Chapter 15:

Nix awoke the next morning, sick and sad. She had lost her Marty forever. She sat up in bed and sniffled. All she wanted to do was crawl into Marty's lap and snuggle up to him as he told her everything was going to be fine. But it wasn't. It never will be.

"Nix?" Michael popped his head in his daughter's room, "you awake, sweetie?"

"Yeah, daddy."

"There's someone downstairs who wants to talk to you."

She stood from her bed and threw on the nearest sweatshirt and followed her dad out of her room. As she descended the stairs she saw a man sitting on the couch. Jeans, red tee-shirt, that same light brown hair as Marty's.

"Nix, you remember Mr. McFly, from my work?"

"Yeah," she said with a smile.

"Could I have a word with her alone please, Mike?" Mary asked, sweetly.

"Sure. I'll be in the garage then," he patted his daughter's shoulders and went into the garage with Dane and Logan.

Nix sat down on the chair next to the couch where Marty sat. He gave her that same childish grin to her. He had not aged that much since 1985. His eyes were still as blue as the sky and he was still on the shorter side. Besides a few wrinkles here and there, he was the same. That made her so happy just to see him again.

"Nix, you know we can't be together," he stated with a sigh.

"I know, Mr. McFly…"

"Please don't call me that. To you it will always be Marty."

"Marty, I know we can't be anything more than friends without messing up some sort of paradox… or something being extremely illegal."

"I don't want me getting in the way of you living your own life. Nix, I'm married with kids. How I felt back then, that was real. But now, it's for one illegal. Also, I don't want to make you deprived of a life. You're sixteen, live a little will ya?"

"I understand that, I really do," Nix looked to the floor.

Marty got of the couch and knelt in front of Nix on the couch. He lifted her head and made her look him in the eyes. He smiled, which made her smile. She wanted to do something. Cry on his shoulder; hug him until she felt better. She wanted to do so much, but couldn't bear to do any of it.

"Nix, I want you to have something," he reached in his pocket and pulled out a set of car keys. He placed it in her hand and closed it, just like in the movies.

"Is this what I think it is?" she asked, gleam in her eyes.

Marty nodded with a smile, "She's all yours."

"I-I don't understand."

He shrugged and sat back down on the arm rest of the couch, "I don't use her much anymore. I don't have a desire to. She's just sittin in my garage covered up under a tarp. Doc trusts you, so I trust you. I talked it over with him, and he agrees that you should have her."

"But-"

"No but's," Marty said, "besides, there's a few things in there I think you'd like to have."

"What?"

He shrugged with that grin again, "Think nothing of it. Just some stuff the past me wanted you to have."

"I really don't know what to say, Marty, I really don't."

"I think a 'thank you' is in order."

She stood from the chair and hugged the man whom she had fallen for back over twenty years ago. Startled at first, then Marty hugged her back.

"Thank you so much, Marty McFly."

"You're welcome, Nicole Fox."

She pulled away and smiled to him.

"Now promise me, you'll live your life as normal as possible."

"I don't believe in the word 'normal', Marty. But I'll be good, promise."

He smiled, "That's what I wanted to hear. Who knows, maybe I'll start popping by at Doc's more often."

"That'd be awesome."

The two stood and hugged once more. They began to walk to the garage where her dad was.

"Keep time travel alive," Marty smiled to her, "oh, and if your dad asks why I needed to talk to you, just say something like you were trespassing or something. Good deal?"

"Good deal," she smiled, "Oh, and Marty."

"What?"

"All of this sounds oddly familiar."

He simply smiled to her. She couldn't help but smile back. He just had that effect on her and neither of them could control it.

The two reached the door that lead into the garage. Marty gave her another hug before heading in to talk to the other guys. Nix sniffled from her cold and went out the front door to the DeLorean. The DMC sat there in the driveway untouched by anyone else but Marty. She opened the door up and sat inside behind the driver seat.

It felt, right, when she sat behind the wheel. She closed the door and just sat there. All the things she heard stories about, were in front of her eyes. The Flux capacitor, the gadgets, the time clock, the everything. On the dashboard, she saw two envelopes.

Nix picked up the envelopes and read the covers.

'85 Marty and Present Marty

She opened the '85 Marty first. She tore it open and read the letter.

Nix,

I honestly don't know where to start. I don't want to start, but I have to somewhere. Listen, I do care about you very much. That night at the concert with your dad, you were amazing. "Earth Angel", that song just made my life. I will never forget that night. Ever. Even in that year 2012, I won't forget it. How you may ask, well, it's called it'll come back to me soon enough. Promise.

But then there's the age problem. In your time, I'm forty four. If you were to live here, that could mess up a ton of paradoxes and also I would never say no of course. I'm pretty sure that it's illegal there. Well it is here too.

Well, I don't want to say goodbye. I'm not too good at them either. So, my future me will see you once in a while. I promise you that I will remember you. How could I forget you? Oh right, I can't. Listen, I told my future me that I'm giving you the DeLorean. Doc and I agree that you should have it. You'll use it more than the future me.

I left you some things in the trunk of the car. I can't tell you what's in there, you'll see for yourself. I'm sure you'll appreciate it. I just wanna let you know that I will always care about you. Future me can love you, but not in the way that you want. I want you to live a normal life. Come back any time so we can hang out, I'm totally for it. I'll never say goodbye, ever.

Love, Marty

She whipped away a tear from her eye. Before she decided to check the trunk for whatever the heck he left her, she wanted to read the other letter from 2012 Marty. It wasn't as long as '85 Marty.

Nicole,

I want to call you Nix, but I can't bring myself to it on the count that I'm really good friends with your dad. It's true, this here DeLorean is all yours. Take good care of her. Check the trunk; I think you'll like what ya find. Keep her hidden well and go on amazing adventures. But try not to fuck up the future or the past. You're one amazing girl that I will never forget. We can be friends, but that's it. I'm really sorry, but you know I'm married, with a son. Somehow, I think you two will cross paths one day. I'll see ya around for sure. I just can't forget an amazing young woman like you.

Love, Marty.

She put the letter down in her lap and whipped her eyes again. She opened the car door and got out to the hood of the car to the trunk. Smiling sadly, she looked into the trunk. First thing she picked up was Marty's bright orange vest. The first thing that she ever saw him in. He had given it to her. She put it on and snuggled up to it. It even smelled like him, no matter how weird that made her. She continued to shuffle through the trunk. There was another envelope, but it was a bigger one. It was full of pictures that he must've taken of her without her knowledge. But the one stood out the most. Whoever was taking the pictures seemed to get a really good one without her knowledge. It was of Nix and Marty from the first concert that she preformed at and they were smiling to the camera and Marty had his arm around her. She smiled and put the picture in her sweatshirt pocket. She didn't remember anyone with a camera, but she'd treasure it always.

Most of the other stuff was just tapes of bands Marty thought she'd like to listen to. He guessed right, really. But that picture, she'd remember it always. She'd keep it always. Nix would never forget the boy Marty was, ever. She put the vest back in the car and closed the trunk. She moved the DeLorean from the front yard into the empty shed in the backyard.

Once the car was moved, she took the things out of the trunk and took them inside. Back in her room, she put the pictures from the envelope in her special box with her movie stubs and other pictures of her and her brothers. As for the vest, she hung that right up in her closet. With the picture of her and Marty still in her pocket, she went back downstairs.

Dane, Logan, Marty and Mike were now talking in the living room. Probably about cars or something. They all seemed to have that in common. She nodded to the guys as she walked into the kitchen for a bottle of water. When she came back through, Marty caught her eye. She smiled to him and mouthed the words 'thank you'. He smiled back to her.