Twice Upon A Time

Part 12- Boom! You Cannot Live Twice

Josh's POV:

Alright. I've had it for the night.

I got in my Volkswagen Jetta finally, after learning that Bree will be picked up by her mum within half an hour. I was too jaded out to hang around with her. I bid her goodbye and asked her not to worry too much. Also, calling me after she gets home is an absolute must, I told her. Though I must admit, that doppelganger stuff did freak me out a bit.

I started my car and rode off into the night, which seemed to be only getting darker.

I stopped my car at a traffic signal. The night was sultrier than usual too.

It was then that I noticed something weird. A toy car, about the size of a shoe-box, was almost underneath my car. I found that funny.

So, anyway I started my car again and to my great surprise, found that the toy car was actually beside me as I rode. It's quite incredible for a toy car to maintain the pace of an actual car. But that wasn't bothering me. What was bothering me though was the mere fact as to why someone would follow me with a remote control car and if he/she did, where was he/she controlling it from?

Another signal and I stopped my car. I looked around myself. There were about a hundred cars on a typical Saturday night as expected. It could be just about anyone.

Hang on! Was that a beeping noise?

Shit. The noise sounded like a timer bomb. It must be fitted to the tiny car.

I picked it up. Goddamn yes! There was a ticking noise coming from inside the toy.

The signal went green in the meantime.

"Hey kid, you gonna ride or what?" an old man in a green car barked out.

"Yeah, sure." This was a one way, no-stop road. I can't park my car on the sideway. I slowed down, and allowed all cars to pass me.

In the meantime, I just left the accelerator on 1 and left the steering, using my hands occasionally to only guide the car in the proper direction, while I tried to open the toy up.

I was sweating buckets like a pig. This could be a disaster. I fear not for my life. But this could kill hundreds around here.

Finally I managed to pull it open with some spare rod-like thing that for some reason I left in my car's glove compartment.

I pulled it open. Inside, there were at least a hundred wires of all shades of yellow, red and green color.

In the meantime....

"Oh shit!" I just about managed to turn the steering wheel at the right moment before I banged into a truck!!

"Watch where you going!" screamed out the driver.

I had to multitask. Keep my eyes on the road, as well as off it.

There were so many wires, I had no clue whatsoever which one to tear apart. And no, this is not a Hollywood movie that you can get away with pulling the wrong wire.

My heart was thumping against my chest.

I can't even leave the bloody thing anywhere. There are no water bodies nearby whatsoever.

I calmed myself and tried to think.

"Hey watch it! Are you drunk?" another driver screamed as I nearly escaped another fatal accident.

Think, think Josh, think! Concentrate!!

Wait. This is no time to panick. Whoever has set this thing up, he/she knew that I will notice it, because it was so close to my car. They want to end my life. Blast me out of the picture.. Hmmm. But there's more to it. They want ME doing it. But why? They obviously want me to do something to the car. Why? There's more to it than meets the eye. Think out of the box, Josh!!

Oh I get it! This is not a timer. They will blow this thing up with a remote. As, and when they want.

I'm so goddamn stupid! Of course, whoever is controlling this has to be following me nearby. Otherwise I will be out of range. Now, if I pull the wrong wire, it will mean that they will die as well in the blast. So clever.. So they made it look like an ordinary timer, whereas it's actually a remote controlled bomber. And.... yes! Listen to the ticking! It's that of a watch, perhaps placed inside the toy.

So, let me analyze this from their viewpoint.. I won't pull the wire, dreading that I might pull the wrong one, and if I do, I will die. So, instead I will carry this with me, till I reach a deserted place or a river and then I throw it in the river. But meanwhile, as I am holding the toy, they are well and truly out of range, perhaps as they wil already know that I have driven the path to the secluded area, and after spotting me with a pair of binoculars from a distance perhaps, after seeing that I'm holding the toy with NOBODY around, they will blast the toy, and me, in the process. Simple. No witness, no investigation, mysterious death, even no trace of the body found, as it will decay around the river, or better still, if I swim into the river with it, not even my remains will be found. Such a simple plan. Simple, yet effective.

So.. What should I do? These wires are all bullshit obviously. I pulled one out. Then I tore all of them. Of course, supportive of my predictions, nothing happened. And yes, I pulled out a tiny watch too from underneath the wires. It was doing the ticking noise, making it seem like a timer bomb.

So.. What should I do? The real bomb thing must be present in the battery which is molded in and is impossible to open with bare hands.

Think, think, THINK JOSH!!

Ding dong! Idea!

It's dangerous to say the least, but worth a shot. They need to see me holding the bomb. And then they will do it. Okay..

So I drove over the Brooklyn Bridge and stopped at a secluded spot, around the banks of the East River.. It was an eerily calm and secluded zone.. Just like they must have wanted.

And just as I anticipated, BOOM!! The blast was thunderous and monstrous. Took place without any warning, and sudden! Just like that! It almost shook the entire neighborhood. People started screaming and calling for the fire brigade. My life seems to have come to an end..

NEW YORK TIMES HEADLINE:
"A severe blast on the banks of the East River in New York City took the life of an innocent young man last night, as NYPD is left bewildered regarding the cause or manner of death. The body has been identified as that of a 19- year old Caucasian or South Asian male, Josh, having no last name, who, till recently was a student of incredible talent at NYC College. No immediate family members of the deceased youngster have been discovered yet but the NYPD are believed to be on the lookout."

[Author: Pic at the top depicts a photo from a leading local newspaper showing Josh's car on fire from being blown to pieces]

Josh's POV:

Oh, and by the way, don't worry. I am not dead yet. The story goes on and it's not over yet. Rather, it's just the start.

Regarding how I survived, I will leave that to your imagination.