A Leap Into Morning

It was the middle of the night when the phone rang in Al Calavicci's home. Not that this was anything new. This kind of thing happened all the time, or at least it used it. It didn't as much any more. Al however was blissfully unaware of the phone ringing, and left it to his wife Beth to pick it up.

Not that there was anything new in that either.

"Al, it's for you." Beth rolled over and began the process of waking up her husband. A couple of good thumps did the trick of getting him to take the phone, but Beth knew from good experience that it'd take more than that to fully rouse him.

"Yeah? Yeah...Gushie, have you any idea...HE'S WHAT?!"

This last sentence was uttered with enough power to make Beth turn her head in alarm, even more so when she realised that Al was sitting bolt upright in bed.

"I'll be right there." Al was already out of bed grabbing his clothes as he hung up the phone.

"Trouble?" asked Beth.

Al shook his head. "You don't want to know Beth. You wouldn't believe it."

"Probably not." Beth had very little idea what went on "on the mountaintop" as she called it, and that was the way she liked it. "I'll see you later."

"It might be a lot later."

Beth smiled. "I know. I remember, remember? I'll see you later."

Al was halfway out the door, but he turned to smile at his wife. "I love you," he said softly.

Beth heard him - she always did. "I love you too."

*************

Al's mind was racing as he drove through the near-deserted roads. "Don't do anything stupid," he muttered to the young man he knew was preparing to do just such a thing. "Just stay till I get there."

He knew that this was coming of course. Something like this. It had to happen. He'd warned Sam about it twelve years before, when Sam brought this kid into Project Quantum Leap as his "apprentice." Never mind that the kid had no background in physics at all, and was only studying for his degree. Or that he was making heavy weather of it - what did you expect from a guy who almost failed high school biology? But no, the building of Project Quantum Leap had just begun, and for some strange reason, Sam liked the kid. So in the face of all logic, common sense and arguments from Al and Gushie, Sam had stood firm, and appointed Jesse Velasquez as his apprentice.

To be fair to him, Jesse had learned his trade well. There wasn't much about Ziggy he didn't know or understand, and he was able to talk sense to the tempermental computer just as easily as Sam had. And since Sam had vanished, Jesse had thrown himself into the project more than any of them, trying to find out where Sam had vanished to, trying to tighten and better the programming, trying to control the leaping. However, Al had had his reservations from day one. He had told Sam that there had to be something there, something seriously wrong to make a talented performer like Jesse quit showbiz and take up quantum physics, an area he had previously shown neither interest nor aptitude for. Well, it looked like they were going to find out now.

*************

Al got to the door of the Quantum Leap Acelerator and was met by Gushie. "Is he still in there?"

"He hasn't leaped out yet. We made him promise he'd wait until you got here. But he'd adamant he's going to do it."

"Is he crazy?"

"He thinks he's worked out the kinks in the system, he wants to try it out."

Al shook his head. "It's more than that. And Gushie, that's what scares me the most."

With that, Al went in to talk to Jesse. He didn't hear Gushie's reply. "Me too."

*************

"Jesse? Jesse, what are you doing?"

"I'm going to leap Al." There was no sense of madness in Jesse's voice as Al had secretly feared. Instead, he spoke with the manner of one who was sure of his path and was going to carry it out no matter what.

"It's too dangerous. You don't know what'll happen to you."

"I've done work on this Al. Changed the programming. Made it better. I know where I'm leaping to. I know who I'm leaping into. I know this is going to work."

"But why? Jesse, you saw what happened to Sam. Why risk your life?"

"I have to change something."

Al closed his eyes. Oy. A hero complex Outwardly he was calm. "What? What's so important that you're going to put yourself in this danger?"

"Nicole."

"Huh?"

"Her name was Nicole. She was the love of my life. She broke up with me, we stayed friends....but I always thought I'd get another shot."

"So you're going to go back and make her not break up with you?"

Jesse shook his head. "She died. A couple months after we broke up. There was this party...and she got into the car with a drunk driver..if I can just stop her getting into that car...."

"Jesse, you can't....."

