God Rest You Merry Gentlemen

By: QLTales (ASearcher & Dulcinea1969)

Authors’ Note: This story does not take place in the same “universe” established in the other stories authored by QLTales.

Chapter 1

It was a brisk morning as Al drove up to the complex where Sam lived. As he had the last two mornings, he was giving his newest friend a ride to the lab since the kid’s car was in the shop - again.

As he parked his car in front of the building, he looked around and frowned. Sam lived on the outskirts of town and there was no denying it was the low-rent district. It was rare that Sam would invite him over and he always got the idea the kid was more than a little embarrassed by where he was living.

Personally, Al hated the apartment building where his friend lived. It wasn’t that he found it offensive to come to Sam’s apartment or that he was “slumming it”. He just felt Sam deserved so much better than this.

As he got out of the car and took the stairs up to Sam’s apartment, he let his mind wander back over the last several months and his first meeting with Sam. He’d been drunk...again...and had taken a hammer to a vending machine when it ate his dime but didn’t give him his M&M’s. He’d been ready to nail the offending machine for a fourth time when his downward swing had been intercepted by a young man who mildly pointed out that the bag of M&M’s had fallen free.

That was his first meeting with one Dr. Samuel Beckett despite the fact that he’d been the one to hire him. When an opening for another quantum physicist on staff had come up, Al had been too lazy to do any of the legwork to hire someone. He attributed that to the bottle too. He’d contacted the alumni office at MIT and they, in turn, had pointed him to one of his old professors, Dr. Sigmund LoNigro. After talking about old times for a bit, the academic had recommended Sam Beckett. He sent out an offer letter to him the next day - sight unseen. Had he spent more of his time sober and thought about what he was doing, he would have realized just how idiotic that plan was and would have questioned the fact that the offer was accepted so quickly - also sight unseen. Hiring Sam was probably the only good thing that ever came out of his near-constant inebriated state.

Two weeks after the first inauspicious meeting, when the project director and the oversight committee wanted him removed from the StarBright project due to the growing problem of his drinking and the drop in his performance, it had been Sam who’d come forward putting his own career and reputation on the line to save his job. Not only that, but the kid had made him his pet project pushing at him to clean up his act and get sober. It was because of Sam that he hadn’t touched a drop of alcohol in the last month and half and was living it one day at a time.

He knocked on the door to Sam’s apartment and waited to be let in. When Sam pulled the door open he already had his coat on. “Geez, you’re in a hurry to get going. I’m not that late,” Al joked as he walked into the apartment. As he did, he noticed how chilly it seemed even though he was inside.

“No, I’m not ready,” Sam replied as he shut the door behind his friend. “I still need to eat breakfast.”

Al turned to eye his friend, again noting that he had his coat on. “So what’s with the coat, then?” He rubbed his hands together. “You trying to save money by turning the heat off? I thought it was included in your rent.”

“It is but when I got home last night, it wasn’t working. Mr. Duff says he can’t get it fixed until after Christmas.”

“Christmas! That’s going to be at least another 4 days!” Al noticed that Sam’s hair was damp and guessed, despite the lack of heat, that he’d taken a shower that morning. “You must have frozen your butt off getting out of the shower.”

“There’s no hot water, either,” Sam explained from the kitchen area of the small apartment. He was pouring cereal into a bowl. “It’s something with the gas so no heat, no hot water, and no stove.”

“So you took a cold shower in an apartment with no heat?” The older man was aghast at the prospect.

“No. I walked over to the Y and took a shower there,” Sam stated as if it were the most natural response.

“You walked....Sam, that has to be at least a mile and half that you walked both ways! What the hell time did you get up this morning?”

Sam shrugged in response, “I don’t know? Maybe around five thirty or so.”

Al shook his head slightly at Sam’s answer. Somehow, it didn’t surprise him that the younger man would get up that early just so he could walk over to the Y and not bother anyone. “What are you doing even staying here? Your landlord should be paying for a hotel room for you.”

