It's the 30th of December and our beloved friends are on vacation. The year is coming to an end and naturally this calls for a 3-day New Year's Special!

This chapter I dedicate to my dear friend Bluebird.

- YlvaB

No more champagne

By YlvaBorealis

Chapter 1 – December 30. Dinner for two

"What do you mean 'cancelled'?" Sheldon shrieked, dramatically clasping his hand over his heart in the fashion favored by the silent film actresses of the early 1900's.

His roommate Leonard rolled his eyes, silently chastising himself for daring to think Sheldon might actually just let it go this time. "It's been cancelled. It has ceased to be. It's pushing up the daisies if you will" he explained, a not-so-subtle note of sarcasm in his voice. "In other words: it is now an ex-party."

"Stop trying to be clever Leonard, it doesn't become you."

Leonard's smirk quickly fell off his face. "I wasn't trying to be clever I was just… I've been waiting for a chance to quote that sketch since… oh for Christ's sake, why am I explaining myself to you? Stuart has cancelled the annual Costume Party at the Comic Book Store, Sheldon, and you know perfectly well what that means. Just deal with it."

The short bespectacled man returned to his Star Wars-cereal, hoping the tall man at the opposite end of the kitchen island would take the hint and stop peppering him with questions. The tall man in question had no such plans however, anxiously fidgeting in his seat as he tried to make sense of this situation.

"But we attend the costume party every year" he began, his voice surprisingly thin and frail, "it's tradition. I spent a fortune on a new Flash costume. Plus" he added, raising his right eyebrow reminiscently at Leonard who continued to ignore him, "Penny will be sad if she doesn't get to go as Wonder Woman."

"Nope, Penny won't" Penny quipped, bumping fists with her husband while still remaining engrossed in her glossy magazine, "Penny's getting her hair and nails done, and then her hubby is taking her out to fancy dinner because he knows how grateful he should be that he gets to see her naked every day."

"Yeeeeah" Leonard giggled, a stupid grin plastered on his face as he turned to look at his beautiful blonde wife. Sheldon wrinkled his nose in disgust, looking down to poke aimlessly through his own Star Wars-cereal.

It seemed things were changing so fast these days. Had this discussion taken place the year before he would have continued to press the issue, suggesting their other friends Koothrappali and Wolowitz with their significant others must be planning to correct this error – Raj loved parties, everybody knew that – but as it was now he was hit with the realization that they had probably already made other plans for New Year's Eve that didn't include him. He didn't know why he knew that because he had never been particularly well-versed in, nor considerate of, the habits of ordinary human beings, but suddenly it all seemed… well, not clear to him, that was for sure, but it was there for him to look at out of the corner of his eye. And what he saw made him sad.

"I see" he mumbled and put a spoonful of soggy cereal in his mouth, imagining how it grew to massive proportions. As he swallowed he could feel it slide down through his throat all the way to his stomach, and he let out a disgusted grunt as he shoved the cereal bowl out of his sight.

"Stop being such a drama-queen Sheldon" Penny sighed as she finally tore her eyes away from her magazine, "it's not like we're leaving you to spend the weekend alone. Besides, don't you have plans with Amy?"

Sheldon cocked his head to the side bemusedly at the mention of his girlfriend's name.

"Why of course I do" he said, thinking it should be obvious, "the plan was to attend the costume party together. She's going as Super Girl."

Penny snorted derisively. "Does she know she's going as Super Girl?"

"Penny, Penny, Penny" Sheldon sighed, shaking his head in exasperation, "once again you prove how fortunate you are that men seem to find blonde bodacious women like yourself attractive ("Was that a compliment or an insult?" Penny asked Leonard who suddenly seemed to find a dark spot on the table very interesting), and I suggest you keep playing that to your advantage. To answer your question: the costume party is an annual event. As Amy and I have been going out for five years she is well aware of my plans for this weekend."

"Well, it seems there's been a change of plans, smart-ass" Penny bit back as she started to lose patience with her quirky friend. She took one last bite of her toast and gulped down the remainder of her now-cold coffee, patting Leonard's shoulder to signal it was time for them to get going.

"People say I'm immature, and yet you two are the ones leaving in the middle of a discussion" Sheldon berated his friends as they began collecting cell phones and car keys, slightly miffed that they never seemed to take his troubles seriously.

"We're not leaving you Sheldon, Penny has an appointment at the nail salon and she promised she'd take me to the Lego Store after she's done" Leonard informed his lanky friend, grabbing his wife's hand as he opened the door to let them out and leave Sheldon to deal with his dilemma on his own.

"Because that's what happens when you're nice" Penny sing-songed, biting her teeth together as Sheldon stuck his tongue out at her. It quickly retracted back into his mouth as Penny growled at him like a tiger, and hers and Leonard's laughter rang in his ears long after they'd disappeared out of the apartment.

"Stupid Leonard" Sheldon muttered as he began clearing the breakfast table, "stupid, stupid Stuart… and stupid, stupid Penny!"

Well this was nothing short of a disaster. He'd never been particularly fond of celebrations but the New Year's party along with Star Wars Day were the most important events of the year as far as he was concerned. He hadn't even considered the fact that his friends wouldn't be joining him this year, much less that there would be no party to attend. 'So this is how it begins' Sheldon thought sadly as he washed the last of the coffee mugs, 'first they'll stop showing up for parties, then they'll only show up for dinner once a month, then Leonard and Penny will reproduce and I'll only see them for Christenings and possibly birthday parties and then…then…then…"

He put away the coffee mug and reached for his phone that he'd left on the counter, his hands trembling as he browsed through his contacts in search of his girlfriend's number. He nervously paced around the kitchen as he waited for the signal to go through.

'Pick up, pick up, pick up' he thought anxiously, jutting his tongue out to lick his bottom lip.

