Disclaimer: I do not own Back to the Future.

September 5, 1997
1:00 PM PDT

Verne Brown, who was seventeen years old, was just relaxing in his bedroom. To the casual observer, he appeared to be your typical teenage boy. He really loved to play video games, and he was quite skilled at playing the electric guitar. He had dreams of becoming a rock star - much like his older friend, Marty McFly. He was also laid-back.

However, very few modern teenage boys would be able to honestly insist that they were born during the Old West era. In fact, there was really only one other modern teenage boy he knew of - who could make the claim. It was his older brother, Jules.

Jules was nineteen years old, and he was the more studious boy - who had inherited his father's intellect. In just a month, he was going to marry Patti Franklin - who sure shared Jules interest in science. Jules dreamed of being an inventor and a scientist.

Verne sometimes envied his brother - as who seemed to have quite more in common with their father, Dr. Emmett Brown. Their mother, Clara, was almost as intelligent - as she shared a real big passion with "Doc" over Jules Verne and science. In the Old West era, she had been a schoolteacher - which had really been a passion for her.

Clara currently taught third grade at Hill Valley Elementary school, much like the way Doc used to. Verne was only five years old, when Doc finally decided to simply move his family to 1985. Clara, having been 37 years old, likely still missed the Old West.

His thoughts then turned to his younger sister, Haven. She was almost eleven years old, and she really remembered nothing about the Old West. Back in early 1987, she had spent a week in 1895 - with the family. She was only a baby back then, though.

He then thought about Marty and Jennifer McFly. A little week ago, Marlene was born to the couple - and she turned to be a very healthy baby. Just three days ago, Marty decided that it was time to head back on the road. It sure was major one drawback of having your friend become a rock star. Verne actually missed spending time with him.

"Honey?" called out his father's voice, as he gently knocked on the door. "Hey, Verne, are you in here?" As Verne just opened up the door, he added, "Listen, Verne, do you think you can do me a huge favour? I don't want to ask for too much, but I really..."

"Yeah, okay, sure," replied Verne, as he wondered what he father could want. "I can help you out, as I'm really not too busy. You know, I'm really starting to miss Marty. I am happy that he's successful, of course - but I really miss spending time with him."

"Well, how would you feel about taking a trip back to 1987?" Doc asked. A smile really spread across Verne's face, as he thought of how much things have actually changed during the last decade. "Jennifer wants you to pick something up for her. She left her baby dress at Francesca's Italian Diner, and she would like you to retrieve it for..."

"Sure, I could do that," Verne replied, as he was excited about visiting his past. "Why couldn't she have just picked it up back then, though? I don't quite mind doing this for her - but I'm just rather confused about why she wouldn't've taken care of it, then."

"It's because, well, she saw no use for it," Doc explained. "Her rather absent-minded aunt had sent that to her, thinking that she was just a tiny baby. She felt so insulted by that - that she didn't care never seeing it, again. She now regrets that, though."

"Okay, I understand," replied Verne, as he followed Doc to the garage. "I guess Jules is busy with Patti, while Haven doesn't know about our time machine. I guess you just think she isn't quite ready to know. She's almost eleven years old, so I don't quite see why she can't... I mean, Jules and I were only seven and five - when we first knew."

"That quite couldn't be helped, though," replied Doc. "After all, I had to get us out of the past - as we didn't belong in that time period. I sometimes do feel bad about how we're, uh, keeping something from her. She can find out, after she gets a bit older."

"I guess it could seem confusing to her," admitted Verne. "Well, as long we eventually can tell her. After all, time travel is a major part of our family - and I simply don't think it's right to keep that away from her. Still, I guess it's not too often that we really..."

"Well, Marty used to really love time travel," Doc said, with a hint of nostalgia, "but he really has been busy with his career. I mean, I know this has always been a dream for him - and I truly am happy for him. He's no longer that little boy that I once know, and he and Jennifer just had their first child. Next month, Jules and Patti will be married."

"I guess we all are growing up," Verne commented, sighing. "I never really thought I'd say this, but I really do feel nervous about graduating. Haven is already attending Hill Valley Middle School, so she's no longer a little girl. She's not done growing, though."

