A/N Sorry for the wait, but I was having a little trouble with this chapter. I'm not completely happy with it, so I might go back and redo some parts but for right now you all should let me know what you think!

Oh, and also in the show Raj would be sharing his office with Sheldon. Since this is an AU let's say he never had to work for Sheldon or share his office.

Chapter Four

With stuffing the cleaning supplies in her purse, she hoped it would help ward off some of the weird looks she had been receiving once she had stepped foot out of Sheldon's office. Now walking down to the cafeteria, she still felt the curious glances of the other scientists, professors and the occasional grad student. She supposed it didn't help that she was still wearing her Cheesecake Factory uniform. This one in particular sported a large ketchup stain on the skirt.

Sighing in relief she was glad to find the cafeteria empty when she finally reached it. She didn't need anyone to witness her cleaning out the microwave. She knew she should have dragged Sheldon clean-freak ass down here to clean it himself but he was too busy with his work and she figured that after last night she could let him have a few moments of peace.

Scrubbing away the remains of who knew what she deemed the microwave clean (her kind of clean, not Sheldon's. Lord knew she could never get it that clean) and slid the Styrofoam container inside and set the timer. He, of course, had given her the exact amount of seconds for his food to be heated properly. So what was a few extra seconds?

Plus, she was thirsty and she was going to visit that vending machine she had passed when she left Sheldon's office. So the few extra seconds in the microwave would help keep his food at the correct temperature for the few minutes she would be stopped in front of the vending machine.

Taking the now warm Styrofoam container out of the microwave she made her made her way back to Sheldon's office, stopping at the vending machine like she planned. Groping around with one hand, she managed to open her purse, pushed past the cleaning supplies and pulled out some money. Being a waitress for more than five years had taught her to become deft with one hand and she had prevented many a spill because of it.

Just as she bent down to retrieve her Vitamin Water she heard the door, next to the vending machine, open and two well-dressed men stepped out, one looking vaguely familiar. They had their backs to her and had not noticed her standing there. She was about to walk around them when Leonard's name caught her attention.

"Dr. Mueller, I can assure you that Dr. Hofstadter is the perfect candidate. It is true he hasn't shown much advancement in his work; it is very reliable. Dr. Cooper, on the other hand." The taller man turned to close his door.

"Dr. Gablehouser," said the shorter, gray-haired man. "I have known Dr. Cooper since he first stepped foot in my University when he was a boy." He also had a heavy German accent. "I believe that what happened in his Arctic expedition was not his fault and he fully believed that he had found the Higgs Boson Particle. I still think he would be the best choice."

So, Dr. Gablehouser wanted to pick Leonard over Sheldon for whatever he had planned, just because he was reliable. Sheldon had worked his ass off these last few weeks and everyone knew he was smarter than Leonard. He deserved it more than anyone and if that stupid can opener incident hadn't happened she knew he would be the most reliable person in the whole God-damn University!

It just wasn't fair; those boys had done more damage to Sheldon's career than they had thought, not like they cared though. If he never received his Nobel Prize because of this she would personal hogtie and castrate each one of them.

The two men turned and finally saw her. She lifted her hand in a wave, smile plastered on her face.

"Oh, hello, miss." Dr. Gablehouser was the first to speak and he was all but leering at her. Very professional.

"Hi." It was the only thing she thought to say. Way to go Penny, show them how smart you are!

"Are you here for someone?" It seemed the other man was completely forgotten as he talked to her. She wanted to cover herself up when his eyes began to rove over her body.

"Yes, actually. I'm here for Sheldon." She lifted up the container. "I brought him lunch. I'm Penny, by the way."

"I'm Dominik Mueller." The other man held out his hand and she shook it. "So, are you acquainted with Dr. Cooper? Girlfriend, perhaps?"

She felt her face heat up. "N-No, I'm just a friend."

Dominik's blue eyes crinkled in the corners as he smiled. "That is something you are not happy about."

He thought she liked Sheldon? Ha! But she took one look at Dr. Gablehouser and she knew she had to say something to get him off her scent.

Time to put her acting to good use.

"No, I'm not." She looked away. "But he is so into his work that he barely notices me." Time for some water works.

