Brief note: I'm in need of a beta. If anyone's wiling to read what I write in horrid first-draft form, you can drop me a message or mention something in the comments. I'd prefer someone who is either willing to use 's docx or has a gmail account. Bonus points and a slice of my strawberry cheesecake pie if you've got both.

Prompt: The Look in Your Eyes

"Hey, Sheldon!"

Penny invited herself into the apartment as soon as he opened the door. She knew the exact look he had on his face as he shut the door behind her. His eyes were definitely rolling; he was holding in a sigh of intense irritation. As she walked further into the apartment, she knew his eyes were swinging around and he was attempting to bore holes into his back with his mental powers.

"Penny, what are you doing here?"

Turning on the ball of one slippered foot, she grinned. "Thai night," she said. Obviously, it explained everything. Sheldon was so not as perceptive as he thought he was.

He scowled at her. "Penny, did you forget that Leonard is out of town?" Sheldon asked, walking around her and dropping into his spot. Up until that moment, she had planned on sitting there just to annoy him. Oh, well. Another time.

And she hadn't forgotten that Leonard was out of town.

Much.

Okay, so maybe for the space of time it took for her to drive home from work and walk across the hall to the boys' apartment she had completely and utterly forgotten the fact that Leonard wasn't there. He was… somewhere. Visiting his mother or something. It wasn't important.

"So no Thai night?" she asked.

"Leonard is not here, ergo, no Thai night," Sheldon replied. "If you had stopped to think, you would have surmised that on your own."

Penny rolled her eyes. "So what are you doing then?"

"Before Leonard left, we went to the grocery store and I purchased a number of prepackaged meals."

Her brows arched. "You bought tv dinners?"

The look on Sheldon's face was long-suffering. Penny wondered how he'd react if she smacked him upside the head and informed him that she had it worse dealing with him than he had it dealing with her. But he would never believe her so she didn't.

"It seemed the only viable option."

She was slightly hurt. "It didn't occur to you to call me and ask me to help with dinner?"

"I didn't think you would be able to properly address my specific meal-time requirements."

Penny stared at him. For a moment, she debated shoving his specific meal-time requirements up his ass, but she refrained. There wasn't any need to start a huge battle over nothing. "Well, fine. Why don't we have tv dinner night together then," she suggested, opening the freezer. She shuffled through the neatly arranged box and located two dinners.

"I only purchased enough for myself for the duration of Leonard's absence," Sheldon announced.

Jumping, Penny whirled, one hand pressed to her chest. Her eyes were huge, her heart pounding in her chest. Adrenaline surged through her for a moment, and then she froze, staring at Sheldon. "Don't do that!" she exclaimed after a brief second of silence.

"Do what?"

"Sneak up behind me!"

"I was not sneaking," Sheldon replied. "I simply sought to inform you of the fact that there are not enough TV dinners to share."

Penny pursed her lips, regarding Sheldon with a contemplative look. "What if I eat one tonight with you and bring you a burger tomorrow?"

She watched him consider her proposal and wondered exactly what was going on in his head while he did so. Was he calculating statistics? Was he only pretending to think about her proposal while really thinking about some epic and earth-shatteringly important new theory that would revolutionize the way the world perceived itself? Maybe he was contemplating whether or not he wanted the shrimp fettuccini or the Tuscan chicken. She'd fight him to the death for the Tuscan chicken. Maybe even challenge him to Rock, Paper, Scissors, Lizard, Spock. She had watched him and the other guys play it enough: they always chose Spock. Paper disproved Spock. And didn't Lizard poison him? Something like that. She could so win.

"Your proposition is acceptable," Sheldon replied. "I would like the Tuscan chicken."

"Oh, uh-uh, no way, I don't think so Dr. Whack-a-Doodle." Penny took a step into his personal space. Sheldon simply looked down at her, one bow quirked. They did this a lot, standing toe-to-toe and glaring at each other. Penny wondered if Sheldon realized how alpha male-ish it was of him to refuse to stand down. Crossing her arms, she tossed her head. Her hair shifted over her shoulder, revealing her neck, and she tilted her head to the side. With immense satisfaction, she watched Sheldon's eyes briefly flicker from hers to her neck and then back again. "I hate shrimp."

