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Coming back to a future that you don’t remember and didn’t grow up in is already a jarring experience. It completely throws you off to find out that things you thought you knew weren’t that way anymore. What’s worse, you’re the only person who remembers the way things used to be. That means that even if you have someone you can go to for all of your time travel troubles, even they won’t remember the old timeline because they were overwritten just as much as everyone else. It leaves you a complete stranger in a reality so painfully like your own but still not yours. It’s not fun. It takes a lot out of a person, especially if the one person you could possibly lean on vanishes for a year or so. Then there was, of course, the timeline trying to right itself leaving you with half of the memories from this reality- it was a lot of stuff Marty didn’t understand and it gave him a headache. Besides, he’d rather not think about it. By now he’d figured out the main differences in this timeline compared to his original one (the “Twin Pine” Timeline as he and Doc had started calling it) with the help of Jennifer and Doc. He was fitting in and learning more with every day how to call this new reality home.
That was until he decided to really tune into history one day.
It was nothing remarkable, just another day in class really. Marty couldn’t have even told you the unit they were in, although if he had to guess it must’ve been something with the old west because otherwise the topic itself would never have come up. Maybe it would’ve been better that way.
“…in fact, Hill Valley had its own local legend back in the times of the old west! See, if you turn to page 258…” For whatever reason, Marty had tuned in at that exact moment. For whatever reason, he finally decided to turn to the actual page his teacher was on in his textbook. A part of him almost instantly wished he hadn’t.
“On that page, amongst other more well known names and stories, you’ll find the only ever documented picture of Clint Eastwood - no, not the actor, stop giggling, Miss Smith - the local legend of Hill Valley back during the old west! Story has it that he rode into town one day in 1885 and saved the town from the wrath of Buford Tannen by defeating him in a duel, cleverly using an oven door as a bulletproof vest!”
Oh god, Doc was gonna kill him.
“Now the photo may not be the best, as it is old and Mr. Eastwood isn’t even the focus of the image, but it is important to note tha….” Whatever his teacher had to say was lost to Marty as he stared at the picture in his book. It was blurry, black and white, and worn but it was still, most certainly, him in the picture. Him and Doc, to make matters worse, standing next to each other in the background of some random couple’s picture by the unfinished clock which would somehow end up the center of at least three of his time travel adventures. They had been so careful not to end up in any pictures besides the one they took! How had-
“-cFly? Mr. McFly!” Either Marty had just achieved the world’s most impressive sitting vertical, or he had failed to realize how close he’d gotten to his book. His guess had to be the second one, with how his classmates were giggling at him.
“Believe me, Mr. McFly, I wish the picture was better quality too, but staring at it an inch away from the page won’t make it any clearer.” Marty felt his cheeks redden as he nodded, sinking deeper and deeper into his chair by the minute.
From there class just seemed to drag on and on. The already long period practically passed at half- even a third of the usual speed. While his teacher droned on and on, Marty didn’t hear nor comprehend a word of what she said. All that mattered to him was the damned picture. His own smiling face, no matter how fuzzy or warped, staring back at him from a page in his history book. Oh gosh, what was he going to tell Doc? What would he even say? ‘Hey Doc, remember how we were super careful not to get any other pictures taken of us in the past? Yeah well, we failed that and now we’re in my history book.’ Ha. Yeah. No thanks.
Had he not been sitting directly under the bell, Marty might just have missed it ringing. But he was, and once again he shot up in his seat so fast it might as well have been electrocuting him. He rolled his eyes at his giggling classmates, making quick work of slamming his book shut and stuffing it into his backpack with little grace. If it wouldn’t result in a fine that he didn’t want to explain to his parents, he’d burn the book right then and there just like he did the living room carpet when he was eight. But no, he couldn’t, so instead the book was shoved to the depths of his backpack with enough force to crush a soda can. With a similar lack of care for the other contents of his backpack, Marty slung the bag over his shoulder and moved to leave the classroom.
“Mr. McFly? May we have a word?”
Of course the universe wouldn’t let it be that easy.
“Now, Marty,” his teacher began as he approached her desk, seemingly unable to sense his lack of enthusiasm, “if I had any idea that you were so interested in our town’s old tales, I would’ve set aside a day to it’s history.”
