Theorizing
that one could time-travel within his own lifetime, Dr. Sam Beckett led an
elite group of scientists into the desert to develop a top-secret project
known as Quantum Leap. Pressured
to prove his theories or lose funding, Dr. Beckett prematurely stepped into
the Project Accelerator…and vanished.
He
awoke to find himself in the past, suffering from partial amnesia and facing
a mirror image that was not his own.
Fortunately, contact with his own time was maintained through
brainwave transmissions with Al, the Project Observer, who appeared in the
form of a hologram that only Dr. Beckett can see and hear.
As
evil ones do their best to stop Dr. Beckett’s journey, his children, Dr.
Samantha Josephine Fulton and Stephen Beckett, continuously strive to
retrieve their time-lost father and bring him home permanently.
Despite returning home several times over the last decade, Dr.
Beckett has remained lost in the time stream…his final fate no longer
certain.
Trapped
in the past and driven by an unknown force, Dr. Beckett struggles to accept
his destiny as he continues to find himself leaping from life to life,
putting things right that once went wrong with the hopes that his next
leap…will be the final leap home.
PROLOGUE
The
tingling sensation that accompanied the blue light faded away and Sam found
himself in that most hated position – wearing stiletto heels.
Even worse, though, was the fact that he was wearing them in a room
blasting with a heavy Techno backbeat and walking quite quickly down a
narrow runway.
Sam looked down and found he was wearing black slim trousers with a narrow
waistband that sat just below the waist paired with a soft green
blouse. he was so disoriented that he didn't hear the Imaging chamber
door open.
"Uh,
Sam? You really need to give those hips some attitude." Al was
moving a bit to the backbeat music.
"Wha...
huh?" Sam was dumbfounded. "Attitude?"
“Yeah.
You’re currently modeling in the September 2006 Vera Wang Spring
Fashion show. You need to show
some attitude on the runway. It’s
sort of like moving your hips like when you were Elvis but you do it as
you’re walking.”
Sam
glared at Al as he came to the end of the runway.
"Okay.
now you need to stop and move around a bit. You have to show off the
outfit... and what an outfit! Beth would love it! I wonder how
much it costs." He turned to the handlink and started to key in
some numbers.
Sam
continued to glare at Al, but did as he was told.
“That’s
enough. Now turn and walk
back… Shake that
tushie, Sam. C'mon, attitude,
Sam, attitude! Watch out for the other model…now she’s
showing hip attitude!”
Sam did everything he could
but the warning came too late. He
tried to stay on the heels while avoiding the other model.
However, being in a meta-stable position was just too much for him.
He took a head dive through the curtain at the start of the runway.
“Oh
Boy,” came to his lips as he hit his head hard on a pole just inside
the curtain. Mercifully, he
entered blessed unconsciousness.
PART
ONE
September
15, 2006
New York City
Sam
awoke facing the angry face of a little, nervous man who was glaring and
hissing at him. “Karina!
What the hell was that
all about! If you ripped the
Wang it’s coming out of your paycheck!
I’ve never seen you so wooden and stiff!”
“Sam!
Sam! Are you okay?” Al
asked in the next moment, his face right next to that of the mousy man.
“Uh,
yeah.” Sam sat up, rubbing his
head. “Ow, that hurt!”
The
little man shouted, “There’s no time for that right now.
Suck it up and get into the next outfit.
Cheri, can you help her. Gawd!
You’ve only got two minutes now!”
The man abruptly gestured to another woman who was carrying a
pincushion and duct tape. “Get
her into the Taupe Tapestry dress with the jacket pronto!
She must be on the mark in one and a half minutes!
Move it people!”
Sam
was amazed at the speed at which the outfit he’d been wearing was removed
and another was donned. It felt
more like a NASCAR pit stop than anything else he’d experienced.
Before he knew it, his clothes, shoes, and hair of the aura had been
redone and he was pushed to the start of the runway.
Another model was walking back.
“What
are you waiting for?
Go! Go!”
The angry little man was gesturing wildly.
“Move it, girl! And
this time give it your style!”
Sam
again stepped out onto the catwalk that ran from the curtain down through
the center of the room. This
time he noticed the people, the cameras, and the lights.
Especially the lights! They
made the catwalk extremely hot and he could feel the beads of sweat starting
to form on his body. Sam
wondered why some women would actually salivate at the chance to work in
this high-pressure world!
“Oh,
Sam! I like that one even
more!” Now that Sam was fine,
Al was back into the spirit of the fashion show and into full gushing mode.
“Beth would really look good in it!”
Sam
just continued down the runway, trying to keep his focus on walking upright,
moving his hips, and doing it with as much grace as possible.
It was a good thing that on several leaps he had a chance to practice
his dancing because right now, moving smoothly was critical.
All he knew was he didn’t want this going on much longer.
Al, meanwhile, seemed to be creating a mental catalog of outfits for
Beth, though he did tell Sam when he came backstage again that he was going
back to the Project to talk to Karina.
Sam
completed that run and two more, moving into the evening wear towards the
end. At the finale, he’d been
dressed in a wedding dress and had walked out to the oohs and ahs of the
crowd. He was still wearing the
classy white dress when Vera Wang herself came out with all the models.
When
Sam went back behind the curtain the final time, he was exhausted!
Who’d have ever thought that wearing clothes could take so much out
of a person!
After
the wedding dress was carefully removed, Sam put on the robe that was
offered to him. He noticed the
other models were over at mirrored tables taking off their makeup and
getting into their street clothes. Most
of the girls had already finished and left.
Sam saw an empty table at the end and sat down, finding a cosmetic
case labeled Karina Valance. He
opened the case and removed cotton balls and cold cream.
As
he removed the makeup, he was amazed at the absolutely perfect face that
peered at him from the mirror. It
really was a shame that this face was so often covered with a mask of
thickly layered makeup in intense tones.
She had naturally long eyelashes, full lips, and a flawless
complexion.
Continuing
to look into his cosmetic kit, he found a small purse.
He took it out and looked inside but couldn’t find any keys
although he did have a driver’s license showing what was, for the duration
of the leap, his address. “How
do I get around?” mused Sam softly.
Al
suddenly appeared at his side. “According
to Karina, you generally take taxis around the city.
It’s easier than finding parking spots and to keep track of the
mileage for taxes. Be sure to
get a receipt when you go home.”
Sam
looked up at Al, annoyance dripping, “You know, I’ll never get used to
you creeping up on me like that!” He
looked around making certain that no one was watching or listening.
Satisfied, he turned slightly to continue his conversation with Al.
“Al,
do you know why I’m here? This
is not exactly the type of leap I want to extend.
It’s bad enough I’m a woman, but I have the feeling I’m not
going to enjoy this life one bit.”
Al
shook his head. “Ziggy’s not
sure yet.” He looked down at
the handlink. “It’s
September 15, 2006 and you’re Karina Valance.
She’s one of the hottest models currently in high fashion.
Ziggy says that you will have a swimsuit shoot tomorrow
afternoon…” Al looked on as Sam’s face dropped at that news, “…and
three days from now…”Al got an evil grin on his face, “…Oh, Sam,
this will be fun!”
“What,
Al?” As worried as Sam was
about the swimsuit shoot, he was even more concerned with the look on his
best friend’s face. A look
that gleeful on Al had to mean something bad for him.
“You’re
going to be doing a Lingerie Shoot!” Al
almost cackled.
Sam
shook his head violently. “No,
No, No! Al, you’ve got
to get me out of here before then! I
can’t, and I mean can’t do
those shoots!
Chuckling,
his best friend answered, “Well, Sammy, looks like that’s what’s going
to happen unless you get one of your infamous ‘gut feelings.’
Sorry, Pal.”
Sam’s
eyes narrowed. “Yeah, right.
I’ll just bet you’re sorry. You’re
eating this up. I can’t
believe I’ve leapt into a high fashion model!”
Sam continued in his agitated state.
