WEDNESDAY

MAY 20

2015

Multiple clocks coated the wall of the messy garage, ticking incessantly as multiple homemade devices suddenly come to life. First, a small radio turned on, crackling with static before it tuned into a strong enough signal. "-vote on this today. In local news, many proud parents are getting ready to celebrate at Hill Valley High School's Class of 2015 prepares for their graduation ceremony tomorrow-"

As the broadcast continued, a mechanical arm picked up a can of Pedigree dog food and brought it over to an electric can opener. Both devices whirred loudly as they carried out their functions, despite being very old. The mechanical arm then moved and tilted the can, the food sliding out into a dog bowl with the name HAWKING written on the side. A small Berger Picard puppy trotted over to the bowl and immediately dug into his breakfast. The puppy was too distracted by his food to notice the side door of the garage open, revealing a sixteen-year-old boy.

The boy had messy blonde hair and brown eyes, and was dressed in an orange flannel shirt with a white t-shirt underneath, jeans, and vintage white sneakers. As he entered the garage, he placed his skateboard on the floor and then put his school bag on top of it. "Hey, Hawk'! How you doin', buddy?" The boy gently kicking the skateboard and bag across the garage as he reached down to pet the puppy. The skateboard only came to a stop as it collides with a large object hidden beneath a filthy tarp. After giving the dog affection, the boy approached what had to be the largest item in the garage:

An old guitar amplifier.

He smiled as he hooked up a small electric guitar to the oversized devices. He went to each dial and turned them up to ten. Even when the guitar was just plugged in, the amp was already making a loud whirring sound. The boy stood in front of the device, holding the neck of the guitar in one hand and a guitar pick in the other.

"You ready, Hawk'?" the boy asked. In response, the puppy nervously climbed back into his doggy bed and buried his head under the blanket. The boy looked back to the amp and took a deep breath before playing the first note.

BWOOOOM!

The boy's hair and flannel shirt were blown back by the force of the amp. There was an expression of pure glee on his face as he saw that the device was still intact. "It works...IT WORKS! I KNEW I COULD GET IT TO WORK!" he exclaimed happily. At the sound of his master's excitement, Hawking stuck his head out from beneath the blanket, panting happily. The boy immediately began playing the intro to a classic rock song:

"Deep down in Louisiana close to New Orleans
Way back up in the woods among the evergreens
There stood a log cabin made of earth and wood
Where lived a country boy named Johnny B. Goode
Who never ever learned to read or write so well
But he could play a guitar just like a-ringin' a bell!"

He stumbled his words slightly as he danced back across the garage and accidentally bumped into a table housing a model of Hill Valley, knocking over a few of the painstakingly crafted buildings. He simply danced back the other way nonchalantly.

"Go, go!
Go, Johnny! Go, go!
Go, Johnny! Go, go, go!
Go, Johnny! Go, go!
Go, Johnny! Go, go, go!
Johnny B. Goode!"

Hawking walked over to the boy as he sang and howled loudly along with his singing. The boy laughed and jokingly howled with him, but he immediately stopped playing as he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He quickly answered the phone, even though his hearing had not adjusted from the sound of the amp. He answered a little too loudly, "Hello?!"

"Gah!" he heard the person on the other line drop their phone from the noise, but they caught it mid-air. Once they had their phone again, the boy heard a familiar (and slightly annoying) voice. "Verne, where the heck are you!? Were you tampering with that amp again?"

"Yes! And I got it working perfectly, Jules! Here! Listen!" Verne put the phone down and prepared to play another melody.

"Wait! Stop!" Jules ordered, getting Verne's attention. "If you play any more music, you're gonna be late for school!"

"What are you talking about? I've still got an hour," Verne pointed out as he picked up the phone.

"Dad never set the clocks in the garage back- they're still 25 minutes late," Jules explained. "And hasn't your phone been glitching out?"

"What? But my phone says-" Verne took the phone away from his ear and checked the time. His eyes widened as it glitched back and forth between the hours. "How is this thing always breaking?! I MADE IT!" He groaned, "Look, just...ugh! Meet me at the side entrance!"

Jules sighed, "Alright, but you better not end up late on the last day of class." He hung up on his younger brother, wondering if he'd even make it before first period.

Verne quickly grabbed his skateboard from beside the tarp-covered object, and pets Hawking's head before dashing out the door. He made his way to the street, hopped on his skateboard, and grabbed hold of a passing car. Verne used this method to expertly glide from car to car, managing not to tip off any of the drivers (save for one surprisingly cavalier Jeep driver.) During his journey, he passed by the Cafe 80s and waved to some patrons inside who he was familiar with. He smirked as they waved back.