Lady, he knew plenty about Hill Valley’s past already. He’s in the damn history book.
“Unfortunately, I can’t set one now, so unless we have a free day at the end of the year I’ve found a good few pages in your textbook and books from the library you should look into.” She handed him a piece of paper. He pocketed it. “It’s good to know I’ve got a fellow folklore interest in my classroom. Keep up your studies, Marty.”
“Of course, Ma’am.”
With his head down, Marty beelined for the door and his next class. He didn’t care what it was or how long it took, anything to get his mind off of the encounter he just had. Off that imagine in the book in his bag. Why did he have to choose today to actually listen during class?
By some miracle, the rest of the day was marginally uneventful. Classes were boring as usual, the day passed at a snails pace, and he seemed to slip by his peers mostly undetected. He had spoken to his band mates for a moment, discussing the time and place of their next practice, but their conversation had been cut short after that simple exchange by the warning bell. Beyond that, Marty had a lot of time to think. Time to think back on his time travel adventures and the changes he had accidentally caused during them. Apparently that meant becoming part of his town’s folklore. Great. Just another thing to add to the resume.
Jennifer was a nice distraction. The two had met up after classes got out, as they had taken to on the days Marty wasn’t immediately on his way out to work as Doctor Emmett Brown’s assistant. They had shared a short kiss before beginning to walk, Marty’s hand occasionally brushing hers in a motion Jennifer recognized but never commented on. So what if her boyfriend liked being sure that she was physically there every now and again. She couldn’t blame him, who knows what has all happened on those adventures of his. She wouldn’t love him any less for it anyway. So the two walked, chatting mindlessly about their own days.
“Hey McFly!”
Go figure Needles had to ruin that.
“McFly! Word going around is that you’re some sort of town history geek. Got asked to stay behind with the teach and everything.” Needles and his gang cackled, an ear grating sound that made Marty’s jaw clench. Distracted by the noise, he barely had time to react when Needles roughly grabbed his shoulder. “What’d she give you, huh McFly? Invitation to her next nerd meeting?”
“Oh lay off it, Needles.” Jennifer groaned, stepping forward to slightly put herself between her boyfriend and Needles despite Marty’s practically silent pleas for her to just stay uninvolved. Too late now.
“Ha! Look at this! Too chicken to defend yourself, McFly?”
Marty tensed, stepping forward. Jennifer grabbed his hand and squeezed. A silent comfort. Marty backed down.
“Oh God, you really are pathetic.” The words were sneered, paired with a lean that left Needles a little too close for Marty’s liking. At least he was keeping his cool. Once upon a time such jabs would’ve left Marty leaping for a fight. Guess almost accidentally erasing yourself from the timeline multiple times gives you that patience. That and having a girlfriend like Jennifer.
“Seriously Needles. Don’t you have anything else you could do?”
“And what are you gonna do to stop me? Huh?”
“It’s not what I’ll do.” Marty froze, confusion no doubt clear on his face as his focus whipped to Jennifer. What on earth was she talking about? Was she about to encourage a fight? “I’m sure even you are aware of our school’s phantom.”
Sorry, their school’s what now?
“Oh Lord,” Needles groaned, “don’t tell me you actually believe in that old story.”
“I’ll have you know I think it’s very possible,” Jennifer huffed, crossing her arms, “After all, it was our parents who were there for it and Marty’s parents who were at the center of it all!”
“And what’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means that his family has already been favored once by the spirit! What’s to stop it from happening again?” A smirk slid across her face as she leaned towards Needles. “And if it does, who do you think the spirit is going to go after?”
While Marty enjoyed watching the color drain from Needles’ face, and then him desperately try to pretend it didn’t, he would’ve enjoyed it a whole lot more if he understood just what was going on.
“It’s a kids story, Parker. Nothing more,” Needles grumbled as he turned to leave, hands in his pockets, “Stupid school phantom.”
