The Departure Conjecture
By Dr Skywalker
Dr Leonard Hofstaer sat in the big comfy chair adjacent to the couch watching classic episodes of Star Trek. Raj and Howard sat in their perspective spots on the couch as well, but no one whether it be out of respect or some bizarre superstition, on its designated ownership rights, wanted to sit in Sheldon's spot.
It was eerily quiet without him there to comment through the episode and correct continuity issues with the series. The boys, despite their vocalization of his constant annoyance to them, every now and then would glance sadly at the empty seat on the couch and then look at Leonard in concern.
None of them had heard from Sheldon in weeks, the last anyone had spoken to him was his girlfriend Dr Amy Farrah Fowler, when he first left. Even though Leonard called her every day to ask if shed heard anything from Sheldon the answer was always the same. Leonard knew Sheldon had a hard time with change, he knew Sheldon was apt to panic when things weren't planned out and set in a regimented way, and that sudden changes in his environment tended to set him off, but he never dreamed Sheldon would run away like he did. He'd even gone so far as to call Sheldon's mother, only to hear the concern in her voice over his sudden departure.
Even though he drove Leonard and the guys crazy, even though his quirks and demands and constant irritations were always cause for annoyance of Sheldon, it just wasn't the same without him.
Penny drummed her fingers on her own couch in her apartment in worry and guilt, after all it was she, who convinced Leonard to let Sheldon go I the first place, but since they hadn't heard anything from him in such a long time, her fears began to mount. Penny understood Sheldon in a way few did, and their bond was very strong, shed grown to love Sheldon like a brother, and she knew shed never be able to forgive herself if anything happened to him or if he hurt himself. Her maternal instinct for him began to inch its way up her neck again, and she got that awful kink in it she always got when she worried for Sheldon. Maybe Leonard was right, maybe he wasn't able to go out on his own, he was so naive about so many things. Maybe he got mugged or worse ended up on the wrong bus to god knows where? Shed even asked Leonard to try to track his cell phone, but to no avail. The last time they checked his phone was somewhere in Arizona. Three days later, his Facebook posted in Boston, MA. That was over three weeks ago, and no correspondence had taken place since. What if something horrible had happened to him and it would be all her fault. Penny kept glancing at her phone hoping he would text her or tweet or something…but the small rectangular plastic sat woefully still.
Dr Amy Farrah Fowler sat in her lab trying to concentrate despite her puffy red eyes and sleepless nights. She missed his smell, and his voice. The way he looked at her with just the right kind of smoldering desire that he never acted upon. She missed the way he kissed her deeply and truly. His crazy quirks. What she wouldn't give for him to call Human Resources with complaints of a brain tumor which would turn out to be an ice cream headache. She wished so badly she could hug him, and assure him that Leonard and Penny's engagement wasn't the end of the world, and that Stewart's comic shop would re-open or that she was sorry for pressuring him into moving in together. Amy fought to hold back tears of worry, and guilt and fear.
She feared he didn't think of her as she did him. Perhaps he was with another girl at this very moment, maybe some stupid grad student who would fall for his charms, and his immense intellect and divesting handsomeness. He hadn't texted, phoned, posted, tweeted or called and this left her wondering all manner of horrible thoughts, from infidelity to murder. She feared hearing about his dead corpse on the 6:00 news, or finding out via Facebook he was involved with someone else, or that he had gotten lost and ended up in some god for saken Mexican village with no hope of escape, or maybe he'd been sent to Guntantmo Bay for saying the wrong thing to an Airline attendant. She hated the uncertainness of it all, she hated Penny and Leonard for letting him go, and she hated him for leaving her. How could he be so selfish? He didn't even say goodbye! He just took off! He'd finally checked in with her, yes, but only after the fact! Her fist tightened on the scalpel she had and she cut a large chunk of the brain she was working on off, causing her to slam the instrument down in frustration. She couldn't concentrate with him … out there like he was. With him just… gone. Every few seconds shed check her phone to make sure she hadn't missed a text or call but nothing. She sighed miserably and put her phone down sadly. It was deathly silent in her lab, only the sound of the slow ticking clock on the wall made any noise. She stood there in the silence with every emotion running through her head, and fought back tears.
Then, suddenly her phone vibrated….she grabbed it and stared but didn't recognize the number.
"Hello?" She asked confused
"Amy? Its…me."