May 23, 1986
4:00 PM PST

"Mom?" Marty Jr asked, as he felt quite disoriented. His back felt rather sore, and the sight was very blurry. He could remember making a wish to Tabitha, but was that just a dream? He figured that it probably was. Still, it really seemed a little too real to be a dream. Where exactly could he be, and how did he end up here? "Mom, is that you?"

"There, there, now," called out a soft feminine voice. "Just relax. You've been asleep for almost half an hour." Marty Jr tried to look around, but he couldn't quite make out where he was. The room was very dark. He had a feeling that it wasn't his bedroom.

"I had a horrible nightmare," mumbled Marty Jr, as he was still dazed. "I dreamed that an friend from my childhood came to visit. We decided to do a little catching up. I sure began to feel dizzy, and then I... I really found myself fading away. It was terrible."

"Well, you're safe and sound," assured the feminine voice, as she placed her hand on his forehead. Marty Jr wasn't sure of whether to feel relieved, or not. He still couldn't figure out why he felt so stiff and sore. He really couldn't think of what he was doing, that would cause him to just end up in this condition. "Here now in good ol' Doc's lab."

"Doc's lab!" cried out Marty Jr, as he bolted up in bed. Just as the light was switched on, he sure took a close look at the young girl. She seemed to be just about his age, but he couldn't make out who she was. She looked to be strangely familiar, though.

"Just try to relax, Marty," suggested the girl, as she touched his shoulder. "Doc feels so bad about everything. He quite had no idea that his new machine would overload. I'm sure that, other than a few aches and pains, you'll be all right. Just take it easy."

Marty Jr swallowed, as he quite tried to make sense of what was going on. Just then, he remembered the experiment. It was a device that would allow one to communicate telepathically. It actually worked for a brief moment, before knocking him out. He was certain that Doc felt rather terrible. While this wasn't as major as the time machine...

Time machine? Marty Jr simply couldn't believe it. He actually was starting to gain some of his father's memories. It really was frightening. Also, since when did Doc have a time machine? Why wasn't he ever told about that? He felt so confused.

Yet, he knew just what the time machine looked like. It was made out of a sports car, called a DeLorean. He even quite remembered taking some trips in it, even though he just couldn't remember the specifics. Of course, it was actually his father's trips.

"Let me give you a massage, Marty," Jennifer suggested, softly. Marty Jr then smiled at his girlfriend... No! Jennifer was his mother! It simply was confusing. While he did wish to experience his father's youth, he didn't expect for this to happen. "It might really help you to relax. When don't you roll over, and I'll give you a back rub?"

"Yeah, okay, sure," mumbled Marty Jr, as he began to rollover. He figured that it was quite fine for his mother to give him a back rub. But she's not my mother, argued Marty Sr. Why am I thinking her as my mother, all of a sudden? This isn't right!

"You do look tensed out," added Jennifer, softly. "Tomorrow, you have another show to put on. Your band sure is doing great." Marty Jr swallowed, as he really thought of his father's old band, The Pinheads. "I'm sure rooting for you. You're really on a roll!"

Marty Sr swallowed, as he felt quite grateful to have a supportive girlfriend. Why was he having sudden thoughts about being his future son? Were they simply coming from the telepathic device? Doc never did mention anything about the machine allowing the telepathic communication to span across other time periods. Was that the problem?

"So, Marty," continued Jennifer, slowly, "do you still feel up to going to the roller rink, tonight? I hope you aren't hurt, too badly. Doc should be back, quite soon." As Marty Jr thought of the roller rink, he felt very excited. "We could just have pizza, tonight."

"That sounds totally awesome!" gushed Marty, excited. Pizza was just something that Marty, both Sr and Jr, really enjoyed. "Actually, I don't feel all too bad. I simply feel a little dazed, than anything. I mean, I'm not blaming Doc. I understand that it was..."

"Thank goodness, Marty!" called out a familiar voice. Marty looked up, and saw that it was Doc. The sheepdog, Einstein, started to sniff Marty. "I'm sure so glad that you're awake. I feel so terribly sorry. I hope that you... that you won't hold this against me. I felt so bad about it, I even cried. I hope that it's not going to affect our friendship."

"Oh, Doc!" cried out Marty, as he was quick to just throw his arms around his scientist friend. At the moment, it didn't matter if he was Sr or Jr. He just couldn't stand to see the pained look on the older man's face. "Don't worry! You always will be my friend!"

