CHAPTER 4
‘Shit.’ Said James, his drink dulled brain finally putting the pieces together.
Louis agreed but couldn’t speak; he could only shake his head vigorously and point towards the door. The panic in his eyes seemed to wildly reflect the only word that his friend had so far managed to utter.
‘Shit.’ Said James again.
A foot wearing a white sneaker, followed by a leg wearing blue drainpipe jeans, stepped into the room. ‘Einny, is that you?’
With some effort James blinked himself out of his mini seizure. ‘Hide.’ He whispered desperately.
Louis nodded and made actions to move swiftly off somewhere, ‘There’s no-where to hide.’ He squawked.
James jumped about looking for a place to scurry. ‘Louis, Louis.’ He said hurriedly, ‘you go behind the TV, I’ll go under the bed.’
Louis gave a single nod and they both darted off towards the bed.
‘Louis.’ Screeched James, ‘The TV; the TV.’
‘Who the hell are you guys?’ Demanded a suspiciously confused looking Marty McFly.
Louis and James froze.
The two could do nothing but simply gawk at him. An emotional frenzy of terror and excitement flooded through their veins. There he was, stood in the middle of the room, skateboard by feet, school bag on skateboard. Denim jacket rolled up at the sleeves, white shirt roughly tucked in at the waist and a maroon T-shirt peeping through the open top buttons. Marty McFly, teenage God of the Eighties. Time travelling, Delorean driving, Biff bashing, Back To The Future Boy. Anyone that had ever seen the film wanted to be him, and those that didn’t want to be him - simply wanted him, even his own mother wanted to shag him! And there standing before him like two dishevelled, drunken, fanatics were two dishevelled, drunken, fanatics.
James, who had forgotten that he was still holding the clock, dropped it. Louis dropped his jaw (even further), and Marty dropped his wide rimmed, brown tinted, sunglasses and peered over them.
‘What the hell are you guys doing here?’ He said as he quickly surveyed the room and then with more seriousness and perhaps a little quiver in his voice he asked, ‘Where’s the Doc?’
The two didn’t move, James was waiting for Louis to say something but after a quick glance at his still gaping face, he knew he was on his own.
‘Well,’ James began, his voice cracked with the effort, ‘who… are you?’
‘Huh?’ That seemed to have thrown Marty a little.
The thought struck James that although this was Marty McFly - Teen Idol, in this situation he was just a teenager and James was an adult. Hopefully it would be just the edge he needed.
‘And what the hell are you doing here?’ James was trying to sound important.
The effect had definitely unbalanced Marty. ‘Well,’ he said, ‘I’m err kind of a friend of the Docs. But he’s never mentioned you guys. Who did you say you were?’ His voice wasn’t hiding his nervy suspicion.
Marty’s not stupid, thought James, and now he is trying to unbalance me. He continued with his spiel, ‘You see Marty-’ whoops.
‘How do you know who I am?’ Came the question.
James dithered and smiled nervously, ‘Oh yes, you must be Marty McFly, the Doc talks about you all the time.’ Marty was looking very unsure. James hurried on, ‘Yes myself and Doctor Louis here-’ he quickly took a step in front of Louis so that Marty couldn’t see his idiotic face, ‘-and the Doc, are conducting a very serious experiment.’
Marty looked as though he was about to say something so James carried on, ‘It’s to do with time, the experiment, yes time, and clocks,’ he pointed to all the clocks, ‘and a clock tower, and a flux capacitor.’ What am I rambling on about, he thought.
‘A flux what?’ questioned Marty, his face a picture of bewilderment.
James decided he’d better try and quit while he was, well not ahead, but perhaps nearly neck and neck.
‘Well, Doctor Louis and I will be getting off now, lots to do and all that.’ He grabbed hold of Louis and started to head for the door.
‘Wait.’ Said Marty, ‘I…I need to see the Doc, where is he?’
‘Ohh don’t worry Marty, the Doc will be ringing you very soon.’ He glanced at the telephone, which he knew was about to ring at any moment.
‘How do you know?’ Asked Marty as he followed the pair closer to the door, ‘Have you seen the Doc today?’
‘Yeah.’ Said James, just desperate to get away.
‘Was he here?’ Marty was sounding more demanding.
‘Yes, he was here today,’ James snapped at him. Then he noticed that Marty was looking at the overfilled dog bowl- evidence that no one had been here for days.
‘Marty,’ James tried to sound controlled, ‘Why don’t you…erm, why don’t you go and plug your guitar into that big Amp.’
Marty had that look, that slightly detached, eyes creased with thought look
James was pushing Louis in front and edging closer to the door.
Suddenly Marty stepped out of his thoughts and stared up at something behind James and Louis, ‘What the hell’s that?’ He said pointing.
‘Wha-’ Said James, and then crack- Marty hit him square on the chin, sending him flying into Louis, the pair of them toppled on to the floor.
Marty shot out of the door as fast as he could run.
Only seconds later Doc Browns’ telephone began to ring.
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