To be honest this isn't the story I expected to be posting first. I have another one that is close to being done that I thought would be finished first. That being said I hope you enjoy this. And of course I own nothing.
In an electric shock I was gone. Electricity ran through my body as I leapt through time. When I opened my eyes everything was familiar it took me a minute to fully arrive and gather my thoughts. I knew where I was immediately. I was standing in my barn, I was back in Elk Ridge, Indiana, I was home!
"Dad!" I turned and I or my seven year old self came running straight at me Dad?
"Oh boy." I ran my hand down my face then looked down at my own face staring at me.
"Dad! Tom stole my money!" I yelled up at me. I vaguely remembered this Tom had tried to sell me my own baseball cards. I caught him and told dad, Tom had to give me my money and my baseball cards back. Then my dad took him a side and lectured him. I had tried to listen but Katie started crying so I couldn't hear it all.
"He did, did he? Where is your brother?"
"He is hiding in our room." Little me cried back.
"Well lest go have a talk with him shall we." I let mini me led me back to the house. Just as I said/remembered Tom was sitting on the bed with my money and baseball cards hidden under his pillow. "Sam says you took something from him."
"I was trying to teach him life skills." Tom tried.
"He wanted my money. He didn't think I would recognize my own baseball cards."
"They were two years old, from the bottom of his collection." Tom argued.
"Tom give your brother back what belongs to him please."
"But dad he gave me the money." Tom tried again.
"I did not! You took it from my hands while I was looking at the baseball cards." Little me returned.
"Tom give Sam back the money and the cards now please."
"How did he even know they were his cards?"
"Give your brother back his things and then how about you and I go for a walk."
"Fine," My ten-year-old big brother protested, throwing my things on my bed before I led him out into the hallway.
"You know what you did wrong don't you?" I questioned.
"Yes."
"And what was that?"
"I stole Sam's cards and then sold them to him. It should have worked, why didn't it work? It worked for Eric when he tried it on his little brother and he used new cards."
I led my brother/son to the front porch and sat down on the bench. "Tom you know how your brother is in a class with a lot of kids older than him?"
"Yea so he's smart what does that have to do with the baseball cards?"
"Tom your little brother is special." Katie started crying in the background and I heard my younger self run up the stairs. Okay now I'm on my own no memory to guide me. What would dad have said? "Your brother has a very good memory. You know how when you take a picture you can go back and look at the picture whenever you want to." I tried, Tom just nodded, "Well Sam can take a picture without a camera, he keeps it in his brain and can look at it when ever he wants to."
"His brain takes pictures?
"Not exactly but that's how the doctor that was here a couple years ago explained it to your mother and I."
"The doctor that said Sam could skip grades?"
"Uh huh, the doctor called it a photographic memory. If you ask me we didn't need some psychiatrist to tell us your brother was a genius but the school insisted."
"So you're saying that Sam took a picture of his baseball cards in his brain two years ago and remembered it."
"That's exactly what I'm saying."
"So I can't trick him."
"Oh I'm sure you'll find away you're his big brother after all. He had to get that genius from somewhere and it certainly wasn't me." I had heard my dad say a version of that to my mother on more than one occasion. "Now go run along, and be nice to your brother and sister. You have to look out for them after all."
"That was very nice." Al showed up next to me, "Your dad is very entertaining. He didn't believe me at first when I told him he was in the future. But when I said it was your experiment he didn't question it for a second. I tld him in the future his son invented a time travel experiment and now he is traveling through time putting right what once went wrong. He smiled and said 'that's my boy'" Al reported, I could only sit there and smile. As far as my dad was concerned I was seven, and yet he didn't doubt that I would create time travel. "You're a lucky kid you know that Sam."
"Yeah. But why am I here Al what went wrong here. I don't remember anything bad happening."
"We don't know yet but I wanted to come make sure you were okay."
"Okay? Al I'm home. Well I'm my dad but I'm home. I thought the last time I leapt out of here was the last time." I grinned looking in the window and seeing my dads face starring back at me. "I never thought I'd see him again Al."
"Well I don't know if this counts as seeing him. I mean in the literal sense if you look in the mirror you see him…"
"Don't ruin this for me Al. I mean growing up I wanted to be just like my dad, and now…"
"You are him." Al smirked, "I don't think that's what you had in mind as a kid is it Sam."
