Chapter 1

A year passed before Marty saw his eccentric friend once more. Honestly, Marty gave up hoping Doc would return. He had all of time to explore and a family to show it to. Consider coming back to Hill Valley, 1985? Ha! What was the point? No, the Doc was busy seeing far cooler places, meeting amazing people, doing spectacular things.

So it came as a complete shock when Marty ran into him again.

It was a silent day in Hill Valley. The birds were too lazy to sing in the summer heat, and the people were too lazy to kick up a fuss. Across a massive clocktower positioned in a well-kept town square, shops lined the streets and a curious shopping bag spun toward a gutter. The only sound was a continuous thump, thump, thump. A cat yawned, bored by reality and the cerulean sky stretched from horizon to horizon. Gradually, the thumping got louder and louder until a thin boy whizzed around a corner and zipped through the town square. His fingers clung desperately to the bumper of an annoyed jeep and he let out an exhilarated whoop. The noise startled the cat, who yelped in annoyance and skittered away. Shrieking, the wheels on the boy's skateboard sparked against the asphalt. The boy's feet were planted firmly on the skateboard, but suddenly the jeep took a sharp turn. Obviously, the driver was done playing the boy's game. The turn was too much for the skateboard, and the front left wheel gave one last scream before snapping in half and shooting away.

Spinning sideways, the boy let out a shriek. His skateboard flew through the air and sailed through a window. Dang it. He actually liked that diner. Landing on his back, the boy rolled several feet across the grass lawn in front of the town hall.

Then everything was still again.

The boy groaned, and then a small chuckled left his lips. He shot his fist in the air and let out another whoop. "That was awesome!"

Groaning, he flopped down on the ground again. Yes, that was awesome, but it also hurt. A lot.

"Hey! Hey kid! You okay?" said a voice somewhere between concern, and amusement, "Do you have a death wish?"

The boy's head popped up from the ground and he grinned. "Naw, just bored s'all, Mister."

Laughing, the man who spoke ran a hand through his chestnut hair. "I know the feeling, kid." He stepped closer and helped the boy to his feet. "Hurt?"

The boy accepted the man's hand and brushed himself off. "No. I'm alright." Good grief, his mother was going to kill him when she saw her son. He was covered in grass stains, dirt, and several minor scratches. "Thanks for asking. Most of the fellows around here don't bother anymore." He looked the unfamiliar man up and down. "You new 'round here?"

The man nodded. "Not staying long. Looking for a friend of mine. He hangs around places like this…"

Eyebrows rising, the boy snorted. "Must be a boring guy, to want to hang around here."

The man chuckled. "You'd be surprised…"

Turning to look at the diner's window, the boy cringed. "I should probably get my skateboard out of there…" he muttered.

The man laughed again. "Yeah. Probably."

His eyes flicking back toward the man, the boy fumbled with his words. "Well, uh, thanks again for helping me up. I'll just…" He pointed with his thumb and took a few steps back.

Nodding, the man waved goodbye. "Nice ta meetcha, kid."

The boy turned away and rolled his eyes. Jogging across the street, he almost didn't say anything else… But he always had the last word. At the door of the diner, he spun around.

The man was still standing there. He wore a navy-blue trench coat that made the boy think of a soldier. Standing on top of the grassy hill, the man shoved his hands into his pockets and stared after the boy.

"Ya know," the boy started, "I'm not actually a kid. I'll be eighteen in, like, six months."

"Really? I'll be one-thousand and eighty in… two days?" the man scratched his head. "I think. Hard to keep track. Might be off a few years"

The boy laughed. "Right. Happy early birthday, I guess?"

A chuckle escape the man's lips, but it was accompanied by a small frown. "Yeah. Thanks."

Turning to leave, the boy was stopped again by the man. "Hey, not-a-kid! What's your name?"

The boy cocked his head. "Marty McFly. Yours?"

The man smiled devilishly. "Jack, Jack Harkness."

"Nice ta meetcha, Jack." Marty swung open the diner's glass door. "See ya around!"

With that, the door swung shut, and Marty put the man out of his mind.

AN: PLEASE REVIEW! What do you think?