AN: I'd like to thank everyone for the support and reviews in this story, it really means a lot to me that you guys are liking it. First person POV is not something I'm used to writing and Sheldon's is specially hard. I hope you like this chapter, I'm working on the next ones and they should involve some plot development, but that's just so we can't get it over with and move to the good stuff. :) Special thanks to my betas theonlytwin, lilallisun and kaitou_lili from LJ. This story wouldn't survive without their help.

Chapter 2

I was much disturbed by the physical reaction that followed that night, after the incident which I would begin to define as field test n#1.

As soon as I walked back into my apartment, after leaving Penny (I refuse to say after kissing her), I observed the sudoresis spreading on my palms and forehead and the increasing, however small, spasm in my left leg. None of that made any sense whatsoever, so I decided to start taking a real, valid scientific approach to the situation. Yes, that was the best way to handle it.

Bedtime would have to wait; this was a matter of a most urgent nature. I went to my bedroom, opened the second drawer of my nightstand and retrieved my black notebook, along with a pen, which I brought back to the living room, where I turned on a light, sat at the desk and began to write.

Scientific Procedure

Step 1: Define the question.

Is kissing a genuinely pleasant human experience or is it merely a social convention based on an evolutionary predisposal to enjoy any contact which may lead to reproduction?

Step 2: Gather Information and resources, observe

The general opinion seems to be favorable to the enjoyability of the act itself, despite its roots or consequences. Another general opinion regards strikePenny/strike subject n#1, which implicates acceptable kissing skills on her part.

Step 3: Form Hypothesis

Kissing would be an enjoyable experience. Kissing strikePenny/strike subject n#1 would be an enjoyable experience.

Step 4: Perform experiment and collect data

Experiment performed so far:

Field Test n#1

Main question: Does said experiment answer the question stipulated in step one?

It did not. But what am I supposed to do? The whole thing is much too subjective to be taken as scientific. What was I thinking?

Well, I'll answer that. I was thinking that I, being able to control my own emotions, would be able to be objective on the matter, thus solving the mystery once and for all.

Clearly I was wrong. No, no, I'm never wrong. I must merely be missing something. After that thought, I slapped myself in the head. Of course, I couldn't possibly acquire enough data after only one experiment. I suppose I can excuse that due to the fact that I'm a theoretical rather than an experimental physicist. Leonard is an experimental physicist. Huh. I could make a wager on the fact that Leonard would be thrilled to be the one performing this particular experiment.

Ok, now I'm just talking nonsense. Back to point. Where was I? Oh, yes, another experiment. Field test n#2, if you will. Hum, but how could I possibly recreate the exact variables involved in the previous experiment? No, that's much too chaotic to be manageable. I should probably just forget the whole thing. Yes, I believe I should apologize to Penny (I'm beginning to understand that's the appropriate response after kissing a woman who was not expecting to be kissed) and drop the research. As of that moment, all I had accomplished had led me towards a spiral of tormented thoughts and delusions. With that in mind, I went to bed, deciding that I would apologize first thing in the morning and move on as if nothing's happened. This shouldn't be hard, due to the fact that if something did happen, I'm sure it was meaningless for both me and Penny. Right.


I assumed confronting Penny wouldn't be particularly easy, but I'm pleased to report that our morning encounter, as Leonard, I and she entered the hallway to retreat for work, went rather "smoothly". We both said "Hello" and despite a slight twitch I felt in my left eye, nothing could indicate that we had previously experienced something of that nature.

After that, my work day went as usual; successful equations and discoveries, newly formed theories, series of scientific articles moving with outstanding speed. All thoughts of Penny and our little, shall I say, late night encounter, had drifted out of my mind completely.

That was, though, until Leonard and I arrived home. It was Thai food night and Wolowitz and Koothrappali were expected to come over with the food. I grabbed a cola from the fridge and sat peacefully at my spot, where I waited, watching reruns.

Leonard mentioned something about work keeping him extremely busy and excused himself to the work desk, where he seemed concentrated at whatever doomed research he could have had.