“I guess,” Sam agreed noncommittally. “But he’s not and I can’t afford one right now.” He looked around the small apartment not for the first time embarrassed that Al was seeing it. “It wasn’t so bad. I put a couple extra blankets on my bed last night.

“Not so bad,” Al echoed softly. Louder, he continued, “You shouldn’t even be here, Sam. I keep telling you, you gotta get a better place.”

Sam grabbed the milk from the fridge and came back over to the table. “It’s fine here,” he answered quickly going on the defensive. “I can save money since the rent’s not that high.”

“Kid, what do you need to save money for that you’d live like this?”

“My own home,” came the soft response. Sam opened the carton of milk and started to pour it over the cereal but stopped when the smell caught his attention. He put the carton to his nose, sniffed it then slammed it on the table near the bowl and sank into the closest chair. “Darn it, the milk’s bad.” He took a deep breath and buried his face in his hands. “Nothing’s going right this morning. Nothing.”

Al watched the man who, from the moment he’d met him, seemed to have the ability to handle anything thrown at him - even taking on things that most would not - reach a point he understood. He owed the kid. He knew that and seeing him now he quickly decided what had to be done. “Go pack a bag,” he ordered. “You’re staying with me until they get your heat fixed.” When Sam looked like he was going to balk, Al called on his best admiral’s voice and ordered, “Move it, Mister.” The tone of voice caught the younger man by surprise and he quickly moved to comply.

“You don’t have to do this,” Sam said in the same soft voice when he came back from the small bedroom carrying a duffel bag. “I’ll be ok ‘til they get everything fixed. Really.”

“No. You shouldn’t have to go through this,” Al said from the sink where he’d poured the offensive milk down the drain before throwing the cereal in the trash. “Besides, I have the room.”

“If you’re sure.” Sam dropped the bag down on the couch and moved to the kitchen area. “Just let me see if I can find something I can eat. I think I have some bread I can make toast with.”

“We don’t have time, Sam,” Al said looking at his watch. “Remember you have that meeting with Ron Maxwell?” He took the bag. “Come on. We can pick something up on the way in.”

“Darn it! I forgot about the meeting.” Sam went running back into the bedroom and came out with a pile of folders. “I’m not ready for it. I was gonna go over this stuff when I got home last night but then the heat was out and I had to call Mr. Duff then my mom called and...and...I guess I just forgot.” He hung his head shaking it slightly. “I blow this meeting and Dr. Stevens might be washing me out.”

“You’re not going to blow the meeting, kid. We can go over the data on the way to the lab.” Smiling, he added, “If your memory is as good on this as it was on the electronics schematics, you’ll be in like Flint.” Al started to exit the apartment. “Let’s go.”

“Hang on a second,” Sam called as Al walked out the door. He found a shopping bag near the refrigerator and put the small pile of Christmas gifts that were on the end table into it. “If I’m staying with you ‘til the heat’s fixed, I guess I should bring these with me.” The half-dozen or so Christmas cards he’d taped to the refrigerator he pulled off and put in the bag as well.

Al tilted his head but said nothing. “Ok. We do need to get a move on though.”

“Yeah, I know.” Sam gave one more look around the room then joined Al where he stood by the front door. “Let’s get going.”

Al nodded and started down the stairs moving quickly. Once he got to the bottom he went over to the black Trans Am that was parked in the visitor parking space and threw the bag in the back. Getting in to the driver’s side, he started the car up. The engine raced a bit as he waited for Sam to get in.

Sam put the shopping bag in the back with his overnight bag and got in the car next to Al. He flipped open the first folder and started rapidly reading the information. “Not gonna have enough time,” he muttered glancing quickly at his watch.

“I bet you do fine, Sam,” Al commented as he pulled out of the parking lot and onto the road. Seeing a McDonald’s, he pulled into the drive thru. “You want an Egg McMuffin with bacon or sausage?”

