The chosen story with a surprising wake up ending was Ann's strange tale.
Next month "futile"
Ann's story
“I’m home Sam”, Adele called as she and the children came in the front door, but there was no answering welcome. Thinking Sam may have gone out while she was shopping and collecting Kelly and Noah from school, she started unpacking and putting things away. It was Kelly who found the envelope with Adele’s name on the front propped up against a vase on the sideboard. Tearing it open she read it with a look of utter disbelief on her face – “Darling Adele, I don’t know how to explain this, but I have found my calling and am going now to pursue it. Please don’t try and find me. I love you all dearly, but this is something I need to do. I will always be thinking of you and wish you all the best in everything. Your ever-loving Sam.” Having read and reread it several times, she went to the bedroom to see if there were any clues there. Everything appeared to be there – no clothes seemed to have gone and his passport was in the drawer along with his bankcards. When she went back downstairs she looked in the alcove under the stairs where they kept the computer and everything was packed up neatly, along with Sam’s laptop. The only thing she could see missing was a family portrait they had had done last Christmas for the grandparents. Frantic with worry she phoned her brother who came over with his wife. David said they should contact the police and show them the letter, but Adele felt they wouldn’t take it seriously. She decided to call his office and see what she could find out. Sam had been on a couple of days off, but they may be able to shed some light on his mental state. Things got even worse when she spoke to his manager. Sam had resigned three months ago saying he had got another position. What other things had been happening that she had no idea about. He had been going out every day as if nothing had happened. She thought she had a happy, loving marriage with two gorgeous children now it had been blown apart. They had met at school and always knew they would end up together. They married when they were twenty and twenty-one and Kelly arrived three years later. Noah came along two years after that. Now at thirty her life was falling to pieces. What was she going to tell the children? How could she explain that the daddy they adored and had thought adored them had suddenly walked away with no real explanation? In the end she and David went to the police taking the letter while his wife took the children to the park.
The police did take the situation seriously and made many enquiries regarding his financial status and health issues. Nothing untoward was uncovered and appeals were made around the country - even Interpol became involved. There were several sightings reported in far-flung places, but they all proved to be false. As time went on Sam’s name melted into obscurity and the general public forgot him. Adele and her family never gave up hope though and always believed he would return eventually. Life went on. The children grew up having done well at school and both got jobs they enjoyed and were good at. In time they both married and Kelly had a daughter who went on to make Kelly a grandmother and Adele a great grandmother. Noah had a son who went into the army. Adele never married again saying that no one could ever replace Sam, but enjoyed her role as regular babysitter for them all. When she was in her late seventies she had a slight stroke which she recovered from, but which left her with a limp. Complications set in and she found life difficult on her own, so moved in with Kelly. One day a young stranger in his early thirties turned up at the door. He asked to see Adele and said that she must be Kelly. She thought he seemed vaguely familiar, but just couldn’t place him. However when Adele saw him she gasped and said he was the spitting image of Sam when she last saw him nearly fifty years ago.
“I am Sam” he replied. “I’ve been helping with research in another universe with my space friends all these years, but I’ve been keeping up to date with you all. I know Kelly has a daughter and granddaughter and Noah a son who has become a soldier. I was visited by these beings who chose me to go with them to help in their research into cell regeneration. I’ve never stopped thinking about you all, but there was no way I could explain what had happened and if there had been, you would never have believed me. I knew I had to come and see you all again before it was too late. There was a price to pay though. I will never be able to go back and in the morning I will have aged as you all have, so I can grow old with you.” When morning came granddad Sam was there to meet his granddaughter and her new baby in person.
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