As of that moment, I was immensely alarmed when the door flung open to reveal a flushed, heavy-breathing and without a doubt extremely angry Penny. I realize now that anger isn't exactly strange behavior when it comes to her. In fact, it seems to be the general norm.

She simply walked in, grabbed my arm and pulled me up from the couch, making me spill my drink all over my "The Flash" t-shirt. But she did not care for the fact that no amount of laundry would be able to remove the stain from what now was a ruined rare shirt. Leonard glanced at her, looking puzzled as she dragged me to the hallway closing the door behind us.

"Penny", I began, reprehending her, but she cut me mid-sentence, her hand fully opened, pressed against my chest, pushing me onto the door.

"Now, listen here, Sheldon, and listen very carefully. I will not, understand, will not be a guinea pig or a white lab rat or whatever in your little experiments. You may have no clue as to how human interactions work, but here, I'll give you one: You don't go around kissing people, especially for experiments, okay? Not ever. So don't even think about trying to pull that on me again, got it? Or you'll force me to take harsh measures." She spoke fast and forcefully, but oddly keeping her voice in a low-key tone, as to not be overheard, I assumed. At her final statement, she glared at me with the killer look we reserved for each other.

I was too appalled by her actions to respond with anything dignified, so I nodded.

"I'm actually through with the research, Penny," I added, staring at our feet.

At that, she finally removed her hand from my chest and the place she was pressing stung, as if burning a little. How bizarre.

She seemed to be considering my words. After a brief ruminating moment, she said:

"Oh, hum. Well then, sorry. Hum, sorry about this." She glanced down, looking embarrassed.

"I believe I should be the one apologizing, Penny. Kissing you last night was inappropriate due to the fact that you did not wish to be kissed by me. And for that, I'm sorry."

I looked to my left side as she glanced up at me, smiling. I remembered the words I had once used to describe her smile to myself and felt the capillaries on my cheeks dilate with a sudden rush of blood to them.

"I kissed you back, you know?"

I did not understand what she was talking about, so I frowned.

"What?"

"Sheldon, I was upset because of the experiment. But now that you told me it's over… I mean, I didn't get upset about the kiss. Not. At. All." She paused the last words, saying each one in, metaphorically of course, a different sentence.

I looked at her in shock.

"What?"

"You didn't like it?" I sensed an implication of disappointment, but I could have been wrong, I'm not very good at guessing emotions.

"I don't know, I…I told you yesterday." I looked firmly to the other side as she took a step closer to me. I had told her. I couldn't evaluate the experiment properly, that was the reason why I had dropped it. I repeated that to her, but that just made her smile grow wider, except in a rather frightening way.

"Well, you know, maybe you just got to give it another try," she said.

I was unable to move, partially because I couldn't send a proper neural command to my leg muscles, and mostly because her hands were now pressed against the door, on both sides of my shoulders. She leaned forward until her lips were mere inches from mine. I was still looking at the other side. But suddenly at that moment I experienced the strange physical sensations once again. I felt my head turn around to expose my lips to hers and I closed my eyes immediately, as to not see the bizarreness of what I was doing. I must have gone insane, at last. The poor thought coordination and lack of movement control was clearly a sign of mental instability. There was also the heavy breathing. At the moment I didn't care about any of this. I was operating on limbic system, on animal instincts. Maybe my original theories of kissing were correct. But why I was I succumbing to it? I've never been one to fall for instinctive behaviors. I was a superior animal. This was one of the extremely rare moments in which I was not proud of myself. I was turning from iHomo Novus/i into a common iHomo Sapiens Sapiens/i. Pathetic.

I felt her lips brush against mine and my hands lifted, seeking out for the place in her back they liked to touch. But just as I was about to open my mouth, inviting her in, a familiar voice shouted from behind her.

"Penny? Sheldon? What the hell?" It was Wolowitz.

As Penny jumped away from me, I had to hold the doorknob to keep from falling down.

To be continued