Jennifer rolled her eyes as he stalked off, turning her focus to pulling Marty away from the school and off towards their usual route. If she noticed his no doubt obvious confusion, she paid it no mind and just continued walking. The idle chatter picked up again, although far more one sided than it had previously been. Marty, while he listened, found himself turning the encounter over and over in his head. What school spirit/phantom/ghost was Jennifer talking about? Was their school haunted and he never knew? Did he cause their school to be haunted? Oh god, he really hoped that wasn’t the case- lost in his own mind, Marty failed to realize that Jennifer had stopped walking. Consequently, he ran straight into her.
“Marty!” The teen in question winced at the tone, brushing off Jennifer then himself. “Are you doing alright? You’ve been out of it all day!”
“Sorry, Jen,” Marty sighed, running his hand through his hair, “I was listening though, I promise.”
“Oh Marty…” Jennifer sighed, gently cupping Marty’s face in her hand, “That’s not what I’m worried about. I’m worried about you, silly. Now c’mon, what’s up? Did something happen? Did something go wrong with the…you know what.”
“No!” Marty was not about to admit straight up that, technically, the answer was yes. The picture wasn’t his main concern right now, so he wouldn’t bring it up. “It’s just- I guess I’m confused.”
“Confused? About what?”
“Just…something you said, that’s all.” For as much as Marty would’ve liked to change the subject there, the genuine concern on Jennifer’s features that stared back at him insisted he didn’t. So he took a breath and continued. “The…spirit. Of the school? What…is that?”
Of all the reactions Marty was expecting, he wasn’t prepared for Jennifer to start giggling.
“Oh- ha- good one, Marty. ‘What is the spirit of Hill Valley High?’ You’re…you’re…” Jennifer’s laughter calmed as she took note of Marty’s burning cheeks and distinct lack of eye contact. A hand rose to cover her mouth. “You’re not kidding.”
“Nope.”
“But…how…” seemingly stunned by this revelation, Jennifer went quiet as she turned the situation over in her head. Eventually she spoke again. “Is this another one of those differences? Was the story not a thing back before…you know.”
“As far as I know, no,” Marty shrugged, “Hill Valley High School was never haunted, at least to my knowledge.”
“That’s so odd,” Jennifer mused, “especially considering your parents are a huge part of the story.”
“They are?” Oh no.
“Yeah, they are.” Jennifer paused, as if waiting for Marty to suddenly reveal he remembered what she meant. When she got a blank stare in return she continued, “Back when they were in school, before they got together and your dad became all successful, this mysterious kid showed up for a week. Defended your parents, helped your dad stand up for himself, then vanished without a trace? Any of this ringing a bell?”
Oh, it was. It was and Marty didn’t like where it was going.
“Uh…maybe. Any other hints you can give me?”
“Other than that your Mom and Dad love to tell the story of how some kid named Calvin Klein got them together every chance they get, no. That’s kind of it until you start getting into superstition.”
“Superstition?” This was just getting better by the minute!
“Yeah, you know, the myth that Calvin Klein wasn’t an actual kid but some sort of spirit. Protected the weak from their bullies and taught them how to stand up for themselves?” Boy oh boy, did Marty have some conflicting emotions right now. “A lot of adults use the spirit as a warning when kids get too mean to each other. No one wants to have what happened to Biff happen to them.”
“The truck…”
“Yeah! There you are! I knew you’d remember.” Jennifer quickly pulled Marty into a hug. While short and weak, Marty appreciated the embrace. “For a minute you had me worried we’d have to go asking around to jog your memory.”
“Well, would that really have been so bad?” So maybe Marty wanted to know what’s become of ‘Calvin Klein,’ sue him. Curiosity killed the cat and whatnot.
“Sorry, but yes it would’ve been, Marty,” Jennifer groaned, the sound fading into soft chuckles as she turned to keep walking, “I don’t think I could stand hearing another group of ladies talk about how handsome he was. Sure, I believe them, but I’m also sure that wasn’t the only great quality about him. For example, your mother always said he was very polite.”
Well. Now this just got very interesting. Logistically, Marty knew he shouldn’t play into this. It would reveal some of the details he’d spared Jennifer about his trip to the 50s, as well as pin him as his school’s apparent protective specter. Then again, what was the hurt in telling her? She already knew about time travel, and if she was going to tell anyone she’d have done so already, so what if she knew a little more? What if he wanted to take that compliment?
