This is Doc's chapter, but I didn't have that many ideas for it. Oh, well. I've referenced some stuff from the World of Cars story, Banged Up, but the story is going to focus on a different part in Doc's life.

A New Life

1976

"Paul Hudson!"

Paul Hudson drove up onto the stage. It had been a long time since anybody used his first name. Normally, he stuck with Hudson. Sometimes, people would call him Hud, but he didn't like that. Not anymore.

He rolled up to where the dean was waiting for him, shook his tyre and accepted the medical degree. For the first time in a long time, he felt a sense of pride, accomplishment, that he could do something. He'd almost forgotten what it felt like.

As he parked up on that podium, Hudson couldn't help thinking back to when it all started several years earlier...


Hudson was driving. He didn't really care about where he was going. He just had to get away. It had been over ten years since he'd heard those words that continued to haunt him to this day. Even now, as he drove, he could still hear them echoing in his mind: "You're history, you're history." He'd left Thomasville in a hurry after that. There didn't seem to be any reason to stick around after that. Unfortunately, returning to his old hometown just made things worse.

"Well, if it isn't the Fabulous Hudson Hornet! Wanna race, Hud?"

"I was so sorry to hear about your big crash. Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Could I get your picture?"

Even removing his racing decals and tyres hadn't worked. He still got asked for his autograph at the drive-in theatre. Hudson didn't want to be reminded of his racing day in and day out. He had to leave. He had to find somewhere where nobody knew his name... Was there even anywhere that remote?

Not only that, but he had nothing to do now. He didn't have a job anymore and his money was starting to run out. There had to be something he was good at, something besides racing.


It wasn't until Hudson drove down Route 66 that he found exactly what he was looking for. He enjoyed driving freely, without a destination in mind. He was pleased that whenever he stopped to enjoy the scenery, ask for directions, fill up on gas or stay in a motel for the night, nobody- not one person- seemed to know who he was. It was the best thing he could've hoped for.

He was so happy and relaxed that he almost drove straight past a car who looked like she was in trouble. This purple 1959 Cadillac El Dorado was trying to start, but just couldn't.

"Are you all right, miss?" Hudson questioned.

"I just... can't seem... to start!" she grunted, trying to start up her engine.

"Just try to relax for me", Hudson instructed. "Just relax for me... Evelyn", he read her name on her license plate. "Would it be all right if I took a look?"

"Are you a mechanic?" she wondered. "Or a doctor?"

"Nope, but some of my old friends are. I think I might be able to figure out what the problem is." He examined her engine "Sounds like you're not gettin' any spark", he reported. "I think your coil wire's the problem. If I may..."

In under a minute, Evelyn's engine was up and running again.

"Thank you!" she exclaimed gratefully. "Thank you so much! I'm supposed to be in Seattle by Friday! I wouldn't have made it if it hadn't been for you. Is there any way I can repay you?"

"That won't be necessary", Hudson assured her with a smile.

So, Evelyn was on her way.


Hudson drove for a few more hours before he came across another car who was in need of assistance. He had crashed into a ditch full of cacti. He was covered in spines and a couple of nasty-looking dents. Luckily, he was pulled out of his thoughts just in time and pulled up alongside the car.

"Well, hello, good fellow", he greeted and Hudson realised that this car was British. "My name is Philip and I appear to be in a spot of trouble."

It wasn't easy to pull Philip out of the ditch, but Hudson managed. "How did this happen?" he wanted to know.

"Well, you see, I am visiting from England and I'm not quite used to driving on the right side of the road", Philip explained.

"I can see that", Hudson remarked, helping to pull the spines out as carefully as he could. "Some of those dents will need poppin' back into place. I've got just the thing." He knew a thing or two about popping dents back into place from his racing days. It was a skill that came in handy.

When all of the dents had been popped back into place, it was clear that Philip was still in a fair amount of pain.

"Maybe you better go and see a doctor", Hudson suggested.

Philip nodded in agreement. "Good idea, but would you mind assisting my friend first? I do hope he's all right."

"Your friend?" Hudson repeated.

