And we're up to chapter 3 in 2 days! I just can't seem to stop. Haha.
Anyways, this one is based off a verse, bridge and chorus in the song "No One's Gonna Love You" By Band of Horses. Great song. As always, I encourage you to take a listen.
AN: Don't own the song or the characters, sadly.
Anything to make you smile
You are the ever-living ghost of what once was
I never want to hear you say
That you'd be better off
Or you liked it that way
It was unusual the day that Penny left Sheldon before he woke up. It was even more unusual when it happened again the next day. And the one after that.
It was unusual when Penny excused herself from eating with them on Thai night. It was even more unusual on Thursday's pizza night.
When she failed to show at Halo night, Sheldon knew something was wrong. In the entire 6 months he had been involved romantically with Penny, and the preceding two years of friendship before that, she had never failed to show at dinner unless she was working and she always woke Sheldon if she had to leave before he was awake.
But something was wrong and he was deeply worried about what it was.
He took his opportunity on Friday's Vintage Video Game night to voice his opinion to people who he knew (begrudgingly it was true), were more socially apt than he was.
"If you're in a romantic relationship," He hedged, pausing the game with his avatar mid jump. "Is it a sign of imminent failure if you don't see your partner for numerous days?"
"I wouldn't worry." Said Wolowitz as he rose to the refrigerator and took out a can of Coke. "She's still coming here to spend the night with you. She can't hate you that much."
"Unless she's only using him for one thing." Winked Raj.
"No, I would hear that." Leonard laughed. "Every time they do anything like that, Sheldon starts listing all the Marvel comic book heroes until Penny begs him to shut up."
"Yeah, what is with that dude?" Raj interjected.
"Anyway," Sheldon stated loudly. "You're not helping me. I... I need help."
Leonard's neck almost snapped as his head swivelled around to look at Sheldon who was decidedly looking at his shoes.
"You... You need help? From us?" Disbelief coloured his tone. It was not a tone that Sheldon liked hearing. He raised his head and locked eyes with Leonard. His expression was somewhere between a glare and pleading.
"I don't want to lose her Leonard. She may be insufferably irritating with her constant inability to master even basic physics, but she's special. She understands me, which previously was something only my mother was competent at."
"Maybe she's just stressed out at work? You should just talk to her Sheldon, you're probably worrying over nothing."
Sheldon nodded his head, half silently cursing the fact that they were better at this than him, half listening for the unmistakable signs of Penny returning home from work.
It was half an hour later that he heard her keys in the door across the hall. He, for the second time that evening paused the game, and walked out of the apartment.
"Damn that Vulcan hearing." Wolowitz muttered in amazement as he stared after him.
Sheldon closed the door behind him. Penny hadn't noticed him behind her and she jumped a little as Sheldon bent close to her ear and kissed her gently on the cheek.
"Sheldon!"
He appraised her emotion. She seemed happy to see him, a little flushed in the cheeks. He prayed it wasn't a fever.
But then again, he prayed that he could better understand the emotion behind her smile now. Her eyes seemed worried, downcast. A sheer contrast to the smile she had on her lips.
Regardless, she still stood on her toes to reach up and greet him properly. When they both pulled away for breath, Sheldon took the opportunity.
"Penny, we need to talk."
But no one is ever gonna love you more than I do But someone
No one's gonna love you more than I do
They should have warned you
When things start splitting at the seams and now
The whole thing's tumbling down
Things start splitting at the seams and now
If things start splitting at the seams and now,
It's tumbling down
Hard
He never really understood how those 5 words could display such an emotion, but then again, he had never really seen it.
And now he kind of wished he hadn't said it like that.
Penny's eyes darkened, like a light had been extinguished from behind them. Tears began to well in them and one by one they spilled over, wetting her cheeks as the fell. She drew in a large rasping breath and her hands shook as she tried to open the door.
She gestured for Sheldon to come in. Walking to her room, she deposited her bag and shoes just behind the door and came and sat on the lounge.
He made a mental note to praise her for her tidiness later.
She took in another loud breath and looked him directly in the eye.
"What's brought all this on?"
"What do you mean Penny?"
"I mean the 'We need to talk'".
"Oh, no." He smiled, realising the misinterpretation. "I simply meant I had to clarify a social convention with you. I wasn't, as they put it, "breaking up" with you." She looked at him, nodding for him to continue. "I was merely going to enquire about why you have been seemingly distancing yourself from me lately. I feel like I haven't seen you in days."
"But I stayed over last night sweetie." She was rubbing his hand in small soothing circles. She looked down at the two hands intwined and a small tear ran down her cheek.
"Yes, I understand that." He placed a finger under her chin and raised her face to level with his. "But I've been missing you. I don't want you to be away from me. It feels like we're heading towards the so called "breakup" Penny. And it scares me."
Penny looked at him and for the first time, he looked vulnerable. Her heart melted at the sight of him silently pleading with her. But as soon as she realised it, that feeling was mixed with another she was fast getting used to.
As fast as she could, she stood and raced to the bathroom.
Sheldon sat silently in the lounge room, hearing the distinctive sounds of digestive evacuation. Silently wondering for a moment whether it was the right social convention to go and check on someone when they were doing that, his instincts got the better of him.
He followed her and knocked on the door.
*Knock, knock, knock*
"Penny?"
*Knock, knock, knock*
"Penny?"
*Knock, knock, knock*
"Penny?"
He could hear the faucet running so he entered slowly and saw Penny hunched over the sink. Going to stand behind her, he placed a wash cloth under the cold water and folded it precisely before placing it on her forehead.
Leading her to the bath, he gently sat her on it and pulled her close.
"I thought I saw the identifiable symptoms of a sickness earlier. Why didn't you just tell me you were sick?"
"I'm not just sick Sheldon." Penny pulled away and sat upright. "I'm pregnant." A small smile played across her lips. Sheldon recognised this smile. It was the smile he had seen on Leonard's face when he found out about him and Penny. It was the I-am-sort-of-happy-but-afraid-of-what-to-think smile.
Sheldon found himself smiling. Not a smile like Penny's. A large smile.
She was pregnant! Penny was carrying his protégé. His child.
"So when you left the other morning..."
"Morning sickness. Well, all day sickness really."
"And dinner?"
"I can't eat seafood or ham anymore. It makes dinners really difficult. I didn't want you catching me out before I got the chance to tell you."
"So you're not trying to distance yourself from me?"
"God no, honey! I want to be with you forever now." She laughed and leaned in close and kissed him gently. He responded just the way she thought he would. He pulled her to his chest and placed his hand on the side of her face as he kissed her earnestly back.
He broke away a few minutes later.
"Let's go and tell the others." He smiled.