Future Shock
By Toby Danger
Monster High is copyright of Mattel.
With the Bite-centennial now long over, the latest school event everyone was getting excited about was the Junior Prom. The school was abuzz with talk of the theme, and who was going with who. Already everyone was trying to get dates for the big event.
"Romulus asked you to the prom?" Draculaura asked Clawdeen excitedly. "Please tell me you said yes."
"Yeah... it's not my usual scene, but Romulus was really sweet when he asked me, so I figured, what the heck?" Clawdeen smiled.
"Well, I'm sure you two will have fun.. just don't try to upstage me and Deuce with your outfits, okay?" Cleo spoke as she fixed her mascara.
"I was thinking of asking that new robot student, Chip." Robecca chimed in. "He's quite charming, despite the lack of an emotion circuit."
She turned to Frankie. "And what about you..."
She trailed off when she noticed Frankie's despondent expression. "Whatever's the matter?"
Frankie sighed. "It's Jackson... he asked me to the prom earlier."
"Well, that's good, isn't it?" Draculaura spoke happily. "I always thought it was about time you two had a date..."
"Andy asked me out as well." Frankie spoke sadly."
"Oh.." Draculaura blinked. "Well... he's a really nice guy as well.."
"And Neighthan."
"Him too?!" Clawdeen was surprised.
"By Ra, Frankie, you're acquiring more admirers than I am." Cleo said with a hint of respect. "I'm impressed."
"Wait.. you didn't say yes to all of them, did you?" Robecca asked.
"No, of course not. I lied and told them I couldn't answer right away because I might have to attend a family event... but they'll be waiting for an answer."
"So, which one are you going to take?" Clawdeen asked.
"Jackson, duh!" Everyone knows you two are close... three, if we count Holt." Draculaura smirked.
"Yeah... he's a wonderful guy.. but so is Neighthan. He's so kind and sweet.. but Andy is just as nice, and he's really smart.. but so are Jackson and Neight..."
Frankie moaned and rested her head on the table. "I can't choose between any of them! They're all so great..."
"Just pick one already. If they're all so great, you're hardly losing out." Cleo pointed out.
"It's not that simple... I don't want them to feel left out."
"That's their problem, not yours, ghoul." Clawdeen frowned. "You shouldn't feel responsible for how they act if they don't get to be with you."
"I know.." Frankie said. "But it's not just that. I like all of them so much, and we're so compatible in a lot of ways... I really think that I could have a really good, long term relationship with one of them. Something really special, like you ghouls have... but it'll never happen if I can't figure out which boy is the right one."
She stared out into space with a look of anguish. "What should I do?"
There was silence for a moment. Then Frankie glared at her friends in desperation. "Okay, I wasn't being rhetorical. I'm seriously asking you!"
Draculaura put a finger to her lip. "Ummm... have you considered polyamory? You know, having two or boyfriends at once?"
Frankie raised an eyebrow. "I hardly know how to hold onto one boyfriend, never mind two. Though I guess it would be a given with Jackson and Holt..."
Robecca spoke up. "Honestly... I think you just need to go with your gears.. I mean, guts. Just trust your instincts and go with the guy you feel is best for you."
"But what if my instincts are wrong?" Frankie spoke forlornly. "What if I pick the wrong person for me, and it doesn't work out? Then I'll have no one."
"Well, you move on and find someone else who's better for you. Worked for me." Cleo said as she filed her nails.
"I just wish I could know for sure that, whoever I choose, it's going to work out, that we'll still be together in the future." Frankie sighed.
"No one can know that. You just have to trust that you and your partner will do everything possible to make it work. That's a part of being in love." Draculaura replied with a smile.
"Besides.." She took a sip of her iron shake. "It would take all the excitement out of it if you could just look in the future and see who you marry."
"I guess..." Frankie began, but she trailed off as she thought about Draculaura's words. If she could see into the future to see who she married...
