The Shared Room Phenomenon
Chapter Two: Night Terrors
It was 2:36 Am and throughout the night silence echoed. Sheldon and Amy continued to lay next to each, both sound asleep. Then for no apparent reason Amy started to toss and then to moan. Sheldon was a heavy sleeper so he didn't notice this sudden change. Amy continued toss, "no, no please." Amy mummed, "no not that, anything but that, please. I'm begging you." she gasped, still tossing and turning in shock. Suddenly Amy started Screaming, "NO, PLEASE DON'T."
Sheldon sat bolt upright in shock. "What's going on?" He exclaimed. Amy was shaking and waving her arms around violently still screaming. Her right arm smashed into his face. Sheldon was knocked back and startled, but he recovered quickly; frantically he grabbed Amy's arms and pinned her down. Amy was still screaming "NOT THAT, PLEASE PLEASE DON'T, I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY, NO PLEASE." "Amy," he shouted "Amy wake up, your dreaming, Amy." Amy's eyes fluttered open. Panting she awoke to see Sheldon's worried face looking down on her.
He let go and swivelled round back to her side, Amy stared at him for a moment. Before her eyes began to water, she started to cry. Tears ran down her side as she sobbed. Sheldon pulled her in close, wrapping his arms around her. "It's okay" he said softly "you were only dreaming, it was just a nightmare, your safe now." As he spoke he rubbed her back softly. Amy snuggled up to his chest still crying.
It was about then that both of them realised what was happening. Sheldon loosened his grip and Amy pulled out leaving his arms still on her shoulders. Both of them faced each other, tears were still running down Amy's face however the surprise at what was happening had temporarily diminished her sadness. For a few moments there was silence and then Amy spoke. "You were comforting me." She said, her voice was cracking slightly "I was." Sheldon replied, clearly just as surprised as she was, his accent was cracking. He paused "do you want me to stop?" Sheldon managed. Amy slowly shook her head; tears began to flow down her face again. Sheldon pulled her in close just as Amy started to bawl.
Partially lying on their side, Sheldon held Amy close to him. He was surprised as she was at his actions, almost his whole life he had been terrified of physical contact. He remembered when he was four when he first started to read about bacteria, something he often regretted. After he finished he found he could no longer let anyone not even his mother touch him ever again. Every time anybody did, all he could think about was the millions of bacterium, slipping and sliding all over his skin, like little leaches and worms. Each individual parasitoid crawling onto him. All of them continually trying to pierce his skin and poison his blood stream.
And yet with Amy it felt different. She wasn't like any situation he had previously encountered. Although a nagging worry about germs still echoed through his mind, somehow he was ignoring it, somehow for the first time in his life he didn't care about the germs, he didn't care about possibly getting sick. He just wanted to make Amy feel better and this was making her feel better. So he straightened up slightly and continued to hold Amy close. Besides Amy's standard of hygiene was second only to his own, it was unlikely he had anything to worry about any way.
Amy was already feeling better, snuggling up to her boyfriend's chest made her feel better; she nuzzled her head against Sheldon chest. It felt so good, as she recently had discovered her boyfriend was a lot more toned than she had expected and holding that in mind, it made the experience all the better.
Amy hated having night terrors, she always had, but hating them hadn't stopped her having them. Even when she had thought she had gotten rid of them, they always came back. Although not on Sheldon's level, Amy was well aware that she had an ego, and was also well aware that she had a large ego, she was well aware her ego was larger than pretty much everyone she knew, other than Sheldon of course. But she was a genius. She had every right to have a big ego, after all she had already achieved more than most of her counterparts and more importantly she had the potential to achieve more than all of them. Her mind was equal, nay greater than the likes of Fere, Golgi or Dale.
And that was the reason she so hated having night terrors. Amy understood they were the results of unresolved trauma manifesting its self in her subconscious mind, but that never made her feel even an ounce better. They often happened when she was away from home but sometimes, particularly during bad patches she would have them at home as well.
And the reason Amy hated them was how they made her feel. Waking up from one she was always left panting feeling terrified, alone, tiny and insignificant. Submerged in a giant pool of blackness and nothing. No one around her, no one to help her, just no one.
