Tessa had somewhat of a hard time making friends growing up. She got along fine with others when needed, but she had never made any long-term friends. Some part of her was just scared. Of what? She hadn't quite worked that out yet. Maybe it was a mix of the fear of rejection and the fact that she might lose something if she was not careful.

These thoughts briefly flashed in Tessa's mind as she walked down the street with Eileen and Lorainne. Tessa realised that she had never really gone dress shopping before. Well, it was more like a dress pickup than actual shopping, but still.

"Let me see!" Eileen squealed as she held up a box for Lorainne.

Her friend smiled and lifted the soft pink dress out of the box; a frilly strapless one.

"Oh, that's lovely," Tessa told her.

"You're going to look so good!" Eileen added.

Lorainne's face turned to a colour that matched her dress. Utterly flustered by their kind words.

"Well, looky what we have here," Biff said, which caused the three of them to turn around in surprise. "Hey, nice dress, Lorraine. Although, I think you'd look better wearing nothing at all."

Biff tried lifting up Lorraine's skirt, making the girls move away while giving him angry looks.

"Hey, back off, sicko," Tessa told him. Attempting to shove him back.

"Biff, why don't you take a long walk off a short pier?" Lorraine sneered at Biff. This didn't seem to deter him as he kept following them down the street.

"Hey, listen, Lorraine. There's that dance at school tonight, right?" Biff told her as if he didn't just harass her. "Now that my car's all fixed, I figure I'd cut you a break and give you the honour of going with the best-looking guy in school."

"Ha, that's rich!" Eileen laughed at him.

"Shut it, Brown!" Biff snapped at her. Causing Elieen to gasp. Biff then turned back to Lorraine. "Whada you say?"

"I'm busy," Lorraine told him.

"Doing what?" Biff rolled his eyes.

"Washing my hair." Lorraine huffed.

"That's about as funny as a screen door on a battleship," Biff said as he grabbed her arm.

A look of confusion flashed on all three of their faces, but Lorraine shifted back to anger.

"Look, Biff, somebody already asked me to the dance!" Lorraine told him as she shook his arm off.

"Who? That bug George McFly?"

"I'm going with Calvin Klein, okay?" Lorraine said as she raised her chin with confidence.

"Calvin Klein? No, it's not okay." Biff grabbed her again but with more force. "You're going with me, understand?"

"Get your cooties off me!" Lorraine shouted as she tried in vain to shake him off again.

"When are you gonna get it through your thick skull, Lorraine? You're my girl." Biff smiled as he pulled Lorraine closer.

"Leave her alone!" Tessa tried to pull the older teen off again. Biff pushed her to the ground with little effort.

"Carrie!" Eileen shouted in concern.

Lorraine looked towards her friends and then back to Biff. Her eyes were full of scorn for him. "Biff Tannen, I wouldn't be your girl even if... even if you had a million dollars!"

The brunette pulled her leg back and kicked Biff as hard as possible. Then, while Biff was bent over in pain, Lorraine took the chance to hit Biff over the head with her dress box.

"Run!" Lorraine told Eileen and Tessa. They jumped to their feet and rushed down the street. The girls screamed in varying pitches as Biff chased them onto the road. He seemed to be so blind with rage that he nearly got hit by an oncoming car.

"Yes, you will, Lorraine! It's you and me, Lorraine!" Biff yelled. Ignoring the passing cars trying not to hit him. "It's meant to be! Someday you'll marry me! Someday you'll be my wife!"

"Oh god! He's crazy!" Tessa looked back as she ran.

They all kept running until Biff was out of sight. Then, found themselves sitting on a bench, trying to catch their breaths. Once they did so, the three paused and then started laughing.

"I can't believe you did that!" Eileen squealed.

"I don't know what came over me!" Lorraine beamed. "I was just looking at his annoying face and just went for it!"

"Well, it was amazing," Tessa patted her on the shoulder.

"Don't count on me doing it again," Lorraine signed with a smile.

"What's the worst that could happen?" Tessa shrugged as she smoothed out the crinkles in the yellow dress she had borrowed from Eileen.

"Eileen would have to bandage him up," Lorraine bantered.

"I'm not going within 5 feet of that maniac," Eileen jokingly shuttered.

The rest of the day was spent at Lorraine's house. Trying to decide on makeup and hair for the dance. Now and again, Tessa would try to encourage Lorraine to go to the dance with 'someone else', but it all seemed to fall on deaf ears.

"You know that thing about him is... he's always late," Tessa tried to come up with cons for Marty. But, unfortunately, not much sprung to mind.

"Well, so am I," Lorraine mused as she brushed her hair. "Maybe both of us being late will cancel it out?"

Tessa shook her head in surprise. She had never seen anyone so hung up on another person before. However, the more she interacted with Eileen and Lorraine, the more she started to think that maybe she was a bit too closed off.

Ever since she was a kid, Tessa never wanted to get close to anyone. James always made it feel like nothing would ever last. She worried he would ruin Tessa's relationships like he had ruined her mother's relationship with Uncle Emmett.

The future Eileen and Emmett didn't hate each other by any means, but they seemed to have an unspoken agreement to rarely talk to each other. Tessa thought that maybe James felt threatened. If Tessa's mother spoke to other people who weren't him regularly, Eileen would realise that James was just not worth it.

Tessa was scared to admit it, but she could see the dominoes starting to fall. When Lorraine first told Tessa about how James was constantly apologising to Eileen only to go back to being a jerk, it reminded Tessa of how the future James would come home from spending too much of their money. Claiming he didn't mean to and would be better.

