Christmas Past Chapter 4: The Key, a quantum leap fanfic

Christmas Past

This Quantum Leap™ story utilizes characters that are copyright © by Bellasarius Productions and Universal Studios. No infringement on their respective copyrights is intended by the author in any way, shape or form. This fan fiction story is written solely for the entertainment of the readers and is not for profit. All fiction, plots, and original characters are the sole creations of the author.

A special thank you to Al's "brunette in Delaware" for her permission to publish this story. It was written as a Christmas gift and therefore truly belongs to her.

Christmas Past

Chapter Four - The Key

The evening came and most of the customers, in their need to be home, braved the weather. By 10 o'clock only Mona, Deuce, Mrs. Zimmer and Gracie remained with the children. Trudy slept in peace since it was well past her bedtime. Mrs. Zimmer Tucked into another booth, Mrs. Zimmer pulled her coat over her to nap a little before finding her way back to her apartment. Meanwhile, Mona washed dishes and closed up the grill. Deuce tempted the sleep fates by downing yet another cup of coffee. Gracie sat near the window with her guitar in her hand, fiddling with old songs humming barely loud enough to be heard.

With this time to himself, Al took a moment to look at the tree up close again. He still couldn't figure how the lights and decorations showed up. Small fingers sheepishly touched the shiny orbs. He tested to see if the lights were real by feeling for the heat. His index finger was stolen back when he touched the bulb for a little bit too long. Sucking on the burned digit, he was dumbfounded. The scrawny tree had grown in the hours he and Trudy were at Mona's. Ornaments appeared and lights made the tree perfect, almost. Something was missing, but since he'd never had a tree before, he didn't know what that was.

So much had happened during this horrible/wonderful day. His confusion didn't do much for his ability to sleep, but then part of him wanted to stay up as long as possible, almost as if falling asleep might take away the magic. Finally, he sat on the floor close enough to the tree that he could touch the bottom branches. Mona finished her chores and sat next to him. "Quite a day, wasn't it?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"You got a lot to think about. I heard some pretty impressive stuff here today."

Al didn't understand. The only thing that impressed him was the tree. "What did you hear?"

One more time she gently pulled the boy onto her lap and they stared at the bright, shiny tree. "I heard you reading about two children named Want and Ignorance."

"That's from A Christmas Carol."

Mona gently brushed a few curls out of Al's eyes. Her hand lingered on his tender cheek. "The ghost told Scrooge to be especially careful about Ignorance. It's so important to go to school and learn, to understand art and science and arithmetic and history. Ignorance is a killing thing."

"I like school." The honest part of the child had to admit, "Well, sometimes I like it."

"Learning will keep you free, Al. Don't ever stop learning. It will be your salvation." Her arms closed around him tighter. "Then I heard Gracie's song and I thought what a nice thing it must be to know that no matter how rich or poor you are you can still give someone your heart." She turned her head in order to look into his chocolate brown eyes. "You give your heart to Trudy every minute of every day."

He didn't like getting credit for doing what should have been done by everyone. His sister deserved to have people care. "She's easy to love."

Mona smiled at the simple truth. "Yes, she is, but sometime down the line, you might give your heart to a person who's not so easy to love. That's the mark of a real man. Then there are those times when you hope someone will offer their heart to you when you need it most. That's the mark of a real friend."

Al stared into a silver ball and watched it reflect back multicolored layers of light. "Papa says, 'Per raro che sia vero amore, é meno raro della vera amicizia.'"

"You speak Italian?"

He blushed a little. Speaking Italian wasn't cool. It meant you were a foreigner and no one in the old neighborhood liked being a foreigner. "Papa still talks Italian sometimes. He wants me to know how to talk it."

"A second language is a wonderful thing, Al, and Italian is so beautiful. Say that phrase again."

"Per raro che sia vero amore, é meno raro della vera amicizia."

Mona laughed. "And you remember all that? What does it mean?"

"True love is rare, true friendship is rarer." He snuggled into her arms closer. "I don't think I have to worry about either of those."