But this time it had been different, oh so different. Amy was still afraid; she was still shocked and shaken and scared. She still felt small and insignificant and she still felt like she was surrounded by darkness. But this time she wasn't alone.
The sensation of Sheldon holding her close had changed the entire dynamic. Normally it took about an hour to recover from a night terror and another hour to get back to sleep, but this time she was already feeling better, she had already stopped crying. In fact she felt well enough to break out of her hug, but she could not bring herself to, she couldn't end it now, it just felt so good. This was the most physical contact she had gotten out of her whole relationship, how could she break it off prematurely?
So she just lay there, nuzzled up to his chest and as she did she started to smile. Her fear was now gone, she felt too good to be afraid. And although she still felt shaken, being so close to Sheldon made her feel better. The sensation of his strong arms wrapping round her frail body was just like she had dreamed it would be. She knew he would protect her, she knew he would keep her safe.
As Amy partially lay there, several things began to occur on her. The first was just how tall Sheldon was. Amy was well aware Sheldon was a tall man, she had never complained about this nor would she ever. She found his height one of his most attractive features. This wasn't uncommon, from a biologic point of view, being attracted to height made perfect sense as greater height in males was normal synonymous with health, strength and virility all traits desirable in a successful mate, particularly in passing onto offspring. It also coupled with the traditional, social cultural view of desiring a partner to be strong and tall to protect the weaker partner, thus keeping them safe from the harsh world, thus fitting into two classes of relationship criteria. Plus he also had lovely long legs.
However this was the first it had really dawned on her how large the gap between the two of them was. Amy was nuzzled up to Sheldon's chest, he had tilted his head down, so it was just above hers and yet her feet were only just below Sheldon's. Looking at him Amy felt tiny, but not in the same way she normally did in this situation. It wasn't like she was insignificant, it was like she was protected, like she needed to be protected and yet in not in a bad way, she wanted to be protected, she could feel it. It was then that she realised something else, an interesting point on the dynamic of their relationship had just occurred to her.
Technically in their relationship Sheldon was the dominant partner, he made most of the decisions he set most of the terms. Amy had no problems with this arrangement, she had realised this was how there relationship was going to turn out shortly after they first met, it had been obvious that he was going to take this position in their relationship (not that she had realised the scale their relationship would amount to at the time). After all he was clearly a leader, his strong will, quick wit, charismatic nature and high intelligence, coupled with his natural impressive height and strong but silky smooth voice, thus providing an additional psychological factor to back him up made him perfect for this position, no sane person could even consider denying it.
However due to the complicated nature of their relationship, brought on by emotional issues that multiple childhood traumas had created, there were times when Amy had to take a maternal role in their relationship. Up to now she had always disliked side of their relationship; she was his girlfriend, not his mother. Their relationship was built on a mutual respect and admiration of one another, reinforced by an enjoyment of each other's company, extended with the possibility to evolve into future intimacy and potential coitus at a later date (but not too late though hopefully). So when she had to act in a parental or nurturing role, it had always annoyed Amy. She had been forced to endure it, merely to preserve their relationship and yet now the roles were reversed, she was beginning to rethink this opinion.
The way it felt to have Sheldon's strong arms wrapped around made her smile. It made Amy feel safe and secure and it was clearly a nurturing if not paternal role he had taken. He was there to help and make her feel better in her time of need. Was it possible this was how he felt when he needed her to maternal towards him? If it was then she could understand why he sometimes required her to take the role she had formally hated. As she thought about it, Amy realised that maybe she had been too hasty with her judgement. After everyone needed someone to be nurturing to them at some point or other in their life, as a scientist Amy had read multiple psychological studies on the effects of lack of nurturing upon brain development and its repercussions in later life.
As Amy thought all this through, Sheldon had let his arms lower slightly so he was now holding Amy even closer. He hadn't noticed he had done this though. Holding Amy close to him Sheldon was truthfully unsure what he was feeling, it was difficult to describe. He was calm but worried; he was warm, cheerful but unstable, uncertain but certain. At any other time this confusion would have driven him to running the nearest hospital and demanding a brain scan to make sure he hadn't developed a tumour, but for some reason nothing felt wrong not even the fact he didn't feel anything was wrong didn't feel wrong, something that would have normally shaken him beyond belief.