Eventually, Verne made it to the side entrance of Hill Valley High School. He looked back and forth to make sure he was not being watched.

Jules was inside, waiting for him to get there. Jules took after his mother, with curly brown hair and brown eyes. He was dressed in a buttoned shirt with a sweater vest over it, and dark jeans. He sighed in relief as his brother came through the side entrance. "Thank goodness you made it. Yeah, you're late, but it's between first and second period. As long as Strickland doesn't catch-"

"Hold it right there, Verne Brown!" a familiar voice called out to the boys. They both concealed their eye rolls as they turned to face Stanley Strickland Jr, donned in his usual HALL MONITOR sash. "I have it on good authority that you weren't in first period. How many times is it now that I've caught you trying to avoid punishment, Verne?" he asked smugly.

"You don't need to rub it in, Stan," Jules groaned. He was tired of dealing with Strickland, even though he wasn't usually the one being punished.

"Watch yourself there, Jules," Stan warned. "If you keep on trying to help your brother like this, you'll end up just like him."
"Did you need something, Prickland?" Verne said smugly. Jules tried not to laugh at Verne's "nickname" for Stan.

The hall monitor puffed his cheeks, flustered. "To the Principal's Office. Now!" he ordered, pointing down the hall.

Verne shrugged before looking to his brother. "I'll see you at lunch," he said before strolling in the direction Stan was pointing. Stan followed him down the hall, just to make sure Verne didn't go someplace else. Jules sighed as his brother was taken to the principal's office, again. He headed to his next class before the bell rang.

Stan threw open the door to the principal's office, surprising his father enough to make him yelp in surprise. Stan said, "Dad! I caught Verne Brown again!"

Strickland sighed as he realized it was just his son and Verne. "He's been here plenty of times, Stan," Strickland pointed out. "No need to get excited."

"You heard him, Stanley. Run along now," Verne suggested smugly. Stan gave him a look of total contempt before heading out of the door. Verne shrugged off the glance and then went to sit in front of Principal Strickland's desk.

Principal Strickland had a similar look of contempt on his face, but he looked slightly less contempt than his son. "Verne Brown, you have been tardy countless days of the school year, and missed more school days without excuse than is normally allowed."

"But I did have an excuse. I'm just bad at keeping track of time," Verne explained.

"That is your own priority, Brown. However, I can't let these frequent absences go unpunished. I was going to tell you at the end of the day, but since Stan pulled you in here... I must tell you you'll have to repeat the tenth grade."

Verne's calm and collected manner faded almost instantly. "Wait...no. No, no, no. There has to be something I can do. C-Can't I make up for the missed hours somehow?"

Strickland looked less contempt and more concerned now. "Verne, the cumulative hours you have missed is probably longer than what's allowed in summer school. I believe you would learn more if you repeated the grade." Verne slumped back in the chair, barely able to process this new development.

"Repeating the tenth grade...repeating the tenth grade..." Verne repeated to himself as he and his brother walked home from school. "Do you think if I say it enough, it'll stop sounding as bad as it is?"

"No matter how you say it, it sounds pretty bad." Jules frowned. "You can't avoid telling Mom and Dad about this, you know."

"I mean, I can try. Like Dad says..." Verne then put on the voice of his father, "'If you put your mind to it, you can accomplish anything.'"

Jules smiled at his brother's optimism. "Yeah, that's a good mindset to have, but it's still an inconvenience to repeat an entire grade."

Verne sighed, running his hands down his face. "Ugh. They're going to be mad..."

"If you're anxious about how Mom and Dad are gonna react, we can tell them together." Jules put an arm around Verne's shoulder. "Well, I still think you should be the one to tell them, but I'll be there, Verne, don't worry."

Verne smirked, also putting his arm around his brother's shoulder. "Thanks, Jules."

"You're welcome, brother." Jules smirked back and the two headed back home peacefully.

-Later that night-

Huey Lewis and the News played over the sound system as the numerous party guests ate and chatted amongst themselves. Verne and Jules stuck together, both sipping on fruit punch and greeting guests every once in a while.

As Jules got more punch for himself, he bumped into someone. She had a brown bob of hair and kind of looked like a young, female version of Marty McFly. Probably because she was his daughter. Jules greeted her with familiarity, "Hey, Marley~"

"Oh! Hey, nerd~!" Marley greeted playfully. "Great party, huh?"

He smiled, blushing slightly. "Yeah, it is. My parents went all out for my graduation."

"I've noticed. So, how are you feeling?" she asked.

"Pretty good. I haven't decided a college yet, but I should have many options. How about you?"