"Oh, honey, you are so wrong. Wait until you see how wrong you are. Someday you'll see just how much you know about love and friendship and you'll be teaching others."

The idea seemed impossible so he decided to look harder at the first Christmas tree he ever felt belonged to him. "You said there were three things. You only told me two."

"The third one is the most important of all. It has to do with Christmas. Christmas is a time when a tree that was little and kind of skinny," she gave him a tender squish, "like you, can become strong, tall, bright and the most sincere proof that miracles can happen to plain ordinary everyday people like us, like you and Trudy."

He sat quietly thinking about Mona's words. There was a lot to think about. Maybe, if he concentrated on school, he'd be able to provide for Trudy. And maybe his love for her would be enough to help her through the upcoming rough times. Then again, if a tree can get a miracle, why not a little boy?

Gracie still played her guitar and she started singing. "There's a somebody I'm longing to see. I hope that he turns out to be someone to watch over me."

Mona sighed. "I love that song. It's my favorite."

Looking into Miss Mona's face, Al saw love and caring, someone watching over him and he wanted to do something for her. Gracie kept singing. "I'm a little lamb that's lost in the wood. I know I could always be good to one who'll watch over me."

Al stood up, bowed and held out his hand. "Miss Mona, may I have this dance?"

The offer held such charm that she had to accept. "It would be an honor, sir."

Even though just a little boy, he liked to dance. In fact, he had one very good memory of his mother. Mama and Papa were both home and laughing for a change. Mama started to dance, taking Al's hands and showing him how to properly hold a lady while dancing. With that sweet image in his mind and with practiced step, he used this education with Miss Mona. They glided back and forth in rhythm.

Gracie smiled and sang, "Although he may not be the man some girls think of handsome, to my heart he'll carry the key."

The kindest woman Al ever met told him, "You have the key to my heart, little one. Every time you think no one cares, remember Mona's Diner."

It was an odd instruction and he didn't understand it completely, but he knew she told him an ultimate truth for his life. Despite the naps, the emotions of the day drained his tiny body. His tragic little eyes were closing. She lifted him into her arms. Gracie sang on. "Oh, how I need someone to watch over me."

Al awoke on a bench seat in the same booth as Trudy. His eyes took a few minutes to focus and remember where he was. Trudy was still sleeping, still with that thumb in her mouth. Mrs. Zimmer, Deuce and Gracie were gone and he didn't see Mona anywhere. At first, he was frightened, but then his nose sniffed the air and smelled something really good. There was bacon cooking and it was Christmas morning.

The diner was filled with morning sunlight and the white snow reflected the sun's rays even more. Mona came into the front of the diner from her kitchen. Spying the wide-eyed boy she smiled, "Good morning, Al. Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas, Miss Mona." He climbed out of the booth and sat at the counter. "That's bacon, isn't it?"

"Sure is. I thought we'd have some scrambled eggs, bacon and fresh biscuits with strawberry jam. How does that sound?"

It sounded like the biggest breakfast he'd ever had and he really wanted to eat everything. "Can we have hot chocolate, too?"

"Hot chocolate and a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice too."

The conversation woke Trudy up and she called for her big brother. Without a second thought, Al leaped to her side. It was time for the toilet. The satchel kept her clean underwear and he found a pair. Hand in hand, he took her to get washed up.

Mona went back to her cooking until she heard the front door open. Turning she saw a big man enter. He was tall, handsome and his dark eyes sparkled with life. With a hint of a European accent he said, "Good morning. May I get breakfast?"

"Sure thing, sir. I'm making enough for an army."

The man took his coat off, tucked his newspaper under his arm and wiped his feet on the mat by the door. "Thank you. I'm surprised to find you open today."

"It's an important day to be open. People need Mona's Diner on Christmas Day." She opened the refrigerator by the sink. By the looks of the man's broad shoulders and strong hands, Mona figured this was a man would could eat plenty. "How many eggs can you eat? Three? Four?"

"Three, please, scrambled."

