He'd lied to the world; it was as simple as that. With a few misplaced numbers, rearranged documents and the nimble fingers of a friendly hacker he'd fooled them all. It shouldn't have been so easy. Someone really should have figured it out, in fact he never thought it would go undiscovered so long. One week had turned into two weeks, a month, and then a year.
It was so easy; the media ate everything he told them, they bought it like a cheap paint job. He glanced in the large mirror in his trailer and ran a hand through his bright red hair. The image the reflection showed was so easy to plaster on every day. He smirked, the image smirked back, and it was fake, so fake. That mask he wore was important, without it he wouldn't have come so far in so little time.
No, he couldn't think about being discovered. If he thought that way he'd trip up and his carefully constructed façade would fall. He was Lightning McQueen for crying out loud, when he stepped onto that race track. Whoever he was had died a long time ago. He'd come too far to look back. Smirking once more he adjusted his Rusteze jacket on his narrow shoulders and slipped on his aviators.
Lies, he hated lies, but they'd become essential to his survival. This new life of his it wasn't as selfish as people thought. No, his way of living, his choices, and his attitude - it was all for a greater purpose, but the public didn't need to know that. The young racer couldn't help but enjoy the benefits the spotlight provided him. His gut twisted at the thought of all the attention though. With every news story or picture he felt like his secrets would be revealed. It was agonizing.
The spotlight was a two edged sword, a blessing and a curse. It gave him what he needed but it also made his lies more of regularity. He sighed at the deep thought and brushed his all at once sweaty palms across his pants before stepping out of his trailer. Cameras flashed and he winked at the reporters. He sighed inwardly, it was time to pretend to be the person that they expected him to be, the cocky rookie, sometimes it was all too exhausting for him.
B-rringggg, B-rringggg, Lightning felt his shoulders sag as his phone went off in his pocket. It could only be one of four people. It was either Mack, one of his sponsors, or… He paused before pulling his phone out and glancing at the caller ID. A tiny smile crossed his lips as he saw the number. Quickly he found a secluded part of the pits and answered the call.
"Lightning!" An excited voice yelled over the line causing Lightning's brain to rattle in his head.
"Hey, Tommy!" Lightning grinned at the phone.
"Hey! I saw your race!"
"Cool! I was hoping you'd get to watch."
"Yeah…When are you coming to get me?"
"Oh, Tommy," Lightning's heart sunk. "You know I can't."
"But Lightnin'," The young voice whined in his ear.
"What's wrong bud? Aren't they treating you well?"
"I guess… It's just, I miss you. Can't you at least visit? There's plenty of space. And we can cow tip and explore the mine!"
"Tommy." Lightning ran a hand over his hair in exasperation. "You know I can't, the same way you know you can't tell them about me. I tell you what. I'll send you some money for some new clothes and a tool set."
"I want them to know though. They think you're my imaginary friend." Tommy huffed in exasperation.
"Someday I'll be able to come and get you. But for now, you keep them on their toes. Ok. Mater?"
"Mater? SHOOT, that's got to be the silliest name ever!"
"Well you always did like tomatoes…and your name is Tommy. So, it's like tomato."
"But without the T-U-H! You're still bad at names! Promise you'll come?"
"I'll, do what I can…" Lightning gripped the phone tighter in his hand.
"Ok. Promise that you won't forget me?"
"You're my brother; I promise that I won't forget you. I love you Mater." The rookie let his voice soften as he heard shouting in the background. "Better go kid, sounds like they're looking for you. Stay out of trouble."
"No promises. Bye Lightnin'!" The phone clicked and Lightning felt alone once again.
He stood there for a long time before he put the phone away. It always hurt when he had to say goodbye to Mater, there was no way to soften the blow that the ending of a phone call caused. With a frown he shoved his phone into his pocket and hurried to where he knew Mack would be. He really didn't want to be alone with his thoughts.
Of all the people he knew, Lightning could safely say that Mack was one of the few people he considered a friend. It was a hesitant friendship for the racer, but Mack had taken a firm liking to the cocky redhead. There was a sense of recklessness the rookie had that made Mack want to guard him. More than once he'd acted as the kid's bodyguard. He was a regular mother hen when it came to Lightning.
It took Lightning a few minutes to find Mack but eventually he found his driver hanging out with some of the Dinoco team. He shifted on his feet nervously; he never liked getting too close to the King's people. They seemed to see clear past his mask and Mrs. King, Lynda Weathers; she set Lightning's teeth on edge. He had only met her twice but each time she seemed to look deep inside of him and that look of hers made him want to spill the beans to her. It was disconcerting.
"Kid, there you are! I was just telling Mrs. Weathers about our plans for a road trip." Mack grinned.
"Umm… road trip?" Lightning feigned innocence as he glanced towards Lynda. "You said we weren't going to be able to take that trip."
"That's the thing; Mrs. Weathers has a solution for us."
Lightning frowned at the excitement in Mack's tone, he was sure he wasn't going to like this solution. It wasn't that he didn't like the King and Mrs. King. He just felt on edge around them. They were too insightful and caring. The young man found that being around the couple made him nervous and jumpy.
"What is it?" Lightning's suspicious tone caused Lynda to chuckle silently.
"Well, Strip and I were going to take our nephew on a trip and we have one more seat open. What about it?" She sent a warm smile at the nervous racer.
"I don't know, I have a lot of stuff planned."
"No you don't kid. You told me you were just gonna lay around your apartment watching movies."
"Mack," Lightning grit his teeth in annoyance. Mack had removed any excuse that he had. In all honesty he didn't want to be alone, but he hated the feeling of prying minds.
"We'd love to have you along. Sitting alone in your apartment can't be any fun. Cal can't be that much younger than you." She smiled teasingly at the rookie. "He loves making new friends."
"I don't know…"
"Come on kid, it will be fun. And you don't have to miss out because of me." Mack nudged Lightning's shoulder with a grin. "Neither of us will take no for an answer."
"This isn't fair!" Lightning glanced between Lynda and Mack. "There's an uneven number."
"Come on kid! I can't go to that trucker's convention with Gray unless you go with the Weathers! It wouldn't be fair to leave you alone."
Lightning sighed, his one friend, besides Mater had played the guilt card. Despite the rookie's arrogant façade he had a soft spot for Mack. He knew how much his friend wanted to go to that convention. There really wasn't a choice.
"Fine." He grumbled like a child causing Lynda to grin.
"Well that's just dandy! I'm sure you and Cal will become fast friends." Lynda beamed; Cal had been upset at the idea of traveling across the country with only his aunt and uncle as company. Such was the emotions of a thirteen year old boy.
"You won't regret this Lightning!" Mack clapped his friend on the shoulder. "Now, I'm going to go pack."
"But Mack!" Lightning glared after his friend as he disappeared leaving him alone with Lynda. He felt his gut churn, out of the frying pan and into the fire. There was a nagging feeling in his gut that told him it was going to be a very long time before he felt at ease, a very long time indeed.