"WHY NOT?" It was a cry straight from Jesse's soul. "This is what this is all about!" He waved his hands around the chamber, indicating the equipment. "Why do you think I came after Sam when I saw that Time profile that gave some of his ideas? I knew if there was one person who could help me it was him! This is what my life's been about for the last twelve years!" Jesse began pacing restlessly. "You don't know Al. You can't know. I've thought about her and missed her every day since it happened. Every day for fourteen years! You've been married for what, fourty years?"

"Just over."

"If it were Beth...wouldn't you do the same? Wouldn't you do anything you could to get her back?"

Al had no answer for that. He didn't remember a time when he hadn't had Beth there. A time when he had been missing in Vietnam and Beth had married someone else, breaking his heart, and sending him through three other wives. Sam Beckett had changed history and saved him from that. All Al remembered was a vague sense of luckiness that Beth had waited for him, and a feeling that she might not have. So he didn't remember that there was a time when he too had tried to do what Jesse was going to do now.

He had no answer. So he gave the only answer he had. "Jesse....even if you save her, she might not come back to you."

"I don't care about that," Jesse replied promptly. "You think I'd care if she ended up with someone else? At least she'd be alive." He paused, a long pause that bespoke his sincerity as clearly as words could have done. "I just want her back," he said quietly.

Al closed his eyes. "Jesse....we lost Sam in this thing. We don't know if we'll be able to get you back."

"I think we will Al. I know...I know I've fixed it so I can. If it works and Nicole comes back and I don't, that's fine. If it doesn't work...well, at least I'll be with her. That's all that matter for me."

"Jesse...."

"Look, I know what you're trying to do. Thanks Al." A real smile appeared on Jesse's face. "See you on the other side."

With that, he stepped into the quantum leap accelerator........

....and vanished.

*************

"Damn!" Al uttered this, and several other colourful profanities that he'd picked up in his Navy days. He wheeled around to where he knew Gushie was. "Gushie, get me a lock on......WHAT? What do you mean there's someone in the waiting room?"

He changed directions as if to go there, then stopped and began moving towards another door. "Never mind that. I don't need to see who's there. Get me a lock on Jesse, and crank up the imaging chamber."

He walked the path he knew so well, all the while feeling a sense of deja vu. "You'll never be gone,will you Sam?" he muttered to himself.

When he got to the door of the imaging chamber he picked up the handlink, feeling the familiar weight in his palm. "Never thought I'd hold this again."

Pausing he opened the door of the imaging chamber. "Oh boy."

He stepped inside.

*************

The cafeteria at the School of the Arts was a typical madhouse. Students jostled for a place at a table, any table, and at the top of the room, a three piece band were jamming on guitars. Any minute now, someone was going to be up dancing. The noise level was enormous, but no-one in the group of friends sitting together making plans for the party on Sunday night seemed to notice.

Nor did they notice as a flash of blue light passed through one of their members, sheathing him from head to foot, then disappearing, leaving him just as he had been before.

"C'mon man," said Ian Ware, his British accent cutting across all conversation at the table. "There'll be no trouble with drink at the party. We'll all just have a couple of beers, kick back and enjoy ourselves."

"I can't wait," Reggie Higgins was as enthusiastic as Ian.

So for that matter was Danny Amatullo. "I talked to Chris, he said there's no problem having the party at his place. He's even going to let us store the booze there first."

"You mean we don't 'ave to bring our own?" Ian asked.

"Oh you do! It just gets there before you do," Danny told him, laughing. "Nice try."

"So long as it's still there when I get there Danny, and you and Donlon don't engage in a little testing, I don't really care," Ian replied.

No-one paid much attention as Jesse got up from his seat. "Hey Velasquez, where you going?" Danny called.

"I...um...I just remembered something I had to do, that's all. Catch you guys later."

Danny blinked. Jesse had been really into planning with the rest of them a couple minutes ago. "You ok man?"

"I'm fine." With that, Jesse hurried off.

Danny shrugged and turned back to his friends.

*************

Jesse needed somewhere to be on his own to think. He headed into one of the music booths where he knew no-one would disturb him. On his walk there, he looked around him, recognising familiar people and places, trying to reconstruct the conversation he had leaped into the middle of.