"I've been thinking of this music college one state over," Marley revealed.

Jules looked nervous about her leaving, but he attempted to hide it with a smile. "That sounds great, Marley. You might even be a better musician than your dad."

"Oh, I have no doubt about that," Marley joked. She looked over at a nearby food table. Standing there were two couples, both hand-in-hand as they chatted: one couple was Marty and Jennifer McFly, and the other of Doctor Emmett Brown and Clara Clayton-Brown.

As Jules looked at them, he asked Marley, "How are your parents doing?" It was strange to Jules that he had seen Marty and Jennifer as teenagers, but mostly he had seen them as middle-aged adults. That's just how time travel was.

"Oh, the usual. Worried sick about their little girl leaving home. How about yours?"

"They're doing good. I think my parents are a little less worried about me leaving for college. I mean, we used to travel around a lot before we settled back down in Hill Valley."

Marley chuckled, "Yeah. After travelling through time, travelling to college seems like no biggie."

Jules smiled, knowing Marley was the only other person his age he could talk to about time travel. "You know, once we officially graduate tomorrow, maybe Dad will let me take the Time Train for a spin. You could...come with me~"

Marley snickered at the thought. "Oh, yeah? Marley and Jules? Time travelers~?" She stated their names like an old sitcom title.

Jules blushed at the thought of time travelling with her. "I actually like the sound of that."

Her eyes widened, looking at him in surprise. "Wait...you really want to?"

He blushed more, his eyes also widening. "O-Only if you want to!"

Marley smiled...but before she could answer, they were interrupted by a very proud Marty and Jennifer McFly. Marty greeted while giving him a hug, "Hey, Jules!"

"Congratulations!" Jennifer added, also giving him a hug.

Jules hugged them back. "Thanks, Aunt Jennifer. It's really nice to see you guys again. It's been a while."

"We've been meaning to stop by and visit, but...you know how busy this one is," Jennifer said, nudging Marty's side.

"Guilty as charged," he said playfully. Due to Marty's musical career, there had been times where he would be unable to attend certain events due to scheduling conflicts.

"Yeah, I understand." Jules smiled and nodded. "I've been trying to keep up with your tour online, but school came first. Where have you been, Uncle Marty?"

"Oh, all over, buddy. Going somewhere new every day...it's super heavy," Marty sighed.

"Dad, nobody says 'heavy' anymore," Marley teased.

Jules chuckled, "Didn't you say 'heavy' when your dad told you about time travel?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Marley replied nonchalantly.

"No, wait, you said 'really heavy,'" Jules recalled what she had said. "At least, that's what you told me~"

"Dude! Shut up!" Marley hissed out of embarrassment.

Jules frowned, surprised how embarrassed Marley was getting. "S-Sorry, Marley. I didn't mean to make you upset."

"It's fine, man," Marley replied, unaware that Jules would take it seriously.

"But we're...and you..." Jules huffed, unaware he wasn't actually embarrassing Marley in front of her parents until now. He found it hard to read her sometimes.

Just then, everyone's attention was drawn towards Doc Brown as he tapped a spoon against his drinking glass. "Attention! Attention, everyone! I just wanted to say a few words." In a corner of the room, Verne had secluded himself from interaction. However, he looked to listen to his father's speech. "As some of you may know, we are gathered here tonight for more than a single reason. Just over twenty years ago, I had very little in terms of companionship. For many years, all I could rely on was the support of...my best friend. Marty McFly." Marley's father smiled at the elderly scientist. "But then, I was lucky enough to meet the love of my life. Before I met her, I never thought I could meet a person so...perfect in every way."

"Oh, Emmett," Clara chuckled, still standing beside her husband. A few other guests chuckled with her.

"It's true. And from that point on, I began a new and exciting chapter of my life. Just like our own kids will be doing very soon. If you could all join me in raising a glass...to Jules Brown and Marley McFly." All the guests present raised a glass to the two kids. "And to the future."

"To the future!" the guests cheered.

"Oh! And also...to my youngest boy, Verne, who you'll likely see graduating in a couple years. Where are you, son?" Doc called out. The guests looked around for Verne.

Jules was smiling at his father's speech...but then he saw Verne slink out the back door. Jules followed his brother out, but tried not to make a scene; it was hard because most guests were looking at him or Verne.

Verne headed into the garage. Once there, he immediately took some deep breaths as he tried to calm himself down. "You're okay...you're okay...it's cool..." he panted. He went over to the tarp-covered object and rested his hands against it for support.

"Verne?" Jules said, making Verne jump. "Verne, we can talk to dad about this together. I'm not gonna renege on my promise."

