Back to the Future Part II (8 page)

‘You know Dad.’ Marlene went on about her grandmother's offer. ‘He’d probably get, like, pissquanced.'

‘Pissquanced?’ Grandma asked with a distasteful frown.

You know, insulted.’ Marlene answered. ‘He’d think that, well

Her grandmother nodded, suddenly understanding. 'That we were reminding him that he can’t afford it?' She sighed as if she had heard this story over and over again. 'Poor Marty. He had always been so concerned about what people think about him. what they say about him behind his back.’ She glanced at her upside-down husband. How many times have we heard it George: "Mom. I can't let 'em, think I'm, cheap!" " 
I
 can't 
let 'em think I
'
m not with it!"
 “I can’t let ’em think I'm chicken!” '

Lorraine and Marlene walked past Jennifer's hiding place, then turned past the living-room sofa to go into the back of the house, as Grandpa George once again started up his machine.

Jennifer looked past them, through the doorway.

There, at the very back of the house, was another French door, with another doorknob. It might be a way out. At the very least, it was better than being stuck in the closet. Jennifer bit her lip. Should she?

She opened the closet door. The three others were busy talking as they moved away from her. Maybe, if Jennifer moved quietly enough, she could get over to those other doors without anybody noticing. It was worth a try. She really couldn’t stay in this closet forever. And, as she snuck past them, she could still hear what they had to say. After all, they were talking about Marty’s future, and her future, too!

Jennifer crept from her hiding place.

‘You’re right ...’ Grandpa George slowly answered his wife.

Grandma Lorraine sighed again. ‘About thirty years ago Marty decided to prove he wasn’t chicken - and he ended up in an automobile accident. ’

Thirty years ago? Jennifer frowned. That would be back in 1985, wouldn’t it? But nothing like that had happened to Marty - at least, it hadn’t happened yet.

‘Oh, you mean with the Rolls-Royce?’ Marlene asked matter-of-factly. ‘You’re garbled on that Grandma. That wasn’t Dad's fault. He told me so himself.’

Jennifer tiptoed out into the open. The three others had paused at the entryway to what seemed to be the kitchen. In a minute, she figured, they'd watt into that room. Then she would have a clear path to that back door, and a way out of here.

‘And what does your mother say?’ Grandma insisted. ‘She was there too. you know.’

Your mother?

Jennifer stopped moving. She had been there, too - with Marty? What could have happened? Or what - she reminded herself - was going to happen? Marlene shrugged her broad shoulders.

‘Mom's never talked about it.’

Grandma Lorraine wagged her index finger at Marlene.

‘Well, the truth is, if your father had just used a little common sense, that accident would have never happened. That accident started a chain reaction that sent Marty's life straight down the tubes!’

‘Now. Lorraine...’ Grandpa George chided slowly.

Jennifer couldn't believe what Marty’s mother was saying. Marty wouldn’t do something like that, just because he’d hit somebody’s car - would he? Jennifer had married someone whose life had gone down the tubes?

George ' Lorraine insisted, ‘she might as well know the truth.' Her finger wagged at Marlene one more time. 'If not for that accident, your father’s life would have turned out very differently. The man in the Rolls-Royce wouldn't have pressed charges or sued him, Marty wouldn't have broken his hand wouldn't have given up on his music, and he wouldn't have spent all those years feeling sorry for himself, Complaining how 
life gave him
 such a raw deal.’ She made a clucking sound with her tongue against her teeth. ‘He wouldn’t have just given up on life.’

Marlene rolled her eyes upward, as if she didn't want to hear all this. But Grandpa George nodded his head in agreement.

'You’re right...' he said slowly. ‘You’re right.’ 

Grandma turned back to Marlene again. ‘The real reason your mother married him was because she felt sorry for him. Such a sweet girl. She deserved better.’

Jennifer deserved better? Marty’s life had gone down the tubes? They had gotten married in the Chapel of Love? But Marty was such a sweet guy! How could the future turn out this way? Jennifer didn't like the sound of any of this!

There was a great clatter overhead. Jennifer froze. Someone was coming down the stairs, fast.