“I want you to get Ziggy running scenarios and I want you to see
what you can get from Karina. This
is one mission that I’m going to get to the bottom of in record time!
Whatever I need to do, I’ll fix it and then I’m outta here,” he
said the final with a hand gesture that hit another solid body.
The
woman he had hit, looked startled. “What’s
wrong, Karina? You feeling okay?
That was a pretty hard head bang!
If you’re ready to get out of here, so am I.
You don’t have to hit me!” The
contact with the woman’s body combined with her voice pulled Sam’s
attention away from the hologram. Neither
Sam nor Al had noticed the other model walking up behind them.
“Uh,
no. I’m fine,” Sam answered,
a little surprised at the other woman’s appearance.
“That was some show, huh?”
“Yeah,
well, Wang’s are usually one of the better attended.
You better get dressed so we can get going.”
Obviously, Sam had plans with this woman.
“I
think going would be a good idea,” Sam said this with his eyes firmly
focused on Al rather than the pretty young woman speaking with him.
“I
get the hint, Sam. I’ll see
what more I can pull out of Ziggy. See
ya!” With that final flourish,
the bright shaft of light that indicated the Imaging Chamber door had opened
appeared and Al Calavicci exited Sam’s vision.
“So,
where are we going?” Sam asked casually.
The
other woman looked at him strangely. “You
must have hit your head harder than you thought.
We’ve been planning to go to Ectasy 91 since last Tuesday when the
final contracts were signed on the swimsuit shoot. “
“Ectasy
91?”
“Yeah,
that really neat and expensive
spa? You know we plan to get
waxed! You don’t want any hair
showing in those shots!”
“Yeah,
I guess that wouldn’t be such a good thing.”
Sam wasn’t exactly sure what waxing was but it sounded like a
beauty treatment of some sort.
“Okay
then. Get your clothes on and
let’s go or we’ll miss our appointments.”
Sam understood by the woman’s tone of voice missing the
‘waxing’ would not be a good thing in her opinion.
Sam
had no idea where those clothes would be, though.
He looked around hoping that something would provide a clue.
“Uh, yeah. Now where
did I put them?”
The
other woman rolled her eyes. “Karina!
They’re over here in the wardrobe.”
The other woman went over and took out a pair of black pants and a
white top. She also pulled out a
pair of boots.
Sam
slipped behind a curtain and quickly put them on to the exasperated sound of
the other woman. “What are you
doing, Karina? It’s not like
I’ve never seen you before!” Sam
walked out of the dressing area with a lopsided grin and got “his”
things together. They went to
the elevator and down to the main lobby where the other woman walked over to
the doorman. “Hey, Steve?
Can you get us a cab?”
“Yes,
Miss Michaels. I’ll have one
for you quickly.”
“Steve
is such a great guy! We’ll
have a cab soon.” Sam could
only describe the other woman as ‘giddy.’
This Spa must be really something.
True
to his promise, Steve got them a cab a minute later and they were off to
Ectasy 91.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
February
2, 2008
2:00
p.m.
Project
Quantum Leap
Stallion’s
Gate NM
Al
couldn’t stop laughing as he walked down the ramp, throwing the handlink
to Dom. “Oh, Dom, you should
see Sam. He so hates it when he
leaps into a woman, and now he’s leaped into a Scandinavian Goddess!
This leap is gonna be fun!”
“For
you maybe, Admiral.” Dom
wasn’t sure that he liked Al taking such pleasure at Sam’s discomfort.
“Oh,
Dom. A
swimsuit and lingerie shoot both! How
can I let these pass?”
Al continued to chuckle.
Dom
shook his head. He knew that Sam
was Al’s best friend in the world. Certainly
he wouldn’t take ribbing the physicist too
far.
Al
turned a little more serious. “Dom,
please start running scenarios for Sam…he really wants to know what he’s
there to do. I think letting him
know that sooner than later would be a good idea.
I’m going to go see the visitor again.”
He headed out the Control Room door.
When
Al got to the Waiting Room, he absently tugged at the lapels of his
chocolate brown jacket and smoothed the front of his teal shirt.
He gave a final slight finger combing to his hair before going in.
Sure, everyone else saw Sam when they went in, but he saw Karina.
And from the brief talk they’d had before, he knew she was a
knockout. Even though he had no
intention of flirting with her or otherwise jeopardizing his marriage to
Beth, a man did want to look his best!
Karina
stretched languidly on the bed in the Waiting Room and Al couldn’t help
swallowing hard. The Fermi suit
left very little to the imagination. She’s young enough to be your daughter, Calavicci, he reminded
himself. It didn’t help much.
“Oh,
hi, Al,” she stated, a slight Scandinavian accent to her words.
He’d told her when he first saw her what his name was and had given
her the brief explanation that would settle her mind, including the rundown
of why she saw a man in the mirror instead of her reflection.
She’d thought that was funny.
Al
asked their guest, “Are you comfortable?”
Karina
shrugged. “This outfit—not
very stylish, no?”
“No,
I guess it’s not,” Al had to agree.
But it sure looks good on you, he thought and gently tugged at his
collar. “Can I get you
anything?”
“No,
I’m fine. Apart from being
stuck in here, anyway.” She
yawned.
Al
did a quick mental analysis of the length of time Karina had been in the
Waiting Room along with a guess of how long she and the other models had
been at the show before Sam had leapt in.
By his calculations it had been quite a long time since she’d have
had anything to eat. Al was just
about to ask her if he could get her something to eat when his paternally
attuned ears heard the distinct gurgle of her stomach rumbling its hunger.
“Well,
I know I needn’t ask,” Al began with a broad smile on his face.
“Do you have a preference for your meal?”
“No.”
Karina waved a dismissive hand and stretched again, arching her back and
stretching her hands over her head.
At
the sight Al felt heat rise in his neck, spreading towards his face and
ears. The heat was spreading in
other areas, too. He cleared his
throat and tugged at his collar again. “I’ll,
uh, I’ll have someone send you a meal shortly,” he said, and beat a
hasty retreat.
As
soon as he was in the hall, he idly rubbed his face.
Once he was past the guards and out of their earshot, he lifted the
wristlink he wore and pressed its button.
“Ziggy, where’s my wife?”
“Dr.
Calavicci is in your quarters, Admiral.”
“Perfect.”
“Admiral,
your voice sounds strained. Your
blood pressure appears elevated, as well,” Ziggy said.
“Perhaps Dr. Lofton would be better able to assist you.”
“No,
Ziggy, trust me…it’s Beth I want to see.”
PART
TWO
September
15, 2006
Ectasy
91
New York City
Sam
and Ms. Michaels walked into the spa. Relaxing
tones of blue and white defined the sanctum.
They checked in at the front desk, a long white desk of clean
contemporary lines in front of a wall of tiny tiles in blue hues.
“Let’s
see. Laura Michaels and Karina
Valance,” said the receptionist. “I
can see you’re each in for the full Monty today!
Would you both like an Evian while you wait?
Your technicians will be with you shortly.”
Laura
confirmed that the woman’s assessment was correct.
She indicated to Karina the sofa in the front reception area.
They went over and sat down to wait.
Sam
took a drink out of his bottle. Laura.
He finally had a first name to go by.
Laura continued to address him. “I’m
glad we were able to get the reservation so quickly!
If those tourists hadn’t backed out on their appointment, we
wouldn’t be getting our wax jobs here!
This will be such a treat! We’ll
be silky smooth for the shoot!”
“Yeah,
that will be great!” Sam tried
to sound enthusiastic but he still wasn’t exactly sure about this waxing
thing. He seemed to remember a
woman he was close to getting her legs waxed.
He recalled that he had enjoyed the result: soft, silky, beautiful,
long legs.
His
memory of the woman was fragmented. He
could feel a tug of an emotion, a wisp of a memory; she was just on the edge
of his awareness. Along with
this ethereal vision, he knew he’d been happy and contented in her arms.
Why couldn’t he remember her name or her face!
