Two Fish

twenty one || alaska

Elver’s mother smiled sadly when he took the keys for the black car out of the pot in the hall. Had they made eye contact, she would have apologised but Elver’s eyes were on Alaska. She watched them leave, but she couldn’t let them go without saying anything.

“Will you be back for supper?” she asked. Elver stopped in his tracks and thought for a moment.

“When is it?”

“An hour and a half? Maybe two,” she said. He shrugged.

“I don’t know, Mum. I’ll ring you later.”

“Ok. Have fun,” she said. They left.

The black car was spacious with wide, smooth seats and more legroom than Alaska needed. Even though she and Elver shared an armrest, their arms never touched. He drove cautiously, still getting used to the feel of the car. The brakes were more sensitive than what he was used to, and the gearstick more smooth.

“Are you sure you can drive this thing?” Alaska asked when he jerked to a halt at a set of traffic lights.

“Yeah, course I can,” he said, sliding it into second gear after take-off.

“Where’re we going?”

“Wait and see,” he said. Alaska groaned.

“Can’t you just tell me?” There was a chill in the air, cold enough that Alaska had to shut the window. “Is it much longer?”

“Not much,” Elver said. He glanced at her. “Sorry. You really don’t like cars, do you?”

She clenched her jaw and shook her head.

“We’ll be there soon,” he said.

Soon couldn’t come fast enough. Elver drove along a forest-lined road until they came to a long strip of abandoned tarmac. At one end was a derelict hut, next to which sat a rusted car with no wheels. When he stopped, Alaska jumped out and paced around the car. Elver got out too.

“We’re here now,” he said.

“Yeah, I saw.” She perched on the bonnet and stared at the sky. It was greyer than it should have been in July. “So what happens here?”

“It’s where I learnt to drive.”

“Surely it’s not legal?”

“It’s private land. One of my dad’s friends owns it, let us come here when I was learning.”

“But I can’t drive,” Alaska said. Elver laughed.

“That’s why we’re here. I’m going to teach you.”

“Are you allowed?”

“Probably not.” He shrugged. “But legality doesn’t matter here.”

Alaska looked worried. She frowned at him. “I’m not breaking the law just to do something I don’t even want to do.”

“We’re not breaking the law. This is private land,” he said. “Hop in.”

“The driver’s seat?”

“The very one.”

She did as she was told and Elver sat next to her. He made

sure the car was off.

“First thing’s first – do you know what the pedals are?”

Alaska looked down at her feet. “There’s an accelerator, and a brake. But there are three here.”

“The clutch,” Elver said. He felt strangely powerful, having this one-up on Alaska. “The brake’s in the middle, the clutch on the left.”

Alaska put her feet on them in turn. “Clutch, brake, accelerate,” she said to herself, gripping the steering wheel. Elver put his hand on the gear stick.