Like I said, it's not easy to write this story, I feel like writing about another Leonard, it's weird... But I definitely want to get back his honor by the end of it !

Chapter 2 : Was this girl into him ?

Leonard felt more and more comfortable on that boat. He enjoyed a lot working there, with people that were listening to him and his ideas. Plus, now that he was taking part of every party, he was fully integrated to the group. He liked it more and more : here, there was no Sheldon to diminish him, he was respected, no one was making fun of him anymore. He felt important and that was nice.

There weren't parties every night anymore, but at least twice a week. Leonard learnt to appreciate these, when he was young he wasn't invited to parties, he didn't had much fun, so he was glad that this time, he was part of it. He hasn't been as drunk as some of his co-workers yet, he mostly liked to dance and to talk with the others. That night, he was talking with two of his colleagues, Kathleen and Amber, and they were exchanging about their lives, his in Los Angeles, theirs in Boston. One thing Leonard had learnt on that boat, is that alcohol and his seasickness weren't a good mix... and this night too, he felt he had suddenly the urge to go to the bathroom. He apologized himself to the women with a smile : "Sorry ladies, I have to go to the bathroom..."

Amber followed him with her eyes and said to her friend sitting next to her : "He's so sweet ! I wish I had a boyfriend like him..."

Kathleen agreed : "I know what you mean. Once you get to know him, you see how cute he is... even with his beard !"

Amber sighed : "Too bad he's already taken... I hope his girlfriend knows how lucky she is to have him..."

Kathleen didn't really know where her friend was going with this, but she felt she had to warn her : "He told me she's an actress, and I've seen pictures, she's really hot."

Amber didn't care how hot his girlfriend was, she didn't even really listen to what her friend had just said, she just wanted to know if she could have a chance : "Are things going well between them ?"

Kathleen shrugged his shoulders : "How would I know ? But he's spending less time talking to her on the phone these days... Maybe that's a sign ?"

Amber took a sip of his beer before asking : "Do you think I should try something ?"

Kathleen raised her eyebrows, surprised : "Why would you do that ?"

Amber justified herself, remembering all the good sides she had noticed in Leonard : "Because I'm attracted to him ! He's sweet, smart, he knows how to listen... Who knows when I'll have the chance to meet another guy like him !"

Kathleen was still skeptical, she didn't want her friend to be in trouble, or to break a couple : "How drunk are you ?"

Amber was a bit upset by this remark and understood that Kathleen didn't approve what she wanted to do : "I'm not drunk ! I only drank two shots and two beers tonight. But don't worry, I'll just flirt... for now."

A man came to ask Kathleen to dance with him, and Amber was alone at the table when Leonard came back from the bathroom. Amber smiled at him and immediately wondered how she could make him understand that she liked him. Watching at his arms when he opened another bottle of beer, she asked : "Do you work out ?" That sounded lame to her ears, but it was too late. Leonard seemed genuinely surprised by this question. He stopped what he was doing, watched her, then turned his eyes to his own arms, his body, and laughed : "Wh- Wh- What ?! Why this question ?" Now that Amber was on that road, she couldn't go backwards : "Well, you know..." Leonard was fixing her, curious and puzzled. She was struggling for words, it was harder to do than she had expected, he wasn't playing along with her and that bothered her. After three or four seconds of a long silence, she finally said : "Don't tell me no other girl has ever asked you that !"

'Shoot, that's not the right answer, he looks even more afraid now !', she thought, seeing Leonard tilting his head on one side and frowning. He sat down and spoke up : "I can tell you that no other girl, or man, or dog, or cat, has ever asked me that question !" Amber laughed, relieved that he wasn't mad at her : "You're very funny..." Hearing that, Leonard wanted to tell her that, THAT, he has heard of, though he couldn't quite remember who and when, but that sounded familiar to his ears.

Leonard was a bit confused but carried on : "Anyway, to answer to your question, no, I don't work out. I tried, I swear ! But... Well... The only things I lift here are these bottles !" Once again, Amber laughed. The party was about to end and she had to say something big to make him react, because he clearly didn't understand a thing about her flirting. She smiled at him in a – what she hoped was – seductive way and told him : "Well, too bad then. Because you're very cute, and I'm sure you'd be so handsome if you worked out a little bit." Leonard was even more confused and didn't know what to say, he had a big "WHAAAAAAATTTTT ?" in his head but he couldn't say it out loud, he was too puzzled to say anything. One last time, Amber smiled at him : "Just saying..." and left without another explanation.

Later that night (or early morning...), in his bed, Leonard kept playing again and again this moment with Amber. What was that ? What happened ? And he remembered who told him he was very funny a few months ago. It was Alex. The same Alex that was flirting with him, but he had understood that only later. Was Amber flirting with him ? Nooooooooo... No way... But it was weird. What did she say ? Oh yeah, he was VERY funny and VERY cute. Was he ? With all this beard and the long hair ? He also remembered that Alex told him that maybe he didn't even know that he was getting hit on. So... Did Amber hit on him ? It seemed surreal to him. Two girls in less than a year ? Well played Hofstadter ! Of course, he was with Penny, the love of his life, they were in a great place, and – like with Alex – he wasn't going to do anything about it. But it felt good.

I think I'm planning for 2 or 3 more chapters, so don't worry, Leonard will think more about Penny in the next one !