A/N: This is an exception to the one-shot Penny/Sheldon format. This is Mulligan and is 1 of 5 parts.
Mulligan
CalTech University
Pasadena, California
Leslie Winkle had won the Nobel Prize for Physics. His prize. Sheldon sat, paralyzed, almost unable to breathe as he re-read the University-wide email that trumpeted the triumphant news of yet another Nobel Laureate from CalTech.
Sheldon looked at his white boards and saw his formulae, his equations, his years of sacrifice, deprivation, study and hard work, all for naught and meaningless now. Winkle had talked incessantly about being on the cusp of something huge, something earth shattering, and the email clearly defined her proof of string theory. His proof, even down to the archaic usage of a Da Vince-inspired anagram that spelled out Sheldon Cooper when the variables were properly aligned.
She had stolen his work.
He approached Eric Gabelhauser with his proof and was met with scorn and an accusation of professional jealousy. In reality, Gabelhauser had weighed one man's life's work against the embarrassment and humiliation and loss of grant money that would befall the university if the information became public. The man lost, of course.
He wasn't without pity and deep down inside, Eric Gabelhauser felt outrage and anger at the perfidiousness displayed by Leslie Winkle but it was far too late to do the right thing, to expose her as a liar and a thief of another's intellectual property.
"Dr. Cooper, perhaps you need to consider a leave of absence. This must be a crushing disappointment to you and – "
"Yes. Of course." He stood in front of Gabelhauser's desk. His fingers gripped the folder containing his proof. His eyes were fixed on Gabelhauser's and the man felt as if his soul had been weighed, evaluated and found wanting.
"You shall receive my resignation via email within the hour. Live long and prosper, Dr. Gabelhauser. Enjoy living off the fruits of stolen labors. I will do nothing to embarrass the University, doctor, nor you. We both know the truth. It is enough for me, but it will never be enough for you, will it? Pass on my congratulations to Dr. Winkle on a truly well-earned accomplishment."
He turned and walked out of the office and took a cab home. He would never return to CalTech.
Sheldon holed up in his apartment, ignoring phone calls and concerned friends who came by, knocked and finally gave up. He haunted eBay and soon sold all his comic books and investment-grade action figures for a surprisingly large amount of money.
He cleaned out his checking and savings accounts, packed up what few things he wanted to take with him and left, leaving everything else behind. He had one more thing to do.
He bought a truck he saw advertised on Craig's List from a widow in Echo Park. The 1996 Chevy S-10 Pickup had a camper shell and less than 30,000 miles on it. It had sat in her garage since her husband's death and needed new tires, a battery and a tune-up.
A few days later, Leonard waited impatiently for his co-worker to appear, probably followed by an entourage of grad students anxious to bask in her presence. He knew what he had to do. His best friend's life's work had been stolen and he was going to confront her with his proof.
"Dr. Hofstadter, to what do I owe this dubious pleasure?" Her entourage tittered at the wit displayed in her greeting.
"You stole his work! I can prove it and Gabelhauser already knows the truth. How could you do that to a fellow scientist? Hell, you don't even believe in String Theory – you're a Loopist!" Her entourage seemed to take a deep breath like a crowd waiting for the executioner's axe to behead the heinous traitor.
"Proof? I seriously doubt that, Leonard, because if you did – "
"Da Vinci's Anagram. Sheldon always made use of it in his formulae. Always. And guess what? Those formulae you submitted to the journal for publication? They're rife with it. The codex is already on it's way via email to everyone I could think of. I may lose my job but I won't have to live with the shame of being a thief of intellectual property!"
One by one her entourage faded away until it was only Leonard and Winkle standing in front of her office door. She didn't even look concerned about Leonard's accusations and subsequent actions. She was more put off by the evaporation of her fawning admirers than Leonard's obvious anger.