His eyes travelled a bit further down the road where he saw a young man in his twenties with strawberry blonde hair, moaning in pain. Uh-oh.

"Charles!" Philip shouted as Hudson made his way over to him.

Charles was clutching his leg and one look told Hudson it was broken. Hudson knew about human injuries too, so he did what he could for Charles, which wasn't much due to a lack of resources. Then he escorted both Charles and Philip to the nearest hospital where he was praised for his help.

"You ever think about doin' this for a livin'?" one of the doctors questioned.

Hudson shook his hood. "No. I've never thought about it."

"Well, you're a natural", the doctor informed him.

The human doctor, who'd been treating Charles, nodded in agreement. "We could use someone like you."

Now that he thought of it, Hudson did have quite the knack for helping others. Initially, it came from becoming man of the house at age eleven when his father and older brother were killed in the Second World War, leaving him to care for his mother and younger sister. Then, he learned a lot about treating different injuries from being a racer. Maybe these doctors were right. Maybe he should do this for a living. What else was he going to do?

That was it. He, Paul Hudson, was going to medical school.


I guess you could say the rest was history. The very next day, Hudson enrolled in medical school right there in Ornament Valley. Nearly everyone thought it was strange that he wanted to be a doctor for both cars and humans. Mostly, everyone stuck to the same species as them, but Hudson simply stated that he had his reasons. Not only did he want to help humans and cars alike, but it would be more time-consuming and he needed the distraction, so he wouldn't think about his past.

That's exactly what happened. Hudson studied hard and was now graduating at the top of his class. Now, everyone was impressed that he'd pulled it off. He was the only one studying to be a car and human doctor and was top of the class! Nobody had any doubts that he would make a fine doctor.


After the graduation ceremony, as he was packing up his dorm, a thought struck Hudson: He didn't have anywhere to go now. He didn't have a place of his own. He didn't have any friends to rely on (he'd been too busy studying to socialise much). What was he going to do now?

I'll figure somethin' out, he assured himself. There's bound to be somewhere in the country lookin' for doctors. I'll find work. Just as long as that somewhere wasn't Thomasville or anywhere anybody might have heard the name the Fabulous Hudson Hornet. That couldn't be too hard, though. His career-ending crash was over twenty years ago now; by then, the Fabulous Hudson Hornet had faded into obscurity. It looked like Ron, his old manager, was right. He was history.


It felt like déjà vu. Hudson was driving down Route 66, admiring the view. Now, he felt even more relaxed than he had the first time around. He'd accomplished something and, even though he didn't have a job or a home, he had a plan. So, he was feeling pretty good about things.

Hudson just followed the road as it weaved across the desert. Finally, to his surprise, he stumbled across a town. It seemed to happen so suddenly. One second, he was completely surrounded by rocks and dirt. The next, tall caution cones the size of buildings seemed to rise up from nowhere. Other buildings followed suit: what looked like a military bunker, next to a dome covered in hippie-related decorations; a gas station; a body art shop and a tyre shop. Curious, Hudson decided to roll in.

Probably uninhabited, Hudson thought to himself. Route 66 is deserted now. Several years ago, an Interstate was built, bypassing a lot of small towns on Route 66. Like him, the route had faded into obscurity.

"Is that what I think it is?" a voice called out.

This was followed by a series of gasps and cries of, "Customers? Is there a customer?!"

At least half a dozen cars and a handful of humans came charging down the road to meet Hudson. The first one to greet him was a mint-green show car.

"Welcome to Radiator Springs!" this show car greeted him. "My name is Flo! How can we help you?"

Hudson thought about that. The heat was getting to him. "Well, I guess I could do with a nice, cold oil."

"Say no more, honey!" Flo replied. "I've got just the thing! Follow me!"

So, he did.


Hudson settled in next to a full pump at Flo's V8 Café and waited for Flo to return with his drink.

"What's your name, son?" a human man with one leg, who introduced himself as William, wanted to know.

"Hudson."

"And where'd you come from?" the town's sheriff questioned. Hudson noticed that this guy was about the same age as him.

"Out east", Hudson replied simply, not wanting to get into it. He never liked to open up or discuss his personal life with anybody, especially not strangers.

