Her Father's Daughter
One Shot
Jessica Cooper stepped off the bus at the Pasadena Depot, and while still looking at a picture of her Mother, she continued to wipe tears away. Nothing about this was right to her. She didn't even know her Father and her Grandparents had been taken the same night as her Mother. When Amy's illness suddenly took her, her parents rushed to the hospital and were in a freak accident. There was nothing anyone could do by the time they arrived at the hospital. So here Jessica stood at what was to be her new life, with the memories of the only family she ever knew, still so fresh in her mind.
"What am I going to do? I'm only 14. I can't get a job, or live on my own yet. I'd love to but, what if he doesn't like me? What if I don't like him? I don't even know where to go. Mama, I can't believe you're really gone. Grandma and Grandpa are too. What do I do now?" Jessica says to herself. She hears a voice behind her saying, "Are you Jessica? Hi. I'm Penny. I've been waiting to meet you. I've been looking forward to this all week."
"I'm Jessi. That's what everyone calls me. This note says I'm to be looking for someone in a red shirt, blonde hair, cut off shorts, and New Balance tennis shoes. You fit the description. You must be the one that's taking me to meet Sheldon. I mean, my Dad." Jessica tells her.
"I am. I'm your Aunt Penny. Your Uncle Leonard and I didn't know what you like to eat and we figure that bus food just sucks. He gave me $200.00 today for us to go and get some lunch, and take you shopping. You wanna meet your Dad for the first time in a brand new outfit right?" Penny asks her. She nods her head yes, and then just breaks down and cries. She reaches out for Penny and tells her, "I wanna meet Dad but, at the same time, I just wanna go back home. I want my Mama. That's all I want, I only want my Mom. Why her? God shouldn't have taken her. Not this way. Not this soon. I'm Jewish and I believe strongly in God and love him, I'm just upset with him is all. My Grandpa was Messianic when he met and married Grandma who was a reform Jew so, Mom told me when I was old enough, I could choose. I chose Messianic. The one that believes in and loves both God and Jesus."
"That makes sense. And I know, in my heart of hearts that God and Jesus both, understand your anger with them right now. They know you still love them. And, as sure as we're standing here in the parking lot gathering dust, your Mama, and your Grandma and Grandpa, are up there living it up with God and Jesus right now. They're looking down on you with pride and love. They're your guardian angels. Before we both start up crying, let's go get that burger. Or whatever, you want that is." Penny replies, and she's wiping tears at this point. Amy was her best friend after all, and no one really knew about Jessica. Amy and Sheldon had broke up just three weeks before Amy found out she was pregnant. Knowing how Sheldon is with not liking change, she figured it was best to keep her mouth shut.
Two hours later, Sheldon's looking out the window and at his watch, wondering where Penny could be with Jessica.
"They're not going to get here any faster with you watching for them." Leonard says from the chair, and not even looking up from his notes for the following day.
"I know. I just wish I knew the reason Amy never told me about her. I wouldn't have jumped all over her. I'm just as much at fault as she was and that little girl, had no so in the matter. I'm all she's got now and I'll do anything I can for her. I just hope she doesn't hate me. You know what's funny Leonard?" Sheldon says. Leonard finally lays his notes down.
"What's that buddy?" Leonard replies.
"I love her already. I've not met the girl yet and I love her already." Sheldon tells him.
"That's not funny at all. It's the same thing as when Penny was carrying Trinity. She and I loved her the minute we found out about her. It's never too early, or too late to start loving someone. You'll be just fine. I'm gonna make some coffee. You want some? I know you drink it now." Leonard says.
"Yeah. Sure, thanks. I'll drink a cup or two." Sheldon replies. He turns away from the window about the time Penny pulls up with Jessica. She honks the horn, making Sheldon run back to the window. When he looks out, he sees Amy's mini me, standing there. He puts his hand over his mouth and almost cries.
"She's beautiful. Leonard, look at my baby. She's so tall. She must get that from me. Take me to her." Sheldon says.
"Just wait for Penny to get her up the drive. Looks like she's got a lot of stuff. We'd better go help them out." Leonard replies.
"Hey, welcome back. You must be Jessica. I'm your Uncle Leonard. It's great to finally meet you. I just wish it could be under different circumstances." Leonard says while hugging Penny, and he offers a hug to Jessica.
"Hi. I'm Jessi. Everyone back home called me that for short. Nice to meet you too. When do I get to meet Uncle Howard, Aunt Bernadette, Uncle Rajesh and Aunt Emily?" Jessica asks.
"Unfortunately honey, Howard and Bernadette divorced a few years back, and he got custody of Halley and Debbie, and then Raj and Emily had to move back to India when he lost his Dad. But, I know that Howard and Bernadette still claim you, and we claim them as family." Sheldon says. As soon as Jessica heard his voice, she turned to face him, and instantly broke down again. She runs to him where he scoops her up in his arms, and even though she is fourteen, she throws her arms around his neck, and wraps her legs around his waist like a child who got hurt on the playground.
Two weeks later, Jessica's finally adapting pretty well and when her Dad comes back from work one evening, he finds her asleep in his spot on the couch, with all of his work on the marker boards, completely finished.
"What in the name of Stephen Hawking did she do? My math is done, the formulas are worked out, she's got this thing absolutely completed right down to the equation of dark matter." Sheldon says to himself while double checking over everything. He lets her sleep for a few minutes while he works on supper, thanks to Bernadette coming over twice a week and teaching him how to cook something other than grilled cheese and soup. Then Raj got a hold of him before he moved back to India and introduced him to different spices and herbs.
"What are you fixing in here? It smells great." Jessica says, while coming into the kitchen.
"Oh hey, I'm glad you're awake. I didn't know what you'd like tonight and I am tired from work today. Didn't wanna cook anything too fancy. How about just hamburger helper beef pasta, carrots, corn, mashed potatoes, and cottage cheese?" Sheldon replies. Jessica rubs her eyes and asks, "With a meal that big, are we going to the electric chair after supper? Dad, I'm kidding. Hey, what time is Grandma Cooper and Uncle Georgie supposed to be here? They're bringing Aunt Missy too aren't they? And her son?" Sheldon just nods his head and says, "They're actually running late. I better call them. Here, stir the gravy for the potatoes, and start on the other vegetables. The butter's on the counter over there." He goes and gets his phone to call everyone while Jessica takes over with supper, and just about the time he gets a hold of his Mom, there's a knock at the door.
"Sorry we're running behing. Georgie had a phone call from his girlfriend and she broke it off with him. We made it though. Is that, my Grand Daughter? Oh, Shelly. She looks so much like Amy. How is she doing?" Mary tells him while they all go inside and sit down.
"It's only been around a month since Amy, and her parents passed but, Jessi seems to be doing as good as she can be. She and I talk every night about the crazy schemes that her Mother and I pulled, and the things we used to do like zoo trips and everything. She's a tough kid." Sheldon replies when Jessica gets burned on the stove.
"Grandma? Will you sing soft kitty to me like you used to do for Dad when he was little? Please?" Jessica asks.
"She is definitely her Father's Daughter ain't she?" Missy says while Sheldon gets the aloe vera gel on her hand and Mary sings to her. Georgie and Missy take some time to get to know their niece, while she gets spoiled by her Grandma Cooper. Sheldon just stands back and smiles. He really wishes he could have gotten the chance to see Jessica when she was little but, it's like Leonard told him, it's never too early or too late to love.
The End