She felt a tear escape her eye. "I've been in love with him since I moved in across the hall. But his first and only love will always be science." She sniffled.

Why the hell was she not getting any call backs? She was a natural!

"My dear," Dominik placed a kind hand on her shoulder. "I'm sure he will see you for the beautiful woman you are."

She gave him an unsure smile; well at least she hoped she did. "Thank you."

"Uh-hmm." Dr. Gablehouser cleared his throat. "Dr. Mueller, if we don't leave now we'll be late to our meeting."

"Oh, yes. It was nice to meet you, Penny." He stepped away from her. "Don't lose hope."

"I won't!" She smiled, this time a real one. He was such a kind man and she waved as the pair walked away.

She knew right away she did not care for Dr. Gablehouser, she knew Sheldon didn't either, but Dr. Mueller she liked.

Heading back to Sheldon's office she knew that her little act back there was probably going to come back and bite her in the ass but now, she was just focused on getting Sheldon his food in time so she wouldn't have to make another trip back to the cafeteria.

~S-P~

She walked into Sheldon's office to find him sitting in desk chair, chin in hand, as he stared at his whiteboard. He barely acknowledged her when she placed his food in front of him and plopped down in her own seat.

"Did you heat it up for the correct time?" He asked, now facing her.

She unscrewed her drink and took a sip before answering. "Yep."

"Hm, very well. Thank you, Penny."

"You're welcome, sweetie."

Watching him eat she debated if she should tell him of the conversation she had heard earlier, knowing that he would get angry if he learned that his boss wanted to choose Leonard over him for something. Oh, God, who knew what that, would do to him. She probably would never see him because he would always be here.

Nope, she would keep it to herself.

"Penny." He called her name and took her out of her thoughts.

"Yes?"

"Do you plan on staying here for the duration of my work day?" He was now finished with his food and had thrown the container away.

He had obviously been hungry.

"Um…sure. If you don't mind."

"Very well." He sighed. "I ask that you do not try to engage me in idle conversation. This is my job and I am getting paid to work." He smirked, hands clasped behind his back as he looked at her.

"Okay." She glanced at his bookshelf. "Can I read one of your books?"

"Penny." His head cocked downward so he could look down at her. "I am a man of science; therefore my books all consist of some aspect of science. There is no romance novel or other such drivel among those shelves."

Rolling her eyes, she made her way to the bookshelf. "Is that a yes, Mr. Man-of-Science?"

"Very well. But please keep them in the same condition that they are now." He went back to work on his whiteboard and tuned her out.

Well, this looks interesting. She pulled out a thin book and read the title. Hmm, I wonder if this is the same as that movie with Tom Cruise.

She shrugged and moved to sit down. Only one way to find out.

~S-P~

Penny was sucked out of her world of aliens and England when someone knocked on the door. Glancing over at Sheldon she figured he hadn't heard, so engrossed he seemed to be in his work, so she stood up and opened the door.

Leonard stood there, startled to see she had answered the door. He gave her a crooked smile as he played with his fingers.

"Hey, Penny, you're still here."

She leaned against the door. "Yup."

"Um, well, it's three and usually Sheldon and I go home at this time. Is he ready to go?"

She turned her head, still seeing Sheldon staring at his whiteboard. "I don't think so. Hey, look, you go on and I'll take him home when he's ready." Which would be in a few hours, whether he liked it or not. Last time she checked he wasn't getting paid over time.

"Okay. Will you be coming over for Chinese, later?" He looked hopeful and it took all her willpower to not roll her eyes.

"Yeah, count me in."

"Great!" His smile grew bigger. "So, I'll see you then." He waved at her and walked back down the hall.

She shut the door, sat back into her seat and got back to reading. She was surprised to find herself actually enjoying this little book.

Who said science-fiction was boring?

A/N This chapter could have gone on so much longer than I let it, but I decided to just add it onto the next chapter. I promise the next chapter won't take that long for me to update I'm kind of on a roll right now. Oh, and if you haven't seen it yet I have started a new story if you all are interested. I would love to hear from you guys!

Oh and does anyone know the book Penny is reading? I think I may have made a little obvious.