The more he tried the more the memory pulled away, leaving him with
an ache in his heart. He
realized then that he’d been in love with this woman who was now a mystery
to him. It hurt him deeply that
he couldn’t recall more. He
wondered if Al would be able to fill in the blanks when he returned or if
he’d known this woman and Al at the same time.
“So,
are we getting our legs waxed?” Sam asked.
That was the only context he could put the waxing into.
“We’re
getting everything waxed!”
At the look on Sam’s face she continued.
“Well, you know how things show when you’re wearing a thong.”
“A
thong!?” Sam asked
weakly. He suddenly was facing
tomorrow’s swimsuit shoot with as much trepidation as the Thursday
Lingerie one. Now he wasn’t
sure which would be worse.
Sam
looked up and prayed. Please…let me
fix whatever it is I need to fix and get me out of here before then!
Sam was beginning to realize just how prophetic his prediction was
that he would not like living this life.
A
lady in a lab coat walked up to them. “Laura?
I’m Tammy. Please come
with me.”
Laura
got up turning to Sam. “Karina?
After this we’ll go to dinner, okay?
I’ve been wanting to go back to Nobu Fifty-Seven—that great Sushi
place we tried last month. Sound
good to you?
Sam
recalled that he liked sushi so he agreed.
A minute after Laura left, another woman walked up to him.
“You must be Karina. I’m
Bernadette. Please come with
me.”
“Hi,
Bernadette.” Sam got up and
threw his now empty bottle in the trash as they walked by the front desk.
Immediately, the receptionist offered him another bottle.
“Yeah,
okay.” He wondered if they had
a contract with Evian to push the water.
Bernadette
led him to a small dressing area with a row of closets.
“You can put your clothes in here.
There’s a robe to wear. And
be sure to wear the paper panties.”
Sam
blushed. “Paper panties?
Is that all?”
“Yeah…I
need to be able to get to all the spots you want waxed.”
Sam
was getting a bit nervous about this whole thing.
He couldn’t imagine why anyone would want a beauty treatment there! “How exactly
does this waxing work?”
“You’ve
never waxed? I thought all you
models waxed! Well…I put a
warm wax where the hair is to be removed and then use a muslin cloth to pull
the hair out. It’s like
pulling off a bandage.”
This
was suddenly sounding rather painful. Hair
was supposed to be there. This
didn’t appear to be a beauty treatment from the description of it.
Still, he had to do what his host has set into motion.
To do otherwise would be out of character for the woman he’d leapt
into.
Bernadette
led Sam to a small room decorated in soothing tones of blue with a simple
bed in the center. In some ways
it reminded him of the Waiting Room.
The
Technician started with his eyebrows. Looking
critically at them, she voiced, “These look like they’ve been waxed.
You sure you haven’t done this before?”
“Uh,
I guess I spaced it out.” He
knew the excuse was lame but didn’t have anything else he could think of
to say.
Bernadette’s
eyebrows rose. “Really!
Most people remember a wax job.”
“Let’s
just drop it, okay.” Sam
grinned weakly.
“Okay,
just seems strange. Go ahead and
close your eyes if you want.”
“Okay.”
Sam closed his eyes.
Bernadette
used an orange stick to separate the hairs from top to bottom, and then
spread the warm wax on the bottom of Sam’s eyebrows.
It felt relaxing. Then
she lightly patted something over the wax.
For a split second, nothing happened and then…
Pain!
Sam’s
eyes flew open. Like
a bandage?! Like I’d put
bandages there! Sam was sure that every hair above his eyes had been
removed. It was still stinging
when another application of wax was applied.
This time, the apprehension of the removal didn’t make it as
relaxing.
This
activity went on for a few more minutes, first one brow and then the other.
Finally Bernadette took a cotton ball moistened with some lotion and
applied it to his stinging brows. It
calmed the sting a bit, but didn’t make it go away entirely.
“Okay.
Now let’s get to those legs.”
PART
THREE
September
15, 2006
Ecstasy
91 Spa
New York City
,
NY
Al
returned just as the bikini wax started.
He noticed Sam’s eyebrows and legs were slightly reddened with
irritation. As he saw what was
happening he exclaimed, “Ah, gee, Sam!
I didn’t know they did that!
I’ve only enjoyed the results of the process.
Why would women willingly submit themselves to this torture?”
Sam
just looked at Al with a countenance of abject misery.
Sam felt he had barely lived through the leg waxing.
He’d found his eyes watering each time Bernadette pulled the muslin
cloth away but he’d held it together.
However, when she moved to the paper diaper and started clipping his
pelvic area (or at least the pelvic area of the aura), he blushed all the
way to his roots. He knew she
couldn’t tell any difference – his experience with Buddy feeling his
legs when he was Samantha Stormer told him that – but it was still so personal! Only the fact
that his host had planned on doing this kept him from walking out of the
room. At this point, he was
beginning to think women were just insane to go through this willingly.
Bernadette
again applied the warm wax. However,
this time as she pulled the muslin cloth away, Sam screamed!
The
color fled from Al’s face and with a quick, “Sorry, pal,” to Sam, he
punched out.
Bernadette
seemed surprised. “You must
have really sensitive skin.” She
did the same to the other side of “Karina’s” bikini area and Sam
clenched his teeth to hold the scream in.
“Are
you finished?” he whined, hope dripping in his voice.
“Almost,
just a few stray hairs to get.”
“Um,
leave them. I’ll just
shave.”
“Really,
less than a minute and everything will be fine.”
Sam
figured that after going through this exercise in sheer sadistic torture, he
could put up with a final minute. “Okay.”
His voice was a bit shaky.
Bernadette
finished and again put the cooling lotion on the affected part.
“All done. Would you
like some more water before your facial, massage, and paraffin?”
“My
what?”
“Your
facial, massage, and paraffin. You
reserved those as well.”
“Uh,
sure.” The massage he was sure
might be something soothing. The
facial and paraffin, he had no idea. Seeing
that this last beauty treatment had been less than comfortable, he just
hoped it would all be over quickly.
Bernadette
walked to the door, indicating to Sam he should follow her.
“Let me show you to the lounge.
That’s where Kim will come to get you.”
Sam
followed Bernadette out of the room, walking with a definite gait to an open
area with a tabletop water fountain, soft sofas, and light soothing music.
He saw there was a tray with a carafe of hot water and herbal teas.
White mugs were available for the tea.
He fixed himself a cup of the herbal tea.
A
minute later, Laura was brought to the same area.
“This
is so great! The shoot will be
wonderful. I’m as smooth as a
baby’s behind everywhere. How
about you?” Sam looked at her
and wondered how she could be so happy.
Hadn’t she just been through the same torture?
Yeah. Definitely insane.
“I’m
just glad it’s over,” Sam stated honestly, a wounded look on his face.
Laura
came over, a little concerned at her friend’s countenance of pain.
“Karina? Why the sad
face? You said yourself that we
should do this so that we’ll look good for the shoot.
You gotta admit it was worth it.”
Sam
wasn’t about to admit anything of the kind.
He was just glad that Bernadette could only see the hair on his aura.
The concept that she’d have pulled all his chest hairs out by the
roots wasn’t something he would have liked to experience.
He figured that the pain he’d felt today was on par or worse than
anything he could remember – and since his memory was so Swiss cheesed at
that point, he was thankful he didn’t remember anything that hurt worse.
Misery poured from every pore!
His
masseuse, Kim, walked into the lounge and introduced herself, asking him to
come with her. He followed
hoping that part two wasn’t going to get any worse.
He was led to a small room that had the lights low and held a massage
table in the middle of the room. Scented
candles were burning and the room was filled with the sound of soft,
soothing music.
“Just
hang your robe over on the hook and crawl under the covers.
We’ll start with the massage and finish with the facial.
Just lay face down.” After
providing the instructions, Kim left the room.
Sam
did as he was asked and was waiting with his face in a padded extension from
the bed with a hole in the center for him to breathe.
He heard a soft knock on the door and indicated the person on the
other side should enter.