But she could see into the future! And the means to do it was located directly beneath Monster High!
She put her head down and concentrated on her lunch , hoping her friends didn't notice the excitement on her face.
Once school was finished, she knew exactly what to do...
After school let out for the day, the ghouls gathered at the school entrance, ready to go to the die-ner together.
"Where's Frankie?" Clawdeen asked, looking around. "She said she'd meet us here."
"It's not like her to be late. That's my department." Robecca mused.
She spotted Venus leaving the building. "Oh Venus! You wouldn't happen to have seen Frankie anywhere?"
"Yeah. I saw her taking that elevator in the graveyard. You know, the one that leads to your dad's laboratory." Venus replied.
"Strange, why would she go there?" Robecca wondered. "There's nothing down there except..."
Steam burst out of her ears as she froze in realization. "Oh, bugger!"
After their adventure during the Bite-Centennial, Robecca and Ghoulia had decided to dismantle Hexiciah Steam's time machine. Considering all the trouble it had caused, it was simply too dangerous to leave it where anyone could just activate it. Its pieces had been stored in a nearby room, meaning that if anyone wanted to use the machine, they would have to reassemble it, something not many students would know how to do.
Fortunately, having helped Robecca dismantle it in the first place, and being an expert in piecing spare parts together, it didn't take long for Frankie to rebuild the machine.
As she plugged it into a power socket, she heard footsteps approaching. She quickly turned and pressed the controls to set the destination time period.
"Bloody hell Frankie! What are you doing?!" Robecca's voice cried out. She, along with Clawdeen, Draculaura and Cleo rushed into the room.
Frankie quickly turned the last few controls. "I'm sorry Robecca, I really am! But I need to use the time machine one more time. After I'm done, I swear I'll dismantle it."
"But it's dangerous." Robecca reasoned. "I want to see my Father and Sparky again too, but we could risk disrupting the timeline if we go back...
"I'm not going to the past." Frankie cranked a handle, and the portal began to form. "I'm going to the future."
Her friends all paused. "Say what?!"
"Can that thing even DO that?!" Draculaura pointed at the machine
"Look, I have three boys whom I care about, and I can't decide which of them I love. But if I see who I end up with in the future, I'll finally know who's the right person to be with." Frankie stood before the portal.
"Are you crazy?!" Cleo exclaimed. "This is just to decide who your prom date is?!"
"It's more than that. One of them could be the monster I stay with forever." Frankie spoke. "I'm sorry... but I need to know!"
And before they could stop her, she leapt into the portal. The machinery stopped, and the portal faded away.
Robecca checked the controls. "Oh no... she's gone 15 years into the future."
"Start it up again, we've got to go after her." Clawdeen ordered.
"You're kidding, right?" Cleo looked scared. "There's no way I'm going through that thing again."
Clawdeen frowned ."Come on Cleo! If we don't follow her she might wreck the timeline or something!"
Cleo sighed. "Alright... but if we end up fused together, I swear..."
Suddenly the portal reappeared. Frankie stepped out of it, a little shaky on her feet. Ignoring her friends, she moved to the controls and switched the machine off
Her friends moved toward her. Right away they noticed Frankie's eyes were red from crying.
"Are you alright?" Clawdeen asked. "What happened?"
"I'm fine..." Frankie spoke quietly. "Just a little shaken."
"So... what did you see?" Draculaura asked. "Do you know who you choose?"
Frankie avoided their gaze. "Please ghouls... I need some time to think about things before I can tell you." She grabbed a spanner. "I'll dismantle the machine now."
They stayed with her until the machine was dismantled. Then they left the catacombs, Frankie apologized for making everyone worry, and she left for home. Not once did she talk about what she saw in the future..
They confronted Frankie at their usual table in the creepateria the next day.
"So Frankie, now that you've seen the future, do you finally know who your true love is?" Cleo asked.