If her mother tried arguing back, James would turn it on her. He would accuse her of things and make her feel guilty for past mistakes. It was a nightmare to see over and over again. Tessa couldn't imagine what it could have been like for her mother.

Eileen and Tessa later left Lorraine's place after they finished helping her get ready. They returned to the Brown residence to get dressed and finish up their own makeup.

"You're trying hard to set Lorainne up with that George, aren't you?" Eileen asked as she placed another pin in her hair.

"What? Noooo, I just-" Tessa stopped. Trying to come up with an excuse. "I just think they would be a good fit," Tessa lied.

If it wasn't for the fact that the two had to get together for Marty to exist... Tessa just thought that maybe Lorainne could do better. Every time Tessa had interacted with George in the last week, it had been unfortunate. That was the nicest way she could have put it.

Eileen paused to think before shaking her head. "No... I can't see it."

"Neither can I," Tessa wanted to say.

The room went silent. Tessa didn't see a point in trying to convince Lorraine's best friend that she should go to the dance with someone else.

The teen cleared her throat. "So, the end of the year is coming up. Got any plans for the summer before college?"

Eileen let out a surprised laugh. "Who said anything about college?"

"You're not going?" Tessa asked. Somewhat surprised.

"I didn't say that," Eileen shrugged. "I just don't know if I'm cut out for it."

"That's crazy!" Tessa argued. "You're more than cut out for it."

Eileen let out another laugh. "You sound like Emmett."

"Well, he's right," Tessa sat up from Eileen's bed.

"I can't... I'll never get accepted into medical school," Eileen explained. "That's just not what girls are meant to do."

"Says who?!"

"Almost everyone," Eileen sighed. She motioned for Tessa to come over.

"That's just so-" Tessa stopped herself from loudly swearing in front of her mother.

"It's okay, really," Eileen placed a hand on Tessa's shoulder. Tessa pouted. She knew Eileen was more than capable. Her mother was one of the most brilliant people she knew (and no she was not being biassed), along with Uncle Emmett.

Eileen started brushing Tessa's hair back into a tight bun. Then, holding it in place with pins and a light green frilly ribbon.

"Let's talk about something less... intimidating." Eileen tried to change the subject.

"Did anyone ask you to the dance?" Tessa complied.

"A couple, but I'll probably end up going with James," Eileen answered. "He'll go into one of his moods if I don't."

"I've never understood what you see in him," Tessa said absentmindedly as she flopped onto the bed.

"You've never even properly met him," Eileen laughed.

"What I mean is-" Tessa tried to cover for herself.

"It's okay," Eileen sighed. "I've known him for ages. I'd feel guilty if... you know?"

Tessa looked at her yet-to-be mother. "Did he ask you?"

"Well, not yet," Eileen frowned.

"But the dance is tonight!"

"I know, but-"

"Wouldn't it be fun to take someone who actually asked?" Tessa teased.

A slight blush crept onto Eileen's face. "That Freddy boy was awfully sweet... I couldn't. James would get so upset with me."

"Or hear me out; who cares how he feels? You've put so much effort into this night. Shouldn't you be allowed to have just as good of a time as everyone else?"

Eileen tried to hide her smile. Thinking of the prospect. "Well, one date couldn't hurt. And it's not like James and I are going steady... All done!"

Tessa looked in the minor. She had to admit she looked pretty great. The borrowed mint green dress went great with her hair and the ribbon. As Tessa thought about this, she realised this would be the first time she'd gone to a dance.

A lot of firsts that day.

"I'm gonna go call Freddy," Eileen beamed as she stepped out of the room in her own long-sleeved blue dress.

Tessa left soon after Eileen. Hoping to find Marty somewhere in the house.

"Everything ready on your end?" Tessa asked Marty when she found him lying on the couch.

"Yep," Marty gave a half-hearted thumbs up without moving on the couch. "My dad is ready to punch me right in the gut tonight."

"Excellent," Tessa smirked as she jumped into the armchair across from him.

"Wow, you look great," Marty said in awe.

"You're sweet," Tessa rolled her eyes with a smile.

"God, I hope this works," Marty sighed as he leaned his head into the back of the couch. You could hear his voice shake.

"It will work," Tessa assured him. "It has to work."

The room went silent. Tessa started to pick at the thread of the armchair. Things had been so crazy that week. It felt like Tessa hadn't stopped for even a second.

"So I was thinking-" Marty and Tessa started talking simultaneously.

"You go," Tessa told Marty as she fiddled with her hair.

"So, Tessa, you're cool and it's been sick hanging out with you this last week... and I was just wondering... was thinking maybe when this was all over, and we got back home you and me, I mean you and I could like... go see a movie?"

"That sounds fun," Tessa smiled. "I don't even remember what's on. There was that Clue movie I haven't seen yet."

Marty raised an eyebrow at Tessa. He wasn't sure if Tessa got what he was trying to ask. "Sweet, it's a date."

Tessa's eyes went wide. "A...a date? Yeah, that sounds like a great idea!" Much to her embarrassment, Tessa's voice squeaked as she said it. But it only made Marty smile.

"We better get going," Marty said after looking at his watch.

"Right!" Tessa said as she stood up.

Tessa had to admit she was not expecting to come out of this situation with a date.

For the first time, she was feeling pretty confident about this whole crazy plan.

fuck you