Kim
walked over to a small table to the side and poured some oil that had been
warming in a water bath into her hands.
She rubbed them together and then pulled the top of the blanket down
leaving Sam’s shoulders bared.
As
Sam felt her hands touch him, he tensed suddenly, concerned as to how his
body would react.
Kim
felt him tense up and softly said, “Just relax.
Gee, you are really tense!
I feel knots in here that must have been around for years!
When was the last time you had a massage?”
“I
don’t remember having one before,” Sam answered.
He mentally forced himself to relax as much as he could.
Kim
tsked softly, “You really should get them regularly.
You’re gonna need to drink lots
of water after we’re through here today to get rid of the toxins I’ll be
releasing.” She had found a
particularly large knot and was working it for all it was worth.
“Is this too hard? Let
me know if I’m being too rough.” Sam
was about to say something when the knot released with a sharp pain.
But then the pleasure of the relaxation came through and he decided
that, from a therapeutic viewpoint: no pain, no gain.
He decided to let her expert hands relax his body as it hadn’t been
for quite some time.
Kim
continued working the knots on his back and the rest of his posterior.
She was careful not to touch anywhere too personal and by the time
she was ready to have him turn over to massage the anterior, he felt he had
found the secret road to Nirvana. She
stopped for a moment adjusting something and he suddenly felt steam blowing
gently into his face.
Sam
had never had a facial. He felt
the softness as the creams were applied amid the light face and head
massage. It was interesting but
he found himself drifting off to sleep.
After cucumber slices were applied to his closed eyes, Kim continued
the body massage, again deftly avoiding erogenous areas.
Suddenly he felt a very strange feeling as his hands were encased in
plastic bags filled with a warm liquid.
He realized suddenly, it must be liquid paraffin.
The bags were sealed and his hands were put into oversized mittens to
hold in the heat. After an
unknown amount of time - Sam found he had lost track - Kim cleaned off his
face and removed the paraffin from his hands.
“Okay.
You lie there and when you’re ready, come back out to the lounge.
Don’t rush.” Kim
quietly slipped out the door.
Sam
felt like his body had been turned into putty.
He didn’t know if he could
get up. He hadn’t felt this
level of relaxation for years. He
tried to think of when he’d last felt this way and she was back in his
mind, playfully just out of conscious reach.
He remembered, though, that the last time he’d felt this good was
after they had made love as she laid in his arms, playing with the hairs on
his chest. If he could remember
that, why couldn’t he remember
her?
Sam
barely heard the Imaging Chamber door open.
He opened one eye and saw Al.
“Sam,
I don’t think I’ve seen you this relaxed in a long time.
In fact, I don’t know if I’ve ever
seen you this relaxed!”
“Al…
I’ve been through Hell today and I’ve been through Heaven.
The Heaven is worth it!” A
deep sigh exited the time traveling physicist.
Al
looked over to Sam, not wanting to take this pleasure from him but
understanding he would want to know the purpose of his leap. “Well,
hopefully you’re ready to work again.
Ziggy’s finally figured out what you’re here for.
She says there’s a 94.7 percent probability that you’re here to
prevent a heroin overdose by a model named Candice Morrison.”
“When
does this happen?” Sam noticed
his newly relaxed muscles starting to tense again.
Damn!
Well, at least it isn’t as bad as it was before!
He got up and put on the robe. He
took another bottle of Evian off the counter, unscrewed the cap, and drank
deeply.
Al
checked the handlink again to ascertain the information Sam was requesting.
“It happens on Thursday, after the Lingerie Shoot.”
“Well,
maybe I can get to her tonight or tomorrow and finish before the shoot.”
Sam was still in hope that he could still get out of what he still
felt was the worst part of the leap, although after the Hell part, he
wasn’t too sure.
Al
shook his head, continuing to allow his fingers to play on the handlink.
“No such luck, Sam. She’s
on the other side of the world right now, in
Thailand
. She’s set to work with you
on the Lingerie shoot, but won’t be back until tomorrow night.”
“Then
I’ll take care of it then.” So,
he’d have to model the swimsuits. He
figured he could probably get through that, although he really didn’t want
to.
Al
looked up at him, indicating that wasn’t an option.
“No, Sam. You’ll be
in sunny Zihuatenaho/Ixtapa for the Swimsuit shoot.
You leave early tomorrow morning for a late afternoon shoot.
Then you finish the shoot Wednesday morning.
You won’t be back to
New York City
until late Wednesday night.”
Sam’s
head tilted. “Where’s
Zihuatenaho/Ixtapa?”
“Pacific
coast of
Mexico
, about 50 miles north of
Acapulco
,” the hologram spouted off.
“Oh.
I don’t think I’ve ever been to
Mexico
on a leap before. I seem to
remember going there with…damn!
I still can’t remember her name!”
Sam looked at Al, a deep questioning look in his eyes.
“Al, do you remember if I’ve ever been in love?”
“Many
times, Sam. Several leaps.”
“No.
I mean in my life back at the project.”
Al
looked at his friend and followed the drill.
“Uh, Sam. You know
I can’t tell you that.”
Sam
turned and started to pace. “You
know, that excuse is getting really
old! I’ve been
leaping…how many years now? I know
you’ve told me things before. I
can’t remember what at the moment, but I know you’ve broken that
particular rule before. Why not now!” Sam said this
last, his eyes holding the request in his eyes.
He was begging Al to tell him.
Al
looked down at the handlink. Sam
was right, of course. In the
years since he’d stepped into that Accelerator, Al had played his role in
many ways. It was always
difficult to see his friend struggling like this.
He was always struggling with something, usually leap related but
sometimes, like now, it was his trying to regain something he had lost from
that life he’d left behind the night he’d stepped into the accelerator.
Oh,
Sammy! I miss that life too! Back
when we just had to worry about getting funding and building your dream!
Going to the pub afterwards for a cold beer!
Having the chance to really talk about things. Yeah, Al missed
that, but he couldn’t honestly say he would turn back the clock.
If he did, he wouldn’t have Beth, or his daughters, or his
grandchildren. They wouldn’t
be with him if not for the man standing in front of him almost a year and a
half in the past.
Al
took a deep breath. He paused a
moment and then answered, sadly, “Sam, there are reasons I can’t tell
you. Some of the reasons have to
do with promises I’ve made and not just to you.
You’re asking me to ignore my integrity.
But if you really push it….”
Al faltered a minute. No
one but this man could get him to say what he was going to say next.
“…I’ll tell you.”
Sam
looked dejected. He knew he
couldn’t ask Al to do that. “No,
Al, I’d never ask you to compromise yourself.
You’re my friend and that means way too much to me.
I guess if I need to remember it someday, I will.”
He simply looked down for a moment and then raised his eyes to Al
once more. “But if there is someone back there for me, let them know that somehow, my love
for them is as strong as ever. Even
though I can’t remember them.”
Al
wished at that moment he could put his arm around his friend’s shoulders.
Donna would be thrilled to hear Sam’s declaration of love for her,
even though she would know it wasn’t all it could be.
Since leaving the project, as Sam had asked her, to work on the
entangled particles project in
Albuquerque
, she’d felt somewhat worried that her not being there would somehow be
detrimental to Sam. Al had found
just the opposite to be true. Since
Donna had left, his memory of her seemed to come to the fore even more.
Al
nodded. “Yeah, Sam. If
there’s anyone here that needs to hear that, I’ll let them know.”
He figured he could extend those words to Stephen and eventually
Sammie Jo as well, when she, Daniel, and Isabella returned from their trip
to
Hawaii
.
Another
soft knock came from the door. “Are
you okay in there?”
Sam
realized that he and Al had been in the room for quite sometime.
Kim probably thought something had happened to him.
He answered, “Yeah, I fell asleep but I was just about to come
out.” He turned to Al.
“Go back and see if you can get more specific information on the
heroin overdose. I’ll need to
know exactly when, where, and how.”