"Ooh, I bet it's Jackson. Or Holt! Or maybe both." Draculaura grinned, glancing over at Jackson as he read a book at his table.
"Nah, I'm betting it's Andy. I know you two had a thing for each other after that Spring break." Clawdeen spoke, looking over at Andy as he tapped his iCoffin, trying to get it to work.
"I'm sure it's Neighthan. You can't deny you've been eying him, and I think you'd make a nice couple at the prom..." Cleo spotted Neighthan helping SIrena make a tower out of plastic sporks.
"Guys..." Frankie sighed. "I don't know. I don't know who my true love is going to be."
Everyone was confused by that.
"How can you not know?! You were in the future!" Cleo exclaimed. "Surely you found pictures of your wedding, or you on a date with someone! Are you even married in the future?"
"Well, yes... but.." Frankie looked into the distance. "When I got to the future, I thought all I had to do was find some pictures of my future partner online. But then the unexpected happened..."
Frankie emerged from the portal, finding herself in Hexiciah's workshop, which was even dustier than before. She wasted no time in taking the lift back up to Monster High.
The school was vacant, and thankfully it didn't seem to have changed much in 15 years. She found the computer room, switched on the Wi-Fi, and connected the tablet she had brought with her.
Once she was online, she opened FaceSpook. Curious about her friends, she decided to look them up first, searching for their names. The tablet was slow to respond, (Well, it probably was outdated in this time period, she reckoned.) but eventually her friend's profile pages loaded on the screen. She was pleased to discover that Draculaura, Cleo, Lagoona and Ghoulia were now happily married to their high school loves, and even Clawdeen was married, though she certainly hadn't expected THAT person of all monsters to be the love of her friend's life.
She was tempted to check out some of the other linked pictures, like one of Heath and Toralei holding a baby catgirl or Iris in a space suit, but she knew she had to discover what she was here for. She entered her name and was about to press Enter...
"Hello Frankie."
Frankie whipped around to see who was speaking to her...
And found herself standing before her.
This Frankie looked different. Her figure was fuller, and she wore a smart shirt and skirt and a white lab coat. And she had a look about her which seemed to radiate wisdom.
"Who... who are you?" Frankie gasped.
"I'm you, from 15 years in the future, obviously."
"Oh... but.. what are you doing here?"
The other Frankie chuckled. "I'm you, remember? I certainly wouldn't forget the time I travelled into the future to find out who I marry."
"Oh.. of course." Frankie shook her head for not realizing it.
She looked to her future self eagerly. "So then, you know why I'm here. I need to know which of the boys I end up with. Is it Jackson, Holt? Andy, Neight? Who is it?"
Her future self shook her head sadly. "I'm sorry. I can't tell you."
"What? Why not?"
"Because it would potentially change the entire outcome of your life."
"Er... duh! That's the point."
"You don't understand." Older Frankie stepped closer. "You... that is, I,don't learn who the person you love is until much later into your life. Before that, you go through a series of events and experiences which shape you into the ghoul you become later on... me. And those experiences help you discover who the love of your life really is. If you were to know who you were meant to marry ahead of time, you would probably end up going straight to them, and possibly miss out on all those experiences, altering the entire course of your, and my life. And no offence, but I'm really happy with how my life is right now."
Frankie was stunned as she absorbed this information. She hadn't considered that knowing this would affect her life that drastically.
"And of course, knowing who you marry would erase the whole reason for travelling in time in the first place and possibly create a paradox, and from what Ghoulia tells me, those are pretty bad." Her older self finished.
"I... see your point." Frankie nodded. "But surely you could tell me who I choose as my date for the Junior Prom! That night helps me on my way to discovering which of them I love, right?"
"Somewhat, yes.." Older Frankie replied uneasily.
"Well, who is it?! Frankie demanded.
Her older self sighed. "You don't take any of them as your date."
Frankie blinked. "Wha... what?"
"It's true. None of them are your date."
"No.. that can't be!" She glared at herself. "You're lying!"