So the two of them just continued to partially lie partially sit there holding the other close. Neither spoke, they were both to busy thinking. Then after several minutes of silence Sheldon spoke. "Amy," he said softly. "Yes?" Amy asked. "Are you feeling any better?" Amy sighed; he was getting uncomfortable holding her. Sheldon hadn't meant it to be taken that way; he was simply asking whether he was making her feel better. But Amy, through a mixture of surprise at him actually comforting her and the expectation he would break up like he had on all the previous occasions they had been this close, took it as an expression declaring that her time was up. Still she had gotten the experience she couldn't complain it didn't last for ever and that reassured her.
But still she was a bit saddened, Amy broke out of his grip and sat up straight next to him "yes Sheldon," she said "I am feeling better." Sheldon stared at her surprised by her breaking away from him. He felt strange. On the one he knew he should be happy Amy was feeling better and didn't need him to hold her close anymore, furthermore the part of his mind that remembered his fear of germs had stopped buzzing. And yet for some reason, he felt… sad. Well saddened. He couldn't understand it. He paused to contemplate whether or not he should take up having that tumour check.
His thoughts were interrupted when he noticed Amy, she was still shaking slightly. "Why are you shaking? I thought I had made you feel better?" Sheldon asked perplexed and some strange reason disappointed by this reaction. "Oh you did," Amy quickly said sensing his disappointment at his apparent failure to soothe her. "It's just night terrors leave me shaken, they always have." Sheldon paused, "excuse me a minute." He said before grabbing his wallet and his dressing gown, putting it on he walked out of the room.
Amy was stunned by this abrupt exit, why had he left her? Where had he gone? Amy shuddered slightly; she was still sitting in the dark. Reaching for the light, Amy realised just how dark the room had been. She was aware that Nyctophobia was a perfectly rational fear; it was simply an example of the natural fear of the unknown, as well as being an evolutionary primal fear, left over from man's more primitive times, after all most predators hunted in the dark. Never the less she still felt more comfortable when the light flickered on and the room was no longer dark.
Amy relaxed slightly; she was still sitting upright in bed. Deciding she wouldn't be able to get to sleep like this, Amy got out of bed and walked over to the coach. She sat down; looking at the clock she found it was 2:55. She groaned but the lectures started late today, so maybe sleeping in wouldn't be so bad. However her thoughts continued returning to the fact that Sheldon had left so suddenly. Why had he left? She replayed the thought through her mind over and over again, and didn't take long for a nasty idea to creep into her mind.
Had he left because holding her close to him had made him to uncomfortable to stay with her?
Amy gulped, she tried to tell herself that that was silly, she hadn't forced him into anything he had held her of his own volition. But she couldn't get the thoughts out of her mind and with each thought another window of doubt and worry was opened in her mind. She tried to reassure herself again, but it came to nothing. This was Sheldon Cooper she as talking about, the same Sheldon Cooper who was almost famous for his manic fear of germs and severe problems of having others touch him. Amy's mind returned to the previous day when he'd literally thrown her off him while practically going through a panic attack, all because she tried to aggressively hug him. As she sat there Amy began to feel guilty, why had she prolonged there contact? She hadn't needed it to go on so long; she was feeling better long before the end. But she had let it carry on, because she had enjoyed it. She'd let it carry on to the point where he had to ask her if he could let it go on. Why couldn't she have broken off before it made him uncomfortable? Now she had driven him out. He may not come back for hours.
Amy stood up, almost overcome with a mixture of worry and guilt. Walking over to the mirror she looked back at herself. Why was it when anything was going her way, she had to ruin it by pushing her luck to the very limit, at which point she always broke it. Could she not except when something was enough, could she…
Her self-harming criticisms were interrupted by the door opening, Sheldon walked in; he had two cups in his hands. "Here you go," he said handing a cup of hot chocolate to Amy. Amy looked up at him surprised "when I was a boy my mother used to make me hot chocolate when I had nightmares." Sheldon explained. Amy paused for a moment, before smiling, she then began to laugh.
Sheldon stared at this reaction dumbfound, "why are you laughing?" he asked. Amy chuckled "no reason," she replied. Sheldon stared at her for a moment, before dismissing it as another unexplainable trait of the naturally chaotic universe he was forced to live in. He handed Amy her drink before sitting down next to her.