After
Al nodded and left, Sam grabbed another Evian and opened the door.
Kim nodded at the water. “Good…
make sure you drink a lot of
water. We did quite a bit of
body work!”
Sam
gave her one of the lopsided Beckett grins and then went into the hub where
Laura was waiting for him, already dressed.
Sam went back to the closet where his clothes were and changed back
into them. He and Laura went to
the front desk to finish the financial arrangements.
Sam made sure that both Bernadette and Kim got handsome tips.
While his time with Bernadette had been the single most horrific
experience he could remember and his time with Kim was akin to the feeling
he had after incredible sex, both of them had been fully professional and
had done their jobs admirably.
But
he told himself he would try to remember this waxing thing and if ever a
host wanted to do it again, he swore he’d do everything in his power to
avoid it. Massages on the other
hand…
PART
FOUR
September
15, 2006
Ectasy
91 Spa
New York City
,
NY
Once
they’d paid, Sam turned to Laura, “Done.
Where’s this Sushi Restaurant again?”
“It’s
over on West 57th.” She gave
him an odd look. “We were just
there. You sure your head is
okay?”
“Yeah.
Let’s go. I’m
famished.” Sam suddenly
realized that he truly was famished. He
hoped he’d be able to get some tempura at the restaurant too.
They
hailed a cab and arrived at the restaurant, finding a line, which meant a
twenty-minute wait. Although Sam
was really hungry and didn’t want to wait that long, Laura convinced him
they should. The wait turned out
to be a bit shorter. When they
were seated, Sam picked up the menu to scan his choices.
Laura looked at him wide eyed.
“You’re
going to order something off the menu? I
thought we were going to share the Vegetable Kushiyaki.”
The woman seemed shocked.
Sam
couldn’t understand why. He
was just looking at the menu. He
noticed that what she was referring to was listed as an appetizer for two.
“Well, we are. But,
I’m really pretty hungry so I thought I’d get some tempura too.”
Laura
shook her head. “You do and
you’ll just throw up again. You
know you can’t stomach that fried food.”
“Uh,
yeah.” He figured his host
probably didn’t eat a lot of fried foods.
“I guess I could go for the sukiyaki.”
Laura
looked at him again with sheer confusion plastered on her face.
“Karina, what are you
doing? You never eat more than an appetizer without throwing up.
Why do you want to do that to yourself?”
Sam’s
medical training started to kick in. Either my host has severe gastroenteritis or she’s got an eating
disorder. I’ll have Al look
into it. If it was the first, he could leave medical treatment
information and get an appointment set up with a specialist.
If it were the latter… well, he’d cross that bridge when he got
to it. Sam hoped that Al would
return soon. He really needed to
check on these possibilities.
In
the meantime, he at least needed to eat what he could.
“All right, Laura, just the kushiyaki.”
They ordered the appetizer with hot tea.
When
the food came to the table, it was all Sam could do not to wolf down the
relatively meager fare. He took
his cues from Laura, watching her mix wasabi with soy sauce slowly and
deliberately like it was a ritual of grave importance.
She arranged her plate several times, breaking up the kushiyaki and
making sure each sushi piece was exactly placed.
She then picked up her first piece and nibbled at it a bit.
Sam
realized that he was going to be making a meal of something that at best
would be a tease to his growling stomach.
By eating the way Laura was, they would be at the restaurant at least
an hour!
Sam
wondered, Is this how they do it?
Stretching time, convincing themselves that a tiny amount of food was
enough to sustain life? Sam thought back to what he’d seen that day.
Several of the models at the Wang show looked relatively healthy, but
many looked like they starved themselves on a regular basis.
He knew that anorexia and bulimia ran rampant through this business.
The
two continued to eat the food on their plates.
Finally, Sam decided that this just wouldn’t do.
“I don’t know Laura, for some reason I really am feeling hungrier
than usual. I think I’ll be
okay if I order some other food too. Maybe
a noodle bowl.”
Laura
reached into her purse and brought out a small ornate pillbox.
“Here, take one of these. Then
you’ll be feeling full quick enough.”
Sam
looked at what she was offering him. He
recognized it as a prescription amphetamine.
Yeah… this would make me feel
full all right, but I’d still be starving!
Sam
wondered how many of these models mixed the use of drugs with their eating
disorders. He knew the
combination could, and likely would, be lethal.
Death might be attributed to another condition, like heart failure.
But, the real culprit was the abuse of the body, the constant quest
for the “perfect model form.”
He
suddenly was angry. What a crock! The human body is a beautiful thing, but advertisers and marketers have
skewed the picture. Now if
you didn’t fit the ideal, which he suddenly recalled reading was less than
5 percent of the population in the
United States
, people - especially women and girls - would do awful things to themselves
to obtain that elusive goal.
“No,
Laura. I think I’ll just get
something to eat.” He watched
as she shrugged, closing the pillbox and putting it back in her purse.
Sam
heard the Imaging Chamber door open to his left and saw Al walking in.
“Hey, Sam.”
Sam
decided it was time for one of his private conversations with Al.
“Uh, Laura. Excuse me;
I’ve got to use the phone.”
“Don’t
you have your cell with you?” Laura
asked, surprised.
Sam
thought quickly. “Yeah, um…
the battery died. I’m going to
use a payphone.”
“You
don’t have to do that.” She
reached into her purse again. “Here,
use mine.”
Realizing
that he’d actually have to call a number and not just pretend to talk, Sam
declined. “No.
That’s okay. I can call
later.” What was he going to
do now? He really needed to talk
to Al.
Suddenly
Laura gave him the opportunity he was looking for.
“Karina, I’ll be right back.
I need to use the ladies room.”
Sam
nodded. As she walked away, he
started talking quietly, but loud enough for Al to hear.
“Al, did you find out more about the overdose?”
“Yeah,
Sam. After the shoot, Candice…
Oh, I love that name… sounds so French!
Anyways, Candice goes back to her apartment and is found later that
night OD’d on heroin. The
stuff she bought in
Thailand
was really pure stuff so she used her normal amount plus a little kick up
and OD’s.”
“Great.
I’ll have to stay with her and keep her from doing the drugs.
That should take care of that problem.
However, I’m not sure about my host.
She either has gastroenteritis or an eating disorder.
Could you have someone check her out back at the project?”
Al
looked at Sam, and intense look on his face.
“We already know it’s a purging form of anorexia nervosa.”
“How
do you know?” Sam was curious.
Al
shrugged. “We caught her
purging after dinner. At first
Aurora
thought the food had gone south, but Ziggy had filmed her.
She was using her finger to make herself throw up.”
Sam
wrinkled his nose. “Yuck.
Well, see if you can get someone to help her.
This can be really tricky from a psychiatric standpoint.”
“Yeah,”
Al nodded. “Christa had a
friend she met in the hospital who purged.
Poor girl had basically put so much stress on her system that she’d
gone into cardiac arrest. Christa
talked with her at length. The
girl said that it was a control thing. Eventually,
it becomes a way of life. They
just don’t feel right if they don’t do it.”
Sam
looked down, shaking his head. “What
a whacked view.” He took the
last bite of his sushi. His
plate was empty and he still was hungry.
“Yeah.
The human mind is capable of believing some pretty bizarre things.”
Laura
returned. “Hey, we need to get
back. I’ve still got packing
to do.”
“What
about the rest of dinner?” Sam asked.
“Oh,
I’m finished. Geez, I can’t
believe I ate like a pig.” Sam
noticed that she still had several pieces of the sushi on her plate.
Sam
decided that he’d just get something back at the apartment.
There must be something to eat there.
Al
waved at Sam. “Hey, buddy,
I’m going to go get some rest. See
you later.” Al keyed up the
door and was gone.
Laura
and Sam paid for their meal, and meager as it was, Sam was surprised at the
cost. He looked at his watch and
noticed that it was 9:45 p.m. Their
flight from JFK International started at 2:05 the next morning.
