Just a one off, idea came into my head last night and I had to get it written out.

Disclaimer: Not my characters, they belong to someone else.

The sound of the sneeze was almost deafening.

"Achoo." Sheldon repeated.

Amy, who was driving looked over at Sheldon briefly. "Sheldon, are you coming down with a cold?"

"Achoo." He replied, he blew his nose and looked at Amy. "It certainly feels like it, I have a sore throat too and my ears are blocked. Drat."

"Well we better get you home and tucked up in bed." She safely turned the car back towards 2311 N. Los Robles.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm taking you home."

"But what about the concert?" Sheldon cried out. "I've waited three months to see the Doctor Who concert. Doctor Who and Amy Pond will be there."

Amy shot another quick look at her protesting boyfriend and executed another safe U-turn. "Very well, but you really should be at home in bed."

"Amy you are a nervous nelly, I'm getting a cold not the bubonic plague."

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The following evening Amy made her way to 4A to see if Sheldon was feeling any better. After the concert last night she took him home and insisted that he go straight to bed, she briefly spoke to him this morning and he said that he was well enough to go to work. Amy had had a very busy day, it was her day to work with the latest batch of interns and she was exhausted, all she really wanted to do was to go home and settle into bed with a good book, but Amy was also a concerned girlfriend, so she pulled over and parked her car and entered 2311 N Los Robles to begin the walk up the stairs.

Leonard answered the door. "Oh hi Amy, I bet Penny will be glad to see you."

Amy looked at Leonard quizzically. "Why?" She took off her bag and placed it on the floor next to the sofa. She didn't sight Sheldon at all.

"Sheldon's sick." Leonard replied.

"I know I saw him last night and spoke with him this morning. He said he was going to work. Why would Penny be especially glad to see me?"

Leonard sat in his chair. "Because Sheldon had to come home, his cold is much worse, and Penny has had to play nursemaid ever since. I am sure she will be just about ready to hand over the responsibilities."

"Why didn't she hand them over to you?"

"Sheldon didn't want me, he wanted Penny." Leonard shrugged his shoulders.

Amy felt a twinge of jealously. "He wanted Penny, but I'm here now so." She didn't get a chance to finish as Penny walked from the hallway into the living room. "Hi bestie, how's the patient?"

Penny looked at Amy and smiled. "Being Sheldon."

"I might just go in and check he is ok." Amy started to walk towards Sheldon's bedroom but Penny called out.

"Amy don't, he's finally fallen to sleep."

"I'll be quiet." Amy whispered perhaps to illustrate how quiet she was going to be.

"Please Amy, he's only just gotten to sleep."

Amy stood still deciding whether to let sleeping Sheldon's lie or just go ahead into that room, she decided to let him sleep.

"So Penny have you been with him all day?"

Penny flopped down on the sofa. "He rang me at work about 2ish asking what time I was going to be home. Lucky me I was just finishing my shift. So I've been with him since about 3ish. Only now just got him to sleep, think he will be out for the rest of the night now."

Amy walked back into the living room. "Oh Ok, well I'll be around first thing in the morning. Leonard will you be home or do you have paintball?"

"No I cancelled paintball; I mean if Sheldon's not well, he's the captain of the team."

Amy stood and looked at Penny and Leonard, she had nothing else to add to the conversation. "Well goodnight, if I'm not needed here."

Penny looked up at Amy and shook her head. "No you go home Amy, Sheldon is fine."

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At exactly 8.00 am Saturday morning Amy found herself once more at the door of apartment 4A. Leonard answered once more, but this time he was dressed in his red dressing gown and socks.

"Amy, good morning." He let her into the apartment. "Sheldon is feeling a little better today; Penny is in with him now."

"At 8.00am? Isn't this a little early for her?"

Leonard poured himself a cup of coffee. "Sheldon called out of her about 30 minutes ago, I risked life and limb waking her."

"That's very brave of you, but you should have told him that I was coming over."

"Oh I did." Leonard sat at his computer.

"And what did he say?"

"He wanted Penny."

"Oh." Amy sat on the sofa a little dumbstruck.

Leonard took a sip of his drink turned to face Amy and realised that she was upset; he walked over to the sofa and sat next to her. "Amy you know Sheldon, once he gets used to something being a certain way he doesn't like it to change, well for years Penny has helped Sheldon though his illnesses."

"But I'm his girlfriend."

"I know, but its Sheldon."

Amy stood up and walked towards Sheldon's room, she felt slight apprehension as to exactly what she would encounter so she opened the door to just pop her head in slightly. Sheldon was lying in bed, eyes closed Penny was rubbing his chest with vaporub and singing Soft Kitty. Penny realised that Sheldon had fallen to sleep and then she did something that Amy was not expecting, after placing the vaporub on the nightstand she then stood up, leaned over and kissed Sheldon on the cheek. "Sweet dreams honey."

Amy grabbed her bag and left 4A she was angry and hurt, Sheldon Cooper was her boyfriend, the tears released just as she got to her car, Amy had never felt this pain before like her heart was aching, she eased the car away from the curb and drove towards Glendale.

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Amy ignored the numerous calls from Penny and the SMS's she was sending too, but she couldn't ignore the knocking on her apartment door.

Amy opened the door to see Penny standing outside of it. "Amy, are you angry with me?"

Amy walked away from the door not saying a word, Penny followed closing in behind her. "You are? Why?"

"Sheldon's my boyfriend."

"I know." Penny answered still not understanding why Amy was upset with her.

"Penny I saw you this morning, rubbing Sheldon's chest, singing him some song about cats and then," Amy took a deep breath. "then you kissed him."

Penny sat down, now they were on the same page. "Sweetie, I was just looking after him."

"That's my job; it says so in the relationship agreement."

"Well then you better remind Sheldon about that." Penny looked at her friend she could see that she was hurting. "Look Amy Sheldon asked me to rub the vaporub on his chest."

"Why?"

"Because he doesn't like the smell of vaporub on his hands."

Amy conceded that it sounded much like Sheldon to ask someone to do something for him that he didn't like to do. "What was the song you were singing him?"

Penny smiled. "His mother used to sing it to him when he was younger."

"And now you do?"

"Amy, he asked me too!"

Amy shifted in her seat. "You kissed him, I saw that."

Penny thought about her response, she was guilty as charged, but it wasn't as Amy thought. "Amy, Leonard and Sheldon have a very special place in my heart, Leonard especially, but I love Sheldon too."

Amy looked up at Penny. "He's my."

Penny interrupted her. "Let me finish, I love Sheldon, like a friend, nothing else I promise, we are like brother and sister, we fight and we make up like nothing ever happened." Penny grabbed as Amy's hand. "Amy, I love you too, you're my closest friend silly I would never do anything to hurt you and I am sorry if you are at the moment. Sheldon is your boyfriend; and he will just have to learn that it's you that looks after him for now on."

Amy smiled at her pretty friend, how could she ever have doubted her.

"Now come on you can only leave Leonard in charge for so long before everything goes pear shaped." Penny grabbed her bag and gestured for Amy to follow. "You have a sick boyfriend to attend to."

"Penny."

"Yes?"

"Can you teach me that song you were singing for him." Amy asked.

"Of course I can bestie." Penny hugged Amy.