Sam, caught up in reviewing the files, barely heard what Al asked him. “Yeah, that’s good,” he answered absent-mindedly.

“I guess you want a cup of motor oil with that as well?” Al asked, figuring that question would tell him whether Sam was even hearing him.

Hearing the word ‘cup’, Sam assumed Al must be asking him about coffee. “Cream and sugar,” he answered flipping the page and going on to the next.

Al laughed aloud but put his hand down on the files. When Sam turned to him with a confused expression on his face, Al repeated, “Bacon or sausage, Sam. And instead of the motor oil, I figure you want coffee.” He pulled up behind the car that was currently giving its order.

“What?” Sam said irritably. He pushed Al’s hand off the file. “I need to read through this. Cut it out.”

“And I need to know...bacon or sausage for the Egg McMuffin,” Al continued calmly. “Once you tell me that, I’ll leave you to Maxwell’s equations.”

Chagrined, Sam realized they were at a drive-thru and the questions Al had been asking him were what he wanted to eat. “Oh, uh, sorry. Bacon’s fine.”

Al nodded and let Sam go back to study. When he had the chance, he pulled up and made the order. A few minutes later he said to Sam. “Ok. Head’s up. Here’s your food,” he said holding the bag for Sam to take.

Sam accepted the bag. As he did, he closed the folder in disgust. “It doesn’t make a difference. I’m never going to get through this all. I’d have to be a machine.” He put the pile of folders on the floor at his feet and opened the bag. “There are two sandwiches in here,” he said in confusion.

“Yeah, one of those is mine,” Al said turning back to the clerk and retrieving their coffees. “There should be some sugar and cream in the bag too. Is it there?” As Sam checked, he put the closed coffee cups in the cup holders.

Sam looked in the bag, moving the sandwiches. “Yeah, there’s some in here.” He pulled one of the sandwiches out and handed it to Al. “Are they the same thing?”

Once Al heard that all the expected items were there, he pulled out not taking the sandwich right away. “Yeah. Same.” Once he’d gotten on the road, he took the wrapped sandwich.

After Al had taken his sandwich, Sam unwrapped his and took a bit from it. He couldn’t quite contain the blissful sigh when he did. Although McDonald’s wasn’t exactly his ideal breakfast, it was the first hot thing he’d eaten since the night before. Without any gas in the apartment, he hadn’t been able to cook. Dinner had consisted of a cheese sandwich.

Al heard the sigh from Sam. “You like McDonald’s, Kid? Can’t tell you how many times I’ve eaten these in the last 5 years.” Al took a bite from the sandwich he’d expertly unwrapped while driving.

“Not really,” Sam disagreed. “I’m just happy to eat something hot.” He tried to suppress a shiver but wasn’t very successful. “I think I’m just starting to warm up now.”

Al blinked. “Yeah. I guess it must have been pretty uncomfortable last night and this morning.”

“Um, not really,” Sam quickly denied realizing that, despite what he’d told Al earlier, he’d just let on how miserable it had been in his apartment without heat. He really was grateful that Al was letting him crash at his place until the gas was fixed and heat was restored. He hadn’t been sure how he was going to last. He would have just crashed in his office at the lab but it was going to be closed over the weekend until after Christmas so that hadn’t been an option. Al really was being a lifesaver even if he didn’t know it.

“Ok.” Al heard in Sam’s voice the same type of prideful denial that he knew had been in his own so many times in the past. Sometimes, it was best to not push too hard. He smiled. “You know, this will be the first time I’ve had a friend over for Christmas in a while.”

“Didn’t you and your....” Sam cut himself off before completing the question. He was going to ask if Al and his ex-wife had ever entertained for the holidays but thought the better of it. Al was going through a divorce right now. There was no sense in rubbing salt in that wound.

