Amy had been having a late breakfast when she heard a loud pounding on her door. When she opened the door, she saw a perky Penny standing there with a bottle of wine in her hand.

"What are you doing here, Penny? You're never usually awake at ten in the morning on a Sunday!"

Penny went ahead and barged in. "I am today. I'm on a mission. You haven't returned my calls and texts, or Bernadette's for that matter. I've been getting concerned. You won't come to girls' night, so I brought girls' night to you, or girls' morning, I guess."

"It's too early for wine. I just ate breakfast!"

Penny was already grabbing wine glasses from the kitchen. "Well, then here's something to wash your breakfast down. Bernadette will join us a little later. Stuart is looking at a possible apartment, and insisted Howard and Bernadette look at it with him." She poured two glasses and handed one to Amy.

Amy rolled her eyes and took the glass. "Ok, fine. Whatever makes my bestie happy."

Penny slumped onto the couch. "Calling your bestie back is a good start. Seriously, Ames, it's been two weeks. How are you doing? What's going on?"

Amy stared at her little monkey figurine as she sat down as well. It had been over two weeks since that disastrous dinner. She thought she could handle the normal routine, but seeing Sheldon like that, and realizing he had no idea what this break was all about, was just too much for her. She knew she had to really distance herself this time, even from her friends temporarily, so she busied herself in her work whenever she could. The funny thing was she felt less productive than she ever had before in her life.

"I'm sorry I haven't talked to you. I don't know how to do this. I don't want to lose you guys as my friends."

Penny waved her hand dismissively. "Don't even worry about that right now. That's not going to be an issue. What I want to know is where do you stand with Sheldon?"

Amy could feel her bottom lip begin to quiver at the mention of his name, and it was all she could do not to break down completely. "I don't know! I have utterly no idea what to do. He's actually given me the time I requested to think things over, and to be honest, I'm a little shocked that he has. Yet, I can't come up with a solution. I just want to get inside that big, bulbous brain of his and see what he's thinking! Actually, perhaps I don't, because he's probably not even thinking about me!"

"Sweetie, Sheldon's only thinking about you. He loves you and misses you terribly."

"I know he loves me, but I'm not on his mind the way you're describing. He wasn't thinking of me when we were making out on our anniversary. He wasn't thinking of me when he thought it was a good idea to apply to go to Mars. He wasn't thinking of me when he left to ride silly trains for six weeks! I want us to be a team in our decisions. I want to matter to him. He's still so set in his selfish ways it's like the thought of acknowledging his girlfriend seems like a foreign concept!"

Penny bit her lip, wanting so badly to tell Amy about the engagement ring, that Sheldon was thinking about her and was committed to her. But Amy had to discover that on her own. Blurting it out would ruin everything.

"What you need to do is sit Dr. Wackadoodle down and tell him this yourself. You know, both of you just need to work on your communication."

"We have excellent communication! It's one of our greatest strengths together!" Amy stiffened, suddenly feeling a bit defensive.

"It's also one of your greatest weaknesses. Sure, you guys talk well, except when it comes to your feelings. Then it's like you both do this tiptoe dance around the other because you're both so scared to find out what the other is thinking!"

Amy paused, realizing there was truth in her statement. "That's an astute observation, Penny. That definitely can't be the wine talking. How did you come to this conclusion?"

"Because I did it with Leonard for years. He was the kindest, smartest guy I'd ever met before. I knew he was special, but I was terrified of commitment and what it would mean for us. So, I avoided the issue until I couldn't anymore. I finally had to own up to what I was feeling, and once I told him, and started sharing where I was at, it wasn't so scary. It helped us get to the next level of our relationship."

"And then he goes and cheats on you, which I still can't believe he did."

"Yeah, it's something I never, ever thought I'd have to worry about with him. It's still a surprise, but it was that woman who initiated it. He then joined in the kiss for a few seconds before he realized just what was happening. We're trying to move past it, because we love each other more than anything, but it's taking time. Just be glad Sheldon would never do anything like that to you."

Amy leaned back on the couch. He wouldn't, would he? Amy had never had to worry that Sheldon had wandering eyes. He may have his faults, sure, but he was definitely a one-woman man, an only-woman man. She couldn't help but smile a little.

Penny happened to notice. "Ready to go get your man back?"

"Yes, I mean, no! It's not that simple! Look, here's the thing. I never expected to fall in love like this, but now that I have, I've come to desire everything that normally comes with that love, you know, marriage, sex, family. I just don't think Sheldon may ever want those things. And I'd like to be romanced on occasion! Sheldon hates romance, and anything he would deem 'hippie-dippy.' I have to accept the fact that he may never offer me those things, and what I'm questioning is whether or not I am ok with that."

Penny was biting her lip so hard she was afraid it would start bleeding. "Ok, Amy, I have to tell you something. Sheldon—"

Penny's phone beeped with a text notification just then. She took a glance and saw it was from Leonard.