"Dad did you say my name?" Little me stuck his head out the door, and looked from me to Al.
"Umm no well yes I was just bragging about you to my friend Al." I covered, Al had said my name, he heard Al, he saw Al. I mean of course he did he's me. He has my brainwaves. Why could he see Al but not me, well I guess I couldn't see me so why should younger me see me. While I was bumbling through my own thoughts I hadn't noticed that mini me was reaching out to shake Al's hand. "Oh umm Al doesn't shake hands he doesn't like germs." I made up.
"That's not very rational you can get germs whether you touch people or not. There are germs all around us."
"Sam apologize to him just because you don't think its rational does not make it wrong." I scolded.
"Sorry Al." Mini me frowned.
"Now run along and find your mom."
"Dad, mom's at grandma's this week. Grandma fell remember."
"Right of course. Sorry I was distracted."
"Dad you aren't okay do you need to tell me something."
"No I'm fine Sam, run along Al and I have some business to take care of."
"Do you owe him money or something?" Little me frowned.
"What?!" Al and I both exclaimed.
"In movies when two adults say they have business it's about money."
"Sam, I'm here to help your dad fix some things." Al supplied.
"Is the equipment broken?"
"It's nothing we can't fix." I supplied.
"I can help."
"Oh I know you can." Al grinned.
"If we need you we will call. Until then why don't you run along." I instructed younger Sam. We waited for him to run up the stairs inside. "Let's go to the barn."
"Sweet kid." Al teased.
"Don't start, I… he apologized didn't he."
"What movies were you watching?"
"When ever mom was away dad let Tom and I stay up and watch his 'grown-up' movies." I shrugged, "But what am I doing here Al?"
"I told you I don't know, I just came to check on you."
"How am I supposed to be my own father?"
"You seem to be doing a pretty good job so far." Al returned, "But little you saw me, how?"
"He's me Al, he has the same brainwaves as I do. I may have changed but the brain pattern stays the same."
"Okay well I'm going to go have a talk with Ziggy. You watch yourself."
"Very funny." I rolled my eyes. First things first go check on Katie she was crying. No I remember why she was crying I went and checked on her when I was seven. She was hungry. I ran down to tell dad and then…this was weird I actually remembered both versions of what happened. Originally I had told my dad and dad feed her. So I went back in grabbed her lunch and headed to her playpen in the living room. She was three years old.
"How'd you know she was hungry?" Sam asked me. "I didn't get a chance to tell you."
"I figured it was about lunch time and your little sisters just more vocal about remindin me than you boys." I tried to sound like my father.
"Where's Al? He didn't stay for lunch?"
"He had to go."
"To the future." Mini me questioned and all I could do was stutter a response where had he come up with that.
"The future? Where did you get that idea from?"
"His clothes." Sam shrugged, and I couldn't help but laugh. "I've never seen anyone dress so ridiculous."
"You'll get used to it." I smiled.
"Will he be coming back?"
"Yea he'll be back." I nodded.
"So you didn't fix what you needed to fix?" Mini me frowned.
"Not yet, Al went to get a little bit more information for me."
"What is so broken that you can't fix it?" He questioned me.
"Absolutely nothing. Your old man can fix anything with enough time, and so can you kid. Now go find your brother I'll have your lunch ready in a minute." I instructed lifting Katie out of her pen to eat with us in the kitchen. She started eating while I finished putting together sandwiches for the boys.
"You look like daddy." Katie announced out of the blue.
"I am daddy silly girl."
"No you're not. Your not old enough to be daddy." Katie frowned, of course she could see me she's three years old. You can't lie to a three year old.
"Oh boy." This leap probably couldn't get any more complicated. "You're right I'm your uncle Sam, but we are going to pretend I'm daddy for a while. He went to help your momma take care of your grandma okay."
"Sam is my brothers name." Katie informed.
"Yes it is, and you and I are going to play a joke on both your brothers. We are going to pretend I'm your daddy and see how long it takes them to figure out I'm not okay."
"Okay." Katie nodded.
"We aren't going to tell anyone right."
"Right." Katie nodded again as her brothers ran in for lunch. She gave both boys and I know something you don't' grin and went back to eating her lunch.
