The idea of a poker/question game seemed absolutely ridiculous to Amy. Sheldon had blackmailed her into accepting to play, but she was sure that if she refused he wouldn't tell anyone the truth about their relationship. He was only bluffing. She wasn't quite sure why she was doing this. Maybe she was touched by all the effort Sheldon had put in his clumsy attempts to get back together with her, maybe part of her had many questions to ask him... In any case, if she won she'd finally get some peace of mind and she'd win a mysterious prize. But if she lost... Maybe she didn't mind losing as much as she thought she did.

"We don't have any chips." she pointed out.

"We'll play with money. I have many one-dollar bills from our visit to the strip club last night." he said

"Why did you get one-dollar bills?You didn't even tip the stripper who gave you a lap dance."

"Wolowitz told me that's what men do." he raised his shoulders "And I gave Leonard some money to give her,I didn't want to touch her and I was in dire need to wash my hands."

"If you didn't want to touch her why did you beg Leonard to buy you a lap dance?"

"You know why." he raise his eyebrows

"Anyway" she rolled her eyes "Fine, we'll play with money... The small blind is one dollar and the big blind two." she proposed

"Great... The winner keeps the money!" he smiled

"So I get you to shut up, I get a mysterious prize and money." she laughed "This weekend is starting to improve!"

"You won't win." stated Sheldon "But you'll still get the prize!"

"What's the prize?" she asked him

"It's a secret... Enough with the talk, let's play!"

She was the big blind so she put two dollars in the pot. Sheldon shuffled the deck and starting dealing. She got an 8 of hearts and a 3 of spades. Not a very good start.

Sheldon put another dollar in and opened the flop, the first three cards. Amy saw a 4 of clubs and a pair of 3!

"Yes!Three of a kind." she thought, but she didn't let the enthusiasm show in her face.

She looked at Sheldon. His facial expression didn't reveal any information about his hand. She didn't expect him to have a good poker face.

"Who taught you how to play poker anyway?" she asked him.

"It's not time for questions Amy, you're welcome to ask me again when you win a hand... It's your move." he pointed out

"Oh come on, tell me!"

"Fine" he sighed "My father taught me and my brother when we were young... Of course my mother didn't approve, so I haven't played much. Who taught you?" he asked

"I taught myself... Actually this is the first time I play with another person." she admitted

"Really?Then I need to inform that since you're the big blind you have the first move." he smiled

"I know..." she said and bet 3 dollars.

"Finally some action!Call." he said and put 3 dollars in the pot. Then he opened the turn, the fourth hand, which was a 5 of diamonds. This wasn't very good for Amy, because Sheldon would beat her with a straight if he had A-2 or 6-7... Nevertheless, she didn't show her disappointment and bet 4 dollars this time.

"I like how agressive you are." he smiled again and called.

Before he opened the last card, the river, Amy prayed to a deity she didn't believe in for the last card to be an 8, a 4, a 5 or another 3 so she would win for sure. She really wasn't in the mood to answer any of his questions yet.

But the river card was a Jack of hearts and it didn't help her at all. Not wanting to bet any more money she checked.

"Hmm... What do you have Amy? A straight perhaps?Let's see" he put 5 dollars in pot

"Call." she said and they opened their cards.

As she suspected, Sheldon had an Ace and a 2 and he won a pot of 26 dollars and a sincere answer to any question he asked.

"Wow, you had three of a kind?Too bad I got that 5, well too bad for you." he teased

"Just get it over with." she hissed. She wasn't looking forward to his question... What was he going to ask?

"Okay." he looked straight in her the eyes "Do you still love me?I'm only asking because I find it difficult to believe that you'd break up with if you still loved me."

"That's a ridiculous question." she commented

"I need an answer."

"Of course I still love you Sheldon, you know that... If I didn't love you I would break up with you instead of taking time to think, If I didn't love you we wouldn't be playing this stupid game right now!" she exclaimed

"Good... I love you too!" he smiled

"Shut up." she said and took the deck out his hand. It was her turn to deal.

She need to win this hand, she needed wipe that smug look off his face.

This time it seemed like luck was on her side... She had a pair of Aces!She was the small blind this time so she put another dollar in the pot and opened the flop.

A 2 of clubs, a 7 of spades and a Queen of hearts... A great start for Amy, there was no possibily for a flush or straight yet. Sheldon wouldn't beat her this time.

