Someday We'll Be Together

Chapter 7- Futuristic Hippies

"In 2008, were you a robber?" Mrs. Lincoln asked, pointing to Max's clothes.
"Excuse me?"
"Of course! You used the time machine to escape from the police." Tyler turned to Max, who looked completely puzzled: "Your clothes, Max."
"Oh, uhh... everyone dresses like this in the future."
"Then the world isn't quite a peaceful place in the future."
"At least the Cold War ends in 1991."
"No nuclear war?"
"No, no, that would be terrible."
At that moment, Max changed the subject:
"Hey, the taste of this milk... it's very strange." He frowned at the milk in the glass.
"I thought I was the only one who noticed that." Lena said, indicating she agreed with Max.
"It's not that bad of a taste. Just... different." Tyler said.
"Ah, I haven't had time to go down to the city to get something since I've been working on the time machine for so long. So, I invented a milk machine." Mrs. Lincoln explained.
"A milk machine?"
"Yes." Mrs. Lincoln stood up and brought a teapot with strange cables on it.
"I attach these arms you see to Schrödinger and–"
"Wait, are you saying we just drank cat milk?" Tyler asked in horror.
"You just said the cat milk wasn't bad." Max turned to Tyler.
"No, no, not exactly. This machine adds components from cow's milk into Schrödinger's milk, turning it into cow's milk." Mrs. Lincoln explained.
"When was the last time you changed its batteries?" Lena asked. "Ah... I think it was in 1963."
"Eww!" Tyler and Max exclaimed in disgust.
"But hey, I've been drinking this for 20 years."
"You're not doing a good thing." Max said.
Everyone's appetite was gone. Max was the first to leave the breakfast table.
"I don't think I can eat anymore."
"Me neither." Tyler said after him.
Lena followed them. "I don't think I can either."
"Well then, there's something I need to show you." Mrs. Lincoln said. She stood up and began rummaging through a box next to the table.
"I bet she's going to show us a machine that lays eggs for her cat." Max whispered to Tyler.
"Maybe she's grinding her cat's kittens into some kind of meat grinder and eating them like meat." Tyler suggested.
"You guys are disgusting." Lena said upon hearing them.
Mrs. Lincoln returned with three cards in her hand. She placed the cards on the table.
"These are your fake IDs." the woman said.
Max and Lena took the cards with their names on them.
Both of their last names were entered as "Fountain."
"I made both of your last names the same because you're siblings." the woman explained.
Meanwhile, Tyler picked up the remaining card and looked at the woman strangely:
"Hey, why is my name... Justin Bieber?"
"Max told me that." the woman said.
"Thank goodness it's not Mr. Spock." Max said, grinning at Tyler.
Tyler looked at Max, who grinned at him, as if to say this isn't funny at all. "I guess... I guess I can be Justin Bieber for a week." Max eagerly interjected:
"Hey, look, my birthdate says May 5, 1965. My God, I'm one month older than my dad right now."
"Okay, now you need to listen to me," the woman said. Lena paid attention to the woman. Tyler and Max were still whispering and giggling among themselves. Lena cleared her throat to indicate they needed to focus. Max and Tyler also turned to the woman. "Yes, we're going to register you for high school now. I'll tell them you grew up in a hippie commune and that you need to be here for a week because I'm doing a study on you. Any questions?"
They all looked at each other strangely.
"What's a hippie commune?" Max asked.
"Don't they exist in the future? Groups where hippies live together independently of the world." the woman explained.
"So, do we have our own Indian teepees or something?" Tyler asked.
"No, no. My God, have you never seen hippies before?"
"We'll explain our strange behavior by saying we grew up in a hippie commune because we don't belong here," Lena said, indicating she understood.
"Absolutely!" the woman said.
"Any other questions?"
"Are we going to walk around with weird dreadlocks in our hair and drugs in our pockets?" Tyler asked.
"Oh, no. We'll get you some clothes from the 80s before we get to school. You won't look too different from the other kids at school. Remember, you're futuristic hippies."
"Futuristic hippies," Max repeated. He seemed to really like that phrase.
"Okay, grab your IDs and let's get this done as soon as possible."