"Looks like we've been left with an empty kitchen so once I'm done with the outside work we'll have to pile into the truck and run to the store for some dinner."
"Can I help with the work?" Sam questioned between bites.
"You know kid there will come a day when you don't want to help your old man with the work." I couldn't help but grin at mini me.
"Not likely." Sam assured, "Except maybe the early morning work that interrupts my sleep."
"He can do all my chores if he really wants to." Tom offered.
"If you're not going to help me out you can take your sister out to the yard and play with. I bet she's pretty bored penned up in the house all day aren't you girly."
"Yep can I play with the doggies?" Katie asked.
"Of course you and Tommy can play with the dogs." I nodded, "Sam and I do the dishes and get some work done."
The afternoon was coming to an end, and it felt like it had years ago working on the farm with my dad the only problem was now I was both me and my dad. Little Sam and I were finishing up milk the cows when we were interrupted.
"How many geniuses does it take to milk cows?" Al laughed he was standing just inside the barn door.
"You are having way to much fun with this." I rolled my eyes.
"It's a trick question because even though there are two of you, you're still the same person."
"You are so funny." I looked over to where other me was before continuing. "So why am I here?"
"Ziggy is saying you're here to save a life sometime in the next twenty-four hours."
"How am I supposed to save someone? I'm trying to keep today as close to what actually happened here as possible. This is kind of a delicate situation being as I'm on the other side of the barn right now."
"I don't know what to tell you Sam, that's all Ziggy has right now."
"She's being unusually vague." I pointed out.
"You think I'm not telling you something." Al acted offended.
"What stories is he telling you?"
"Oh come on your only seven how many stories can there be."
"Hi Al." Sam came over. "You're back really soon."
"Well I couldn't leave your dad here on his own could I?" Al replied.
"You finish up your part of the chores?" I asked him.
"Yep, everything is done and put away. Are you and Al going to fix the thing now." Little Sam wondered.
"After we go to the store." I put my hand on little me's shoulder. "We need to eat more than that problem needs to be fixed."
"Oh good idea, leave the farm because obviously no ones life is in danger here you have remembered it." Al spoke up.
"Some ones life is in danger?" Mini me frowned.
"Oops." Al frowned, "I'm just going to go. I'll see you soon Sam."
"Al!" I called, but he had already left the barn. At least he waited until he was out of mini me's sight to open the chamber door.
"What did Al mean when he said you would remember if some ones life was endangered here?" Little me frowned.
"Well Al isn't very comfortable on farms. You know how I'm always telling you some of the equipment around here is dangerous. He's really worried one of us will get hurt here." I made up.
"He sounds paranoid."
"Sometimes he is." I nodded, "Go find your brother and sister and tell them to get ready to go to town." I'm really lucky I was raised to trust my parents because that was a horrible story I told him.
"Are you gone?" Al poked his head back through the imaging chamber door.
"Yes he's gone." I rolled my eyes. "Thanks for that by the way."
"Sorry, I'm not used to some one else hearing me when I talk to you."
"Well you better be careful while we're here, cause Katie can see me which means she can see you to." I warned him.
"Great why don't we just tell Tom and avoid all of this hiding out to begin with." Al ranted.
"You know we can't do that." I sighed, "Katie thinks I'm her uncle while dad went to help my mom and grandma and Sam is already taken care of."
"Well let's just do this and get the hell out of here."
"I don't want to rush out of here Al."
"Sam you can't be your own dad. What happens to your real dad in the waiting room?"
"Your right. Of course, how's he doing Al?"
"He's loving it, we had to let him out of the waiting room he wanted to meet all your friends."
"Dad are we going or what?" Tom yelled from outside.
"Go find out what life I'm supposed to save Al. Quickly."
"You got it Sam." With that Al left and I hurried to the truck where all three kids were already waiting in the car.
"Lets go get some thing to make for dinner." I backed the old truck up. I had learned to drive in this truck a long time ago or a couple years in the future depending on how you looked at it.
We made it through the store with out any life or death situations, but that didn't surprise me because I didn't remember anything happening. I gave in and took the kids to the general store across the street to let them look around while I waited for Al.
"Dad look at this telescope." Sam called me over.
"That's pretty nice looking kid, but you know we don't have that type of money."
