From afar, one might envy her life, and many aspects were rightly enviable. There were of course, the demons lurking in the darkness.

The afternoon had been perfect, not too hot, yet sunny. The deck out back had just been cleaned, as her soft dress crushed by the rough wood of the deck. It was little prickly, but she liked the feeling. She also really liked the IPA, greek salad and kabobs her brother Ray supplied beamingly. It had been a long time since they had met. A long time had passed since she had met anyone really, with social distancing and the peculiar mood of society this entire year. This was the first in-person interaction she had with the outside world in months. So when Ray had asked her if she had wanted to drive down and spend the weekend with his wife and him, she had initially been hesitant. She would never want to endanger their health, in case she was carrying something. Also, she really didn’t know what it would feel like to be close to people again, to talk to them outside of an LED screen, and to share a meal and spend a summer afternoon with them.

Some classic rock played on a tinny portable speaker. She did not share her brother's taste for music per se, but enjoyed experiencing his world sometimes. It helped her relate, and feel welcomed. The lyrics seemed familiar, and reminded her of another time many years ago. “Cheap Trick! You remember this?” asked Ray as he started to chant the chorus with no sense of tune or pitch. 

“Mommy's alright, Daddy's alright, 

They just seem a little weird.

Surrender, Surrender,

But don't give yourself away.”

As the heartburn started to increase, she felt a shiver down her spine. A familiar lurch in her stomach prompted her to check her smartwatch. Heartbeat was still steady at seventy three. “It’s alright, I’m good.” she muttered and took a deep breath. This had prompted Ray to walk over and ask her about the doctor. He always appeared to read her thoughts and emotions. It was annoying, but awkwardly endearing too. 

“Yes dear brother!” she beamed with her favorite fake smile. Instagram had taught her this smile. “Do you remember the treehouse?” she asked him abruptly. “When we spend summer afternoons there?” she asked as she put down the beer and plate of food and leaned back to lay on the wood floor of the deck. “You know I spent good money on this outdoor furniture right? Why don’t you use it Nora, instead of that harsh floor.” asked Ray. She felt a little splinter poke her neck, but this too was oddly comforting, reminiscent of the time in the tree house she had spent with Ray. 

“Neverland! It is a magical place Nora.” he had declared. Ray had been about thirteen, and she was all of nine years old and quite a handful to handle. “Peter Pan lived in a house, on a tree, just like this one. In a world filled with adventure and mystery and endless fun. It is just like we are living Nora. Always remember that.” It was an odd tale to comfort her, one of many tales Ray would read to her. Not many boys his age spent time reading such books. Fewer still, spent time with their little sisters while their hormones buzzed and SMS messages beeped on their little flip phones. Even the nine year old Nora had found him odd, a nerd and a misfit. She had not been interested in the story that afternoon but he had pushed her to join him in the treehouse that afternoon as he read and talked about Peter Pan. 

She had been bored, and a little scared. A different music played in the house with the adults. Bills needed to be paid, chores completed and needs fulfilled. Impediments abound, there had always a lot of music in the house when they grew up. She had never quite learnt to process it. She could never figure out how her mind and body reacted to it. Ray had always grabbed her by the wrist and walked her out. It had been frustrating that afternoon when he had treated her like a baby. “I’m nine you know, not stupid!” she proclaimed. “I know what is going on at home! And why aren't you out chasing girls your age or something Ray? Ooh, should I help you text someone?” she chuckled. He had just shaken his head, and read a little while longer about the adventures of Peter Pan before tossing the book aside. He had just kept talking about this for so long that Nora too had eventually started to imagine what it would be like to fly and live Neverland. She hadn't realized how long the daydream had lasted when the noises from the house grew louder.

“Alright Nora, want some music Mom and Dad would hate for you to listen to?” chuckled Ray. Her eyes had lit up. She had always thought his music was annoying, even geeky, a far cry from Britney Spears, whom she had wanted to be more like. Or the Backstreet Boys, whom she had a crush on. At Nine. Still, she had wanted to listen to his music. It was that afternoon on the treehouse, their first adventure. It had been hot but there was shade, he had snuck away some Red Bull which they had split with some lemonade. A bag of chips and some chocolate chips stolen from the pantry kept them full. He had put one earplug in her ear, from his cherished Discman, the other one in his. “Seriously! Man up and ask Dad for an iPod. Everyone has one.” she mumbled as Ray shushed her. “This is Cheap Trick, listen to the lyrics lil’ sis. They are from Chicago, or somewhere there. We’ll go sometime. Mom and Dad went to college there. That is how I was born.” he told her.

“You were born because they went to college in Chicago?” asked a curious Nora. “Umm, yeah kinda, sometimes people have kids in college. You won’t though, OK?” he had told her strictly. “Because there is so much more to do in college. So much to learn and experience.” Nora remembered rolling her eyes thinking, “What a looser. I am sure he will go be an engineer or something. Fixing computers, building robots and listening to ancient nonsense music. But Ray is sweet.”

The music from the main house had been blaring at full volume. She had heard something break. She remembered wondered why they had kept buying more cutlery. Ray had seen her look towards the window of the house, grabbed her hat and shoved it onto her face. She had fought him, He had grabbed some chocolate chips and shoved them in her mouth. “Eat! Or I’ll finish them.“ he had teased. Just as she had started to eat, he had turned the Discman on. Ray turned up the volume in the treehouse. That afternoon had been long, and the disc as well. They drank a lot of Red Bull, lemonade and consumed way too much of the chips and chocolate. This would obviously be noticed and reprimanded but that afternoon in the treehouse, neither Ray nor Nora had cared.

He had just tossed his phone aside that afternoon, lay beside her for hours. He had held her hand, distracted her with annoying kids tales, then surprised her with rock music and fed her well. The treehouse had always been a magical place. Full of fun and adventure, an escape from the main house. She never knew why she had spent that time with her geeky brother. Or he with her for that matter, but now she realized. 

It had been one of many afternoons. Every time, a novel, a rock record, and some stolen snacks. The Red Bull would eventually be eventually spiked with Vodka, the lemonade replaced with beer, but the treehouse had always been their escape, their Neverland. Even when Nora was in her teens, and Ray in college, he had chosen to stay at home. She had never gotten why. She had always begged for an escape. That is what she had done at 18, putting a two hour flight between them all. Ray had always been a weirdo. He was now a successful engineer, and Nora an education policy professional. 

As Ray held her hand today, the perceived shortness of breath started to dissipate. His wife joined them on the deck floor, with some ice cream. “It’s alright Nora, we're here for you. It is what family is for.” she said, as if she too had been part of there, in the tree house that summer afternoon. Ray tapped his iPhone, the music grew louder as they just lay on the deck on a hot COVID afternoon.

“Mommy's alright, Daddy's alright, 

They just seem a little weird.

Surrender, Surrender,

But don't give yourself away…...”