Suddenly there was the distinct sound of someone – presumably Amy – fumbling with their phone while trying to balance bags and grocery lists and a shopping cart.

"Hello?" Amy said, the tone in her voice indicating she was busy. However, identifying such subtle cues wasn't Sheldon's strongest suit and thus the words that came out of his mouth weren't 'I hear this isn't a good time, maybe I should call later', as had been appropriate.

"Amy, you need to come over, it's an emergency" he told her instead, ignoring the exhausted sigh at the other end of the line.

Amy clasped her phone between her ear and her shoulder as she pushed the cart in front of her.

"A real emergency or did you just forget that there's no new episode of Doctor Who tonight because of the holidays?"

"Amy, you should know better than to ask me that! You know I never forget anything!" Sheldon lectured her, putting his hand on his hip and rolling his eyes even though she wasn't there to witness him doing so. "…But now that you mention it I might have had…. Better things to do than to remember that so now I'm sad because you reminded me" he mumbled, thinking this day couldn't possibly get any worse.

If Amy's hands had been free she would have rubbed her temple, but as they weren't she would have to make do with letting out yet another exasperated sigh.

"Alright Sheldon, I'm coming over. Will you be good on your own until I get there?"

The tall lanky man felt his heart flutter ever so slightly at the thought of his girlfriend coming over to take care of him in his time of need.

"Please hurry. It's not even 9.30 a.m. and my world is already falling apart" Sheldon whined, letting out a little sniffle for emphasis.

Thirty-five minutes later he found himself wishing he hadn't put on the waterworks in order to lure his girlfriend over to comfort him. Amy Farrah Fowler was a petite woman, the top of her head barely reaching up to his chin when they stood face to face (or rather chest to face), and her conservative style of dress and dark-rimmed glasses could fool anyone into thinking she was timid and bookish.

The latter was true but while she was indeed quite naïve and socially awkward, she was also confident and righteous - and nothing short of a thunderstorm once ticked off.

"Sheldon, you're my boyfriend and I'm always here for you, but you can't call me up telling me there's an emergency whenever your routine is disturbed!" she scolded him, pacing back and forth in front of the lanky physicist where he sat in his designated spot on the couch. He cringed as the words hit him, having never liked when she raised her voice at him.

"But Amy, I had plans for us for New Year's Eve and now they're ruined" he tried, knowing Amy usually softened if he fluttered his dark eyelashes at her, and as expected Amy lowered her shoulders somewhat. "I'm sorry" he added, pleased with himself as the corner of his girlfriend's mouth curled up in the slightest of smiles.

"Darnit, why do you have to be so cute?" she sighed, slumping down in the seat next to him and resting her head against the back of the couch. "I can never stay mad at you."

"It's the old cow eyes" Sheldon chirped happily, gently patting her thigh. "My mother used to bring out the soulful stare whenever my Daddy proclaimed he intended to go out to bury himself in booze and busty blondes."

"How… charming…."

"Emotional blackmail always is."

Amy turned to him, studying his boyish features and trademark double-layered t-shirts for a minute before addressing the issue at hand.

"Sheldon, I know that you've attended this costume party several years in a row and that it's part of your routine, but I would appreciate it if we could discuss our plans for the holidays as a couple. You told me we'd be having dinner for New Year's and I've just been out shopping for it."

Sheldon sent her a confused look. "We were having dinner. At the comic book store before the costume contest."

"You said we'd be having a 'home-cooked meal'."

"Koothrappali was cooking. At his home."

Amy groaned, chastising herself internally for having been in a relationship with this man for almost six years (apart from the past six months when they'd been broken up before getting back together before Christmas) and yet she still hadn't learned to take what he said literally.

Sheldon removed his hand from her thigh then, suddenly not sure if his touch was welcome or not. It had barely been two weeks since they'd finally consummated their relationship, and he was still trying to work out what this all meant. Was a hand on her thigh really just a hand on her thigh or would she interpret it as him trying to appease her by sending her a sexual invite, and would that in turn make her angry or would she be delighted that he was showing interest? Would she be upset if he didn't intend for it to be an invite and turned her down should she try anything? It was all very confusing. As it was he felt it was best if he kept his hands to himself while they were having this discussion.

The bespectacled brunette watched her boyfriend fidget in his seat, instinctively knowing what he was wrestling with. She too was still trying to navigate this new territory, and she knew Sheldon's obsessive compulsive thoughts made it difficult for him to accept change. Perhaps this was all a bit much for him – and to be fair he had expected them to attend the party together and he hadn't been misleading her, at least not intentionally. Maybe there was a way for her to make them both happy?

"Sheldon" she mumbled, grabbing his hand and placing it on her thigh once again, "it's okay if you… if you just want to touch me. I'm not expecting anything."

Sheldon simply nodded in response, and Amy couldn't help but smile when she felt him gently squeeze her leg through the fabric of her skirt.

She decided she would try to cheer him up. "Listen, I know that you've looked forward to this costume party all year, and that you're a little sad that the others opted out this time and that Stuart cancelled… But maybe there's a way for both of us to get what we want?"

Sheldon turned to her, softly tilting his head to the side as he tried to work out what she was up to. An IQ of 187 and he still had no clue what went on in that woman's head.

"What are you suggesting?" he asked, unable to deny even to himself that he was slightly intrigued.

Amy shot him a smug smile, leaning forward to brush her lips over his.

"You just wait and see. I have an idea" she whispered, letting out a soft gasp of delight as he gave up trying to keep his hands to himself.

Danger Danger! It looks like Amy's getting too smart for her own good. What will happen next? Stay tuned for chapter two - "I'll do my very best".

Dead Parrot Sketch

courtesy of Monty Python et. al.