Amy looked at Sheldon as he did; he was watching her as if he was waiting for something. Not sure why Amy took a swig of the hot chocolate. It did taste good, Amy sighed. "Thank you," she said, "that was a very sweet gesture, but you didn't need to go out in middle of the night to get me a drink." "I'm your boyfriend," Sheldon replied "It's my job to make you feel better when you're sad; you make me feel better when I'm sad, why should I not return the favour."
Amy stared at him, the two eyes met. And they both smiled. Amy chuckled, to think only a few hours ago she had been seriously considering ending this relationship. What had she been thinking? She realised then she must never let Sheldon know how close she came to making the biggest mistake of her life. Amy relaxed into the sofa and took another sip of her chocolate. Sheldon's eyes were still fixed upon her.
"So," Sheldon said unsurely, he paused trying to think of what to say next. He had almost never been in the situation where he had to comfort anyone before and as such he wasn't really certain what to do next. Come on Cooper think, your one of the greatest minds alive surely you can think of something, he told himself. And then an idea occurred to him.
"Amy," he said, "do you want to tell me what you were dreaming about?" Amy waited hoping he would finish with his standard "please remember no, is a perfectly acceptable answer." But for once he didn't. Amy gulped, mixed feelings spread through her. On the one hand she didn't want to talk about her dreams, it was embarrassing, it was humiliating, and she couldn't let her boyfriend know about it. But on the other hand, Amy felt touched. Sheldon wanted to hear her problems; he never wanted to hear anyone's problems.
Sheldon waited for Amy's answer, he was unsure why he had asked. Normally other people's problems were simply another thing he had to put up with. But this was his girlfriend, if something was making her sad it was his duty to make her feel better. Once again he was baffled by his mixed feelings, he shouldn't want to hear her problems and yet he did or should he want to hear them? It was all too confusing to think about, so Sheldon forced them all out of his mind and focused entirely on Amy.
Eventually Amy said "Sheldon, it was just a silly little dream, it's not important." Sheldon stared at Amy surprised by this dismissive response. "Amy," he said calmly, but at the same time with a tone of annoyance "that silly little dream caused you hit me in the face, is the reason we are both up at 3:17 in the morning and shook you like an earthquake. If that's a silly little dream, I pray you never find yourself facing a serious one or else it would probably kill you." He snapped. He stopped his eyes opened wide in horror, what had he just said.
Amy stared at him shocked, but Sheldon was far more shocked than she was. He felt like he had just stabbed his own heart with an Ice Pick. "I'm…I'm sorry," he managed, his voice cracking slightly. "It's okay," Amy replied, "and you're right it wasn't just a silly little dream, it's a recurring nightmare I've been having for years."
Sheldon's thoughts were snapped back to reality, "you poor thing, do you want to tell me what it's about?" Amy gulped, sensing her worry Sheldon edged closer to her. "If you don't want I understand," he said calmly "I only want to help." Amy smiled, "you do," she said calmly, "that's all you want to do." Sheldon was confused why she had repeated his very words, but deciding it wasn't important he instead once again edged closer. "Okay I'll tell you." Amy said. "Just promise me one thing," "Anything." Sheldon replied. "Don't let what I'm going to tell you change your opinion of me," Sheldon chuckled. "Amy you could tell me you had murdered twenty seven virgins because they sneezed on you and I wouldn't care." He said calmly, before adding "although if it is that, I would require you to sign an agreement promising not to ever murder me." Amy chuckled not sure if he was serious or joking.
"Okay," Amy began, "I keep dreaming I'm reliving one of my worst memories," she paused to gulp, "but before you go into this I think I should provide some background information so you can fully understand the events of the story." Sheldon nodded, why couldn't everyone else be so considerate, most people would just start ranting on about how some people he had never heard of had done something he didn't know what it was and carry on not giving him an opportunity to ask questions or make sense of their babbles.
"You see Sheldon," Amy began "growing up I was always a late developer," she paused for a moment "well physically at least, mentally I was beyond most of my teachers by the time I was mine." Amy smirked and Sheldon smiled almost as if he was saying "that's my girl." Amy's smiles faded. "But physically I was always behind everyone else, when I was fourteen; I still could have passed for and I was often mistaken for a nine year old."
