3:00 PM PST
Jennifer was munching on some popcorn and drinking a Pepsi Free while watching Jules and Verne play Nintendo, when Doc and Clara suddenly returned.
'Hello, Marty! It turns out that our meeting was cancelled today, so...' Then Doc noticed that it was Jennifer who was lying on the couch. 'Hey, Jennifer, where's Marty?'
'Well, he's, uh...' Jennifer started to say.
'Hey, Emmett, look!' called out Clara, pointing out the window. 'It looks like Marty took your DeLorean. He was supposed to stay here and watch the kids.'
'He never asked me for permission to use the time machine,' Doc replied, grimly.Then, turning to Jennifer, he asked, 'What do you know about this?'
Turning red, Jennifer knew that she had no choice but to tell the truth. 'Well, Doc,' Marty replied, 'he told me he was going to travel back in time to 1938, so that he could see you as a teenager. I told him he should have talked to you first.'
'Than you should have stood your ground,' Doc said, sternly. 'By coming over here and covering for him, this makes you just as guilty as him.'
Just then Marty stepped in the door, and he was stunned when he saw Doc and Clara. His face turned red, as he realized he was caught.
'Marty, what is the meaning of this?' asked Doc. 'I told you never to use the time machine without asking me first. The time machine is not a toy. Anytime you travel back in time, you risk altering history - or even creating a time paradox.'
'Look, Doc, I'm sorry,' Marty said, quietly. 'It's just that you never really told me much about your childhood before - and, well, I wanted to see what your life was like when you were my age. I guess I should have asked first.'
'Yes, you should have,' replied Doc. 'Say, you must have used the alias Mike Lewis - and you must have visited during the week we got revenge on Howard Needles.'
'Yeah, that was me,' Marty mumbled. 'I'm as guilty as charged.'
'If I remember correctly,' Doc added, 'it was your idea that we should get revenge on him - and you were the one who told me about his plans.'
'Yes, Doc,' Marty said, quietly, 'I couldn't just not say anything and let him humiliate you. As I friend, I just couldn't stand to see you get hurt. Anyway, it's not like I wasn't worried about the space-time continuum.'
'Well, I guess I can't be too mad at you,' Doc said, smiling. 'You always were a very compassionate person, and that is what makes you so great. Just, in the future, please ask me before using the time machine.'
'I will, Doc,' replied Marty. 'I am wondering, though. I know you've told me about Howard Needles before, and you've told me about Karen and Leanne. You've never told me about Nancy, though. She seemed to me like a nice girl. So what happened between you guys, anyway?'
'Her father got transferred to another city about 100 miles south of here,' explained Doc. 'We decided that trying to maintain a long distance relationship might not work out too well. Anyway, she met someone else less than a year after we broke up. I knew I should be happy for her, but I couldn't help but feel hurt that I was replaced in her life. I did eventually get over it, though - and I was invited to their wedding.'
'So have you had any other girlfriends?' Marty asked, with curiosity.
'Yeah,' Doc said, quietly. 'From 1944 to 1946, I was studying physics in college and dating the Dean's daughter, Jill Wooster. I thought she was the girl of my dreams, and I had dreams of starting a family with her. We always went to Pismo Beach, and she apparently liked Jules Verne. However, she wasn't all that she seemed.'
'Oh, why?' asked Marty. 'What happened? Did she use you?'
'In a manner of speaking, yeah,' replied Doc. 'You see, Dean Wooster and two of his coharts told me that I must participate in one of three projects: the Edsel car, chemical warfare, or Xerox. By 1946, I had finally gotten my doctorate - and I had opted to teach third grade, because I had always been very fond of children. So, as a result, I had no interest in any of them - and I told them that I refused to participate in any of them.'
'And Jill broke up with you because of it?' asked Marty.
'Yeah, she did,' Doc said, sadly. 'You see, the Dean threatened me that my relationship with his daughter would be damaged unless I cooperated with them.'
'So was it the Dean who forbid Jill to date you any longer?' asked Marty.
'Actually, I'm pretty sure she broke up with me of her own free will,' Doc replied. 'The next day, Jill told me to do it for her - but I still refused. Jill then angrily walked out of my life, adding that she never liked Jules Verne.'
'So she was just putting on an act all along?' asked Marty.
'I believe so,' replied Doc. 'I think, from day one, he was using me. Had I agreed to work for his father, she probably would have eventually left me for another man. I was so heartbroken, that I trashed all my photos of Jill and me.'
'Wow!' breathed Marty. 'She certainly showed her true colours that day. She sounds like one very dispicable young woman. You're better off without her, anyway.'
'Yeah, you're right, Marty,' Doc said, quietly. 'I mean, hey, I have Clara in my life now - with two wonderful children. It still hurt, though, after she was leading me on for two years. She left a really big hole in my heart. That's why I was so cynical about the whole 'love at first sight' mantra. I really did have a hard time understanding women. I thought they seemed so fickle.'
'Well, it's certainly good that you gave Clara a chance,' Marty said, smiling. 'I was initially a little resentful of her, but she really is a wonderful lady.'
'Ah, yes,' gushed Doc, 'we've been happily married for over eight years now.'
'So what about Howard Needles?' asked Marty. 'Has he given you much grief since I left? I hope I didn't get you in too much trouble.'
'Actually, he pretty much left me alone after that,' Doc said, smiling. 'I think he just went on to bully other people - since his last plan to humiliate me backfired on him.'
'That's good to hear,' Marty said, smiling.
'Well, anyway,' Doc said, sighing, 'I have a few phone calls I have to make. Why don't you come for supper tonight? Jennifer can come, too.'
'Thanks, Doc,' replied Marty, as he embraced Doc.
Marty and Jennifer then quietly walked out of the front door.