"Well, that's specific", Flo's husband, a 1959 Chevrolet Impala Lowrider named Ramone, commented sarcastically.

"So, what brings you to Radiator Springs, man?" a hippie van called Fillmore wanted to know.

Hudson shrugged. "Just goin' for a drive."

"Any destination in mind?" Sheriff asked.

"Nope. Not really."

The townsfolk tried to think of another question to ask Hudson, but Flo returned with his oil and the newcomer was intent on sipping on it. Kind and polite as they were, the residents of this small town didn't particularly like Hudson at first. They didn't hate him or even dislike him, though. They were just a little put off by the fact that he was a closed book. In Radiator Springs, everyone knew everyone's business. Of course, they didn't expect this perfect stranger to spill his deepest, darkest secrets or have an extremely emotional moment. They just wanted him to open up, just a little bit. Plus. they'd asked him all kinds of questions, but he hadn't asked a single one in return.


Hudson sighed. He didn't feel comfortable with everyone staring at him. He counted ten cars and five humans. Fifteen residents. Very small.

"Is this everyone who lives around here?" he asked once he'd finished his oil.

The others were glad he'd made an effort to socialise. It wasn't a big step, but it was progress.

"Yep", Sheriff confirmed. "Most folks left when the town disappeared from the map. Went to look for business elsewhere."

"Why didn't all of you?" Hudson wondered.

A black Model T named Lizzie was kind of insulted by this question. "Because this is our home! We can't leave!"

"It's not much, but Lizzie's right; it's home", Sheriff added.

"We're all there for one another", William's wife, Alice, chimed in. "We've all learned to live with less, but focus on what's important: family."

Hudson guessed he could understand that. It was kind of like Thomasville and the friends he had there. No! he scolded himself in his head. Don't think about them! They're not your friends anymore! No one who has anythin' to do with racin' can be trusted. It's a cruel sport!

He sighed, finishing off the last of his oil. "Well, that was very nice, but I think I must be goin' now."

Immediately, this announcement was met by disappointed shouts.

"Really?!"

"Why is everyone in such a hurry these days?"

"If you've got nowhere you need to be, then what's the rush?"

"Are you sure you don't need anything else?"

"You have much more driving to do, no?" a yellow 1959 Fiat 500 named Luigi questioned. "Do you not need new tyres?"

Hudson thought about that. He guessed that was true. He wasn't sure how much longer his current tyres would last him, especially since he didn't know how much more driving he had to go.

He shrugged. "I guess a new set of tyres couldn't hurt."

Sheriff grinned at him. "Good choice."


Hudson's eyes widened as he followed Luigi and his assistant, Guido the blue forklift, into their store. There were Ferrari posters everywhere.

Luigi caught him looking at them. "Guido and I like the Ferraris", he explained with a smile. "I have been following them my whole life."

The newcomer managed a small smile. "I can see that."

"Do you like racing?"

"Not really. Never interested me at all", Hudson lied.

"Oh." Luigi looked down to see that Hudson was wearing whitewalls. "I must compliment you on your taste in tyres. The whitewalls are my favourite!"

Once again, a tiny smile crept across Hudson's face. "I guess I better stick with 'em then."

"Perfetto!" Luigi agreed. "Guido!"

The forklift lit up like a Christmas tree. "Peet stop!"

"Peet stop?" Doc repeated in confusion.

"Pit stop", Luigi explained. "It is Guido's dream to give a real race car a pit stop. He likes to practise on the customers. Whenever we get any."

Well, Guido's dream was about to come true that day. Sort of. Even if he didn't know it.

Guido got his wrench ready and as Luigi lowered the Ferrari flag, he got to work. Quick as a flash, he zipped off all of Hudson's tyres. Then, just as quick, he placed the new ones on.

Hudson was impressed. Even in his days on the racing circuit, he had never seen anybody change tyres that fast. "Wow! That was amazin'!" he declared. "I don't know much about racin', but I think any race car would be lucky to have you on their team."

Guido beamed. "Grazie."

"Uh... Does he speak English?" Hudson wondered.

