Abandoned Double-Decker On Road Number Three in Alaska

Alaska, Road Number Three to Talkeetna, 2015

Forests with moose and some grizzly bears surround road number three from Anchorage to Talkeetna. This beautiful landscape is sometimes disturbed by the presence of odd houses or rusty pickup trucks, yet nothing is as bizzare as a red bus that suddenly appears on the right to the surprise of drivers. There would be, perhaps, nothing astonishing about a bus being left on the side of a highway (even if it left on a very strange parking lot with a few old half-burnt cars), if it had not been for the fact that it is a double-decker. A double-decker that could  have well been seen on the streets of London fifty years ago.

London, 1950.

‘ Why are you doing this Jack?’ –she asked with tears in her hazelnut eyes.
‘ I told you, it is my dream. I just need to do this. I will be back in six months, honey. Just in time for our beautiful, even if slightly pompous, wedding.’
‘I still don’t understand you. A week ago we were walking down our favourite alley in Regent’s Park, deciding what kind of music we should have for our special day, when suddenly you announced that you were going to Alaska. And if that was not crazy enough on its own, you are also shipping a double decker, which I don’t know, how you got your hands on, and why, if I may add. It escapes me. Tell me, how did you do it? Why am I even asking. That’s not the answer I need. Why are you doing this? Is something wrong? Don’t you want to marry me? It must be this. You just don’t want it.’
‘No, darling,I just need some time on my own, before I commit myself to you. Forever’- he said, giving her one of his most charming smiles.
‘But why a double-decker? That’s insane! I always wanted to have a normal husband.’- she replied, slightly subdued.
‘We both know that there is no such thing as normal people. And even if there was, normal is boring. And I just happen to have this crazy dream of driving through Alaska in a double-decker’.
‘With grizzlies around you?’ –she laughed incredulously.
‘Of course, grizzlies add a tinge of excitement to the whole escapade.’
‘And why a double-decker?’
‘That’s my sweet secret. ‘- he answered, kissing her lightly on a peach cheek.
The truth was, he had no idea why he had decided to go to Alaska, or why should he do so in a double-decker. For the past few months he thought he had been living in  an almost fugue-like state, so it didn’t surprise him, when everything but infrequent sight of double-decker on the street, resulted in him deciding to ship one to Alaska.
Having said goodbye to his fiancée, he set off. He should be feeling something- some guilt for having abandoned his fiancée without providing any reasonable explanation, some doubts about quitting his well-paid job and some concern for his old and frail parents. Yet, he felt nothing. And this nothingness was quite refreshing.

First days in Alaska were incredible. For the first time in his life he was completely alone, not having to care about other people’s opinion, which surprisingly, was very favourable. Locals loved the idea of a crazy Brtish man arriving in the wilderness in a double-decker. Some of them had even offered to pay him for a wedding rental. He declined all the offers politely. For now, he didn’t need money and he felt good in his funny bus. Strangely, the mere thought of a wedding made him feel he had made a right decision to come here. He loved his fiancée and did want to get marry. Eventually. But Alaskan dream seemed more important now. They say that women are complicated creatures but who can understand the mind of a young man? All humans are unpredictable.

It was a beautiful drive. Jack was enjoying the sunshine, finding the rocking of the bus soothing. He even got used to the fumes and oddly found the smell appeasing.  Planning the rest of the trip in his head, he was quite glad he was soon going to be reunited with his fiancée. He even sent her a letter saying how sorry he was for leaving her with so few explanations, yet made sure she understood he needed this time before he could have a family on his own.  A sudden wave of happiness overcame him, the kind of happiness that is most valuable as it springs from small, seemingly ordinary activites that make one feel alive. He even started whistling and became ravenously hungry.
Luckily, a parking spot was nearby.

He was about to bite into a delicious sandwich, when he saw a man approaching.
The man was wearing a chequered shirt. He had an enormous reddish-blond beard and piercing blue eyes. The ice-cold stare made Jack think of psychopaths in thriller movies he adored.
‘ Morning, mate. Have you heard of recent bear attacks? Two days ago a man was mauled to death by a grizzly. Firstly lost the arm, then the leg. Lots of blood. He must have been suffering. You know, there even was…’
‘ Yes, I get it, thanks for the warning’ – Jack cut him off, starting to feel uncomfortable.
‘Although you know some say it might have been a serial killer. After all, living here, in seclusion…who would blame a guy for going bonkers?’ – the man’s beard  was shaking violently with every laugh.
‘ Well yes, who knows’- said Jack, thinking about getting back into his bus as soon as possible.
‘You have a lovely bus. Mate, you are a weirdo yourself. Who drives a bus liken this in Alaska? Is it from London?’
‘Yes. Sorry, I really need to get going. Have to be in Talkeetna by noon. It was nice to meet you, though. Take care.’
An arm put suddenly on his shoulder stopped him from going anywhere.
‘Not so fast, mate. Just show me around your bus. Then you can go to Talkeetna’.

Year 2015
Jack never came back to London, nor did he even arrive in Talkeetna. Only the  strange parking lot and sad, abandoned double-decker could tell the story of what happened to him. Was it a grizzly bear attack?Was it the stranger he encountered? Or maybe he decided to live in the wilderness? After all, humans are everything but predictable.