"It's been a looooong morning. Hope Amy is doing alright. See you at home. Love you."

Ok, so he just happens to send a random text right as I'm about to spill the beans about the ring?! It's like he knew! Fine, I'll keep my mouth shut!

Amy was the ever-captive audience, waiting on Penny to complete her thought. Think of something! "—Um, Sheldon does do romantic stuff for you! He does stuff he'd never do for anyone else. He tries so hard sometimes."

"Well, maybe I deserve more."

"What are you really wanting here, Amy? A normal relationship with a normal guy? If that's the case, then you need to break up with Sheldon immediately and stop stringing him along, because Sheldon will never fit the 'normal' mold. And guess what? Neither will you!"

Amy folded her arms, feeling the baggage of a lifetime of name-calling and never fitting in. "So? What's wrong with that?"

"NOTHING! That's the point! You're both unique and that's what gives your relationship its power! Look, if you want some Mr. Darcy type guy to whisk you away, you're not going to find him. He doesn't exist. But that doesn't mean that what's right in front of you isn't good. There have to be some moments where Sheldon made you feel special, right?"

Amy thought for a minute. "Well, the tiara he bought me made me feel incredibly special, but of course, Sheldon was trying to make up for ignoring my accomplishment with my paper getting published. I loved the picture frame he gave this past Christmas, but that was given to make me feel bad about not getting him a gift," she said with a grimace. This wasn't working so well.

"Think back harder," Penny prodded.

"Well, I know when he made me his emergency contact that it was completely his idea, and I loved that he trusted me enough with something that important to him. When he kissed me on the train, and we looked at each other afterward, we both knew something had changed for us. I could barely breathe, and I could tell he was deeply affected by the kiss. It was one of those most tender moments we have ever shared together."

"Ok, now we're talking."

"Whenever we eat out, Sheldon is vigilant about making sure there is nothing with avocado on my plate. He sends a goodnight text every night without fail. He told me recently the reason he bought me the mushroom log for Valentine's Day was because its longevity reminded him of us, which, I have to say, changed my opinion of the gift. And, for some reason, whenever I make him watch an old French movie with me, the times I look over at him he's always staring back at me, smiling."

Penny noticed how Amy's entire demeanor had changed. Her face was aglow with a smile that had crept up on her, and Amy's shoulders had relaxed as well.

Putting a hand on Amy's shoulder, Penny looked straight at her friend. "Sweetie, that is romance. It's those little gestures that make everything worth it. I mean, Leonard bought me a freaking car before! But when I think of him being romantic, that's not the first thing that comes to mind. It's him making me a cup of coffee in the morning, or sending me a text like the one I just got. It sounds like Sheldon's version of romance works for you."

"I guess you're right, as long as I know where I stand with him. I suppose never knowing for sure where I stand, I've had to resort to the romantic gestures I've read about all my life as a yardstick for where our relationship was at. But that's not fair to Sheldon. I love him for who he is. I don't want to change him. I just want to know how I factor in his life."

"Well, the only way to truly find out is to go straight to the source."

"You're right. I need to go see him. I need to talk to him right away!"

"But don't just let him off the hook."

"I'm letting myself off the hook. These past two weeks have been unbearable without him. If there's one thing this break has shown me, it's that I need him in my life however that may end up looking. We will have to hash things out before any decisions are made, but I can't keep going on without hearing his side of the story, no matter how painful it may be to hear."

Penny grinned, excited at the prospect of these two talking again. Sheldon may not be Mr. Darcy, but she had a feeling Amy was still about to get swept off her feet.

Leonard was completely wiped out, and wanted nothing more than to cozy up in his bed and sleep for two days straight. It had been a grueling two weeks dealing with an exhausted Sheldon who just couldn't sleep. Sheldon kept insisting on inadvertently waking Leonard in some fashion, whether it be breaking out his bongos, or playing Taylor Swift while working on his whiteboards, or deciding that two in the morning was the perfect time to reorganize his closet. And once Leonard stumbled out of his room with a look that could kill, Sheldon was all too eager to discuss a myriad of nonsensical topics, conversing a mile a minute, all while avoiding the enormous elephant in the room. Leonard was starting to think a glaring of cats might actually be easier to handle than this.

Last night, however, a miracle occurred. Sheldon had finally managed to nod off in his bed around eleven or so, causing Leonard to do a quiet happy dance as he flew to his bedroom for his blissful passage into his REM cycle.

Then at 4:16 exactly, Leonard was awakened by Sheldon's scream. He remained still in his bed, thinking Sheldon must have had a bad dream, but maybe he would go right back to sleep. A minute later he heard his name being called, and reluctantly got up, shaking his head. The things he did for his best friend.