"But dad look at it."
"I a looking at it and Sam I think you can build one that works better than this for a lot cheaper."
"I can?" Sam looked at the telescope in front of him.
"Yea you can I'll get you some piping and some glasses lense and see if you can't put something together."
"Like Galileo!" Little me grinned, "Cool!"
"Very cool." I agreed.
"There you are." Al came around the corner. "Can I talk to you for a minute."
"Sam go find your brother and sister and tell them to pick out one thing and meet me at the check out."
"Okay, hi Al."
"Hey kid." Al smiled we watched little me run off before talking in the empty aisle. "Okay so the only death reported in Elk Ridge in the next twenty-four hours is a woman in a car crash on Crest road tonight."
"Crest road we have to take that home." I frowned I didn't remember an accident.
"Her car went off the road into a tree she bleed to death Sam."
"But I don't remember an accident." I repeated. "No wait a car in a ditch about a mile from our driveway. Dad drove past it. That next day he was real quiet all day he never told us why."
"He must have read in the paper that she died and thought he could have saved her." Al reasoned.
"He lived with that guilt his whole life, but it wasn't his fault, he didn't know." I continued Al's train of thought. "But I can stop it, go to her Al I'll be there as fast as I can."
"You're the boss." Al agreed, "Gushie center me on our victim." With that he was gone. I grabbed some gauze and bandages and met the kids at the front of the store.
"What are those for?" Tom frowned at what was in my hands.
"Just in case." I answered, "come on quickly lets check out." Rushing three children is not wasy but once we got every one in the car we were home free. But wait a minute I couldn't let three kids see some woman bleeding to death. They could wait in the car, but how would we call the police. Tom and I walked to and from school everyday, we could make it the distance to the house. Have Tom carry Katie, they can call for help from the house. Okay that could work.
I could see the car up ahead but no sign of Al. Whatever that wasn't important right now. "Tom, Sam take Katie homa and call the police right away okay." I instructed.
"Why?" Tom questioned.
"I'm going to see if who ever is in this car needs help. You're going to call the police and tell them their was an accident. Okay." I repeated, "Don't ask questions, get home as fast as you can and call the police."
"I can help you dad." Same volunteered.
"No, go with your brother and sister."
"But if they're hurt in the car I can help. I read about putting bandages in serious wounds."
"And when did you do that?" Tom laughed.
"At the library, I wanted to help people." Sam got defensive.
"Of course he does, some things never change." Al smirked, "Umm John you need to hurry up here."
"Alright fine, Tom take Katie back to the house and call for help. Sam grab that bag." I pointed to the bandages. "And where have you been?" I hissed under my breath.
"Well I just walked up." Al followed me toward the car while little me got the bags.
"You walked up?" I questioned.
"No but he just saw me at the store so it would be hard for me to beat you here."
"Al she doesn't look good." I frowned.
"All you have to do is slow down the bleeding. Ziggy says her odds went up just by you being here. Then they went up even higher when you sent Tom and Katie to call for help."
"Sam hurry with that bag." I called to my seven year old self running down the ditch.
"Hi Al." Little me grinned, "What are you doing here?"
"Sam bandages." I interrupted that conversation before it began. "I need you to help me son. Can you help me move her from the car to the blanket?"
Sam nodded and ran forward, only then did he see the woman's beat up body. "Oh boy." He breathed, Al just looked at me and smirked.
"Son you got to help your old man out here. You and I are going to save this woman's life." I explained, "Can you do that?"
"Yea, I think so."
"Hey kid you know what I think this is going to be the first of many lives that you are going to save." Al encouraged, "Go help your dad there."
"Okay."
"Thanks Al." I nodded, "Okay Sam get me that water bottle. I'm going to clean these and then you are going to help me wrap okay. As soon as I say it's clean I want you to put the gauze down and apply pressure. While I wrap it okay."
We worked fast and soon Al was letting us know that the ambulance was approaching.
Sam and I gave our statements to the police and waited until the ambulance drove off before I loaded little me into the truck where Al was waiting for us in the back seat.
"Why didn't you give a statement Al?" Mini me questioned.
"Because I saw even less than you and your dad did. I was walking to your house to help fix that problem your dad and I had been having when I saw your truck and the car in the ditch." Al made up.