Luigi nodded. "He can; he chooses not to."

"Okay. Well, thanks for the tyres."

"It is no trouble, my friend", Luigi assured him. "Please come again."

Hudson wasn't sure if he ever would. He was supposed to get going.


"Hey, Hudson!" Sheriff called out, following the cobalt blue car as he started to drive away. "Where you goin'?"

"I better get goin'", he explained simply.

"Really?" Sheriff asked, disappointed.

"Yeah. Thanks for the hospitality."

"Are you sure you don't need any gas or anythin' before you go?"

Hudson hesitated. He was eager to leave town and find work, but he realised that he really did need some gas. He couldn't go anywhere without it.

"We're all gonna have dinner at Flo's like we always do", Sheriff informed him. "Why don't you join us?"

Hudson was reluctant. He wasn't really looking forward to socialising with everyone, but there didn't seem to be any way out of it. Not only did he need the gas, but even though he was hopeless at socialising, he didn't want to sound rude.

"Sure. Let's go."


Once again, the townsfolk asked Hudson all kinds of polite questions about his life. He answered them all as simply as possible, not wanting to reveal too much. It didn't go unnoticed that he was hiding something, but they were all satisfied he was opening up, even just a little bit. Another step. He seemed to be much more at ease now.

By the time dinner was over, the sky had begun to grow dark. So, the citizens of the small town insisted that Hudson didn't go anywhere.

"It ain't a good idea drivin' who knows where in the middle of the night", they informed him. "You're much better off stayin' off here."

"There's plenty of cones available at the Cozy Cone Motel", one of the humans, Miriam offered. "You're more than welcome to stay."

Again, Hudson found himself agreeing; it was obvious that these people were constantly looking for excuses to keep him here. He would go along with it just for today. Then tomorrow, he'd make sure he had enough oil and gas and be on his way.

So, he followed Miriam over to the tall cones he'd seen upon his arrival.

"Here it is!" she announced, opening up one of the cones. "Cone number one. Sorry. I hope you weren't expecting anythin' fancy."

Hudson looked inside the cone; it was far from fancy, but it was simple and comfortable. This place certainly lived up to its name.

"This is perfect", he assured her.

"Feel free to call me if you need anything."

"I'll do that." He nodded.

"Well", Miriam sighed. "Good night."

"Good night."


Hudson was awake early that morning. That was a force of habit from getting up in the dark to run laps at the track or heading off to an early class. It worked out well; now, he had the whole day to drive. First, though, he wanted one last can of oil from Flo's.

"Mornin', Hudson". everyone greeted him warmly.

"Sleep well?" Miriam questioned.

What was she? His mother? "Yeah. I did. Thank you."

"So", Sheriff began, "guess you're leavin', huh?"

"Yeah", Hudson repeated. "Thanks for the hospitality."

Everyone was silent for the remainder of breakfast. Nobody wanted Hudson to leave; they wanted him to stay and become a good customer, but they knew they couldn't keep him there forever. If he wanted to go, then they had no choice but to let him go.

Right after breakfast, however, Hudson's plans changed dramatically.


It started out as something innocent. That tow truck, Mater, his name was, was just being himself. Although he was nineteen years old, it was clear that he had never really grown up. That was a concept foreign to him as he was just a child in a man's body.

That was the case on this particular day as he sneaked around the café as best as he could without being detected.

Everyone saw him, though.

"Mater, what on Earth are you doin'?" Sheriff wondered.

"Sssh!" he hissed. "I is a ninja!"

"A ninja?" Sheriff tried hard not to laugh as Mater kicked clumsily and swung his tow hook around, screaming like a banshee.

It was pretty amusing, really, but one of the humans, Ethel, had to duck in order to avoid being hit in the head by the wild tow hook.

"Mater, be careful with that thing!" Sheriff warned. He had been Mater's father since he was a baby.

Too late. Mater had accidentally pierced through Luigi's hood and, in one swift move, yanked out his battery. For a moment, there was no sound whatsoever at Flo's. The battery was dangling from Mater's hook and all anybody could do was stare in horror. Nobody was more shocked than Luigi himself, who then stalled.

