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Lightning
Los Angeles was a good place to go on vacation. It wasn't too far from home and was more or less a spontaneous decision. Sally and Lightning were on their first vacation since their honeymoon last year. Just the two of them, a beach, a suite, and a week of peace and quiet. They spend the days by the ocean, in the city, doing things, and visiting remote restaurants so they were less recognized.
It was the last day and they had just returned home from a trip.
They laughed together, it had been a beautiful day. The evening was slowly coming in.
When Sally disappeared into the bathroom to shower, Lightning picked up his cell phone and frowned. He didn't usually get so many messages, because his friends actually knew that he didn’t want to be disturbed here. He had promised Sally because he owed her that much as a famous racer who was always on the road.
He traveled a lot and even though Sally often came along, it was different from just being alone with her.
It was a video of the group chat with Cal and Bobby. Cal sent a lot of question marks with it and Lightning was confused.
He clicked on the video and the 1.32 minutes were the worst thing he had ever seen. It started with a recording of an accident, possibly from a dashcam perspective. A car crash on the I-40. His hands started shaking before his brain could properly process what he had seen.
Lightning didn't know what to do. He didn't know what to say. He stood there at the table and a shiver ran down his spine. His hands were trembling as he gripped the table and he couldn't breathe.
Think logically.
No, that can't be.
This is a cruel joke.
But what if...
It couldn't be true... It couldn't be. Lightning watched it over and over again. And it looked so real that he suddenly realized that it could be. This morning, Doc had left to run errands in the nearest big city to Radiator Springs. He had driven there in his Hornet and he was supposed to be on his way back. On the I-40, where the accident was. With the blue Hornet, of which not much was left in one piece on the video.
But the white and yellow Fabulous Hudson Hornet lettering and the 51 were unique. Lightning would have recognized it amongst millions.
The short video showed more, the camera angle changed and one of the bystanders was filming. Paramedics dealt with the treatment of affected people and tried to resuscitate a person. It was Doc. Lightning would recognize his face among millions. His mentor. His everything.
The person was declared dead and Lightning panicked. He was breathing faster and faster and gasping for air. He watched the video over and over again. It ends with police officers telling the person who was filming to stop recording and the abrupt end of the video.
Lightning couldn't think straight at all. Fear had a tight grip on him. Only one thought was in his head.
I just watched Doc die.
He died.
This is a joke.
Didn't Doc once say the first thing was denial?
Is it a joke?
As if the life had been drained out of him, he broke down into tears, which streamed down his face and he held onto the table as if his life depended on it. His vision became blurry and a feeling overcame him that he couldn't handle. He couldn't stand it. An extreme dizziness enveloped him, it got bad and he fell to the floor. The last thing he noticed was his breathing quickening and he clutched his chest before he passed out.
The funeral was rainy. It rained and rained and Lightning felt numb. He had no umbrella and every drop hurt his body. The pain wasn't just psychological. His whole body hurt extremely as if he had been constantly beaten.
Life seemed meaningless. People appeared at the funeral. People who had long since belonged to the past. Lightning was in denial. He simply couldn't believe what he was seeing with his own eyes.
Without Doc, the world was just black and white and Lightning blinked often, but the world didn't regain its color.
The only thing that had color was Doc's car. The Fabulous Hudson Hornet car. It shimmered in brilliant blue and the rain ran along it. Wherever the rain fell, it left gray streaks, as if it wanted to bury everything beneath it in black, white, and gray.
"When I'm gone one day," Lightning heard Doc say what he had once said to him. "I give my car to you. It's after you and the other people I have in my heart the most precious thing I own."
"You won't go Doc. I'd never be able to handle that."
"I'm not the youngest anymore, son."
"But Doc, please don't say that."
Doc sighed. "I'm sorry. I didn’t mean to worry you. Just promise you'll take my car."
"I... I promise Doc," Lightning answered quietly.
“The most precious thing I own.”