Mona took seven eggs from the fridge and broke them into a big bowl. "That's the only way I make them. So, what are you doing out on Christmas morning?"

"I'm going home. The trains are running very late and I don't know when I'll get another." He sat in a booth facing the windows with his back to Mona.

"Too bad, but Mona's will always be here for you."

The man buried his face in his newspaper and waited for his breakfast. Al and Trudy came from the bathroom both looking a little fresher than they had a few minutes earlier. They sat at the counter. Mona put her index finger on Trudy's nose. "I think if you look under the tree you'll find a surprise with your name on it."

Al glanced over and saw a package simply wrapped lying under the miracle tree. "Go ahead, honey. Go see what Santa brought."

The little girl found her present and took it back to Al. "Open."

The brown paper was torn away and the face of a stuffed animal peaked through. "Kitty!" She pulled the rest of the paper off.

Al mouthed the words, "Thank you" to Mona.

She had a grin from ear to ear as she plated up the eggs, bacon and biscuits. "I think there's something for you too," but no more packages hid under the tree. Mona didn't see the disappointment in his eyes. Instead, she called out, "Mister, I got your eggs here. Want to come get them?"

The customer expected to be waited on, but that was okay. If she was nice enough to be open on Christmas, then he could go get his own breakfast. He folded the paper and got out of the booth. When he finally saw the children, he stopped dead in his tracks. "Madonna mia, Alberto? Trudy?"

Both children turned. Al's eyes got as big as saucers. "Papa?" The little boy ran into his father's arms. "Papa, I never thought I'd see you again."

Trudy had to join them. "Papa, look! Kitty!"

Vince Calavicci marveled at the beautiful toy, but his heart marveled even more at this stroke of good fortune. "Miei bambini! Mio ragazzo, mia ragazza!. Ah, Dio, grazie, grazie."

The father cried along with his special children. It took a full ten minutes to pry them apart. By that time, the eggs were ruined and Mona was breaking a brand new dozen eggs in the big bowl.

The four ate their breakfast. The food was so good and the miracle Al hoped for had come true. His father would keep them together and he could go back to being a kid.

They laughed for hours, but it was time to catch the train to New York City. Vince didn't know how to thank Mona for her care and love. His children had been in trouble and this compassionate woman offered her food, her warm diner, and her heart to the pair and there was nothing Vince could say that would come close to repaying the kindness. Mona didn't want thanks. "Trudy and Al are my Christmas miracles - just like that tree."

Trudy looked at the fir at the first mention of it. She jumped up and down again. "Look! Look, Allie! Star!"

Perched on the top was a gold star, sparkling and making light dance across the ceiling and down the walls. There was no doubt now in Al's mind now. Less than 24 hours earlier, Deuce carried in an anemic thing, needles dropping off with each step. Bit by bit, the tree turned glorious and now it was complete. A miracle happened with the golden star being its exclamation point.

Al stood at the foot of the tree and stared at the promise it held. His heart raced in his little boy chest and hope was born. It felt odd, but so very good.

Miracles visited Mona's Diner that day, but it was time to go. A call to the train station told Vince there was one last train getting home before the day ended. Al gathered up the satchel and Vince and Trudy said good-bye to Mona. There was so much to say, but little Al wasn't finding the right words. He pulled a chair over to the kind woman and stood on it. "I wanted to be able to reach you." His smile was childlike and filled with carefree happiness. "Thank you, Miss Mona." He hugged her and gave her a kiss. "I won't ever forget you."

"You better not." She held him tight and reminded him. "You need to stay in school, open your heart to people and remember that miracles are possible."

"Yes ma'am. I will." He kissed her again, jumped down and then he left the best diner in the whole world.

Vince had Trudy on his shoulders and Al's hand in his. It was the safest the boy felt in too long to recall. His father was taking them home and they were a family again.

Mona started to clean up the diner when she saw the book, Al's special copy of A Christmas Carol. "Oh, no." She ran to the door, but Vince and the children were nowhere to be seen. She tucked the book into the pocket of her apron and went back inside.