When Leonard opened Sheldon's door, he was shocked to see Sheldon bawling his eyes out. He'd never seen such raw emotion from his roommate before, and he found it unnerving yet endearing. His heart went out to him. Leonard knew all too well the pain of being separated from the one you love. He'd gone through it way too much with Penny.

Leonard guided Sheldon out into the living room, sat him down, and began to make tea for the both of them. Once the tea was ready, Leonard sat down and waited while Sheldon started to slowly compose himself.

That was over five hours ago.

Thankfully, it was Sunday, and there was no place they had to urgently be. He already knew Penny was planning on going over to Amy's this morning, so he couldn't use her as an excuse to leave. But he didn't really mind helping Sheldon out too much, especially after seeing him in such an emotional state.

Sheldon had hemmed and hawed about sharing the dream. It had clearly impacted him a great deal, but eventually he did begin sharing with Leonard what he had experienced, every detail with great vividness. Leonard was rather fascinated with the dream, seeing how Sheldon's subconscious was right on the money, but Sheldon didn't seem to see it quite yet.

"And then she vanished, Leonard. Vanished! It was terrifying! That's when I woke up."

"Wow. I'm sorry you went through that, Sheldon. It definitely seems like your dream was trying to tell you something."

"Yes, that Amy and I will never go anywhere near a boxing ring!"

Leonard rolled his eyes, and folded his arms. "Really? That's your big takeaway from all this? Sheldon, this dream left you in tears."

"That was merely from the shock of it all! It certainly wasn't because I was feeling emotio—" Sheldon's protest when he glanced at Leonard looking at him skeptically. "Ok, it was more than that. I'm scared to lose Amy. Apparently my subconscious believes I've been a terrible boyfriend and she's going to leave me forever."

"And the conscious part of you? What does it think?"

"I'm not sure that I've been a terrible boyfriend. I just wish I knew what I did wrong so I could try to make it better, but perhaps that isn't possible."

"Sheldon, I'm not sure it's anything one thing you did or anything necessarily wrong with you. I think the bottom line is Amy probably wants you to express your feelings more. She can't read your mind, no matter how brilliant she is."

Sheldon wrung his hands together and looked at the floor.

Leonard leaned forward. "What is it, buddy? What's the real issue here?"

"I suppose it's that part of me is still afraid I will lose myself with Amy, and I love myself. I don't want to lose what makes me me."

"If you ask me, I think you found yourself with Amy."

Sheldon's head popped up. "Explain."

"She opened up your heart. We didn't know if you had one before her, no offense. But you're still a genius. You still love trains and comic books. But you're a better person now. Our friendship is better. Your other relationships are better. I think this is who you were meant to be all along. You haven't lost anything. You've only gained."

With his emotions still hovering so near the surface, tears began to prick at his eyes, but he quickly blinked them away. Leonard, against all odds, was right. Amy had brought a sense of completion to his life he'd never known he'd needed. He remembered when science was his only great love. But it never seemed to give him the satisfaction he had thought it would. Amy had changed it all. He couldn't ever go back to that man that he used to be, and he didn't want to. He wanted to go forward this time, as long as Amy was with him. Suddenly, everything in his dream was making a lot more sense.

"I have to tell her…." he whispered to himself, "But it might be too late."

Leonard heard it all. "It's not too late. She didn't break up with you, remember?"

"But I have given her space and she still hasn't contacted me! She's had three weeks! What more does she need? And what can I do?"

Leonard smiled. "Well, I know I told you to wait it out, but at this point, the best advice I can give you is…Schrödinger's cat."

Sheldon's eyes widened. "That's brilliant, Leonard!"

"You sound surprised," Leonard said with a smirk.

Ignoring his comment, Sheldon continued. "That's exactly the status of our relationship right now. And I have to ensure that the cat is still alive. I have to open the box! I know exactly what to do!"

Sheldon hopped up and ran to the bathroom. Within twenty minutes, he had shaved, showered, and dressed, and was feeling more hopeful than he had in weeks. Leonard was amazed at the abrupt change in his friend, and while he was curious when Sheldon spent ten minutes carefully writing something out, he didn't question it and went on with his day.

After Sheldon had finished writing, he immediately called Amy.

She surprisingly picked up on the first ring. "Hello?"

"Amy, it's time we had a talk. I've given you space, and I think it's only fair that we have a proper discussion. So, I'm coming over to your place right now, whether you like it or not."

"That's not necessary."

Sheldon's heart sank. Oh, no. She's already decided she's breaking up with me! He could barely get any more words out. "Why is that?" he squeaked.

"Because I just pulled up in front of your building."

A/N: Hey, folks! I apologize for the delay in getting this chapter out. I just started a new job, so it's been a crazy couple weeks of transition. I also struggled in the writing of this chapter. It didn't quite come together the way I wanted it to, but I still hope you enjoy it. Don't give up on this story just yet, big stuff is still ahead! Please leave a review, and thanks for reading!