"Why would I lie to myself?" Older Frankie replied calmly.
"So... so what does this mean?! I go to the prom with someone else entirely?! Like I don't have enough potential boyfriends!" Frankie wailed.
It was all too much for her. She'd come here certain she would find the answer to her problem, but now it just seemed more distant than ever.
She collapsed onto a chair and broke into tears.
"This... this isn't fair!" She sobbed. "I just... I just want someone I can love, and who'll love me back, like all my friends have. Is that so wrong?"
"No.." Her older self knelt down to face her. "It's not wrong at all."
"Then why is this so hard?! I have three wonderful people who all want to be with me. Why can't I just decide which one I want to be with?" She wiped her eyes. "I thought... I thought if I could figure out who to take to prom, I would finally know who I'm meant to be with..."
"Oh Frankie..." Her older self stroked her hair in a comforting gesture, like her mother would. "Do you really think it's possible to find the love of your life just by going to one dance?"
Frankie sniffed. "I don't know... it's romantic, I guess.."
Older Frankie smiled. "Yeah, I thought so too. But after a while, I realized it takes more than just a dance to see who the person you really love is. It's not just spending time with them to discover what you love about them. It's also being a person everyone, including yourself, can love."
She looked right into Frankie's eyes, her mismatched gaze mirroring her younger self's. "You can't decide who you want to be with yet, because you're not certain if you're the kind of monster they want to be with. But one day, you will be, and then you'll know for sure the kind of person you want in your life. It just takes time... heck , even I didn't figure it out until five years ago"
Frankie's jaw dropped. "You mean... it took you ten years to figure out who you love?!"
"Well, yeah. But it's not like I spent ten years moping about waiting for the answer to drop in my lap." Older Frankie smiled knowingly. "I concentrated on my studies, I began my career - I'm a doctor, but you probably already knew that - I spent time with my parents and my friends, I worked to improve myself by taking up a few hobbies, and I made my own dau..."
She stopped abruptly, and suddenly looked nervous. "I mean... I worked on a few home projects, heh heh."
Frankie raised an eyebrow at this..
"But the point is, I didn't spend my whole life worrying about finding someone to love. I wanted someone, yes, but I didn't make it the only thing I needed to make myself happy. Instead I concentrated on the things I had now that I could love. My family, my friends, my work... as long as I had those, I never felt alone. And it helped me grow as a monster as well. You learn a lot about love when you give and receive it as much as you can. And after a while, when I met the person who became my husband... I knew, truly knew, that he was the one I wanted to be with."
Older Frankie held up her hand, revealing a shining wedding band on her finger. "You won't have the high school romance your friends have. Not everyone is lucky to get that. But I promise you, one day, you will find that special someone, and have a family of your own. But until then, just concentrate on finding yourself, and becoming the kind of monster you want to be. And eventually, you'll find who and what really makes you happy."
Frankie gasped. "You really mean that?"
Older Frankie smiled. "Of course. I'm living proof, right?"
Frankie wiped her eyes as she stood up, feeling a little better. "Thank you... I mean, me, I guess..."
Older Frankie just chuckled. "Don't worry about it. I know it wasn't the answer you wanted to hear, but I hoped it helped."
"It did..." She sighed, realizing what she had to do. "I guess I'd better head back to the past... Oh, I don't know how I'm going to tell the guys I can't go to the prom with any of them. They'll be so hurt..."
"Why can't you go to the prom with them?" Her older self asked.
"But... you said none of them are my date."
"I said you don't accept any of them as your date. That doesn't mean you can't go to the prom with them."
"I don't understand."
Older Frankie reached into her lab coat and pulled out a photograph. She extended it towards Frankie. "Here, look at this. It's a copy of your prom photograph."
Frankie stared at the photo suspiciously. "Can you give that to me? Won't it disturb the timestream?"
"I think we'll be fine. You get this picture five days from now in your time anyway."