They shared a cab back to Laura’s apartment and she reminded Karina
that she would be picking her up at 11:00 p.m. so that they could get to the
airport in enough time.
Sam
nodded and headed up to his apartment. As
he walked up to the door, the doorman, who was dressed in a blue livery,
opened it. He noticed his
stomach growling as he pushed the button to take him to his apartment on the
20th floor.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
February
2, 2008
6
p.m.
Project
Quantum Leap
Stallion’s
Gate NM
Al
stepped out of the Imaging Chamber. He
saw his daughter, Julianna in the Control Room.
She looked at him with concern.
"What's
the matter, Jules?" Al asked not sure why his daughter was looking at
him with those worried eyes.
Julianna
took a deep breath, glancing at Dom, who seemed to want to stay out of the
matter, before returning her gaze to her father. "Admiral Beckett will
be here tomorrow, late morning and he’ll most likely be here for a few
days.”
"Dammit!
Why the hell does he have to show up during a fun leap?"
Jules
raised an eyebrow. "A fun leap? Is this leap the reason I couldn't get
hold of you earlier only to find that you and Mama Beth were..."
"Hey...
there are perks,” Al stated a grin on his face and a little bounce to his
stance. “Besides, if you saw
the leapee you’d know why.”
Dom
looked over to Al and shook his head, returning to working on Ziggy's
programming.
Jules
grinned slightly. "There are perks to being married to a senator, but
I'm not..."
She
didn't get to finish the sentence as her father interrupted her again.
As if brushing her sentence away, he asked, "Why is that nozzle
going to grace our project, Jules?"
She knew that while her father didn't have a problem with his own
libido, he really didn't want to hear about Jules and her own interludes.
Julianna
hesitated. She realized her father and Admiral Beckett didn't get along
well, a fact that irritated her to no end. If it weren't for Tom Beckett,
she wouldn't even be back at Project Quantum Leap. Besides, he was a fellow
ex-SEAL and a fine man, if a bit stubborn.
"He wants to look at the new security protocols Daniel and I
implemented."
"Yeah...
but Daniel and Sammie Jo aren’t here.
They took Isabella to
Hawaii
to see Katie."
"Do
you really think that matters to the Presidential Military Liaison?"
Julianna pointed out with a slight huff. "Don't worry about the
security protocols. I can handle that part. I'm just giving you a heads up
in case Tom... the Admiral wishes to speak to you."
"Well,
if he's going to be here that soon, I'm going to go relax.
Sam's okay for the few hours or so."
He started to walk to the door and turned.
"And as long as Sam's on this leap, I don't want to be disturbed
-- even by the Presidential Military Liaison."
"So,
if he orders me to get you, you want me to risk a court-martial?" Jules
asked with frustration.
"He
wouldn't dare do that to you, Jules. He
was the one who had you assigned here."
Al shrugged. "Besides,
he doesn't want to have anything happen to his brother, so he'll wait.
Julianna
watched as her father left the room. "Yeah, but that doesn't mean I
want to get stuck between a rock and a hard place,” she said in a somewhat
sotto voice.
Dom
looked over to her. "But
which one is the rock and which is the hard place?"
Julianna
turned towards the programmer with a slight growl. "Take your
pick," she told him, none to happy that he’d overheard her.
"Hey,
I'm on your side, Jules," Dom answered putting his hands up.
Jules
sighed, giving him an apologetic look before starting for the door. "If
you need me to pull my father off of Admiral Beckett's throat during his
visit, let me know. I'm going to
go get ready to greet our guest." She
figured she’d do her best to keep the two men separated as much as
possible.
Dom
nodded. The next few days could
get rather dicey.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
September
15, 2006
Karina’s
Apartment
New York City
,
NY
Sam
arrived at the apartment to find his suitcase already packed.
He figured that Karina had taken care of it knowing she would be
going to the Ecstasy 91 and then with Laura the later that night.
Since that chore was complete, his almost empty stomach urged him to
seek out nourishment.
Sam
looked through the kitchen, which was basically barer than a church
mouse’s pantry. He found a bag
of rice cakes and a palette of Evian water.
He tried one of the rice cakes. Yuck! Butter flavored
packing peanuts! I think I’ll
order a pizza!
Twenty
minutes later, the pizza deliveryman rang his apartment to be let into the
building. Minutes after that,
Sam could smell the aroma from the pizza wafting towards him and his mouth
started salivating like one of Pavlov’s dogs.
He paid for the delivery and took the still hot box to the kitchen
table. Opening the lid, he
grabbed a large slice and bit into it greedily.
Nothing like fresh
New York
style pizza! He was just
about to take another piece when he started feeling rather queasy and had to
make a quick dash to the bathroom. A
few seconds later and there wasn’t anything left in his stomach.
Thinking
he must have eaten too quickly, he decided that eating slower would be the
solution. He took another piece
and was almost finished when again the queasiness hit him.
Once more, he had to make a quick dash to the bathroom.
It hit him then… his host was magnafluxing with him, at least where
food was concerned. She
wouldn’t eat without purging and wasn’t going to let him do so either!
Sighing deeply as he put the pizza back into the refrigerator, he
went back to the rice cakes. If
she kept those in the apartment, perhaps he could at least eat those.
After forcing down three with the Evian water, he started feeling
queasy again. Feeling it was
best to quit while he was ahead, he put the rice cakes away.
I’m going to starve to death
if this leap goes much past Thursday!
Other than the massage, the day had been a real bust from Sam’s
perspective.
At
11:00 p.m. he again heard the ring from the street level.
It was Laura calling him to come down to the waiting taxi.
Sam turned off all the lights and locked the door on his way out,
taking the carryon with him. They
arrived at JFK with plenty of time to go through the International terminal.
The flight was a ten-hour flight with a connection in
Mexico City
. He was thrilled to find they
had been booked first class. At
least the seats should be comfortable enough to sleep in.
He
and Laura found their seats. The
flight attendant offered them pillows and blankets, which they accepted
gratefully. Snuggling down as
best he could, Sam was soon sleeping.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
February
2, 2008
7:00
pm
Project
Quantum Leap
Stallion’s
Gate NM
Al
had checked back with Sam right about the time the Laura had picked him up. Sam
had looked miserable. However,
Al had Ziggy check the itinerary and explained to Sam that he would be on
the plane for quite some time. Not
really having an opportunity to talk, he told Sam he’d be back later, that
he was going to go relax and then get some shuteye.
He
arrived back at his quarters and had spent a little quality time with Beth.
She was quite happy that Al was a little friskier than normal.
He’d seem a little subdued recently. By the time the two of them
had finished, Al was relaxed and both of them were ready for a good
night’s sleep. If he didn't
know he’d be facing the Beckett Nozzle from Hell the next day, he'd be
happy as a clam.
Al
decided to watch a little late night TV.
The only thing worth watching, in his opinion, was a rerun of
Stargate SG-1. Al had been a fan
of the show since the day it came on, being a Sci-Fi aficionado.
Beth, on the other hand, chose to read a book instead.
When
the show ended, Al told Beth he was going to sleep.
He gave her a kiss and then turned on his side.
She finished her chapter and turned off the light, spooning her
husband as she drifted off to sleep.
The
alarm went off what felt like minutes later to Al. Looking at the clock, he
noticed that he'd been asleep for about five hours.
"Better go check on Sam," he murmured, slipping out of bed.
Turning back, he kissed Beth gently on her temple before going to the
bathroom to take a quick shower. Feeling a little more awake after washing
up, he slipped on his favorite white suit, accenting it with a colorful
multi-striped dress shirt and a bright yellow tie.
A
pair of gold metallic shoes finished the look.
Giving his wife a final glance and a smile, he stepped out of the
bedroom and then into the hallway, making his way towards the elevator. The
cab came in good time and Al stepped in, pressing the appropriate button as
well as sliding in his security card into the access reader.
A
couple of minutes later, the cab doors opened.
"KREE!"