“Aw, are you saying it doesn’t matter that I’m pretty?” Marty pouted, pulling Jennifer back into a hug from behind, “You wound me, Jen.”
“Oh please,” Jennifer swatted at him, although the action held no real malice. That much was evident by her laughter. “It’s a compliment, Mr. Calvin Klein. I was saying that you don’t need to be pretty to be attractive, even if you are.”
“Ugh, don’t call me that,” Marty groaned, burying his face into Jennifer’s shoulder.
“What? Calvin Klein?” Jennifer hummed, “Why shouldn’t I if you’re going to act like you’re him?”
“Because, Miss Parker, it’s not my name,” Marty stated, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, “It’s just like I told them. My name is Marty, not Calvin. Please get it right.”
“Oh yeah, like you told them,” Jennifer rolled her eyes, “because my boyfriend was the mysterious student who showed up for a week, 30 years ago, and defended his own dad from his bullies. Listen to yourself, Marty. That’s impo…it’s…”
Wait for it.
“No way.” Bingo. “No way!”
Marty only clung tighter to Jennifer as she tried to turn around to face him, keeping her firmly turned away from him. This, he could guess, was not at all satisfactory as Jennifer continued to fight at her ‘restraints’ for the next five minutes. Eventually she broke free, but not before sending the two of them tumbling into a patch of grass, laughing the whole way down. To any outsider they would seem like your average, run of the mill teen couple and nothing more. Definitely not a time-traveler-turned-local-legend-twice-over and his poor girlfriend who got dragged along once and fainted because of it. Funny how there’s always so much more than what everyone first sees.
Having successfully freed herself from her captor, Jennifer was quick to push herself up off the grass. The moment the opportunity presented itself she pounced, pinning Marty to the ground in a playful interrogation.
“It was you! You were- oh my gosh, Marty!” Words already were hard when it came to the specimen that was her boyfriend. Now appeared to be no exception.
“Yes, Jennifer?” Marty grinned, that stupid self confident grin of his that led Jennifer to push him right back into the grass from where he’d started to sit up. “C’mon, is the interrogation really necessary?”
“Considering you left out a very crucial piece of information when you first told me about your ‘travels’? Yes! Yes, it is, Marty!” He really had to give it to her, she was very good at avoiding the words ‘time travel’ when discussing the topic in public spaces on the odd occasion they did. He couldn’t even remember the amount of times he’d almost slipped up and got a hand shoved over his mouth.
“Well, I’m sorry I forgot.” For as sincere as his tone was, both Marty and Jennifer knew he didn’t forget. He purposely left it out. Then again, could you blame him? He went through a lot in that 24-hours-but-was-actually-like-three-weeks! “Is there any way I can make it up to you?”
“Well you can start by explaining. How? And no I don’t mean how you got there.” Marty had to chuckle at that.
“Well, Jennifer, believe it or not it was entirely an accident,” he shrugged, crossing his arms behind his head on the grass, “actually, you know the story. You know how I ran into my parents, you probably know from my Ma how I got the name I did, and you now know the details of how I took out Biff. All that’s different from what I told you in the first place was the name I went by and a few details I left out.”
“You…” Jennifer paused, thinking over the details in her mind. Between stories from her parents, Marty’s parents, and the rumors from school she supposed he was right. She did know the entire story of how- Wait. “Oh no, Marty, your mom-“
“And that’s exactly why I didn’t mention it the first time,” Marty winced. That much at least was the truth. Between 1955, 2015, 1955 again, and finally 1885, the last thing Marty had wanted to explain in detail was how his own mom had been infatuated with him. She didn’t know, of course, she couldn’t have, but that didn’t make it any less awkward for him no matter how many times he ran from confrontation. But now Jennifer knew, which bumped the list of people who knew from two to three whole people. How exciting.
“That- You- Oh, gross.” Jennifer sighed, flopping down next to Marty with a look that fell somewhere between disgust and horror, “How on earth did you deal with that?”