Lightning was back at the funeral. He stared at the car, which was becoming more and more gray. Maybe it was just his mind playing tricks on him.
The pain was almost unbearable, but he noticed how Sally was next to him trying to calm him down - to comfort him. She held his hand, but it didn't help much. Doc was no longer there - motionless and with no signs of life.
Harv was at the funeral for some reason. Lightning hadn't invited him and was beginning to wonder who the hell would do something like that. It was the last person he wanted to share such a moment with. It was also the last person Doc would have wanted to have there. But Lightning didn't have the strength to tell anyone to leave.
"We loved Doc Hudson," Harv said and gave Lightning a single rose. Confused, he took the gray rose in his hand and expected to be pricked, but he quickly realized that it had no thorns. He had expected Harv to do otherwise.
Lightning hadn't seen Doc. Not once had he dared to go near the coffin. But that also meant that he had no confirmation that it had really happened. The only thing he had seen was the video. Despite that, he was still in denial, but it still hurt so much that he suddenly couldn't breathe anymore.
The young racer fell to his knees in the wet grass and clutched his chest. Breathing was so hard for him, but he thought that maybe if he let it happen - and stopped trying to breathe - then he could disappear just like Doc and no longer feel the pain. But he was not given the favor. Instead of breathing more slowly, he started breathing faster and faster until he could no longer see clearly. People gathered around him. His crew, his friends - everyone was standing around him and talking to him.
His mother stroked his head. It was a strange feeling of comfort.
The sky turned red and orange and Lightning wasn't sure if it was sunset or sunrise, because it was actually midday. That's what he thought anyway. Maybe he had simply lost track of time because it seemed like an eternity that he had been in this place.
"You got a lot of stuff, kid," someone said in Doc's voice, but it was impossible - Lightning knew that. When he turned around and looked where the voice was coming from, he only saw Doc's car. But cars couldn't talk, it was still strange though because Lightning could have sworn that the car was smiling at him. But his mind was probably playing tricks on him. Again. Slowly but surely he was sure that he was going crazy. The first signs seemed to be beginning already.
The rain hurt and Lightning couldn't take it anymore. He cried and started screaming in desperation. At least he tried, because not a single sound came out. Panting he stood up, only to fall again. He fell and fell and it didn't stop. It felt like the ground had suddenly disappeared and he kept falling into a deep hole.
"Wake up, Stickers!" His mother called out and he didn't understand why she called him that. Besides, she hadn't been there for years. She died when Lightning was young. He had never forgotten her face and now she was looking at him with her worried eyes.
"Stickers!"
Someone shook him and when he opened his eyes, drenched in sweat and his heart racing, he looked into Sally's worried eyes. Others - strangers - were kneeling next to him. The scene of the funeral was gone. Lightning was lying on the floor in the suite. Paramedics were next to him, trying to figure out what was wrong with Lightning.
"Sir, can you hear me?" one asked and Lightning realized the funeral had only been a dream - the worst he had ever had.
Without knowing how much time had passed, he slowly came to. The more he woke up, the more aware he became of his surroundings.
It had only been a dream.
A very intense one.
Sally looked at him worriedly and Lightning noticed that tears were running down his cheeks.
"Stickers, darling, what happened?" she said and carefully wiped away Lightning's tears. She took Lightning's hand in hers because he was still trembling.
"Looks like he had a panic attack," one of the paramedics said. Lightning felt someone taking his pulse on his other hand.
"Doc died," Lightning finally said, his voice breaking.
"It was just a dream," Sally said with a soothing voice and Lightning's heart rate slowly started to return to normal. He felt Sally gently stroking his hair.
Lightning sighed in relief as his muscles began to relax again.
Just a dream.
Wait…
What about the video?
“No… there’s … this… that,” Lightning stuttered and a medic tried to calm him down.
“Easy there, lad. Take a deep breath, okay?”
Lightning tried and took a shaky breath.