Al's
eyes popped open wide at the sight of none other than Tom Beckett, aiming a
staff weapon at his chest. The younger Admiral was dressed in full
Jaffa
regalia, with a gold United States Navy SEAL emblem on his forehead. Tom
activated his weapon, causing it to open as Al backpedaled into the
elevator.
Al
gasped as he sat up in his bed, panting for a long moment as he forced his
heart to calm down.
"Al,"
cried Beth, concerned at her husband’s sudden gasp, "are you all
right, baby?"
"How
spicy was dinner?" Al asked Beth, looking at her with a hint of
confusion.
"You
barely ate dinner, Al, and it was just pasta with clam sauce."
Al
shook his head. "Can't be from heartburn then," he muttered to
himself.
She
looked at him, apprehensive at his reaction.
"Al? Did you have
another bad dream?"
Al
thought about her question for a moment, wondering how he was going to
explain it when the ridiculousness of the whole dream came to him and he
started laughing. "Oh, it was a doozy."
"What,
Al? You scare me half to death
and then you start laughing? Come
on, spill it."
"I...
umm... I had a dream that I woke up just like any other leap, showered,
dressed, started down and... well, the elevator door opened and..." He
started laughing again. "And Tom... Tom was dressed like one of those
bad guys on Stargate... you know, the ones with the funny gold things on
their forehead... and he was aiming one of those weapons at me." He
looked at Beth with clear amusement. "You know what he said? He said, 'Kree!'"
Beth
looked at her husband, not at all amused.
"You know, Al," she said with frustration "You really
shouldn't watch those shows so late at night if they're going to affect you
like this."
"But...
he said 'Kree!'" Al told her, laughing.
She
looked at him again, shaking her head. "I
never have understood why you like that show so much, Al.
Now go to sleep. You need
your beauty sleep and so do I."
Al
exhaled, shaking his head. "Maybe you're right," he told her as he
settled back into bed. "Maybe I'm just a little too upset about him
being in the complex in later this morning."
She
nodded. "Al, just go to
bed. Tom Beckett is no one to
lose sleep over. Besides, I'm
sure that Julianna will keep him out of your hair."
Al
sighed with contentment. "I'm more worried now about breaking into
laughter if I see him."
Beth's
head came up for a second. "I
don't think that would go over well. Just
think of something..." She seemed at a loss and then finished,
"...unfunny."
Al
chuckled and then gave his wife a kiss before settling back down to get some
sleep.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
September
16, 2006
Flight
2047
New York
to
Mexico City
Seven
hours later the flight attendant was offering a breakfast of scrambled eggs,
toast, and bacon, fresh squeezed OJ, and coffee.
Laura begged off except for the eggs and coffee.
She didn’t want to push it with the carbs or fats.
Surely
she’ll let me eat something! Sam
thought as he accepted the entire meal.
Laura
looked at him and shook her head. “You’ll
be sorry.”
When
the food was served, Sam took his time eating it.
He thought he’d gotten through the meal unscathed when the
queasiness hit him again. Damn!
This just isn’t fair. I’m
keeping this down; I don’t care what she’s trying to tell my brain!
Sam made a valiant effort, but finally, he had to reach for a
barf bag.
Laura
just gave him an ‘I told you so’ look.
The flight attendant took the bag and asked if he’d like a warm
towel to clean up with and a ginger ale.
Sam agreed sheepishly saying, “Must have a stomach bug.”
The flight attendant looked at the thin frame of his aura and just
smiled weakly, obviously not buying it, but in the best customer service
attitude, not stating her mind.
They
made the connecting flight in
Mexico City
and arrived at the Zihuatanejo /
Ixtapa
International
Airport
at 11:30 a.m. Pacific Time. Since
they’d only brought a single carryon each, they didn’t need to wait for
their luggage. A hotel
representative met them at the gate and showed them to a limousine waiting
to whisk them away outside the airport.
After
a ten-minute drive, the car pulled up in front of the Las Brisas Ixtapa,
which, according to Frommer’s was
the most stunning of Ixtapa's hotels. Sam
knew this because Laura had told him so.
They each checked into their Jr. Suites, which boasted a bedroom with
a living room. Laura had
suggested to Sam that they meet in the lobby at 1:00 p.m.
That would give them a few minutes before they’d have to leave for
the shoot at 1:30 p.m. It was to
be held at an island off the coast of
Ixtapa
. When Sam arrived, there were
six other models waiting to leave for the shoot.
They all got back into the limo and drove down to the pier.
The
shooting crew was already there, having shuttled the equipment and outfits
to the
Island
for most of the morning. Each
small boat took four people. They
skimmed along the water, bumping the waves.
Arriving at the on a beach, Sam gazed at the thatched covered
open-air huts. It was absolutely
beautiful, lush and tropical.
As
the models were dressed, to use the word lightly in Sam’s opinion, into
their swimsuits, he got an epiphany regarding the women he had blithely
thought were having fun. While
his reading choices had tended towards more rigorous knowledge based
materials such as scientific journals, Sam had
seen his share of Sports Illustrated’s while visiting his brother or in
doctor’s offices.
He
understood the draw these swimsuit issues held for men.
Some had even compared them to “soft porn” since the photographs
were often seen as fodder for men’s fantasies.
Yet there was additionally a marketing aspect.
These swimsuits had been designed by someone to sell more than sports
oriented magazines. Women would
buy these, a least some part of them wanting to vicariously live what the
models portrayed. They too would
imagine themselves on a beach in
Mexico
, sexy and desirable.
Yet
with all that, he was finding the reality of achieving that “fun in the
sun” attitude to be somewhat different than imagined.
He had often found in his leaping around time that what seemed to be
reality often wasn’t. This
leap was no different.
It
was interesting to him that the area had been set up with tables of food
available for both the camera crew and the models.
The plates had healthy choice items, in small tidbit format, but
still, there was food available. He
noticed that several of the models were partaking of the bounty.
He also noticed that though they tended to be thin, they looked
naturally so. He realized that
the industry itself wasn’t actually forcing the models to starve
themselves. Rather, he
rationalized; it must be how the model fit the industry needs: an individual
decision.
As
the dresser prepared him for the shot, he was amazed that they were actually
using basketball shoe glue spray to hold the suits, especially the seat of
the swimsuits - as if that little bit of cloth could be considered a seat -
in place. No wedgies here!
Sam
was called over to the lush jungle area that edged the beach.
The photographer checked his notes.
“Okay, Karina, I need you in the surf projecting the idea that
you’d like nothing better than have your favorite guy with you.”
Sam
suddenly recalled another leap where he’d been on the other side of the
camera. He recalled having leapt
in to Carl Granson, a high fashion photographer in the 1960’s.
With that memory came one of the sweet farm girl, Edie.
He hoped she’d had a good life, realizing suddenly that he’d seen
her 41 years before. She was
probably a grandmother by now.
Now,
though, he was the one who had to work the shot, to give the photographer
something to shoot. He knew lots
of film would be used for relatively few chosen shots.
Sam had never been one to mug for the cameras.
He certainly was not one to exude sexual innuendo from every pore,
although Al had commented on how the ladies really seemed to be drawn to
him. Yet, this was exactly what
he was being called upon to do.
The
Imaging Chamber door opened and Al walked into his world wearing a Hawaiian
Shirt, Bermuda shorts, and sandals. “Sam,
this is a nice spot. Beth and I
sure need a vacation. Maybe we
should come here!”
"Al!
Where the hell have you been?" hissed Sam.
He wasn't happy and he felt his best buddy should share his angst,
which didn't seem likely based on Al cheerful attire.
"I
told you," Al replied with a smile. "I was getting a much needed
rest." He looked over his friend and his smile disappeared.
"Sam... I don't think you wear a bikini well. Too many muscles."
"Yeah.
I'd tend to concur. I
can't believe I'm supposed to model this damned thing.
Why couldn't I have just been leapt into Thursday to begin with?!”
Al's
grin returned with Sam's discomfort. "Well, maybe Karina didn't do as
well with the shoots," he replied. He looked at the bikini again.