“Running, hiding, a whole lotta well timed distractions, and some help from Doc here and there mostly.” Some help didn’t even begin to cover it. Some help would be just letting him stay at his place in the 50s while he tried to get home. Doc did so much more than that for him. “Oh, and the fear that if I didn’t get her and dad together I’d literally fade out of existence. Adrenaline sure is something.”
“Marty…” Oh no. He knew that tone. That warning tone that just screamed that he was about to be given advice. “I’m serious about what I said before. I might not understand all of what you’ve been through but I’m more than open to listen. If you need someone to talk to-“
“I’m fine, Jennifer.” He wasn’t, he knew he wasn’t, but that was besides the point. He had been better recently, he didn’t need to be thrown back down this hole. “Really. I’ve been doing fine lately. I was just caught off guard by the story of the school phantom or whatever people are saying I was.”
Jennifer was quiet. Nothing but the sounds of town surrounded them. After a minute she shifted, moving to place a small kiss to Marty’s cheek.
“You’ll tell me if things get bad, right?” The question was practically whispered Marty almost missed it. He nodded.
“I will, promise.” Translation: Jennifer would have to pull the truth out of him like teeth. She wouldn’t do so yet, but there’d be no escaping her if it got that bad.
They sat like that, in silence, for a while. The town continued their lives around them, content to leave the two teens in their own little bubble on the grass. It was fine by them, the two happy to just sit and enjoy each other’s presence after a long day of boring classes. No words needed to be spoken, no deep topic required to truly enjoy the moment. Just each other; breathing in sync, hearts beating in time. A simple, relaxing moment amidst the chaos of life. A gentle melody against a cacophony of sound. Pure bliss.
Although nothing lasts forever. There are always questions to be asked, especially when your boyfriend happens to be your high school’s local superstition.
“Hey Marty?” The teen in question hummed, a wordless acknowledgment, “Was the whole ‘school ghost’ thing really that shocking? I mean, I can imagine it’d be a shock to find out, but you seemed really shocked by it.”
“Well, it was really shocking. Don’t pretend that it isn't.” Jennifer rolled her eyes, lightly smacking Marty as if to say ‘I know, keep going.’ Marty laughed. “I guess I was just shaken from something that happened earlier today, that’s all.”
“What happened earlier?”
“Eh, just history today. Teacher was talking about the old west, brought up an old town legend, showed us a picture of m- him, and uh…” Marty sighed, shaking his head as if it’d get his thoughts in order. “I dunno. I guess between that and the whole spirit thing I got a little…”
“Jittery?” Marty nodded. Jennifer smiled at him, running a hand up through his hair. “Makes sense to me. I can’t imagine what it’s like to suddenly hear everyone talking about you as if you’re some sort of- hold on, Marty, did you almost say a picture of you?”
Marty froze.
“Marty.”
Please just drop it.
“Marty, don’t tell me…”
“Uh…” well, cat’s out of the bag now. “Surprise?”
The look of pure shock on Jennifer’s face was enough to draw a laugh from Marty despite the situation. That laugh was enough for Jennifer to lightly smack him on the shoulder.
“You became a town legend in the Old West and didn’t tell me?”
“In my defense, I didn’t know my tale would last 100 years. Also, didn’t think you’d be interested.”
“Didn’t think I’d be interested,” Jennifer huffed a laugh, although there was no real malice behind it, “I’m practically dating a historical figure and he thought I wouldn’t be interested!”
“I’m sorry, I really didn’t! History isn’t really my thing, Jennifer!”
“Oh, history isn’t your thing, yet you can tell me some of the most random details about certain periods on cue.”
“I learned those out of necessity!” Marty threw his hands into the air, the exaggerated gesture only serving to make him and Jennifer laugh at their playful argument. A pair of idiots, they were, but idiots that loved each other. Jennifer pushed herself to stand, dragging Marty up behind her despite his protests. To apologize for her heinous crime of pulling him off the grass she placed another small kiss on his cheek. It seemed to tame him.
“Well,” she began as they started to walk once more, “I think it’s fun. You’re like a walking encyclopedia for certain decades. Good to know that the old west is a bigger chapter in that then I thought, Mr…say, what name did you take up in the old west? You never told me.”