But Jennifer was right out in the middle of the living-room. There was nowhere she could hide. She was right out in the open!

Before she could think what to do, Marty Junior jumped into view.

‘Hi, Mom!’ Junior called as he ran past her, following the other three, who had all finally gone through the door into the kitchen.

Oh brother, Jennifer thought with relief. Marty Junior - who also looked remarkably like his father -hadn't even looked at her! Lucky for her, he paid as much attention to most things as his father did!

The cheerful computer voice rumbled to life:

‘Welcome home, Marty, oh master of the house, king of the castle, lord of the manor!’

The computer greeting - that must mean that Marty Senior was coming home!

She heard another noise behind her - a soft, shooshing. noise - the same sound she had heard the last time the front door opened. And she was still in the middle of the room!

There was another door, half-open, at the far end of the living-room. She jumped inside. She glanced behind her long enough to see she was in a bathroom - not all that different from bathrooms she knew. She quickly closed the door behind her, leaving just enough space for her to peek out.

Her heart almost stopped when she saw who walked through the living room and past her toward the kitchen. It was Marty Senior, her Marty, decked out in a business suit - although for some reason he was wearing two ties. But he looked so much older, so much greyer. Could he have changed this much in thirty years?

‘Hi, everybody,' he called as he walked into the kitchen, out of Jennifer's view. ‘I’m home!’

Maybe, she thought, she should get out of here herself. But where could she go? She turned around at last to get a good look at this bathroom.

Wait a minute. This bathroom had another door, right behind her back! She was lucky that no one had walked in while she had been looking out the other way.

She turned to the second door and cautiously opened it a crack, and found herself looking into the kitchen.

Grandfather George waved from his harness.

'Hi, son...'

Marty senior grinned at his parents.

'Hey Dad, how're you feeling? how's the back?’

'OK ...' his father answered after a moment's thought.

Lorraine stepped forward with that sweet, motherly smile of hers.

'How are things at work, Marty?' she asked gently.

Marty shrugged and sighed.

'Oh same old, same old.'

So everyone was in the kitchen. Jennifer realised that maybe now she could leave through the other door and get out of this place without anybody seeing her.

She turned back to the door she’d entered through, and realised, as soon as she looked through the crack she'd left there, that everybody wasn’t in the room beyond. Marty Junior stood in the next room, calling out numbers at a big screen. The screen responded by showing six different pictures for six different television programmes. The thing Marty Junior was watching was some sort of giant, multi-channel video screen - a screen that hung crooked on the wall. Jennifer had to push back an urge to rush out there and try to straighten the picture out.

Marty Senior walked into the room behind his son. He picked up a pile of papers from a basket and quickly sorted through them.’Ah,’ he muttered to himself. ‘Nothin’ but junk fax!’

He turned to his son. ‘Junior! Dinner time!'

Junior didn't budge.

‘But I'm watching TV!' he shouted over his shoulder. ‘Well, get your glasses,’ Marty Senior insisted. ‘We eat at the table when your grandparents are here.’ Junior got up as slowly as he could.

‘Aw, Dad,’ he whined, ‘I can only watch two shows at once on my glasses!’

Marty Senior laughed and shook his head. ‘Yeah, you kids really have it tough! When I was your age, if I wanted to watch two shows at once, I had to put two sets next to each other! ’

Marty Junior didn't seem impressed. He wandered back toward the kitchen. His father straightened the video screens, adding ‘Let's have some art, please!'

The six TV programmes disappeared, replaced by what looked like a very large, bright painting of a bowl of fruit! Marty Senior turned and followed his son from the room.

Jennifer realised the whole family was going to sit down to dinner, all in one place, out of sight of the bathroom door. There probably wouldn't be a better time for her to get out of here.

But - even if that French door led outside - where would she go? She didn’t know anything at all about the future! What had happened to Marty and Doc, anyway? How could she possibly find them.

For the first time, Jennifer realised she might be lost in the future for good.

If only it wasn’t too late!

Doc Brown steered the car into Hilldale, a once-fashionable section of town that - to put it mildly - had seen better days.