“That’s it, just keep going,” the man said in a soothing voice.
“What… happened?” Lightning asked in a weak voice.
“What happened?” Sally repeated, confused. “Stickers, you passed out cold on the floor. We should ask you what happened. I… I called an ambulance.”
“Doc,” Lightning said and saw Sally exchanging glances with the medics as if he were crazy. Maybe he was. Slowly he began to doubt himself and what he had seen.
So he pointed to his smartphone which was still on the table. Sally stood up and picked it up, only to drop it a short time later. The quick reflexes of a medic to catch the phone saved Lightning from being hit on the head as well. That was the last thing he needed.
Doc
Doc drove as usual. He didn't know what he had done wrong and yet it seemed like it was his fault. Doc was a pro with his car, the Hornet, and everyone knew he could control it better than anyone could control a car.
The accident was unexpected, something he never thought would happen to him in his life. Trapped in the crushed car, he thought he was going to die. Moving was impossible because it felt like everything was trapped under the frame of the car he loved so much.
The smoke stung in his lungs and Doc gasped for air. Every breath hurt. Agony. It felt like someone was crushing him and tearing him apart at the same time. He felt light and at the same time the feeling of dread in his neck. Incredibly strong pain shot through his body and the only thought he had was 'This can't be the end of me'. Doc had people who cared about him, who he didn't want to leave alone, and he himself still had a long life ahead of him.
Nevertheless, the fear grew and he felt as if he was as close to death as anyone could be. As if a little bit would be enough to let him slip away into the depths of darkness.
To his confusion, however, he saw no darkness. Everything was extremely bright, and it was getting stronger and stronger - so bad that it hurt his head. The white practically bit into his face.
He simply didn't want to die. He begged himself that he could do it, but he didn't know if his willpower would be enough. The time until paramedics arrived seemed like many hours of agony.
White became brighter and the last thing he whispered before he lost consciousness was: "I don't wanna die." He didn't want this to be his last race.
Doc stared ahead. Only now did he notice how he was holding the steering wheel and that his knuckles were white. It was always a shock for him to witness an accident. Every time it brought him flashbacks. Like now, as he was driving on the highway towards Radiator Springs - towards home. All the cars were standing still. Only ambulances and police drove past him with sirens blaring.
From here where he was stuck in the traffic jam he could even see the exit to Route 66 towards home. But he couldn't drive a single inch. The accident a mile away seemed to have been serious and Doc was constantly reminded of his own. He could almost taste the acrid smoke again and the feeling that he would never be able to forget - the fear.
After taking a deep breath to calm his nerves, he reached for his cell phone. There was apparently a dead zone here - no cell service. Doc sighed and ran his hand through his hair. He couldn't even tell them he would be home late. Even though he was sure Sheriff was the only one who would notice.
Lightning and Sally were fortunately on vacation. They were having a wonderful time without any worries or stress. Doc had to smile at the thought and the wait became more bearable as he leaned back in his seat.
Sally
It was definitely Doc on the video. She dropped the phone in shock and stared at Stickers. He was still lying on the floor, shaking and suffering. Sally didn't know what to think.
It was clear that something could happen at any time that no one would have expected. But that was never the way to normally find out. Through a sick video. Sally sat down on the floor next to Lightning and saw one of the paramedics pick up the phone to watch the video.
"A friend of yours?" he asked quietly.
Sally could only nod. "Family," she managed to say because that's what Doc was to all of them. Family - nothing less.
The paramedics looked at it together, their trained eyes taking in every last detail. "Artificial intelligence," one said quietly to the other.
A shock ran through Sally. "What?" she asked almost in unison with Stickers.
"Look," the paramedic said and showed them both the video again. If Sally hadn't had a spark of hope, she wouldn't have been able to watch the video again. But she stared at it and paid attention to the details when the paramedic zoomed in on the video at a certain point.