“What, you telling me this isn’t another story passed down through generations?” Jennifer laughed, shaking her head.
“No. Sorry to burst your bubble, but only one story of your good looks has been passed down so far.”
“Ah, oh well.” Marty shrugged. Guess he could take that. Better than nothing. “But I went by Clint back then, just so you know.”
“Clint…” Jennifer drew the name out, a silent request for Marty to keep going. He grumbled something completely missed by Jennifer. “Sorry, what was that?”
“Eas…ood.”
“Little louder, Marty.”
“Eastwood.”
“Clint East-“ Jennifer abruptly stopped walking. Marty, concerned, stopped in his own tracks to turn around and make sure she was okay. Instead he found her desperately trying to hide a giggle behind her hand.
“Jen.”
“I’m sorry- I’m sorry, I’m trying- My god, Marty, Clint Eastwood?”
“I panicked! I’d like to see you do better!” Marty shook his head, turning to keep on walking. Almost immediately Jennifer sped up to a jog to catch up with him.
“I’m sorry, Marty, I didn’t mean anything by it! I just thought it was a little silly! You seem to have a tendency to pick celebrity names as cover ups, you know.” Oh, Jennifer didn’t know the half of it. Marty waited, taking a few pointed seconds before cracking a smile and scooping Jennifer into a hug despite the girl’s giggling protests.
“See, I can play the pouty game too,” he laughed, paying Jennifer’s eye roll no mind, “in fact, I’d say I’m a master at it by now.”
“Oh I’m sure you are.” Jennifer cracked seconds later, returning the hug before continuing their walk. “Is that how you earned everyone’s favor on your first trip? Used your youngest sibling proficiency in puppy dog eyes to get your way?”
There were a number of people who would argue that yes, that was exactly what he did. One of them was named Emmett Brown and probably wouldn’t hesitate to testify against his best friend if Jennifer asked nicely.
“No! I used my charms and devilishly good looks! Is that really so hard to believe?” Marty raised an eyebrow, smiling. “After all, worked on you, didn’t it?”
“Okay, Mr. Local Legend,” Jennifer playfully crossed her arms, “you know, I don’t wanna hear it from someone who got so shaken up by a picture and a story.”
“Hey, that’s not fair!” Marty protested, “If you were in my position I promise you’d be just as messed up by it all! Do you know what it’s like to see yourself in the background of some random picture in your history book after you were explicitly told not to let any pictures be taken?”
“I’m sure it’s very scary, Mr. Eastwood,” Jennifer nodded with the most sincere tone she could manage.
“Hey now, I never said scary. I meant more…”
“Disorienting?”
“Yeah, that.” Marty sighed, combing a hand through his hair. “Now I’m wondering if there are any pictures of me in the yearbook- the old one. How would I explain that to my folks?”
“You could always say coincidence?” Jennifer suggested, shrugging, “that or tell them about the entire thing, but I have a strange feeling that you don’t want to do that.”
“No, no absolutely not. I am not telling my parents.” There weren’t many things Marty would rather die than do, but telling his parents that he had been Calvin Klein might just be one of the few exceptions. Just thinking about that conversation- it made Marty shiver. Shiver and want to run as far away as possible to hide. That would be much preferable to whatever that conversation might bring. “Either they figure it out on their own or they never find out at all, Jen. That’s it. Besides, you know how quiet Doc and I are trying to keep the whole…y’know thing. One or two more people knowing is one thing, but four? That's a whole lot of people to swear to secrecy.”
“Yeah, I suppose. Although if they ever do find out please tell me. It’d be nice to know when I no longer have to be careful about what I say around them.”
From there, the two fell into comfortable silence again. Silence that lasted all of one minute before Jennifer had a thought.
“Hey,” she started, “speaking of Doc, he’s the one who warned you not to be in any pictures, right?”
“Yeah, who else would?” Marty chuckled.
“True. Well, I was just thinking,” she paused, searching for the right words, “how do you think he’s going to take the whole photo in the textbook thing? Or the School Ghost thing for that matter?”
Marty’s heart sank.
“Honestly, Jennifer?” He paused, swallowing in an attempt to dampen his desert of a mouth, “I’d rather not think about it.”