"It sounds familiar," he said to himself once he got there. "I remember conversations like that from before. I just wish I had some way of knowing when I was."

"I can answer that."

Jesse jumped at the sound of Al's voice behind him. "Al? Did I make it?"

"I guess so. Otherwise there's a very young version of you with his brain swiss-cheesed in the waiting room for no good reason."

"I know I made it Al." Jesse's voice betrayed his impatience. "But did I make it?"

"According to Ziggy," Al checked his handlink, "You've leaped into Wednesday October 17th 1987."

Jesse's mind did the math instantly.

"And according to Ziggy," Al continued, "On Sunday October 21st, Nicole Chapman is going to be killed in an automobile accident, when the car driven by ...."

"Mikey Garth," Jesse supplied.

"That's the one," Al continued, "Hits a lamp-post."

"So that's what I'm here to fix?"

"According to Ziggy, there's a 99.99% probability of that, yes."

"I did it Al."

"You sure did Jesse." Al surveyed the younger man. "You were right about getting here. I sure hope you're right about getting you back."

*************

After Al went back, Jesse sat down and put his head in his hands. He had waited so long to get here - years of hard work and hoping. And now that he was finally here, he didn't have a clue how to go about it.

"Well Miss Sherwood," he muttered to himself, "I guess I finally understand irony."

Just then the door opened. "What has you so upset?"

Jesse looked up....and saw a ghost.

"Jesse....are you ok?"

Jesse couldn't answer. The sight of Nicole Chapman standing in front of him had rendered him totally speechless. For fourteen years, he had dreamed of her, remembered her, missed her. Now here she was - just the way he remembered her, the love of his life.

The love of his life looking at him with a very worried look on her face.

"I'm fine Nicole," he replied. "I'm just trying to work something out, that's all."

Nicole came over and sat beside him. "Anything I can help you with?"

"No. I think I'm pretty much on my own for this one."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

"OK. I'll see you later then." Nicole stood up to leave.

"Nicole?"

"Yeah?"

"I just....never mind."

Nicole gave him a long look, then went out. Jesse stared after her. Mentally, he kicked himself. "Fourteen years. You wait fourteen years to see her again, and that's all you can come up with?"

That was the problem. He'd been waiting so long to see her again...there was so much he had to say to her. Where could he possibly begin? And of course, if he did try to say anything to her, she'd probably think he was crazy.

If she didn't already after that little exchange.

"First things first. Deal with Sunday night. Then you can bare your soul."

Now, how was he going to do it?

*************

It was Thursday morning and Jesse was not a happy camper. Not only were preparations for the party in full swing, just as he remembered, but Nicole was really looking forward to going - again, just as he remembered it. The thing was, he had been just as enthused about it the last time around, but knowing what was going to happen, he couldn't relax.

"Well, any further along?"

Jesse jumped as Al popped up beside him. "Would you stop doing that?"

"I'm not doing anything." Al was all innocence.

"Jumping up at me like that. You could give a guy a heart attack."

"Funny. It never bothered Sam," Al told him, knowing full well that was a lie. He used to drive Sam nuts with his antics. "So um....where's the ladies' changing room?" The look Jesse gave him reminded him of Sam. "So I take it your techiness is a sign that you haven't managed to change anything?"

"Not yet," Jesse sighed. "I don't understand it Al. They're going around making plans, that involve drinking and driving...and they don't see anything wrong with it. It's like there's this big sign warning them about disaster and I'm the only one who can see it."

"We were all immortal at sixteen Jesse," Al reminded him. "You should know that better than anyone."

"I do."

"Have you seen Nicole?" Al asked gently.

Jesse nodded. "She came into the music room yesterday after you went. Oh Al....she looks just the same."

"Why wouldn't she?" Al asked logically. "You look just the same too."

"I keep forgetting that," Jesse admitted. "Al...."

"Yeah?" Al prompted when the silence threatened to become oppressive.

"What if I don't do it?"

Al threw his hands in the air. "Now you have doubts? NOW you have doubts? Why couldn't you have had doubts before you leapt? Like in the chamber when I was trying to talk some sense into you?"

