Episode #8: Wild Ride
The 1968 all-black Chevy Camero flew down the windy road, the red needle gradually moving around the speedometer and making its way toward the white number ninety. Tom shot a quick glance at his brother Matt and let out a loud whoop, his heart racing as the car tore across the open road. His twin returned the grin and joined him in screaming aloud, the wind whipping through his curly, blond hair.
Although they were identical twins, Tom was technically older by about a minute, so he had won the right to drive their father’s classic muscle car down the old, empty road a few minutes away from their house while Matt rode shotgun. Their father had no idea that they were currently using his prized Camero, of course, the doctor working late this evening on ER call. As for their mother, they didn’t really hear much from her following the divorce. Besides, it’s not like they hadn’t done this before. They were both fifteen now and more than capable of managing the vehicle on their own.
They were careful enough, for the most part, and this side road was rarely used. It was out in the boondocks, and surrounded by forests. There were never any cops this far out and no street lights to guide the way, so there was little chance of them being spotted. The sun had long set beneath the skies of Montana, and the evening breeze felt amazing.
This was the first time they had decided to really open up the car on the road, the music blaring heavy rock while the two sang along. Tom glanced down and saw that he had just surpassed the white 100 mark on the dashboard. Turning to his brother in glee, Tom was surprised to see his twin abruptly stop singing and place his hand before him, shielding his face. Matt’s eyes grew wide with terror, and Tom quickly faced forward to see what the fuss was about. He nearly struck the deer ahead of him.
Swerving out of the way, the car lost traction on the road, and Tom felt his grip loosen as they began to spin. The world around him swirled around as the car spun in the direction of the treeline. The smell of burning rubber filled their nostrils while the boys’ screams and sound of screeching tires hung in the air before the car crashed into the nearest tree trunk. The windows exploded, sending shards of glass into the interior as the car crumpled in on itself, the steel shell folding in like tissue paper.
Tom felt a blast of air rush through his body, a familiar feeling of weightlessness enveloping him while the world flew by. He passed through the car, surrounded by a thin layer of smoke, and his body soared through several trees undisturbed. He landed in a heap, rolling across the fallen pines and rocky dirt floor of the forest. His momentum finally slowing down, Tom looked to the side to find Matt beside him, his brother’s chest heaving from the adrenaline, the lower half of his body just starting to transform from it’s gaseous state to solid skin again. They were both naked.
The car was completely wrecked, bent entirely around the fallen tree, and the two boys looked at one another in fear. Their dad was going to kill them for this.
Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash