*** This is a fictional story. ***
Here he is, in his goregous spacous hotel suite room… sitting by the wide window at quiet night, overseeing the city view outside, and falling into deep thought…
Today he just came back from yet another TV interview… Sometimes it’s brand commercials, sometimes it’s public events, sometimes it’s movie shooting… It doesn’t matter what it was, he always felt the same way —- lonely, tired, bored.
He didn’t know anybody, even though they all cheered for him. Do they really know who him? Even his manager felt distant, more like a colleague than a friend. After work and dropped him back to his hotel or flat, his manager would immediately disappear. He would be by his own again…
He feels so lonely. He misses the old days. He was nobody, but he was happy. He was just a young kid, left home at 18, determined to cycle the world. He was broke, asking for places to stay or camp all the way, begging for donations & sponsors through his blog & vlogs, surviving on the expired foods disposed by the supermarkets, sometimes doing strange jobs to make a few bucks. But he was happy. As long as he could find a host to stay with, as long as he had water & foods, as long as his bike & equipments were good enough to use & nothing was broken, he was happy. Every person he met on the street was his friend, every animal he saw on the road was his pet. He wasn’t lonely. He didn’t worry much about money. After all, he didn’t have money at the beginning. He knew that he would get by somehow. He just continued to enjoy the scenery on the way, no matter it was deserts or deep snow or forest, everything he saw was so beautiful, he felt thankful to be out there… he really was.
Until one day, one of his sponsors wanted him to be their commercial. They said that it would only take one day. They would fly him in & fly him back to where he was, plus a generous new fat tire bike that he had been begging for, and a big salary (which would be big enough for him to survive one year!!) His savings almost hit the bottom, and recently his donations were getting slow too… Okay, maybe he could take a one week break, and come back to continue his journey. So he accepted it.
However, things started to heat up. Turn out this commercial was used for the sponsor’s global business. It was shown in several major countries. And, despite he had bad nutrition & poor education, he was tall & trim, with sculpted body thank to his everyday cycling & hiking. He also had this beautiful deep eyes, boyish smile (who would have guessed that he had been on the road for 8 years!!) yet badboy feeling, looked like a male model even in torn smelly clothes. Young girls over different countries all feel in love with him just by seeing this commercial. Men & parents were curious who he was. Another another poster shoot, another TV interview. Turned out he was multi-talented too, he could speak some simple Chinese because he travelled in China for a year. He learnt guitar from some trailer house people in Utah, and he made a few songs of his own. He also memorized some French & Spanish from the locals. He was also a natural with horse-riding & acting.
Soon he has more & more sponsors & job offers. Some talent companies & music companies want to sign him up too. He has been off the road for 8 months already. His bank account has seen numbers that he never would have dreamed of. He thinks he might had enough money to live 10 years on the road already!! But all these opportunities seem a pity to pass on, and he is worried that now everybody knows his face, it may be difficult for him to travel invisibly or ask for free place to stay…
He thinks, would he miss all these nice things around, comfortable place to stay, huge income, fans and jobs?? The answer is he doesn’t know. After all, he is only 26 year old.
He only knew that he missed his freedom, adventures, amazing nature, friendly strangers who warmed his heart… He was happy, now not really. He felt trapped.
Next day, he carefully asks his manager, “do you think I can take a break?” His manager immediately jumps from his chair and opens his eyes widely. “Are you kidding me? We just signed a 5-year contract with Xxxx remember? Also, your schedule is fully-booked until next June!” “Ohhh…” He replies quietly. Then, he doesn’t say anything anymore.
Gradually, he refuses all the invitations & obligations unless necessary. He becomes more & more quiet, although he is still so popular, you can see his face everywhere, no matter huge signs on the buildings, or front pages of magazines. His quietness seems to attract our admiration…
And then one day, his manager goes to his flat to pick him up as usual, but he isn’t there. He only left a note on the marble kitchen counter. It said, “Sorry for your troubles. I’ll not return. For any legal or financial issues, please talk to my lawyer & accountant. They have my authorization for any issues.” On top of the neatly hand-written note lies 2 name cards, nothing else.
And then, he is gone.
Some years later, in the outback of Australia, a teenage girl sitting in front of her family camping car, chatting with a mature but very handsome stranger traveling with an old gravel bike. “You look like this guy.” She points at a stained old magazine under the mug.
He gives a weak smile, finishes up the tea that he received, and then gone.
*** The end ***