"Because..." Jesse struggled to put his feelings into words. "Because then, all I could think about was saving her. It's what's kept me going since...well since now I guess. It's what kept me in school studying, when everyone thought I'd never get my degree. I meant it when I said that this has been my life for twelve years. I thought about getting here...about what I'd do if I did, and what I'd do if I saved her...never about what I'd do if I didn't." He looked up at Al and saw sympathy in the older man's eyes. "I've never really considered a world without her. If I fail...."

Al laid a holographic hand on his shoulder, and the gesture touched Jesse. "You won't fail Jesse," Al told him. "You're like Sam. You'll be ok."

"But what if she doesn't make it? What if I get back there and there's still no Nicole?"

"Then at least you'll know you've tried."

Jesse looked up at him. "Thanks Al."

"You're welcome."

"Did you mean that?"

Al frowned. "Mean what?"

"That I'm like Sam."

"Yeah. There is one difference though."

Jesse was intrigued. "What's that?"

"Sam would've told me where the ladies locker room is by now."

With that, Al vanished, reflecting that the look Jesse had given him was worthy of Sam Beckett himself.

*************

"Hey Nicki!"

Nicole slowed down to let Jesse catch up to her. Jesse was glad to finally get a chance to talk to her on her own - were they always surrounded by people?

"What's up Jess?"

"I was just wondering how you'd like to go see Les Miserables with me? I've got two tickets?"

Nicole's eyes opened wide. "Those tickets are impossible to get! How did you manage it?"

Jesse shrugged offhandedly. "I have my sources" he said cryptically. In fact, those tickets were incredibly hard to get. It had taken more computer hacking and wizardry from Ziggy than he cared to remember. But he knew it would be worth it...Nicole was a Les Mis junkie - how could she possibly miss a chance to go and see it? Even if she did miss something like say, the biggest party of the year? "So, you wanna go?"

"Of course I wanna go! When?"

"Well, that's the thing, it's kinda short notice."

"Tonight?"

"Close. Sunday night."

Nicole's face fell. "Jesse, the party's on Sunday night."

"I know. But come on, we can go to a party any weekend. Do you know how hard I worked to get these tickets?"

"Jesse, I want to go to the show, I do. But I said I'd go to the party with Danny and Mikey. I can't turn around and break a promise to them."

Jesse couldn't believe what he was hearing. "You're turning down Les Miserables to go to a party?"

Nicole closed her eyes. "I don't believe it either. But I've made up my mind. Sorry Jess."

She headed off to class, leaving Jesse speechless in the hallway.

*************

The gang were sitting around a table in the cafeteria Friday lunchtime, making more plans for the party. Ian, Danny and Mikey were nosily debating what music should be played and how the booze should be allocated whilst Nicole, Dusty, Jillian and Reggie were busily deciding what they should wear. Jesse was quietly observing the scene. After the Les Mis failure, he decided that that may be his best tactic.

Conversation came to an abrupt end when Chris came in and pulled up a chair.

"Hey man." Characteristically, Danny was the first to recover. "I think you forgot something. You graduated. You don't have to get lunch here no more."

"I got news Amatullo, you're gonna want to hear it." Satisfied that he'd got everyone's attention, Chris continued. "The party is off."

A chorus of disbelief met this announcement.

"Some do-gooder in my appartment block phoned the landlady. Jerk didn't leave a name of course. But he said that he'd heard about a party going on this Sunday night, and he was worried about the noise and the drinking. She told me that if she sees so much as a bag of chips around the place Sunday night, I can find myself a new place to live."

"Man, who'd do somethin' like that?" Danny asked.

Jesse shrugged along with the rest of them, mentally reminding himself to throw out the number of Chris' landlady the first chance he got. She'd been surprisingly easy to hoodwink.

The table was silent for a moment until Ian spoke. "Hold it at my place."

"Seriously?" Reggie asked.

"It's smaller. But that doesn't matter. We can start to move the beer and stuff tomorrow," Ian continued.

"I have my parents car for the weekend," Mikey chimed in. "We can use that."

"Excellent!" Danny exclaimed.

The table quickly began making plans. No-one seemed to take much notice when Jesse stood up and left, muttering something about a music assignment he had to work on. Dimly in the background he heard Chris ask Danny, "What's up with Velasquez?" Danny replied that he didn't know, and changed the subject back to the party.