He bet 5 dollars. Maybe, he has a Queen she thought. But it didn't matter, he wouldn't beat her Aces so easily. She called his bet and opened the turn, which turned out to be a 10 of diamonds. This eliminated the possibility of a flush, but there was a chance of a straight now. It didn't worry Amy too much. It was hard to worry when she had a pair of Aces.

Sheldon bet 5 dollars again. What was he trying to do? Would he bet so much only with a straight draw? Or maybe he had two pair... In any case an Ace in the river would make Amy feel much better. She called and opened the last card.

Unfortunately it wasn't an Ace, but a 7 of hearts... Amy had two pair now and she was confident that she'd win.

"10 dollars." said Sheldon.

"Are you bluffing?" she asked "You know I don't care about money, I will never fold!Besides, I don't think you can beat me this time." she put 10 dollars in and showed him her Aces with a smile on her face.

"Oh my poor Amy." he cried "Baby, that's a bad beat." he said and he revealed a pair of 2.

The smile on Amy's face became a grimace of disbelief... He had a full house!

"I can't believe it!" she murmured "How can you be so lucky?"

He raised his shoulders and took 64 dollars from the pot.

"So... You keep saying that you don't think I love you the same way you do, what gave you this impression?"

Amy took a deep breath. Why did he have to ask this question?The fact that Sheldon wasn't in love with her was what hurt her the most, and talking about it wasn't something she wanted to do...

"I don't want to answer this question." she stated

"You lost this hand Amy, you have to answer. When I lose, I will answer any question you ask... Quid pro quo, Clarice."

His little joke didn't amuse her and she took another deep breath to keep her composure.

"Fine" she said "I just don't think you're in love with me Sheldon... You certainly don't act like a man in love. You only kiss me because you're obligated by a stupid contract and you don't intend to take our relationship to the next level. We've been together for 5 years and all I can get is one kiss after our dates and I know you're not even into it!It's like we're friends who occasionally kiss, but you only do it because you're used to having me around and you don't want to lose me."

"Amy that's not true..." he countered "I like kissing you, I'm the one who put it on the Relationship Agreement. And I kissed you yesterday without being obligated by the contract!"

"Yes Sheldon, you like kissing me so much that you're thinking about stupid TV-shows while doing it! And you only kissed me yesterday to get me to change my mind, don't deny it!"

"But..."

"No more talking... I answered your question, let's play another hand."

He dealt again, but her luck didn't change... Sheldon won with two pair and she had absolutely nothing.

She should never have agreed to do this... He had only asked her two questions but she was already overwhelmed. She dreaded the next question.

"Is this why thinking about Flash while we were kissing upset you so much?It made you think I'm not in love with you?"

"Partly, yes. It also reminded me everything that is wrong with our relationship. It was the last straw, I felt so rejected that I couldn't take it anymore!"

"I'm sorry Amy, I never meant to make you feel like that."

"You always make me feel like that..." she wiped a tear from the corner of her eye and shuffled the deck.

She had a great hand, an Ace and a King of hearts. After they both put their 2 dollars in the pot she opened the flop, a 4, an 8 and a 10 all hearts!

Sheldon only checked and she bet 6 dollars. He called and she revealed the next card, a 2 of hearts. If Sheldon wasn't uneasy before, he was definitely uneasy now. He checked again and this time Amy bet 10 dollars. He put ten dollars in and she opened the river, a King of spades. He checked for the third time, clearly without a good hand and she bet 10 dollars again. Whether he called or folded she knew she would be the winner.

"I have nothing" he declared and he called the bet.

"Then why did you call?" she asked and showed him her flush.

"I don't like folding!Ask me your question"

"Alright... Since we were just talking about Flash, I'll stay on topic. Why were you thinking about it while we were making out?"

"Um... I... A mind like mine tends to think about a lot of things Amy, thinking about a TV-show doesn't exclude thinking about you. It's like multitasking." he smiled nervously and looked at his hands.

"Aha... You know I can tell when you're lying to my face, right?"

"I'm not lying!" he exclaimed

"Sheldon!"

"I don't want to answer this question!" he insisted

"Well, too bad... I answered your question, quid pro quo, you said it yourself."

"Fine!" he gave in "This is embarassing." he took a deep breath "You know, um, when men engage in such activities as kissing, we tend to get... excited. You're a biologist I don't have to explain it any further." he said, his face thoroughly blushed

"Aha... I don't I understand, what does Flash have to do with it?"

"I think about irrelevant things when we kiss so I won't get too 'excited' and embarass myself, okay?" he confessed

"Oh... Ooooh you do it so you won't get an..."