"I just feel so bad, though," insisted Doc, as he hugged Marty back. "Well, I'm so glad that you aren't angry with me. I guess that thing simply does need a little fine-tuning. I managed to tackle the dream recorder, a couple months ago. I'm sure that I can..."

"Just hang in there, Doc," encouraged Marty, softly. "After all, it really could've been a lot worse. I don't want you to quit. I really understand how much your experiments mean to you. It's sort of like with... with my music. I simply wouldn't want you to give up. I mean, just look on the positive side. I was just knocked out, for a few minutes."

"I guess you're right," Doc replied, softly. "Still, this really shook me up. Well, I'm sure thankful to have you for a friend. I'm not quite sure if I should... tell Clara about this, though. She's a great wife, but I can imagine that this would make her feel horrified."

"Well, that I rather can understand," agreed Marty. "After all, she came from the last century - and I'm sure that she's still getting used to..." Marty Jr cut short, as he was uncertain of what he was saying. Clara was from the last century? "... this century."

"You really have a good point," replied Doc, nodding. "It's been over half a year - and she really seems to have adjusted, quite well. Still, I'm sure that she just... that some things do still frighten her. I mean, for some time, she was so afraid to go anywhere - on her own. She did mention, though, that she sure would like to learn how to drive."

"Y'know, it's easy to really take for granted..." explained Marty, "all the comforts that modern technology gives to us... Well, it's real easy to forget that some things of this time period can be very scary to someone from the last century. Know what I mean?"

"Yeah, I hear ya," agreed Doc. "Still, there is no perfect time period. I really did enjoy the months that I've... been in the Old West. Still, I've also come to understand some of the dangers - like having to put up with outlaws. Mad Dog Tannen was so terrible."

Marty nodded, even though he had quite a vague memory of visiting in the Old West. He thought of Griff Tannen - who, with his bionic implants, really was dangerous. Still, he suspected that Mad Dog was actually much worse. He then thought of Bill Tannen, who was a lot nicer than his cousin. It was so hard to believe that they were related.

"It makes me feel rather glad," Jennifer commented, "that I wasn't in the Old West. It sounds like a scary place. I mean, you could get shot. I enjoy watching westerns, but I just can't imagine living there. I'm not sure if I'd even like to visit that era, actually."

"Well, it's not that bad," Doc explained, gently. "I mean, the pollution isn't as much an issue - and it's nice to be in the wide open spaces. It can be quite peaceful, in fact. In a few ways, I do miss that era. Also, Marty, your ancestors were rather hospitable."

"I'm quite proud of my heritage," Marty replied, smiling. "I sure have no plans to leave Hill Valley, no matter how famous I become. I mean, this place is my home - and I plan to raise a family here. It's also nice to have a father, too, who's an author. All my life, I sure have admired him. I wanted to be just like him. He really is encouraging of me."

"Your father's quite a great person," Doc agreed, nodding. "It must be a very strange feeling, though, to think that you were the one responsible for making him be the kind of father that he became. After all, it really was all thanks to your presence in 1955."

Marty just smiled. He had a vague memory of his family not being that successful. He just couldn't remember any of the specifics. He thought back to his childhood, and he remembered his parents being so supportive of him. He had a very happy childhood.

He also began to remember his childhood... as Marty Jr? Where were those memories coming from. As Marty Jr, he could remember looking up to his father - and wishing to just follow in his father's footsteps. He remembered being small, and really missing his father - whenever his father would be away from home, for one of his concert tours.

Marty Sr shut his eyes, tightly - as he really couldn't believe what he was thinking. He was remembering events of his future, from the perspective of his future son! It sure felt strange. It actually seemed as if he was just sharing his body with his future son!

"Are you feeling okay, Marty?" Jennifer asked, concerned. "I guess you're quite still a little shook up, from the accident. I guess I just can't blame you." Placing her hand on Marty's shoulder, she added, "Well, Marty, I think we should get ready to take off."

Marty smiled, as he stood up. Marty Jr was looking forward to going to the roller rink, and spending time with other '80s teens. While this experience was very confusing, it might also be fun. He would even be able to recognize most of the people. He was so determined to simply enjoy the evening. He realized that his wish really was granted.