"No. I-It's fine. I just didn't want Dad to embarrass me, you know? It's not a big deal," Verne assured him. However, when he glances at Hawking's dog bed, he found that it was empty. "Did you see Hawking in the house?"

Jules frowned. "No... I'm pretty sure I would've noticed him pleading for food." He then called out for the dog. "Hawking?"

"Hawk! Where are you, buddy?!" Verne also called out.

Both brothers heard a slight whimpering before a lump poked out from the tarp, behind Verne. "Oh. There you are." Verne smirked and lifted up the tarp, letting the puppy trot over to Jules.

But he wasn't moving, as he noticed something underneath the tarp: a novelty license plate that read OUTATIME. He pointed to the plate and told his brother, "Verne...look..."

Verne turned to look at the plate, his eyes widening in disbelief, before he dropped the tarp. He backed up, over to his brother, not taking his eyes off of the covered object for even a second. "You don't think..."

Jules was the same, not taking his eyes off the object, but he slowly moved forward. When he was close enough, he pulled the tarp off completely. Underneath was the DeLorean he had only heard stories of. Everything was there, from the Mister Fusion on top to the date panels inside. Jules gasped, "How...how did Dad remake this...?"

"Oh, man..." Verne went around the vehicle, examining all the details he had only heard about in his father's old journals. The only discernible difference was that, instead of the DMC logo on the front bumper of the DeLorean, it now read EBE. "Emmett Brown Enterprises?"

"He must have rebuilt the whole thing from scratch," Jules stated, "but why? We already have the Time Train - why do we need the DeLorean again?"

Verne opened up one of the doors, barely able to contain his excitement as he hopped into the driver's seat. "Aw, man! It's just like original design! Look! These must be the time circuits!" He flipped a switch just below the gear stick, and the date panels lit up with red, green, and yellow digits. However, the only panel with a date displayed was the green one - the present time - while the other ones looked blank.

Jules said, "This thing hasn't even been tested yet, but again, why would Dad make a new one? We've always used the Time Train. We've only needed one time machine."

Verne shrugged and checked the glove compartment. His eyes widened as he found the keys inside. Attached to them was a small note reading:

To my son, Jules.
Happy Graduation!
Love Dad x

Jules's eyes also widened as he saw the note. "This was gonna be the present for my graduation tomorrow. W-We should cover this up before Dad sees!"

"Wait! I mean...how do we know this is even safe?" Verne asked.

"All the more reason to put things back to the way they were."

"Not necessarily. I mean, what if Dad shows us the car and...it doesn't work? Maybe we should take it for a test drive. You know, just to be safe," Verne suggested before putting the keys in the ignition.

Jules frowned. "Only a quick drive- no time travelling, no going up to eighty-eight miles per hour."

"Oh, yeah. Yeah, absolutely," Verne replied, not really paying attention to his brother as he started the car. However, both brothers heard a slight whimper, and looked to see Hawking trying to climb into the car with them. Due to his little puppy stature, he was unable to reach. Verne said, "Aw, buddy. It's not safe for you." Then he got out of the driver's seat and picked up the little puppy. He gently placed Hawking on his doggy bed to rest. "Stay. We'll be right back."

In response, Hawking sat comfortably in his bed. The dog watched as Verne went back to the car and closed the door. As they drove forward, the garage door automatically opened, allowing the DeLorean to exit out into the street. Verne looked to his brother with a wide smirk.

Jules looked at his brother, also smirking...but then he frowned when he saw Verne reach for the controls. "Verne, don't you dare change those time circuits!" He turned on the time circuits, never breaking eye contact with his brother. "Don't you dare turn on that flux capacitor!" Verne turned on the flux capacitor, and slowly, his speed went up as he coasted down the driveway. Jules noticed the time Verne had inputted: MAY 20 2045

"Come ooooon. It's just one trip. Plus, it's not like we're going to erase ourselves from existence thirty years from now," Verne pointed out. He then reached for a lever beside the time circuit switch and slowly pushed it forward, activating the hover mode. "Don't pretend you're not tempted~"

If Jules hadn't been "trapped" in this car with his brother, he'd probably be fuming. He still looked fuming, but he replied, "One. Minute. And that is it. Any longer, and Mom and Dad will notice we're gone."

"We're in a time machine. If we wanted to, we could come back even earlier," Verne pointed out. He flipped a switch and hit the gas pedal with his foot, launching the DeLorean into the sky. "Whoop!" he exclaimed as the speedometer increased to the desired speed. Soon, it reaches eighty-eight miles per hour, and the DeLorean traveled through time, leaving a trail of fire in the 2015 sky.