"Mind you, though. If that bikini were on Beth..."
"Al...
look at this!” Sam told him, holding up the thong of the bikini and
showing him the backside. “Can you read that?! The butt says
'juicy'!"
"Ah,
but Karina's butt is really juicy,
Sam!"
"What
the hell does ‘juicy’ have to do with someone's buttocks?"
"Umm....
don't ask. You wouldn't get it anyway."
"What's
that supposed to mean?"
"Sam...
if you don't know what a juicy butt is... I'm afraid there isn't any help
for you. Now, Beth... she has a
juicy butt!"
"That's
too much information, Al."
Al
looked at Sam with wide eyes and was about to say something when the
photographer pressed into the conversation.
"Karina, are you ready?"
Sam
looked like he was about to be sick. "Um...
yeah, I guess."
"Karina,
baby. You don't sound too
enthusiastic about this."
"Well,
you know, it's just that..."
Al
rolled his eyes. "Sam, remember... high fashion. That means you love
this job."
Sam
glared at Al but turned to his photographer who he'd been told was
Jean-Claude Marseille and smiled. "You
know I love this job,
Jean-Claude."
Jean-Claude
looked at Karina critically. He
was using a Swedish Haselblad Two and quarter large format camera for the
shot. "Darling, I need you
in the surf. Show me some shine,
baby."
Al
motioned to the ocean. "Go on," he told Sam. "Get into the
surf. Show him the goods."
Sam
lay down at the edge of the water, grinning weakly.
"What position do you want me in?" he asked Jean-Claude.
"Baby,
I want you making love to the ocean, thinking about your love that sees you
lying there ripe for the taking."
Sam
rolled his eyes. "He's got
to be kidding!" he whispered with a hiss to Al.
"Lounge,
Sam," Al instructed. "Look at the camera as if... it were your
lover." Gaining a look from Sam, he sighed. "It's not that hard,
Sam. Just... mimic me." He carefully got on the Imaging Chamber floor
and struck a pose.
Sam
started laughing. "That has
to be the silliest pose I've ever seen you make, Al!"
Jean-Claude
was not amused. "Karina,
would you please get into the mood?"
Sam
stopped laughing, but was still having a time keeping his composure.
He tried to strike the pose that Al had made and ended up looking
stiff and definitely un-alluring.
Now
it was Al's turn to laugh. "Sam,
you look like you've just thrown out your back and are in need of a
chiropractor."
"Well,
what do you suggest? I don't
know how to do this!"
Jean-Claude
was getting frustrated. "Karina,
baby. Move a little.
Frolic. Give me some
attitude. You're hot and
you’re sexy. You need to show
that to me, baby."
"Okay...
um..." Al thought quickly. "Lean forward just a little bit and
pout."
Sam's
did his utmost to comply with Al's request.
When he saw Jean-Claude's face, though, he realized his wasn't making
the grade. Frustrated he threw
up his hands. "I can't do
this. I just can't!"
Jean-Claude
came over to her. "Karina,
darling. What's wrong?
You've never had a problem before.
You look marvelous! You
can do this sweetheart; I know it's in you."
"Sam,
you've got to!" Al exclaimed.
Exhaling again, he raised the handlink and centered nearer to Sam.
"Okay, now listen. It may look ridiculous on a guy but on a woman...
it's hot. Do this." Al opened his mouth just a little, tucked his head
and raised one eyebrow. "Pretend you're... Marcia Brady."
“Marcia
Brady?" Sam questioned. It
took a moment, but somehow the memory of the show was in his mind, which was
a bit disconcerting. He
couldn’t remember quantum physics but he could remember a sitcom from the
sixties. Thinking of the oldest
girl, he complied with Al’s suggestion.
"Who
is this Marcia Brady?" Jean-Claude asked.
Seeing Karina posing with a look that was, as he saw it, hot and
innocent at the same time, he ran back to his camera.
"Fabulous, darling. Keep
doing that."
Sam
continued to play with the pictures that came to mind from the Brady Bunch,
although he couldn't understand why those poses would be so exciting to
anyone.
"Perfect,
Sam!" Al exclaimed as he watched. "You know you're hot and you
want the entire world to know you're hot!"
"Fabulous,
baby... roll a little on the sand."
Jean Claude had switched to his 35 mm now.
He took some more pictures and then told Sam, "Okay, now get
into your next suit."
Sam
picked himself up and walked back to where the dressers were waiting.
"What the hell was that all about, Al?
The Brady Bunch is sexy?"
Al
shrugged slightly. "You know… it’s the ‘I'm gorgeous and I know
it’ attitude."
Sam
smiled weakly, "I never really thought that about Marcia, Al.
I mean I was 16 when the show first came on.
I just thought she was a nice girl."
"Cindy
was the nice girl, Sam," Al told him with a shake of his head.
"Marcia had a queen bee mentality."
"Al,
she was just pretty, you know, with the long hair and all.
I think I had a crush on her. But
I never thought of her as sexy."
Al
shook his head. "You don't get it. It's not about being sexy. It's
about thinking that you're
sexy."
"Um.
Okay." He arrived at
the dressers and had the suit pulled off of him.
At this point, he was rather glad that the wax job had been done.
Otherwise the basketball shoe glue would be even more of an issue for
him.
Sam
spent the next few hours being dressed in a variety of swimsuits and being
posed at multiple settings. Al
coached him through each and every scene.
Still, he found by the end of the shoot, he had a headache.
He couldn't say the day had been fun, but he could attest to the fact
that it was incredibly tiring.
After
the shoot was over, the group went back to the boats.
Traveling to the mainland was rather magical as they were watching
the sunset the entire way back. The
sky took on a beautiful orange glow as the sun slowly made its way down and
allowed the ocean to swallow it whole.
The
man in charge of the shoot indicated that the magazine would be providing
dinner at 8 p.m. at the Villa de la Selva, which was located in the former
villa of a Mexican President. They
all went back to the hotel, cleaned up, and took the limos to the
restaurant. Even though the
place was well known for the wonderful seafood, Sam only ordered soup and
the salad, which he realized was probably all he’d be allowed to keep
down. He noticed most, but not
all, of the other models so too, although the camera crew in general seemed
to be enjoying themselves immensely.
After
dinner, Laura and several of the other models wanted to go out to Carlos and
Charlie’s for some dancing. Sam
begged off. The last thing he
wanted to do was party tonight. With
the meager fare he’d eaten, even a light beer would be too much!
Al
had stayed with Sam the entire day. He
now indicated he’d be leaving. He
wished his time traveling buddy a good night and headed out after bringing
up the door with a few deft manipulations of his fingers upon the handlink.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
February
3, 2008
6:00
p.m.
Project
Quantum Leap
Stallion’s
Gate, NM
Al
stepped out of the Imaging Chamber. Seeing
Dom, he asked if Admiral Beckett had arrived.
The head programmer nodded indicating that he’d been there for the
past eight hours and that he’d arrived just slightly after Al had entered
Sam’s world earlier that day. Dom
asked how the physicist was and when Al indicated he was tired and hungry,
he nodded.
Al
asked where Julianna and Tom were. He
was told that Julianna had taken Tom into Socorro for dinner.
Al smiled. His daughter
had bought him a little time. He
knew that she wasn’t happy with the relationship between the two men.
Al wished in his heart that things could be different, but as long at
the man choose to act like a nozzle, what other choice did he have?
He
headed back to his quarters to spend another nice evening with his wife.
As he walked back he chuckled at they way Sam had looked today.
Sam might look fine as a manly type, but he could never be considered
really feminine. He had way too
much hair and muscles to pull that off.
Seeing his buddy in those swimsuits had to be one of the funniest
things Al had ever witnessed on a leap.
He
stepped into the quarters he shared with Beth.
“Honey, I’m home!” he called.
His lips turned up when he found her in the kitchen making Fettuccine
Alfredo. He figured she didn’t
want a repeat of the previous night’s dream.
To be continued…
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