Usual worship of the original founders of BBT.

A/N: I need to do a one shot so my brain would start working. I read about this in the NYT, I thought the timing was super for Amy!

Brain Activity Map Project

UCLA couldn't have picked a better time to piss Dr. Amy Farrah Fowler off. By taking her off her beloved monkey addiction research, the University had liberated her in a way they would come to regret.

The rumor floated for years, but the federal government finally committed to a ten year study to map the active human brain. Brain Activity Map Project would make the human genome project look quaint.

She'd knew what UCLA planned as their contribution to this great scientific undertaking and it didn't blow her skirt up. As long as she had her nicotine work, she wouldn't have jumped ship. Without it, she was unencumbered. She had built her reputation up to a point where as soon as the project was mentioned in the State of Union address, the job offers came pouring in. Most that were half way interesting would require relocation, and were therefore unacceptable. Happily, there was one offer which combined location and thrilling science.

Cal Tech.

Some of her former teachers from Stanford had jumped ship and joined Cal Tech at the beginning of the Academic year. They had begun to pursue her almost immediately to be their lead behavioral studies research. The science proposed represented all that she had ever dreamed of contributing the sum total of human knowledge. It was a life's work.

There was one issue clawing at her, causing her to hesitate. Cal Tech was Sheldon's workplace. Months later, she was still stung by him rejecting her as a replacement roommate. He had explained, apologized, accepted punishment, but it still stung. Her taking this job… she was irrationally angry that his attitude toward her working on the same campus as him gave her pause. If he objected, or worse, panicked again… What would she do?

No! She wasn't going to do play this game. Sheldon did not have a say in how or where she conducted her professional business. Her only other option was to move to Cambridge to work with the team at Harvard, which she didn't want to consider. She'd have to abandon not just Sheldon, but all her friends.

Striding up the stairs to Sheldon's apartment, drawn onward by the aroma of Thai food, she resolved to be bold. She would inform him (not ask) that she would join Cal Tech at the end of the academic year and hope that the presence of all their friends would force him suppress any ass-tastic reflex that overtook him. It was not a safe bet.

The opportunity to spill her guts never presented itself during the actual meal. Raj had brought Lucy for her first group night. She'd freaked out when offered a spring roll and locked herself in the bathroom. Amy watched with quiet amusement as the rest of the group except Sheldon and Leonard, attempted to coax Lucy out by banging on the door and yelling loudly that she was safe. Bernadette had gone particularly screechy. The best part was when Raj started to cry.

Sheldon turned his head and looked at her, "Would you handle this? Their food is starting to congeal, if they get food poisoning and it will ruin movie night."

"All right." She smiled at him and went to the door, shooing the others away with the stern admonishment, "What is wrong with you people?" She hunkered down by the side of the door and spoke in her monkey soothing voice.

It took 20 minutes, but without coaxing, cajoling or coercing, but she got that woman out of the bathroom. Lucy had responded to how much Amy really didn't care one way or another about why she'd locked herself in the bathroom or if she emerged anytime soon. The lack of pressure worked wonders. Amy also reassured her that no one thought less of her for this unfortunate event. Without adding that since her disastrous double dates with Howard/Bernadette and Leonard/Penny, her stock really couldn't go that much lower.

Sheldon had beamed proudly at her and went into the kitchen where he'd been keeping her dinner warm in the oven because he refused to allow her to get food poisoning. He'd been so sweet lately, she felt ashamed of doubting him at all. Also, he'd been following her with his eyes lately, more so than before. Tracking her the way a besotted cat would, wishing to know where she was, what she was doing, but trying to act like it wasn't a thing.

Once everyone was done with their food, Amy cleared her throat, "I have news." She announced, halting the rest of the conversations. "You know I am no longer working with the primate addiction studies at UCLA. I've been offered a position at Cal Tech to work on the Brain Activity Map Project."

She felt the room hold their breath as they waited for Sheldon's response.

"You'll be working at Cal Tech?" he asked with wide eyes. She nodded sharply, "Finally!" He broke into a grin and happily patted her leg.

"You don't mind?" Amy asked, smiling back her heart racing.

"Why would I mind? You working at UCLA has been nothing but inconvenient. If I want to have lunch with you I either have to lure into driving over or take the bus ride through the seventh circle of hell. Your commute is absurdly long, and Cal Tech neurobiology department is doing some very cutting edge work." Sheldon enumerated. "When you were happy at UCLA, I didn't want to bring it up."

Amy fought the urge to leap upon him and cover him with kisses. "The team being assembled… some of the great minds in this field… and they offered me a lead research role." She said eagerly. "I've accepted the position and I'll be starting in June."

Leonard looked interested, "Will you be working with the nano-science?"

"I hope to, that would be amazing." Amy smiled, "That is one of the reasons the Cal Tech proposal was so strong, the science is so bold. And I get to select my own team. Happily have three new Ph.D.'s that have been following me around like I was the Dave Matthew's band since they were undergraduate lab slaves."

The movie was skipped in favor of hearing more about Amy's news. The scientists were genuinely excited by the concept, Penny was pleased that Amy had rebounded from the monkey poop thing and Lucy was thrilled that nobody was paying any attention to her.

After the gang departed, Amy stayed to help clean up the kitchen. Sheldon seemed deep in thought, so she didn't speak to him, she just happily worked beside him.

"Why did you think I would mind you coming to Cal tech?" he asked abruptly. "Is it because of the… the roommate thing?"

She put her towel down on the island. "Yes. I admit that still bothers me. I wasn't sure if working at the same university would be too close for you." Here she quoted, "At our current level of intimacy."

"Amy, I was right about that. You are my girlfriend. If we moved into together it would be as my girlfriend, not my roommate." He paused, "That doesn't mean I don't want to see you every day. I do."

"Really?" she asked.

Sheldon threw his towel down on the counter, "Yes, really! Amy, I am such an ass at that you don't even believe that I like to have you around?" Her expression was slightly confused, which offended him."Well, that answers that question." He took a deep breath, "You are my favorite person. I've never liked to be with anyone more than you. If I don't have to wait for you to drive all the way from Westwood to see you at the end of the day, if I can have lunch with you every day, if we can get off work and do something while there is still daylight… I want those things." He stepped closer to her, but she cast her eyes to the floor.

Amy swallowed, "I know you care for me, but I worry that you might feel like I am pushing you… pushing too fast."

"And I worry that you seemed to have stopped pushing me." He replied. She looked up into his eyes, surprised, "I liked that you pushed. I need you to push. I am trying hard to not be so… uncomfortable with touching. It helps when you touch me first."

This had gotten super honest, super fast. "I want to, but I am scared."

"Of me?" he looked confused.

"Of more rejection. Of how much power I've given you over everything. My heart, my mind… I was so sure you were going to hate the idea of my working near you…" she paused, "I am scared that you'll break my heart without meaning to."

"That scares me too. Sometime, I am going to do something awful and wrong. I am afraid I won't even know what I've done until you are gone." Taking a deep breath, he rested his forehead on top of her head putting his hands on her shoulders. "The real upside for me of your new employment is that if the worst happens, I can pester you at work until you forgive me without taking the bus."

She giggled, covering his hands with hers, "Ah, I see that sexual harassment seminar really worked wonders."

"Oh, no. It made Alex even more disgruntled."

A/N: According to the Neuron article, the Cal Tech Physics department is going to be working on nano-science and its applications in neuroscience for this study. Here's our change for their mutual Nobel.