Frankie took the picture from her and looked at it. Her eyes widened as she took it in. She was quiet for a long time, before a large smile crossed her face.
"I'd never considered that..."
"Me neither, until.. well, now." Older Frankie shrugged. "It's not quite the usual kind of date, but because of this prom, all of the boys are lifelong friends in this time. As for which one you fall in love with... well, you'll have to wait and see. But I promise, it will be worth it."
Frankie couldn't help but hug her future self.
"Thank you.. I mean.. me! Oh this is confusing..."
"Don't think too hard about it. Now, shouldn't you be getting back to your own time?"
"You're right!" Frankie grabbed her things and headed to the door. She paused to wave back to her future self. "Thank you for everything. I have a lot to think about."
"Just take care, okay?" Older Frankie smiled back. "My present is counting on you after all."
Frankie smiled wistfully as she watched her younger self run out of the room, no doubt heading back to the time machine. Having awaited this day for fifteen years, she was glad that she had steered her past self onto the right track. Still, looking back on her life as it was now, it was a little hard to believe she had ever been that worried...
Her iCoffin beeped. Answering it, she smiled as she saw the holographic display of her husband.
"Hey sweetheart... I'm at Monster High..." She spoke back. "I had to help someone out... You're running late? Don't worry, I'll pick up the kids on my way back... love you too."
"And I headed back to the present." Frankie finished her story.
"Wow... future you is pretty awesome." Draculaura spoke in awe.
"But what did she show you in that picture?" Clawdeen asked. "It helped you figure out who to take to prom, right?"
Frankie reached into her purse and took out a photograph. She held it up for all to see.
It depicted her at the prom, standing at the entrance in a resplendent patchwork dress, smiling happily as she had her picture taken. Standing around her were, posing and waving for the camera in their individual tuxedos, were Jackson, Andy and Neighthan.
"What the..." Cleo gaped. "You.. you take all three of them?!"
"Can you even DO that?" Draculaura was amazed. "Are you allowed to take three dates?"
"They're not dates." Frankie explained. "I'm going to suggest that we all go together as a group. No dating, just going as friends."
"Oh.. that's actually a pretty good idea" Clawdeen nodded.
"And when you get them all together, that's how you figure out which one you like, right?" Draculaura asked.
"No, it's not a test to see which one is best. Maybe I'll get some insight that might tell me which boy I'm meant to be with." Frankie shrugged. "But really, all I want is for all of us to have a fun night at the prom, with no pressure on us to be all romantic."
"If that's what you want." Cleo spoke. "But isn't this just sidestepping the problem? You still haven't decided who you want to be your boyfriend."
"I know... and I won't know who that is for a long time." Frankie sighed with a smile. She looked over at the three boys. "But that's okay. I know now that I still have a lot of maturing to do before I feel ready for a proper relationship, and so do they. One day, I'll know for sure who I want to be with."
She got up from her seat. "But until then... I think I'll just take things as they come, and spend more time enjoying my life right now."
She chuckled. "I still have a lot to do in the next ten years before I get hitched, after all."
With that, she moved across the room, and gathered Jackson, Andy and Neighthan together at a table on the far end. The ghouls watched as she spoke to them, proposing her idea. The three boys had mixed looks of surprise and slight disappointment, but once Frankie talked to them a little more, they seemed more receptive to the idea. Soon all four of them were talking together in good spirits.
"Aww,,, I hope it works out for her." Robecca smiled.
Draculaura vibrated excitedly in her seat. "Ooh, now I totally want to go into the future!"
"Didn't you hear about that whole paradox thing?" Clawdeen raised an eyebrow. "Besides, why would you need to see the future? We all know you've got your heart set on marrying my brother one day."
"Oh, I know..." Draculaura grinned at her wickedly. "I'm more curious to know who YOU marry."
Clawdeen suddenly blushed. "Uuh... I'd rather wait and be surprised on that one..."
THE END