"I'm a woman working in a male dominated profession. I'll simply claim that he stole my work and you know what? They'll believe me because I'm a lot more palatable to the community than that bag-of-whack Cooper, and I'm the more politically correct at this point in history. If I were you, Hofstadter, I'd be updating my resume about now. You can't win. No one will believe you. The university will support me rather than face the consequences of publicly admitting their own incompetence. It's all about money, Leonard, and they won't risk endowments and grants by going public."
Leonard had never struck a woman in his life and he had to turn and walk away before he knocked her on her ass. It's not fair and it's not right! Sheldon deserves that medal and by God…
Two days later Leonard's contract with the university was put under 'review' when news of his emails reached Gabelhauser. He was placed on an 'unpaid leave of absence' pending the outcome of a very slow review process.
His wife was incredibly supportive and proud of him for standing up to the system in support of his best friend. "We'll get by, honey. I've got a steady gig on a soap and soon people who know Sheldon and his work will be beating a path to your door begging you to work for them. You'll see."
Their house just off the university grounds was their little slice of heaven and she saw no reason why they should worry. She made more money than he did and now he could take the time to relax and write that textbook to replace the 'crap' they use now in high schools.
Even Leonard's mother called with financial support. "It's just until you can find another teaching position." And then she dropped her bomb on him. "I've never been proud of you, Leonard, until now. No matter what happens, you did the right thing and will never have to be ashamed of being a second-class scientist because you are a first-class human being." He wasn't quite sure how to interpret the remark but he did take her money.
Penny came back from the studio later in the week with some disturbing news. She'd dropped by their old apartment building to drag Sheldon over to their house for dinner. They couldn't reach him by phone because it had been disconnected.
His apartment was empty. Penny contacted the landlord and was told that Sheldon had paid out the lease and left the previous afternoon.
Penny was upset and in tears. She felt badly that neither of them had pressed the issue and gone to see him after Winkle's award had been announced but both had felt that Sheldon would need some time to formulate a plan to recover his honor.
"I'll call his mom, Penny. I'm sure he's taken the train to Texas, not that I blame him for not wanting to stick around and have to look at that pig, Winkle."
Mary Cooper had no idea her son had left California or the circumstances of his departure until now but her response was classic.
"Leonard, I shall risk damnation but I will coerce the prayer circle to pray for Winkle's soul because her ass belongs to me! No one hurts my Shellybean and certainly not a thief of his Nobel Prize. I will call you the instant he contacts me. Thank you, Leonard. You are a good friend to my son. I hope you continue doing good work at CalTech."
"Um, actually, I was fired for proving that Winkle stole Sheldon's work. It's all about money, Mrs. Cooper, but don't worry, Penny's on TV regularly and I'm going to write a textbook. I'll send you a copy. I intend to dedicate it to Sheldon and tell the world the truth."
"I will call you when Shelly arrives. He may not admit it, but he needs people like you and Penny in his life. I'll have him call you as soon as he's settled in."
But the call never came and soon it became apparent to Leonard, Penny and Sheldon's mom that he hadn't 'gone home to Texas' but had dropped off the face of the earth.
His resignation had stirred up a shit storm when Leonard's emails had been received and the proof made public. In academic circles worldwide, Sheldon's theories were always praised as cutting-edge although his personality made them avoid any personal contact like the plague.
Amy was crushed that he hadn't sought comfort in her arms but soon found comfort in Rajesh's. Howard and Bernadette conducted detailed internet searches and used her father's 'cop contacts' to find him but it was obvious that Sheldon Cooper didn't want to be found.
In the months that followed, articles would begin appearing in scientific journals supporting Cooper, demanding an investigation and in some, demands that Winkle be stripped of her 'Prize'. Those anagrams had been present in earlier publications and were his 'signature' of sorts.
Winkle refused interviews, cashed the prize check and soon became a regular fixture in nightclubs and meat markets. She became a pariah at CalTech although she was granted tenure in the physics department. The grant money fizzled out, the offers to conduct a lecture tour never appeared and she soon quit going to work, not that anyone cared.
One of Five