"Yeah, she's going to be as tall as your mother," replied Doc. "In a way, it's actually a good thing that the time machines aren't getting used so much. It's less of a strain on the space-time continuum, and we do need to just live in the present. It's only right."

While Verne knew that his father's comment was very profound, he wondered if there really was such a thing as "the present". As he quite knew from his own experience, it was possible to simply move from one time period into another. He mostly didn't like to admit it, but there were times when he actually did miss his life in the 19th Century.

He thought about his friends from that era. There were Chester Collins, Teddy DuPre, and Bruce Holmes. There were also Abraham and Sarah Lathrop, who happened to be his paternal granduncle and grandmother. He smiled, as he remembered Linda McFly.

"Well, I guess I'd better get dressed in some '80s clothes," commented Verne, as Doc nodded. "I guess I'm the only one who still enjoys time travelling, besides you. It just seems that Jules is only interested in spending time with Patti, which I suppose is..."

"Jules spending a lot of time with Patti," explained Doc, "is just like the way I was with your mom. It is quite natural to love spending a lot of time with your loved one. When you find the girl that you love, I'm sure you will be the same way. I simply used to not believe in love at first sight - but your mom proved me wrong, and I was sure happy."

"I guess you're quite right," admitted Verne. "I thought for sure that Rose Unger was the girl for me, but I guess the spark really wasn't there. We're still real good friends, though." With a small smile, he added, "I have to change, and then I will be ready."

Doc smiled, as he left the room. Verne couldn't help but feel a little despair. It actually made him feel so inadequate, that he couldn't find the girl of his dreams. It sure didn't seem fair to him. He older brother was about to be married, and he still had nobody.

oooooooooo

As Verne walked into Doc's lab, he thought back to two weeks ago. Eighteen-year-old Marty had shown up, as had nineteen-year-old Haven. It seemed so strange to really have a visitor from past and a visitor from the future show up at once. They had a lot of fun, though. He thought of how much he quite missed being with a teenage Marty.

"You look like an '80s teen," Doc commented, cheerfully. "It's a shame that Marty's old clothes wouldn't fit you. After all, you're sure taller than him. You're just as tall as me, now. Anyway, why don't you go use the DeLorean? It certainly is my pride and joy."

"It sure is amazing," observed Verne, "that the DeLorean lasted this long. I mean, it's only the second DeLorean that you had - since the first one was crushed by a train. I think it's awesome. After all, the first DeLorean certainly didn't last very long at all."

"That's where you're wrong, sport," protested Doc, chuckling. "You see, the DeLorean lasted for nearly 71 years. Let's not forget that it really spent most of it's life hidden in the Del Gato mine. Of course, it's true that the second DeLorean was really used more often - but it's still not older than the first DeLorean. The first might've not lasted..."

"Oh, yeah, I forgot about that," Verne commented, blushing. "I'm not very sure if this DeLorean could actually last seventy years, but I'm almost certain that it would last at least twenty more years. After all, we real seldom use the DeLorean just for driving."

"Well, Verne, why don't you go step in the car?" suggested Doc, as he opened up the doors. "Set the time for 2:00 PM on September 13 of 1987. This would really give you time to walk over to Francesca's Italian Diner. They sat in the non-smoking section."

"You know, Dad," commented Verne, "They might be quite suspicious, if I don't order anything to eat." As he stepped in the car, he added, "Anyway, I really would like to eat at the restaurant. I love Italian food - and, as that restaurant was replaced with Olive Garden, I certainly would like to take a trip down memory lane."

"I figured you'd like to," Doc replied, real cheerfully. As he reached into his briefcase, he added, "I just have to give you some '80s money, though." As he handed Verne a twenty dollar bill, he added, "You can't let either Marty or Jennifer see you, though."

"Thank you, Dad," Verne replied, as he began to set the time circuits. "So, when I get to Francesca's Italian Diner, I should just make sure that I grab the baby dress. It's in the non-smoking - and, as I don't smoke, that actually wouldn't be a problem for me."

Verne just waved to his father, as he shut the door. On his way to Hill Valley Park, he felt quite nervous. He felt very bad, as he thought of how he was told not to interact with young Marty. He knew that he should follow his father's instructions, though. He really began to accelerate the car to 88 miles per hour, until it broke the time barrier.