"Yes, can we stop talking about it?" he interrupted her

"Yeah... Wow, that actually makes me feel better." she smiled

"It does?So now that the misunderstanding is over, can we continue our relationship?" he asked hopefully

"No, Sheldon, I told you that this isn't our only problem..."

So they played again and it seemed that Sheldon's initial luck had deserted him... Amy won again with a straight.

The latest revelation had given her a lot to think about. So Sheldon did desire her sexually...

"From your answer to my previous question, I assume that you have sexual impluses..."

"I do." he mumbled

"That wasn't my question... Did you ever plan to act on your impluses?"

"Are you asking me if I planned to have sex with you?" he asked

"Yes." it was her turn to blush now.

"I did. I do, sooner than you'd think."

"You're just saying it so I'll take you back."

"No!You said you can tell when I'm lying to your face, am I lying now?Look at my eyes and tell me." he demanded

He wasn't lying... She didn't know what to say, so she dealt the cards.

She was so distracted during the next hand that she didn't even notice her cards.

Sheldon wanted to have sex with me... And I asked for a break!

Did she make a mistake?Maybe her relationship wasn't as hopeless as she thought, but there were other issues that bothered her. If they could be resolved there was hope for them...

Her lucky streak was broken and she lost to Sheldon's pair of Kings. It was his turn to ask her a question. He only needed to win two more hands to win the whole game!

"You seemed pleased when you realised that I desire you sexually, but you still won't reconcile with me... So what's the real reason you broke up with me?"

"You're right it's not just about the sex, though I've been very patient about this issue and it has taken it's toll on me. Actually, that's the least of our problems. The main reason I asked for some time to think things through is that our relationship doesn't move forward. We're at the same place we were five years ago. You never include me in your plans, you applied to move to another planet..."

"I asked you to come with me!" he protested

"Yes, after preparing an application to go alone, without even telling me. And it's not just about the application to go to Mars... You're so afraid of commitment that the last time I mentioned moving in together you left town without even saying goodbye!I thought things would change after you told me that you loved me, but I was wrong. I want to move forward in my life and I want to do it with you, but you constantly push me away. Everytime we take one step forward you take us ten steps backwards. It's just...It's really frustrating."

She looked at Sheldon and she saw that he had tears pouring down his face.

"Sheldon..." she started

"I had no idea I was such an inadequate boyfriend... I make you feel rejected and I stop you from progressing in your life. I thought that... But maybe now it's too late, maybe I waited too long..." he rambled

"Sheldon, what are you talking about?" she asked

"Nothing" he wiped the tears off his face "Let's play another hand."

Amy beat him with two pair, but it didn't seem to bother him. He was still winning 4-3.

"Why are you so afraid of commitment?" she asked

"I'm not afraid of commitment, but I was afraid of change, you know that I hate changes. And now I might lose you because of that." he muttered

They played the 8th hand and Sheldon lost again. He was very quiet, avoiding eye-contact and he didn't seem to care about the game anymore. He looked like his spirit was broken.

Amy had no idea what else to ask him. She'd already asked all the things she wanted. And then she remembered...

"What's the mysterious prize?"

This question snapped Sheldon out of his melancholic state.

"That question is off-limits, you can't ask me that!"

"We never set any limits, now tell me what's the prize!" she demanded

He got off the bed, ramaged through his suitcase and came back with a small ring box in his hands.

"What is this?" she stared with disbelief

"It's an engagement ring." he answered

"When did you buy it?" she asked in an urgent tone

"I already answered one question, you can ask me again if you win the next hand."

"Sheldon I'm serious..."

"So am I. Let's play!"

She didn't want to play. She only wanted to know when had he bought that ring. If he bought it after she asked for a break, she would be sure it was one his ploys to get her back. But was there any chance he bought it before?

Luck was on Amy's side and she won the next hand with a pair of Jacks. She was winning now,5-4...

"When did you buy the ring Sheldon?"

"I didn't buy it." he replied

"What?How did you get it?Most importantly, when did you get it?"

"It doesn't matter... You deserve someone better than me.I don't want to play anymore."

"It does matter!You can't just throw a bomb at me and then quit!We need to finish the game."

He dealt the cards and part of Amy was happy when she saw that she had 7-2, a lousy hand.

She didn't want to win anymore, she didn't want him to leave her alone, not now that there was a glimmer of hope.

"I fold." she suddenly heard him saying "You win."