Once again, you could have heard a pin drop.

Mater grinned sheepishly. "Oops!"

"Oops?!" Sheriff repeated incredulously. "That's all you can say?! Oops?!"

Mater shrunk back, feeling guilty for what he'd just done. "I'm sorry!"

"Great!" Sheriff groaned. "A two and a half hour trip to Ashgrove! Mater, you better tow him!"

The tow truck nodded solemnly. He hooked Luigi up.

"Two and a half hour trip?" Hudson repeated incredulously. That sounded about as far away from convenient as you could get.

"We used to have a clinic here in town", Sheriff explained. "Doctors left a couple of years ago to find more work elsewhere."

"So selfish", Sarge the army Jeep muttered bitterly.

"You don't have to travel two and a half hours", Hudson offered. "I'm a doctor. I mean, I just graduated medical school. I'd be happy to take a look at him for you."

Everyone stared at him in amazement.

"You're a doctor?" Sheriff echoed incredulously.

"I am", Hudson confirmed. He looked back at Luigi. "D'you want me to take a look at that for you?"

Luigi nodded. "I would appreciate that very much. Thank you." It sounded a lot better than driving two hours to get it looked at.


Even so, Luigi had to admit that he was nervous as he got on the lift inside the old, abandoned clinic. He was so used to being treated by the town's old mechanic, George McIntyre. Then he left and he became used to visiting the mechanics in Ashgrove. How did he know he could trust Hudson?

Still, he decided to take the chance and hoped there would be no dire consequences.

To the Fiat's relief, the process was quick, relatively painless and his battery was good as new.

"Thank you!" he exclaimed breathlessly. "Thank you so much! You have saved Luigi's life!"

"Well, I don't know about that", Hudson replied with a shrug and a small smile.


By mid-afternoon, everyone in town had heard of how well Hudson had treated Luigi.

"You saved him a two and a half hour drive, just to get medical attention!" Sheriff exclaimed admiringly.

There was a moment of silence as all of the residents of the small town held a conversation with just their eyes.

"You know, Hudson", Sheriff began, "do you think you'd consider stayin' here? I mean, we're in need of a doctor and you've said you got nowhere to be right now, so..."

Everyone looked at him hopefully, waiting for his answer.

Hudson thought about that. They had a point. He was travelling across the country, looking for work. Well, he'd found it. They couldn't keep travelling two and a half hours every time they needed to see a doctor! What if someone had a heart or engine attack? Or two cars crashed? It just wasn't going to work.


Besides, there was more to it than that. He'd also been travelling across the country to find somewhere nobody knew who he was. He'd found that too. If he headed to California or someplace, he didn't want to risk being recognised. Nobody connected to racing would think to find him in a small town like that. Plus, it was an isolated town off the map; tourists weren't exactly going to recognise him.

Not only that, but he'd found something he hadn't had in a very long time: people who cared about him. Admittedly, he'd been annoyed by their hospitality at first, but these were genuinely good and kind people. Kind of like the friends he had in Thomas- No! He wasn't going to think about them. He couldn't go back to Thomasville. Not now.

It had only just occurred to Hudson that he needed the residents of this small town as much as they needed him. He didn't have to acknowledge his past, but he didn't have to completely cut himself off from absolutely everyone on the planet either.

There was a lot left in me. I never got a chance to show 'em. That was how Hudson felt about being forced to get out of racing. That was much like Radiator Springs being passed by after the construction of the Interstate.

"All right", Hudson announced finally. "I'll stay."


And the rest was history. Doc Hudson set up a permanent home in Radiator Springs. He treated cars and humans alike. Eventually, his talent for fixing just about anything led to him being appointed as the town's judge.

Best of all, though, the more time Doc spent with the other residents, the more he liked them. He particularly become good friends with Sheriff. The two of them would often just park together late at night, talking about nothing in particular.

The Fabulous Hudson Hornet's racing days may have been over, but Doc felt like a champion just the same. After all, this wasn't an end; just a new beginning.

Like I said, very few ideas for this one. I was impressed just to get this.

Cars 2 reference in there. Did you spot it?