"You're going to fix my dad's equipment dressed like that?"
"What's wrong with my clothes?' Al frowned.
"For one it's bright orange." Little me grinned.
"Al is more of an advisor when it comes to fixing things. He just tells me what to do so he can wear silly clothes."
"There is nothing silly about my suit."
"Yes there is." I laughed.
"No you're not allowed to contribute, you're already part of the argument." Al argued.
"Sorry buddy, it's pretty silly." I shook my head.
"This is pointless of course you're going to side with yourself." Al pouted.
"Of course I'm going to side with my son." I covered for Al.
"Dad, is Al your best friend?" Sam spoke up as the truck came to a stop in front of the house.
"Yeah, why?"
"Because I want a best friend like him." Little Sam looked from me to Al.
"You know what, I bet you're going to have the best friend in the world someday. He's going to go along with your genius ideas even when no one else will, and he will always be there for you. Just like Al."
"Funny clothes and all?" Sam grinned.
"Funny clothes and all." I nodded, "Now run inside and put those clothes in the sink. See if we can't get that blood out before your mother gets home."
"Okay, bye Al." Little me ran off toward the house.
"That was very nice Sam. I appreciate it. Now you need to meet me in the barn one more time before you can leap." Al grinned.
"Why are you smiling?" I frowned.
"Just meet me in the barn Sam." With that Al was gone. I looked around once and went ahead and did what I was told.
"Dad?' Just inside my father was standing right in front of me.
"My little Sam all grown up." He grinned, "And your friend here has been telling me about this project of yours. Time travel, did my boy invent time travel."
"Dad." I repeated, I didn't know what else to say. This was actually him talking to me, not some past me or some kid from around town. He was talking to me.
"You invent time travel but can only say one word now I'm really impressed."
"That's what Al's here for he does the talking." I smiled, "I missed you so much."
"Look at you all grown up. Last time I saw you you were seven."
"Actually last time I saw me I was seven too." I grinned, "But what are you doing here. What about the rules?" I turned to Al.
"They're your rules, and we've broken them before. Besides I didn't think you'd mind if we broke them this time."
"Al was telling me about this project of yours. You fix things that went wrong. What went wrong in our lives? That you had to fix."
"It was nothing, it wasn't even in our lives you were just one of the closest people to help out." I shrugged, I didn't know if I should tell him if it caused guilt when it actually happened what would it still cause guilt if the woman never died.
"Well tell me all about it." He pulled up a chair that hadn't been there until he touched it.
"This woman's car was in a ditch, I just had to stop the bleeding so she didn't pass away before the ambulance got there." I summarized.
"You saved a woman's life and said it was nothing." My dad smiled, "This must be some life you're leading."
"You wouldn't believe half of it." I answered.
"I don't know about that. I always said you could do anything you put your mind to. And you got a good man here helping you out, even if his clothes are a little bit out there."
"You Beckett's and my clothes." Al threw his arms up. "But you should know sir I would do anything for your son."
"I know Admiral." My dad nodded, "But Sam is it true that you are stuck, you can't go home?"
"I'll figure it out someday."
"That wife of yours is something else. You know she'd wait for you forever. Us Beckett men some how always manage to find women so far out of our league."
"Wife?" I repeated, I was married.
"Al said you didn't have all your memories I didn't realize… I thought.. I'm sorry son."
"Donna." I whispered, "Al why didn't you tell me about Donna?"
"I… I mean she told me not to." Al looked at his feet.
"I'm sorry son." My dad was looking at the ground now to.
"It's alright." I shrugged it off, all the more reason for me to figure out how to get home, "But I know how you can make it up to me."
"And how's that?" He looked up.
"I promised little me in there that you'd get him some PVC piping and glasses lenses to make a telescope."
"You did, did you?" He laughed, "You went to the general store didn't you? You have been asking for that telescope for a year."
"I know. I remember." I grinned.
"Sam it's time to go." Al pointed to the handlink, and I knew I had known for a minute or two I had felt the electricity building.
"I love you dad." I smiled the blue light was surrounding me now.
"I love you to Sam." He smiled and then he was gone and I was somewhere else. With a new purpose, while I was putting things right I need to figure out how to go home. Go home to Donna.