Jesse for his part was a worried man. He was sure that if the party was cancelled, Nicole would stay at home and be safe. Now he wasn't so sure. Ian's place was further away from where she lived than Chris' was...nothing was certain until he talked to Al.

He went into the music room again and waited quietly. He was expecting Al to pop up at any moment, knowing that the Admiral was keeping a close eye on him. Al didn't disappoint. Jesse was barely sitting when the air turned blue and Al materialised.

"So you got them to move the party. Very clever."

"But did it work?"

"Ziggy's checking....." Al banged the handlink with the heel of his hand. "You couldn't have improved these things while you were at it?" he grumbled impatiently.

"Al!"

"Sorry, sorry!" Al frowned as he looked at the readings. His shoulders slumped as he looked at Jesse. "According to this, Nicole Chapman died on October 21st 1987 when a car driven by Mikey Garth ran a stop sign and hit another car. He was drunk."

"She still dies. I didn't change anything?"

Al stared at the younger man. Jesse was so fixated on Nicole that he didn't realise what Al had said. It wasn't news that Al liked delivering. "Jesse....I said the car ran a stop sign. In your reality, what you remember...."

"It hit a lamp post," Jesse finished. "So I just changed the way she died. Great."

"You changed more than that Jesse."

Jesse frowned. "What?"

"Jesse....when Mikey's car hit the other car, all the passengers were killed."

Jesse paled as the full horror of what Al was telling him sank in. "You mean..."

"I mean, that on Sunday night, Nicole and Mikey Garth and Danny Amatullo are all going to get into that car. And none of them make it out alive."

*************

Jesse looked around the room filled with people laughing, talking, dancing and drinking. It was still amazing to him how everything seemed so familiar, yet it was all so different. He'd always heard that hindsight was twenty-twenty, but there was a difference between knowing it and living it. He remembered how exhilarated he had been that night, how he'd joined in everyone else.

Now it disgusted him.

"Not drinking tonight Jesse?" a voice enquired at his side.

Jesse turned to Nicole and forced a smile. "Nah. I'm not in the mood for some reason."

His sombre mood seemed to put Nicole off. Evidently, this wasn't how she was used to Jesse behaving at a party. "Great night huh?"

"Yeah. I bet Ian's glad his mom's nowhere near. She'd probably kill him for all the mess." Ian lived on his own, but his mother was infamous for her spot-checks on his living habits.

"He's not really in a position to care right now," Nicole observed, looking over to where Ian, Danny and Mikey were engaged in a raucous conversation.

"No. Definitely not." Jesse looked over at them, then back to Nicole. "How are you getting home tonight Nicki?"

"Same way I came. With Danny and Mikey. Mikey has his dad's car."

"You sure about that?" Even as they watched, the three held a contest to see who could drink a bottle of beer the fastest.

"Of course. What do you mean?"

"It just looks to me like Mikey's had a little too much to drink. There's no way he can drive."

"It's not that far. We'll be fine."

Jesse stared at her. He'd known Nicole for almost three years now. That was far and away the stupidest thing he'd ever heard her say. "Nicole, just take some free advice from a friend ok? Get a cab home. Share it with those two if you want to. But don't let them drive. They can hardly walk."

Nicole shook her head. "Jess, you never used to worry so much. C'mon, it's a party. Let's dance!"

"In a minute."

Jesse watched her as she moved off and began to dance. He had a bad feeling about this.

*************

Jesse looked around him later on, and panicked when he realised he didn't see Nicole anywhere. He'd been so preoccupied with how he could talk some sense into her that he had lost track of her. A quick look at his watch reminded him that he'd totally lost track of the time too. As he looked around, he realised he couldn't see Mikey or Danny anywhere either.

Afraid now, he went up to Ian and Reggie who were drunkenly dancing together. "Have you guys seen Nicole?"

"Lookin' for a slow dance are we?" Ian grinned suggestively. "I think you might have been beaten to the punch m'laddo."

"Have you seen her?" Jesse was in no mood to be polite.

"Oooh, jealous are we?" Ian looked at Reggie and laughed. Jesse briefly considered decking him, but told himself that that would be a waste of time.

