"Tina..." the boy known as Wordsworth spoke, and said to the doe, "I am very conflicted now...
"We grew up together, and I never want to be separated from you, but...
“I really wanted to be a playwright.”
As he said this, Wordsworth held the pen in his pocket tightly with his hand.
That was the only legacy his father left him.
On the writing table under the window sill, my father used this pen to write many wonderful stories.
He wants to continue this.
However, if he chooses to "stay" in paradise, it means that this door will be closed forever.
All the children participating in the "Stay Ceremony" tonight have made their decisions, but he is the only one who is still hesitating.
"Okay," Tina's voice was obviously nervous, "I believe you can make the right choice."
Her eyes seemed to be pleading, but Wordsworth did not look directly.
Moonlight, who was listening behind her, suddenly understood what was happening - they were watching a vision of the past.
Wordsworth's experience.
Following the trend of candlelight, we arrived at a wide area deep in the cave, which was built into a hall.
The polished stone walls are painted with patterns such as Ferris wheels, carousels, and clown haunted houses.
Obviously, these childish handwritings depict the scene in "Midnight Paradise".
All the addicts gathered here, holding their own candlesticks and standing facing a smooth wall.
Then, they began to sing the song they sang when they entered the garden.
“This is the paradise, this is the paradise.
This is the Never Island created by Peter Pan,
Only welcome at midnight, people with pure hearts come to visit...
Its name is - Midnight Paradise.
Peter Pan is forever young and happy in his paradise.
We also linger here and share with him this eternal joy. "
Due to the natural echo resonance effect in the cave, the children's chorus was inexplicably more divine.
Moonlight even couldn't help but want to open her mouth and sing along several times...
But he knew the mystery contained in this song, so he closed his eyes, bit his tongue, and used pain to remind himself not to sing along.
When the song ended, what he saw when he opened his eyes made the hairs on his back stand up——
The familiar shadow of the young man flew in from the entrance of the hall and flew around the stone wall.
When the addicts saw that figure, they couldn't help but cheer: "Pan! Pan! Pan!..."
That's the shadow of Peter Pan.
The culprit who kidnapped Mrs. Dominic.
Among the crowd, Sean stared at the thin figure coldly.
After circling the stone wall for a week, he stopped on the smoothest wall.
In the direction of the shadow, a strange voice sounded.
You can tell that it is the voice of a young man. But there was an inexplicable vicissitude and hoarseness in that voice.
It is unimaginable that immaturity and hoarseness can be reflected in one voice:
"Welcome everyone to this 'stay ceremony'..."
I can only see this floating shadow, and I have no idea where the shadow's sight is falling.
Sean and others lowered their heads, trying to hide themselves in the crowd.
“Time is like a river, no one can swim upstream.
"The pure children who linger here will also be carried forward by time and grow up day by day...
"However, this paradise only welcomes children who have not yet grown up."
The candlelight burned quietly, and the addicts raised their heads and looked at the shadow who was telling the story.
"This ritual allows those children who are about to become adults to stay in childhood forever - so that they can stay in Midnight Paradise and share the joy of this place with me forever.
"Tonight, the first child to receive 'Stay' is - Tina!"
Amid the cheers of the addicts, Tina, who was wearing a green dress and a doe hood, hugged Wordsworth beside her.
She walked through the crowd to the front row, handed the candle in her hand to others, and stood under the smooth stone wall.
Wordsworth craned his neck to look at Tina, his fingertips were trembling and his palms were all sweaty.
The shadow that was originally floating in the air fell to the ground.
In his hand, there was a needle with thin stitches hanging down.
Peter Pan's shadow walked next to Tina's shadow.
The addicts in the audience let out low whispers.
The girl's chest heaved violently.
The shadow of the Lord of Paradise raised the needle and thread in his hand and stabbed it near the collarbone of the girl's shadow: "The first needle!
"——This pain can drive away the filthy adult in my heart!"
"First shot!" the addicts shouted excitedly.
As the shadow was pierced, a blood hole suddenly appeared on Tina's hood and collarbone, and the black shadow thread connected the two together——
The girl trembled and screamed, but did not move.
In the audience, Father Taylor looked at this scene in astonishment, unaware that his mouth was open due to shock.
“Second shot!
"This thread will sew the innocence of childhood to your heart forever - you will never lose this most precious treasure!"
On the wall, Pan's shadow threads needles so skillfully, as if he is not sewing a hood to the girl's body, but sewing a piece of clothing.
The threads were like black earthworms turning over soil, constantly drilling in and out along the edge of the doe's hood, and the bright red blood flowed down like the ruby pendant of a necklace...
Tina was still shouting. But there seemed to be a bit more joy in the shout.
Offstage, Wordsworth was also short of breath. He didn't realize that he was holding his father's pen tightly.
“The third shot!
"——After sewing, you will never grow up again, you will always stay in childhood, you will always have————
"joy!"
"The third shot!" The addicts raised their candles, "Always, have, joy!"
Pan's shadow sped up, and the black silk thread was stitched faster. It circled around the edge and completely sewed the doe hood above Tina's shoulders.
Then, something weird happened.
The stitches disappeared, as if they were sinking into the flesh.
The hood no longer seemed to be sewn onto the shoulders, and the edges became a natural transition, as if Tina was born with the head of a doe.
The doe's head also seemed to come to life - the eyes were black and vivid, and the originally stiff nose also opened and relaxed due to breathing.
Tina has completed the "Stay Ritual."
She will never grow up and become an "addict" who can wander in "Midnight Paradise" forever.
In the audience, Wordsworth's face turned pale.
Shadow opened his hands, signaling to the addicts not to begrudge the applause to newcomers.
Then, the doe looked expectantly at the young man in the audience wearing a red shirt and a goat hood.
Peter Pan's shadow voice was still full of joy: "Then - the next person to perform the stay ceremony is...
"Wordsworth!"
The addicts turned around, and the animal faces illuminated by the candlelight all looked at the young man in red.