She shook her head, "at fifteen I was still below five feet. I was more undeveloped than an apple pip." Amy paused, her eyes started to water "and they never let me forget it," she started to cry, Sheldon quickly grabbed her and pulled her in close for the second time that night. "My whole childhood they used to bully me," Amy sobbed, "when I was a child I was too weird, to strange, to smart, they used to ignore me, they used to mock me and when I became a teenager it just got worse."
Amy paused saying this hurt her in several ways but she was down the rabbit hole, it was too late to stop, all she could do was ride out the pain and get to the end as quick as she could. "I never had any friends throughout high school, no one wanted to know me, not even the other nerds. They all told me I was a freak, an ugly freak who was destined to spend the rest of my life alone and die in ditch and have my body untouched as even the worms and the maggots wouldn't want to be with me." As he heard this Sheldon noticed his fist was clenching. For some unknown reason hearing this was making him angry.
"Well the nightmare that was having, is about events that happened 1996, shortly before my sixteenth birthday. By that point I had finally started growing up; I was finally catching up with my peers. It was a warm spring day and it was on that day I made one of the worst mistakes of my life." Amy stood to shudder. Sheldon continued to hold her close, once again this comforted her, but the bad memories would not stop hurting regardless.
"I don't know what possessed me." Amy began, her voice was cracking with sadness, "but I decided it would be a good idea to leave the safety of the library and go watch the cheerleaders rehearse. I don't know why, they hated me, they all hated me, everyone hated me. But something inside me made me do it, so I left the library. Classes had ended for the day you see, but I had stayed behind to get some extra work done. I crept out and there they were on the football field."
Amy gulped, she looked like carrying on this anecdote was causing her great pain, but she still couldn't bring herself to stop. "Well I didn't want them to see me, so I went and hid in the bushes. And there they were twenty of the prettiest, most popular girls in the whole school right in front of me." Amy gulped, "I just stood there watching them. I don't know why I did, at the time I thought it would be fun to see them practice, but looking back I can't help but wonder if I was secretly hoping that now that I was finally changing I might become one of them." Amy paused, once again she was crying, "how could I ever be stupid enough to hold thoughts like that?"
Sheldon's fists were now clenched so hard they were hurting his own hands. "Then they finished their practice and went into get changed. I should have left then, I was safe, they hadn't seen me and it was getting late, I knew the last bus was leaving soon. But for some reason I followed them."
Amy gulped, "and once again there they were, getting changed right before me. And I continued to watch them, watching there great figures exposed and shifting and for a moment I allowed the possibility that one day I may be like that." And for a second Amy smiled, before it was shattered. "Then the inevitable happened, one of them spotted me."
"So I ran," Amy gulped, she was practically choking by this point, "that was the second biggest mistake I made that day. I should have stayed, should have made up some excuse and left quietly, I should done a lot of things, but instead I panicked and I ran." Amy shuddered, "And next thing I knew I was being chased across a field by a mob of angry girls."
"Now as you remember I was underdeveloped for my age and the most exercise I ever did was walking up the stairs to the library. It was merely adrenaline that got me running in the first place, and that didn't last very long. They caught me with minutes and pinned me down. Then they circled me like a wake of vultures. They demanded to know why I was spying on them. I tried to explain, but I was so scared all I managed to reveal was I had been watching them throughout practice and that just made it worse, it made more angry and then they went for me."
"First they called me names and then they accused me of being a pervert and a lesbian. Then they started to attack me, all of them, twenty legs kicked me over and over again. And then one of them came up with an idea."
Amy had already started crying, now she was barely getting words out through the tears. "They carried me into the groove at the bottom of our schools football pitch and then…" She gulped "Then…" she stopped again, "then… Then they stripped me to my underwear, poured honey over my head and chest and tied me to a tree. And then they left me there. It was four hours before my mother found me. I was left there alone for four hours, with nothing other than the sickening feeling of the honey running down my neck and stomach, and the buzzing of the flies that were getting caught in it."