"She wanted to go home," Reggie spoke up. "The three of them left a couple minutes ago. You might still catch them."

"Thanks." Jesse was off and running. Behind him, he faintly heard Ian wondering something about the possibility of a fistfight, but he didn't stop to contradict him. Taking the stairs two at a time, he flew on to the street.

His heart sank as he saw Nicole's head disappearing into the passagenger seat of Mikey's father's car. Danny got in after her.

"Nicole!" he called after her, but it was too late. The car pulled away, swerving crazily as it went down the street.

Jesse stared after it stupidly, as if he could will it to come back. Slumping against the wall of the building, he had only one thought.

If anyone watching noticed a flash of blue light passing through him, no-one said anything.

*************

Without the wall to support him, Jesse slumped to his knees on the floor of the chamber. Looking up, he saw Al standing there.

"I failed Al," he said dumbly. "I failed."

Al felt sorry for the younger man. He pulled him to his feet. "C'mon Jesse. I'll take you home. Your brain's too swiss-cheesed to stay here."

Jesse let Al pull him out of the chamber, away from the scene of his failure, away from the eyes of Gushie and everyone else.

*************

Jesse didn't even notice where Al was bringing him until the car stopped. He looked out the window, expecting to see his appartment building. Instead he saw a spacious bungalow, surrounded by trees, obviously inhabited by someone with money to burn. Looking around, he recognised the area, high on the hills overlooking the town.

"Where are we Al? This isn't my home."

"Yes it is Jesse." Al knew that Jesse's brain was still scrambled, so he smiled at him. "You didn't fail."

"What?" Jesse's eyes were clouded in suspicion, as if he didn't believe what he was hearing. As Al continued to speak, he saw hope dawning in Jesse's eyes.

"You did change history Jesse. When Nicole got into the car, she saw how drunk Mikey was. She remembered what you said, and she got scared. She got him to stop the car, and called her father to come pick them up. Most of the kids got grounded for a month, and the school ran lectures against drink driving. But they all lived. The three of them."

"Nicole's alive?"

"She graduated at the head of her class. She's a successful actress, and singer. She started off in the soaps, and was so successful there she scored her own prime time drama show. She's one hell of a lady."

Jesse smiled. "She always was." That was why he'd done it - gone through time to save her.

"Why don't you go in? She's probably waiting for you."

Jesse's face betrayed suspicion again, then confusion as he tried to reconcile his memories.

"Take it from me kid. Your brain is swiss cheese right now. Just trust an old war horse and go into the house."

Jesse decided to take Al's advice and walked up the driveway. He found the door unlocked, and with a final look back at Al, he walked in.

"Hello?"

"Jesse! You're home early!" A voice he thought he'd never hear again greeted him, as a woman he thought he'd never see again flew down the stairs and into his arms.

Jesse held her tightly and thanked all the luck in the universe, and Sam Beckett too, for bringing her back to him. When she pulled away from him, he kissed her long and hard. His memory - memories of the future he had helped create - was coming back to him.

Nicole pulled away and looked at him. "What did I do to get such a welcome from my husband?" she smiled.

"I just missed you."

"Since this morning?"

Jesse smiled a bittersweet smile. "Seems like years." He went to kiss her again, but an indignant wail from the sitting room put paid to that idea.

"Looks like someone wants to see her daddy," Nicole laughed as Jesse followed her in. His eyes welled up with tears as he watched Nicole bend over and pick up the two year old girl with her mommy's smile and her daddy's eyes. This was what he had dreamed about for fourteen years, what had kept him going through the long days and even longer nights without her. This made it all worth it.

"Gonna say hi to daddy Marta?" Nicole asked the little girl. As she turned to look at Jesse, she was shocked to see tears on his cheeks. "Jesse are you ok?"

"I'm fine," he replied, as he took Nicole and Marta in his arms. "I'm just happy."

Nicole smiled up at him. "Well then, welcome home Jesse," she murmured as she kissed him, and Marta laughed contentedly.

"It's good to be home." Jesse returned the kiss, realising the truth of what he was saying and feeling.

It was good to be home.

Because for the first time in years, he finally was.