Part Two
Sheldon Lee Cooper is Head Over Heels in Love with Amy Farrah Fowler
"Penny?"
I set my martini glass down on the table—the fifth I had downed that night—and alternately looked at a pair of sparkling blue eyes and a set of glassy olive green ones. "Hey, it's Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire!"
"Please," Sheldon cried with a rolling of his eyes. "You can't be that inebriated so as to forget our names."
Oh, Sheldon, I thought, trying so hard not to laugh. I guess his IQ points didn't cover areas outside of the hard sciences. "What's up?"
"It's time for us to leave."
"Aww, sweetie…" I cooed, scrunching my nose. "It is way past your bedtime, isn't it?"
"My bedtime was two hours ago," he retorted pointedly. Then without any transitional device, he followed his prior words with, "Amy has had one drink too many."
The gravity in the physicist's tone and on his face prompted me to straighten up in my seat and focus my eyes on the neurobiologist. While Amy wasn't about to pass out from the amount of alcohol in her system, the sort of wobbly way she stood on her legs seemed enough indication that if we didn't get going soon, we'd have a body to carry all the way to Amy's apartment.
Bernadette shot Amy a worried glance then got to her dainty feet. "I think we should go, Penny. I've got the morning shift tomorrow, anyway, plus a school report on deoxyuridine metabolism in eukaryotic systems as it relates to gene expression, DNA replication and DNA repair."
Whether it was the booze or Bernadette rattling off scientific lingo that did it, I wasn't so sure but I suddenly felt a bit of wooziness sinking in. "Okay," I said, giving in. I fished for a few bills from my purse to cover for the drinks before I gathered myself up and in a stand and joined Sheldon, Amy and Bernadette all waiting for me by the door.
A chilly gust of wind met us outside, as well as three taxicabs lined up by the curb. "Do you mind if I take this first cab?" Bernadette asked, a hint of guilt written on her face at wanting to leave first.
"No, of course not," I said, knowing full well that her apartment is out of our way. Amy and Sheldon shook their heads as well to let her know they weren't harboring any ill feelings.
"Thanks," the petite blonde said with a grin. "I'll see you guys tomorrow." With that repartee, Bernadette hopped in and took off.
And then there were three.
I looked over to Sheldon at my right and waited for any move from him about our next course of action. Normally, I'd be the one giving the directions whenever I was out with any of the socially-inept nerds. However, I chose to let Sheldon take on the role of the alpha male that time, especially since Amy was with us.
He didn't turn out to be a disappointment. "Penny, since we live in the same building," Sheldon began, looking at me, "the pragmatic thing is for us to take one cab. However, seeing that Amy is intoxicated, I'd like to see to it that she gets into her building safe and sound."
"Don't you think you're overreacting, Sheldon?" Amy protested out from where she stood at Sheldon's right. "I'm tipsy, not drunk. I can handle this."
"I'd have none of it," Sheldon told her with finality. With a snap of his fingers and a thumb pointing to the seat beside the taxi driver, he barked, "Penny, you ride shotgun. Amy and will be sitting at the back."
The trip to Amy's was short and silent: Amy hummed a tune and occasionally answered "I'm fine" to Sheldon's incessant queries about her condition. I thought it was really sweet of him. I'd never seen Sheldon care so much for a girl—or for anyone for that matter. Hell, when I slipped in my tub and broke an arm, I practically had to teach him how to take care of me.
"That'll be our stop," I told the cab driver once I saw the familiar building. When we came to a full halt, I looked over my shoulder at the bespectacled lady. "Good night, Amy," I bid with a little wave of my hand. "You know, if you get hung over, drinking tomato juice tomorrow morning will help."
She flashed me a smile. "As I know that you're citing that from personal experience, I deem you to be highly credible on the matter. Hence, I'll conform."
A little 'thank you' would've sufficed, I thought bitterly. With Amy talking like that again, I immediately wondered if alcohol really had affected her brain.
"Penny, do you have enough money for a cab fare?" Sheldon asked, breaking my thoughts.
For a moment, I wondered if he was checking to see if I'd mooch money from him again but I brushed the slight surprise that bubbled up and managed to look at the meter. "Uh, yeah." Thank heavens, I had managed to get good tips that afternoon at work.
"Good." Sheldon immediately got out of the taxicab, allowing Amy to leap out from the safer side of the vehicle and making me wonder what the crap he was up to. Standing by the taxi window, he nonetheless fished for a $50 bill from his wallet and handed it to me.
Before I could even ask what was going on, Sheldon offered his explanation. "See to it that you get straight home. I need to walk Amy to her door, just to be certain she doesn't trip over the stairs and break a clavicle like my father did. My Texan upbringing dictates that it's my obligation as a gentleman to see her to her door. Good night."
I knew I left my mouth hanging in shock. Hence, I could only watch Sheldon and Amy's retreating bodies since neither gave me a chance to say anything after Doctor Cooper's speech. Their silhouettes—set by the lowly hanging full moon on the horizon—rounded up the corner of the bush-lined path that led to her building's door.
And then I saw it.
Sheldon didn't kiss Amy. He didn't hold her. But he stood close enough to her that should the alcohol take over Amy and she'd fall, Sheldon was there fast enough before her body would make contact with the concrete floor. He trailed behind her, hands clasped behind like an angel watching over his ward, as she fiddled with the workings of the lock with her keys that would permit them access to the lobby.
That night, I saw a whole new side to Sheldon. He treated Amy like she was the most fragile thing in the world. Amy regarded him as though she knew he'd never let any harm befall upon her. Under the moonlit sky, it was like their auras were making love to each other.
At that moment, I was certain: Sheldon Lee Cooper is head over heels in love with Amy Farrah Fowler.
Author's Notes:
This chapter took a longer time to write primarily because it was only an implied scene. Nevertheless, I tried hard to make this scene as plausible as possible as I don't want to veer too much away from what had been aired on TV.
For those who asked, this series will all be done from Penny's point of view. It is still my conviction that despite lacking the intellectual skills to be at par with the rest of the gang, she's the one who's most insightful and perceptive in their little circle of friends. That being said, all chapters will involve Penny being in scene (as how it was broadcast on TV) or her being in a scene which I created but will still seem conceivable and will kowtow to the original storyline.
Thank you very much for reading this far. I'll start working on the next chapter as soon as this one is posted.