Then, as if by magic, one of the police officers' hands disappeared for a second. Instead, the blue color of the Hornet was visible. Almost as if someone had taken a video and added layers that didn't belong on it.
"It's fake," Lightning whispered and Sally looked back and forth from Lightning to the video. The lump in her throat slowly began to disappear. But how much of the video was fake and how much was real?
She stood up, under the close watch of the paramedics so she wouldn't collapse on the floor. She grabbed her own cell phone and as the paramedics continued to tend to Lightning she called Doc. He didn't answer. So she called Flo. Flo had seen the video, as had everyone else in Radiator Springs. Everyone was terribly worried but they also suspected that something was wrong.
"Whoever did this is an evil genius," Sally heard a paramedic say as she hung up and went back to Stickers.
There was no need to worry about Lightning any more, his health was stable, and after helping him onto the couch and Sally thanking them a thousand times the paramedics said goodbye.
"Take it easy for a while," one admonished Lightning.
"And don't believe everything you see right away. Although I would have been shocked by something like that too," another said.
"I'll try," Lightning said. "Thank you."
Sally and Lightning were alone for a short while, Stickers was lying on the couch. He was staring at the ceiling, lost in thoughts. Sally had never seen him this traumatized and it worried her so much.
"Doc's fine," she said softly but it was as if she was talking to a wall.
"It was fake, Lightning."
"Are you sure?" Lightning asked in a voice that sounded so strange.
Was she sure? She certainly wasn't what exactly was fake and what wasn't and she sighed quietly.
"Do you want to go home?" she asked because it broke her heart to see Lightning suffering like that. It had been the last evening anyway. They had a lovely week and made many great memories together.
Lightning looked at her. She had gotten his attention.
"Would that be okay with you?" he asked quietly, barely audible, his eyes full of trauma and fear, like a little puppy someone had beaten up.
"I wouldn't have suggested it if it wasn't okay with me." She gently stroked Lightning's hair and he closed his eyes.
"I want to go home," Lightning said quietly and Sally nodded.
And although Lightning protested that Sally started packing their things on her own, she ordered him to stay lying down. He should relax, just like the paramedics had ordered him to. And of course, Lightning listened to Sally's instructions, even if he didn't go down without trying to insist on it. But Sally had enough experience to phrase things in such a way that Stickers couldn't resist.
It was just after 7 pm when they checked out of the hotel, 7:30 when they were in the car, had eaten something and Lightning tried to relax in the passenger seat. After a while, he fell asleep and Sally listened to quiet music on the radio. Every now and then she glanced at Lightning and was glad that he had managed to calm down.
Doc
It was already dark outside when they finally moved on and Doc arrived in Radiator Springs. Almost half past twelve in the night. He hadn't planned to be away so long.
As soon as he stepped out of the car he was swarmed by his friends. Everyone from Radiator Springs was around him and he had never received so many hugs at once.
“Whoa, what’s that about folks?” he asked, confused, trying to free himself from the hugs.
Everyone was saying stuff at the same time and Doc heard something about death.
What on earth?
“What’s going on? Sheriff?” He asked because Sheriff was the best at keeping a cool head in exceptional situations.
And before Doc could even go anywhere, he found himself outside watching a video on Sheriff’s cell phone.
A cold shiver ran down his spine when he saw it. It was scary, he couldn’t even describe it. He just watched himself die.
“What the heck is this?” Doc asked, pushing the phone back into Sheriff’s hand.
“Someone faked the video,” Sheriff said.
“Deepfake,” Ramone added. “That is just starting to become a thing.”
“Why? Why would someone do something like that?” Doc shook his head. In his days, something like that would have been unthinkable. It's hard to imagine what else could go wrong.
And as the others continued talking, a thought occurred to Doc. His eyes widened. His kid.
He had to call Lightning. If he had seen it, he definitely hadn't taken it well. Doc knew that. He knew Lightning too well for that. His kid would never check the facts in an exceptional situation.