"It is a proven fact that poorly preferred sea food can make a person ill."

Penny quirked a brow, mimicking Sheldon's expression. "You bought it. You were going to eat it."

He scowled. Penny scowled back. Sheldon crossed his arms, mimicking her. Penny shifted her weight forward. There was a brief moment where neither moved. Then Sheldon dropped his arms, grasped them behind his back and turned. "Very well, the Tuscan chicken is yours. This time."

With a squeal of delight, Penny grabbed her packaged meal, tearing it open. She rushed to the microwave and shoved the chicken in, hitting the number five button. Sheldon came up behind her, shrimp fettuccini in hand. When her chicken was done, Sheldon put the shrimp in. Dropping the plastic container onto a plate, Penny rooted through a draw and grabbed a pair of forks. "For you," she said to Sheldon

Sheldon took the fork, procured a plate of his own, and made his way to the couch. Penny followed. While Sheldon took up his usual spot, Penny settled into the armchair that Leonard had claimed, less officially than Sheldon, as his own.

"So whatcha doin'?" she asked, spearing a piece of chicken and popping it in her mouth.

Sheldon gave her a long, measuring look. She knew that look. It wasn't the same as his "I'm-too-smart, you-won't-understand" look and it wasn't anything like his "You-stupid-lesser-human" look. He was trying to figure out whether or not telling her what he was doing was a good thing. That was curious. Grinning, Penny set her food aside. "Sheldon," she crooned in a sing-song voice. "Tell me."

He hesitated a bit longer. "Age of Conan," he said slowly.

Penny hadn't touched that game in ages. "You still play?" she asked, doing her best to keep her tone conversational. She wasn't about to get completely addicted to it again, no chance in hell. Not after that whole incident with Wolowitz. She still refused to talk about it. Once, Wolowitz had attempted to bring it up. She hadn't punched him that time, but she had made it very clear that any mention of the incident would result in grievous harm to certain parts of his anatomy that he loved quite dearly.

"Yes," Sheldon replied.

"Still Sheldor?"

"Yes." His voice sounded stiffer.

Laughing, Penny picked up her chicken again. "Queen Penelope is not in the house tonight, sweetie. Don't look like I just dropped an atomic bomb on you."

"If you dropped an atomic bomb on me, I would not be here to have a look on my face, and you would not be around to see it."

Oh, Sheldon. Always taking refuge in logic and reason.

"It's a figure of speech," Penny returned. Shifting and popping another piece of chicken in her mouth, she gestured with her empty fork toward his computer. "What are you doing right now? In the game?"

Sheldon was, again, slow to reply. "Battling the god Set in pursuit of the Staff of Snakes."

"Ooh, I never got that far," Penny replied, grinning. "You going alone?"

"Yes."

"Want some company?"

Sheldon watched her warily. "Do you still have the software installed?"

Laughing, Penny shook her head. "Nope, but I can keep you company while you kick Set's evil ass," she told him with a grin. Sheldon stared. "Come on. Let's finish, then grab some cheetos and do it."

Twenty minutes later, Penny was leaning hard against Sheldon's shoulder, laughing and shouting encouragement, almost directly into his ear. "Go, go, go! No, don't hold back! Healing potion, healing potion! That's your opening, why are you hesitating?" She shrieked with laughter, pushing against his shoulder as Sheldon hunched over further and stared at the computer screen.

He was so intense, so determined. It was intriguing to watch him. There was something about how doggedly he pursued an issue that Penny really well and truly loved.

Suddenly, the music changed.

"Ahhah!" Penny crowed with delight. "You did it! You beat him!" Tossing her arms around him, Penny enveloped Sheldon in a hug. "Good job!"

A small smile tugged at the corner of Sheldon's lips. "I haven't finished the game. There is no cause celebrate."

"Oh, pish-posh, stop that," Penny replied, still laughing. "Now, on to the Valley of Doom!"