"Say Goodbye, Sam." He advised his friend who stood with the brunette still in his arms as they watched the younger couple make their way out into the main hall to make their own announcement.

"Goodbye, Sam." Came the whispered words of his friend and counterpart.

"Sam? Is that your name?" The brunette looked up at his friend questioningly, searching his face for any sign of confirmation of her guess.

Al just smirked and took a puff of his ever-present stogie as he watched his friend give the woman a slight nod before the blue light that preceded all the jumps since the moment the accelerator had been turned on enveloped him, transporting him to places and times still unknown. The older man chuckled to himself at how quickly the last leap had resolved itself, almost as if they hadn't been needed at all. "You just had to give him another glimpse at them, didn't you?" He chuckled, the quick movement of his eyes heavenward being the only indication of to whom he had been speaking.

"Good night, Gooshie," He called over his shoulder as he passed through the control room on his way out to the parking lot. He was looking forward to the dinner Beth was making tonight, it was hard to believe that they'd been married as long as they had been. Al also knew that, had Sam not intervened, he would have been a hollow shell of a man divorced many times over just looking for someone who meant as much to him as Beth did. He sometimes remembered whispers of what his life would have been like, it was hard to believe how different his life would have been without Beth.

Ducking into his office for his coat, Al snuffed out his cigar in the ashtray that sat on his desk. Beth hated it when he smoked, and he had honestly cut back, but it was hard to kick the habit he'd had since he had gone to flight school. He smiled at the thought of his beautiful Beth, even in her early 70's she looked just as beautiful as the day he'd met her in the naval sick back all those years ago. Nothing much had changed her in his eyes, true her hair was greyer than it was brown, and her naval officer uniform had been exchanged for more comfortable scrubs when she did her work at the Children's Hospital. After so many years of treating war wounds, she had decided that she needed to be in a different environment and seemed to find her niche in Pediatric Intensive Care. While he knew she still dealt with difficult situations, he knew that her life fulfilled her, which is all he could ask for her life.

He had to say his life was pretty fulfilling as well; not only did he have Beth, but three beautiful daughters, and seven grandchildren. He even had a nephew he kept an eye on when had the time, his sister's son, who he had promised to look out for when she had died of breast cancer when her son was only 10 years old. His former brother-in-law being too wrapped up in his life to really care what his son did aside from cutting him off from the family fortune when the boy refused to follow in his father's footsteps. Unfortunately, the boy's choice of careers had brought him no shortage of heartache over the past few years. He was very much like his uncle was before meeting Beth, a lothario with an easy smile that charmed the pants off the ladies, both literally and figuratively. Unlike his uncle, every time he started to open himself up to something more, he would lose whatever, or whomever it was that made the change in him. The boy had even recently found that he'd fathered a child whose mother had died violently overseas. Al had lent his help in trying to track down the missing child, which led his nephew to Tel Aviv to try and bring her home. He only hoped that his chance at fatherly love would not be ripped away from his nephew as his other chances had been.

He knew he must be getting soft in his old age if all he could think of was the love prospects of the next generations of his family. Chuckling to himself, he got into his new Tesla and drove into the night to his home, and the woman who had loved him for over half a century.

The next morning his daily routine started as it always did, his wife's alarm going off at 0430 to get ready for work as he slowly awoke to the sound of the shower running and shuffled into the kitchen to start coffee. By the time he'd finished his morning cup, his wife came strolling into the kitchen, her clean white sneakers making barely a sound as she crossed the linoleum. Al, as he did every morning, took the time to appreciate the view of his wife as she bustled around the kitchen making their breakfast. He loved the way her pale blue scrub pants closely followed the contours of her shapely legs and hugged her rear in a way that only her husband could appreciate. Her scrub top today was white and featured the sisters who were the leads in one of the most recent Disney films. He only knew because his youngest granddaughters had insisted on watching the film non-stop when they had visited the previous weekend, it was nearly Friday now and he still couldn't get the song out of his head, it didn't help that Beth was humming the song as she made quick work of the eggs she was frying.

"You had to pick that song to hum, didn't you?" He jokingly demanded, walking toward her and wrapping his arms around her slim figure as he stood behind.

"Let it go, Al, just let it go," Beth gave him a teasing pat and kiss on the cheek before turning back to plating the eggs.

"Ha-ha," He mocked dryly, "I've been trying to get that song out of my head for a week, and you're not helping."

"I'm sorry, who was the one who would sweep me off my feet singing 'A Whole New World' when Aladdin came out?" She teased.

"You can blame your nephew for that one, he's the one who insisted on watching it when he visited." Al smirked as he made quick work of the eggs and toast his wife sat before him.

"Whatever you say, dear," Beth shook her head as she calmly cut into her own meal before looking at the clock, "You should probably get a move-on, or else you'll be late."

"I doubt that Sam will notice if I'm a few minutes late," Al rolled his eyes, but got up anyway to rinse off his plate and cup and place them in the dishwasher. Knowing Beth would likely be out the door as soon as she was finished eating, he gave her a brief kiss and wished her a good day before heading back into his bedroom to shower and dress for the day.

An hour later, he was walking down the halls of Project Quantum Leap, late as his wife had predicted, but he had no plan to inform her of such, couldn't let the woman think she was right all the time, although she usually was. He had just taken off his jacket and settled at his desk when Sammy Jo, stuck her head into his office with a quick knock on the door frame, "Good morning, Admiral." She smiled at him.

"Morning Sammy, found where your dad's taken us this time?" He asked, looking over paperwork that was awaiting his signature.

"Yes, but I think this is something you're going to have to see for yourself." The younger woman answered, Al could hear the slight hesitation in her voice. Something wasn't right.

"Sammy Jo, is Sam in some kind of trouble?" He demanded gently, rising and walking around his desk to stand before her.

"No, nothing like that, it just…" She trailed off, "I think it would be better if you saw it yourself."

With a curious look toward the scientist, he walked off toward the holding chamber. When he entered the room, he knew why Sammy Jo was so elusive about the new mission. Aside from himself, Sammy Jo was the only one who could see the actual person who had leaped in. The man standing before him may have been a bit older, a lot greyer, and sterner than he had remembered, but his eyes, were unmistakable. "I'll be damned..."

"Admiral," The younger man's cool grey-blue eyes bore into his own, "Would you care to explain to me what the hell I am doing here?"

"Your guess is as good as mine, Gunny." Al shook his head, as he placed his unlit cigar in his mouth.