"Excuse me," he said, moving away from the others and heading towards his house. On the porch, leaning against the wall, he took his cell phone out of his pocket. Here he finally had cell service again. And then he saw the thousand missed calls from the Sheriff, and also from Sally and Lightning.
To say he was worried was an understatement.
Lightning didn't answer the phone, so he called Sally. As he waited for her to answer, he sighed. Doc took a deep breath of the fresh night air and finally heard Sally's voice.
"Doc is that you?" She asked in a worried voice.
"Yes, Sally, it's me," Doc said, and could practically feel her relief.
"I'm so glad," she said quietly. "We were so worried.
"Where's Lightning?" Doc asked.
"Next to me. He's sleeping. We're driving home and we'll be there in an hour. I'll let him sleep. The paramedics said he should take it easy."
"Paramedics?" Doc asked, shocked.
"He's alright," Sally just answered and Doc tried to stay calm. He’d never had a reason not to believe Sally before, so he believed her this time too.
"You're not driving while you're on the phone with me, are you?" Doc asked.
"No, I pulled over."
"Good. Drive safe."
"I will. See you in an hour."
"Bye Sally," Doc said and knew he would stay awake until the two got home.
Lightning
1:36 pm was the clock showing in the car when Sally woke him up. Lightning blinked and looked up. It took him a few seconds to realize where they were parked - in front of Doc's house.
"Doc," he whispered and was immediately wide awake. Sally had already gone ahead and rang Doc's doorbell. Lightning got out, the cold night air greeted him as he walked up the stairs to the entrance.
The door opened and Doc came out. For a moment, Lightning just stared at his mentor as if petrified. He was afraid that it wasn't real, that he was hallucinating or still dreaming. But when Doc came closer and pulled the trembling Lightning close into a hug, Lightning hugged him back and clung to him.
"Doc," Lightning croaked, his voice broken.
"I'm here," Doc said with a soothing voice and stroked Lightning's hair. The young racer felt so small at that moment. So vulnerable and so young.
And after Sally had also gotten a hug, they went into the house.
"Doc, you're almost...," Lightning stuttered.
"I didn't, it was fake," Doc answered and put his arms around his protégé again.
"But you could at any moment..., any time," he continued stuttering.
"I always drive carefully," Doc tried to calm him down. "Because I care about you and others."
Lightning took a deep breath, he finally could. It felt like he was suffocating before. "I'm glad," he said quietly and felt Doc holding him tighter.
One week later, Lightning was at a funeral. This time, a real one. And this time, Doc was standing next to him with his hand on Lightning's shoulder. Sally was on his other side and held Lightning’s hand. They were wearing black and the sun was shining brighter than was appropriate on a day like this.
Some sick idiot had faked part of the video. The police were still looking for the culprit, but it was almost impossible to find anyone on the Internet.
The accident had happened, it was not a fake. The driver had been drunk and had crashed into the guardrail, front-first. No one else was injured, but the man, in his mid-50s, was dead from the impact.
The Internet user had taken this video and altered it in just a few minutes with the help of software and videos and photos of Doc and his car, of which there were plenty on the Internet. It looked as if it had been Doc. Nobody knew why someone would do something like that. The person had probably even enjoyed it, the video had gone viral and many had believed that Doc Hudson had died.
It was disrespectful to the actual victim. Even if he had himself to thank for it - drinking and driving, it was disrespectful because he had dignity too. And so did his family.
Lightning made a public statement about it a few days later and expressed his sincere condolences. He thought it was only fitting to be at the funeral - for the grieving family that was left behind.
He had mixed feelings as he stood there. Pity for the family, sadness about the situation, anger at the reckless victim, and relief that his two most important people were standing next to him.
Doc squeezed his shoulder gently and Lightning looked at his mentor.
"It's alright," Doc whispered. "I'm here."
And only then did Lightning notice that he was finally starting to relax.