Sheldon arms wrapped around Amy even tighter, "those…" he paused mustering his anger before finally finishing his sentence "bitches." He said angrily. Amy was slightly shocked by this she had never heard Sheldon use that sort of language in three years they had known each other. "You poor, poor thing," he said sadly, his fists still clenched.
"It was my own fault," Amy sighed, "If I hadn't been so stup…" Amy began but she never finished. At that point Sheldon suddenly pushed her back, while still holding his arms around her, so that she and he were now staring each other in the eyes. "Amy Farrah Fowler, I will here you say such things about yourself, you are not weird! You are not strange!" You are not a freak! You are not UGLY! You are not a pervert! And most importantly of all, YOU ARE NOT STUPID! I will not let you talk so lowly of yourself."
Sheldon paused, trying to calm down, he took several deep breaths before turning back to Amy. Amy continued to stare at him shocked. He had never had an emotional reaction like this before since she had met him. She had caused him to do so many things he had never done before…. Sheldon gulped. "Amy," he said calmly but at the same time forcefully, "you are the smartest, kindest and sweetest girl ever to walk the face of this earth." As he continued to speak his voice got more and more forceful. "To hell with what a group of bimbos thought eighteen years ago, right now there probably starving to death, dancing for quarters or married to some ancient rich guy. You're a successful, renowned, respected and accomplished scientist. You've won this great competition that they call life, don't let anyone ever tell you anything different, because there wrong, there all wrong!"
The two of them sat there in silence for several minutes, there gaze broken. Neither knew what to say, both were equally surprised by this emotional outburst. Sheldon could only think of one time he had felt anything even remotely similar to this, six years ago when he had called Penny out on her hypocrisy when she almost drove Leonard into giving up his beloved collection. But what he had just done was miles above anything that had happened then. Amy looked at her boyfriend, never before had she heard him be so forceful. Sheldon was generally accustomed to getting his own way and he would argue when he didn't but he had never put passion like that into any argument or complaint or anything she had ever heard about him being in. But the surprise quickly began to melt as the second part of his speech began to connect in her mind.
Amy's expression started to flicker, she had already stopped crying but now she only looked uncertain. Finally in a cracking voice she finally asked, "Sheldon do you really think those things about me?" Sheldon gulped "I've always thought about you that way and I was will, because they are true." He replied, his accent cracking slightly. The two's eyes met, for several minutes they just stared, as they did both smiled. "Oh Sheldon," She managed. Forcing herself forward she hugged him. She paused unsure, but before she could even have second thoughts his arms wrapped around her pulling her closer to him.
For the second time that night she snuggled up to his chest, resting her head against it, once again she smiled. Sheldon gulped once again he found himself silenced by his own actions. He knew this should worry him and yet it didn't. A part of his mind might occasionally start to speak out, but before it even finished it was already crushed back down.
He paused unsure how to continue and then with a slight shudder another idea came to him. "Amy," he said calmly, "if it makes you feel any better, I think I should tell you that I understand what you went through and how it must have hurt you." Amy looked up slightly "you do?" she asked, Sheldon nodded "my own childhood was no bed of roses, I never had any experiences of high school mind you as I never went and from your description I'm glad I made that choice."
Amy sighed, "You were very lucky." She managed; "still," Sheldon went on, "I did have a number of similar experiences to your own, only for me the problem was the opposite of yours." Interested Amy sat up slightly, but did not break there connection, she would never forgive herself if she broke her second chance in one day at this. "What do you mean?" Amy asked.
"Well," Sheldon began, "were as you were a late developer, I was always an early one." Amy paused confused how this could be a problem, "I don't think I understand, how could cause you problems?" she said calmly. "Well," Sheldon began, "let me put it this way. You know I'm quite tall?" "Of course," Amy replied, her thoughts returned to her earlier contemplation on how she loved his height. She smiled. "What is it?" Sheldon asked. "Just thinking about your height." Amy replied truthfully.
"Well," Sheldon began "would you believe me if I told you I crossed the six foot barrier when I was fourteen." Amy sat upright, "fourteen?" She asked shocked, "you were already above average at fourteen?" "I have been above average since I was six years old," Sheldon replied calmly, "in height at least." He clarified.
