Author's Note: This story follows the beginning of season 9. However, Amy never broke up with Sheldon. This is my first TBBT fanfic. I do not own the characters or the brilliant idea of the TBBT tv show. Just writing for enjoyment!

Present Day (October 12, 2015)
Leonard kept a silent vigil over his friend. He could hardly wrap the past week's events around in his mind. The gang had celebrated their friend's impressive break through with String Theory; the work was being reviewed through well-known scholars which could eventually lead to his winning of his long dreamed Nobel Prize. The gang was also celebrating the newly engaged couple in their circle of friends, along with the recent wedding between himself and Penny. Things were going very well for the close-knit Pasadena friends. Nothing could spoil or ruin the positive chains of events occurring… until a certain doctor received a phone call late one evening. A phone call that changed everything…

Sighing, Leonard looked up when the hospital door creaked open. It was then he realized the morning sun was creeping in through the half closed blinds. Closing his eyes, he sat up straight and stretched. A gentle hand on his shoulder caused him to open his eyes and give a small smile to the woman who stood beside him. She gently ran her fingers through the prone form's hair who lay still on the hospital bed.

"Good morning, Leonard. Any changes?"

Shaking his head, he replied, "No changes. He woke once and asked for you. Told him you would be back in the morning."

Pressing a kiss on the patient's forehead, she whispered in his ear, "I'm here now, sweetie. When you wake up, momma's here." Turning to her son's best friend and roommate, she ordered him in a motherly tone, "You go on to work now. We'll be fine."

Nodding, Leonard got up and headed to the door, "We'll all be coming to visit after work today, before we head to dinner. I think Amy's starting to feel well enough for a short visit. I think her nurse said we can try in a few days."

Absently nodding in agreement, Mary Cooper replied, "That'll be nice. Shelly will like that."

With that, Leonard left the hospital room. His friend was in good hands now that his mother was here. Finding a bench outside of the hospital entrance, Leonard sat down and took a few shuttering breaths as he remembered last night's conversation with his friend.

6 Days After Accident - Hospital Room - 2:45am (October 11, 2015)
Leonard had been dozing off with the television on a random channel for background noise when he heard the man in the hospital bed startle awake. He watched as the man's eyes flew open and darted around the room searching for something. When he couldn't locate what he was searching for, tears began to well up in his large blue eyes. Leonard took his friend's hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze which caused the other man to turn his attention to him.

The man's eyes scrunched up as he tried to recall who this person was sitting next to him. His breaths came out in short, quick huffs as confusion took over his mind. A stray tear trickled from the corner of his eye and down his cheek. His lips turned into a small pout. "Where's my momma?"

Keeping his face even, not to alert the man that anything was wrong, Leonard responded, "Your momma was really tired so I sent her back to my house to sleep. She'll be back in the morning. Do you remember who I am?" The man's silence and silent tears made him continue, "Sheldon, my name is Leonard. I am your friend. Your momma introduced us the other day after you woke up. Do you remember?"

As the memory flashed before Sheldon's mind, a raw childlike innocence flashed before his eyes as he nodded, "You're a good friend. Not a bad one."

"That's right. I'm a good friend. I will not hurt you." Recalling what the doctor had instructed them to do whenever Sheldon woke from an unconscious state, Leonard began the list of questions. "How old are you, Sheldon? Where do you live?"

Perking up a bit, excited to answer his friend, Sheldon replied, "I'm seven. I live in Texas." Yawning, the man replied, "I'm tired. Can I go back to sleep?"

"Of course you can, buddy."

"And momma will be here in the morning?"

"Yes, Sheldon. Get some rest, buddy." Leonard sighed and watched as his friend closed his eyes and fell asleep almost instantly. His friend who was of genius intelligence now possessed the mental and emotional qualities of a small child. His finance who had been comatose, now began her path to recovery. "How did this happen?" Leonard spoke softly to the room as he ran his fingers through is hair. "How did everything change so suddenly?"

Present Day (October 12, 2015)
Leonard had pulled up to his parking spot at his apartment and made his way up to the 4th floor. Shaking his head clear of the memory from last night, he unlocked the door and headed inside. A shower and breakfast were on his mind before he would be ready to leave for work for the day. He saw his wife sitting at the island with a cup of coffee in her hands. The coffee's aroma sang to Leonard and he poured himself a cup.

Penny leaned in for a kiss as her husband sat next to her. The kiss was gentle, as neither were in the mood to make it more passionate with everything that had gone down. Running a hand up and down Leonard's back to soothe him, she asked, "How're they?"

"Amy's took a turn for the better. Her doctor said that maybe by the start of the new week she'll be strong enough to visit Sheldon."

Nodding, taking in what her husband had said, she replied, "Good, good. I was so scared when she'd fallen into a coma. No complications?"

Shaking his head, the man sighed, "From what her mother told me, the biggest complications are… well you know…" he paused as Penny looked down and closed her eyes. The news was a shock and neither were prepared or knew how to handle it. The news, they decided would be kept a secret between them until Amy was ready to know it and share it. "…the other issues are her broken ribs and her lung recovering from being re-inflated."

Biting her lip, she questioned, "…and Sheldon?" Leonard shook his head; Penny closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "I just can't believe it."

"I told Mary that we'll all be coming by to visit after work today."

"Do you think he's ready for that, sweetie? It's taking a lot for him to trust you… and me. He's never been super close to Raj, Bernadette, and especially Howard," cautioned Penny. "Plus, he's not exactly himself right now."

"Yeah, well, the doctor wants to see if being around familiar people will help. It's not like he has amnesia. The part of his brain that was injured has caused a semi-regression. The doctor wants to see if being around the people he sees most will trigger the memories he's repressing."

"He's nearly a 5-year-old…" Penny was interrupted when Leonard corrected her. "Okay, he's basically a man with the mind of a 7-year-old. We have to be careful with him… more so than usual. And isn't that why we called Mary, so he could feel safe and comforted by her?"

"Yes," Leonard began, "but if we want Sheldon to recover, we also can't let Mary smother him like he's a baby again."

The newly-wed couple drank their coffee in silence as their minds drifted off to their friends in the hospital. One was on the road to recovery and the other one was stuck with the mind of a child with no guarantee he would recover fully. Brain injuries were not to be taken lightly.

When the drunk driver, who had plowed into Amy's car after failing to stop at the red light, hit them in the intersection, his car had struck the passenger side of Amy's car. That was where Sheldon had been sitting. Amy's car had spun crossing the yellow line into oncoming traffic where it was struck once more in the rear. The second car had clipped the tailer bumper; Amy's car flipped over and landed passenger side down. According to the paramedics, Sheldon had been trapped in the car. The jaws of life had to pry the twisted metal open so the rescue workers could free Sheldon. The airbag on the passenger side of Amy's car had failed to deploy causing Sheldon's head to make contact with both the windshield and dashboard.

The news that sent chills down the spines of Sheldon's friends was the comment made by one of the paramedics in the hospital before he left, "Kid's only alive because the seat-belt partially held on."

Author's Note: Well, what did you think? Leave me reviews so I know people are interested in this story. I have a lot planned for this story and would love to continue if there's interest. The secret between Leonard and Penny will be revealed in the next chapter!