Al looked away. “Um, yeah. Well, Maxine wasn’t much for entertaining.” The end of the marriage had not gone well. He wasn’t 100% sure of all the things that had happened since a good number of the fights had occurred while he’d been two or more sheets to the wind. All he knew was one day Maxine had left and he’d figured she’d run off on him as his mother had done to his father. Al had filed papers and Maxine had simply agreed to everything. He was waiting to hear from his lawyer what the final date for signing the papers was and guessed it would be after the first of the year.

“Sorry,” Sam quickly apologized. “I didn’t mean to remind you of anything.”

“It’s ok. It’s just going to take awhile to get used to.” Al changed the subject. “So, what’s the latest on getting your car fixed?”

“After Christmas just like the heat.” Sam finished his sandwich, balled the wrapper up, and put it into the bag. He took his cup of coffee out of the cup holder, doctored it with cream and sugar, and sipped at it. “Seems to be the story of my life lately. Everything has to wait until after Christmas.”

“Yeah,” Al said noncommittally. He finished his sandwich as well but left the coffee until they arrived at the lab. “You sure you have a good mechanic? Your car seems to break down a lot. Maybe he’s not fixing it right.”

“He’s doing the best he can. It’s not his fault if the car’s old.” To himself, Sam added that the car was more on the lines of ancient than old. When he’d arrived in New Mexico for this new job, he hadn’t had much ready cash to his name but he’d needed a vehicle to get around. It wasn’t like being back in Cambridge and Boston where he could get on the bus or subway to get where he needed. Consequently, he hadn’t been able to get a very new vehicle. The one he did get was prone to breaking down. Sometimes he wondered if he wouldn’t have been better of putting himself into debt to get something a little newer that would have had less likelihood of breaking down so often.

Al had seen Sam’s car and knew it had seen better days. After the conversation today, he wondered if the reason Sam was driving the clunker was related to his desire to buy his own home as well. “Well, with as much as you have it in the shop, you can’t be saving much.” They had arrived at their destination and Al pulled into a parking space.

“You think I haven’t figured that out,” Sam snapped. He was acutely aware of how much of his savings he’d be paying out this time to repair the car. “What do you want me to do? I can’t very well give it up and just walk everywhere.” He leaned down and grabbed the pile of file folders from the floor. As ill-prepared for the morning meeting as he was, it may all just be a moot point if he found himself on the unemployment line by the end of the day. He got out of the car, slamming the door behind him. “I’m doing the best I can,” he told Al looking at him over the car.

Al had never seen the young man like this. Granted, he hadn’t known him long but the time they spent with Sam helping him to get off the bottle had given him what he’d felt was an insight into who the kid was. He’d thought at that point the younger man must be some sort of a saint or something. Now, he realized he hadn’t given the man credit for being human. He nodded. “Yeah. I know you’re doing your best, Kid.” This wasn’t some perfect person. It seemed the kid could get flustered and if that was the case, he and Sam were on equal footing. Somehow, it made him feel a little better.

Sam drew a deep breath and slowly let it out. The day hadn’t gotten off to a good start but that didn’t mean it was Al’s fault. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to yell at you.” He looked around the parking lot not meeting his friend’s eyes. “It’s just...I guess it’s the time of year or something and everything just seems to be going wrong today.”

“Yeah. I’d say you had it in spades,” Al commiserated. He nodded to the door. “Maybe the rest of the day will start to go better.” As they walked towards the portal, Al finished. “I’ll meet you in the lobby at five.” With that he aimed himself toward his office turning back once to see Sam moving quickly towards the conference room. He continued down the hall, carrying his coffee.

Sam arrived at the conference room and was surprised to find it empty, except for the admin, Maria Reynolds, who was cleaning the table. When he asked where the others were, he was told that Ron Maxwell had called in sick with the flu and the meeting had been postponed until after Christmas, assuming Ron was better by then. Sam again let out a sigh of relief that he’d dodged the bullet that being unprepared might have been. Maria looked at him strangely and he asked her to convey his hopes that Ron would get well soon. He then went back to the lab where he was working on a new laser system feeling somehow guilty that another’s misfortune had been the basis for the only good news he’d had in the past 24 hours.