"Before my sixth birthday, kids used to mock and beat me up because they were jealous of me being smarter than their parents, then after that they started to hate me because I was always taller. I taller than all of them, I was the tallest person in my class for almost six years. And they all hated it, when I ever got tripped up in the halls someone would always shout timber and then they would laugh. When I was eleven I was taller than most of the older children in the school, even the ones with a gap of three years I was still taller than them. And they hated that to, the fact that they were forced to look up at me, they all hated it."
He paused to gulp, "and of course they didn't let me leave without getting me one last time." He paused before continuing, Amy stared at Sheldon worried. He had been that tall for so long? She had always been to short throughout her life and he had apparently always been too tall, in a strange sort of way it made her both worried and happy they had each been the victim of extremes.
Sheldon gulped, "The closest incident suffered to yours happened shortly after my twelve birthday, I had graduated from school and I was going to college in the fall, but I guess my school mates decided they wanted to get me on last time before I finally out of their grasp."
"It was just about two o'clock in the afternoon, July 9th 1992; I was out walking by the side of the river as I often did when my parents were fighting when they jumped me. I didn't see exactly who jumped me, but I was so used to it happening I recognised the people by amount of pressure they put on my back. Holding me to the ground they blindfolded me. Then they started to beat me up, just like they always did. Eventually they must of got tired of punching me or watching my blood spill, so instead they led me off, one of them had to help me along as in there assault they had managed to dislocate my left leg. After about two hours they finally got to where they were taking me. They took the blind fold off and I found I was in the middle of nowhere; they then made me kneel and tied a flashlight to my head, and tied me to a pole. One of them pinned a sign into my chest, it read "please enjoy are knew street light." Sheldon gulped, "then they left me in the middle of nowhere."
He shuddered as the thoughts went through his mind, "What happened next?" Amy asked shocked at the events she had heard, "my father finally found me," Sheldon replied shuddering, "two days later." Amy stared at him horrified, "you were left tied to a pole for two days when you twelve just because you were taller than they were?" Amy screamed. Sheldon nodded solemnly.
Amy suddenly grabbed Sheldon, forcing her arms around him. "You went through all that? And I had the audacity to moan about my own experiences?" Amy gulped feeling guilty. "I should be comforting you," she said sadly, holding her head slightly "what you went through was much worse than anything I ever suffered." Sheldon seemed slightly uncomfortable with the way Amy was holding him. "Thank you for the gesture Amy," he said calmly, "but really you don't need to comfort me."
"You comforted me," Amy said, "why shouldn't I help you?" "No you misunderstand," Sheldon said calmly as he broke out of her grip, "you don't need to comfort me because I've gotten over it, it doesn't bother me anymore, the memory it's still painful, but apart from that it doesn't bother me." Amy stared at him, "It doesn't bother you?" She asked shocked, "you went through all that and it doesn't bother you? Buts that's impossible."
Sheldon chuckled, "not at all." He said calmly, "it was one event that happened over twenty years ago," Sheldon replied, "Why should I let it bother me? It's not important, it's just a bad memory, you can't change the past, so why dwell on it? Besides it's only the really bad memories that bother me." Amy stared at Sheldon this time in awe. He went through all that, and who knows what else and he was able to simply move on from it? "You're a stronger person then I'll ever be Amy," mummed. Sheldon shook his head, "I'm not," he replied, "I've simply got more practice at it than you have, I've just got seven years on you, that's all I've got."
Amy stared at him again; he was actually denying a statement that he was better than someone else. She paused to stare at Sheldon; just to it generally was Sheldon. It touched Amy that he was willing to do all these things for her; he never did the same things for anyone else, just her. "Are you feeling better?" Sheldon asked. Amy nodded, "then shall we go back to bed?" Sheldon asked, Amy paused, before nodding. "Sure," she said with a yawn and a smile, "but first thank you," "you don't need to thank me," Sheldon replied, "no," Amy said "I do, I really do."
The two of them got back into bed, Sheldon turned the light out and was soon asleep. Amy laid there looking at him before lying down; I have a wonderful boyfriend she mummed to herself before nodding off. Sheldon smiled, somewhere in his mind he said "And he's got an equally wonderful girlfriend." Amy smiled. Both of them laid there smiling at their pleasant dreams.
Hope you enjoyed, I will post the Third and (probably) final chapter soon.
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