The cops, after identifying Jennifer from her thumb print, would have brought her here - to the McFly place. It was standard police procedure. What wouldn't have been standard was whatever happened to Jennifer after she got here - especially if an older, 2015 version of that same Jennifer had been at home. The implications ...

Doc Brown didn’t want to think about these implications. This whole thing had gotten too complicated already.

Doc looked over at his passenger as he landed the car. Marty was all smiles, turning quickly from the front windshield to the side window and back again, trying to see as much as he could in the darkness.

'So I live in Hilldale?' he bubbled. 'Great! They just built it! Everybody says it's a real hip place to live.' He shook his fist victoriously. ‘Way to go. McFly!'

Doc didn't have the heart to tell Marty about what happened to the neighbourhood. The less Marty knew about the future, the better.

Doc set down the car around the corner from the McFly place - near enough to do the job quickly, but not so close as to be conspicuous.

Now. all he needed was Einstein’s nose, and a little luck, and they could keep those implications he wouldn't think about from getting any worse. He opened his gull-wing door and climbed from the car, then turned to fish behind his seat for Jennifer’s purse which, fortuitously, had been left behind in the car.

Ah! There it was, right behind that hoverboard Marty had picked up somewhere. He pulled the purse out and stuck it under Einstein's nose.

‘All right, Einie, pick up Jennifer's scent.'

The dog snuffled the purse.

‘You got it?'

The dog barked enthusiastically.

‘Good!’ Doc Brown smiled. 'Let’s find her.’

He looked over at his eager teenage sidekick. There was one more thing that needed to be taken care of.

Doc pointed to the car. ‘Marty, stay here. Change clothes. If I need you. I’ll holler.'

Marty stared back at him. open-mouthed But. Doc

Doe cut off Marty’s protest before he could begin. We can t risk you running into yourself,’ he said tirmly. C'mon, Einie.'

Einstein jumped from
 
the car and ran straight toward the McFly house, Good! That meant Jennifer had 
to
 be 
inside.
 
With
 
luck
, 
he and his
 
dog could
 get in there, grab the young lady, and get out in a matter of seconds. If not...

Doc sighed softly and headed for the house. There wasn’t any time for ’if nots.’ There was only time to get the job done, before things got even more complicated.

So this was Hilldale?

Marty had gotten excited as soon as he had seen the twin signs by the entrance: HILLDALE - THE ADDRESS OF SUCCESS.

But here they were, in this classy place, and Doc had told him to stay with the DeLorean and change his clothes!

Marty pulled off his future hat, jacket and shoes, and fished in the gym bag for his regular 1985 clothes. He pulled out his sneakers first, put them on and knelt down to tie them. He missed the power laces already.

A dog barked behind him. Marty glanced back, and saw a dog and a leash with nobody on the other end. The leash was just sort of hanging up there in the air. Of course! Marty thought. It must be some kind of automatic dogwalker. Wow, the future!

The dog trotted obediently around the corner - the same corner Doc had taken a minute before. Maybe, Marty considered, now that he had his shoes on and all, maybe he should take a closer look at that dog, and, maybe, whatever else might be around the corner, like his future house. Sure, like Doc said, maybe it was dangerous to know too much about your future, but - hey - he already knew he lived here. What 
could it hurt if he went and took a little stroll?

Marty dumped the gym bag in the back of the DeLorean and trotted around the corner.

If only Marty hadn’t been so curious about his own future, what was about to happen might never have happened. Even if Marty had merely looked behind him before starting forward, it might have been prevented. Because if Marty had looked behind him, he might have seen the flying taxi coming down, the same flying taxi that old Biff Tannen had flagged down a little while ago. Perhaps Marty might have even seen old Biff in that flying taxi. But Marty didn't look behind him. He walked forward toward his future residence. And that would prove to be a serious mistake.

‘There!’ the old guy yelled from the back seat. ‘Up there!’

Fred glanced over his shoulder to see the old guy pointing straight ahead. Fred turned back to look at the road. Yeah, there was the parked DeLorean. There was a kid kneeling in front of it, putting on a pair of shoes. At least, that's what it looked like the kid was doing. Fred wondered how many cars got stolen every night in a place like Hilldale?